Thetownend.com

WTF??

Gone


Fucking hell !!!

Fuck me

Shit

Presume Bart, DV et al will be happy now.

Oh shittake mushrooms.

Are we now in the shit even more?!!

Shocked

I wonder who'll step up? Could be good, perhaps he'll be willing to shell out on a manager...

Wray is interim chairman

Was on the cards to be honest.Don't think the money men have been ompressed with his meddling this season.

Gone resigned as chairman to be replaced...or gone walked away with all the consrtium and their cash?

Stepping down or are the lot walking away?

Jeremy Wray to take over as Chairman.

ace ,we can have a new 5 year plan now

This is much better than Freds thread,thread wars!

He's obviously taken relegation personally.

Why am I listening to Brian sodding adams and some bint going on about a bloke wearing a kilt on radio swindon?

Jeremy Wray to act as chairman, until a long term successor is found.

A thousand thanks for all you've done, Andrew.  Good luck Jeremy, we're all behind you.

Before we go into meltdown lets remember Fitton himself said that he would like a change of chairman after 2/3 years.

From what o hear wray wants to be fulltime chairman so i wouldnt be concerned about the money men walking away he just needs to be elected.   

Surely just the first.  Wray is act as chairman, Watkins still around, and besides they've put far too much money in just walk away.

 
It's tricky. Fred's is all CAPSLOCKY, but this one's all WTF??

I'm undecided

No just Fitton. Wray will replace him as chairman. Which is good (Wray stepping in, not Fitton quitting) - means some continuity, means the backers are still there plus JW personally is excellent. Very clued up, very bright, a lot more likely to stick to the business side (assuming you believe the Fitton intefering in the football side rumours)

Wray: he was thinking this for sometime. Give best chance for club to start planning

(From Gary Rose's Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/STGary_Rose)

Seeing as Radio Swindon don't care.

Will Fitton still be involved at all?

Not the news I was hoping to hear. I hope the whole consortium doesn't put out or we could do a Poxford.

If someone renamed Fred's FITTOFF I think it could win.

No you don't have it exclusively RS. Seriously, Journos need to learn the meaning of exclusive.

Hodgetts is there but not on, they're banging on about the cunting Royal Wedding now.

Might start my own to add a bit of competition.

if the money men aint pulling out, this is good news.

Gary Rose: Wray to talk with hart tomorrow. As it stands just resigned as chairman. Not sure yet whether off the board. Back in the Country tonight.

As mentioned above Fitton himself said he didn't intend to be a long term chairman.

At least now we can have a completely fresh start for next season top to bottom I guess.

No chance of that happening imo.People(not you) need to remember Fitton has not onvested much money in this himself he fronts the people who do and to be fair this season he has got alot wrong.

I am forever indebted to what Fitton has done for this club and think he got alot of stick when it wasn't needed but i think he has done the right thing here.

Fuck me, i thought this meant the money men had walked away to begin with and i shat myself.

The club is so much stronger these days thanks in no small to part to Fitton (off the field anyway), for this alone we should be very gratefull for his period in charge.

I agree this is positive. Fitton has done wonders for the club, given us an imporved club and spearheaded the second-best season I've ever experienced while watching the club, but perhaps jeremy Wray might make better 'footballing' decisions.

I had the same thought briefly...to the Trustmobile!

Rose: Wray promises no changes financially for club

Hart is interested.

shut up about fucking watercolour paintings of manor houses and churches and get shaun on

argh fuck off to the slag on the radio

In starting a Fitton thread on the TEF? Surely he has better things to do.

I'm riveted by it. Who knew there was so much to watercolour paintings of stuff and shit?

I think we also need a thread called "FITTON GONE OMFG!!111one"

Dunno, maybe signing up here is part of his big plan to make the fans love him?

I've muted it. Someone tell me when Shaun starts talking.

I get perverse enjoyment out of thisis at times like this

Dirty Barry, swindon says...
2:15pm Wed 27 Apr 11

Sold 6 million pound worth of players, relegated the club, and rather then be be man enough to stay and fix his mess he has walked away and deserted the club, what a first class ****

shame - in spite of it all I felt that Fitton was trying his best - onwards and upwards?

withoutyouuu babe. I'm doing fine now.

