Ron Martin the good, bad and ugly

[Tommy2holes]

Much has been said over the years about our chairman. There have been very divided opinions on him. Some people have always doubted his ability as chairman. Others have seemingly put faith in him and consider that he is the only option.

When Ron took over in 1999 i believe?

At the time we were playing at roots hall and were very much a league 2 club. We weren't seen as a bigger club in the league and certainly weren't pulling up any trees. We regularly finished mid table or below in front of 3.5k fans most seasons.

Ron Martin came in and most were dubious of a property developer as chairman. Some were worried that we would simply be used for roots hall to be sold and built upon.

Nether the less. It would be unfair to say that Ron came into a cash rich or player rich club. Debts were some 4 million odd from memory and stability is what we all craved.

A succession of lower league managers had given the job a go and none had done much to improve the club.

Ron appointed Steve wignall and again it proved to be another mediocre appointment.

Ron placed Tilly in temporary charge and it turned out to be a master stroke. We went from relegation candidates to play off winners.

It was that first season in league 1 which is were the financial mismanagement started to creep in.

I think like most, Ron got caught up the upward surge of the club. The feel good factor and increase in gates and general profile.

Signings were made to enable us to maintain league 1. Miracles do happen and under Tilly we surged to a league 1 title.

Again this gave the club a lift. In truth this positive was potentially the undoing of the club.

We tried to keep pace and have a really good go at the championship. Signing over priced players on big money and got a terrible return on the outlay. We also signed players on long contracts that would be hugely problematic if the club were relegated. This proved the case as the club surrendered championship status at the first attempt.

Back in league 1 the club found it could not support the wage burden but continued to pay wages it could ill afford.

After missing out on an immediate return to the championship the club finally succumbed to wage issues and did not pay players for allegedly several months. This culminated in a return to the basement division after a few heady years.

Ron was swift to wield the axe and shifted blame to the players and management, whilst not acknowledging his own part in the mismanagement. This caused a big rift with fans who were hugely behind Tilson.

Back in league 2 the club was in a worse state than at the start of Ron's tenure. Paul Sturrock appointed with just several senior pros . Sturrock turned out to be a master stroke. He brought in solid pros by using all of his years of contacts and southend were once again stabilised. After a few peaks and troughs the chairman decided to dispatch with Sturrock services on the eve of a cup final. Again the fans did not agree with this and again the fans voiced displeasure.

For the first and not the last time. Ron hired a footballing name in Phil Brown.

Brown was not always liked but he did a good job and managed eventually to get the club back into league 1. Brown was another who had a eye for signing excellent talent, but at a cost of higher wages. This coincided with several trips by the football club for unpaid debts and our familiarity to HRMC.

Like most managers under Ron, Phil brown was given time and money to limited success.

By now Ron had been promising a new stadium to fans. Had been granted planning permission already but had yet to seal funding are get any building under way. For a lot of fans this was worrying. Ron Martin was a property developer but has remained unable to develop or deliver a new stadium. Most fans remained sceptical whether we would see a new stadium.

After Phil Brown, Ron appointed another name in Chris Powell. A name, more so to the Southend faithful as a previously well thought of team member. Initially Powell was successful. Guiding Southend to safety and then finding things difficult the next season. With Southend in a similarly precarious situation some 10 months after. Ron wielded the axe again. Again fans were left feeling disgruntled. Powell was well thought of and most felt that he was very unlucky.

This was now the start of managers coming and going in quick succession, with all given limited time and money and blamed for both problems on and off the pitch.

Kevin bond came in and most fans were not happy as felt this was a poor choice. Bond however kept the team in league 1 amongst a media back drop of Harry Redknapp.

The following season the axe was again wielded after poor results and ongoing financial difficulties.

The merry go round continued. The chairman chased after another name for a lengthy period of time and ultimately did not appoint Henrik Larson. Instead opting to bring in a hugely expensive team with Sol Campbell the figurehead.

By now the finances of the club were critical. The trips to court for late payments were becoming regular and non payment of wages commonplace. Results did very little to improve and by the time covid caused a break in play, the writing was on the wall for almost certain relegation.

The uncertainty continued for several months until the inevitable happened and blues were again relegated to the basement.

Sol and Co departed and Mark Molesley appointed. This appointment more aligned with the clubs ever fading finances.

We are now 4 games into a behind close doors season and have lost 4 games.

We have little to no quality or experience. Are still playing under and embargo and cannot sign players. We have not settled the monies owed to HRMC and have no fan income from a match day perspective.

Ron remains in charge after 20 odd years.

