Smurthwaite-Norman

Post by **Scott Brehaut** » 10 Dec 2015, 14:20

My question is, do we REALLY want a "knight in shining armour" if said knight will only buy us/contribute money if they get the freehold?

Does this not ring alarm bells with anybody else but me?

I'm fully aware that things are not good, but surely handing the club over to somebody who only wants the freehold is saying that we've given up, feel free to build a Sainsburys/Asda/Tesco/Waitrose/whatever other supermarket brand you can think of.

Jerry · Post by **Jerry** » 10 Dec 2015, 15:03

Scott Brehaut wrote:My question is, do we REALLY want a "knight in shining armour" if said knight will only buy us/contribute money if they get the freehold?

Does this not ring alarm bells with anybody else but me?

I'm fully aware that things are not good, but surely handing the club over to somebody who only wants the freehold is saying that we've given up, feel free to build a Sainsburys/Asda/Tesco/Waitrose/whatever other supermarket brand you can think of.

Here is an article from when he bought Port Vale where he talks about his reasons for not wanting to invest in a club who didn't own their ground.

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/sport/ ... ho-3015811

Post by **happytorq** » 10 Dec 2015, 15:06

It rings huge alarm bells. It's the way that asset strippers are able to make money - they find a distressed company, buy into it and then sell the stuff that has any value before exiting stage left and letting the company die.

Any knight in shining armour that wants the freehold to the land should naturally be greeted with a healthy dose of suspicion, because that land is probably the only thing of value even remotely associated with the club. I don't know this Smurthwaite-Norman chap (although he has a fantastic name, a perfect name for a Dickensian villain), so I obviously don't know the situation, but at a time when the club is clearly in very real danger of going away entirely, it's possible that there isn't a lot of choice.

Jerry · Post by **Jerry** » 10 Dec 2015, 15:18

happytorq wrote:It rings huge alarm bells. It's the way that asset strippers are able to make money - they find a distressed company, buy into it and then sell the stuff that has any value before exiting stage left and letting the company die.

Any knight in shining armour that wants the freehold to the land should naturally be greeted with a healthy dose of suspicion, because that land is probably the only thing of value even remotely associated with the club. I don't know this Smurthwaite-Norman chap (although he has a fantastic name, a perfect name for a Dickensian villain), so I obviously don't know the situation, but at a time when the club is clearly in very real danger of going away entirely, it's possible that there isn't a lot of choice.

.

Unfortunately Happy he isn't actually called Smurthwaite-Norman, he's called Norman Smurthwaite. No idea why the thread starter decided to put his name in this format.

Post by **happytorq** » 10 Dec 2015, 15:20

Jerry wrote:Unfortunately Happy he isn't actually called Smurthwaite-Norman, he's called Norman Smurthwaite. No idea why the thread starter decided to put his name in this format.

Well...I did say I didn't know him

Post by **Southampton Gull** » 10 Dec 2015, 15:46

Actually I owe you an apology. The information I was referring to is on the Sturrock Sacked thread. There is some very reliable information on there.

Gloomy Gull · Post by **Gloomy Gull** » 10 Dec 2015, 16:37

Aaaahh !

ROADRUNNER · Post by **ROADRUNNER** » 10 Dec 2015, 17:03

anyone can see that with the present set up we are domed, there is no money therefore i dont see any way that we can survive in the present circumstances. unless somebody buys this club we are finished.

Post by **Southampton Gull** » 10 Dec 2015, 17:32

I pretty much agree with that despite my reservations about Smurthwaite. As much as I sympathise with the current board and realise how hard it has been for them I can't see any other way for us to arrest the slide.

Dean Edwards has screwed them over big-time and shown exactly where his yellow streak is. The only thing he cares about is lining his own pocket.

ROADRUNNER · Post by **ROADRUNNER** » 10 Dec 2015, 18:13

totally right, he has left us in this mess , absolute moron!

Dazza · Post by **Dazza** » 10 Dec 2015, 18:31

Not so sure about the doomed bit. We may well go down- I think that has always been possible - now maybe it's probable. If it happens are we not reasonably well placed to return. ? I think if we start winning 1500 a game is the likely gate. It's stronger than most. If we get our act together I really don't think it will be that long...

wivelgull · Post by **wivelgull** » 10 Dec 2015, 19:48

Well, when Deano was given a free transfer years ago, he did famously declare "I'll be back!"

ROADRUNNER · Post by **ROADRUNNER** » 10 Dec 2015, 20:12

and now he has gone with 25,000k in his pocket

Post by **Gulliball** » 10 Dec 2015, 20:35

We can recover from relegation. Even spending what we generate we can be a Conference level club, ticking along and waiting for a breakthrough - be it a new owner, investment, big cup draw, managerial genius or unearthed gem. You never know what it around the corner, and that is part of the excitement of supporting a club like ours.

Lose our ground and we lose any future. What is the cost of buying land and building a decent enough stadium? Well FC United's new ground cost £6.5m for a 4400 capacity, and that's pretty much the lowest cost of any recent new build. That's a sum of money we would never, ever generate. We would be groundless and there is not even a local stadium that we could ground share at - it would be the end of us. We'd cease to represent Torquay or be the club that generations of us have followed.

Any investment offer that comes with a condition of owning the freehold must be rejected. Once it's out of our control then we no longer have a guaranteed future. Even if he is well intentioned, what if he dies in five years time and his next-of-kin would rather have a pot of money than a football stadium? What if his business collapses and he needs to generate quick money from his assets? We simply have to retain control of our future, or there no point us going on.

I'm amazed that any fan would want to give up our long-term future for an influx of money now. There's no point finishing 20th this season if it comes at the cost of our future.

Jeff · Post by **Jeff** » 10 Dec 2015, 20:38

Gulliball wrote:We can recover from relegation. Even spending what we generate we can be a Conference level club, ticking along and waiting for a breakthrough - be it a new owner, investment, big cup draw, managerial genius or unearthed gem. You never know what it around the corner, and that is part of the excitement of supporting a club like ours.

Lose our ground and we lose any future. What is the cost of buying land and building a decent enough stadium? Well FC United's new ground cost £6.5m for a 4400 capacity, and that's pretty much the lowest cost of any recent new build. That's a sum of money we would never, ever generate. We would be groundless and there is not even a local stadium that we could ground share at - it would be the end of us. We'd cease to represent Torquay or be the club that generations of us have followed.

Any investment offer that comes with a condition of owning the freehold must be rejected. Once it's out of our control then we no longer have a guaranteed future. Even if he is well intentioned, what if he dies in five years time and his next-of-kin would rather have a pot of money than a football stadium? What if his business collapses and he needs to generate quick money from his assets? We simply have to retain control of our future, or there no point us going on.

I'm amazed that any fan would want to give up our long-term future for an influx of money now. There's no point finishing 20th this season if it comes at the cost of our future.

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