Well Said Bridget.

[TIL 1010 4,760]

No forward-thinking football club would operate like Norwich City FC (myfootballwriter.com)

[essex canary 497]

Delighted you agree with it. Superbly expressed and thoroughly accurate.

[Feedthewolf 4,850]

This is a fantastic and heartfelt piece of writing, and I agree with almost all of it.

Check out the comments, too – one Steve Stone, our former managing director:

This is the best article I have read in the 5+ years since I left the Football Club. It perfectly encapsulates the situation that has arisen as a result of a complete lack of accountability at a senior level. This has resulted in terrible decisions being made which have had a hugely detrimental effect on the financial situation, and hence the future of Norwich City Football Club. What a shame that it has turned out like this.

The so-called '20%' is growing every day. As anyone who has followed my posts will know, I hate the binary nature of the 'happy clapper/nappy crapper' rhetoric; it's a lot more nuanced than that. But that's the metric that Delia has chosen to reduce it to, so she'll have to live with the consequences.

If anyone is able to prove these rumours that SW is still involved in running the club from afar, I think the fans will mobilise very quickly. Should that be proven to be the case, count me as a '20%er', much as I hate the terminology.

[canarybubbles 1,924]

Oh dad, we're all Devo now!

[Jim Smith 2,325]

Note the reply below from Steve Stone. If genuine then very interesting.

Tracking things back it all starts to fit together. stone left suddenly shortly after Webber arrived to be replaced by the new “executive committee” of Webber, Ward and Kensell. At the time concerns were expressed about two of them being husband and wife giving them the balance of power.

Fast forward a bit and Kensell falls on his sword to leave unexpectedly and is not replaced. He was, at least, someone who communicated with fans and didn’t seem to hate us. 
 

Suddenly you have Webber and Ward running the show on their own, the latter eventually worming her way onto the board. Since Kensell went any relationship between fans, press and club has deteriorated almost completely. 

 

[TIL 1010 4,760]

3 minutes ago, Feedthewolf said:

This is a fantastic and heartfelt piece of writing, and I agree with almost all of it.

Check out the comments, too – one Steve Stone, our former managing director:

This is the best article I have read in the 5+ years since I left the Football Club. It perfectly encapsulates the situation that has arisen as a result of a complete lack of accountability at a senior level. This has resulted in terrible decisions being made which have had a hugely detrimental effect on the financial situation, and hence the future of Norwich City Football Club. What a shame that it has turned out like this.

The so-called '20%' is growing every day. As anyone who has followed my posts will know, I hate the binary nature of the 'happy clapper/nappy crapper' rhetoric; it's a lot more nuanced than that. But that's the metric that Delia has chosen to reduce it to, so she'll have to live with the consequences.

If anyone is able to prove these rumours that SW is still involved in running the club from afar, I think the fans will mobilise very quickly. Should that be proven to be the case, count me as a '20%er', much as I hate the terminology.

Sadly wolfie the comments from Steve Stone will be dismissed as a bitter ex employee and i think we know by who don't we ?

[Feedthewolf 4,850]

1 minute ago, TIL 1010 said:

Sadly wolfie the comments from Steve Stone will be dismissed as a bitter ex employee and i think we know by who don't we ?

Yup... and I'm looking forward to Mick Dennis's response 😉

[Bigbrenn 61]

Read the article earlier and glad someone has posted it. A good and sad read at the same time 

[Midlands Yellow 4,012]

10 minutes ago, Feedthewolf said:

This is a fantastic and heartfelt piece of writing, and I agree with almost all of it.

Check out the comments, too – one Steve Stone, our former managing director:

This is the best article I have read in the 5+ years since I left the Football Club. It perfectly encapsulates the situation that has arisen as a result of a complete lack of accountability at a senior level. This has resulted in terrible decisions being made which have had a hugely detrimental effect on the financial situation, and hence the future of Norwich City Football Club. What a shame that it has turned out like this.

The so-called '20%' is growing every day. As anyone who has followed my posts will know, I hate the binary nature of the 'happy clapper/nappy crapper' rhetoric; it's a lot more nuanced than that. But that's the metric that Delia has chosen to reduce it to, so she'll have to live with the consequences.

