Is Mark McGhee sackable?

[Publius Ovidius]

Without wanting to turn into DWAYNE I think some people here need a lesson on investment. Investors want the business they are investing in to make a profit. The Albion have not made a profit for over 30 years, even when we were averaging crowds of 25,000+.

If we get Falmer, and the cost is (say) £40million, then at an interest rate of 7% this is £2.8million going out of the club per season in intrerest costs.

At an average gate of 12,000 (a reasonable expectation, perhaps a little optimistic to be honest), then the interest cost alone is going to cost fans £10 per match. Add £3 per match for park and ride, and that does not leave much for wages, running costs, and investment in the team.

El Pres....not all the $40m will be loans....lots will come from football foundation/sport england etc etc...although I agree your premis is probably correct

 

[The Large One]

Without wanting to turn into DWAYNE I think some people here need a lesson on investment. Investors want the business they are investing in to make a profit. The Albion have not made a profit for over 30 years, even when we were averaging crowds of 25,000+.

If we get Falmer, and the cost is (say) £40million, then at an interest rate of 7% this is £2.8million going out of the club per season in intrerest costs.

At an average gate of 12,000 (a reasonable expectation, perhaps a little optimistic to be honest), then the interest cost alone is going to cost fans £10 per match. Add £3 per match for park and ride, and that does not leave much for wages, running costs, and investment in the team.

The club said at the Public Inquiry that it will be borrowing around £29m (inflation has been taken into account with these figures), and will run satisfactorily on average gates of around 13,500. That doesn't include any windfalls such as play-off money, better-than-expected trading in the club shop (who knows, we could have a kit that we all like...), better sponsorship deals etc etc.

 

[Harty]

Sorry Large One but I think you have all but missed Richie's point, its all very well making your smart comments and banging on about being patient, but football club chairman, including Dick Knight, are not known for their patience.
I certainly don't want McGhee sacked at any point but we know that DK isn't afriad to wield the axe when he deems it necessary, and I have to say knowing him as I do, and you do for that matter, the paying public having a pop at him as he sits in the North Stand at Withdean might in some ways cloud his judgement.

 

[El Presidente]

Sorry Large One but I think you have all but missed Richie's point, its all very well making your smart comments and banging on about being patient, but football club chairman, including Dick Knight, are not known for their patience.
I certainly don't want McGhee sacked at any point but we know that DK isn't afriad to wield the axe when he deems it necessary, and I have to say knowing him as I do, and you do for that matter, the paying public having a pop at him as he sits in the North Stand at Withdean might in some ways cloud his judgement.

Have to agree there with Harty, DK was pretty trigger happy getting rid of Steve Gritt after all, when our financial position was far worse than it is today.

Having said that, DK gave McGhee a new two year contract at the start of the season and probably cannot afford to sack him AND pay the salary of a new manager

 

[The Large One]

Sorry Large One but I think you have all but missed Richie's point, its all very well making your smart comments and banging on about being patient, but football club chairman, including Dick Knight, are not known for their patience.

Correct. But the contract McGhee is on will mean that DK will have to find some money somewhere - either to strengthen the squad, or to pay McGhee's contract should he wish to offload him. In that sense, he is unsackable, but that isn't Richie's point, and he knows that when he asked it.

And I have now responded to Richie's question, when I said I wouldn't. Doh.

I certainly don't want McGhee sacked at any point but we know that DK isn't afriad to wield the axe when he deems it necessary, and I have to say knowing him as I do, and you do for that matter, the paying public having a pop at him as he sits in the North Stand at Withdean might in some ways cloud his judgement.

Then we agree - I don't want McGhee sacked. And how much clout do the North Stand whingers really have?

DK swung the axe for Steve Gritt and Jeff Wood, but that was in 1998, and he hasn't done so since (unless one believes the conspiracy theories around Coppell). Hinshelwood was a different set of circumstances, to the effect that Hinsh stayed with the club in a different capacity.

