Pace and Velocity the new order and owner

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Burnley Football Club Takeover – Dave Thornley’s View.

Memo to the new owners: In case you are not already aware (and if you are not, then you ought to be), here are some of the things supporters of Burnley Football Club expect of you and what you can expect from those supporters in return; things which were perhaps excluded from the fit and proper persons test, but which are important, nonetheless.

First of all, please refrain from sweeping into the club with outlandish promises of Champions League football in five years, or big-name signings; Burnley fans aren’t daft and we wouldn’t be buying it.

What we do expect is that Sean Dyche be afforded the resources to improve both the quality and the quantity of his playing squad. Dyche has more than earned this right and he should be left alone to utilise an enhanced transfer budget as he sees fit.

There is a scene from the Damned United in which Brian Clough instructs his Chairman to “just sign the bloody cheques”. It may be apocryphal, but one can readily imagine Clough saying such a thing and the same applies now as much as it did in Clough’s day.

The budget on transfer fees is one thing but the wages paid to the players is quite another. Burnley too often miss out on their transfer targets by not offering a high enough salary. If you have read the book “Soccernomics” you will know that the success of a club is directly proportionate to payroll, not the money spent on transfers. If you haven’t read this book, I recommend you do so, you can even borrow my copy.

Secondly; by all means spruce up the stadium at Turf Moor, but whatever you do, don’t ever consider installing us in a soulless glass and concrete bowl on the edge of town. Turf Moor is at the heart of the town, of the community, it is a focal point; its stands and floodlight towers are readily visible sentinels as one drives into the town. To lose that would be to lose something of intangible but none-the-less enormous value.

Consider instead the funding of a re-location of Burnley Cricket Club to enable that end of the ground to be opened up into a concourse and allow the construction of a stand to replace the existing structure which is over half a century old and is showing its age. By the way, I have banged on about this for long enough, but this new stand should be named after the greatest sportsman the town has ever produced; James Anderson.

Thirdly; please don’t bring with you any of the terminology and tendencies of American team sports; Burnley is a club, not a “franchise”; we play football, not “soccer” and when the scores in a game are equal, it is a draw, not a “tie”. Crucially, football in this country is all about location and community and teams are never moved from town to town at the whim of the owners.

A few other things to consider; a zero tolerance of racist, homophobic and misogynistic language and behaviour from anyone connected with the club – including the supporters – would be welcome; as would the continuation and enhancement of the excellent work the club undertakes in the community; you may also wish to place an increased emphasis on the women’s team.

Finally, and most importantly, be aware that you are inheriting a proud history with deep-rooted traditions and values. Together these form Burnley’s identity, an identity which has been passed down the generations and of which you are now custodians; just as Mike Garlick, Barry Kilby and Bob Lord before you were custodians. You get to write your own page in the club’s history; how that will read to future generations is up to you.

Do all this and in return you can rely on the unswerving loyalty and commitment of Burnley fans everywhere. Some will be critical, but the criticism comes from a deep-seated desire to see the club do well. If you take the time to afford the fans the decency of communicating your policies and your decisions with clarity and a sense of purpose, then, whilst you may not assuage all the critics, you will at least maintain their respect.

We fans can tolerate losing matches, we can even tolerate being relegated, but what we will not stand for is being treated with disdain.

Finally, a note on the sad passing of Tommy Docherty, whose son Michael was a buccaneering right back in Jimmy Adamson’s brilliant Burnley team of the early seventies.

Docherty senior was, of course, a reasonably successful – and much travelled- manager and one of the game’s characters; a gifted raconteur, adept with the one-liners.

He was largely – but not universally – popular with the players he managed who would refer to the humour and positivity of his training sessions and team talks. But the game’s major honours largely eluded him and in comparison to some of his contemporaries such as Clough or Paisley, he perhaps lacked their attention to detail and sheer will-to-win. His teams were always easy to watch but not always hard to beat.

Rest in peace, Doc, the game is poorer for your loss.

Dave Thornley bored with the absence of the Fulham game to reflect on, chooses instead to give a “heads up” to Alan Pace and the Velocity Sports Partnership. (TEC).

[oldcolner]

Mail refers to £170m takeover for 84% of the shares so the club valued at £200m.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...ent-stake.html

There were 122478 shares listed on Companies house website recently. If the club is worth £200m
That’s effectively £1633 per share.

In 2008 around 15000 additional shares were sold for £2200 each.

