Report of Trust meeting with BCAFC Feb 2025

March 7, 2025

In attendance from the Club were, Ryan Sparks (RS) – Club CEO

Representing the Trust was, Manny Dominguez (MD) – Chair & Carl White (CW)

 

Apologies were given from Paula Watson (PW), Director of Operations, Justin Bret (JB) – Trust Vice Chair, and Matthew Pickles (MP) also from the Trust.

 

Bantams Supporters Trust met with the Club on Monday 10th Feb. 

The last meeting with the Club was on the 18th of November 24, 3 months ago.

 

This meeting covered a lot of ground in all matters we wanted to know more about and there was more of a sense we felt part of a process. So, without further ado lets dive into it.

 

Season Tickets and Matchday tickets

The Club felt that they were not at a stage where they had come to an agreement about next year’s season ticket prices.

 

Like in November’s meeting, the Club reiterated their concern that there are challenging rising costs they must contend with, such as an increase in rates, utilities and minimum wage, National Insurance etc – overall between £350,000 and £400,000. For example when it comes to renewals, the Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA) who yearly provide safety licenses to stadiums charge a fee based on the capacity of the stadium. It costs £17,000 (a recent increase) and it was felt this is unfair and that the cost should be based on what the position of a club sits in the pyramid. This figure used to be less than £500.

 

Matchdays are dependent on season ticket holders, and the Club lost between 600 – 700 season ticket holders from last season. However there has been an increase in the numbers who buy match day tickets, largely due to the recent success of the team.

 

The Club said that it is committed to providing affordable season ticket prices and will consult the Trust and Supporters Board on its’ proposal for next season.

 

The Trust stated that it felt its free tickets to schools in disadvantaged areas of the city was commendable and its £3 for its community tickets to encourage a new generation of fans is excellent as well.

 

The Club talked about its Community Takeover, as part of the EFL’s Community Weekend, for the MK Dons game on the 22nd of Feb which will be in the TL Dallas (Bradford End) stand, but there would be lots of activities in the main (Morrison’s Family) stand. The Club are making a lot of effort to reach ‘the EFL Family Excellence status’ hoping to reach gold this year. 15 out of 92 EFL clubs will achieve Gold. Last year the Club achieved bronze. A ‘secret shopper’ takes a visit to make the judgment call. There has been an emphasis about trying to make family entrance clearer and the children’s areas more colourful and providing more kiosk options.

 

Matchday ticket prices

We asked about them as we mentioned that even at our level in League Two, away match prices are certainly creeping up well above £25 and nearing £30 at some.

 

Admin fee added to telephone sales

There was a feeling of inevitability from the Trust about the answer. When the admin fee came about there was quite a bit of disquiet about It. The Club response was that it should’ve been brought in in the summer, but technical issues delayed its’ implementation. Before they did this many fans were ringing up and not getting seen to. It was said most clubs already have a telephone admin fees now and Ticketmaster has taken up a very large part of the ticketing market. Even Wembley sells tickets via Ticketmaster.

 

Since the admin fee has been implemented, there has been a 50% drop in calls, but it means ticketing staff are answering more ticketing queries or calls regarding technical help rather than just selling tickets over the phone. Most supporters buy online now.

 

Atmosphere and examples at other Clubs

The Trust raised the issue about the atmosphere end in B block and asked if the Club could’ve consulted better. It was said that however the Club had consulted.

 

Newcastle was raised from the Trust viewpoint how the atmosphere section had done well at St. James’s Park, where flags were being waved all-round the ground at the start of a game against Bournemouth recently, and other Clubs have something similar. There was some good discussion around this, and it was concluded that every club has its fan culture – flags and banners and creating that fan ultra effect has largely come from mainland Europe where it is still cheaper to attend football at top level matches, and it is still being tested out a little in the UK. It will improve as more clubs implement railed seating, but football must remain affordable to the masses. It means that ordinary supporters (that want to create the most noise) don’t feel priced out. The Premier League must lead by example but by today’s standards it is going in the opposite direction in terms of ticket prices.

 

It has been over 25 years since fans have had the choice to stand at Valley Parade and most home regulars much prefer to sit, and the atmosphere comes when we win games, but when there is an atmosphere, it doesn’t always project to be audible in all areas of the ground. At Newcastle there is a choice of railed seating in the away end, high in the gods and for home supporters in the Gallowgate end where traditionally the atmosphere had come from.

