Portsmouth - takeover,avoiding the obvious jibe

[David Treharne]

There's a report in today's Guardian (natch) about events at Portsmouth FC. Link at;

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/mar/23/portsmouth-takeover-talks-former-walt-disney-chairman-michael-eisner

It'll be interesting to see what ordinary supporters have to say about this potential development.

 

[Terryhall]

As a Glaswegian friend said to me, it Disney make sense.

 

[DB9]

There's a report in today's Guardian (natch) about events at Portsmouth FC. Link at;

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/mar/23/portsmouth-takeover-talks-former-walt-disney-chairman-michael-eisner

It'll be interesting to see what ordinary supporters have to say about this potential development.

I work with a season ticket holder who also paid £1000 into saving the club along with quite a few thousand others. His question is "Why would a man with all that money want a L2 club, Even though its a big club where only the premiership has all the money?" Talk of new stadium, Getting into the top flight will cost hundreds of millions of pounds and it does beg the question, Apparently there will be a shareholders meeting and the clubs hierarchy seem to back this man and his ideas, They have given him a 70 day exclusivity and it seems like things are developing, Perhaps a little too fast?

 

[grecIAN Harris]

It all sounds a bit Mickey Mouse to me not that I give a Donald Duck.

 

[memoman]

I live with a Pompey season ticket holder and he seems to be very much in favour of the deal. He feels the Pompey Supporters Trust, whilst bringing back stability to the club, lack the required resources to turn the club back into a serious Championship (and beyond) force again.

I'd be careful what I wished for, though. American billionaire owners, as Sunderland and Villa fans will tell you, often aren't as good as they sound.

As an aside, how would City fans feel if a businessman of a similar standing wanted to buy ECFC? I'd personally be against it. Success as a sustainable, supporter-owned outfit may be less likely, but it's all the more sweeter.

 

[DB9]

As an aside, how would City fans feel if a businessman of a similar standing wanted to buy ECFC? I'd personally be against it. Success as a sustainable, supporter-owned outfit may be less likely, but it's all the more sweeter.

I guess it depends on what you want from your club, If you want to stay in L2 an float between L1 an maybe the Conference then a fans own club is ok but if you want to think higher you need the type of investment a fans own club cant do. Portsmouth have maybe 4 times the amount of trust members that we have with 16000+ home crowds every other week but with the amount of money to get promoted to each division and sustain it means the investment needed in players, wages, infrastructure etc is way beyond the average fan an needs a serious amount of money.

 

[David Treharne]

the investment needed in players, wages, infrastructure etc is way beyond the average fan an needs a serious amount of money.

Whilst I think that there are elements of our Trust model that needs refinement and tweaking I would suggest that albeit almost imperceptible in some seasons, Exeter City, under Trust control has made a sizeable investment in all the points that you raise in your post. Considering that in the previous 20 years to Trust takeover there had been no sustainable investment (don't even try to raise the financial shambles of the Doble stand etc!) in any of the above, the Club has moved forward in terms of a wide range of both on, and off-pitch issues. As far as I can see our model is slow but sustainable, so what I would suggest is that the Portsmouth Trust is now wanting to move forward in a way that a quick injection of money might bring, but only at the imposition of an exiled owner who, as far as I can see, has only tenuous connections with the Club he's chosen. I'm no rose tinter about the state of Exeter City FC, but I do happen to think that the benefits of Trust ownership far outweigh the dubious possibilities offered by a nebulous sugar daddy.

 

[DB9]

Whilst I think that there are elements of our Trust model that needs refinement and tweaking I would suggest that albeit almost imperceptible in some seasons, Exeter City, under Trust control has made a sizeable investment in all the points that you raise in your post. Considering that in the previous 20 years to Trust takeover there had been no sustainable investment (don't even try to raise the financial shambles of the Doble stand etc!) in any of the above, the Club has moved forward in terms of a wide range of both on, and off-pitch issues. As far as I can see our model is slow but sustainable, so what I would suggest is that the Portsmouth Trust is now wanting to move forward in a way that a quick injection of money might bring, but only at the imposition of an exiled owner who, as far as I can see, has only tenuous connections with the Club he's chosen. I'm no rose tinter about the state of Exeter City FC, but I do happen to think that the benefits of Trust ownership far outweigh the dubious possibilities offered by a nebulous sugar daddy.

We have made serious investment for the club BUT IMHO i do think that our level of investment can only take us so far, Which is L2 to bottom half of L1, Yes we managed to get to 8th in L1 but once the spine of that team left we, Like a lot of smaller clubs could not replace like for like an the inevitable happened. In Portsmouth there are a lot of people who handed over a min of £1000 to their trust, We just don't have that many people able to do that, Sorry but that is a fact plus our crowds are not on a par with them, So that revenue stream is far smaller for us which is life, We are a small club and i am proud to be a fan but as a trust run club there is only so far we can go.

Portsmouth are bigger than us but I'm still at a loose end why this chap wants them, He will have to accept that he will loose millions and there in no quick buck to make, As i have said before, All the money is in the top flight and getting there is going to be very hard, Getting out of L2 and L1 with a decent wad of cash is doable but once in the Championship he will come up against teams that have real money, Been in the Premiership, Great stadiums an massive fan bases, I do hope he's ready for more downs than ups.

 

[BigBanker]

We have made serious investment for the club BUT IMHO i do think that our level of investment can only take us so far, Which is L2 to bottom half of L1,

Which, for a club of our size, is about right isn't it?

When teams like Grays, FGR, Fleetwood are bankrolled up the divisions for a few seasons it usually causes a few grumbles on here (rightly so, IMO). So would we really want to go down that route?

Worked for Rushden & Diamonds & Boston United I guess....

Sustainable League 2/lower half of League 1 with the occasional foray higher when things go very well, and the ability to withstand a brief dip into the Conference if we have a disastrous season, is the correct place to be for us. I'm not convinced we're there yet though...

 

[DB9]

Which, for a club of our size, is about right isn't it?

Yep about right. Clubs like Boston, R&D etc are great examples of crash and burn and i would never want us to be like that, I expect Fleetwood, Burton to enjoy their time where they are but in a few years will be back down with us. For me i just think that as a fan run club with a small fan base we would never expect to go any higher than i had stated. Portsmouth on the other hand could do better with their fan base but if they want to go back to higher things then the investment needed is far more than even they have at the moment. Fratton Park is costing £1m per year to maintain alone according to local reports here and their squad size and wage bill far exceed all other clubs in L2 and most in L1 as well.

The potential investor will be dipping his hands into his pockets for many years to come if he wants to put Pompey back amongst the elite again. As for us we will go on as we are and for the most I'm happy with that but just get annoyed that when, in the very rare occasions we get to L1 we cant invest, sell the best players who got us there then end up in L2 again, Just love us to consolidate in L1