Dick Knight is on his way out

[Barrel of Fun]

After all, Abramovich seems to manage his Russian businesses and Chelsea pretty well.

Maybe I am being a bit simplistic, but one would imagine the job of Chairman is much much easier when you are a billionaire with an established Premiership side and more executive staff than we have playing squad.

 

[portslade seagull]

Saturday's rumour also had Ken Brown catching the next train out of town.

No real loss there the man hardly comes out of his shell...
Heard the Knight out thing about a month ago and i suppose if he is
putting up all this money he should have a bigger say than some-one
who is now contributing nothing (money wise that is )

 

[drew]

DK (and his consortium) was the only one who saved the Albion.

No-one else did step up to the plate without getting so few guarantees. Others wanted to see the books (as did he), but those others dropped out when they were refused access. Dick didn't. And in the end, all the books told him were the Archer had fed him a series of lies.

Incidentally Aldershot, Newport County, Maidstone and Scarborough all went to the wall.

Aldershot! Reformed and now in the league. The others hardly had any of the pedigree that BHA had nor the potential.



Someone else. So...?

So! If the constitution hadn't changed the club could have been wound up and the money pocketed by Archer and his cohorts. Once the FA forced them to change it back they could not pocket the proceeds so it was in their interests to get out, which thankfully they did.

Don't get me wrong, DK was head of the consortium and there isn't a genuine Brighton fan that doesn't thank him for that. But there is no way of knowing whether someone else would have come in if DK hadn't taken the initiative.

 

[Storer68]

So DK was the only person on the planet that was ever going to save the Albion. How many clubs in the last 20 years have gone out of existence having gone into administration. Can't think of one myself but I'm sure you will correct me.

Also, was it DK who identified the change in the clubs constitution that the FA forced Archer to reverse or someone else?

Will 2 do just for starters
Wimbledon FC, Scarborough FC,

 

[drew]

addendum:

Newport County AFC in the Blue Square South
Scarborough Athletic in Northern Counties East League
Maidstone Utd in the Ryman Premier

Not league clubs but still in existence in one form or another.

 

[sir albion]

Dick had his years and done a good job,but he is past it now and needs to retire and relax.

This can only be good news if it was true

 

[sir albion]

Will 2 do just for starters
Wimbledon FC, Scarborough FC,

The odds on a biggish club going bust are very slim,yes maidstone etc but they are small clubs.There was zero chance we was ever going to go bust its all a myth of ifs and but's.

Look how many clubs of a reasonable stature have gone bust,yes a big fat ZERO in over 100 years.

 

[blue'n'white]

Gary Stevens was in the hospitality area again on Sat and seems to be a permanent fixture, so that seems plausible. I think Tony Bloom should join the board as he seems to be pumping a lot of money in and should have an official say. I am sure if this rumour is true, Dick would stay on as 'Life President' or something like that.

Gary Nelson was there with Gary Stevens - They sat a few seats away from me in the North Stand

 

[Storer68]

So! If the constitution hadn't changed the club could have been wound up and the money pocketed by Archer and his cohorts. Once the FA forced them to change it back they could not pocket the proceeds so it was in their interests to get out, which thankfully they did.

Don't get me wrong, DK was head of the consortium and there isn't a genuine Brighton fan that doesn't thank him for that. But there is no way of knowing whether someone else would have come in if DK hadn't taken the initiative.

Well that is just total shite and you know it. There was plenty of opportunity for someone else to come forward AND THEY DIDN'T

Bellotti did not leave 1997 whem we were stuck at Gillingham. And Archer was not paid off until 2002. If you want to re-write history please let those who were there know, that what they went through was just a totally hypothetical exercise

Peace breaks out
In the New Year the Football Association, through the initiative of David Davies, introduced the existing Board and the popular rival consortium to professional mediators. Against expectations, they secured an agreement for the future of the club in March 1997 that was announced the following month before the final game at the Goldstone Ground. Both sides had compromised to produce an agreement in which no single person was to have a controlling interest in the club.

Albion finally said goodbye to the Goldstone with a win over Doncaster Rovers, setting up a momentous showdown at Hereford United. The game was drawn 1-1, a result which saved Albion and instead relegated the home side to the Conference (as they had scored fewer goals). It was an incredible escape and an unbelievable finish to an unreal season.

