Kendrick Says It's Time To Ask Questions

[Stu]

With all due respect to your religious beliefs, IMHO anyone who believes in God will believe anything an authority figure tells them....

I think that is the entire point that Arsetrumpet is making with regards Woodhall and H&V in general....

[Witton Warrior]

With all due respect to your religious beliefs, IMHO anyone who believes in God will believe anything an authority figure tells them....

I think that is the entire point that Arsetrumpet is making with regards Woodhall and H&V in general....

But you're in Hell Stu!
You are a Believer...

[Boz]

As Kendrick and the Mail have more direct access to the club than we, shouldn't he be putting these concerns to the management himself?

Quite right, Kendrick has the access, but probably doesn't want to upset the VP hierarchy.

[cheltenhamlion]

I don't think apathy is quite right as an accusation on this anyway. I think a few things are at play.

First of all, I don't wish to ignite the debate again on this thread as to whether we are better off than this time last year. Something to think on however.

When our "winnable" games were looming last year there was all kinds of tub-thumping being done as to how we need to fill the ground and roar the boys to safety. I am not taking issue with that. It worked and some of the atmosphere we created at those games was tremendous. But to my mind it would suggest that the lack of such demands so far this year are not because we are apathetic but because, in general, the fan base is not as worried about relegation at this point in time as it was last season. That could change in the coming weeks of course but, as it stands, I am still of the impression that the majority of us don’t think we are on collision course for relegation.

Neither do I believe apathy is the reason we are not demanding that the manager and board are strung up from the nearest flagpole. We as fans can put up with an awful lot. Most of us understand that we have to take our medicine after years of over spending and mismanagement of the squad. It is in part for this reason that we aren’t creating massive waves. We are realists. We don’t want the club to end up in the financial hole that so many others have and can understand the notion that it was always going to be a hard time to go through to put the financial side of things in order.

We aren’t all screaming for the managers head at the minute. But because we are apathetic? I don’t think so. There are some that still have faith that he is the man for the job. There are some that will think he has been dealt a rough hand and want to give him more time to see what he can do with a few quid behind him after dealing with the worst of the excesses of previous regimes. And, even if you do want him out, will it do any good to demand his sacking now? It isn’t as simple as saying “This football is rubbish, give him the boot”, for example. Who is it we are liable to bring in that would be better? Would it be in our best interests to keep our powder dry until the Summer if that is the way it is going, rather than flinging someone new at it with a squad they don’t know and with 10 or 11 games to go? It’s not apathy, it is trying to concern yourself with what is best for the club at that moment in time.

Perhaps they are mistaking our misgivings about the board for apathy.  Let’s take Paul Faulkner as an example. I was very critical from the outset of the Lerner tenure about the lack of football knowledge within the board and this has bitten us on the backside more than anything else since 2006. The fact that Sir Flounce-a-lot was allowed to haemorrhage so much money, the bizarre process we seemed to follow to find his replacement, the flip flopping between styles with each new appointment, the appalling way that the value of the first team squad has been managed. All are perfectly fair accusations to put to the board. But….

Paul Faulkner tends to take the brunt for most of the perceived ills here. It isn’t his fault that he had to learn on the job. It isn’t his fault that he was thrust into such a huge job with no background in the game. From a commercial income perspective he has done very well. He is excellent on the charitable and supporter engagement side of things. So should we really be demanding his head? Or should we be doing what we are in raising that we still think a wise football owl on the board to assist would make us stronger? It isn’t apathy, it is about being fair and wanting what is best for the club.

Let’s take the chairman. Is he bored with it all? Why won’t he talk to the fans and media? Shall we rewrite history and pretend Doug did nothing but good here? Why aren’t you lot out on the streets demanding he sell up? Because we are apathetic? Nope. Because he isn’t a bad bloke. Because there are far, far worse people out there who could own us. Look at the shower down the road for an example. You can be miffed that he isn’t around for the games any more. You can wish that he would throw money at it like he did when he first came in. But even in that short time the game has changed.

