Tiger

[carefreeoufc]

I know a lot of blame/most is being placed on KR and SD for our current predicament but I do seriously wonder whether our current owner has laid the foundations for our current situation.

Right back before the season started I said I’d wait until the window closed before questioning his finances, commitment, involvement etc. and right now (whilst things are raw I’ll admit) I think a good portion of blame should be placed on him or even Eales and his “best interests of the club”.

I have know inside knowledge but from my own uneducated position I think we were sold down the river to a fantasist who has been that way since his involvement at Reading. Perhaps things will change with Thohirs involvement but right now if we’re going to be singling people out I think these two should be brought to the party.

Yes we have a new training ground and some fancy sponsors but if he really is the best man for the club then I feel like we’ve just embarked on our next journey.

In the interests of the club he needs to step up now and sort his IOU out. I know Appleton had a great opportunity to leave but it does make you wonder how much he saw coming and wanted off ASAP.

 

[Foley]

My understanding is that MAPP left due to falling out with DE who was not keeping his promises re the budget.

I am sure that others are closer than me though and will know more. I think that indirectly blaming MAPP leaving on Tiger is a little tenuous.

 

[cassox]

Looks like Nick Merry 2 ............. the sequel another walter mitty pi55ing about with our club.

 

[Sarge]

My understanding is that MAPP left due to falling out with DE who was not keeping his promises re the budget.

I am sure that others are closer than me though and will know more. I think that indirectly blaming MAPP leaving on Tiger is a little tenuous.

I heard similar from a couple of sources.... none of which were substantiated with any solid evidence.... though as the old adage goes, there's often no smoke without fire

 

[Paul P]

Looks like Nick Merry 2 ............. the sequel another walter mitty pi55ing about with our club.

Seriously?? I totally understand if you have doubts about Tiger but to compare him to the sockless wonder who signed us in to the stadium nightmare that all chairman since have been hamstrung by is surely massively unfair. There is some serious work to be done I agree but Merry holds a special place of contempt in my book and tiger is nowhere near that.

 

[yellowbow]

Seriously?? I totally understand if you have doubts about Tiger but to compare him to the sockless wonder who signed us in to the stadium nightmare that all chairman since have been hamstrung by is surely massively unfair. There is some serious work to be done I agree but Merry holds a special place of contempt in my book and tiger is nowhere near that.

Thats the key though. As things stand we’re tottering on a knife edge and still wondering which way things will fall under Tigers leadership. Go one way and it could be the dawn of a great new future for OUFC, go the other way and we might fall into an obscurity that we struggle to recover from. The infuriating thing is, nobody has a clue which way it’s going to be, or if they do, they’re not telling us. It’s still all maybe’s, hints and vague promises.

 

[Sarge]

Thats the key though. As things stand we’re tottering on a knife edge and still wondering which way things will fall under Tigers leadership. Go one way and it could be the dawn of a great new future for OUFC, go the other way and we might fall into an obscurity that we struggle to recover from. The infuriating thing is, nobody has a clue which way it’s going to be, or if they do, they’re not telling us. It’s still all maybe’s, hints and vague promises.

to be fair OUFC supporters have, in the main, always been given the proverbial mushroom treatment by whatever cartel has been in the driving seat at OUFC .... loyal and long suffering OUFC supporters are seriously undervalued by just about every set of owners I can remember .... & on a good day I can remember right the way back to the early 1960s!..... Our current chairman, so far, is no better or worse at keeping the fanbase informed than any of his predecessors as far as I can see

 

[Banbury2018]

I think we could be on the edge of a great new era but we need a few off field things to go in our favour although I am hoping we will find out more this month. 1 thing I have recently questioned though is regarding the lease on the ground is if it is a 25 year lease on the ground which has 7 or so more years to run did Merry/Lenagan end up with buy the club and accept the arrangements already in place eg 1 company Fk liked fleecing 1 he didn’t

 

[Witney Wag]

Seriously?? I totally understand if you have doubts about Tiger but to compare him to the sockless wonder who signed us in to the stadium nightmare that all chairman since have been hamstrung by is surely massively unfair. There is some serious work to be done I agree but Merry holds a special place of contempt in my book and tiger is nowhere near that.

So you continue with this line. When Lenagan/Merry took over OUFC from Kassam, who wrote the details of the licence? What option did the new owners have regarding playing at the Stadium? You continue to put all the blame on Merry but the real villain of the day was and still is Kassam. It’s been 17 years since we moved to this stadium and I believe it will be many more years the home of OUFC. We are no further forward now than we were when Lenagan took the club over, unless of course you are privileged to know something that the rest of us are unaware of? Supporters have been kept in the dark for too long and I’m sure we are all pi55ed off with all the secrecy, after all we are all paying customers.

 

[cassox]

I'm absolutely astounded how Lenagan allowed this contract to be signed,HE was the backer .......... f*****g dumbarsed fuckwit ..... surely the contract was passed by a lawyer??? chancers taking the p**s out of my club...... what happened to the "Kassam has to sell if someone meets the 13 million asking price" ???