We are still at roots hall
We are still league 2
We are more in debt than ever
We are under an embargo and seem unable to pay off the debt which will see us able to sign players.

Initially Ron appeared to have an impact on the club and results. The last 3 seasons however have been not only the most painful for blues fans but more importantly, the records will show this to be the worst period in the history of the club.

With all of the above in mind. It would be difficult to argue that Ron has been a success. Any success swallowed up by huge amounts of failure and mismanagement.

The only thing that will bring the club back from the brink is that planning for the new stadium may soon be granted. That said we have been promised so much so often, and very little has come to fruition.

 

[thenobster]

thats a lovely read... but there seems to be a 'so what' missing.... whats the answer? are you saying 'Go Ron Now' or that we're just a crap club generally?

 

[Tommy2holes]

thats a lovely read... but there seems to be a 'so what' missing.... whats the answer? are you saying 'Go Ron Now' or that we're just a crap club generally?

I'm not sure what the answer is. I know that without new investment or if we do not get planning approval, then the club that we love is finished.

Ron can't be blamed for being continually skint but he sure as hell is responsible for many of the issues that blight the club.

 

[Barling Magna]

I agree with almost everything you have written. I think the majority of fans had seen that it was not working out for Chris Powell. He seemed at a loss with what to do, admittedly in the face of an unprecedented injury crisis. The loss of Hopper and Humphrys was especially crucial. So whilst the majority would agree Powell was unlucky I think most were ready to see him go.

 

[GBJ]

I agree with almost everything you have written. I think the majority of fans had seen that it was not working out for Chris Powell. He seemed at a loss with what to do, admittedly in the face of an unprecedented injury crisis. The loss of Hopper and Humphrys was especially crucial. So whilst the majority would agree Powell was unlucky I think most were ready to see him go.

I can understand why Chris went, but I’d have preferred to see him stay and be given the chance to rebuild the squad. Nothing to do with loyalty, just the simple fact that he was perfectly placed to be able to correct the issues.

At that stage, he knew what he had to work with, he knew who he could rely on, and he knew where he had to strengthen. And based on the fact that Kevin Bond was able to bring bodies in, you‘ve got to believe that Powell would also have had the funds to do so.

I think his signings were ok on the whole; Hart, Hump, Hopper, Moore far outweighed the lesser signings in Mantom & Dieng. Imagine if he’d been able to cut out the deadwood (as Ron eventually did), and rebuild the team in his image, instead of dealing with Brown’s leftovers.

But this thread isn’t about Powell. It’s about Ron. And frankly, Ron’s mistakes are there for all to see. Not sticking with Chris Powell, in my mind, was a big one. Same goes for Tilly too. He didn’t become a bad manager overnight, he was simply hamstrung by the financial situation.... sound familiar?

Unfortunately for us fans though, we couldn’t possibly entertain the idea of a lower half of the table finish - let alone relegation from Lg1, and so Chris Powell had to go.

And of course, we all know that Ron‘s willingness to throw cash around like he’s at a Floyd Mayweather house party, has been well documented, but had he stuck with Powell, he wouldn’t have had to find the money for;

Bond
Waddock
Todorov
Campbell
Cole
Hreidarsson
Colbert
Aswell as a whole host of agents

I wonder how much that would have saved us, and if we’d even be in such dire straits now ??

 

[Tommy2holes]

I can understand why Chris went, but I’d have preferred to see him stay and be given the chance to rebuild the squad. Nothing to do with loyalty, just the simple fact that he was perfectly placed to be able to correct the issues.

At that stage, he knew what he had to work with, he knew who he could rely on, and he knew where he had to strengthen. And based on the fact that Kevin Bond was able to bring bodies in, you‘ve got to believe that Powell would also have had the funds to do so.

I think his signings were ok on the whole; Hart, Hump, Hopper, Moore far outweighed the lesser signings in Mantom & Dieng. Imagine if he’d been able to cut out the deadwood (as Ron eventually did), and rebuild the team in his image, instead of dealing with Brown’s leftovers.

But this thread isn’t about Powell. It’s about Ron. And frankly, Ron’s mistakes are there for all to see. Not sticking with Chris Powell, in my mind, was a big one. Same goes for Tilly too. He didn’t become a bad manager overnight, he was simply hamstrung by the financial situation.... sound familiar?

Unfortunately for us fans though, we couldn’t possibly entertain the idea of a lower half of the table finish - let alone relegation from Lg1, and so Chris Powell had to go.