 

Club Business Strategy (with regards to fan engagement)

We asked for an update on fans’ surveys, in particularly on how supporters feel after the game and feeling valued. The Club would get back to us on this.

 

Improving our structured dialogue / Fan Engagement

First, we looked at the Trust’s proposal – statement and additional wording and amendments to go on the Club’s Fan Engagement Plan (FEP) below.

 

The intention for this is for the Club to show equal parity between the Supporters Board and Supporters Trust when engaging with supporters’ groups. In the FEP the Club has a quote / statement from the SB Chair, has all the month in the year it meets with the SB and is included in in its consultation when it comes to ‘Heritage Assets’.

 

Trust proposed Chair quote /statement:

"Bantams Supporters Trust very much welcomes the Club’s Fan Engagement Plan. It shows the Club is committed to involving supporters in its development and growth as a football club, all of which continue to improve.

 

There has been a huge emphasis around fan engagement in recent years, and the fan-led review (a process of consultation with the Football Supporters Association (FSA) along with affiliate supporters’ trusts) was a prerequisite for an incoming Football Governance Bill.

 

We have gauged the Club’s views over recent years about the many key aspects of football such as FSA proposals within the Fan-Led Review, the Governance Bill, and national issues such as TV revenue and redistribution as well as, of course the concerns that affect Bradford City supporters.

 

We value the Club’s readiness to engage with us and we look forward to working closely on initiatives that bring supporters together and Bradford’s diverse community together to ever improve and enrich the Club’s fan engagement process."

 

Quarterly meeting arrangement

Also, in keeping with a quarterly arrangement of meetings with the Trust, it would be good to see that in writing on the FEP by adding February, May, August  and November for meetings with us on the Fan Engagement Calendar. Obviously, these are a guide and would be 'subject to change"

 

Additional proposed text amendment on Heritage Assets

On Heritage Assets, it says, "...will involve thorough consultation with the Supporters Board." If you can add, "...and Bantams Supporters Trust"

 

The Club said it would investigate getting these added.

 

What is Fan Engagement?

Supporter engagement is a means of giving fans a sense of being closer to the club. A close association encourages and strengthens loyalty. It is a term that has come to encompass everything a club does to communicate with its supporters.

 

Clubs will be required to publish a FEP on an annual basis which will be overseen by a senior Club official. This requirement builds on the work clubs are already undertaking with supporters including hosting two meetings or fan forums each season to get their views on key issues faced by supporters and clubs.

 

Stoke City’s FEP is the best example of a template all clubs should aim towards.

 

 

Other meetings the Trust would like to attend as part of a consultation process

The Trust explained that it is not always practical in getting a full picture of certain aspects of what the Club does where the Trust would feel the benefit in sharing ideas and feeling consulted at these structured dialogue meeting.

 

Governance meetings, which are monthly where we send a delegate to, shows good practice at involvement of groups in discussing Inclusion, Equality and Diversity ideas and Community events to attract new layers of supporters to watch City for example.

 

Other meetings we would like to attend on an ad hoc basis to see how things are moving and how we can add to the discussion are:

 

Restorative Justice, Crime Reduction, Police – we last met the Club on this specifically over 2 years ago.

 

Sustainable Football – environmental impact which should include improving public transport, encourage car sharing etc. and broadly speaking the Club reducing its carbon footprint and encouraging fans to do the same. Every year there is a Green Football Weekend.

 

Catering  – we last met Doug, from Tiffin’s on discussing options for supporters and prices over 2 years ago.

 

Mid-Year Fan Engagement / Consultation

We looked at an FSA model guidance paper to go carefully go through it, as it is this time of the year that our affiliate organization is gathering date ahead of its structured dialogue with the EFL.

 

The Trust feels it has:

  • A good day to day relationship with the Club
  • The Club has informal meetings with groups of supporters
  • It has the minimum of two fan forums
  • And has monthly meetings with the Supporters Board
  • Quarterly meetings with the Trust

 

The Trust has with the Club:

  • A Terms of Reference (TOR) for our quarterly Structured Dialogue meetings
  • A Memorandum of Understanding ready for when we feel it’s’ consultation process improves even more than it has.
  • The Trust feels the Club is making efforts to bring us on an equal par with the Supporters Board.
  • The quality of engagement and discussions are very good at our meetings.
  • The Trust publishes our reports for our structured dialogue meetings on our website and bring them to the attention of our members, by email and on social media, but it would be good for the Club to have some acknowledgement that a meeting has taken place with us and broadly what was discussed on its own website.