If anyone is able to prove these rumours that SW is still involved in running the club from afar, I think the fans will mobilise very quickly. Should that be proven to be the case, count me as a '20%er', much as I hate the terminology.

20%er is so wrong, a 50%er sounds about right. 

[TIL 1010 4,760]

4 minutes ago, Feedthewolf said:

Yup... and I'm looking forward to Mick Dennis's response 😉

I cannot begin to think what slant he will put on it.

[BurwellCanary 216]

[Satriales 666]

7 minutes ago, Feedthewolf said:

Yup... and I'm looking forward to Mick Dennis's response 😉

Have we heard much from Mick recently, or has he gone a bit quiet?

[essex canary 497]

7 minutes ago, Feedthewolf said:

Yup... and I'm looking forward to Mick Dennis's response 😉

If you like that kind of satire.

[TIL 1010 4,760]

1 minute ago, Satriales said:

Have we heard much from Mick recently, or has he gone a bit quiet?

Plenty to say on Twatter apparently with regard to events at Scum HQ.

 

[Coneys Knee 978]

Would be good if this could get pinned at the top. Superbly put.

[Worthy Nigelton 1,057]

Great article and very hard to argue with any of her points. Although I'm sure some will... somehow.

[Midlands Yellow 4,012]

2 minutes ago, Worthy Nigelton said:

Great article and very hard to argue with any of her points. Although I'm sure some will... somehow.

They’ll challenge it all right. When they’ve got home after a brisk walk and enjoyed a light lunch. 

[canarydan23 4,060]

Excellent article and the comment from Steve Stone, if genuine, is very eye-opening. Another example of the brain-drain facilitated by a fragile ego in Stuart Webber, who couldn't stand accountability from anyone. It's a crime that a narcissist like that was allowed to create a position where he was virtually untouchable. Particularly when it turned out that the guy is useless.

[The Real Buh 3,446]

Imagine still supporting the leadership team at this club as a Norwich City fan.

How embarrassing for those people. What a truly low intelligence move of their part.

[Jim Smith 2,325]

5 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

Excellent article and the comment from Steve Stone, if genuine, is very eye-opening. Another example of the brain-drain facilitated by a fragile ego in Stuart Webber, who couldn't stand accountability from anyone. It's a crime that a narcissist like that was allowed to create a position where he was virtually untouchable. Particularly when it turned out that the guy is useless.

Yes. You can clearly track the path to where we have ended up now as other senior or executive staff left and their roles were subsumed into the roles of a certain duo who then found themselves with complete control of the day to day running of the club. This coincides with the souring of relations with the fan base!

[The Real Buh 3,446]

41 minutes ago, BurwellCanary said:

I want people to know that, as I predicted, for Delia it’s not going to end with grace and memorialisation but with indignity and embarrassment. I want everyone to know it was her choice as well, it’s really is all a massive shame tbh.

[hogesar 9,704]

6 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

Excellent article and the comment from Steve Stone, if genuine, is very eye-opening. Another example of the brain-drain facilitated by a fragile ego in Stuart Webber, who couldn't stand accountability from anyone. It's a crime that a narcissist like that was allowed to create a position where he was virtually untouchable. Particularly when it turned out that the guy is useless.

I'd imagine it's genuine, would be a weird thing for someone to falsify. 

Thought Steve Stone was a decent guy too who'd be pretty frank and honest - although he may hold some resentment as he's not really held down a long-term position since leaving NCFC.

[lake district canary 4,539]

We talk about finances being up the creek, but isnt a large part of that down to covid/lockdowns? Those things certainly didn't help!

I'm no apologist for the way things are, but really, all it needs is having a head coach that gets players performing at their best and without fear.  An improvement on that front would make the changes going on at the club a bit easier to put up with - and things are changing - just not as quickly as most of us would like.

What is probably going to happen though, is that the club will soldier on to the end of the season with Wagner and if he fails to get us in the play offs, we'll look to get a better head coach in for next season. No point in hoping for one now imo, because unless we can find an Alex Neil type, any decent self respecting coach already in a job, isn't going to leave his club mid-season.

