My fellow Premier League supporters, welcome to this Annual Meeting! Wow!!
How different from this time last year! Then we were a little apprehensive, having just escaped relegation by the skin of our teeth and with a new, unknown coach leading us. Tipped for relegation, we were then slapped with a transfer embargo, and hey ho, we seemed doomed!
It was, therefore, a wonderful denial of opportunity. Our coach soon had us believing in him, the player recruitment team were incredible even though they could only sign free transfers or loan players, and we were enjoying the new positive football. Now, we brace ourselves for the unknown of our return to the Premier League. We know to expect a tough journey, but we will stand alongside whatever team we are given and cheer their endeavours to prove the football ‘experts’ wrong again!
However, let us look back and refresh ourselves with the story that was our 2025-26 season.
Our monthly meetings:
We have enjoyed a very varied programme over the year.
Once again, we have extended our monthly meeting to include two luncheons: Christmas and the End of the Season. The latter was also an experiment to introduce the menu from the ‘Street Food’ options that have proved so popular on matchdays. Maybe not so popular for us, but it was an experiment! These require considerable planning but leave members with what we hope will be a great memory.
Special guest speakers during the season were: Terry Dolan (Sept. ’25), Lewie Coyle (Oct.), Steve Jordan (Nov.), Stan McEwan (Jan. ‘26), Joe Geldhardt (Feb,), Fraizer Campbell (Apr.) and a wonderful forum of speakers at our full-day event in March. This was themed around 1966, England’s World Cup & Tiger’s promotion to the 2nd Division. Those speakers included Chris Simpkin & Mike Williams, from the promotion squad. Other speakers included the daughters of the late Jock Davidson (1966 squad), David Bond and some of our own members, sharing their memories of 1966 – a fabulous event.
Detailed reports of all our meetings can, of course, be found on our website.
Our Outings:
The ever-popular outings gave members a wonderful variety of places to visit. This included a return to Beamish in Northumbria, the Laurel Vines Vineyard, north of Leconfield, and the new Hill Dickinson Stadium, home of Everton. Then we had a return to London via Hull Trains, Jodrell Bank in Cheshire and the NHS Garden at Bridgewater (Manchester). We ended the season with back-to-back railway visits, first the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway plus Haworth, and the Scunthorpe Steelworks Railway. So many memories.
Remiss if I overlooked the visit to the Leeds Pantomime, Oh yes we did! That was before Christmas, and in January a large number went out for Afternoon Tea & Entertainment at Little Weighton. Looks like it is now a regular treat!
Other Activities:
Senior Tigers is more than football nostalgia; it offers a full and rounded programme of activities that support the bigger picture, our Health & Wellbeing. The growing partnership with Home Instead shows how important it is to recognise when support at home is required. Tina Hilpert has joined us through the season, and Home Instead are now sponsoring our mini-bus pick-up service, so important to members who, otherwise, could not attend our monthly meetings.
Walking Football was our first additional activity and is now well established with the support of The Tigers’ Trust. Two sessions every week, and the same with our Table Tennis activity, which steadily grows from month to month. Swimming, such a great activity, is available every week, and it would be wonderful to see more members taking the opportunity. Well done to Pat Ellis, who coordinates these two activities. Away matches have always been popular, and for years Ernie Addy has organised these for us. Ernie has now handed over to Andy Riley, and there are plans afoot for the new Premiership Season. Finally, with the support of KCOM, we have regular sessions for members with questions and issues about computer technology, don’t we all? If you have never taken advantage of this provision, then give it some consideration.
Such a busy and varied programme only happens because people are putting in a big shift. We are so indebted to them. Barbara, our Treasurer, Membership Secretary & Outing Supremo; Shirley, our fantastic Secretary, keeping us informed and summarising our activities; Rob, who looks after our fabulous website and all technical issues; Tony, for the leadership of our Memorabilia Team and those monthly articles in our Newsletter; Richard, for the preparation and presentation of our player interviews; Pat, Ernie, & Andy, each doing numerous duties. That is just the committee, but alongside we have a wonderful team of helpers, people like Pete, who has now stood down after years of running the monthly raffle, a massive job. Other members welcome you to our meetings, sell you tea & coffee tickets, and raffle tickets. Tony has an incredible group on the Memorabilia Team, and others are ready to help with tasks from time to time. We sincerely thank them, and everyone.
Finally, we try hard to provide a satisfying experience at the Senior Tigers. We also look to ensure it doesn’t exclude people, if at all possible. For this, we are so grateful to our Sponsors, who ensure that we can keep things accessible. Hull City AFC (including the Tigers Events management and staff with their fabulous support on our meeting and luncheon days), the Tigers’ Trust, KCOM, Acklams Coaches/Holidays, Jupiter Web Solutions, all make invaluable contributions to running our Senior Tigers’ club.
Further to the above, we would want to thank KCOM for allowing the committee to hold their monthly meetings at the Carr Lane HQ, and co-ordinating the Listening Project, capturing your memories. Acklams have also agreed to cover the cost of our membership cards for the second season, as well as being generous with the coaches for our outings. Also, a first for our Club, Ernie has won a bid and secured funding from the Home Instead Charities to cover the operational costs of the minibus service.
It is a privilege to be part of something that excites me so much. I hope you all feel the same.
Allen
August 2026