 

The Club says it will look to have something published as a record of meeting with the Trust.

 

Fans Forum on Radio Leeds

The Trust asked why the Club was set to have its Fans Forum not in front of fans especially when there had been a great improvement in form on the pitch, which had moved the attention away from perceived off the field issues.

 

The answer was that it was for continuity. It was done last season, and it had worked well it was said. There is going to be a forum in front of fans in the summer as there was last year, and that an in the studio forum on the radio gave an opportunity for fans to ask questions who may not have an opportunity to do so at a live open forum with supporters. It was added that it would be 2 hours long and would be published online.

 

Football Governance Bill Update

The FSA was at the heart of 2021’s Fan-Led Review of Football Governance which made a range of recommendations to strengthen the game’s governance – most notably the commitment to introduce an independent regulator. 

 

The Bill, which has cross-party is currently going through the ‘Lords’ at the moment, but the Club remain unconvinced the outcome will have the desired effect – that the Premier League will accept redistributing its wealth to help even out the wealth distortion that currently exists within the English football pyramid, and that there is a likelihood that there will be a watering down of the Bill.

 

The Trust feels that there may be an element of truth in this given the amount of ‘U’ turns the Labour government have done since being elected given what they campaigned for to the electorate before the election. It’s clear they are listening to big business more than its traditional voters.

 

The other aspect of this Bill was to seek legal ways of preventing Clubs from leaving the leagues to create a European Super League.

 

But we shall see what comes out. There may be some lobbying of MPs from supporters’ groups when the Bill reaches the ‘commons.

 

EFL Sky Deal

It was explained from the Trust, we and other supporters’ groups on the FSA’s EFL fans network are monitoring away ticket prices in conjunction with the rescheduling of matches.

 

The FSA’s recommendation for giving notice for rescheduling is 12 weeks, and Sky’s is a minimum of 4 weeks. In some instances, Sky is breaking their own commitment of notice. The reason the FSA’s recommendation is a much longer period is to take into consideration travel and hotel bookings when fans plan for away trips.

 

It’s clear that most fans prefer a 3pm Kick Off.

 

The Club said that it opposed the original fixture of a Doncaster Rovers away on a Monday evening.

 

Maintenance Costs

The Club said that maintenance costs are an on-going challenge. Although the stadium is modern, it is still over 25 years old and as a result needs on-going maintenance to the building. More than £70k has been spent on the pitch and drainage.

 

Ownership

The Club said that the rental cost is more than £500K, though there is sponsorship income from Flamingo Land. We discussed a hypothetical idea of fans raising part of the funds needed for the Club to own the stadium it outright. It was thought not to be viable.

 

Any Other Business

The electronic (LED) advertising hoardings situated behind the goal at the Bradford End were raised, because at the last game, there were many supporters who thought they were too bright, obscuring the goal-mouth action. They were previously in use at Fratton Park. It was said that they would pay for themselves as sponsorship partners would buy into them. The lighting was said to be turned down for the next game.

The Trust Always Remembers

May 9, 2025
Remembering the 54 Bradford City supporters and two Lincoln City supporters who went to watch a game of football but never returned home. We stand with everyone at the Memorial Service in Centenary Square and those that join us from all parts of the UK and the world to mark the 40th anniversary of the Valley Parade Fire Disaster.

Memorial Service on May 11

May 8, 2025
This Sunday, the annual memorial service will take place at the Bradford City Fire Disaster sculpture, in Centenary Square from 11am, marking 40 years of the anniversary. The service, jointly organized by Bradford Metropolitan District Council and Bradford City will be attended by relatives and friends of the 56 people who lost their lives and were affected in 1985, as well as Club and Council officials and members of the public. The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Cllr Beverley Mullaney, will host a Civic Party from Lincoln who will also attend the service together, with City’s men’s first team players and staff in attendance alongside representatives from the Club, and from Lincoln City. The disaster claimed the lives of 54 Bradford City supporters and two travelling Lincoln supporters, injuring hundreds more, in one of the world’s most devastating sporting tragedies. Bantams Supporters Trust representatives will be laying a wreath on behalf of the Trust.