Back then he thought we could quickly buy our way into the Champions League. Then came the oil money at Man City and that withered on the vine pretty quickly. Whilst I will happily point out that he has approached a number of aspects of running the club in an incredibly naïve manner, what more can you realistically ask of him? The man has sunk in hundreds of millions of pounds.  We might have made a hash of how it was spent but you can’t lay too much of the blame for that at his door. He has done great things in the community, just look at the Acorns sponsorship for an example. So is it really fair to be protesting on the streets to demand his removal? Of course it isn’t.

Finally, what can you do to remove a man who owns the club outright? Demand he sell? Brilliant, but who is he flogging it to? What are their intentions? And, most importantly, where are they? I am not apathetic, I am actually fed up with reading people demanding that he sell up to someone who will invest. He has invested. Lot’s. I am sure that if the next oligarch or sheikh off the rank wanted to buy us he would cheerfully sell up. But you can’t just pluck someone with a few billion off the shelf and tell them to start frittering all that money away on us. So we have Randy for the foreseeable and there is still a “better the devil you know” element at play for a bloke who seems pretty decent, if misguided on the playing side.

It isn’t apathy. I don’t accept where we are and have been for the last few seasons. It isn’t good enough. But where we are currently is being met with caution and concern rather than wailing for change, any old change, like the Stripy lot do.

But to me this Summer is the absolute critical point for all of those mentioned above. If we don’t open the piggy bank then you can only conclude that the board are happy to bob along just maintaining our top flight status and taking the TV money. If they do, and the manager buys another raft of kids, punts and misfits, then it shows his failings in identifying the quality that will take us up the league.

I am not apathetic. I am just watching things very closely, and weighing what is best for the club, before I leap to any extreme of position.
 

[Stu]

There is something else which bothers me about asking Lerner to sell up; we owe him about £130m. That debt is due to be paid up by 2017, what happens if it isn't?

[Boz]

CheltenhamLion - An excellent balanced post.

[AV82EC]

I don't think apathy is quite right as an accusation on this anyway. I think a few things are at play.

First of all, I don't wish to ignite the debate again on this thread as to whether we are better off than this time last year. Something to think on however.

When our "winnable" games were looming last year there was all kinds of tub-thumping being done as to how we need to fill the ground and roar the boys to safety. I am not taking issue with that. It worked and some of the atmosphere we created at those games was tremendous. But to my mind it would suggest that the lack of such demands so far this year are not because we are apathetic but because, in general, the fan base is not as worried about relegation at this point in time as it was last season. That could change in the coming weeks of course but, as it stands, I am still of the impression that the majority of us don’t think we are on collision course for relegation.

Neither do I believe apathy is the reason we are not demanding that the manager and board are strung up from the nearest flagpole. We as fans can put up with an awful lot. Most of us understand that we have to take our medicine after years of over spending and mismanagement of the squad. It is in part for this reason that we aren’t creating massive waves. We are realists. We don’t want the club to end up in the financial hole that so many others have and can understand the notion that it was always going to be a hard time to go through to put the financial side of things in order.

We aren’t all screaming for the managers head at the minute. But because we are apathetic? I don’t think so. There are some that still have faith that he is the man for the job. There are some that will think he has been dealt a rough hand and want to give him more time to see what he can do with a few quid behind him after dealing with the worst of the excesses of previous regimes. And, even if you do want him out, will it do any good to demand his sacking now? It isn’t as simple as saying “This football is rubbish, give him the boot”, for example. Who is it we are liable to bring in that would be better? Would it be in our best interests to keep our powder dry until the Summer if that is the way it is going, rather than flinging someone new at it with a squad they don’t know and with 10 or 11 games to go? It’s not apathy, it is trying to concern yourself with what is best for the club at that moment in time.

