Is this why they pulled out….?

[macstheman]

I will go with Sam Longson even though he 'lost' BC! At the end of the day we won the title twice during his time and he oversaw our transmission from a meandering 2nd tier club to the very best in the land. Lionel comes a close 2nd for success on the pitch and the move to PP and Moor Farm. Unfortunately, as we know it all went sour and that can't be ignored! The Yanks deserve a mention because they stabilised us and left the club in a much healthier state even though on the pitch was dire.
What this does show is the close relationship between the choice of manager in defining the chairman! It also highlights that success can be quickly followed by disaster even under a forward thinking owner! Unfortunately, we seem to specialise in owners who bring initial success but ultimately failure and even disaster.
As a footnote I should say that I was on the Committee of the Derby County Supporters Movement (formerly the Derby County Protest Movement) who tried to oust Longson and get Cloughie reinstated but I still make him my number one!

[swaledale]

The thing is GP don't these Hillary's have a contingency plan, don't they think 'what if it goes boobs up, if I fail who picks up the tab'??
Mel is a Ram so why put the club at risk? He is presumably a clever bloke so surely he covers his back!
What gets my goat is his 'well fans I gave it a go, you enjoyed the ride but it didn't quite happen and it cost me a big wedge! So, I'm sure you'll understand that the current sh*t is a shame but I'm off now and somebody else can sort the crap out.'
Sorry Mel but you've forgot one thing you were the custodian of our Club and it's well being was and still is your prime responsibility! You put it's future on the line now your true colours are showing. Thanks for nowt!

I totally agree with you, you have in a nutshell described exactly what Mel's done. Gambled with the clubs future in order to try and get in the prem, where he hoped he'd get his money back and be a local hero. Failed, and now walks away saying I'm not prepared to fund the club.

[ramAnag]

I will go with Sam Longson even though he 'lost' BC! At the end of the day we won the title twice during his time and he oversaw our transmission from a meandering 2nd tier club to the very best in the land. Lionel comes a close 2nd for success on the pitch and the move to PP and Moor Farm. Unfortunately, as we know it all went sour and that can't be ignored! The Yanks deserve a mention because they stabilised us and left the club in a much healthier state even though on the pitch was dire.
What this does show is the close relationship between the choice of manager in defining the chairman! It also highlights that success can be quickly followed by disaster even under a forward thinking owner! Unfortunately, we seem to specialise in owners who bring initial success but ultimately failure and even disaster.
As a footnote I should say that I was on the Committee of the Derby County Supporters Movement (formerly the Derby County Protest Movement) who tried to oust Longson and get Cloughie reinstated but I still make him my number one!

Interesting and informed answer. I thought possibly Longson in terms of what he inherited and where he left us, but then wasn’t he the owner who prompted Cloughie to leave a blank page as a description of what owners/chairmen know about football?
Agree though...it all changes so quickly...I really enjoyed the Maxwell days and especially the season we signed Saunders, but that went horribly sour. Pickering has to be up there in terms of bringing us PP and his sheer enthusiasm but he did make some daft decisions and Morris might have been both the best and the worst in terms of backing his ambition but ultimate leaving us in a bigger hole than I think we’ve ever been in.
Oh for a Ben Robinson only with deeper pockets. He seems to manage the fan/owner thing at Burton Albion particularly well and, given the size of the club, has probably achieved more than most owners I can think of.

[MadAmster]

I totally agree with you, you have in a nutshell described exactly what Mel's done. Gambled with the clubs future in order to try and get in the prem, where he hoped he'd get his money back and be a local hero. Failed, and now walks away saying I'm not prepared to fund the club.

Does he have the liquid funds left to write a cheque for between 1M and 2M a month? He might have a paper worth of £500M but how much of that is readily available?

Kudos to Mel for his vision. Kudos for putting, as he says, £200M+ into the club. Kudos to Mel for admitting to mistakes and for admitting he failed.

However, he pushed his dream, which is our dream, too far and we are now paying the price. He blames Covid and the EFL for the current predicament and he's not wrong, However, their blame is in the final 2 straws that broke the camel's back, His is in putting the club in the position where those 2 straws caused so much damage. All 3 shoulder blame but not, IMO, equally.