Exile
With the Goldstone demolished for the new retail park, the Football League allowed Albion to share with Gillingham provided £500,000 was lodged as a guarantee that the club would return within three years. The “Seagulls” survived a League motion to expel them and found themselves playing 70 miles away at the Priestfield Stadium.

The deal to restructure the club was finally concluded in September 1997. While Archer retained a shareholding, the new chairman was local advertising mogul Dick Knight who was joined on the Board by his financial advisor Bob Pinnock; Martin Perry of construction giants Alfred McAlpine; and two F.A.-appointed non-executive directors who would resolve any dispute. The new regime brought a welcome breath of fresh air to the club and promised a new, open relationship with supporters. David Bellotti was dismissed as part of the deal, but Archer remained a shareholder until he was finally bought out in May 2002.

Together with Brighton & Hove Council, the new Board looked to bring the club home on a temporary basis while a permanent solution was sought. The search ended at Withdean Stadium, an athletics and county league football arena. Backed by a supporters’ campaign, the plans to transform Withdean into a 6,000-seat stadium suitable for league football met stiff opposition from some locals, but an innovative transportation scheme and a petition of more than 32,000 names allowed the council to pass the plans in June 1998. However, the threat of legal action and contractual problems with the stadium managers meant that construction was largely delayed until February 1999, thereby ruling out a return until the 1999/2000 season.

Life was hard in Gillingham. In 1997/98 the team was even worse than the previous season, but Doncaster Rovers kept Albion off the bottom of the League. “Home” gates, naturally, fell to their lowest ever, an average of just 2,328 as few supporters trekked 70 miles into Kent. On Bonfire Night 1997, just 1,025 fans saw their team lose 3-0 to Barnet.

The club started to lay on a fleet of matchday buses and performances improved in 1998/99, but the club fell away to finish 17th. All that really mattered, though, was that Albion were coming home.





Albion confirm bid to buy out Archer
From the archive, first published Friday 22nd Feb 2002.

Brighton and Hove Albion have confirmed they are in discussions to buy out the club's former chairman Bill Archer.

Current Albion chairman Dick Knight has launched a bid to buy out his predecessor's shareholding, backed by current investors in the club including DJ Norman Cook.

He is also trying to attract new investment from a group of prominent local businessmen in an effort to end Mr Archer's financial stake in the promotion-chasing Seagulls.

Mr Knight and Mr Archer have each loaned the club about £1.4 million.

Both men have 49.5 per cent of the shares in Albion's holding company, with chief executive Martin Perry owning the other one per cent.

The club has confirmed Mr Archer is prepared to accept a one-off payment of £700,000 for his shares, which Mr Archer says will be released on receipt of the pay-off.

In a statement, chairman Dick Knight said:"The continuing success of the club and the very real progress being made towards our new stadium at Falmer has given us an opportunity to close a chapter in the history of our club.

"In accepting my offer of half his legal entitlement in the club, Bill Archer has made a generous gesture which we are happy to accept.

"We have the funds to purchase the shares and we are proceeding to complete the transaction as soon as possible.

"The willingness of local business people to help the Albion is much appreciated. It shows the strength of support for the club, including in the business sector in the city, and further underlines the economic case for our new stadium at Falmer".

Bill Archer, the chairman of Focus DIY, Britain's biggest independent DIY retailer, is still despised by fans for the way he ran the club.

According to investment bankers, Mr Archer's 25 per cent stake in Focus DIY is worth at least £300 million and he is preparing the company for a stock market float.

He has been advised to sever his links with Albion, even if it means losing half of his money, to avoid attracting bad publicity.

Mr Knight has already raised £350,000 of the £700,000 from existing directors, including Derek Chapman, and friends of the club who have invested money but do not want a seat on the board.

They include Norman Cook, alias Fatboy Slim, and Billy Brown, a multi-millionaire reinsurance specialist and Albion season ticket holder.

The Argus can reveal Mr Knight has also held a secret meeting with a group of well-known local businessmen in a bid to raise the other £350,000.

They include Robbie Raggio, owner of Hove Car Wash, antique dealer Terry Boyle and builder Jeff Watts.

They have been offered either a 1.4 per cent shareholding in return for £50,000 or £10,000 to secure special privileges at Albion's temporary home at Withdean and new stadium planned for Falmer.

They would receive hospitality discounts for Withdean and Falmer and priority seating in the new stadium.

The group have been given a deadline of next week to agree.

Mr Knight's plan will be broadly welcomed by supporters.

