Just want to reply to a few points about Saints and administration.
Personally, I think relegation from the Prem to League One in the space of 4 years was enough "long term hardship" for the club. Previous to our takeover a lot of good people lost their job at the club and fans were treated with utter contempt by idiots like Rupert Lowe. So, from my point of view, we suffered as a club.
Regarding the general gist of "getting away with Administration" we did get the points deduction (which the football league were on very flimsy ground about legally, but in order to make the takeover go smoothly, the new owner reluctantly accepted the deduction).
Saints were forced into administration by Barclays bank due to an overdraft of about £5m. Compare that to the huge amounts owed by other clubs. The new owner paid off the overdraft in full and paid around £13m up front of the £20m outstanding on the Stadium Loan to clear that. Saints owed only around £0.5m to HRMC, which was paid off in full also.
So, our new owner, Mr Liebherr has now made the club debt free. I understand he deposited an amount of money into the club's accounts (not as a loan, or as shares or any other dodge, but as cash) for transfers and running costs. Obviously, with now 13,000 season ticket holders and crowds up to 30,000 on three occasions already this season, the club can generate quite a bit more operating cash than most teams in League one.
Thankfully, after a nightmare few years, the club is on the up again. I wouldn't want to wish administration on my worst enemy (which I guess means Pompey, although in their case, compare the way the prem is bending over backwards to them, compared to the Football League putting the boot into any club that gets into problems).
Personally, I'm just happy to have a settled, well run club again. Whether we spend more than other clubs is up to the chairman, it's his money and he appears here for the long term (he's also funding a £2.5m new building at our training ground). We are very lucky to have him.
As for the match on Saturday. Saints have found it hard work away from home on less than perfect pitches. the longer the game goes without Saints scoring, the better your chances of getting a result. If Saints score early, then our forwards and attacking midfielders can do some serious damage as Walsall and Huddersfield found out.
Personally, I think relegation from the Prem to League One in the space of 4 years was enough "long term hardship" for the club. Previous to our takeover a lot of good people lost their job at the club and fans were treated with utter contempt by idiots like Rupert Lowe. So, from my point of view, we suffered as a club.
Regarding the general gist of "getting away with Administration" we did get the points deduction (which the football league were on very flimsy ground about legally, but in order to make the takeover go smoothly, the new owner reluctantly accepted the deduction).
Saints were forced into administration by Barclays bank due to an overdraft of about £5m. Compare that to the huge amounts owed by other clubs. The new owner paid off the overdraft in full and paid around £13m up front of the £20m outstanding on the Stadium Loan to clear that. Saints owed only around £0.5m to HRMC, which was paid off in full also.
So, our new owner, Mr Liebherr has now made the club debt free. I understand he deposited an amount of money into the club's accounts (not as a loan, or as shares or any other dodge, but as cash) for transfers and running costs. Obviously, with now 13,000 season ticket holders and crowds up to 30,000 on three occasions already this season, the club can generate quite a bit more operating cash than most teams in League one.
Thankfully, after a nightmare few years, the club is on the up again. I wouldn't want to wish administration on my worst enemy (which I guess means Pompey, although in their case, compare the way the prem is bending over backwards to them, compared to the Football League putting the boot into any club that gets into problems).
Personally, I'm just happy to have a settled, well run club again. Whether we spend more than other clubs is up to the chairman, it's his money and he appears here for the long term (he's also funding a £2.5m new building at our training ground). We are very lucky to have him.
As for the match on Saturday. Saints have found it hard work away from home on less than perfect pitches. the longer the game goes without Saints scoring, the better your chances of getting a result. If Saints score early, then our forwards and attacking midfielders can do some serious damage as Walsall and Huddersfield found out.