Following the Bluebirds’ promotion back to the Championship, we caught up with FPA chair Roger Gibbins, who works in hospitality on matchdays at Cardiff City Stadium, taking in all the action from an incredible campaign.
“It’s the culmination of what's been a very good season,” Roger began. From game one, it’s been great to watch. The main thing was to get back into Championship, and they've done it and done it in style. It’s been a joy to watch the youngsters progress through the Academy but you’ve also got to give credit to the senior professionals who have stayed and improved their games this season.
“That’s been down to the manager and his staff who have played a system to get the best out of those players. Particularly in midfield, we’ve thrived this season. You’ve seen the likes of Alex Robertson, David Turnbull and Ryan Wintle, established professionals who stayed around and have put in good performances over the course of the season. The squad was always good enough to achieve promotion and they’ve done that, so credit to them.
“I’m so happy for the coaching staff and the players, but also for everyone involved with the Club. Everyone plays their part in making the Club work, the effort that people put in is massive so I’m pleased that everyone can enjoy the end of this season and the success that we’ve had. It’s great to see the fans celebrating, this promotion touches a lot of people and the impact is massive.”
BRIAN’S IMPACT
The summer saw the arrival of new head coach Brian Barry-Murphy, who has quickly become a hugely popular figure with the FPA following his debut season in the Welsh capital.
Roger continued: “Brian has been fantastic. He saw the potential and the opportunity, even in adversity when the Club was a bit down after relegation. I think you have to congratulate those who appointed him. It has just worked perfectly. With his experience coaching young players at Manchester City and with us wanting to bring through Academy talents this season, it was just the perfect match.
“We’ve seen the benefits of that and how much Academy influence there has been on this season, but they’ve been supported by players like Callum Robinson and Calum Chambers, the older lads who have that experience to be able to guide them. There’s a mix of young players and really good older professionals. Brian has got this team together and the players believe in what he’s doing. It was so impressive to see how quickly he turned it around. He only had a few weeks in pre-season then from the first day of the season against Peterborough United, you could see the potential of the team.”
GROWING THE FPA
Away from First Team successes, this campaign has also seen progress for the FPA, who are regularly involved in Club and fan-based events, as well as growing in membership with Bluebirds of yesteryear.
“I’m really pleased with the way this season has gone for the FPA,” Roger added. “We’ve had the full support of the Club, the Community Foundation and the Disabled Supporters Association and that’s what we’re interested in is to keep working together to grow. A big part of what we do is bringing players back to the Club and the word is definitely getting around because there have been so many ex-players coming to Cardiff City Stadium this season to watch a game. They come back and speak about the memories that they have from their playing days and the fans love it, both young and old.
“The players that represented the Club support Cardiff City after leaving and they’re always happy to come back and interact with the fans, which is great for us to see. We’ve also done a lot of work in support of Jason Bowen and Don Murray who aren’t well and it’s so important to us that we do everything we can to support them and their families. We’re doing that in conjunction with the PFA and it’s something that we work on as a whole Club. Similar to the results on the pitch, everyone has a part to play and there’s people from all over the Club that are having an impact.”