3rd Signing arrives - Anthony Tonkin

Anthony Tonkin today became the third player to be signed with financial support from the 12th Man scheme, following his capture from our BSP rivals Cambridge United. This signing is made at a crucial stage of the season. He is an experienced, talented player who we sure will do well for the club. The fund is expected to contribute a significant amount.

Anthony is described by Cambridge United as an elegant, attacking left-back who is a former England C international. He has played for Yeovil, Stockport, Crewe, Grays Athletic and Forest Green during his career, having signed for Cambridge in the summer of 2008. His transfer from Stockport County to Crewe was for a fee of £150,000.00. Only this weekend he has been regarded as one of the best left-backs in Non-League by the Non League Paper.

The 12th Man Group which includes a cross section of Oxford United fans' organisations are very pleased that the fund has been instrumental in securing Anthony's transfer, and we look forward to seeing him for the Us in weeks and months ahead as we all aim for a successful conclusion to the 2009-2010 season.

Chris Davis, a spokesman for the 12th Man said:

“We'd like to thank all the supporters who have contributed £25,000 to the fund since its inception, a sum massively in advance of what was originally envisaged by the organisers. Anthony’s purchase is now the third squad addition the supporters have helped to fund.

“The 12th Man will continue to grow over the coming months and we encourage fans to continue to raise funds so we can aid the club to sign players of a similar calibre in the future.”

All fans will welcome Anthony and wish him every success in his time at Oxford United.

The 12th Man - How it works

The 12th Man Initiative was set up at the start of August 2009 and is run by a collective of supporters, not attributed to one group or organisation.

During the last six months, Oxford United Supporters have spent remarkable time and effort in building a fund to help Chris Wilder and Oxford United strengthen the first team squad. The initial target was only to raise £10,000 over the course of the season to help supplement the playing budget.

It is with great pride that as of 1 January 2010 the fund has raised over £24,000 in five months. £5000 secured the signing of Jamie Cook and a further payment of £3142 was paid last week, as a contribution to the cost of Onome Sodje's loan.

Unfortunately for both Oxford United and Onome, lack of games prevented the fans from seeing more match time and possibly goals from our loan signing. However, his goal at Salisbury may yet yield a significant point in our quest to win promotion.

With two transactions having been made, the fund currently stands at circa £16,760.00with further deposits due to be made. This is a truly remarkable effort from all our supporters.

It is important to try and explain how the fund works once the fund-raising and donations have been made. A brief explanation is below.


The Process

The process works by the Club Chairman (Kelvin Thomas) applying to the Fund Management Committee, for either a Transfer Fee, Player Wages, a Loan Fee or Loan Wages. The three-man Fund Management Committee is made up of two supporters (currently Rob Newton and Neil Carter, The OxVox Treasurer) and Mr Thomas, where the amount is discussed and approved (the fund is used to supplement, not replace, the managers budget). Payment is then made to the Football Club with receipts being required.


A Contract of Understanding between OxVox, Oxford United Supporters and Oxford United Football Club was signed before the 12th Man Initiative was launched. We will be putting this document in the public domain in the very near future so that everyone can see the thorough terms and conditions which must be adhered to at all times. It will be available to view at the numerous supporting websites which include RageOnline, OxVox, the official 12th Man Blogspot (link below) and OxKits. Any other supporter group who would like to publish the details on the website just need to get in touch with the 12th Man at twelfthman@oxvox.org.uk

We have now are entered the January 2010 Transfer Window and the 12th Man Fund is ready to support Oxford United Football Club, Kelvin Thomas and Chris Wilder at this important stage of the season.

The Future

Within the near future, we will be hosting a 12th Man meeting for supporters who would like to remain part of or join the fund-raising and planning of future 12th Man events in 2010. We will announce details on the websites and forums when we have organised a date.

12th Man wishes everyone a Happy New Year

Having set up the 12th Man Initiative at the start of August 2009, Oxford United Supporters have spent remarkable time and effort in building a fund to help Chris Wilder and Oxford United strengthen the first team squad. The initial target was ONLY to raise £10,000 to help supplement the playing budget.

It is with great pride that as of 1 January 2010 the fund has raised over £24,000, of which £5000.00 secured the signing of Jamie Cook and a further payment due in respect of Onome Sodje's loan wages. The exact amount will be announced once the 12th Man have passed an invoice.

The Process

The process works by the Club Chairman (Kelvin Thomas) applying to the Fund Management Committee, for either a Transfer Fee, Player Wages, a Loan Fee or Loan Wages. The three-man Fund Management Committee is made up of two supporters and Mr Thomas, where the amount is discussed and approved. Payment is then made to the Football Club with receipts being required.

A Contract of Understanding between OxVox, Oxford United Supporters and Oxford United Football Club was signed before the 12th Man Initiative was launched. We will be putting this document in the public domain in the very near future so that everyone can see the thorough terms and conditions which must be adhered to at all times.

We now are entering the January 2010 Transfer Window and the 12th Man Fund is ready to support Oxford United Football Club, Kelvin Thomas and Chris Wilder at this important stage of the season.

We take this opportunity to wish evey Oxford United Supporter and their families a Happy New Year.

12th Man

Christmas Greetings - New Total Announced

Total raised since Day 1 of the 12th Man Fund passes £20,000 !

