[Archived] The Dawn Of A New Era

[Fife Rover]

I've said it before and I'll say it again just in case anyone from the VH Group is tasked with reading this stuff - perception IS reality.

We need a supporters representative on the board as soon as possible. It doesn't matter whether or not people are doing the right things in the right order behind the scenes, if the supporters aren't kept in the loop then the fan base will soon reflect that exclusion. It's not rocket science.

Listen to a supporters rep who can convey what the fans think about certain things and at the same time take the opportunity to keep the fans informed and nip in the bud any erroneous perceptions.

It costs nothing to listen. If the input is not acted upon then at least that's a positive decision and the club will cope with the consequences of that decision, but acting in a vacuum makes no sense at all.

Non exec directors have been mandated in European board rooms for decades, why is it such a strange notion for football, especially given the remoteness of the owners.

My money is on ABBEY by the way

The idea of having supporters represented on the Rovers board is a very good one, but I think it would need at least two of them. Given the huge gap in opinions on a whole variety of crucial matters on this MB alone it clearly shows that over a range of important issues we can easily be a full 180 degrees apart in our thinking. So how would any single supporters rep manage to convey the true opinions of the Rovers supporters en masse? It woulld be impossible.

However I do think also that this MB is sufficiently representative of the true opinions of Rovers supporters as a whole to be used as a sounding board/collection point. Just one wee problem though......there is NO WAY that I could ever see Abbey as a suitable vessel for my opinions on most Rovers matters, and I guess there would be difficulties for all of us in the matter of choosing a suitable two reps, with some kind of general election needed to choose the candidates, and then to elect two of them to represent the majority views in each of the main controversial areas. E.G. Is Sam the best manager for us? OR Which style of football do we want to see? OR which style of football best serves our purpose as a mid table PL club ? etc, etc. Conclusion: Difficult but doable given sufficient thought and effort in the organisation of it all. I would willingly partake in getting it organised, but I obviously could not be considered as a candidate for one of the two reps because of the distance involved.

[Mattyblue]

I've said it before and I'll say it again just in case anyone from the VH Group is tasked with reading this stuff - perception IS reality.

We need a supporters representative on the board as soon as possible. It doesn't matter whether or not people are doing the right things in the right order behind the scenes, if the supporters aren't kept in the loop then the fan base will soon reflect that exclusion. It's not rocket science.

Listen to a supporters rep who can convey what the fans think about certain things and at the same time take the opportunity to keep the fans informed and nip in the bud any erroneous perceptions.

It costs nothing to listen. If the input is not acted upon then at least that's a positive decision and the club will cope with the consequences of that decision, but acting in a vacuum makes no sense at all.

Non exec directors have been mandated in European board rooms for decades, why is it such a strange notion for football, especially given the remoteness of the owners.

My money is on ABBEY by the way

Back in the BRISA days we discussed supporter representation with JW and he believed this would lead to a two speed board meeting- first meeting when the supporter was in the boardroom, the second and real meeting would take place once he/she had departed.

[Fife Rover]

Back in the BRISA days we discussed supporter representation with JW and he believed this would lead to a two speed board meeting- first meeting when the supporter was in the boardroom, the second and real meeting would take place once he/she had departed.

I think JW has got that spot-on, and thinking more about it the question of getting the voices of Rovers fans heard and considered by the Board can surely be served by the meetings of the Fans Forum.

I don't know whether or not this is actually the case now, but I am sure an extra Agenda Item could be made covering for instance: Any Serious Concerns (from the supporters viewpoint). This could be discussed at the FF mtg and if passed as valid could be accepted for raising at the next Board Mtg.

[den]

I think JW has got that spot-on, and thinking more about it the question of getting the voices of Rovers fans heard and considered by the Board can surely be served by the meetings of the Fans Forum.

I don't know whether or not this is actually the case now, but I am sure an extra Agenda Item could be made covering for instance: Any Serious Concerns (from the supporters viewpoint). This could be discussed at the FF mtg and if passed as valid could be accepted for raising at the next Board Mtg.

Pretty sure the FF can't discuss footballing matters Fife.

[TimmyJimmy]

Is not Matthewman both a non-exec and a supporter?

I'd be surprised if every single board member, non exec or otherwise, was not a Rovers supporter EiT. I don't think that's the point though. A non exec who was just simply 'a fan' and at arms length to the existing power hierarchy has to add value.

I'm thinking the current situation is a good example of the benefit, this MB is going into meltdown due to the suspicion of skulduggery concerning agent influence and transfer policy. It may or may not be unfounded. Whatever the truth of the matter the club would benefit from learning of growing supporter unrest and nip it in the bud before it gained significant momentum. Reading this stuff in the papers is hardly enhancing brand value and shareholder value.

Back in the BRISA days we discussed supporter representation with JW and he believed this would lead to a two speed board meeting- first meeting when the supporter was in the boardroom, the second and real meeting would take place once he/she had departed.

Understand that point of view Mattyblue but that's why I say 'Non Exec' and not 'Supporter Representative'. The owners either take the role seriously or they don't, I'm not suggesting some token gesture. I'm suggesting serious and formal supporter input to the decision making process. I'm not suggesting any involvement in the actual making of the decisions, just in the process of circulating information between fans and owners.

I'm sure there are plenty of other workable mechanisms, this is just my punt at a solution, but there's definitely a need to improve on the flow of information to/from the fans, mind you Sam and JW could also be saying that about their own particular needs right now.

[Fife Rover]

Pretty sure the FF can't discuss footballing matters Fife.

Oh dear! Thanks Den........and there I was thinking I had found the ideal solution to the problem of how to get the fan's serious issues discussed by the Rovers Board. Back to the drawing board (sigh).

