Following from Chicago's thread, in our history we have had some really awful owners but that is common to most football clubs. The financial ineptitude of DCFC owners stretches back to the turn of 19th century when we had to part with our most prized asset Steve Bloomer and subsequently were relegated.
Now my memory only stretches from Sam Longson to Mel Morris.
So who was the worst owner/chairman?
The candidates.
Sam Longson, myopic dictator who plotted and eventually succeeded in getting rid of our greatest ever manager. The club's trophy cabinet would almost certainly look more impressive and Forest's look poorer had it not been for his "leadershp".
Was it Stuart Webb who was in charge in 1984 when we went in to receivership, division 3 and were on the brink of extinction. In those days FFP and the EFL didn't pile on the misery when clubs found themselves in financial difficulty otherwise what we are seeing now would have been a picnic compared to 1984.
Robert Maxwell, crook, fantasist, narcissist took over and rescued the club with money he didn't have. No doubt had the fit and proper person rules been in place he would still have taken over the club..Bought some great players and then sold them leaving us worse than before.
Lionel Pickering, a man who sacrificed his fortune made from free newspapers in a buying spree which in its day was much more extravagant than Mel's. We were paying Division one money in Division 2. Very much like Mel he had some near misses for promotion, including the total robbery at Wembley thanks to idiot referee Roger Milford. I hope he had a lingering death.. Eventually Lionel's money did make a difference and we had some good times with Jim Smith's United Nations of footballers but it didn't end well and his biggest error was to come with his choice of successor.
The three degrees, we all think most football club owners are dishonest in some way but these three proved it. For their three pound investment they proceeded to enrich themselves at the club's expense. The law finally caught up with them.
Adam Pearson, brought in as an organisational genius but his business skills were similar to his aesthetic appearance. He presided over our worst ever season then cut and ran.
Last but not least Mel Morris. Local boy and fan made good. Gambled on reaching the Premier League but kept losing so chased his losses like a compulsive gambler. Main skill set appeared to be hiring and firing managers, including sacking one of them twice.
So who is le crap de la crap in this rogue's gallery of club owner/chairmen?
The Worst
posted on 10/10/21
comment by lastapostleofvidal (U1491)
posted 4 hours, 42 minutes ago
Well maybe Newcastle’s loss could be our gain, or something. Don’t know if there is anything in the Mike Ashley link but maybe he is what we need at the moment, an owner who can stabilise the club and keep it on a financial even keel.
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NO!
Look at how he's run the businesses he's acquired, the latest example House of Fraser. It's got so much stock from its Sports Direct brand in there, lowered it's reputation and value.
By acquiring our club he'll be using it to promote his baby, Sports Direct, without a doubt we'll change the stadium name to SD arena, all his merchandise will flood our shops.
Secondly I can't see Rooney and Mike Ashley working together in harmony. Wayne has developed so much as a manager handling the current turmoil, I wouldn't want to lose him once a takeover is completed.
I'd much rather have an owner who looks at Derby as the brand to firstly rescue and then develop both it's image after recent years and business model. Mike Ashley in my opinion won't offer that but look at the club as a vehicle to promote his primary business.
posted on 10/10/21
Agreed Des I don't want Ashley anyway near our club.
Steve Bruce is in for an £8 million pay off...WTF.
If the be-headers offer £50 million for TL, I'd take it.
posted on 10/10/21
Choosing an owner for DCFC is like choosing whether you'd prefer to have gonorrhea or chlamydia.
posted on 10/10/21
Is there anyone better than Ashley at the minute to take Derby on? He can’t be any worse than Morris
posted on 10/10/21
Appleby maybe. Sam Rush attached to that takeover is a concern but given their work in the past and less likely to frustrate WR than Mike Ashley I'd consider their consortium the better option of the two.
posted on 10/10/21
I don’t have a problem with Mr Appleby
posted on 11/10/21
Can't see a problem with Mike Ashley. Could someone enlighten me instead of taking soundbites from the most delusional fans in Western Europe?
And yes, I'm not happy with working conditions at Shirebrook but 14 years at Newcastle, premier league football, 26th in the ST Rich list (Mel is about 226th), lets see eh?
Can beggers be choosers?
Or is it because he has 2 warehouses full of black and white scarfs he cant get rid of in the North East?
posted on 11/10/21
No problem with Mike Ashley, you know he isn't going to pretend to be the supporter's friend. His business model of buying brands at low prices means he can still maintain profit margins while under cutting the competition. This then enables him to sell more famous brands at lower cost. His parsimony towards the club he owned hasn't prevented them blowing millions on donkeys like Joelinton so there is still a risk. Wouldn't mind seeing maxima and minima in a Derby shirt though.
posted on 11/10/21
comment by lastapostleofvidal (U1491)
posted 1 day, 3 hours ago
Well maybe Newcastle’s loss could be our gain, or something. Don’t know if there is anything in the Mike Ashley link but maybe he is what we need at the moment, an owner who can stabilise the club and keep it on a financial even keel.
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Newcastle were in a terrible mess when he turned up. Sure, they were top ten of the Prem, but had a £100m debt and on the inevitable slide. Their 'success' (though they ultimately never won a sausage) was down to big transfer budgets - as it is with almost any club that ever existed.
Ashley kept Newcastle between the Championship and the Premier League, when clubs like Wolves, Man City, Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday, Bolton flirted with disaster by spending time in the third tier.
Wolves nearly went out of existence altogether just 35 years ago, almost plummeting out of the football league and just two minutes from the extinction deadline when a bid was accepted.
Ashley isn't as horrific as entitled Northerners would have you believe. He's an astute businessman and a bloody saint compared to the fingers now owning their club. Yet they celebrate, oblivious to or not caring about morals all of a sudden.
He took them from a perilous financial precipice to being worth £300m and could easily do the same at Derby.
Just stay away from Jez Moxey. He's as oily as they come.
posted on 14/10/21
I’ve spoken to a friend in Detroit who’s a neighbour of Andy Appleby and there is a good chance of him coming back snd taking over the club again. I found Nr Appleby very pleasant when I was talking to him in June 2015 when I was over there. It was a few days after he’d sold the club to Morris and everything he earned me about Morris has come true. I don’t have a problem if Appleby comes back. The sticky point is the fact the club as massive debts and no assets to mortgage against. Morris as asset stripped the club and the club will need to rent the stadium and moor farm. It might be better for whoever takes over to build a new stadium otherwise we could end up like Coventry