Come in, Freddy Shepherd, your time is surely up
Posted by Roland Deschain in Freddy Shepherd, Newcastle | 22 September 2006
From time to time, we fans of glorious Newcastle United wonder where it’s all going wrong - perhaps more frequently than most. We then wonder if, in fact, it really IS going wrong. Then we tend to give up on it all, ‘cos we’re not going to change our ways now, and simply pay for another 3rd team shirt, “I am a” mug and NUFC-endorsed chewing gum on our NUFC Credit Card, whilst simultaneously munching the latest offering from Freddie’s Pies. Even a Geordie, in his infinite, optimistic blindness is starting to gain clarity over their sight and the outline they’re making out is of a short, fat man wallowing in mountains of cash.
Unfortunately for us, the ‘mountains’ of cash are only seen as such from the perspective of a scrap metal merchant and not from the Ivory tower of a KG-Billionaire. In fact, whilst these ‘mountains’ are more than sufficient to afford this most insecure and despotic of chairman a life of untold luxury both in and out of the spotlight, they sadly fall well, well short of being able to sustain a modern football club. Sad though it may seem, money makes the World go round, but whilst Freddy’s little world is spinning faster than a Dreidl at Hannuka, Newcastle United Football Club remains utterly motionless, stagnating in a pool of greed masquerading as “love” for his beloved home town team.
The story began happily enough. Sir John Hall brought tidings of joy – “Success”, he cried. “Behold my vision of the Barcelona of England – Sporting Club Newcastle”. I hate to be picky, but the dream was too reliant on too many factors to be anything like realistic. After phenomenal “investment” (like you or I go to Standard Life to “invest” in a property, was it much more than a big loan?) from his own company and others, in came a big stadium, a big manager and some big players.
Then it starts to come apart, somewhat.
With a move to the Town Moor refused by the (probably) Newcastle Utd loving locals, we had to pay thrice as much for a ground 2/3rds the size it could have been. Never mind. At least we’ve got the massive and soundly run Cameron Hall developments behind us, and Keegan here to lead us for at least 10 years – Sir John Hall himself said so…….fast forward just three years and what the hell happened? Cameron Hall lost Sir John to ill-health, as did NUFC, and into both voids stepped the desperate duo – please step forward Fat Fred and Deadly Doug. Fast forward just ONE MONTH and our saviour, Kevin Keegan, is walking out, citing this reason and that. But, ultimately, can we really state, for absolute fact, that his leaving and Shepherd’s taking up of the reigns were 100% coincidental?? Given all Shepherd has “achieved” since, it’s hard to see how.
Just to get everyone up to speed – Cameron Hall developments, having been under the “leadership” of Douglas “Newcastle Offshore” Hall, are absolutely on their knees. The Halls themselves are struggling under the weight of Dougie’s ineptitude and the fact he spends more time in Guernsey “looking after” the offshore business (total revenue? £0) than his own company. Freddy Shepherd, who just two years ago claimed that, if it were in the interests of the club, would sell to the highest bidder, is now digging his heels in even though the Halls are very keen to sell up. Is this in the clubs best interests? Can Shepherd remotely claim that it is? Of course not – his cash cow is about to run off with the milk maid and our royal chairman is going to be left with Shepherd Offshore. A company, by the way, which actually makes millions every year from Newcastle United, through dividends.
Year on year we are treated to misery from our chairman – a man who can only see, hear or think in terms of cash. Year on year we pump his pockets full of cash based on his promises, his lies, and his propaganda. Over the last ten years, we’ve had News of the World witch hunts which didn’t knock him over – he resigned then got himself voted back on the board within three months – untold wastage on players and frightful management decisions. However, as long as 51,500 people (in their replica kits) stick their arses on seats in SJP, he couldn’t give a toss. But it’s got to stop. From Keegans walk-out, to Marcelino, this man hasn’t done anything for the club. He doesn’t balance the books for you, or me. He balances the books so that the City can’t demand his dismissal. Only ONCE in the last 10 years has NUFC not paid dividends, despite taking minimal profits and substantial losses consistently. Freddy Shepherd is the most ludicrously paid chairman in the UK, in line with how much his company makes. He divvies the money up, he pushes it through other channels, but ultimately it goes in his pocket. £5m may seem like short change to Abramovic, but it’s life’s blood to Freddy and he doesn’t want to give that up. But is this any way to run a football club? Of course not.