For what it's worth, there may be SOME small amount of funds available for McGhee when the transfer window re-opens in January assuming Prescott gives us the go-ahead for Falmer, when the club is refunded £2.5-£3m for the upfront fees for the Public Inquiry / planning costs.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Is Mark McGhee sackable?

But at this level that is very moderate Kinky

True - however it was wasted it seems atm

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Correct. But the contract McGhee is on will mean that DK will have to find some money somewhere - either to strengthen the squad, or to pay McGhee's contract should he wish to offload him. In that sense, he is unsackable, but that isn't Richie's point, and he knows that when he asked it.

And I have now responded to Richie's question, when I said I wouldn't. Doh.


Then we agree - I don't want McGhee sacked. And how much clout do the North Stand whingers really have?

DK swung the axe for Steve Gritt and Jeff Wood, but that was in 1998, and he hasn't done so since (unless one believes the conspiracy theories around Coppell). Hinshelwood was a different set of circumstances, to the effect that Hinsh stayed with the club in a different capacity.

For what it's worth, there may be SOME small amount of funds available for McGhee when the transfer window re-opens in January assuming Prescott gives us the go-ahead for Falmer, when the club is refunded £2.5-£3m for the upfront fees for the Public Inquiry / planning costs.

Why wait till jan?

 

[withdeanwombat]

All managers are sackable.The question is,who,of any managerial stature,would want the Albion job?

Some in the lower leagues might fancy a crack at it,but is there any quality available?

And players will not come to the Withdean because it is a laughing stock,and the low wages cannot help.

And THAT'S why we end up with a team pretty much made up of young players and end of careerers unwanted elsewhere.

And THAT'S what makes being an Albion supporter so great at present.Backs to the wall stuff,not expected to do anything,written off pretty much everywhere.

And THAT'S what makes the Albion manager such a damned good one ,because he lives it ,breathes it and bloomin' well deserves his pint or two of whisky.

No manager is unsackable,but we'd be daft bu**ers indeed to sack this one.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

All managers are sackable.The question is,who,of any managerial stature,would want the Albion job?

Some in the lower leagues might fancy a crack at it,but is there any quality available?

And players will not come to the Withdean because it is a laughing stock,and the low wages cannot help.

And THAT'S why we end up with a team pretty much made up of young players and end of careerers unwanted elsewhere.

And THAT'S what makes being an Albion supporter so great at present.Backs to the wall stuff,not expected to do anything,written off pretty much everywhere.

And THAT'S what makes the Albion manager such a damned good one ,because he lives it ,breathes it and bloomin' well deserves his pint or two of whisky.

No manager is unsackable,but we'd be daft bu**ers indeed to sack this one.

Terry Burton

 

[balloonboy]

Have to agree there with Harty, DK was pretty trigger happy getting rid of Steve Gritt after all, when our financial position was far worse than it is today.

The circumstances of SG's departure were completely different to those we find ourselves in now. We are quite plainly playing a league above our station. The only club remotely near us in terms of resources is Crewe, and they own their own ground and have other opportunities to make money. The Falmer campaign, plus the circusmstances of playing at Withdean make us uniquely disadvantaged. We should never by rights have got promotion two years ago, and neither should we have stayed up last season. The fact that we achieved both was thanks primarily to McGhee. Over the last 18 months or so he has brought us the windfalls of the Play Off final, Darren Currie, Virgs & Harding (through having the confidence to play them). In my view, even if we went down with 25 points McGhee should not be sacked. However, if we don't get Falmer and DK goes, then I think there's a fair chance McGhee may too, and then we'd all be sorry.

 

[mona]

Luton's resources are not that much better than ours. Newell has used the transfer market better than McGhee.
MM is currently unsackable but he has not bought well. Henderson and McShane are good loan signings but the permanents are disappointing so far. Please prove me wrong CKR and Alexandre.

 

[Albion Dan]

Jarrett has done well this season, Magoo is also responsible for giving chances to Virgo and Harding, who we have just sold for over £2million for the pair.

