Just wondering what people's opinions are of him as his time as chairman? If he had the wealth, would you want him back now?
I would be tempted to ask if he would be interested in joining the board as a non-exec director. The wealth of knowledge of running a football club would be a god send and to just to have him point you in the right direction would be a big help.
Was chairman when we had our 2 highest league positions since the 1950's. Built the SOL when Roker Park was no longer fit for purpose. Extended the SOL enabling us to have the 2nd and 3rd highest average attendances in our 140 year history. He must look at us now and think how the hell has it come to this?
You beat me to it. Bob is one of the most important and underrated men in the history of our football club. He give the majority of us our best times watching the lads. He give us a bright shiny new stadium and the AOL which is still the envy of most football clubs in the country. Amongst other chairman he was a man of very little wealth tbh. What he done was extraordinary, there’s not been a chairman since that could have achieved what that man done for us.
The difference between Bob Murray and Stewart Donald is that Murray's father worked in the Consett steel works. Donald inherited the family business his father started. Murray's intelligence and work ethic got him success in business and millionaire status. Millionaire status was gifted to Stewart Donald by his father with the stroke of a pen.
I seemed to remember him getting slagged off alot at the time like, unless I'm very much mistaken. Is it one of those 'in hindsight' things? We didnt appreciate him at the time? Football got too expensive for him and we probably didnt realise until nearer the end of his reign.
People are never content and always want more, look at the way the mags treated sir bobby, the fan who threw a pint over Peter Reid, Man Utd fans going at the glaziers, it’s fickle as fook footy
I remember the angry mobs outside the Roker Park main entrance chanting Murray Out after many a home game, strange to say I recon most would have him back now, and so would I, as a non executive board member as suggested by essayyeffcee above, great idea imo.
Murray said years before he went he would build a stadium for the future and then leave. It was to the detriment of the team as he couldn’t build a Prem team when we first got up under Reid whilst stadium was under construction. He was true to his word he spent every penny he had at the time and he deserved all that he got back from Drumaville. Top man.
He didn't miss it. He just wasn't a billionaire. And neither was he prepared to mortgage the future of the club with massive debt as Hall did up the road.
wonder where we would have been if bob had the type of billions that are being hoyed around in football now...i can go back to cowie and there were plenty calls to be rid of him, seems we have been fickle fans forever (or is it just football fans in general, i wonder?)...only once they are gone do we tend to see the good they did, we only remember the bad. but to answer the OP, yes, as a board member/advisor i think he would help this current mob.
Massive figure in the history of Sunderland imo. As others have said, off the field he left us with great infrastructure with the SoL and AoL. He got a lot of things right for on the field an all, still the highest finishes I've seen us achieve were under his watch. About the only thing he got wrong was probably guilty of showing Reid a bit too much loyalty and should have binned him off sooner, but easy said in hindsight. I'd also like to add to his achievments the establishing of the Foundation of Light. Always felt the club is core to the community and this cements that. It's done loads of good work for plenty of people and is still doing so. An incredible legacy from a man who genuinely loved the area, it's people, and it's club. Sir Bob, I salute you.
