Thetownend.com

From the Adver...

http://www.thisisswindontownfc.co.uk/display.var.1613000.0.0.php

If Sturrock were to leave now, would anyone be surprised?  Honestly?

Yes because he has a binding contract where he has to stay 18 months. Could start a legal mess and make things worse for all parties....As far as I can tell (and I could be wrong) no one has breached the contract so you can't just leave unless there is a buyout option from either side?

Under such circumstances, it is not unusual for contracts to be terminated by mutual agreement.

I would be surprised, yes. He's obviously not happy but I don't believe he would walk away that easily.

Sturrock has stated frustration many a time but why do such comments make people think hes on his way!?!  Isn't a manager allowed to air his frustrations without having constant speculation hes leaving!

Well, that's OK, then, after all binding contracts are always worth far more than the paper they're written on in football aren't they? Like Dennis Wise's for example. Seriously, I'd be surprised if Sturrock walked now, he'll want to at least see what happens with the new investors, whether a deal does get sorted and if it does what their plans are. But another couple of weeks of "Oooh, any day now" and it may all start to look a bit more dodgy for Luggy.

Its obvious really. Sturrock just wants to know should he be looking at perm (new board) signings with cash or loans (current board)etc. Just wants to know where he stands.

Contract was honoured, He had a get out clause if teams from Prem or Championship came in and he used it. Both sides agreed this as part of the contract so that arguement is not really relevent IMO.

Often in the past I have accused Mr Sturrock of maybe being a pawn of the board. I now accept I was wrong .. he was simply not aware of what a bunch of clowns were running the club. Im sure his eyes are wide open now tho .. I think the possibility of him leaving is a distinct one unless this takeover actually happens ... What the hell are Mikey D and Wills doing ??? Is it a REAL takeover or an imaginary one?? We need players desperately to boost the attack .. even Sturrock knows this but his hands are tied until this is sorted ... not the start to the season we need

I am simply making the point that the delays and constantly slipping deadlines are making Sturrock more vulnerable to an approach from elsewhere.  A number of clubs change their managers in the early part of the season.  When word gets around that Paul Sturrock is not too happy at Swindon - well, I'm sure he would be near the top of my list if I was the chairman of a medium-sized club looking for a new manager.

I'm not saying PS is a quitter.  I'm saying he's human, and is probably just as fed of being cocked around by board as the rest of us.

I think it is Sturrock's way of trying to make them conclude this thing as he does not want the fans to concentrate more on the off field than the on field events for Tuesday and Saturday.
I dont think he has any intention of quitting he just does not seem the sort of person who will walk away from a challenge and lets face STFC is always going to be a challenge!

Fair enough bad example, but let's face it once a manager decides he's off that's it, no amount of binding contract makes much difference. But I do agree this outburst is more of a warning shot than a sign of imminent departure. Although Sturrock's not daft, he knows how this kind of thing will be read, he's definitely sounding a warning and expressing legitimate frustration that the ongoing delay is screwing up his ability to get a team together.

Exactly!

Until this is resolved then Im sorry but fans are going to be concerned about off the pitch antics whether anyone likes it or not.

Sturrocks main reason for wanting a conclusion is so he can bring in new faces asap to strengthen the squad.

According to the Daily Mirror, the £10m take over by a Portugese consotrium will be finalized this week.

So lets hope PS gets some of this money. Why would anyone want to pay £10m for Swindon Town??

well if its in the Daily Mirror it must be true! :-))(

more reliable than the NOTW story about Gary O'Connor! :mrgreen:

£10m would be an underestimate potentially.  If taking over a company, the value is the debt position of the company plus any payment made for the shares.  Virgin Media are being touted for a takeover which would be worth £13bn, although it would only be £6bn ish for the company itself.

If you purchased 100% of STFC in normal practise you'd expect the deal to be quoted as worth around £13m due to the state of our balance sheet.

Early bird discount?

Pfft, that deadlines long gone!

Maybe part of the deal means that the Wills' keep their interest in the club by not getting paid off entirely?

EDIT: Also the CVA accounts for a fair few million in the balance sheet. In effect paying the 900k would wipe out over £5m in debt iirc.

£10m is probably pretty good. Obviously that would need to be backed up by better business acumen and a decent ground development etc.

Maybe.

Maybe not.

I don't think that Sturrock is a quitter though, he will probably want to hang about as he could do something here given the right resources and he will probably wait to see what happens.

But I think we all have to remember that working for the current board is probably something totally different for Sturrock, he has had problems with Chairmen is the past (Weds & Southampton) but this lot are a whole new ball game, we have a chief exec that is not allowed to make any decisions, a chairman that don't get involved in decision making, and an advisor to the majority shareholders who does not have a place on the board but makes all the decisions with everyone running scared of him, and of course everytime they attempt PR it is an own goal.

So really this club is probably unique for Sturrock, and of course coupled with the fact that there is supposed to be a takeover going though but the completion date keep's getting moved and Sturrock needs new players it is not surprising he is sounding off a bit.

Damn right - he'll probably fuck off to Carlisle now (taking Blair with him). I suppose it's closer to sweatyland.

With luck he'll take Blair with him when he goes...

I don't agree with a lot you say usually but that's a good post. I think the main problem is he just wants to know where he stands - its not a case of give me money or I'm off