Perhaps they are mistaking our misgivings about the board for apathy.  Let’s take Paul Faulkner as an example. I was very critical from the outset of the Lerner tenure about the lack of football knowledge within the board and this has bitten us on the backside more than anything else since 2006. The fact that Sir Flounce-a-lot was allowed to haemorrhage so much money, the bizarre process we seemed to follow to find his replacement, the flip flopping between styles with each new appointment, the appalling way that the value of the first team squad has been managed. All are perfectly fair accusations to put to the board. But….

Paul Faulkner tends to take the brunt for most of the perceived ills here. It isn’t his fault that he had to learn on the job. It isn’t his fault that he was thrust into such a huge job with no background in the game. From a commercial income perspective he has done very well. He is excellent on the charitable and supporter engagement side of things. So should we really be demanding his head? Or should we be doing what we are in raising that we still think a wise football owl on the board to assist would make us stronger? It isn’t apathy, it is about being fair and wanting what is best for the club.

Let’s take the chairman. Is he bored with it all? Why won’t he talk to the fans and media? Shall we rewrite history and pretend Doug did nothing but good here? Why aren’t you lot out on the streets demanding he sell up? Because we are apathetic? Nope. Because he isn’t a bad bloke. Because there are far, far worse people out there who could own us. Look at the shower down the road for an example. You can be miffed that he isn’t around for the games any more. You can wish that he would throw money at it like he did when he first came in. But even in that short time the game has changed.

Back then he thought we could quickly buy our way into the Champions League. Then came the oil money at Man City and that withered on the vine pretty quickly. Whilst I will happily point out that he has approached a number of aspects of running the club in an incredibly naïve manner, what more can you realistically ask of him? The man has sunk in hundreds of millions of pounds.  We might have made a hash of how it was spent but you can’t lay too much of the blame for that at his door. He has done great things in the community, just look at the Acorns sponsorship for an example. So is it really fair to be protesting on the streets to demand his removal? Of course it isn’t.

Finally, what can you do to remove a man who owns the club outright? Demand he sell? Brilliant, but who is he flogging it to? What are their intentions? And, most importantly, where are they? I am not apathetic, I am actually fed up with reading people demanding that he sell up to someone who will invest. He has invested. Lot’s. I am sure that if the next oligarch or sheikh off the rank wanted to buy us he would cheerfully sell up. But you can’t just pluck someone with a few billion off the shelf and tell them to start frittering all that money away on us. So we have Randy for the foreseeable and there is still a “better the devil you know” element at play for a bloke who seems pretty decent, if misguided on the playing side.

It isn’t apathy. I don’t accept where we are and have been for the last few seasons. It isn’t good enough. But where we are currently is being met with caution and concern rather than wailing for change, any old change, like the Stripy lot do.

But to me this Summer is the absolute critical point for all of those mentioned above. If we don’t open the piggy bank then you can only conclude that the board are happy to bob along just maintaining our top flight status and taking the TV money. If they do, and the manager buys another raft of kids, punts and misfits, then it shows his failings in identifying the quality that will take us up the league.

I am not apathetic. I am just watching things very closely, and weighing what is best for the club, before I leap to any extreme of position.

Post of the decade for me. Thanks for putting into words what I've been feeling since Sunday. I care absolutely about this club and the instant wailing and gnashing of teeth does help in getting it off your chest but poor decisions often result from anger and it's much better to take a
Considered and thoughtful approach as to what next.

The one thing that is needed at our football club though is visible signs of leadership. I know football is a different kind of business and I'm certainly not advocating a Whelan type gobshite but if we could have a Director of Football to provide some added nous to the boardroom and provide that leadership for us fans it would help enormously. It's as if there is a vacuum at the top and whilst we appreciate the times we go about our business quietly and without fuss there are times this club needs to be galvanized by a voice we can rally around and that for me is what's missing.

[rob_bridge]

If any club has been crying out for a DoF since MON walked out it is our club based on the lack of footballing knowldge at board level which has not bee addressed since Steve Stride left.

I know it is counter to the English football mentality. It would be someone who would have been able tp help in  the recruitment of the manager and / or coaches and whom the scouts report to directly.

If a head coach and deputies are recruited under the set up then there should be no issues from a hierachial point of view - no doubt some healthy debate and tension would exist on player's available / ability in terms of recruitment.

