Good morning Northenders Just wondering what your thoughts are on these two? It's a double edged sword with Hemmings. Yes, there is no doubt that we wouldn't have a club had he not bought it out but he did get the club very, very cheaply. £165,000 is what has been banded about. I don't know if that's right but that seems the most common figure that keeps popping up. People have argued that he has also put £13m into the club, but that was just a loan and at 7% interest that equates to approx £1m per year if we only make the interest payments and we'll forever be £13m in debt to him What comes first for him? North End or money? If he is a supporter, then in my opinion the least he could do is ditch the interest on it. Once that money is paid back to him he sits on a club that he bought for pittance and could sell at a very tidy profit and leave the club in a very good state of health, with a lot of pats on his shoulder from the supporters. However, my feeling along with many others is that he's an out and out money man. Back in the early 00's when Baxi announced they were pulling out, I thought it would be great if Hemmings took over. He always seemed to be there in the background and had been so for a long, long time. I was sure he was our ticket to the promised land. However, I do think that he didn't want to just be a majority shareholder in control of the club, but outright owner with nobody to answer to. I imagine that the share prices at the time would have been too much of a gamble for a takeover and that has since proved right. He's now got the club and is free to do whatever he pleases. Yes, he got PB and BH in, probably paid a good bit for their services too, but I do think he's paid for a top management team so that they can get the best from low paid, average players that will come to the club. He's a ruthless, ruthless man IMO and myself being from Chorley, I know just how ruthless he can be. Parts of the town is turning into wilderness because of land bought and arguments with Chorley Council. The guy does not back down and will walk over bodies to get what he wants. The silence from Mr Hemmings is deafening. I wish he'd make it clear to us what he wants to do with the club. Yes, I'm thankful that we still have a club, but it all seems to me that he engineered the way he came about getting it. .............................................................................. Lindsay. Famously brought back Wigan RL from the dead in the 80's and then went on to take over the helm at RLHQ and singlehandedly destroy the game IMHO. I mean, who on Earth would take Widnes, a famous and very successful club, out of the top flight and put them in the second tier, just to accommodate a French club? The thinking was to try and get the game to spread. Hasn't really worked and is reviled by a lot in that famous old sport. Went on to be the man in the seat at Wigan Athletic where again, he is despised by their fans for comments he made about them in the 80's. So far, apart from Wigan RL, things haven't been too good really. He's another man that is in it for the money I think. He made his fortune being a bookmaker and we all know that the bookie is the one that walks away with the pound notes, not the punter. He's the mouthpiece and the yes man for TH. Again, I'd love to hear more coming from his mouth. Back PB up with cash and get the club moving forward again. That way, the £13m will be paid back much sooner and TH can then decide whether to sell the club at a profit or try and make the club successful again through it's own means, as Baxi did. Oh how I'd love Brian Gray back
I think they are both business men at the end of the day. Football is all that we fans care about but I think TH saw a business opportunity and took it. Was the downfall of the club engineered to facilitate a takeover? It's possible but it's equally possible that TH genuinely stepped in to save PNE from going out of business. We may never know the truth but I think we would all love to know what really went on just over 12 months ago. I think we will see over the next couple of months just what the intention is from TH. I'm not expecting PB to be granted a war chest of mega millions to spend in the transfer market but if we are to compete at the top end of the table then there really does need to be investment on the playing side and shrewd investment at that. When TH sold the tower I was rather hoping the would use the proceeds to fund a promotion push to the prem. Oh the irony, Premership status achieved via contributions from Fylde council tax payers . Maybe that will still happen
Thing about the takeover was in my mind we were losing money hand over fist and no doubt would have gone into admin.Costs have to be cut also think there is a salary cap in league 1 which we will have to conform with. As LW says it is a double edged sword but we still have a club and the vibes from the club are good from what I've heard. We could have ended up like Bolton given £40million a season from Sky and are still losing money.
The Club could not carry on as it was losing millions every year with a small fan base. TH has said repeatedly he didn't want the club for himself, ho bought it to stop the rot. No one else was interested and I'm sure if someone came along and wanted to invest he would be all for it. A bit of reality is needed now, there is no money to throw at big name players or big salaries, we have to cut our cloth to suit the present situation. Personality wise owner and chairman are sadly lacking but I for one believe they have the best intrest of the club at heart.
All very valid points I think we all agree that we are thankful that the club is still here, and yes, without TH there may well not be. I too don't expect a big war chest for players or wages but I do hope that a decent percentage of funds in from sales of players/ wages saved, will be made available to PB as we are going to be left a bit threadbare otherwise. We will have to see, once those players are sold, what happens. As Majestic quite rightly says, the summer will show what TH is all about. I just hope he's singing from the same songsheet as us
"I just hope he's singing from the same songsheet as us " I hope he's a darned sight better singer than I am LOL
Hi finneyfan.. Good to see you spreading your wings a bit.. Take a look at the link below to see your neck of the woods in all it's glory... http://www.wirralcam.org/home.shtml Not like looking at Deepdale etc, but still worth having a look..