 

[Witney Wag]

I think we could be on the edge of a great new era but we need a few off field things to go in our favour although I am hoping we will find out more this month. 1 thing I have recently questioned though is regarding the lease on the ground is if it is a 25 year lease on the ground which has 7 or so more years to run did Merry/Lenagan end up with buy the club and accept the arrangements already in place eg 1 company Fk liked fleecing 1 he didn’t

It’s not a lease, it’s a licence which gives the landlord more power than a lease.

 

[Banbury2018]

It’s not a lease, it’s a licence which gives the landlord more power than a lease.

Either way I was saying it was signed in 2001ish not when Merry/Lenagan bought the club

 

[Paul P]

So you continue with this line. When Lenagan/Merry took over OUFC from Kassam, who wrote the details of the licence? What option did the new owners have regarding playing at the Stadium? You continue to put all the blame on Merry but the real villain of the day was and still is Kassam. It’s been 17 years since we moved to this stadium and I believe it will be many more years the home of OUFC. We are no further forward now than we were when Lenagan took the club over, unless of course you are privileged to know something that the rest of us are unaware of? Supporters have been kept in the dark for too long and I’m sure we are all pi55ed off with all the secrecy, after all we are all paying customers.

And what line would that be? it's my opinion, you clearly have yours. I would ask you this though, when Merry arrived with such fanfare, was he forced into accepting that contract as you suggest or could he have refused to buy the club without the ground? Could he not have demanded a better deal that included income from concessions and conferencing? Was there not another bid for the club and ground in the offing before he swept in and signed on the dotted line?

I stand to be corrected on any of this but you'll do well to convince me that Merry was an innocent victim of a situation in which he had no choice. To me it was the financial insanity and we are still paying for it now.

As for all the secrecy stuff, i'm just not sure who that is aimed at? Care to elaborate?

 

[Ox4Eva]

My understanding is that MAPP left due to falling out with DE who was not keeping his promises re the budget.

I am sure that others are closer than me though and will know more. I think that indirectly blaming MAPP leaving on Tiger is a little tenuous.

MAPP left for the £

Simple as that!

 

[MiddleBartonYellow]

MAPP left for the £

Simple as that!

Agreed. It’s not rocket, if you are offered £500k a year elsewhere you aren’t going to turn it down. Some people see a conspiracy in everything.

 

[guyellow]

Agreed. It’s not rocket, if you are offered £500k a year elsewhere you aren’t going to turn it down. Some people see a conspiracy in everything.

Exactly. More £££, new challenge and foothold in premiership. A no brained.

 

[Oufcrealist]

Exactly. More £££, new challenge and foothold in premiership. A no brained.

He also wanted to work with Craig Shakespear his pal from his WBA days. So yes all in all a no brainer.
Both not coaching at the moment. How about those two coming in as our management team? Pie in the sky really!

 

[Witney Wag]

And what line would that be? it's my opinion, you clearly have yours. I would ask you this though, when Merry arrived with such fanfare, was he forced into accepting that contract as you suggest or could he have refused to buy the club without the ground? Could he not have demanded a better deal that included income from concessions and conferencing? Was there not another bid for the club and ground in the offing before he swept in and signed on the dotted line?

I stand to be corrected on any of this but you'll do well to convince me that Merry was an innocent victim of a situation in which he had no choice. To me it was the financial insanity and we are still paying for it now.

As for all the secrecy stuff, i'm just not sure who that is aimed at? Care to elaborate?

It is always down to Nick Merry with some supporters, but be assured there are many hands that have helped mix the cake and have some responsibility for our situation today. Maybe the long awaited minutes that were promised will be issued this week. Maybe we will be informed about Myles post which suggests infighting within the committee, now that would make interesting reading.

 

[WuTang]

MAPP knew what was coming, broken promises. There were more push factors for leaving, than pull factors. Very very few managers would leave a managers job for an assistant. After already leaving perhaps and being a free agent, but not a straight transfer. I think suggesting MAPP left for £ is extremely disrespectful, he had his family settled here.

 

[Scotchegg]

MAPP knew what was coming, broken promises. There were more push factors for leaving, than pull factors. Very very few managers would leave a managers job for an assistant. After already leaving perhaps and being a free agent, but not a straight transfer. I think suggesting MAPP left for £ is extremely disrespectful, he had his family settled here.

And his family will be more settled with an extra few hundred k a year! He moved for many reasons, but money, a return to the premiership and working with a very good friend a very big factors. To suggest otherwise is just as disrespectful.

 

[Keepitreal]

MAPP left for the £

Simple as that!

Agreed. It’s not rocket, if you are offered £500k a year elsewhere you aren’t going to turn it down. Some people see a conspiracy in everything.

Not that anyone gives a flying toss now, but MApp (like many others) got sick and tired of all the BS and broken promises - no funds to build, money seemingly 'moved elsewhere' and very loyal OUFC staff being treated like crap.