By yesterday, 21st December 2009, the total cleared funds in the 12th Man account had risen further to £17,903.

This means that in total, including the payment of £5,000 made in respect of Jamie Cook, a magnificent £22,903 has been banked.



Still time to donate before 31st December

Donations: £10 or more to 12th Man gets you entry into a draw at the end of this month for a day at the training ground. early in the New Year. £20 or more also gets you a year’s free membership of OxVox. Please donate online, via the OxVox and OxKits websites, or send a cheque payable to ‘The 12th Man’ to 18 Harvest Way, Witney, Oxon OX 28 1EG.

12th Man Update - Friday 11th December 2009 - NEW TOTAL

The 12th Man this evening can announce that we now have cleared in the 12th Man account a sum of £14,300.00.

Since the 12th Man has been in operation (1 August 2009) we have raised and cleared £19,300.00, of which £5000.00 was used for the purchase of Jamie Cook.

We are still awaiting monies to come in from a number of sources over the next three weeks. Therefore, we will announce a further total just prior to the January's 2010 Transfer Window.

Thank you for your continued support.

12th Man

12th Man Update - Friday 27th November

12th Man Update – 24 November 2009

Onome Sodje

First, we are very pleased to confirm that the 12th Man Fund has enabled a second signing to be made. The Fund will pay for Onome Sodje’s loan period here. Welcome, Onome, and every success during your time with United.

The £10,000 target is smashed!

By 23 November the total cleared funds in the 12th Man account had leapt to an extraordinary £9,462.

This means that in total, including the payment of £5,000 made in respect of Jamie Cook, £14,462 has been banked. The initial target of £10,000 over the whole season has been demolished and it will rise further in the coming days – a tribute to the fans and to everyone involved.

Events update

The Priory Race Night on 21 November and the 6-a-side on 22 November made for a busy weekend and everyone who attended enjoyed themselves. Congratulations respectively to Tim Rackley at the Priory and to Mark Sennett of OxVox for organising these two events so successfully. The victorious United 6-a-side team are pictured – they did not have the strength left to lift the trophy, so you can only see the top of it!

12th Man Christmas Party at the Priory on December 5th: Look out for the announcements this week and next, and please come along after the match against Ebbsfleet. This will be an event for all the family, featuring food, a raffle, and a memorabilia auction.

Sunday 6th December: The second afternoon 6-a-side competition is held, again at Oxford Brookes. Having won the first competition the OUFC team will be going for the double.

Other fundraisers:

Donations: These are picking up now and more are welcomed to boost that total! £10 or more to 12th Man gets you entry into a draw at the end of 2009 for a day at the training ground. £20 or more also gets you a year’s free membership of OxVox. Please donate online, via the OxVox and OxKits websites, or send a cheque payable to ‘The 12th Man’ to 18 Harvest Way, Witney, Oxon OX 28 1EG.

Wristbands: 3,000 wristbands were produced and 2,800 were sold last week. Many thanks to the Oxford Mail and the Club for a strong promotional campaign. Only small numbers remain. There is no immediate plan to re-order at this point. The remainder are being sold around the ground.

12th Man badges: 4,000 were produced of which 3765 have been sold. Only yellow badges remain, and subject to availability will be sold at the club shop and around the ground.

Flag bearer: The flag bearer package for £50 is well established – a few matches remain this season. Please email twelfthman@oxvox.org.uk for details.

OxVox membership: For the rest of the year, supporters’ trust OxVox is donating 25% of all new membership fees to 12th Man. Sign up at www.oxvox.org.uk .

Photos: The 100 limited edition signed photos of Les Phillips and Jeremy Charles in the 1986 Milk Cup run have also sold heavily but some still remain – to reserve yours please contact Greig Box Turnbull at oxfordutd.12thmanpix@yahoo.co.uk .

Looking forward

12th Man doesn’t stop with 2010 arriving. There will be a pause over the festive period, but we already know of several new ideas running up to the end of the season and beyond. If you want to run an event or have a fundraising idea, do get in touch. We’d love to hear from you.

12th Man sign Onome Sodje

Today Oxford United's Chairman, Kelvin Thomas, thanked the fans once again for their support which is helping to bring in new faces into the club.

The 12th Man Fund yesterday helped Chris Wilder's Oxford United to sign Barnsely striker, Onome Sodje on loan until January 2010. Kelvin said:

"We felt it an important time to strengthen especially with the injuries we have picked up. The 12th Man Fund enabled us to bring in two players rather than just one. It was the fans who enabled us to bring in Onome on loan, just as they helped us to bring Jamie Cook back to the club.

"I am sure that Onome and Franny (Francis Green) will be great assets. The way the 12th Man keeps backing the club is fantastic and is playing a major part in everything we do. The support we receive on a matchday and the financial help from the 12th Man both highlight how the club, the players and the supporters are all pulling in the right direction"

Speaking on behalf of the 12th Man, Trevor Lambert added:

"This is exactly the kind of situation the 12th Man Fund was designed to help with. Fans recognise the importance of adding to the manager's options at this crucial stage of the season. Everyone involved with the fund is very happy to see the fans' money put to good use in signing Onome Sodje, and we wish him and Franny Green every success during their time with the club".