Wray promises no changes financially for club (Gary Rose @STGary_Rose)

Shaun's on

That's typical of his lack of respect for the fans. Can't even be arsed to start a Fitton thread on TEF

WRAY on BBC Wilts now

Shaun on talking to Jeremy Wray. Updates:

Fitton been talking about this since Christmas, decided at Easter.

Wray taking over is short term, Fitton will still be around to help, time pressures of the role are significant.

Nothing changes on Fitton's personal investment in the club, he just doesn't want the day to day hassle.

Goals don't change, aiming for Championship but accept this season is a set back. Snakes and Ladders reference.

Considers the management decision a much bigger decision than this one, not yet spoken to Paul, meeting tomorrow morning to discuss, statement after that.

Personal decision, does not effect any of the other directors.

Not decided how long he will be Chairman for. Glad Fitton has decided this now rather than July.

End of press conference.

Jesus fucking wept. Please tell me this air-waster isn't eligible to vote

Agree, freshened things up. I don't think Fitton has enjoyed being chairman especially with all that's gone wrong

Hart for chairman? ;)

£6million? Only Cox and Austin went for decent money

Mixed feelings about this. I really hope he stays on in some capacity - he's done wonders for the image of the club and has definitely improved a lot of things off the pitch. Obviously mistakes have been made, but I think he'll continue to be very valuable to us if he stays on the board.

From what Wray's saying, he will be. Still a major investor, still around, just wants to step back from day-to-day hassle of being chairman

Maybe we should have a Songs for Fitton thread?

Candle in the Wind?

Meeting with Hart tomorrow morning. Possible press conferance in 24 hours.

He was like a candle in the wind, unreliable.

woooo the watercolour painting is back on, the joy.

Hopefully the outcome of tomorrow's meeting will be the departure of Paul Hart.

Phew. Back to the watercolours now. I was worried we'd lost that

I may just keel over at that thought.....

No need to wax lyrical about him, it gets on my wick.

Holy shit.

Hopefully, it will be to unveil a watercolour portrait of him hanging in reception

EDIT: That's the portrait hanging in reception, Hart-haters

You wait and see, there will be a mural on the wall in the legends lounge

I'll take Hart from that.

That's a rubbish Songs for Fitton suggestion. To what tune?

Where else would you expect to find a mural then ?

Spot on Paul i know Budgie always had a lot of time for him and said he was very knowledgable of the game but didnt like to get involved in what a manager does.Think this could be a great thing in all honesty

Oh look, someone's got all mergey spergey.

'Fitton, Fitton, sort it out!' song needs replacing>

'Wray, Wray what dya say?!'.

Fuck off you utter b a b e !

So relieved this isnt a total pullout.

We did need a change in strategy. Best of luck to Jeremy Wray!

Goodbye Swindon's rose
May you ever grow in our hearts
You were the grace that placed itself
Where careers were torn apart
You called out to our club
And you whispered to those in pain
Now you belong to heaven
And the stars spell out your name

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never fading with the sunset
When the relegation set in
And your footsteps will always fall here
Along Swindon's greenest hills
Your candle's burned out long before
Your legend ever will

Loveliness we've lost
These empty days without your smile
This torch we'll always carry
For our club's golden child
And even though we try
The truth brings us to tears
All our words cannot express
The joy you brought us through the years

:(

Thanks Andrew Fitton for saving the club and giving us a great season last year.  Its a shame that you leaving has come at the end of such a disappointing season.

I am entirely speechless

Agreed

I did, kind of, predict this yesterday...

http://bit.ly/hB92ck

*shameless plug for my blog!*

Hoddle is still looking for a role at a club at board level..........

A tenuous prediction at best!
And as for your comment about us being a profit-making club, well, we might have made a profit this year thanks to one or two one-off payments, but we're still very much a loss-making club on the whole. It's comments like that which lead so many to believe the board aren't investing in the team and don't want to take us forward, when clearly they have tried to do just that.

I feel sad for Fitton.

Of all the unscrupulous wankers in the game, Fitton genuinely tried to do what he thought was best for the club. However, STFC comes before any individual so I hope this news will ring in the changes that we need. 

Fuck me. I wander off down to the Post Office and suddenly I come back to this. Blimey

Spot on. A hard-working and genuine bloke. That's why I hope he'll stay on in some capacity.

