Interview with Mr. Jason Deguara

by Ayrton Galea - 7th April 2013

Just a few hours before the Stripes will begin their commitments in the second round of the Championship Pool where crucial matches commence, we decided to interview the Club's secretary Mr. Jason Deguara.

Optimistic but aware of the hard hurdles that the Stripes will face in these last five matches, Mr. Deguara appealed for support and faith in our squad. Having followed Birkirkara through the Club's worst moments, Mr. Deguara knows that only the strongest manage to achieve their title targets from now on.

With Jason we talked about his personal life, which one must say is a busy one, his love towards the club and the club's present situation besides other important and interesting topics.

1. Who is Jason Deguara?

Jason Deguara - 35 years old, married for the last 3 years and have an adorable son named Gerrard (I think that you have already noticed that I am a Liverpool fan :-) ). I like to be very optimistic. Like strong challenges in life and be positive as much as possible.

2. What can you tell us your career background?

I used to work at Playmobil for 15 years. In the last 6 years I have been working at the General Workers' Union as a Secretary taking care of the Chemical and Energy Sector and the workers working in this particular sector.

3. How did you become a football follower?

My father plays an important part in all this. From the age of 2 I have been following our beloved team. In those times things were different since our team was not one of the top but still my father didn't loose one single game. There were times were we used to be not more than a dozen of supporters and still we used to be there to support our players.

4. How do you spend your regular day?

I wake up very early (5am) to start my work day. Since my working time is flexible it is difficult to say when my work day finished (sometimes even 6pm). Obviously then I need to take care of the day to day running of the Club. Then I try to find time for my family, especially for my son and wife.

5. What is your philosophy in your life?

Always be positive and you will succeed

6. What are your main hobbies?

Playing football (when I find time), watching TV and going out with my family

7. This is your second year in the Birkirkara FC's committee. Can you tell us what motivated you to join the committee? What has changed in these two years? How difficult is it to juggle between work, family and the club's day-to-day needs?

As I said my father is a big Birkirkara FC fan. He was in the committee in the early 70's. Therefore for me it was something that I had to experience. Two years ago, some supporters and even my friends in who form part of the Birkirkara Ultras came on me and told me if I was interested to contest and everything started there.

8. What are your roles in this committee? How much work is involved? What motivates you most to keep working for our Club?

Last season I took the role of Assistant Secretary. This season I am the Secretary. The main motivation is that being a Birkirkara FC hardcore supporter, I like to win. Then there are the supporters who form an important part of our Club. I like to see people celebrating and enjoying themselves especially when the Club wins cups. I would also like to thank Mr. Jonathan Friggieri for all his help in the secretarial aspect.

9. One can understand that everyday is a busy day for the committee to keep the club alive. However, can you tell us the month or periods that you are most busy?

Basically as a Secretary you are always busy but then there are particular instances where the workload is higher than in other periods. In June one has to prepare for the AGM, then soon afterwards to strengthen the squad in the transfer market period and European games. In November we do the retained list, from December till March it's the turn of the UEFA Club license which is vital since without it we cannot compete in European football and then obviously the last period of the season to settle up everything especially financially. Here I want to thank Mr. Ivan Mizzi who is doing a great job within the Club as Chief Financial Officer.

10. Financial affairs are always a headache for Maltese clubs. How important are sponsors for our Club? Considering our limited resources, what attracts sponsors to our Club?

This is a crucial point. Unfortunately we are very limited as regarding sponsors. Being a small island makes it more difficult to find such sponsors in Malta. One of the attractions for the sponsors is the fact that we play European football on regular basis and that's why it's a must that this target should be reached every season.

11. A club with the stature of Birkirkara FC deserves the best. However, one could say that Birkirkara's facilities are far from best. Are there any future plans for better facilities?

One of my dreams within the Club is to have our own state of the art facilities. At the moment we are working on projects so that this dream can become true but obviously there is the financial issue as well. But still we are going to continue working hard on this issue.