[Iceman]

all it takes is for Venkys to say something , anything!

[John]

Sam's press conference ahead of the Bolton game should be interesting.

[Hughesy]

£53m invested so far according to this article...also links Kentaro

[Andy]

Rovers have always gone about their business quietly...so whats new?

Our owners are meeting an advisor…who’s to say it isn’t to get to grips with values of players, and what/ who they can bring to the table?? Who said Kentaro is setting budgets & signing our players over the managers head?? If they did…where is the PROOF?

Who knows for sure that Sams list (Which was good to go in August) isn’t with our new owners already? And isn’t being discussed with Kentaro to see what sort of deal they can negotiate with us?

Simple – NOBODY knows…so lets stop all the theories & scare mongering and just wait and see.

This is Blackburn Rovers FC…Not Newcastle or Spurs, we don’t shout about our business & never have, so why would we now??

The Trust had enough faith in them….that should speak volumes. Just give them a chance.

Agree 100%

However the above doesn't look as good in the red-tops (and the LT's for that matter) sports pages, so they'll put their twisted spin on it and try to make out like there's some imminent collision between Big Sam and Venky's.

[JAL]

£53m invested so far according to this article...also links Kentaro

You get the feeling that Venkys, reading this, is already a busted flush at Rovers with little or no more money than what the trustees had, which asks the question, why on earth did the Walkers ever sell to this family FFS!

[mark]

I've said it before and I'll say it again just in case anyone from the VH Group is tasked with reading this stuff - perception IS reality.

I started a thread for this purpose but mods binned it within minutes. I think it makes sense to have a thread dedicated to fans messages to Venky's. It would make it a damn site easier for them to gauge fans' opinion rather than trawling through multiple threads (this one, ins and outs, Sam Allardyce, Kentaro etc). We know they're aware of this board and we know they're busy people, so why not make it easy for them to hear our messages?

[47er]

You get the feeling that Venkys, reading this, is already a busted flush at Rovers with little or no more money than what the trustees had, which asks the question, why on earth did the Walkers ever sell to this family FFS!

Quite the most negative post I've ever read even on here! Why don't you just wait and see what happens? Remember we are already debt-free FFS.

[John]

The fact the club’s mouthpiece (LET) has been reporting the concern behind the scenes regarding transfer targets etc, I think we can be pretty sure all is not well.

[JAL]

Quite the most negative post I've ever read even on here! Why don't you just wait and see what happens? Remember we are already debt-free FFS.

Are we debt free ? or was it more likely for a very short period when Venky's wiped the slate clean, but as each month passes, that debt grows again, due to the difference of the outgoings versus incomings.

[BRFC95]

You get the feeling that Venkys, reading this, is already a busted flush at Rovers with little or no more money than what the trustees had, which asks the question, why on earth did the Walkers ever sell to this family FFS!

Were they not the only bidders to 'show 'em the money'

[JAL]

Were they not the only bidders to 'show 'em the money'

Think so, it begins to look like the first show of cash and they snapped their hands off and did a runner, or should it be, they took flight.

[philipl]

The status of the debt seems unclear. Reading the comments by the Venky's literally, it appears the debt is still there but they have taken responsibility for it personally at the moment. I understand the intention is to get it paid off but nobody has yet come straight out and said it is repaid.

However, by now Rovers should have received a £15m cash injection from Venky's which on a simple cash flow basis should have reduced the overdraft very significantly. Whether the £15m is intended to be subscribed for as equity is not clear- they might for administrative ease be waiting for all the minority shares to be sold or cancelled by 31 December after which they are free to change the share structure without as much paperwork hassle. On the other hand, the could be there as long term owner's loans in which case we do not know the repayment or interest terms.

[RovertheHill]

Let the supporters have a say in the way the club is run? Strange idea to me that one because isn't that effectively what Newcastle have been doing for the last 20 years, plus Leeds before them?

[Hughesy]

Are we debt free ? or was it more likely for a very short period when Venky's wiped the slate clean, but as each month passes, that debt grows again, due to the difference of the outgoings versus incomings.

From your 1st post - where do you get 'is already a busted flush at Rovers with little or no more money than what the trustees had'?? If we are debt free wont we be operating around a £3-5m profit aslong as we stay mid table?? And lets not forget that the trust didnt give us a penny for the last few years!!

And as a debt free club we operate within a profit...its just about replacing poor players with better quality for similar wages....the higher we finish the bigger the profit.

No doubt the likes of Chimbonda, Grella, Andrews, Brown etc are wasting a huge chunk of our available wage budget.

[John]

No doubt the likes of Chimbonda, Grella, Andrews, Brown etc are wasting a huge chunk of our available wage budget.

Valid point but easier said than done to get rid of the deadwood.

[Hughesy]

Valid point but easier said than done to get rid of the deadwood.

Takes time....unless you write them off & let them go for free.

Roberts, Benjani, Brown, Salgado, Chimbonda & Judge are all out of contract this summer - so thats a start.

[John]

Sam pleased with new owners

[JAL]

From your 1st post - where do you get 'is already a busted flush at Rovers with little or no more money than what the trustees had'?? If we are debt free wont we be operating around a £3-5m profit aslong as we stay mid table?

Busted flush comes purely from that first initial outlay, as will it probably be the last outlay at Rovers from Venky's, and IF, Rovers do generate £3-5m profit, were on earth do you think thats going to go Hughesy ? dont be surprised to see that it goes back to India with some of it going to Kentaro.

Sceptical Hughesy.

[unleaded]

Venkys Xprs set to open at Ewood soon...............The Vh Group has launched the chain called Venky's Xprs, which will roll out outlets across India and also at Blackburn soon. Venky’s got international pop singer Akon, to open their first retail outlet in Pune yesaterday....................