Right now the euphoria over the possible takeover has a slightly bogus ring to it. What happens if part of the new owners master plan is to sell the Valley ? A few loans from Premier League clubs won't look quite so enticing then. The fact is that the Dodgy Duo couldn't give a toss who they sell to, or what the buyers subsequently do with us. They just want some of their dough back. People feigning euphoria and looking through Premier League player lists tonight should take a deep breath, count to a thousand, and check the small print when the deal is signed. Moving away from the Valley would be a deal breaker for many fans.
I think that people are getting a bit hysterical at the moment. Let us take a Valium, roll up a large one and chill out. This Takeover is not over the line yet and the reason it was leaked, I have heard, to the SLP was to smoke out another buyer who was hovering in the background. Just because the potential owners are a property company doesn't necessarily mean we will be moving from the Valley. I would not want to move from the Valley as it is our spiritual home, but lots of Arsenal fans did not want to move from Highbury nor Man City from Maine Road but they are now settled in their new homes. I think the Valley is fine for our purpose in the Championship and if we ever get to the Prem again I am sure it could be extended. Personally these are exciting times and we should all embrace it.
Cawley tweeted that there will be a fresh story on it in tomorrow's paper. If its delivered before I leave for work, I'll post what it says.
Blimey, if that don't beat it all, dicky telling someone not to get hysterical. I don't want to leave the valley and there is absolutely no evidence that we will. Except the new owners might be property developers and suddenly the rebels without a clue on CL are planning another political demonstration with burning tartan blankets and going to bed without brushing their teeth. I don't want Jimmi or slater to go, I really like them. I think if we can't have characters on the pitch at least lets have them in the boardroom. Let's keep the board!
Oh dear. A group of people introduced to cafc by Ackers. You could all thank him........ Oh no wait a minute!
Not one to get hysterical Typical, I take everything in my stride in an assured and non hysterical manner.
Let it go, this Ackers stuff has passed it's sell buy date. If you love him so much I suggest you move over to Into the Valley forum where you can talk to him to your hearts content.
No luck with the paperboy and am now north of the river (boo). Should anyone get a chance to have a sneak peak please inform the rest of us who otherwise will have to wait till tonight
Having trouble with the picture it is either too big or too small, story of my life. Anyway here goes. A price of 18m has been agreed between Charlton's current board and the property Company which is set to buy the Club. The prospective new owners, whose identity has not been revealed, are also thought to be ready to take on the clubs 4m bank debts, plus 7m owed to former Directors when the Addicks return to the PL. Fans have broadly backed the Takeover, hoping new owners would invest in the squad. There has also been little opposition to a move by the Club to the Greenwich Peninsula. In the long run as long as other aspects of the Clubs identity are not changed. Some fans have though expressed anger that a move could be suggested after the Return to the Valley campaign brought the Club home in 1992. Addicks Chair Slater has previously told Greenwich planning chiefs that they have no plans to move to a new stadium, but neither do they want another Club on their patch. The Valley board has in the past produced an appraisal that it could deliver a 40000 seater stadium on the Mordern Greenwich Peninsula at no cost. That would mean making housing a part of the development on the 19 acre site. But crucially the Valley plot could satisfy the councils requirement that a portion of any new development be composed of social housing. It then goes on to describe the Morden site and who it is owned by.
Cathedral Group appear to hold the site at Mordern Wharf with Development Securities plc and given their other projects it wouldn't surprise me if they were in the frame to acquire the club, either jointly with Cathedral or on their own. They certainly undertake a lot of work together. Development securities already owned one arena at Manchester (Phones 4 U arena) which they sold for £80million in October, so it would seem that they have the petty cash as an investment manager to acquire the Valley and develop Mordern Wharf. However, the question is whether they would get a significant return on the Valley to justify the investment (at roughly £22m including short term debt - that could be justified) and move us to a windy 40k seater complex by the O2. It looks as though the deal is viable on this basis with them selling the club once it has relocated to the Wharf. On that topic a sweetener for the faithful would be naming rights at a new ground. I would be happy with "the Wharf" but I guess we may have to give way to sponsored interest. Since their planes fly overhead, the BA Wharf wouldn't be so bad.
Can't say I'm thrilled about the prospect of losing the Valley. Not the end of the world by any means, considering how black the future looked a few years back, but it's a symbol of us, and what we've achieved, especially that day when we went back there. You have to be honest, it's changed out of recognition since we uprooted in the eighties, so I would'nt go loopy about a move, but the conditions, and the new stadium, would have to be phenominally good for me to welcome it. It sounds a bit like selling the Crown jewels to me. I'm reluctant to offer a new name for an ambiguous new stadium Project in case it's seen as welcoming our eviction, but 'Flat Valley' or 'River Valley' would at least make a refence to our root, and you could argue that Charlton were associated with Docklands workers in the past so a move to the river incorporates that. So far though, this little suggestion is about as welcome as my mother in law at the weekend.