Absolutely.

This.

Bit of a shocker tho

Left field this bit of news.....how many chairmen resign when a club goes down?  :sherlock:

For what it's worth, the BBC site says the following...

"It is understood he will still be part of the club but he is stepping down from his role as chairman due to a hectic work schedule."

A round of ONE ANDREW FITTON before things go sour on Saturday?

This.

I honestly think this will be good news for the club this season and if anything imo proves that the club and more importantly the investors are willing to accept they have made massive mistakes and are not afraid to change things when they see fit.

Fitton's fundamentally a turnaround guy. His skills are about putting together the deal, cleaning up the balance sheet, setting a business on the right track and getting it operating professionally. So it's not a surprise to see him step down after a couple of years.

But on the other hand, I have immense respect for a chairman taking the hit for relegation. It's almost unprecedented at any club and a sign of the professionalism of the guy and the team running the club now.

Bold statement this, hope you are right...no one expected this to happen and no one really expects Hart to be retained after he has failed to do the job he was brought in for...but with this bit of news nothing will now surprise, especially after Hart`s comments yesterday.  :pint:

 i think you have it about right.
fitton might say it's down to time etc,but i think he realises he has made grave errors this season.

will the same people singing his name be abusing hart, i wonder?

Thing is a few of us did expect it to be fair.Fitton always said 2-3 years is what he thinks is the lifespan of a chairman.

Is it me or has the Adver site crashed?

Absolutely agree.

Some fans wanted Fitton to be held accountable and he's taken the responsibility upon himself and resigned.

Maybe he's made himself the scapegoat so that Paul Hart can be appointed manager on a full time basis.

Noooooooooooooooooooo!

whoever merged these threads is a wormy apple.

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Wasnt expecting this. Fitton has made huge mistakes this season and played his part in relegation (so has everyone else)

I'd have rather seen the coaching staff and players go than Fitton.

We move on and Hart out next please.

You promised you'd fuck off when we got relegated.

Fitton is stepping down but only because he is announcing himself as the new Swindon manager tomorrow. You heard it here first.

:D

Well I was shocked to hear this. Certainly wasn't what I was expecting to hear today. I'd like thank Fitton for everthing he has done. He came in and changed a lot of things. He cleared the club's rep and made sure we were no longer a laughing stock off the pitch. He did wonders last season helping oversee the club to the play-off final. He's made mistakes and he admits that. He obviously feels now is the time to step aside and let someone else have a go at it. Fair play to him for that. I'm glad he isn't leaving the club full stop though.

It's good and bad in my eyes. At the end of the day however much he got involved in the playing side of things he was still the best chairman we have had here for years. When you look at it that way it's a big loss. We've lost a passionate chairman and a footballing chairman. They are hard to come by these days.

However in saying all of that maybe it will do the club good to get a fresh face in with some new ideas. Let's see what someone like Wray can do. Let's also hope for perhaps less involvement with the playing side of things. Maybe this will aid the new manager and help us get the results we need to return to L1 this time next year.

Wow, thats a bit of a shock. Really greatfull for all Fitton has done for us and i'm glad he's not leaving the club completley. Was a bit worried for a second that all the board were leaving.

However, this could be a good thing for us, as long as Wray gets rid of Hart!

He helped save the club.

It's a noble gesture and from a business point of view I believe it's the correct one.

Cheers Fitton.

Not surprised that he's stepped down. He said when he came in that the aim was to reach The Championship in three to five years. His exact words were '' If we reach The Championship in three years we would have succeeded if we don't reach it in five we would have failed''. So by his words he has failed in his mission and maybe he thinks it's time for someone else to come in.

Without him we wouldn't have a football club, yes he's made mistakes this season however I will always be grateful for what he has done for us. Off the pitch with the sponsors etc. it's been fantastic. On the pitch we've had ups and downs.

Good luck and thank you Mr Fitton.

Now for the hard work to begin, let's draw a line and move onwards and upwards.

Just listened to his interview on radio Swindon, very sad to hear he's stepping down. A total surprise, and not a welcome one in my eyes.