Chetlenham makes some valid and measured points for which we could all follow his lead.

However I am minded to disagree on the apathy. We have been brow beaten for four years - a complete lack of continuity in management style, appraoch to playing and throughput of coaching and playing employees.

The football leadership at the club is non existent.

Villa Park attendences have held up 36k is fantastic for the shite that has been served up most of the time.

There is now an air of resignation about relegation scraps / scrapes especailly following the false dawn of spring 2013.

However it often resembles a morgue such is the dearth of atmosphere. The apathy will I believe turn to anger should we lose on Sunday.

I would also disagree that whilst it is certainly not Mr Faulkner's fault he was promoted to CEO, he was promoted too far above his ability and too soon.

I certainly have zero faith in his, and the owner's, ability to find a suitable replacement for Mr Lambert as and when the issue arises.

[not3bad]

With all due respect to your religious beliefs, IMHO anyone who believes in God will believe anything an authority figure tells them....

IMHO opinion utter rubbish.

[not3bad]

I will share with you the email that I sent to the club yesterday lunchtime. I received a telephone call earlier this evening from Nicky Keys, acknowledging that the email had been received and read by Paul Faulkner.

**********************

 
 
To Aston Villa,

Mr Randy Lerner, Mr Paul Faulkner, Mr Paul Lambert. Head of ticket sales;

I have been going down Villa Park since the mid 1980's, all but a few of those seasons I have been a season ticket holder. I have a season ticket now- I sit in the North Upper, along with my brother and a friend. Around us, we have made many friends. We are all very passionate and loyal Villa fans- and sometimes we disagree about a few Villa related things, as is the norm. One thing though that we are all in an agreement with, is that the present state of the first team is nothing short of woeful.
 
The blame falls firmly at the feet of our manager. If Mr Lerner and Mr Faulkner feel that Paul Lambert is worthy of a new contract, then I will not be renewing my season ticket. The football he has provided at Villa Park is terrible- a rare few exceptions such as Sunderland last season, a lucky win against Man City and WBA just papers over the cracks.
 
We are in real danger of relegation, and that is a result of the manager’s inability. I fear that even if we do stay up this season, we will be forced to endure more of the same next year and the year after that if he is given a new contract. Flirting with relegation should not be what our club should be about. With Paul Lambert in charge, that is the best we can hope for.
 
If we stay up, then we will be very lucky to do so. If we get relegated, then the board (not the fans) deserve exactly that for not addressing the decline of the first team sooner.
 
On the pitch, we have made NO progress under Lambert. Just look at the results. Barr a few quality additions, most of the players he has signed are not of premiership class, nor never will be. I believe he’s been given the tools to do the job; he just can’t do the job very well. He has to go.
 
I would just like to make it clear that when it comes to matters off the field, I am extremely impressed with the club. I have had the pleasure to meet with Mr Faulkner on a few occasions, most recently at the Villa Supporters Trust meeting held last November. I do feel that since Mr Lerner took charge, the dialogue between the club and the fans has been enhanced. I especially appreciate the clubs stance on the safe standing debate.
 
But, the bottom line is this: Paul Lambert’s football is dross. His results are below acceptable. His squad are the worst since the relegation season of 1986. He does not deserve to still be in a job. He needs to be sacked.
 
I hope that somebody at the club will pass on my frustrations and concerns to the board, especially Mr Faulkner.
 
Regards and as always, Up the Villa!
 
Leighton.

*****************************

I agree with a lot of this but a few things I cannot agree on.
The board are equally to blame in regards this current mess. Asset stripping and no attempt to move the club forward on the pitch. Communication would be improved even more if Lerner actually attended a game or released the occasional statement. The media and everyone regard him as an absentee owner and that's exactly what he is.
In times of adversity it would be nice to see that the captains still on the ship and not left it sinking

Not really a letter I can agree with.  Lays all the blame at the manager's feet and seems to exonerate the board which has caused a lot of the conditions that the manager has to work with.