It's a heartfelt and fair article though and does ask the right questions - there is a strong feeling of disconnect at the moment - but inevitably, imo, it's what happens on the pitch that matters most.

 

[canarydan23 4,060]

4 minutes ago, hogesar said:

I'd imagine it's genuine, would be a weird thing for someone to falsify. 

Thought Steve Stone was a decent guy too who'd be pretty frank and honest - although he may hold some resentment as he's not really held down a long-term position since leaving NCFC.

Pretty much anyone senior with any backbone has left the club under the Webber regime, all to be replaced by millennial-aged Head ofs. This was no coincidence, Webber deliberately engineered a situation where he was completely and utterly unaccountable and surrounded by sycophantic yes-men. And his wife.

I'm a millennial myself, but the structure needed a few older, experienced heads. Without it, well, just look at our decline. I think the only old guy in a position of any influence is Neil Adams. I like the bloke, but he's absolutely in the NCFC friendzone and not the sort of guy who is going to say, "Hang on a minute Stu, is that right?". The trouble is, in NCFC parlance, "Hang on a minute Stu, is that right?" has been the equivalent of saying, "Hey, here's my notice".

[......and Smith must score. 1,349]

3 hours ago, hogesar said:

I'd imagine it's genuine, would be a weird thing for someone to falsify. 

Thought Steve Stone was a decent guy too who'd be pretty frank and honest - although he may hold some resentment as he's not really held down a long-term position since leaving NCFC.

Steve Stone was a very friendly and capable man pushed out by that nasty piece of work Webber. Sometimes relationships work sometimes they don’t but I think we all know who the villain of the piece was in this instance.

He probably does harbour some resentment of the way he was elbowed out but this sort of thing happens all the time in business. To my mind the comments he’s made are from the heart. Any ill feeling is reserved for one ex-employee not the football club itself.

Edited January 8 by ......and Smith must score.

[shefcanary 2,426]

1 hour ago, Feedthewolf said:

This is a fantastic and heartfelt piece of writing, and I agree with almost all of it.

Check out the comments, too – one Steve Stone, our former managing director:

This is the best article I have read in the 5+ years since I left the Football Club. It perfectly encapsulates the situation that has arisen as a result of a complete lack of accountability at a senior level. This has resulted in terrible decisions being made which have had a hugely detrimental effect on the financial situation, and hence the future of Norwich City Football Club. What a shame that it has turned out like this.

The so-called '20%' is growing every day. As anyone who has followed my posts will know, I hate the binary nature of the 'happy clapper/nappy crapper' rhetoric; it's a lot more nuanced than that. But that's the metric that Delia has chosen to reduce it to, so she'll have to live with the consequences.

If anyone is able to prove these rumours that SW is still involved in running the club from afar, I think the fans will mobilise very quickly. Should that be proven to be the case, count me as a '20%er', much as I hate the terminology.

Crikey, Stone joining in. When previous senior personalities at the club start raising concerns publicly then you hope Smith & Jones realise action is required. Where were you all when I first raised governance issues as a problem way before Farke got sacked (apologies for a Buh style call out, but I felt then I wasn't being listened too, hate to say I told you so 😉!)?

But seriously!

The current problem is that in Smith & Jones' heads by bringing Attanasio into the fold they think they have acted. But as things stand at the moment, legally Smith & Jones still hold 52% of shares, Attanasio 23% and 6,000 plus others less than 25%. Despite Attanasio having a seat on the Board, in truth he remains totally powerless until the EFL complete their Director's and Owner's test.

Why it is taking so long I've no idea, but (conspiracy theories abounding I'm not going to debate) until it is complete, we are stuck in a holding pattern where Attanasio continues to avoid upsetting Smith & Jones in the Boardroom (he does not want to risk the deal) so the one hope of a critical voice at that level is silenced. @nutty nigel you asked why Attanasio was Absentassio, this is why.