Turienzo and CKR cost £200,000 for the pair (the rest of the CKR fee has gone on wages), and you do not get a lot for your money at this level.

Palace have so far spent about £3.5million on Morrison, Macken and Ward. We cannot compete at this level and are trying to compete with scraps.

Even free transfers don't want to sign for us because we are not paying competitive wages.

Not sure about the wages but the rest of this post is spot on.

We have spent £200k, that in reality, is a pittance, I just think that the amount of time we have been skint for has distorted a lot of peoples expectations from those sort of miserly amounts.

 

[The Large One]

Luton's resources are not that much better than ours. Newell has used the transfer market better than McGhee.
MM is currently unsackable but he has not bought well. Henderson and McShane are good loan signings but the permanents are disappointing so far. Please prove me wrong CKR and Alexandre.

Luton own the ground they are in, and they don't have to cough up an extortionate whack of their turnstile money in outgoing fees. Nor have they gone through a very expsensibve public inquiry. That, plus they get more in than us in the ground kind of blows a hole in that argument.

 

[king Wombat]

I can't believe the pish I'm reading here.

most of you lot are so fickle it amazes me you can dress yourselves in the morning...

A few games ago, everyone was saying what a legend MM was an what a great team we had..

now we've had a bad(ish) run and are struggling abit alot of people are calling for MM's head, and how he can't buy good players.

We lost 3 of our best players last year, MM has had very little of the money to spend, and he's taken the chance to gamble it and buy some unproven but hotly tipped players. for the future.
I've seen people slagging off Jarrett and CKR now. Why?

Jarrett has looked good this year but he's a winger and wingers are not consistent.

CKR was never bought as the complete finished player but has looked decent in the games I've seen him.


It astounded me that alot of people here thought that we would not struggle this season.

 

[BUTTERBALL]

Of course he's sackable, just not at the moment. If we lost, say 12 on the bounce, then he would have to go. But I have every confidence we have the right man at the helm.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

Terry Burton

What about Graham Rix Kinky?

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

What about Graham Rix Kinky?

Seemed to do a good job in keeping a poor dons side up - and if you want to talk about rix go to the peado thread

 

[Yorkie]

I think I have read somewhere that McGhee hasn't ever been relegated.

 

[ditchy]

Lets all not forget that until we get a decision on Falmer everything is then in limbo .. Transfer spending for one can take place once we get the go ahead.. At the moment and i think rightly, DK wont sanction anymoney becuase of the uncertainty,baring in mind if we get a yes ,it would be alot easier to go to our bankers with a biz plan and say "look we are moving to here in 18mths /2years .this is what we realistically think we can do based on crowds etc ,so can we borrow 500k/1m to buy some players "

Again the whole scenario of wages is the same ,people have mentioned about players not comming here becuase we pay piss poor wages .. That is very true , even some non league players are paid more than those at the Albion ,but it has to be put into perspective (WE ARE IN LIMBO UNTIL FALMER) all we are doing is marking time .

Lets keep the faith , get Falmer, and then bury the ghost of Archer and Bellotti;s legacy and move on !!

 

[Simster]

Think about it this way: after getting us promoted, we finished 4th to bottom last season and most of this board were staisfied that McGhee has done his job. We then sold our best player and another "promising" youngster for combined fees of £2m. In addition, we received £500k for Currie & Cullip, both fairly senior players who also contributed for a significant part of last season.

At the end of the day, how much of that £2.5m has McGhee been given for team strengthening? And in any case, we're not able to compete for players we can afford because of the crap stadium set up and the lack of certainty for our future.

It's very very frustrating, and means McGhee's mistakes are glaringly highlighted instead of being glossed over. Afterall, who will remember that Alex McGleish has wasted £8.5m on Alain Boumsong (a player that even an incompetent Graeme Souness realised wasn't up to it) if they manage to finish in a Champions League place?