[cheltenhamlion]

I just want to know how he got all that on a bedsheet.

[not3bad]

MOMS article about the relaunch of Aston Villa Supporters Trust:

http://www.myoldmansaid.com/aston-villa-supporters-trust-relaunch-stand/

[Steve kirk]

I don't think apathy is quite right as an accusation on this anyway. I think a few things are at play.

First of all, I don't wish to ignite the debate again on this thread as to whether we are better off than this time last year. Something to think on however.

When our "winnable" games were looming last year there was all kinds of tub-thumping being done as to how we need to fill the ground and roar the boys to safety. I am not taking issue with that. It worked and some of the atmosphere we created at those games was tremendous. But to my mind it would suggest that the lack of such demands so far this year are not because we are apathetic but because, in general, the fan base is not as worried about relegation at this point in time as it was last season. That could change in the coming weeks of course but, as it stands, I am still of the impression that the majority of us don’t think we are on collision course for relegation.

Neither do I believe apathy is the reason we are not demanding that the manager and board are strung up from the nearest flagpole. We as fans can put up with an awful lot. Most of us understand that we have to take our medicine after years of over spending and mismanagement of the squad. It is in part for this reason that we aren’t creating massive waves. We are realists. We don’t want the club to end up in the financial hole that so many others have and can understand the notion that it was always going to be a hard time to go through to put the financial side of things in order.

We aren’t all screaming for the managers head at the minute. But because we are apathetic? I don’t think so. There are some that still have faith that he is the man for the job. There are some that will think he has been dealt a rough hand and want to give him more time to see what he can do with a few quid behind him after dealing with the worst of the excesses of previous regimes. And, even if you do want him out, will it do any good to demand his sacking now? It isn’t as simple as saying “This football is rubbish, give him the boot”, for example. Who is it we are liable to bring in that would be better? Would it be in our best interests to keep our powder dry until the Summer if that is the way it is going, rather than flinging someone new at it with a squad they don’t know and with 10 or 11 games to go? It’s not apathy, it is trying to concern yourself with what is best for the club at that moment in time.

Perhaps they are mistaking our misgivings about the board for apathy.  Let’s take Paul Faulkner as an example. I was very critical from the outset of the Lerner tenure about the lack of football knowledge within the board and this has bitten us on the backside more than anything else since 2006. The fact that Sir Flounce-a-lot was allowed to haemorrhage so much money, the bizarre process we seemed to follow to find his replacement, the flip flopping between styles with each new appointment, the appalling way that the value of the first team squad has been managed. All are perfectly fair accusations to put to the board. But….

Paul Faulkner tends to take the brunt for most of the perceived ills here. It isn’t his fault that he had to learn on the job. It isn’t his fault that he was thrust into such a huge job with no background in the game. From a commercial income perspective he has done very well. He is excellent on the charitable and supporter engagement side of things. So should we really be demanding his head? Or should we be doing what we are in raising that we still think a wise football owl on the board to assist would make us stronger? It isn’t apathy, it is about being fair and wanting what is best for the club.

Let’s take the chairman. Is he bored with it all? Why won’t he talk to the fans and media? Shall we rewrite history and pretend Doug did nothing but good here? Why aren’t you lot out on the streets demanding he sell up? Because we are apathetic? Nope. Because he isn’t a bad bloke. Because there are far, far worse people out there who could own us. Look at the shower down the road for an example. You can be miffed that he isn’t around for the games any more. You can wish that he would throw money at it like he did when he first came in. But even in that short time the game has changed.

Back then he thought we could quickly buy our way into the Champions League. Then came the oil money at Man City and that withered on the vine pretty quickly. Whilst I will happily point out that he has approached a number of aspects of running the club in an incredibly naïve manner, what more can you realistically ask of him? The man has sunk in hundreds of millions of pounds.  We might have made a hash of how it was spent but you can’t lay too much of the blame for that at his door. He has done great things in the community, just look at the Acorns sponsorship for an example. So is it really fair to be protesting on the streets to demand his removal? Of course it isn’t.

