Ron Martin - Big ideas and small pockets.

[DTS]

The last few days has been a massive shock. I dont think in my heart of hearts that the club will go under but I have had to face the maybe slim reality of life without SUFC.

I started to think about all the things Ron has told us and what has actually happened. When you start to think back about some of his promises I start to think very few have actually happened.

* New stadium by 2010/2011 season
* War Chest
* New signings (centre backs) that were promised and never delivered
* Never to go into administration again.

I dont think Ron has done any of this delieberatly and I think he has done some great work for the club. But if Ron was a politician then I think you would soon come to think that as of today he is all spin and no substance.

Some of you might say this is not the worst crisis we have ever seen and your probably right but to me it feels like the end of the world. Ron cant make provisions for the market collapse I appreciate that but I cant help but think a club like us shouldnt be in this position now facing administration and a points deduction plus possible closure.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

Maybe we would have gone under without Ron Martin, he got a lot of our debts wiped out and we have been playing at Roots Hall rent free. So I still see him as our saviour and a possible hero if Fossetts gets finished.

On the minus side is the many denials, and painting a false picture with promises when people were pondering wether or not to buy a season ticket.
Also the little war of words with the Echo, and it now seems that the Echo was on the ball in regards to us being in the doo doo.
It's been suggested that Chris Phillips may have known even more than he reported in the Echo, and could have sensationalized things a lot worse.

 

[Firestorm]

Whilst I feel that Ron has fed the fans with what he feels they want to hear (There will be signings , the ground is progressing etc) That is probably so he can continue trying to put the club on a sound financial footing without getting the fans calling for his blood.

It still remains that, with the exception of the Championship year a couple of seasons back (and that was solely down to the sale of one player) we have not made a profit on the footballing side of the business for many a year .....

 

[sufc695]

Not sure if this has been raised elsewhere, but local schools have been gived leaflets for pupils, offering £2-3 tickets for matches. Surely it would be better to put on a family day with normal prices, meaning less people would be attracted but more money would come in?

 

[jerseyshrimper]

Not sure if this has been raised elsewhere, but local schools have been gived leaflets for pupils, offering £2-3 tickets for matches. Surely it would be better to put on a family day with normal prices, meaning less people would be attracted but more money would come in?

Dont know about 2 quid tickets but certainly for the bristol rovers game i was surrounded by screaming kids who had free tickets

 

[sufc695]

It certainly doesn't help the atmosphere either, groups of kids talking throughout the game, really irritates me.

 

[South Bank Hank]

Whilst I feel that Ron has fed the fans with what he feels they want to hear (There will be signings , the ground is progressing etc) That is probably so he can continue trying to put the club on a sound financial footing without getting the fans calling for his blood.

It still remains that, with the exception of the Championship year a couple of seasons back (and that was solely down to the sale of one player) we have not made a profit on the footballing side of the business for many a year .....

I agree with that completely and he's certainly given his detractors plenty of sticks to hit him with. However, he also talked at some length at the Shrimpers Trust Q&A over a year ago about how we would be affected by the delays in getting our plans accepted with the subsequent knock-on effect of the economy and our resultant financial capabilities.

Clearly things have affected us far harder than we could have hoped, but even back then it was clear that the setbacks meant we would have to fund much of the planning/development from our own (lack of) funds rather than through now non-existent borrowing. Ron's pockets have obviously never been deep enough to see us over that hurdle - but then, it was never in the plan for them to have to be.

Bottom line is, no matter how painful this all is right now, without the prospect of a new stadium and additional revenue streams/safeguards from the new development, this point would surely have come in just a matter of time anyway.

 

[mattytheshrimper]

ron is all talk, but no one seems to realise it, with the way things are he has very very well to come out of it looking as good as does right now. no one's got the bottle to blame him.

 

[BILLERICAY BLUE]

no one's got the bottle to blame him.