And of course, we all know that Ron‘s willingness to throw cash around like he’s at a Floyd Mayweather house party, has been well documented, but had he stuck with Powell, he wouldn’t have had to find the money for;

Bond
Waddock
Todorov
Campbell
Cole
Hreidarsson
Colbeck
Aswell as a whole host of agents

I wonder how much that would have saved us, and if we’d even be in such dire straits now ??

It's impossible to say.

Ron has this habit of sticking with the wrong candidate and quickly dispatching those who may be able to retrieve the situation.

I'd like to know his rationale for not being as financially viable as the likes of Burton, FGR, Fleetwood etc etc who have vastly superior crowds and always pay their bills. We have bigger crowds and yet are always in debt.

Is it that our regions salaries are high because of the cost of living ratio or is it just because we sign players on higher wages without due thought to income and recently injury issues.

The club has never been this sickly throughout before.

We really are on life support. It's what brought us here that concerns me.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

Ooh another Ron thread. Fabulous.

 

[GBJ]

It's impossible to say.

Ron has this habit of sticking with the wrong candidate and quickly dispatching those who may be able to retrieve the situation.

I'd like to know his rationale for not being as financially viable as the likes of Burton, FGR, Fleetwood etc etc who have vastly superior crowds and always pay their bills. We have bigger crowds and yet are always in debt.

Is it that our regions salaries are high because of the cost of living ratio or is it just because we sign players on higher wages without due thought to income and recently injury issues.

The club has never been this sickly throughout before.

We really are on life support. It's what brought us here that concerns me.

It’s a bit of a simplified answer, but the reason we’re in this mess is because we’ve been living beyond our means for far too long. We’ve been throwing money around, as if we’re a lower league Manchester City.

I have no idea about the finances of the other teams you’ve mentioned, but it can’t be a coincidence that we had the fifth highest wage budget the year before last, in a division that included Sunderland, Pompey, Charlton, Barnsley & Peterborough.

We’ve been paying for that - figuratively & literally - ever since. The same as we did 10-years ago, when we fell out of the championship.

Think of the wages we’ve dished out on Kightly, Cox, Kiernan, TurnerFerdinand etc. If we’d gained promotion to the championship, it wouldn’t have affected us so badly, as we’d have recouped a lot of cash by moving up a level.

Unfortunately, the reason we’re in this current mess, is down to all the payoffs I listed on the previous post, aswell as all those players above, and the fact that Ron’s access to cash has been halted.

Ron takes the overall blame, as he had the final say. But he’s not done it with bad intentions. He’s just made crap decisions. And I’m not necessarily saying that sacking Powell was the reason for our downfall, but it absolutely set off a chain of events that has added to our demise.... which a handful of posters warned about, at the time.

Ask yourself, if we’d stuck with Powell - even if we were relegated - would we be worse off than we are now?

I really don’t think so.

 

[bluesfansince1952]

As set out above we have been skating on thin ice for a number of years. The money spent trying to keep us up last season by employing and then sacking any number of managers and coaches combined with the effects COVID created a perfect storm for our finances.
Once the lockdown was was in place it is was not difficult to predict that it would not be long before the more heavily indebted football clubs would struggle. Our future was already beginning to look perilous but COVID accelerated everything.
It is hard not to believe that if we do fold we will be will not be followed by others, The footballing and/or the whole the sporting landscape in the UK may look very different in two years time.
I am not sure whether many on this forum either follow or are interested in Irish Rugby.
Although a niche sport in a small country the Irish Rugby Union has a good reputation for financial management. Before the outbreak of COVID they had fifty million Euros in the bank but by the end of this year they are anticipating they will be ten million euros in debt.
Yes, they do have a lot of responsibilities as they are ultimately responsible for all four professional sides in the country as well as the national team but COVID has brought about a disaster.
This must be playing out in different football clubs as well as other sports.
Sadly, I have reached the conclusion that unless a miracle is forthcoming we are finished.

 

[in the know]

It’s a bit of a simplified answer, but the reason we’re in this mess is because we’ve been living beyond our means for far too long. We’ve been throwing money around, as if we’re a lower league Manchester City.

I have no idea about the finances of the other teams you’ve mentioned, but it can’t be a coincidence that we had the fifth highest wage budget the year before last, in a division that included Sunderland, Pompey, Charlton, Barnsley & Peterborough.

We’ve been paying for that - figuratively & literally - ever since. The same as we did 10-years ago, when we fell out of the championship.

Think of the wages we’ve dished out on Kightly, Cox, Kiernan, TurnerFerdinand etc. If we’d gained promotion to the championship, it wouldn’t have affected us so badly, as we’d have recouped a lot of cash by moving up a level.