12. Besides facilities, what in your opinion should improve in Maltese football?

I think that all stake holders need to sit down and do a brain storming exercise as I think that supporters are getting down in numbers. We as a Club are pushing forward to have a radical change in our domestic game. As a European state, we should adopt the same rules like other countries. The parameters issue and the number of foreigners that can play are 2 of our major concerns and we are going to push hard so that we see that we get in line with other countries.

13. Corruption is always a delicate and sensitive topic to discuss. However, how much is it harming Maltese Football in your opinion?

This is a cancer in our game. After the decision taken on the match Norway vs Malta, the repercussions for our beloved match were incredible. But I think that now we are getting overboard on this issue. We cannot have people being accused on a hear-say only!! Still I believe that MFA should continue to work hard not to let the game die in a horrendous way.

14. One of the most talk about topics between the football followers is betting. What is your opinion about betting? Is there any solution for illegal betting?

This goes hand in hand with the question before. Unfortunately it is impossible to have full control on this issue but I know that MFA is in contact with UEFA so to get help when needed. This point is hitting all football around the world and who ever watches foreign football knows exactly what I'm saying.

15. Taking part in European competitions for the last seventeen years was definitely not an easy task. How important is it to keep this record alive from year to year? Do you agree that money received from taking part in European competitions is the club's main income?

To start with, I want to announce that this week we had a meeting with MFA where they handed us the UEFA license for another season. Therefore we have everything in line to play European football next season. I fully agree that this is the Club's main sponsor and that's why we have to keep consistency and keep on competing every single year in these competitions.

16. In order to participate in European competitions, there is a hard task to overcome in the form of acquiring a UEFA license. Can you explain to the supporters what must be done before acquiring the UEFA license to participate in the European competitions?

As explained before, between December and March we work very hard on the UEFA licence. This is a very rigid exercise, both administratively and financially. We are scrutinised throughout. If I had to sum up the hours worked on the license, most probably it will go up to around 200 hours of work. I would like to thank once again Ivan Mizzi as Club's CFO, Joe Zammit, the Club's President and all those who gave us help to reach again this target. MFA this week gave us a very good certificate as they stated that we made excellent work on the license. Special thanks go also to Jonathan Friggieri and Jonathan Pace who were there when ever needed to give help and support.

17. How do you describe our Premier League campaign so far?

We had our ups and downs but I think that the team peaked when it was crucial. We have 5 games left, let's hope and work hard to obtain the best!

18. In your opinion which was our best and worst matches so far?

I think that the worst performance was against Hamrun Spartans. As a Birkirkara fan I think that one of the best performances was that against Valletta, 2 weeks ago.

19. What are your comments about the last match?

Against Tarxien, we knew that it was going to be a very tough test. In the first half we were not at our best but in the second half I think we were the best team on the pitch and finally we took 3 precious points out of the game.

20. We are two points on top of the table, and the pressure is piling up. How much do you believe that we can manage to win championship?

We have to keep on concentrating on our team ONLY. We have 5 finals in front of us. Obviously the pressure is piling up and now it's our duty to share that pressure with the whole squad and technical staff. We can win but only if we are a strong group. We loose together and we win together!

21. What are your comments about the next match?

Sliema is the only team that we didn't beat this season. This is giving an extra boost to all our clan so to do our utmost and get the full 3 points. It is going to be another tough match but I really believe that our team can do it. Let's hope for the best and work hard to obtain the best result possible.

22. What should be the secret for success?

Hard work, positive attitude and strong character.

23. What is your message to the supporters?

Big 5 crucial games are in front of us. We need the full support of all Birkirkara fans. I want to see supporters enjoying themselves with us. We are one big family so let's work hard together to reach our aim. I want to listen you from the dressing rooms, I want to get my adrenaline up with your help, I want that as soon as we go out on the pitch, the players can feel that sense of responsibility and that they can share it with you. I repeat 5 more games and if hopefully we will be still on top let the party begins. But first we must suffer, work hard and win TOGETHER.

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