**** me, have you actually read these boards over the last week or so, there's plenty of people that just can't wait to take pot-shots at Ron. BTW that doesn't include me.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

The last few days has been a massive shock. I dont think in my heart of hearts that the club will go under but I have had to face the maybe slim reality of life without SUFC.

I started to think about all the things Ron has told us and what has actually happened. When you start to think back about some of his promises I start to think very few have actually happened.

* New stadium by 2010/2011 season
* War Chest
* New signings (centre backs) that were promised and never delivered
* Never to go into administration again.

I dont think Ron has done any of this delieberatly and I think he has done some great work for the club. But if Ron was a politician then I think you would soon come to think that as of today he is all spin and no substance.

Some of you might say this is not the worst crisis we have ever seen and your probably right but to me it feels like the end of the world. Ron cant make provisions for the market collapse I appreciate that but I cant help but think a club like us shouldnt be in this position now facing administration and a points deduction plus possible closure.

Those weren't the only four things he did "promise" it's just there the ones that you remember because you forget the ones that he delivered on.

It's easy to snipe away from the sidelines but what should Ron have done differently? I've yet to hear any coherent arguments other than condemning him for "financial mismanagement".

Big ideas and small pockets sums him up entirely, but at the time there was no alternative with big pockets and given the state of the club both when he purchased and when he took day to day control, it needed big ideas because the way the club was heading wasn't working either.

I don't think the sun shines out of his backside, I've never particularly trusted what he's said (those who moan how you can't trust him tend to be those who trusted him in the first place) but so much of the criticism on here is unwarranted. What was the alternative?

 

[DTS]

Those weren't the only four things he did "promise" it's just there the ones that you remember because you forget the ones that he delivered on.

It's easy to snipe away from the sidelines but what should Ron have done differently? I've yet to hear any coherent arguments other than condemning him for "financial mismanagement".

Big ideas and small pockets sums him up entirely, but at the time there was no alternative with big pockets and given the state of the club both when he purchased and when he took day to day control, it needed big ideas because the way the club was heading wasn't working either.

I don't think the sun shines out of his backside, I've never particularly trusted what he's said (those who moan how you can't trust him tend to be those who trusted him in the first place) but so much of the criticism on here is unwarranted. What was the alternative?

So what major things has Ron suceeded on then mate?

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

So what major things has Ron suceeded on then mate?

From the top of my head

* saved the club twice already (here's to a lucky third time)
* backed rather than sacked Tilson when in relegation battle in the championship and then again in league one when some on here were calling for Tilly to go, before Tilly guided us to the play-offs
* signed Eastwood (I'm not giving him credit for spotting him, but we got him on loan and there was doubt as to whether we were going to get him permanently, but Ron delivered on that one)
* got planning permission for Fossetts Farm
* made funds available in the championship

It's not as if he's fed us entirely lies and we've enjoyed no success under him. His spell in charge of the club has been one of the, if not the most successful spells in Southend history.

 

[canveyshrimper]

So what major things has Ron suceeded on then mate?

He's got to the stage where plans and planning permission for a new stadium get the go ahead, nobody else has been close to that. It isn't Ron's fault that the biggest recession since WWII has happened, and the banks have ceased to lend money.

He appointed Tilly as manager, possibly by default, but he appointed him nonetheless.

 

[Pubey]

From the top of my head

* saved the club twice already (here's to a lucky third time)
* backed rather than sacked Tilson when in relegation battle in the championship and then again in league one when some on here were calling for Tilly to go, before Tilly guided us to the play-offs
* signed Eastwood (I'm not giving him credit for spotting him, but we got him on loan and there was doubt as to whether we were going to get him permanently, but Ron delivered on that one)
* got planning permission for Fossetts Farm
* made funds available in the championship

It's not as if he's fed us entirely lies and we've enjoyed no success under him. His spell in charge of the club has been one of the, if not the most successful spells in Southend history.

* Provided funds for the Youth Team, given Ricky Duncan a free reign and we've seen some talent emerge
* Turned a crap club shop into a well run and smart shop
* Dipped into his(?) pocket and provided free coaches on occasions
* Always backed Tilly, even if Tilly himself might say he's made a mistake, he's been patient and Tilly is still continuing to learn as a manager.

