Martyn Starnes Interview - BBC

[Reg Smeeton]

cheers daz, shame it's the same old excuses and bollocks though.

why not pay the 100k and renegotiate the 900k payment after? surely by being up to date with payments the club would be in a better position to negotiate?

what trading deficit? the budget was cut dramatically last season, how did they manage to be overbudget? if they was such a deficit from last season, how on earth did they manage a £1m overspend so far this season - is that devlin's fault too?

itv digital left everyone in the shit. that was years ago. not an excuse.

walsall have better facilities than us. do they not have good conferencing facilities as well?

the club have been "attempting" to heal rifts since the premiership days, i'm not going to hold my breath.

i'm fucking sick to death of all o fthis.

   If this regime had could produce up to date accounts for their own activities, then it might be possible to have some belief in  their statements, when the transition from the Brady/Donegan era happened, it was feasible that there could be a problem sorting the accounts hence a delay.   Not now though.
 
   Its been quiet on the Cliff Puffett looking at the books front ....I think most would view Cliff as an honest broker.....STFC is only a smalll company, can't take too long to see what's going on surely.

  Ron Morse managed to run the club for 30 odd years to the mid 80's with  little more than a ledger and a John Bull set.  Quite successfully as well.

[Panda Paws]

Like I said at the outset of this thread I don't believe a frigging thing here.

I simply don't believe that, considering income, there was more than a £1.3m trading deficit last season ... utter bullshit.

You lot at the County Ground want me to change my opinion? Show me the fucking accounts.

[yeo]

you've changed your tune a bit there Chris I thought you were giving them the benefit of the doubt the other day.

[Dazzza]

Perhaps recent events are something to do with the holding company?

BP's cash back or share issue perhaps?

http://www.ukdata.com/numbers/04320453.html

22/11/2006 Return of allotments of shares issued for cash or by way of capitalisation of reserves (bonus issues) - revised form.

22/11/2006 Notice of increase in nominal capital.

22/11/2006 Notice of consolidation, division, sub-division, redemption or cancellation of shares, or conversion, re-conversion of stock into shares

I'm not paying £18 to find out mind!

[Spencer_White]

What gets me is why they'd pay other bills before the CVA?  

Because they are refilling their own pockets before they try and ditch the club.

This lot will cut it fine. We might be hours from a winding up order before they leave.

[Frigby Daser]

They really must think we're stupid.

ITV Digital! Why not just blame the Great Depression, hyperinflation and Black Wednesday!

Notice how whenever Ed asked a question Starnes had no answer to he replied 'thats a good question and I undestand their concerns'. Why not just say 'yep, you're right. But we won't admit we were wrong, or plain incompetent because Mr. Diamandis won't let me.'

Notice how Diamandis wasn't mentioned too - is there some sort of media ban on uttering it? Obviously Ed alluded to it in one of his final questions, and all Starnes said was 'oh, the club is being run ever so well, there's nothing to worry about'. Well lets see: DTI investigation, past convictions, refusal to show his face - it adds up doesn't it Martyn. Absolutely nothing to bloody worry about.

And the comment, look at the financial reports year on year - we bloody can't can we! Because your 'company' is too incompetent to publish annual reports, or maybe, just maybe its by design so we can't validate any of your conclusions.

And blaming the administrators for not mentioning the CVA default! So, your administrators advised you to break the law and lie to your shareholders because it was best to keep it confidential. First, there is no reason whatsoever to keep it confidential other than to keep the waters calm so the shareholders and fans weren't aware of exactly how you were running the company. Secondly, you BROKE THE LAW.

His fault, his fault, their fault...anybody's fault but the board. The board - the one constant through all of this. But the one innocent party.

Absolutely disgraceful.

Oh, Mr Starnes, try replying to emails that matter - with substance, rather than just the ones congratulating you on appointing a good manager.

You're just the new Bob Holt aren't you - Diamandis' mouthpiece. Stop treating us like fools you bunch of arrogant bastards and piss off back to the races.