How we remember the events of 40 years ago

May 6, 2025
An article written four years ago, aimed at perhaps a younger audience of football fans, who may not be aware of the terrible tragedy witnessed at Valley Parade 40 years ago now, is a valuable educational resource. Written by Simon Lloyd of the online magazine www.joe.co.uk , he interviews Mohammed Ibrahim, who recalls his experience of the events of May 11 th , 1985. Simon Lloyd also interviews the Chair of Bantams Supporters Trust, Manny Dominguez how he remembers it too. The article features a short documentary called ‘Unheard Voices’, which is a series of interviews with Humayun Islam from Bangla Bantams, and others, predominantly from the Bangladeshi community who live in the locality around Valley Parade and how they remember too. You can see the article here .

The winner of the Young Player of the Year is...

May 1, 2025
We would like to thank all of you who voted for the Supporters Trusts’ Young Player of the Year 2024/25. They say that football is a game of two halves, and it is, but it needs to be said that our whole season has almost been like a season of two different ones. It was really our home record, a succession of 10 back-to-back home wins that began just before Christmas that propelled the Bantams into the position we are in today. And the future of where we are next season is still to be determined at the last match of what feels like a very long exhilarating rollercoaster ride for the long suffering fans. This season there has been a real team effort on the pitch, a team that has grown in confidence over the course of the season. Congratulations goes to the gaffer, Graham Alexander who picked up the EFL Manager of League Two, while the skipper, Ritchie Smallwood was named in the EFL League Two Team of the Season at the recent EFL awards. And well done to Ritchie Smallwood who picked up the Player of the Year Award from the Club’s main sponsor, JCT600, and most the supporters travel clubs, and from the team itself. Young Player of the Year The winner of the Trust’s Young Player of the Year is of course, Bobby Pointon! He was voted as Trust members’ Young Player of the Year for the second time running! We would also like to give a special thanks to Tony Deacon, who gave Bobby the award. Once again, a big thank you to all of you for taking part. You know who you are and we very much appreciate your involvement in this event and making it a success.

FSA Annual General Meeting Invite 2025

April 29, 2025
The role of supporters in our game is growing ever larger, and it is important that as many fans as possible get involved in fan-related activity both at a local and a national level. From ticket pricing to VAR, governance to broadcasting and fixture scheduling, there are issues in our game that need supporter input. It’s vital. If you have a keen interest in these areas, this is the perfect event to attend. The Trust are affiliate members of the Football Supporters’ Association, and therefore we would like to extend our invite to their Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Manchester on Saturday June 14th. The FSA will be welcoming Martyn Henderson, the interim chief operating officer for the incoming independent football regulator (IREF), to discuss his work in building the organisation before the Football Governance Bill achieves royal assent later this year. The FSA will have representatives of PGMOL (Referee officials body) in attendance, as well as an opportunity to have a go at the VAR systems currently in place in the Premier League. As well as that, there will be workshops for members throughout the day on the following topics: Ticketing Supporter engagement Broadcasting/3pm blackout Fans for Diversity Women’s Voice in the Men’s Game Young supporters Governance and Finance in the Women’s game Football and the climate crisis The AGM will take place at Manchester Metropolitan University on Saturday 14 th June, starting at 10:00 am, finishing up at 5:00pm. You can register for the AGM here . More information can be found here .

