Good letter from CAST but I think it could have gone further in questioning how RD is deemed a suitable owner given the debt, current squad, caretaker manager since March, youth players not being fed or watered and the lack of any SMT.
After 5pm today (or is it 7pm?) There is little point of urgency in having any kind of takeover. There has been endless speculation, and also what I take to be deliberate misinformation from the club (take a bow comms team) which will now be followed by more deliberate misinformation as we stagger on. In terms of reputation, if not in terms of his job, Lee Bowyer is the safest manager in football. ' It is what it is' could also be translated into 'I'm all right Jack whatever happens' (although the thin squad of players have upped their effort under Bowyer). When Keohane or some other supplicant is established to make a smaller club whilst they drive a bigger car, that will be that. Even if Bowyer is a miracle worker (he will have to be in order to magic decent players out of thin air) it is now half a second to midnight to have a chance to make the season have any potential. As fans we have been royally played. Two people, Richard Murray and Roland Duchatelet, are responsible for this. When they next hold forth (probably via their underlings) it is worth putting everything through your bullshit filter, but don't be surprised when you find it is still bullshit coming out the other side.
It is very hard to see how there can ever be a takeover unless Roland drops his price. As we have seen, at least 4 buyers have now walked away as unable to get to his offer level or agree terms. He is stuck with a huge amount of Debt ,no security and limited assets left to sell, all the potential buyers know this and if they are smart will sit back and await price reduction. That is bad for all of us CAFC lovers, but for buyers with no love for the Club ,who see an investment opportunity at the right price,their best bet is to wait. He cannot asset strip beyond the squad as others control the assets , stopping water and lights etc will save him pennies, eventually as we sit mid table and he has run up another 5 or 6mn of debt the penny will drop. He has little room to negotiate as his cards are poor, writing to EFL as Card have done will do little, what can they do all the time he is funding the Club. It is a waiting game, and all the buyers are saving money by standing watching on the sidelines.
Every little helps
Lets hope so, but what can they do?
Am I naive in thinking that they could write something to Roland, a polite wtf or invite him to a meeting, they wouldn’t need to acknowledge the cast letter but if it leaked out that the EFL was questioning him about being crap as well he might consider that a tad embarrassing...?
@Fumbluff , yes we could all join you in thinking this would be a good move by the EFL, but I fear we would be in cloud cuckoo land if we actually expected it to happen. They are too busy covering their own arses to put a squib under Roland's!
The Supporters Trust are damned, rightly IMO, if they are seen doing nothing so they should, IMO, be praised for being seen to do something.
I doubt the EFL will say "by jove, this Duchatelet chap is a bounder, we shall blackball him" but I doubt CAST expect that response.
As I said about three years ago we fans have no single knock out punch so we have to keep jabbing away, keep the story in the news, keep annoying the authorities, keeping upsetting Duchatelet (and I was told by his friend in St Truiden that it annoys him a lot).
Firstly it's not in the remit of EFL to question the quality or otherwise of existing owners and so they will make no comment on how bad Rd is. The letter to them reflects this and at least the first two questions should be answered without hiding behind confidentiality. Secondly I think it is mistaken to think that the closing of the Transfer Window means that an early takeover would not be welcome and in fact is less likely. It might now suit both parties. RD knows that he will get no money on the sale of Pope or Lookman but that he will have to carry on losing money. The anger of some fans could boil over into almost any action now and he (yes even he) will be aware of this. As for the buyers, if there are in fact genuine and viable buyers there (and this has always been a big if) they would not now have any pressure from fans to bring in new players and could concentrate on stabilising the club and redressing some of RD's idiocies. Fans would not expect miracles on the field but would be grateful for a change of direction as to how the club is run
Still on ... RD and Aussies waiting on third party to finish there checks and investigation
Tbf this might well be true. RD said he’d start appointing people at the start of the season if it hadn’t go through and he still hasn’t so I’m Guessing they’re close, but we’ve been there x26258 times before
Does the EFL have a phone number? What about if CAFC fans spent a day bombarding it with calls demanding answers to the Trusts questions so they can do fuck all else?
I think CARD/CAST should release a statement and give them an ultimatum... The club make a statement on what is going on or we actively make plans to get each and every game postponed until further notice
I think CARD/CAST should release a statement and give them an ultimatum... The club make a statement on what is going on or we actively make plans to get each and every game postponed until further notice
How do we get games postponed? We haven’t managed it yet.
I think CARD/CAST should release a statement and give them an ultimatum... The club make a statement on what is going on or we actively make plans to get each and every game postponed until further notice
How do we get games postponed? We haven’t managed it yet.
Does the EFL have a phone number? What about if CAFC fans spent a day bombarding it with calls demanding answers to the Trusts questions so they can do fuck all else?
I have access to this technology we use at work called Lusha. It somehow has access via LinkedIn to people’s mobiles that they signed up to when they opened a LinkedIn account (if they gave their mobile). For me it’s a telesales dream as I now have a chance of getting through to a lot of decision makers. I will have a little trawl through it 2mo and see what it gives me re: EFL employees
I think CARD/CAST should release a statement and give them an ultimatum... The club make a statement on what is going on or we actively make plans to get each and every game postponed until further notice
How do we get games postponed? We haven’t managed it yet.
I think CARD/CAST should release a statement and give them an ultimatum... The club make a statement on what is going on or we actively make plans to get each and every game postponed until further notice
How do we get games postponed? We haven’t managed it yet.
Ask the Jock who was organising it for the Middlesbrough game.
Comments
They are too busy covering their own arses to put a squib under Roland's!
I doubt the EFL will say "by jove, this Duchatelet chap is a bounder, we shall blackball him" but I doubt CAST expect that response.
As I said about three years ago we fans have no single knock out punch so we have to keep jabbing away, keep the story in the news, keep annoying the authorities, keeping upsetting Duchatelet (and I was told by his friend in St Truiden that it annoys him a lot).
Keep punching. Keep ringing the EFL.
Secondly I think it is mistaken to think that the closing of the Transfer Window means that an early takeover would not be welcome and in fact is less likely. It might now suit both parties. RD knows that he will get no money on the sale of Pope or Lookman but that he will have to carry on losing money. The anger of some fans could boil over into almost any action now and he (yes even he) will be aware of this.
As for the buyers, if there are in fact genuine and viable buyers there (and this has always been a big if) they would not now have any pressure from fans to bring in new players and could concentrate on stabilising the club and redressing some of RD's idiocies. Fans would not expect miracles on the field but would be grateful for a change of direction as to how the club is run
Football is not just passing us by - football and CAFC are heading in opposite directions.
Still on ... RD and Aussies waiting on third party to finish there checks and investigation
Colin has just read his diary entry for 13th May.
RolandOut!
Guessing they’re close, but we’ve been there x26258 times before