I have been writing a weekly column for several years, but dare say this one, outlining the importance of the Supporters Trust prospective takeover of Newport County AFC, is the most important.

It is imperative that all followers of the County now march forward together as one, because it is clear the foundations of sustained success are built on quicksand without significant investment into the club.

Les Scadding has retired, pulling his financial contributions to the club who quite simply were spending too much – around 70% of their turnover – on wages last season.

The Exiles have been paying mid-table wages on an Accrington or Morecambe budget and without being propped up by a benefactor, that’s an entirely unsustainable model. This we know.

We do not have time for recriminations, nor does it achieve anything, though the continual re-writing of history on Justin Edinburgh’s tenure is becoming silly. Talk about from hero to villain.

Managers don’t set budgets, boards do. Managers don’t tell themselves “no, we can’t sign that player you think you need, he’s too expensive,” boards do.

There is no doubting County have financially over-extended, but the financial side of the club isn’t run by the manager. Edinburgh did only what ANY manager in his position would do.

It’s the bean counters at the club who should have been firm and more concerned as to what tomorrow might bring. Not the man asking for more beans, his job is to gain success on the pitch, and to do it yesterday.

You leave clubs in one of two ways as a manager, sacked, or given a better role at a more successful club. Only a tiny percentage get to go the second way and even fewer do so after four years of loyalty that makes you one of the longest serving managers in the country. That’s football and Edinburgh is far from a villain, he’s one of County’s greatest ever managers.

And thankfully, County can recover from two financially reckless seasons in the Football League – they are estimated to have the tenth highest wages in League Two last term on the 20th highest turnover, where attendances were clearly overestimated and mistakes were clearly made.

The Exiles have relied on a major creditor (Scadding) who isn’t going to hold them to ransom on repayments and all three of their major shareholders Scadding, Matt Southall and Howard Greenhaf) are prepared to gift their shares to the Supporters Trust.

County’s hand is a lot stronger than most clubs who transition into supporter ownership. They are normally on the precipice of financial meltdown. Having cut the budget, with a small profit projected for this season, Newport have at least stymied the bleeding. Now they need the fans to patch them up.

The first objective is clear, for as many of you as possible to join the Supporters Trust. Essentially you are being asked to pay £10-a-year for the right to vote on matters going forward. I joined on Sunday.

I’ve seen and heard people explaining that they are holding out on joining the Supporters Trust, because they are concerned that they have been ineffectual in the past.

I shared that concern before Friday’s meeting. I technically re-joined the Trust on Sunday, as a lapsed and disillusioned former member.

In the current circumstance, we shouldn’t think of it as anything other than OUR Trust. One member equals one vote and with a potential 90% shareholding in Newport County AFC, your voice will be heard.

The issues preventing complete clarity at the moment stem from the fact we still don’t have an entirely clear picture on the sum needed for the Trust to take control of the club, but Supporters Direct estimate the figure to be between £300,000 and £500,000. We will find out the exact figure in the next few weeks.

The ballpark sum is achievable based on success at clubs such as Exeter and Wycombe (more relevant comparisons to County than AFC Wimbledon or Portsmouth). Not in all probability by relying on £10-a-year donations, but achievable nonetheless.

Here is the Trust take on it.

“If we don’t reach the target we don’t believe that we’ll have enough for a viable club without drastically cutting the playing budget, which in turn will see the club on a downward spiral.

“If the target isn’t reached we will not proceed with the bid and any money deposited in the holding account will be returned and the club will remain with the majority shareholder.

“We are still to finalise this figure although based on the financial assessment we think any final figure is achievable. Otherwise we wouldn’t continue and would step aside for Les to sell his majority stake to another bid.”

The Trust is now in the final stages of preparing a community shares offer, offered by the legal model of the Supporters Trust (the Community Benefit Society, or CBS). So while EVERY Trust member will hold one ordinary share, those with deeper pockets can also buy community shares.

Members can purchase up to £100,000 of these community shares which would – if the target is reached to take over the club – then be invested into the club.

Community shares are different to those issued by a private or public company and are withdrawable (offering the investor an exit route) at the discretion of the CBS board. Shares do not fluctuate in value and can pay a small amount of interest. However, even with £100,000 worth of community shares, it remains one member, one vote.

Until the takeover is viable, all community share funds will remain in a holding account. There is no prospect whatsoever of money being lost in the meantime. If the funds aren’t raised, any community share contributions will be returned in full.

The proposed model of how the board at Newport County will be comprised if the takeover is successful left me most optimistic.

A General Manager – present incumbent Jason Turner, newly arrived from Plymouth Argyle – would be responsible for the day-to-day running of the club with five elected representatives each sitting with a set agenda.

They would all be the lead executive for various sub-categories, including compliance, commercial/finance, community, fundraising and fan engagement.

Clear, concise and elected by us, a perfect template to encourage transparency.

This is a wonderful opportunity for the people who follow Newport County to control that club, with a model that is sustainable and inclusive going forward. We must do all we can to make it work.

And then it’s over to the Trust, who at the moment, can’t ever feel they couldn’t be doing more. This is a monumentally important task and it’s going to take the requisite efforts to get it done.

Are those currently at the apex of the Trust, consulting with the clubs who have gone through this process? Are they trying to ascertain if any of their members have event organising experience? To what level are they liaising with the potential financial big-hitters we know support County? (One of whom just stood down as a non-executive director). Have all the supporter factions been set fund-raising targets? Are there going to be any Trust specific fund-raising events?

They can’t give us enough information at the moment. It needs to be a continual bombardment.

The Trust needs to be as effectual as possible to make people see they are the right thing for the future of Newport County AFC. Seeing is believing at this point with Trust numbers still low. Once the target is clear, hopefully word will spread like wildfire that if you are a follower of Newport County, you simply must join the Supporters Trust.

If at any point it becomes about individuals rather than the collective, sniping and recriminations will out and the dream will die. So far the signs are encouraging that all the key players in this process are ready to sing from the same hymn sheet.

Newport County’s future is in your hands and step one is swelling the numbers of the Trust, whose membership needs to increase ten-fold in the coming weeks.

So if you haven’t joined, what are you waiting for?