...there is no property / redevelopment play here?
I'm just trying to get a clear idea on his intentions. I don't think there is, though i think Sint Truiden's ground was developed as much a business centre as a football ground.
We were pretty convinced that the Spivs' long-term play was part progression to the premier league, part relocation to state of the art new facilities on the peninsula and sale of Valley land.
With Roland we are still scratching around for clear intentions. Can we confidently rule out the above (or something similar) to be one of Roland's key drivers?
If we can, there two things will emerge in the short-term if the poor form and fall-out continues:
a: he isn't mad, he addresses something in decline (like he would with his other businesses) and Luzon, and most probably Miere will be facing replacement pretty soon and the circus starts all over again with different ring-leaders
b: he is either mad or belligerent, and continues with the status quo. And the theory that he is only really interested in some form of self-sufficiency running of a club based on lean budget supplied by player sales, with not real interest in its heritage or support, and no real ambition in its advancement, gains further traction.
thoughts?
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Comments
There is no correct outcome .
When he's finished he will sell up and move on to someone else.
:-)
As in developing the ground maybe.
St Truiden's ground at Stayen has been improved a lot and two stands are very modern with restaurants, lounges, hotels, gyms, etc but it is on the edge of small provincial city where there is plenty of land and not a lot of competition.
I doubt so much can be done at the Valley due to space and planning permission plus is there really the demand for all that in SE7. Certainly makes no sense to build more restaurants when we've outsourced the catering.
But what is odd about Roland is that he seems very happy with big capital expenditure (the seats, the screen, the pitch, sparrows lane) but wants to cut other spending when and where ever he can ie programme sellers, cups of tea.
As with most things with Roland it doesn't add up.
If there was an available piece of land for him to build a new ground from scratch that might appeal to him but I can't see where that would be and how it would get planning permission ahead of more profitable and needed new housing.
I don't think RD wants to knock The Valley down and turn it into flats or anything of that nature, but there's some worrying stuff here, particularly the comment about no longer owning their own ground.
Sparrows Lane is potentially worth a lot more, but very problematic for residential because of its protected planning status.
All the same lets renew the Valley ACV in time for its 2017 expiry, who knows what might happen if he wants out and can't get his dosh back
I would not be overly concerned about what fans thought. If it was not working how they wanted I might not be terribly bothered about that. Because I would do what I wanted in my own time. I would try out a few of my ideas because I paid for the privilege to do that and I might have a who are you to stop me attitude.
If I saw enough face to face passion ( not aggression) about the club I might alter my view a bit, but if I am miles away it all it would probably have little effect.
I don't know. A lot of things at the club seem to make little sense at the moment from row Z. A decent run of results changes everything. But we don't seem set up to sustain any good runs of form we achieve on the pitch. So I am genuinely baffled.
CAFC feels completely soulless currently. That takes some effort to achieve in a club with generally a fine tradition of good natured hard working loyal support.
Am sure the trust is alert to this anyway, but is worth making sure this version of the masterplan includes The Valley as a football stadium (as I recall, the last version at least initially didn't go south of the Woolwich Road - bit stupid when that includes the railway station that people will use to commute in and out of the area in question, but that's Greenwich planning).
I doubt any major redevelopment will happen soon (one big property company was sniffing around near the Barrier before last Christmas), though - RD might get bored and move on before he's able to take advantage of any "regeneration" scheme to add extra facilities to The Valley.
There's also the more prosaic issue of Floyd Road being a poorly-maintained dump of a road that's hardly likely to make The Valley an attractive conference venue, etc, and understandably twitchy local residents.
On top of that, when another consortium that was intent on playing the Peninsula card approached him, soon after he'd taken control, he brushed them off, saying that wasn't what he was interested in.
None of which is to say we should not be on our guard, and I for one didn't realize the ACV is only valid to 2017. That seems a rather pointless scheme if so. If it is an ACV, it surely doesn't stop being one within five years?
Great expression BTW. I shall use it today (got any more?)