http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/27696268 Be wary of trusts! This may not go down well in some circles but it is a cautionary tale. Exeter is a lot bigger than Salop, has no near neighbours and has a small town mentality!
be wary of private owners too!.....far more clubs have gone bust or in desperate situations than trust clubs...Exeter just haven't leaned any lessons and are trying to run the club like it still has a sugar daddy ...no getting into institutions or schools and promoting themselves, the have a poor relations with their supporters (owners). Perryman goes on to say...and one would be that there's no-one to put in the money when the cash flow's a bit vulnerable as it normally is through the summer months...but he must remember who ever puts than money in they will want that money back at some stage...and in some cases like RW is not willing to put much in at all...Exeter need to engage with their owner fans more and start raising some cash......during season 2002–2003 two directors were convicted of fraudulent trading at the club, John Russell receiving a prison sentence and Mike Lewis a community service sentence. ....that is what happened when under ownership...and that is why the club is run by a trust!...their troubles all come from OWNERS in the first place ....
Their problem is that they have such a small base of real passionate fans! Those fraudsters were latecomers, travelling thieves if you like, who saw an opportunity to make some money......the real sugar daddies kept the club going for years before that. They eventually lost patience when the club didn't invest their gifts well. What is the best trust? How many trusts are there? Where have all the true philanthropists gone? There's so much money in so few hands....surely investment in the local community by some of these would be welcome. Unless we remember Blackburn! The exception that proves the rule?
i just think it stands to reason, if you are a trust club, well then you run your business to what money you can make and not over spend on transfers and wages, but Exeter kept going like they would never have a bad patch, as you said they had a sugar daddy who was pumping money in for years, and a lot of clubs have that input too, which it also leaves them open to shysters, so when the money stops they have no knowledge on how to turn things around..the club executives and fans have to look for other streams of investment eg like Wrexham and Glyndwr Uni..a different approach is needed, but with good house keeping it can be achieved, and if you want a look at a management train crash...look no further that Hereford United!!....im not saying trust clubs wont go bust, but they wont leave back doors open to let people like John Russell, Mike Lewis, Gutterman Hamilton and so on and so on..in...Basically if the go to bankruptcy its their own fault, its in their hands , not some fly by night director who's in it to make a quick buck and go leaving the club in wreckage!!