Burns Research Unit bucket collection volunteers appeal Reminder

April 22, 2025
It is rapidly coming to that time of year when we will all be coming together give our respects to those who tragically lost their lived in the Valley Parade fire, and this year will mark the 40 th anniversary. As such, as in any anniversary, the effort to mark the occasion will be much greater. Therefore, we would like to make that extra effort to encourage more volunteers. Last year up to 30 volunteers plus, including the help of you, our members, together with the efforts of the disabled supporters community, the collection raised £4,176.71 before the last match of the season against Newport County. It was almost double on what we raised the year before (£2,455.11) with just a handful of volunteers. This year, our last home match of the season, versus Fleetwood Town is on the 3 rd of May. At this point in time, the team is vying for an automatic spot, but there is a real possibility that automatic promotion will be determined by the end of the Fleetwood game so we are expecting a greater attendance, for this match. It is imperative therefore we will need a bigger visual presence, which will require more volunteers to help with the bucket collection before the match starts. If the game hasn’t been moved to an earlier K.O. we normally expect volunteers to arrive from 1pm outside the WD Gate entrance - the large gates opposite the club shop. Our names will be ticked off before we all receive buckets and then stand outside the various entrance points around the ground. We all need to meet back at that entrance around 2.45 to hand buckets in so you can all get back to your seats before Kick off. If you would like to be involved in the bucket collection please contact us at hello@bantamstrust.co.uk . If you don’t have a ticket for Fleetwood match you may get a free one if you are prepared to volunteer. We do need you to let us know in advance so that we can let the Club know.

The Clubs’ Season Ticket offer consultation meeting with the Trust

April 10, 2025
In attendance from the Club were, Ryan Sparks (RS) – Club CEO and Brett Cullen (BC) Head of Marketing Representing the Trust was, Manny Dominguez (MD) – Chair Bantams Supporters Trust met with the Club on Monday 10 th March. This meeting discussed the season proposed ticket offer and matchday prices only. Rising Season Tickets and Matchday tickets The Club’s explanation was that they want to keep the football accessible and affordable to ordinary fans, but they need to ensure the viability of the business. They said that they had to raise the prices, because of rising costs of between £350,000 to £400,000 while working to protect the players’ budget. Examples of rising costs were given as; increases in utility prices, rates, policing, stewarding, the National Living Wage and National Insurance contributions from the employer. Examples of the offer for the Early Bird prices were shown: Adult £299 – A rise of £50 on last years’, and to the value of £13 per game and £24.92 per month on Direct Debit for 12months. Over 64’s and Under 24’s £263 – A rise of £44 on last years’, and to the value of £11.63 per game and £21.92 per month on Direct Debit for 12months. Prices are frozen for Youth and Juniors to encourage families. Match day tickets were are also intending to go up from £20 to £24 in advance and from £25 to £28 on the day. The Trust’s position We understand that money is tight amongst many of our supporters due to the continued cost of living crisis, and therefore it has always been our position that the Club should keep season ticket prices as low and affordable as possible. Freezing prices for all after an increase last year was our ideal scenario. The Club’s position The Club understood how hard it is for many people and they reiterated that being affordable for the supporters was always going to be part of Bradford City’s identity. They also showed a table of where we are in terms of offering the best value in both League Two and indeed League One. In those league tables, those at the top represented the clubs with the most expensive ticket prices, so it showed our Club as one of the lowest in both leagues, which show us as being amongst the most affordable. They said they were fighting a trend of rising costs of season tickets at other clubs. At the time of this discussion, not all Clubs had revealed their prices for next season. The Trust asked about perhaps re-introducing an updated, modern day version of the flexi-card. This will not be re-introduced, as the direct debit scheme in effect, replaces it. The Trust asked about an ‘Unwaged’ category price, but it was felt that the Community Foundation does a lot of work drawing in supporters from deprived areas with community tickets. The Trust commended the Club on introducing the £5 offer for the Colchester game they had recently, and suggested that they do more of them. At that point they were undecided about a future offer like that given the desire to protect the overall value of season tickets. It was asked about trends regarding age groups that bought season tickets for this current season, and they gave us a rough breakdown: Adults 24 – 64: 6,500 Seniors: 2,000 Young adults: 1,000 Youth: 1,600 Junior: 2,000 Consultation The Trust asked about a consultation period, and the Club’s response was that the intention was to put out publicity about the offer in April so it was suggested we could ask our members what they would be prepared to pay. More generally, from a Trust point of view, it was explained that consultation should really be at a formative stage, where a proposal or offer can be at a stage of intention by the proposer but there should be adequate time to digest, and respond – a consultation period, where a membership based organisation like ours, can gauge how their members feel about something and respond based on what that view is. The view of the Club is that they are always pressed by time constrains during the course of a football season and that they do the best that they can to engage with supporters groups. The Trust was grateful it was invited to discuss the season ticket offer. We always value and appreciate the Club’s time and effort to engage with us.