 

[Cricko]

* Provided funds for the Youth Team, given Ricky Duncan a free reign and we've seen some talent emerge
* Turned a crap club shop into a well run and smart shop
* Dipped into his(?) pocket and provided free coaches on occasions
* Always backed Tilly, even if Tilly himself might say he's made a mistake, he's been patient and Tilly is still continuing to learn as a manager.

Little things ok , but provided The Blue Voice with about 30 huge flags, brought the drum for £600, Supplied over 15,000 flags for the Chelsea away and Doncaster play-off game and supplied free coaches that day (23 of them).Supported TBV whenever they have wanted to put a display on.

 

[DTS]

From the top of my head

* saved the club twice already (here's to a lucky third time)
* backed rather than sacked Tilson when in relegation battle in the championship and then again in league one when some on here were calling for Tilly to go, before Tilly guided us to the play-offs
* signed Eastwood (I'm not giving him credit for spotting him, but we got him on loan and there was doubt as to whether we were going to get him permanently, but Ron delivered on that one)
* got planning permission for Fossetts Farm
* made funds available in the championship

It's not as if he's fed us entirely lies and we've enjoyed no success under him. His spell in charge of the club has been one of the, if not the most successful spells in Southend history.

You could of course argue that..

* No good saving the club twice when we are now plunged into admin for the third time
* Sacking Tilly when he faced mission impossible would have got him lynced.
* Eastwood signing fair play did do well but we will never know how well
* Planning permission with no sign of a stadium
* Funds fair play again he did but then it proved to be our ultimate undoing

 

[DTS]

Little things ok , but provided The Blue Voice with about 30 huge flags, brought the drum for £600, Supplied over 15,000 flags for the Chelsea away and Doncaster play-off game and supplied free coaches that day (23 of them).Supported TBV whenever they have wanted to put a display on.

Not arguing he is not good at promotions but its the big stuff that will take the team forward. None of which we have seen yet.

 

[palexander]

Not arguing he is not good at promotions but its the big stuff that will take the team forward. None of which we have seen yet.

Exactly, these are the kind of things he can be out in front of. The 'look at me' type things. The things that get him out on the pitch waving the scarf when times are good.

I know this means he cannot win and I applaud his generosity in doing these things, but you feel alot of it is for his own self-promotion to garner favour with the fans that adore him - rather than taking a back seat and sorting out whats important.

In fact, some would say he has wasted his money on those things, when it could have been better spent elsewhere?...

 

[canveyshrimper]

You could of course argue that..

* No good saving the club twice when we are now plunged into admin for the third time
* Sacking Tilly when he faced mission impossible would have got him lynced.
* Eastwood signing fair play did do well but we will never know how well
* Planning permission with no sign of a stadium
* Funds fair play again he did but then it proved to be our ultimate undoing

* There is if it can be saved again
* Many on here were advocating the sacking of Tilly, so I'm not sure if a lynch mob may have been formed.
* Fair comment.
* Hardly the fault of anyone there's a global recession and banks aren't lending.
* 20/20 hindsight. The first call of almost all football fans is to the chairman to get his cheque book out.

I'm not praising or blaming RM, and agree with YB to the extent about his trust worthiness, but at this difficult time we have to hope and pray that he can resolve this. Administration appears to be a certainty, but there is a need to ensure that there is still a Southend United FC that following generations can love as much as I and my fellow supporters do.

 

[Gt Yarmouth Shrimper]

Exactly, these are the kind of things he can be out in front of. The 'look at me' type things. The things that get him out on the pitch waving the scarf when times are good.

I know this means he cannot win and I applaud his generosity in doing these things, but you feel alot of it is for his own self-promotion to garner favour with the fans that adore him - rather than taking a back seat and sorting out whats important.

In fact, some would say he has wasted his money on those things, when it could have been better spent elsewhere?...

Damned if he does, Damned if he doesn't.