One thing though, in the interview he said he didn't think the fans had given Hart enough time. Now, as a manager famed for saving relegation-threatened clubs, and being brought in on a short term deal until the end of the season for a club deep in the relegation battle, surely he should be judged on his results? Add to the fact he's a bit of a twat, and I think the fans gave him more than enough time.

Another though.....

This could allow Fitton more time to do the things that he IS good at. He clearly excels at administration and finances and stuff so let him concentrate on that side of things. Let's not forget things like sponsorship deals as well, 442 AND EA sports is such an amazing coup for the club.

:clap:

Bang on I reckon DRS. After the initial shock, we actually still have the same people in charge. It's the same regime, they've just shifted the roles (and perhaps the emphasis) around a little. We have the same regime, the same backers, the same sane financial policies underpinning things, but we have a fresh impetus with a new man at the helm.

Someone said earlier, Fitton's a turnround specialist and he's done a hell of a job on that front, so as far as I'm concerned he steps down with my profound thanks. And as DRS says, it's good to see the regime can accept that mistakes have been made and fresh impetus is needed, if only to restore confidence in the board overall.

The King is dead, long live the King!

Irrespective of the appalling season we've just had and/or the collective mistakes made on and off the pitch during his tenure, all connected to STFC owe AF a massive dollop of gratitude. Even with the prospect of League 2 ahead, the footings the club now finds itself on and the collective stewardship we have going forward is a million miles ahead of the previous reigime.

Many thanks, Andrew. Enjoy that well earned rest.

Being the chairman of a football club is a full time job,his business commitments made it that last year he was away a lot when the club needed him here.
That said he did a decent job and there is no doubt he wanted the best for the club,just not worked out.

Onwards now.

Heard his interview about 5-10 pm, think he more or less admitted he is too loyal - which is why Wilson was allowed to go on when he should have sacked him last year!

I will be. Sure, Fitton has made some mistakes, but overall I think he deserves a huge show of appreciation for everything he's done since 2008.

Hart.... not so much.

Meant to most this earlier, what did you mean by this mate?
Anything you can elaborate on?

Really shocked to hear this!

Just wanted to wish Fitton all the best for the future - I'll always be grateful for him stepping in and saving the club a few years back.

But perhaps it is good to have a fresh start for next season - hoping that hart isn't here though. As others have said, I'm sure he is actually a nice guy away from football - but I don't have the feeling that he's right for STFC....

Jonah

I reckon it was time for him to go. He said himself about only staying in the job a few years, he's had to deal with a massive amount of aggravation in saving the club which must have taken it out of him and he's made a number of mistakes with the manager's position.

But it's thanks to him we've still got a football club and for that I'm sure everyone will be eternally grateful. The same as I'm sure no one would have a problem with him returning to the position in a few years time, once he's recharged his batteries.

Kind of had the same feelings about Wilson - he should have been sacked a lot sooner but he got us to Wembley and I've no ill feeling towards him as we had one incredible season with him. Paul Hart on the other hand....

Maybe not such a 'coup' when you consider its all related to Jeremy Wray's business interests. Doesn't he own those companies?

Such a shame for you lovely chaps, all this dreadful news these last few days.

Still laughing. :D

owns 442 and EA sports? yeah, good one

I must admit, if you'd told me that in twelve months we'd go from Wembley to League 2 I'd have laughed too.

Blimey, I thought WItneygobshite held the braincell  :sherlock: He/she/it must have lent it out.

Does he own Samsung too?  Knob!

Wasn't The Social Network about Jeremy Wray??? im pretty sure he owns facebook

Betfair must offer good odds on you being wrong.

Must be Microsoft then

Pretty sure he owns Kraft.

I always get Jeremy Wray and Bruce Wayne mixed up, or is that Lex Lutoar?

Good Werk.

Thanks, I thought of that sat in an Electric Cafe.

Tisdale would excite me, as would Nijholt.

A substantial offer to Tisdale,even if turned down would show the Board's intent.

Can you stop neu?

As long as we're naming managers who are at clubs in higher divisions that we haven't got a cat in hell's chance of attracting, then I'll have Owen Coyle please.

Who would be your choice Lumps

Ironside ;)

If Wycombe don't go up then I'd try to nick Gary Waddock of them.

That my friend is a very good shout actually.

Trollope is nailed on now,with Bodin as assistant i would imagine.