Albion had to ground-share with Gillingham in Kent after the Goldstone Ground in Hove, the club's home for almost a century, was sold and the Seagulls were almost relegated from the Football League.

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

So! If the constitution hadn't changed the club could have been wound up and the money pocketed by Archer and his cohorts. Once the FA forced them to change it back they could not pocket the proceeds so it was in their interests to get out, which thankfully they did.

Don't get me wrong, DK was head of the consortium and there isn't a genuine Brighton fan that doesn't thank him for that. But there is no way of knowing whether someone else would have come in if DK hadn't taken the initiative.

Stop being an arse.

 

[Storer68]

addendum:

Newport County AFC in the Blue Square South
Scarborough Athletic in Northern Counties East League
Maidstone Utd in the Ryman Premier

Not league clubs but still in existence in one form or another.

So if we were stuck in division three of the Sussex Sunday league that would be alright!

 

[Icy Gull]

I think some of the fans who weren't there have no idea just how DIRE our situation was before DK stepped in. Remember Archer didn't want to sell the club he just wanted it to fold and we were on our way to play in Gillingham to complete his endgame. You cannot overestimate the Messiah that was Knight....if you were there. I thought we were a gonner before DK stepped in and started FIGHTING to keep this club alive.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Saturday's rumour also had Ken Brown catching the next train out of town.

Any particular reason for that? Because he only wants to work with Knight?

I haven't got a clue. I'm only passing on what I heard on Saturday.

A much more interesting question to ask is ... Who is trying to undermine who with all these rumours flying around? And why?

 

[Storer68]

The odds on a biggish club going bust are very slim,yes maidstone etc but they are small clubs.There was zero chance we was ever going to go bust its all a myth of ifs and but's.

Look how many clubs of a reasonable stature have gone bust,yes a big fat ZERO in over 100 years.

Leeds, Chelsea, Tottenham, Fulham, Wigan, Aston Villa, Birmingam City, Southampton, Portsmouth, Notts County, Nottingham Forest, Bradford City, cardiff City, Charlton, Coventy, Derby County, Huddersfield town, Leicester City, Oxford Utd, QPR, Swindon Town , Swansea City, Watford(all clubs that have been in the top flight of english football) have all been within days, or a court hearing, of going out of business

I'm glad you were so confident that it could never happen to us!

I have to say that in December 1996 (just after the defeat by Darlington) I was not and was sure that unless a miracle happened (which I couldn't see asa possibility!) then the club would be out of the league and cease to be by the end of that season.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing!

 

[Tory Boy]

It will be a very sad day when Dick goes, and I hope he stays for many years to come.

TB

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

I dont think that DK is on his way out of the club by being deposed as Chairman , he will be appointed as Life President and continue as a figurehead of the club.

 

[Giraffe]

Dick had his years and done a good job,but he is past it now and needs to retire and relax.

This can only be good news if it was true

Exactly. Ken Bates effectively "saved" Chelsea but his time had gone and the club were ready to move on to bigger and better things. Do you think many Chelsea fans regret that?

Which is why I have been saying for some while now that it would be much nicer to see Dick gracefully take the president role and still be around to advise than to be forced out kicking and screaming. I am hopeful that this will be the route the club goes in the next few months.

 

[The Large One]

Exactly. Ken Bates effectively "saved" Chelsea but his time had gone and the club were ready to move on to bigger and better things. Do you think many Chelsea fans regret that?

Which is why I have been saying for some while now that it would be much nicer to see Dick gracefully take the president role and still be around to advise than to be forced out kicking and screaming. I am hopeful that this will be the route the club goes in the next few months.

Seems you have more of a problem with Dick being chairman than the rest of the Board appear to.

Ken Bates was into Chelsea for himself and his return, milking them for all he could. Are you going to accuse Dick of that?

 

[Giraffe]

Seems you have more of a problem with Dick being chairman than the rest of the Board appear to.

Ken Bates was into Chelsea for himself and his return, milking them for all he could. Are you going to accuse Dick of that?

Not really I would just rather see him take a back seat at the right time, than cling on to power and go when he is forced out.

He deserves to walk out at Falmer with his head held high. Moving to the president role now does not stop that.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

If Dick decides to step down, it will be his decision and noone else. And that is how it should be, he deserves massive respect for the job he's done from day 1, but he's not getting that from many fans, and alot of people seem to have a serious lack of understanding how football, and life, works.