Cast your mind back to October 2007. Leicester City were struggling against relegation to the third tier for the first time in their history. Gary Megson, our latest in a string of managers, quit to take over Premier League Bolton Wanderers.
Now you can say what you like about Gary Megson and the decision he made to leave. I’ve said plenty of things in the past about him and his abilities, or lack of, as a manager – but that’s not the point of this article. The point is that Bolton Wanderers had finished 7th in the Premier League the previous season and qualified for the UEFA cup. We were relegated that season on the last day and Coventry City just survived at our expense. There was some logic to Megson’s decision back then even if I was very resentful of it given that it was Leicester City who’d offered him a lifeline back into management.
Wind the clock forward just over a decade. Leicester City have won the Premier League and are trying to establish themselves more permanently with the top teams in the country. Coventry City have lost their stadium to a Rugby Union team, are playing in League One and ground sharing with Birmingham City. Bolton Wanderers are looking over the precipice towards liquidation. How things have changed so quickly. I have only sympathy for these teams and their current plight as I know that a simple twist of the wheel of fate and this could have been Leicester City. What if Milan Mandaric hadn’t picked the club up off the floor after our administration? What if he hadn’t sold us to Vichai and Top, but had instead listened to offers from SISU, Fawaz, Tan or Ashley?
I know Leicester fans need no reminding of how lucky we’ve been with the ownership of our club, but today maybe we should spare a brief thought for those less fortunate. Bolton, Bury and Coventry were once our rivals for league position and points, but are currently only fighting for their very existence.
Spare a thought for Bolton Wanderers?
posted on 27/8/19
There was a good number of Bolton supporters on the old BBC606 and I remember when Owen Coyle left Burnley to join them I said I thought it was a sideways move at best.
They took that very badly and told me in no uncertain terms why they were a much bigger and better club than Burnley and he was right to join them.
I bet they'd kill to be where Burnley are now, both on and off the pitch.
posted on 27/8/19
I sympathise with any football fan that is in position where they may lose their club. It should never be allowed to happen.
Football clubs are part of the community and a focal point for many families and their children. Generations grow up with their “tradition”.
Now my anger with this comes with the football league. The fit and proper persons test isn’t fit or proper. It’s useless. There should be controls to prevent any club being mismanaged out of existence. With the obscene money at the top of the game there should be a fund to enable the league to seize back control of a club from owners and be run by administrators until a viable option is found. In Bury’s case, it would probably take Alexi Sanchez’ salary for 2 months to sort out!!
It’s scandalous some of the owners allowed to buy clubs and better controls are needed beyond FFP to prevent corrupt owners from stealing clubs away from fans.
What has happened at Bury is nothing short of scandalous. I’m not close to the Bolton situation but it looks equalling atrocious.
It’s almost wrong to mention how wonderful our owners are on this thread, but the way in which they’ve gone about running our club as if it is part of the community and owned by the fans is a stand up example of how it should be done. I am eternally grateful to them for everything they’ve done.
posted on 27/8/19
comment by Merseysidefox (U4842)
posted 8 minutes ago
I sympathise with any football fan that is in position where they may lose their club. It should never be allowed to happen.
Football clubs are part of the community and a focal point for many families and their children. Generations grow up with their “tradition”.
Now my anger with this comes with the football league. The fit and proper persons test isn’t fit or proper. It’s useless. There should be controls to prevent any club being mismanaged out of existence. With the obscene money at the top of the game there should be a fund to enable the league to seize back control of a club from owners and be run by administrators until a viable option is found. In Bury’s case, it would probably take Alexi Sanchez’ salary for 2 months to sort out!!
It’s scandalous some of the owners allowed to buy clubs and better controls are needed beyond FFP to prevent corrupt owners from stealing clubs away from fans.
What has happened at Bury is nothing short of scandalous. I’m not close to the Bolton situation but it looks equalling atrocious.
It’s almost wrong to mention how wonderful our owners are on this thread, but the way in which they’ve gone about running our club as if it is part of the community and owned by the fans is a stand up example of how it should be done. I am eternally grateful to them for everything they’ve done.
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Theres something very wrong when a football club can disappear due to owing 1.2 mil in tax yet players at certain other clubs can earn more than that in a month.
posted on 27/8/19
When Clubs receive monies from the League each year, maybe it should be for a small percentage of the Clubs shares, it might help in future situations?
posted on 27/8/19
So sad for all football fans to see the situation that Bolton,Bury and Coventry are in.
When we were going nowhere in the Championship 10 years or so ago, it seemed that Bolton under Allardyce were always in Europa league and always on tv on thurs evenings.
How envious i am sure we all were. i would have loved to see us in that situation.
How things have changed, but so sad to see some great clubs of years past(Bolton were massive in twenties and thirties) makes us realise what we achieved have in recent years, yet i miss the m69 derby.
I do think however inappropriate some may say, but it does make us appreciate the owners of our great club.
We have so much to be thankful for, when we see other clubs in trouble.Very sad for all fans.
posted on 27/8/19
It's a real pity what's happening to these clubs. I know some opposing fans rejoiced, jibed and showed little sympathy when my club faced similar a few years back. In theory I should say it's karma, but it's not, it really isn't.
It's football some would say, why should we care? But we do don't we? Something about footie and following your side just gets into your blood. It's an important part of the fabric of a community and area. When a working week provides all the every day stresses of work and life, I've found footy has been a much needed escape and way of releasing a bit of steam (peacefully!!).
There'll be fans of these teams who see it just the same way and I feel for them.
Fit and proper & football league are not phrases that should be linked in my view. Inexplicable how the likes of Harvey got a job to me. The fit and proper test only seems to be imposed when it suited them.
I hope a saving solution can be found, but I fear not - sad days indeed.
posted on 27/8/19
You would like to think that, in an ideal world, football clubs and their supporters would all constitute one big happy footy family. If this were so, the obscenely rich neighbours of Bury and Bolton, ie City and Utd, would give them a helping hand in some way, be it financial or other.
Sorry, but I've just been listening to "Imagine" by John Lennon.....