[pauld]

why not pay the 100k and renegotiate the 900k payment after? surely by being up to date with payments the club would be in a better position to negotiate?

ED Hadwin did ask the same question but the answer was slightly evasive something to do with it being on the advice of the administrators.  

Can’t see why unless we are attempting to renegotiate the amount or use the 100k to cover more deficit from this season.

Which is of course, assuming they do have the 100k and this won't turn out to be the latest in the long line of "I know we told you that then, but this time we really are being open and transparent ... ushering in new era of dialogue with fans .... " etc etc. I'm with Chris, too much bs for too long, simply can't trust a word these people say any more.

And I for one still want to know where Bill Power's money's gone. No, I mean really gone. We were told before the end of last season that the trading deficit was where the Parkin and Fallon transfer fees had gone but that it was OK because that would largely cover the operating loss for the season. Now we're being told that Bill Power's money was used to cover that operating loss - just like you can't spend the same money twice over, so you can't use the same black hole as an excuse for two different pots of money.

Don't believe a fucking word, myself.

[Frigby Daser]

And why should we believe a word after the AGM?

You've dug a hole Mr Starnes, Gray, Diamandis, time to jump down in

[Samdy Gray]

Perhaps recent events are something to do with the holding company?

BP's cash back or share issue perhaps?

http://www.ukdata.com/numbers/04320453.html

22/11/2006 Return of allotments of shares issued for cash or by way of capitalisation of reserves (bonus issues) - revised form.

22/11/2006 Notice of increase in nominal capital.

22/11/2006 Notice of consolidation, division, sub-division, redemption or cancellation of shares, or conversion, re-conversion of stock into shares

I'm not paying £18 to find out mind!

This is interesting - Google says a bonus issue is "new shares issued by a company to its existing shareholders, usually in a mathematical proportion to the number of shares already held. These shares are issued free of charge as an accounting exercise by the company.

What the company is doing is turning part of the profits and reserves it will have accumulated into capital. The company may also be undertaking the exercise to reduce the unit price of its shares in the market to make them more easily tradeable"

Hmmmm......

[Panda Paws]

you've changed your tune a bit there Chris I thought you were giving them the benefit of the doubt the other day.

Nothing wrong with changing your mind, YR. Besides, when obvious maths don't add up I think we're entitled to ask questions. Like I keep saying, they're running the *club* as if it's a *business* ... But, what makes a football club? The fans. Players, staff, managers, chairmen come and go but the fans are the one constant. They're running the club on our behalf and need to remember that.

[Samdy Gray]

I think I've got my head round it now.

STFC issues more shares (bonus issue) then increases the nominal capital so that the par value of the shares remains the same.

But why issue more shares without raising new capital? It just doesn't make sense.

[Panda Paws]

Perhaps recent events are something to do with the holding company?

BP's cash back or share issue perhaps?

http://www.ukdata.com/numbers/04320453.html

22/11/2006 Return of allotments of shares issued for cash or by way of capitalisation of reserves (bonus issues) - revised form.

22/11/2006 Notice of increase in nominal capital.

22/11/2006 Notice of consolidation, division, sub-division, redemption or cancellation of shares, or conversion, re-conversion of stock into shares

I'm not paying £18 to find out mind!

£18x3 ...

I've got a login for a similar webcheck firm - I'll try and pull them later.

[Samdy Gray]

Or to solve the issue, we all chip in the £18 and probably get to see something like this:

www.companieshouse.gov.uk/forms/generalForms/122.pdf

[Panda Paws]

But why issue more shares without raising new capital? It just doesn't make sense.

Presumably because they believe Seton Wills will buy the new shares and it will raise capital. I guess if he doesn't buy them then they'll do a share issue to fans ...

It all amounts to one thing. They don't have any money.

[Panda Paws]

Or to solve the issue, we all chip in the £18 and probably get to see something like this:

www.companieshouse.gov.uk/forms/generalForms/122.pdf

See post above. I might be able to get them shortly so hang on.