Even when (surely not if!) the EFL gives the go ahead, there is still the final two years of this damn concord between the joint majority shareholders to be to navigate. And more immediately, we have a new SD having to traverse a very tricky transfer window, with the old SD still having the ear of Smith & Jones. We have majority owners making PR faux pas after faux pas, wrapping themselves ever tighter in a blanket of what they feel is self protection. On the pitch we have a manager who knows his days are numbered and as a result is setting his team up to be negative in order to preserve his stay as long as possible knowing full well the Board won't act in lieu of the EFL confirmation. And 80% of the supporters are only gradually emerging from their apathetic slumber, with a realisation that the season ticket renewal programme is about to be launched. also there is the knowledge that when Attanasio does complete this share issue, the club as we knew it changes forever, which if handled badly will create a bigger divide between supporter and club. 

And still no word of acknowledgement that there is a problem, that they have a plan of how to tackle that problem, with definite actions set out, from the club. Perhaps it will come with the season ticket renewal launch, but I struggle to see how that could be seen as a game changer. 

In short, so much is hanging on the EFL announcement and Attanasio's reaction. Are the powers that be at the club leaning on the EFL, or is it in their best interest to delay the completion of the EFL work for as long as possible? As I said given the importance of the EFL announcement, conspiracy theories abound over the reason for the delay.

Unfortunately I'm not expecting that announcement from the EFL much before the end of the season. In terms of this season, the future of some of our best young stars, and for season ticket renewals, this does not bode well. It will be a long haul back.

 

 

[Feedthewolf 4,850]

1 hour ago, Midlands Yellow said:

20%er is so wrong, a 50%er sounds about right. 

This whole thing makes me so angry. Our fanbase consists of all manner of different people, backgrounds, thoughts and ideas. To reduce it all to 'lovely fans who love the club' and 'boo boys' is naive, facile and damaging. It's up there with the comments from the infamous Henry Winter interview for bad PR.

For the first time in the 16 years I've had a season ticket, I seriously considered not renewing. I've spoken to my dad, though, who's getting on in years and finds it increasingly difficult to motivate himself to go, and he wants to carry on for another year. If it wasn't for him, though, it might be a different story.

I've always been very comfortable with the idea that we'll continue to sell 20-22k season tickets without any problem at all, regardless of what the 'boo boys' say every year – and so far, I've always been proven right. This year, though, I'm less sure that I've ever been before. I still think we'll hit 20k, even if things continue to fester, but some positive PR from the club would be a pretty smart play right now.

After the AGM debacle, I think Mark is just biding his time and deciding when is the right time to don the suit of armour and mount the white horse.

EDIT: in relation to the last point, @shefcanary's comment about the EFL's ownership test is probably that reason.

Edited January 8 by Feedthewolf

[Ken Hairy 3,774]

1 hour ago, Midlands Yellow said:

20%er is so wrong, a 50%er sounds about right. 

I'd say the 20% is bang on, unfortunately Delia had got who's who the wrong way around.

[TIL 1010 4,760]

6 minutes ago, Feedthewolf said:

This whole thing makes me so angry. Our fanbase consists of all manner of different people, backgrounds, thoughts and ideas. To reduce it all to 'lovely fans who love the club' and 'boo boys' is naive, facile and damaging. It's up there with the comments from the infamous Henry Winter interview for bad PR.

For the first time in the 16 years I've had a season ticket, I seriously considered not renewing. I've spoken to my dad, though, who's getting on in years and finds it increasingly difficult to motivate himself to go, and he wants to carry on for another year. If it wasn't for him, though, it might be a different story.

I've always been very comfortable with the idea that we'll continue to sell 20-22k season tickets without any problem at all, regardless of what the 'boo boys' say every year – and so far, I've always been proven right. This year, though, I'm less sure that I've ever been before. I still think we'll hit 20k, even if things continue to fester, but some positive PR from the club would be a pretty smart play right now.

After the AGM debacle, I think Mark is just biding his time and deciding when is the right time to don the suit of armour and mount the white horse.

You mention ' positive PR from the club ' wolfie but i am struggling to think who would mastermind that and please don't suggest the media office.

[Mello Yello 2,297]

Well said Bridget.....

Wonder what the rudderless club hierarchy will make of your (in my opinion) accurate smacking of the nail square on the head in the current Carrow Corridors of Dour?.....