Unfortunately, the reason we’re in this current mess, is down to all the payoffs I listed on the previous post, aswell as all those players above, and the fact that Ron’s access to cash has been halted.

Ron takes the overall blame, as he had the final say. But he’s not done it with bad intentions. He’s just made crap decisions. And I’m not necessarily saying that sacking Powell was the reason for our downfall, but it absolutely set off a chain of events that has added to our demise.... which a handful of posters warned about, at the time.

Ask yourself, if we’d stuck with Powell - even if we were relegated - would we worse off than we are now?

I really don’t think so.

Id have turner back though
For all his age issues he did a good job I thought both back and up front at corners- and a good guy to have around the younger players
One of the better value expensive ones I thought

 

[Maldon Shrimper]

Good read especially for those who only joined the bandwagon in recent years.I have supported my hometown club since I was 10 years old and can remember many good times in over 60 years of support there was some bad times as well but now we have reached rock bottom.Ron ultimately is responsible for hiring and firing the managers and his track record in this regard as already mentioned is poor.I dont know Ron other than Shareholders meeting,I believe he will fight tooth and nail for the club so we survive as he has to much to loose if we go bust.
My current concern in reading his statement he appears to be seeking to get the bank to release monies so to pay the tax bill,what happens if he fails to get adequate funds.He owes all supporters and shareholders to say exactly how he is going to achieve this

 

[Tommy2holes]

Ooh another Ron thread. Fabulous.

Well you could start a thread on the playing side of things but that makes terrible reading because of said problems.

You don't have to read the thread. Its clear what it's about.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

Well you could start a thread on the playing side of things but that makes terrible reading because of said problems.

You don't have to read the thread. Its clear what it's about.

You’re right, I didn’t have to read it. It was a poor reply so I’ll try a more constructive one..

We can go over and over “where it all went wrong” but the fact is we leapt for the stars and fell into a load of pig ****.

Kavanagh not being replaced? Ok, that’s on Ron. All the over paid wasters who pulled on a Southend shirt between Summer 2017 and the end of the joke that was last season? Not Ron’s fault. Ok he rubber stamped the deals but these were so called professional footballers being paid a bloody good wage.
Injuries to very key players at crucial times? Not Ron’s fault. Powell being sacked? Ron listened to the fans and CP was a broken man. I personally think it was the wrong decision but can see why he took it. Bond appointment? Disaster. Ron’s fault, for listening to Redknapp. Truth is at this point we were already almost done for, so I’ll leave Campbell out of it. I don’t think anyone could’ve saved us. Does Ron want Southend to fail? Genuinely? No.

Ron could still come up trumps with FF and that’s pretty much what we’ve got left to hope for, as we’re ****ed otherwise. Ron is all we’ve got.

 

[Tommy2holes]

You’re right, I didn’t have to read it. It was a poor reply so I’ll try a more constructive one..

We can go over and over “where it all went wrong” but the fact is we leapt for the stars and fell into a load of pig ****.

Kavanagh not being replaced? Ok, that’s on Ron. All the over paid wasters who pulled on a Southend shirt between Summer 2017 and the end of the joke that was last season? Not Ron’s fault. Ok he rubber stamped the deals but these were so called professional footballers being paid a bloody good wage.
Injuries to very key players at crucial times? Not Ron’s fault. Powell being sacked? Ron listened to the fans and CP was a broken man. I personally think it was the wrong decision but can see why he took it. Bond appointment? Disaster. Ron’s fault, for listening to Redknapp. Truth is at this point we were already almost done for, so I’ll leave Campbell out of it. I don’t think anyone could’ve saved us. Does Ron want Southend to fail? Genuinely? No.

Ron could still come up trumps with FF and that’s pretty much what we’ve got left to hope for, as we’re ****ed otherwise. Ron is all we’ve got.

Much better response, although I have never stood for the whole "there is only Ron" philosophy.

There are probably 80+ chairman in the EFL and Premier league that are better than Ron.

Ron is not the be all and end all of this football club. He has made it that way but intrinsically linking the clubs debt into his companies. This makes it much harder to force him out and makes it almost impossible for him not be here.

It's like an abusive partner that convinces the abused that they really do love them and they couldn't possibly function without them.

Its up to the club and fans to see through that bull**** and be brave enough to seek an alternative future with a sensible person and not a shallow pocketed egotist, with a 20 year pipe dream.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

Much better response, although I have never stood for the whole "there is only Ron" philosophy.

There are probably 80+ chairman in the EFL and Premier league that are better than Ron.

