Ron Saunders speaks.

[old man villa fan]

Thanks Dave.  I remembered it was something to do with a rolling contract but not the exact details.

[Brian Taylor]

It was rumoured at the time of the construction of the Holte End that when Doug said there was no money in the pot for buying new players, because the stand and ground improvements cost so much, that Ron went out and counted the workers and then found that twice that number were officially on the books. He did not last long after that bringing the matter to Doug's attention...so I was told.

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

It was rumoured at the time of the construction of the Holte End that when Doug said there was no money in the pot for buying new players, because the stand and ground improvements cost so much, that Ron went out and counted the workers and then found that twice that number were officially on the books. He did not last long after that bringing the matter to Doug's attention...so I was told.

? ? Doug wasnt there when things blew with Saunders? ?
? ? No major works were going on with the Holte End ? ?

[Brian Taylor]

OK Ground improvements and no money for players were the cause imo.
http://www.lerwill-life.org.uk/astonvilla/a_villa_vp.htm
"By 1981, the old Lower Grounds buildings that had served as offices were pulled down. Further, as Villa mounted their challenge for the championship, electronic scoreboards were placed at the ground. Villa also installed a mechanically powered plastic cover to try to protect the pitch which, because of the erection of the North Stand, lacked much needed sunlight and ventilation and suffered badly throughout the 1980s."  OK North stand ground improvements.

Ron did not get any money for new players and quit, allegedly!

[cdbearsfan]

Lerwill... The Villa historian of hearts.

[olaftab]

Ron built on that legend of our Championship manager by getting small Heath relegated I think!

[Brian Taylor]

more Lerwill

In the late 1970s, as Villa began to re-establish themselves back among the top clubs after a lengthy spell in the lower divisions, plans were laid for the next major development of the ground, with the building of the North Stand at the Witton Lane end. The new stand was to be an impressive feature and after completion Villa Park was completely under cover for the first time ever. However, although the North Stand was much admired, the manner in which it was paid for caused an enormous amount of publicity and left the club deep in debt for a number of years. Never before had the construction of a sporting arena caused such a scandal as a police investigation and an internal inquiry found that around three-quarters of a million pounds of work had been unaccounted for. The heads of two directors rolled but this could not prevent the club's relationships with their supporters being irretrievably damaged.
 
back to basics eh?
The Villa's disregard for fans opinion hasn't changed.

[LeeB]

Ron built on that legend of our Championship manager by getting small Heath relegated I think!

And the Stripeys, the full set.

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

The finance dealings involved in the building of the North Stand were highly dodgy.
Who were the two directors whose heads rolled ?
If memory serves me right, much of the building project was kept 'in house' rather than just tendering out the work to a construction company. I think someone on the Villa staff was in overall charge of the day to day work and when too many people started asking too many questions, they had to leave quite quickly   

[lovejoy]

What Ron Saunders misses is that he went from us to Blues and not the other way around. A big difference.

[The Laughing Policeman]

From what I can remember about the building of the North Stand. It was loudly proclaimed to be the first time a football club had kept such a major work in house. It was claimed that this was done to keep costs under control. Which patently didn't work, which the ensuing scandal showed.
However I don't remember that as the reason Ron Saunders resigned, it most certainly wasn't over something as petty as a car parking space. The two reasons I heard were a lack of commitment from the Bendalls to provide money for team strengthening and an effort to change his contract without negotiation.

[dave.woodhall]

more Lerwill

In the late 1970s, as Villa began to re-establish themselves back among the top clubs after a lengthy spell in the lower divisions, plans were laid for the next major development of the ground, with the building of the North Stand at the Witton Lane end. The new stand was to be an impressive feature and after completion Villa Park was completely under cover for the first time ever. However, although the North Stand was much admired, the manner in which it was paid for caused an enormous amount of publicity and left the club deep in debt for a number of years. Never before had the construction of a sporting arena caused such a scandal as a police investigation and an internal inquiry found that around three-quarters of a million pounds of work had been unaccounted for. The heads of two directors rolled but this could not prevent the club's relationships with their supporters being irretrievably damaged.
 
back to basics eh?
The Villa's disregard for fans opinion hasn't changed.

He's lifted that from Tony Matthews' A Complete Record, and we all know how accurate that is.

[Brian Taylor]

The management of Villa, whoever they may be, at whatever time, have stuffed the fans from as far back as can be recalled.
I sincerely hope that they have not done so again.
They take our money in our expectation of deliverance and hope that we will reassert the highs of former times. Bar 1981 there has been little to crow about in terms of great achievements over the last 50 years.
it is about time to deliver again, in my humble opinion, before I have time called on me.

[The Left Side]

All very interesting reading, thanks for posting.