Fair enough, this is an assassination of a man who has never done a Leeds – but is this really the best gauge? 12 years ago we were being compared to Manchester Utd. 6 years ago we were in scuffles with Liverpool FC. Today we’re contemplating the merits of 8th and above. 6th to the Geordie faithful. Sure, we may set our sights too high – perhaps we should have a scrap metal merchant in charge of this club. Perhaps those highs under Keegan and, somewhat less-so, under Sir Bobby were ‘spikes’ – anomalies in what is more usually a very mediocre footballing life. Maybe I’m the one getting it all wrong and what we should be thinking about is our Division Two roots and just how far we are from them, as opposed to staring enviously up the table at what could have been, if the people at the top had bothered to think about the long term future of this club. Even today, that long term future isn’t established. Roeder is on a less-than-two year deal. Shearer is waiting for his turn. And all this screams out is that Shepherd has a long term plan for Shepherd. He can sack Glenn – he’s too low profile, too low paid to result in much disaster, financially, for the club. He can then appoint his “job for life” man Shearer, knowing that such a treasure will guarantee his comfortable path to retirement as he can then hide behind Super Al til he’s done. Then what? Who cares – not Mr. Shepherd, for Mr. Shepherd takes care of himself – always has and always will. We can go three ways here – we can say it doesn’t matter, keep paying him and accept the continuously poor service he brings. Or, we can say that it doesn’t matter, give in to apathy and watch unmoving as the club gradually fades into the mediocrity Aston Villa appear to be vacating, leaving Shepherd in an Ellis-esque limbo. Or we can stand up and be counted on this. We can own this issue – after all, haven’t we paid enough?
Comments
How DO you do it, Roland?! Yet more tedious, repetative, nonsensical guff and STILL someone publishes it! MY GOD, I knew the internet was full of rubbish but the fact that anyone is willing to give your views the time of day is still unbelievable to me!
One of the main reasons, if not the only reason, for the Villa fans turning on Deadly Doug Ellis was because he refused to give his managers the financial backing the fans wanted to see. How on EARTH does this relate to Freddy Shepherd?! If anything he's given TOO much money to his managers! HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF POUNDS have been spent on transfers! What else do you want him to do, you numbskull?! Newcastle United is where it is compared to the truly big clubs in this land primarily because they've been doing what they do and being successful for DECADES. It's unrealistic to blame FS for the simple fact that this club needs more time and money spent on it.
There is no other company or its share holders would have put up with the level of performance freddy and the other band of so called company directors have produced over the recent yrs.
Newcastle United's treatment of the best fans is the world,the lack of respect for a fan base that leaves every single premire league club including the so called "big four" green with envy,is contemptous, we have never been valued by NUFC other than the revenue we generate that allows the massive financail blunders to be swept under the carpet. Freddy Shepard is not NUFC he can't be because I am and like thousands of others I love Newcastle United in a way these people dont understand you can only be a Newcastle Fan to understand,we love the club first,last,every minute every day,You call yourself a geordie Freddy but we see straight through you,the Newcastle United that you represent and the club I love are two different clubs.
John - you contradict yourself within your own comment. You begin by stating that Freddy is always willing to spend money and end by saying that it needs more money spending on it?!
Apart from anything else, who's money is Freddy so generously doling out? Yours!! You believe his guff that he's Mr Generous? It's not his personal cash!!
Regards the watsage of that money - read the Robson autobiography. Shepherd is the cause of the wasted money as he has his fat fingers in all the transfer dealings when a good chairman would leave footballing matters to the man employed to run them - the manager. Roeder was employed because he is a 'yes-man' and will do what Shepherd wants. Why would he want someone like Hitzfeld who would do a Bobby and stand up to him?
Shepherd needs to go. Manager after manager and player after player have FAILED here. Therefore the only logical conclusion to draw is that there is a different common factor running through the club that prevents progress. Changing the manager and the playing staff doesn't work. High profile managers don't want to work here.
So lets change the board/chairman. It's the only thing that's left to change!
John from Wallsend makes the kind of comments that prove this article is correct. Shepherd may have spent millions on players, but how many of them have delivered? For every Parker there’s a Boumsong, Marcellino or Maric. Why? Because his managerial decisions are always laughable. KD was past his best when he was appointed (and further proved that at Celtic). RG was after a big payday and couldn’t care less about the club. SBR was retained 2 years beyond his ‘sell by date’. “You don’t sack a man like Bobby Robson” FS….who then went on to sack him. I’m not even going to mention the next mistake, but now we have Roeder. A man who whilst committed an genuine, is hardly the appointment to take us forward (I hope I’m wrong). He’s treading water till AS takes over. FS provided all these suspect managers with lots of cash, which gives him the reputation as great and generous chairman, and makes “numskull” fans like john think he’s doing a good job. As the saying goes, “a fool and his money are easily parted”. The sooner he goes the better!
GATESHEAD, are you really that stupid. YOU CLAIM A CONTRADICTION ON JOHN, who wrote the only sensical piece of writing on this page. THERE IS NO contradiction, learn to read
" It's unrealistic to blame FS for the simple fact that this club needs more time and money spent on it. "
HE SAYS ITS UNREALISTIC TO MAKE THAT BLAME.
christ
" It's unrealistic to blame FS for the simple fact that this club needs more time and money spent on it. "
No it isn't!
Like Duncan writes above. If Fred hadn't employed so many inempt managers and allowed them to spend fortunes on sub standard players, we wouldn't be in this position. Ok fine, not every player works out at every club, but we don't even have a 50:50 strike rate on that. No one can tell me Boumsong for £8m and Luque for £9.5m wasn't a massive waste of money. Fine it's the manager who buys the players, not FS, but who employed the incompetant souness in the first place?
