Stewart Milne our Chairman....

[The_Moog]

And only a mere 17 years had passed from being the best team in Europe to the worst team in Scotland's top division. I still feel utterly dejected when I think back to the late 1990s/early 2000s and I'm afraid the blame has got that lies entirely at the feet of Stewart Milne. And to make matters worse, he wore a f@cking hairpiece. We were a joke of a club, 17 years after being feared by all of Europe

Just to add, nothing against hairpieces when used after health issues, but everything against them when worn by a multi millionaire going through a midlife crisis...

������ I forgot about the wig - truly cringeworthy bit of cloth.

To be fair, probably the only decent decision he’s made in his time here was to dump the rug - what a legacy...

[Wullie83]

All things considered I think Milne has done a pretty good job and continues to do so.

[afc1903mad]

All things considered I think Milne has done a pretty good job and continues to do so.

I agree with you.
I think some give the man a disservice

[ragnarok]

You have really surpassed yourself with that one. I didn't think you were capable of surpassing your Jimmy Saville nonsense. But fair play to you you've pulled one out of the bag.

You'll only encourage him.

[Aldo1983]

I agree with you.
I think some give the man a disservice

There's a surprise.

[Bridieeater]

And only a mere 17 years had passed from being the best team in Europe to the worst team in Scotland's top division. I still feel utterly dejected when I think back to the late 1990s/early 2000s and I'm afraid the blame has got that lies entirely at the feet of Stewart Milne. And to make matters worse, he wore a f@cking hairpiece. We were a joke of a club, 17 years after being feared by all of Europe

Just to add, nothing against hairpieces when used after health issues, but everything against them when worn by a multi millionaire going through a midlife crisis...

Yea, i suppose one of the biggest clubs in world football has done ok since fergie left also?

[RED_JOHN]

I agree with you.
I think some give the man a disservice

Can you help us non Milne fan club out with a list of things that the man has done to move Aberdeen forward and improve them during his tenure?

[xtrmntr75]

There are a lot of factors which contributed to the demise of the club going into the 90’s. The handover from Dick to Ian Donald wasn’t very great. The big stand that plunged us into debt for the first time was a mistake. When McLeish, Bett and Connor left the club in 94, that left only Stewart McKimmie from the great mid 80’s side. At the time, the players recruited to replace these guys just weren’t up to it. I agree Milne is responsible for what followed. Aitken,A Miller, Skovdahl and Paterson were terrible appointments. Alex Miller was probably the most disappointing. I think he was seen as a safe pair of hands to steady the ship but it was a disaster. And while we were paying fees like £300k for Nigel fu(kin Pepper, the stadium is crumbling through lack of maintenance.

[Pacman1903]

. And while we were paying fees like £300k for Nigel fu(kin Pepper, the stadium is crumbling through lack of maintenance.

Thats what i will remember him for. Hes a builder who couldnt keep his building in a good nick.

[ragnarok]

I agree Milne is responsible for what followed. Aitken,A Miller, Skovdahl and Paterson were terrible appointments. Alex Miller was probably the most disappointing. I think he was seen as a safe pair of hands to steady the ship but it was a disaster. And while we were paying fees like £300k for Nigel fu(kin Pepper, the stadium is crumbling through lack of maintenance.

The period from early 97 through 99 is one of those bewildering plunges of a football club that seems to defy explanation. Aitken seemed to be doing fairly well - he saved us from relegation and then won the league cup and finished a comparably respectable 3rd the following season. The following season he splurged in the transfer market and this seemed to pay off initially - we were 2nd in December. Then the wheels came off spectacularly and Aitken looked lost for the remainder of his time at the club.

Miller came in as a "safe pair of hands" as you say. There was a fair bit of expectation going into the 98/99 season (we had just signed Hignett and re-signed Jess) and it started well with a win at Dens and then a win over Celtic at Pittodrie. Then it all turned to sh*t again.

Although I had a bit of fondness for "Uncle Ebbe", with the benefit of hindsight he may have been the worst Milne appointment. Although Skovdahl spent a fair bit on transfers by the standards of his successors, the club was not in a strong financial position at this point and appointing a foreign manager with no knowledge of the Scottish game was a terrible decision. Make no mistake, you can discuss the technicalities of the 99/00 season but, we finished bottom of the league and deservedly so and should consider ourselves very lucky not to have been relegated.

Skovdahl did manage to eke out one decent season which saw the emergence of Aberdeen legends such as Darren Mackie and Derek Young. In all seriousness, by the end of his tenure our financial plight had gone from bad to worse and we had no choice but to rely on younger players. One of the reasons why I tend not to be too critical of the Paterson debacle is that we were pretty much f*cked whoever we had in charge. This was the team of Leigh Hinds, Leon Mike, Laurent D'Jaffo, Jamie McQuilken and Fergus Tiernan - definitely a low point for the club in terms of the quality of the playing staff.

Ultimately Milne has to carry the can for these failures and the downward spiral of the club during this period. But I also think he was a bit unlucky that none of these appointments really paid off. With the exception of Paterson, the other managers had sufficient resources at their disposal to do a lot better.