Seems getting promotion has made us cheaper.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Looks a bit dodgy now...

https://footballeconomyv2.blogspot.c...owed-from.html

[Altobelli]

Dodgey or not, we will have to wait and see, but obviously staying in the PL would help pay off any loans, relegation would then probably seal our fate.

But now the question must be asked, in the last transfer window we had sitting in the BFC Bank account approx £50 Million, Garlick in his infinite wisdom spent a measly 1 million on a make up the numbers below average player, and with the sale of his stake in the Club has walked off into the sunset with the £50 Million plus, So much for him being a Burnley Football Club Fan/Supporter and wanting the Club to remain in the PL, I Told You He Was A Second Hand Car Salesman BT, in fact that's being really harsh on proper 2nd hand car salesman, he's conned the Club he so eagerly told us was forefront in his mind.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

He was wise enough to make enough money to have £50 million on hand for the incoming new owners to give it back to him and John B for the sale of the club plus another £120 million of borrowed dosh to make him a very, very rich man.

Who is daft - him or us? Not bad going for "A Second Hand Car Salesman", eh Alto?

[Altobelli]

Who is daft - him or us? Not bad going for "A Second Hand Car Salesman", eh Alto?

He's a 2 faced liar BT, which is what i have said all along, he does not care about anyone or BFC, only himself, in short he is a Shyster, and these folk who crow about "What he's done in the last years for BFC", "He done it because he's a BFC fan", "His heart is in the Club and we wouldnt be where we are without him" Make me want to Vomit.

And worst thing of all, and if true, I have heard if installments fail for his shares he gets his shares back therefor control of the Club again, yes not bad for a Con man BT, win win with any scenario for the self serving tw@t.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

He's a 2 faced liar BT, which is what i have said all along, he does not care about anyone or BFC, only himself, in short he is a Shyster, and these folk who crow about "What he's done in the last years for BFC", "He done it because he's a BFC fan", "His heart is in the Club and we wouldnt be where we are without him" Make me want to Vomit.

And worst thing of all, and if true, I have heard if installments fail for his shares he gets his shares back therefor control of the Club again, yes not bad for a Con man BT, win win with any scenario for the self serving tw@t.

Big bucks in play here Alto, God help us if we get relegated...

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...8bViwDiXviLrDo

[oldcolner]

Looks a bit dodgy now...

https://footballeconomyv2.blogspot.c...owed-from.html

Not a surprise BT is it. I suggested a Glazier type deal as one option and this is very similar

It says “ALK paid about £150 million for 84 per cent of Burnley’s shares, but has put in only around £15 million of its own money up front.

”The rest £80m has come from MSD Capital...and approximately £55 million from Burnley’s own bank account.””


Pace responds below to Bowden in a cryptic reassuring manner. “ I would tell you the way that we have done this, I am absolutely positively certain, it has never been done in the same way ever before, and has everything to do with making the fan base comfortable that this is the most sustainable form of what we could have done - bar none.”?

https://www.clitheroeadvertiser.co.u...report-3089574

Don’t know why he’s being so coy, it will emerge in the accounts

Maybe the loan might be $80m or £60m not £80m. The owners have put in all of £15m less than 10% of the value - you can’t get house mortgages for that.

I guess Garlick and JB have been promised the £55m from the Clubs accounts on a staged basis, say £10m a year and that’s probably why they remain on the Board ... to ensure they get their dosh out of the club as much as act as advisers - they still own more of the club than Pace. Probably better from Capital Gains taxation for them.

Not sure where the other money comes from. Maybe wealthy backers or the club has gone very cheap.

Other shareholders are in limbo only able to sell them privately

[Supersub6]

Shock, horror as many football fans suddely realise that football is really big business, in spite of the fact that there has been billions of pounds being thrown about for years.

Directors pay money into all clubs and get the perks that go with being a Director, nothing unusual there at all. They also always get criticised for what they do or don't do when running the club, nothing new there then.
Garlick and company have done a deal to sell the club, in which they held a major share, and they are the people who willl benefit from it. That is business and there is nothing wrong with that because anyone in business wants, nay needs, to make a profit whether it be the local grocers or the local football club. Life goes on, enjoy it while you can.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

I was just scribbling some figures down, calculated pre-takeover:

Fixed assets = £100,000,000 (Turf Moor and the Barnfield Estate)?
Player assets = £150,000,000?
Debt = none.
Cash in hand = £50,000,000.
Annual operating costs = £100,000,000 per annum.
Guaranteed EPL membership annual income = £120,000,000. (TV money).
Sundries income = £10,000,000. (Catering, advertising, shop, season tickets etc.)

Not exactly a risk at £175,000,000 is it?