The Poolie Bunker

Boreham Wood's owner (since 1999) having a rant about foreign owners. Not so much 'Notes' as Chapter One of War and Peace, but this gives a flavour of what he has to say:

"At the moment, I am watching the foreign-owned club models more closely because, in some instances, we could be benefiting from their bespoke and untried business models. As an experienced football man who hugely respects every owner or investor who puts money into clubs, even if their fan bases call us ‘tinpot’, haha… I do feel a touch of concern on closer inspection when I see selective memory and promises made by owners from abroad that are not followed through.

I also see some of them now hiring companies and consultants who, in my opinion, inflate prices, take ridiculous fees and are unsuitable for the clubs’ business models, but these types certainly know how to talk a good game.

A few discreet searches and phone calls have told me there are chancers out there ready to spend your money, leave your club skint and, in truth, lack any real business savvy, yet somehow manage to get themselves installed in key positions.

Some, I feel, have conflicts of interest or are perhaps glorified agents being employed as consultants, and so you have to wonder what the hell is going on at our level. For me, I simply don’t understand why, if you don’t eat, sleep and breathe a football club at our level, you would want to buy one.

Why would you want to buy a business that might kill you in the pocket, might lose you huge amounts of money, but then leave it to others less skilled than you to run while you continue living abroad?"

There's loads more in the same vein here: https://www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co. ... -united-h/

Two things -
1) He's talking about foreign owners in lower league football in general, not Landon Smith in particular, but it does seem a bit pointed coming just before the Pools game!
2) He's got a right to talk about the value of local owners - he's been one himself for 27 years. Most fans of other lower league clubs aren't so lucky. Pools fans certainly aren't. Local businessmen have had umpteen chances to step up to the plate in the last 15 years, and not taken it.

He talks a lot of sense and you can feel the passion he has for his club.

And what would happen to Pools if Landon walked away?

as for point (2) Raj was a local businessman.

i,d have more sympathy with his position if he owned a football club with a proper fan base and not bankrolling it along with what they get for a premier league club for there lasses to play there. they might not be tin pot but i cannot see a big welcome mat put out for him or his club in league 2 next season.

The club is going places though accrington, you cannot deny that. And at this moment, miles ahead of Pools.

He also spoke a lot of sense about DAZN rescheduling the kick of times and on behalf of away fans who found they could not travel.

It's on the BBC fixtures website that our game at Tamworth middle of December is a 19:45 kick off on a Saturday night.

I thought we might of brought the Solihull game forward to next Saturday as both teams aren't in the FA Cup
Shedueled for a Wednesday nite.!

whose away fans is he on about. surely not his meagre numbers.

Who knew? You learn something every day on this board

doubt they would if they had no historic debt like we have. big hope is that they will start going places in the opposite direction once they taste the efl and take crawley, bromley, salford, fleetwood, stevenage and anybody i have forgotton like them back with them. once teams relied on the size of there gates to succeed and nothing else. thats why pools, darlo, halifax and rochdale have always struggled whilst he big city clubs with big grounds and gates to match have won nearly everything. now its possible to succeed if no bugger ever turned up to watch them.

He was on about away fans in general and in particular Carlisle fans.

My point Hogan that Raj did step up, when we gained promotion to the EFL, then he cocked it up big style, became disinterested and managed to do a nice bit of business for himself when he sold the club.

Yes he did, and like it or not we should be suitably grateful because the club was on the brink. Thing is, Raj was an anomaly, he didn't love the town or the club the way the Boreham Wood chairman obviously loves his. Pools haven't had an owner like that since Harold Hornsey 30-odd years ago.

I did a bit of googling.
Regarding Pools and debt Raj Sing bought Pools for £1 off previous owner John Blackledge with 12 years of staggered payments owed to JB from 2018 to 2030.

Although Smithy has 100% control of the club I'd imagine Sing is still owed money as there's no answers to a complete debt free takeover.

Whatever the outcome we shudent be struggling to compete year on year in this division.

UTP