Finally, what can you do to remove a man who owns the club outright? Demand he sell? Brilliant, but who is he flogging it to? What are their intentions? And, most importantly, where are they? I am not apathetic, I am actually fed up with reading people demanding that he sell up to someone who will invest. He has invested. Lot’s. I am sure that if the next oligarch or sheikh off the rank wanted to buy us he would cheerfully sell up. But you can’t just pluck someone with a few billion off the shelf and tell them to start frittering all that money away on us. So we have Randy for the foreseeable and there is still a “better the devil you know” element at play for a bloke who seems pretty decent, if misguided on the playing side.

It isn’t apathy. I don’t accept where we are and have been for the last few seasons. It isn’t good enough. But where we are currently is being met with caution and concern rather than wailing for change, any old change, like the Stripy lot do.

But to me this Summer is the absolute critical point for all of those mentioned above. If we don’t open the piggy bank then you can only conclude that the board are happy to bob along just maintaining our top flight status and taking the TV money. If they do, and the manager buys another raft of kids, punts and misfits, then it shows his failings in identifying the quality that will take us up the league.

I am not apathetic. I am just watching things very closely, and weighing what is best for the club, before I leap to any extreme of position.
 

What a great post, takes some time and thought to put something like that together so well done, also probably more words typed in this one post than all my 400 plus put together

[Mazrim]

Really good posts on this thread but three points I'd raise.

1: I have to disagree and say that apathy is a big factor with Villa fans at the moment. As a cliff face is worn away by the tide year after year, so we are worn down by wave upon wave of mediocrity. You can't be angry and militant all the time and eventually you just find something else to do with your precious time. I hate moaning, and it seems it's all I feel obliged to do regarding Villa at the moment, therefore I avoid posting as much as I used to because I don't want to subject others to the kind of posts I try to avoid, however justified. I just get very little joy out of the club I love with all my heart lately.

2: The board are absolutely responsible for our malaise. Yes, in many ways we do things right and I don't question Randy's integrity or intentions for a second. I do however question his judgement. We have not had a proper football based apparatus since he arrived. Thus money has been squandered, we've stumbled from one disastrous managerial regime to another with little thought on consistency and there are people way out of their depth in positions they should not be in. Good businessmen, but utterly clueless regarding the game. That is entirely Randy's fault. There are lots of good things to say about him but the fundamental issues are a sorry tale. We're only going backwards. It is just not good enough and Villa fans will put up with more than fans of clubs half our size would. I think they know that, the board, that's why they feel more comfortable than they should.

3: We don't owe Randy a penny. I often hear how we owe Randy a 9 figure sum. How is this so? Any debts accrued against the club are his own doing and a symptom of the years of mismanagement, lack of proper planning, lack of consistently and execution. Financially, he is Aston Villa. If he was to sell and took a loss, it's his doing and his subordinate's. Likewise, it's his prerogative to recoup that money if he wishes. But as he does so, he risks the stability and top flight status of the biggest club in 100 miles in any direction.

Never forget what a powerhouse this club was and should be, then look at the state we're in now. Not strengthening when it is essential, loaning a Wigan sub when we need a top playmaker (at the very least), recruiting players with very little calibre because they're cheap. It's like some nightmare where we're confirming to the mindless narrative clueless pundits and media hacks have had of us for ages.

Randy is a good man with a good heart and he wants what is best for Villa. He just has no idea how to go about that or employ the people to achieve it. For that reason and that reason alone I hope he sells up and takes any financial hit on the chin. He said he'd move on if he couldn't do the job. Well after four years of struggle, what other conclusion can be drawn? By all means, be a part of the club, have a role of some sort.
As far as I'm concerned he tried and will always be welcome. But it's time to hand over that "custodianship".

[Phil from the upper holte]

I also agree that the board are as culpable as Lambert and he has NOT been given the resourcess at all. If he had then he wouldn't have had to buy all the shit he has, it's the wages that causes the issues