Neglected Heroes: Aston Villa Early 80s

[PeterWithesShin]

There's a few inaccuracies but still a decent read

Neglected Heroes

[dave.woodhall]

The 'Saunders left because Ellis was returning' myth continues to do the rounds.

[Exeter 77]

The 'Saunders left because Ellis was returning' myth continues to do the rounds.

I was too young to appreciate the minutiae of contracts at the time so am I right in thinking Ron left because the Bendalls wanted to replace his rolling contract with a more standard one for a set period?

[Rico]

I count myself as being lucky to have been around to witness that team at first hand. Superb!

Out of interest, what is the real reason for Saunders resigning? Does anyone actually know? For what it's worth I always thought it was because Ron Bendall refused to give Saunders the "three year" roll over contract that he felt he deserved - although I'm probably mistaken.

[West Derby Villan]

As stated in the excellent article, Ron never explained the reason behind the resignation but it was commonly believed to be "contract" related

[Villan For Life]

What a wonderful read, mistakes aside I enjoyed reliving those years.

How we need a visionary manager like Ron Saunders or SGT now.

[dave.woodhall]

What we know - four days before Saunders resigned, the Mail had a story that his three year rolling contract was to be replaced by an ordinary three year deal. Bendall said economies had to be made; Saunders said the odds were now against his ambition of ending his career at Villa Park. After resigning he said he was paid "to manage Villa, not to be a puppet or office boy".

What we can theorise - Dennis Mortimer heard his autonomy was being taken away, but was never told the full story. The contract was not as lucrative as was first thought, hence its scrapping may have been more for political than financial reasons. Harry Kartz said that Bendall had once told him he wanted to goad Saunders into resigning.

What was argued - The board said Saunders had control over the playing side but also wanted complete control. He denied this. They said he had leaked confidential information in a radio interview. He said he hadn't.   

Saunders left in February 1982. Ellis was announced as new chairman in December 1982. Half an hour earlier Harry Parkes was about to buy Bendall's shares. If Saunders knew about this ten months earlier he was beyond clairvoyant.

[PeterWithesShin]

Do you want to bet against him being clairvoyant?

[wittonwarrior]

People  harp on about Paisley for a knighthood, Brian Clough a football  genius, Bertie Mee  a master tactician Bill Nicholson as some sort of superstar but Saunders although  with a persona as a dour person produced probably the best attacking side in my lifetime (the 77 team).

It was a joy to watch.  Those present at Old  Trafford for the 2nd replay will testify to AVFC Aston Villa are magic. 110%

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

Harry Kartz said that Bendall had once told him he wanted to goad Saunders into resigning.

Why would you want to get rid of the manager who had given you the League ?

Perhaps Bendall thought Saunders had overspent with the finances and was trying to reign things in. When Ellis returned he said the finances were in a mess, embarking on a programme of austerity which eventually culminated in relegation.

Are there parallels between the Lerner/MON situation and Bendall/Saunders ? The manager overstretching the clubs finances to achieve success but the directors/owner at some point deciding the manager is going too far spending money and when the plug is pulled we go into a general decline for 4-5 years.

Of course the comparison only goes so far. Saunders won the League and left a team which won the European Cup, all MON managed was 6th place.   
 

[AV82EC]

Harry Kartz said that Bendall had once told him he wanted to goad Saunders into resigning.

Why would you want to get rid of the manager who had given you the League ?

Perhaps Bendall thought Saunders had overspent with the finances and was trying to reign things in. When Ellis returned he said the finances were in a mess, embarking on a programme of austerity which eventually culminated in relegation.

Are there parallels between the Lerner/MON situation and Bendall/Saunders ? The manager overstretching the clubs finances to achieve success but the directors/owner at some point deciding the manager is going too far spending money and when the plug is pulled we go into a general decline for 4-5 years.

Of course the comparison only goes so far. Saunders won the League and left a team which won the European Cup, all MON managed was 6th place.

Saunders was a top quality manager though, MON maybe in his own mind or that of the media.

[dave.woodhall]

Harry Kartz said that Bendall had once told him he wanted to goad Saunders into resigning.

Why would you want to get rid of the manager who had given you the League ?

Perhaps Bendall thought Saunders had overspent with the finances and was trying to reign things in. When Ellis returned he said the finances were in a mess, embarking on a programme of austerity which eventually culminated in relegation.

Are there parallels between the Lerner/MON situation and Bendall/Saunders ? The manager overstretching the clubs finances to achieve success but the directors/owner at some point deciding the manager is going too far spending money and when the plug is pulled we go into a general decline for 4-5 years.

Of course the comparison only goes so far. Saunders won the League and left a team which won the European Cup, all MON managed was 6th place.   
 

It was a strange situation. Bendall had fallen out with Saunders and wasn't bothered about success because he didn't like football and had gradually bought his shareholding as a hobby for Don, his idiot son.   

[Villan For Life]

So in hindsight Saunders leaving could be viewed as the biggest mistake in our history. That said Saunders may have built a legacy but he'd have been hampered by the European ban which hit a good team like Everton in the mid 1980s.

We will never know, but we were on the verge of something in the early 80's. We won the league, we won the cup and Ronald Bendall fucked it up. I'm sure I heard that chant back in those pre-Rotterdam, post Saunders days.

[eamonn]

Harry Kartz said that Bendall had once told him he wanted to goad Saunders into resigning.

Why would you want to get rid of the manager who had given you the League ?

Perhaps Bendall thought Saunders had overspent with the finances and was trying to reign things in. When Ellis returned he said the finances were in a mess, embarking on a programme of austerity which eventually culminated in relegation.

Are there parallels between the Lerner/MON situation and Bendall/Saunders ? The manager overstretching the clubs finances to achieve success but the directors/owner at some point deciding the manager is going too far spending money and when the plug is pulled we go into a general decline for 4-5 years.

Of course the comparison only goes so far. Saunders won the League and left a team which won the European Cup, all MON managed was 6th place.   
 

Did we spend a lot? We hardly "bought" the title. What was our wage bill in comparison to Spurs - Villadawg?

[PeterWithesShin]

IIRC from what i've read we were paying a shitload in bonuses. In addition to usual win bonuses etc we were paying bonuses for every point we won if we were top 3 (I think it was top 3) plus for crowds over 30K. I could be wrong but i'm sure Dave W knows. We were probably also feeling the effects of the North Stand and also those extra bricks we bought...