I don’t think it would be “grandstanding” or looking for “brownie points” to have said something that wasn’t outright praising the club for apparently handling the situation so well, or to have chalked it up as something other than one of those things that happens to a “growing business”. There is a pretty large middle ground between going for the club’s throat and applauding them and saying it’s ultimately a non-story, which is very much how it came across on WATG.
Everybody understands this is a crucial period for the club, both on and off the pitch, and that is exactly why the club continually being run so sloppily on an administrative level is such a concern, and why it was so deeply worrying to hear the trust’s stance being presented as somewhere between a shrug of the shoulders and a pat on the back. We’re under a second embargo in less than a year because the club seemingly can’t do the most basic of things correctly, when literally every other club in the entire EFL can. It isn’t good enough, so to hear very prominent figures within the media and fanbase appearing to actively excuse and defend them at the weekend was really concerning.
As a brief aside, this isn’t the first time there have been implications that anybody who is unhappy with OxVox shouldn’t say as much publicly. I think it’s perfectly reasonable for public comments to be discussed in an equally public environment. People can speak their minds however and wherever they like, frankly. Furthermore, most people very much appreciate anybody who gives up their time for a good cause, of which OxVox is undoubtedly one (in principle), but that doesn’t carry immunity from criticism. There are plenty of ex-committee members on this forum, including at least one ex-Chair that I am aware of, while I myself used to work in the communications department alongside Chris Williams. Believe me, there are plenty of us who know what it’s like to bear the brunt.
It’s my personal opinion that you got it wrong in terms of what you said on the BBC, but ultimately the majority of people’s frustrations (certainly mine) are with the football club and the people within it who keep making potentially costly mistakes, and who seem to be incapable of learning or improving. We’re always told that lessons will be learned and that things will improve. Systems are being put in place, they say. It won’t be allowed to happen again, they say. Why does this stuff keep happening? These are merely the things that can’t be hidden from people, of course. These are just the things that the average fan knows about, because the EFL publishes this stuff in broad daylight.
I would also point out that there is a huge difference between the owners and the people who run the club day-to-day. The investment and commitment of the owners cannot reasonably be questioned and should not be criticised, in my view. Without them we don’t have a football club - they have been fantastic - but they are not one and the same. They deserve better, too.