Typical bone idle muppet just choosing the evidence that backs up his conclusions and ignoring the rest. Fair enoough Souness didn't work out but how about giving credit to Shepherd for the managers he has appointed who either DID work out or who DID have a good managerial pedigree?! RG had done well at Chelsea, had won things and had played good attacking football. KD had just won the Premiership at Blackburn where he had a certain ALAN SHEARER playing for him. And what about SIR BOBBY, or had you convienietly forgotten about him?
KD and SBR got us into the champions league. And despite making some bad buys KD was the man responsible for SHAY GIVEN, NOBBY SOLANO AND GARY SPEED being at SJP.
Shepherd might not have seen us win anything but he has been in charge when Newcastle has seen the Toon playing all over Europe, including the SANSIRO! He was also in charge when we beat JUVENTUS FOR CRYING OUT LOUD and seen us play in several FA cup finals and FINISH IN THE TOP FOUR on numerous occasions. He's also seen the development of SJP and the training facilities at Newcastle grow to heights unimaginable pre SJH.
What position is that, PM Rich? A whisker away from being in Europe proper and above Tottenham and Arsenal in the Premiership, is that the 'terrible' position we find ourselves in due to FS! If it wasn't for some awful luck we'd have a fit MICHAEL OWEN leading the line for us this season. I guess it muat be Shepherds 'fault' that we signed such a 'terrible' WORLDCLASS, INTERNATIONAL STRIKER AS WELL!
If you muppets had a brain you'd be dangerous.
Why do you feel that you have to abuse everyone who has a different opinion to yours? And it's OK to play all over Europe and in FA Cup finals, but it'd be nice if we could win something. We seem to have gone backwards at a steadily increasing rate since KK's days, not including SBR who took a team that was on it's knees from Gullit and Dalglish's management and took us to somewhere decent, but then we got Souness. We deserve better. If, John, you're happy with the current situation, then I'm sorry, but you're very easily pleased.
"Typical Bone idle muppet only using the evidence that backs up his argument" Well Duh smart lad! That's what you're supposed to do! You'd be a pretty poor solicitor if you used the "evidence against" to defend your client! But if you give me 10 reasons to defend each of his appointments, I'll give you 20 reasons against!
KD left Liverpool because he couldn't handle the pressure, especially after what had happened at Hillsborough. He went upstairs and then left Blackburn after winning the title and then failing miserably in the CL the following year. His appointment here was based a reputation that was already waning. Granted KD bought the player you mention, but he also bought in Anderson, Pistone, Hamilton, Serrant. I could go on! RG may have done well at Chelsea in the cups, but not in League terms, which is why he was replaced here. Did they both get us to the Cup final? Yes, where did we finish in the league under them? Bottom half! Have either of them had success since leaving us? NO!
Cham League - KD "Got us there" when he took over halfway through the season with Keegans players. What happened in the summer? He got rid of the flair, bought in the good honest players and we were pathetic (Barca game aside). He couldn't get the best out of Tomasson, who went on to be a world beater!
I didn't ignore SBR, I said he stayed too long, and in fact I would say he was bought in two years too late as well, if he'd taken over from Keegan, I have no doubt we'd have won something by now. And whilst he did buy some good players, you can't gorget the likes of Fumaca, Bassedas, Gavalan and Cordone.
I was at the SAN SIRO, I will never forget it, and I do thank SBR for getting us there, but "every dog has it's day" and FS day is long gone. He no longer has the financial clout required to make us top 4 and has track record with the 'big decisions' shows that there is none of the forward planning required to make a big corporation such as NUFC successful.
Good comments from some, needless ranting from others....!! Seriously, though - we have a situation here where we have to ask ourselves about Shepherds motives. Even then, if there are those who find his motives unquestionable, we simply MUST question his capability. We are quick to judge Gullit, for example, yet did the man WANT to fail, or was it his capabilities that let him down, or his desire? He never had the ability to pay himself wads of cash, to manipulate the clubs finances for personal gain, so what could he get out of mid-table finishes and cup final no-shows?? Nothing. Shepherd, by contrast, paid out huge bonuses to himself and his three chums on the board, whilst simultaneously plotting to improve his finances further through share ownership of the club.
I don't ask for much - but when addressing any problem, a lot of folk tend to look no further than that which they can see. But where they fail is that they do not look any deeper. I applaud the majority of fans not just here but around the country who are beginning to wake up to the problems of capitalism in football, particularly when sneaks like Shepherd stick their fingers in the meaty pies at their disposal and Aston Villa have finally got what their patience has deserved. But must we sit like them awaiting our Yank in shining armour? We have the power - his money, as so many put it, is OUR money, is the Northern Rocks money. If we stop, he must go.
All of us recognise his failings on so many levels and I look forward to sustained pressure on this man. The more we put our names to websites and come out of the anonymity, the more chance we have. Keep reading websites like this, keep writing in and one day we can sit proud that we made a difference.