Ron is not the be all and end all of this football club. He has made it that way but intrinsically linking the clubs debt into his companies. This makes it much harder to force him out and makes it almost impossible for him not be here.

It's like an abusive partner that convinces the abused that they really do love them and they couldn't possibly function without them.

Its up to the club and fans to see through that bull**** and be brave enough to seek an alternative future with a sensible person and not a shallow pocketed egotist, with a 20 year pipe dream.

Without Ron right now there’s no new ground. No deal with the council. No debts paid. Nobody’s going to come in unless Ron’s on board with it and facilitates it. I can’t see that any kind of protest will bring anything new to the table. Unless of course people are rocking up with blank cheques made to HMRC or to cover day to day cashflow til funds are released.

 

[fbm]

Much better response, although I have never stood for the whole "there is only Ron" philosophy.

There are probably 80+ chairman in the EFL and Premier league that are better than Ron.

Ron is not the be all and end all of this football club. He has made it that way but intrinsically linking the clubs debt into his companies. This makes it much harder to force him out and makes it almost impossible for him not be here.

It's like an abusive partner that convinces the abused that they really do love them and they couldn't possibly function without them.

Its up to the club and fans to see through that bull**** and be brave enough to seek an alternative future with a sensible person and not a shallow pocketed egotist, with a 20 year pipe dream.

So even if every single fan thought that (I'm sure 99% do!) there is naff all they could do about it as it's Ron's club. He owns it. You make it sound like we can vote him out!

For the last 20-odd years, Ron's pipedream has aligned with our interests. But now for the first time, he has allowed his interests to dominate over the interests of the club.

Prior to now, if he did well and his dream was realised, we did well. We got a new stadium which as I understood his family would own part of, so there was no way he would just dump us at FF and walk away. He would continue to be the landlord, no doubt protecting us from going bust by charging rent but never asking for it to be paid.

But the plans have changed so much since the early days that I now understand the new development is no retail and only residential in both places. This obviously doesn't rely on footfall to succeed and provides I think a much greater windfall to the developer, but with less long term revenue.

There probably isn't any incentive therefore for Ron to stick around afterwards, so why on earth would he be a benevolent landlord? Oh, incidentally, the benevolence to date hasn't been because of his love for the club, but by leaving the rent outstanding on the books he becomes the no. 1 creditor should it all go pear shaped. He won't get back what he has put in, but he'll get some return to make it a slightly less bitter pill. However, he would lose control of the club and will not benefit from the development, so therefore will move heaven and earth to keep us out of administration.

So, in short -

a) Ron stays, we get the ground but need to become self sufficient, or
b) We go into administration and then I'm not sure what but it won't be good, or
c) Ron dies and then I have no idea what sort of mess will unravel,

Option a) is still just about the best one, but none of them are great. And there's no option that, as fans, we can have any real influence over.

 

[stewart]

Still believe he needs to spin his story to some very wealthy business men or tycoons and bring them onside as partners .That way he is still involved the club will become financial and god willing on the way up instead of dying a slow painful death. Think about it Anew stadium all the new houses rented out means hopefully more nes supporters, Its already been shown the sort of support we can get by our appearances at Wembley and in the two finals we participated in in Wales . Dont laugh but with a ew stadium new backers and a decent team ,no reason we cannot do a Bournemouth , Swansea or even a Hull city and have our day in the sun .Other that that i cant see much future for us at present.

 

[Murkey_Mouse]

Only option in the future after November is to plan FC Southend United in Ryman Premier League or Division 1.

 

[Medway Blue]

Still believe he needs to spin his story to some very wealthy business men or tycoons and bring them onside as partners .That way he is still involved the club will become financial and god willing on the way up instead of dying a slow painful death. Think about it Anew stadium all the new houses rented out means hopefully more nes supporters, Its already been shown the sort of support we can get by our appearances at Wembley and in the two finals we participated in in Wales . Dont laugh but with a ew stadium new backers and a decent team ,no reason we cannot do a Bournemouth , Swansea or even a Hull city and have our day in the sun .Other that that i cant see much future for us at present.

He already has. It has been deduced that the Zakays and other very wealthy property development partners are on board with the project. But they have no interest in the football club itself. An advance of money/a loan from them is only likely to be possible once planning permission is granted.

 

[stewart]

He already has. It has been deduced that the Zakays and other very wealthy property development partners are on board with the project. But they have no interest in the football club itself. An advance of money/a loan from them is only likely to be possible once planning permission is granted.

Well i would be feel a lot happier if they were interested in the footballing side ,other than that i feel it could be the demise of our club .