 

[Scotchegg]

Not that anyone gives a flying toss now, but MApp (like many others) got sick and tired of all the BS and broken promises - no funds to build, money seemingly 'moved elsewhere' and very loyal OUFC staff being treated like crap.

He didn't seem to worry about any of that when he had a decent budget?!

 

[MarkG]

He didn't seem to worry about any of that when he had a decent budget?!

several factors in my opinion
- he'd done his three years' penance for his previous bad managerial record, so could walk away with a good cv (developing players, stylish football)
- a competitive budget was not really a L1 promotion budget, and it would have meant risking a poor year on his cv, and he really should be managing at Championship level at least
- uncertainty over club ownership had been dragging on for months
- Eales winding down expenditure in that final year
- opportunity to be assistant in EPL + pay

 

[battman]

Whilst Tiger may be the owner of the club, he's not in the country very often. As such, it's very difficult for him to be the mouthpiece like DE was. When Tiger does talk it's normally always quite uplifting and inspiring, and it feels like the groundwork is being laid for something very interesting. Now, recently things haven't been going our way, so we're looking towards the owner to do or say something - but he's not as easily approachable as DE was, which is his prerogative. Tiger is not involved in the day-to-day running of the club - Niall McWilliams is. I want to see and hear more from him, like we did with MAsh. To keep fans onside, McWilliams needs to speak out and highlight the good things we're doing (because I'm sure we are doing some), because the dominating stories have been our woeful fortunes on the pitch and the stadium issues.

 

[uptheus]

Whilst Tiger may be the owner of the club, he's not in the country very often. As such, it's very difficult for him to be the mouthpiece like DE was. When Tiger does talk it's normally always quite uplifting and inspiring, and it feels like the groundwork is being laid for something very interesting. Now, recently things haven't been going our way, so we're looking towards the owner to do or say something - but he's not as easily approachable as DE was, which is his prerogative. Tiger is not involved in the day-to-day running of the club - Niall McWilliams is. I want to see and hear more from him, like we did with MAsh. To keep fans onside, McWilliams needs to speak out and highlight the good things we're doing (because I'm sure we are doing some), because the dominating stories have been our woeful fortunes on the pitch and the stadium issues.

Really?!!

 

[WuTang]

And his family will be more settled with an extra few hundred k a year! He moved for many reasons, but money, a return to the premiership and working with a very good friend a very big factors. To suggest otherwise is just as disrespectful.

Disrespectful to who? The man who alluded to fans we had a top 6 budget when the reality was clearly far from? If MAPP knew he had a half decent shot at another promotion there's no way he would have left. Unfortunately he knew fans had been fed lofty targets when it was impossible with the resources and what was going to be a turbulent time r.e ownership.

MAPP had offers from the PL and national set up before Leicester came calling and he didn't go, he stayed and earned himself promotion. Makes you think, ey? Managers want to manage football clubs, and those jobs are extremely difficult to land. Also regarding finances, MAPP had a hefty compensation from his injury if I remember. He doesn't strike me as the sort to up and leave everything he built himself for a pay packet.

 

[Scotchegg]

Disrespectful to who? The man who alluded to fans we had a top 6 budget when the reality was clearly far from? If MAPP knew he had a half decent shot at another promotion there's no way he would have left. Unfortunately he knew fans had been fed lofty targets when it was impossible with the resources and what was going to be a turbulent time r.e ownership.

MAPP had offers from the PL and national set up before Leicester came calling and he didn't go, he stayed and earned himself promotion. Makes you think, ey? Managers want to manage football clubs, and those jobs are extremely difficult to land. Also regarding finances, MAPP had a hefty compensation from his injury if I remember. He doesn't strike me as the sort to up and leave everything he built himself for a pay packet.

I'm glad MApp earned HIMSELF a promotion, but let's not forget that it was DE that funded that promotion by providing one of, if not the biggest budgets for league 2.

We then had a budget that was competitive for league 1. The top 6 budget thing is pointless as the difference between 6th and 16th was probably minimal anyway. As for leaving, MApp was offered fairly junior roles as opposed to assistant to his mate at an established PL club. And if he is so desperate to prove himself as a manager, he could take any number of positions that have come up in the last 12 months instead if sitting on his severance pay.

So yes, MApp was a great manager for us. But he's not Mother Teresa and trying to paint him as such is ridiculous.

 

[werthersoriginal]

A lot of girlish hysteria on here. He’s just a bloke, who had a job

 

[uptheus]

He didn't seem to worry about any of that when he had a decent budget?!

Maybe that was before things changed e.g. stadiumgate!

 

[Neville60]

I heard similar from a couple of sources.... none of which were substantiated with any solid evidence.... though as the old adage goes, there's often no smoke without fire

Also Sarge - if people throw enough s**t some will end up sticking ? -NOT saying anyone is talking s**t though?