Foodbank at Accrington was a Big Success

April 3, 2025
Accrington Stanley's food bank collection for Maundy Relief welcomed hundreds of donations before the lunchtime Kick Off last Saturday. The collection took place outside the ground, with both Accrington Stanley Bradford fans donating food items, while over £300 was also raised on the day. Supported by The Official Accrington Stanley Supporters Trust (OASST) the food bank collection has become an extremely popular initiative. Maundy Relief are well known in the Hyndburn community for being a frontline response team who immediately help anyone in need. Their services are open to all and include help with physical, mental and emotional health. Here is a link to Accrington Stanley’s Facebook post about it…

Vote for your Young Player of the Year

March 26, 2025
It is that time of year again, as Bantams Supporters’ Trust Members you have the opportunity to vote for the 2024-25 Bradford City Young Player of the Year. This season, especially in this year, has been probably the most exciting we have had in years. And we have seen City win 10 home games in a row, a Club record. We have also broke our biggest home attendance record in modern times with over 23,000 watching us beat Colchester Utd 4-1 on March 22nd. This season, from the first team we have 5 young players making an appearance as defender, midfielder and forwards. Tayo Adaramola , signed on loan in February from Premier League side from Crystal Palace and has made 8 appearances in a City shirt, and played a crucial part in the most recent 4-1 win over Colchester. The Dublin born defender has also played in 6 matches for the Republic of Ireland under 21’s. Brandon Khela signed on loan In January from Birmingham City until the end of the season. The promising 19 year-old from Coventry was the first South Asian player to sign for Birmingham City in 2022. He has made 9 appearances for City and got an assist against Colchester. Calum Kavanagh , signed for us on a two-and-a-half year deal from Middlesbrough on deadline day of the 2024 January window, and has made 30 appearances in a City shirt this season, scoring 5 goals (including the 3 rd goal against Colchester) and has assisted on a further 4. The Welsh born forward has had a number of appearances in a Republic of Ireland shirt. He is certainly firm fixture in the City squad. Bobby Pointon , He was voted your Young Player of the Year by a country mile last season. The super sub who is ‘one of our own’ has established himself in the starting line up much more this season He has made 42 appearances, scored 6 and has assisted on 6. He came on as substituted for the Colchester game Michael Melon , is on loan from Burnley from January this year until the end of the season. The 21 year-old Scottish youth international, born in England has had 9 appearances for City, and scored 2 goals with 1 assist. His last goal was the third one in our 3-1 win over Cheltenham. All five candidates eligible for the Bradford City Young Player of the Year 2024-25 have all made valuable contributions, but who has been your stand out performer? As with previous years this award includes current players under the age of 23 with at least 5 first team appearances in all competitions: Tayo Adaramola (Defender) Brandon Khela (Central Midfielder) Calum Kavanagh (Forward) Bobby Pointon (Forward) Michael Mellon (Forward) Voting starts today, Friday, March 28 th and end Friday 16th April. The Player Of The Year Dinner and results announcements will be on Wednesday, 30 th April 2025. To vote, simply email us your number 1 Young player at hello@bantamstrust.co.uk . You can also let us know via our Facebook Group and Likes page as well as our Twitter page.

Bradford City season ticket consultation

March 25, 2025
We are writing to you to gauge your view about the cost of season tickets. The Club have released its’ ‘Early Bird’ Season ticket prices and have increased them for adults by £50 and for Over 64 year olds by £44, and by £100 after the earlybird discount ends. Under 24’s have also had an increase. We understand that money is tight amongst many of our supporters due to the continued cost of living crisis, and therefore it has always been our position that the club should keep season ticket prices as low and affordable as possible. Freezing prices for all after an increase last year was our ideal scenario. The team on the pitch has been doing extremely well with promotion a real possibility. In the scenario we do get promoted, it is likely we will see a greater demand for season tickets. We have been consulted on the offer, and when we have engaged with the Club on recent occasions, they have always cited rising costs they must contend with, such as increases in rates, utilities and the cost of implementing the minimum wage, and greater National Insurance contributions etc. – overall between £350,000 and £400,000. The increase may not be appreciated by everyone, but at least supporters can spread the cost over 12 months. It’s much easier than paying all at once. Based on the Clubs’ offer, how do you feel about the increase? Please complete the following short survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/bcfc-season-tickets
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