Chris Heck - President of Business Operations

[pauliewalnuts]

I can't believe you left us in the lurch like that. I suppose you went to Middlesbrough to win trophies. And then won a trophy.

Ha ha, excellent.

[pauliewalnuts]

Yes, it is a true story.

When I qualified as a physio aged 21, I started 2 jobs on the same day - one full-time in the NHS and one at Villa.

Despite me being the only real physio at the club with actual medical qualifications, I was put with the under 9s based on how young I looked (I got asked for ID last week at the age of 47 so that gives you an idea).

I think I got £50 a match (on a sunday) and £30 for each of 2 training sessions (let's say monday and thursday - I can't remember).

I worked my way up all the age groups, and there was a point where all Premier League Academies needed a named Chartered Physiotherapist, so although I wasn't told that was the reason, Jim Walker suggested I could help him out full-time as his number 2.  Now, I was in all day, covering training sessions and treatment sessions  from 1st team down in the morning (£30) and afternoon (£30) and evening (£30)  in a typical week, I could do say a reserve game, an U21 game, and an u14s game (3 x £50) - so that was like £2000 a month which I was pretty chuffed with back in the late 90s in my early 20s.

Anyway, one day I'm woken up early on a sunday by a phonecall from Jim Walker telling me "the chairman's been looking at the wages and you've been earning too much and he's deducted £1000 from your wages but he wants to offer you a full-time contract.

Great, I thought until I went in the next day and  learned the offer was for £7k a year.

If I carry on the story from there, it's going to paint other people in a bad light, so I ended up going to another Club, THE END.

Ha ha, excellent story, and what a twat Ellis was.

[Mister E]

Doug, on the cheap, never...

I once got some compeed plasters out of the cupboard to use on someone, I think it might have been Darren Byfield. Jim Walker nearly had a heart attack and said don’t use those! I said why not? He said, they’re too expensive, the chairman will go spare! I laughed for a bit and proceeded to use them, until I realised
 that he wasn’t joking.

I was acquainted with a mate of D'OL and he used to tell me how 'forensic' Doug was about expenses. Pathetic and small-minded. No wonder we lurched through the Premier League's golden years being left behind by other clubs who grasped the obvious money-tree opportunities.

[London Villan]

Always a focus on the penny pinching and quick earner.

Think red and brown Holte End to flogging random
kits and cheap managers.

[dalians umbrella]

Yes, it is a true story.

When I qualified as a physio aged 21, I started 2 jobs on the same day - one full-time in the NHS and one at Villa.

Despite me being the only real physio at the club with actual medical qualifications, I was put with the under 9s based on how young I looked (I got asked for ID last week at the age of 47 so that gives you an idea).

I think I got £50 a match (on a sunday) and £30 for each of 2 training sessions (let's say monday and thursday - I can't remember).

I worked my way up all the age groups, and there was a point where all Premier League Academies needed a named Chartered Physiotherapist, so although I wasn't told that was the reason, Jim Walker suggested I could help him out full-time as his number 2.  Now, I was in all day, covering training sessions and treatment sessions  from 1st team down in the morning (£30) and afternoon (£30) and evening (£30)  in a typical week, I could do say a reserve game, an U21 game, and an u14s game (3 x £50) - so that was like £2000 a month which I was pretty chuffed with back in the late 90s in my early 20s.

Anyway, one day I'm woken up early on a sunday by a phonecall from Jim Walker telling me "the chairman's been looking at the wages and you've been earning too much and he's deducted £1000 from your wages but he wants to offer you a full-time contract.

Great, I thought until I went in the next day and  learned the offer was for £7k a year.

If I carry on the story from there, it's going to paint other people in a bad light, so I ended up going to another Club, THE END.

Ha ha, excellent story, and what a twat Ellis was.

Two other Doug stories.

I was once a physio for one of our reserve games, where a lot of the youth team players were elevated to the reserves. I can’t remember the reason why.  Doug came into the dressing room afterwards to congratulate all the young players. He shook my hand and asked me if I enjoyed playing, not having a clue who I was. At the same time, Kevin McDonald was giving the wanker sign behind his back.

Back in the 60s, my mum worked for one of Doug’s travel agencies, and her dad passed away. Her widowed mum was Greek. I would like to say that Doug completely paid for my mum and her family to visit their relatives in Greece, but he did it at cost, which is about as good as you were going to get from someone as tight as Doug I guess. 

So just for that last one alone, I still can’t call him a twat. And even in the first one, he was trying to be nice. But he can still fuck off for taking a grand off me.

[dalians umbrella]

My last and  funniest Doug story was told  to be by Gary Megson as told to him by John Gregory.

Gregory was having a meeting with Doug, at the end of which Doug decided they needed to book a followup and put the initials of everyone required in his diary.

"JG - John GORDON (apparently he kept calling him that), SS - Steve Stride and Me".

At the next meeting, Doug says "so let's see if we have everyone - JG, that's you, John Gordon, SS - that's you - Steve Stride but ME, ME - who is ME?"

Gregory says "that's me chairman".

Doug says "No, no - you're JG - John Gordon!".

 

[pauliewalnuts]

My last and  funniest Doug story was told  to be by Gary Megson as told to him by John Gregory.

Gregory was having a meeting with Doug, at the end of which Doug decided they needed to book a followup and put the initials of everyone required in his diary.

"JG - John GORDON (apparently he kept calling him that), SS - Steve Stride and Me".

At the next meeting, Doug says "so let's see if we have everyone - JG, that's you, John Gordon, SS - that's you - Steve Stride but ME, ME - who is ME?"

Gregory says "that's me chairman".

Doug says "No, no - you're JG - John Gordon!".

 

Funnily enough, i just watched this interview with Gregory, very good and worth a watch, esp when he talks about becoming Villa manager.

[SaddVillan]

Herbert knew the price of everything and the value of nothing.

A cliche I know, but true nonetheless.

[Risso]

Watched it just and it had an overwhelming smell of bullshit.

Why is it bullshit? Are the things he said not true? There are loads of fans who envy what we have at Villa Park. It’s not perfect and some things need to improve. We all know that and I imagine he does too. But most fans would say that about their clubs and ground.

I don’t understand this need by some to hate everything Heck says or does. He’s made mistakes, or things he could have done better. But commercially we are absolutely miles better off than when he started.

He’s a twat. Lots of vastly overpriced hospitality that has huge swathes unsold. Meanwhile, everything else is just as shit as before.

[olaftab]

He’s a twat. Lots of vastly overpriced hospitality that has huge swathes unsold. Meanwhile, everything else is just as shit as before.

That's a good summarised comment on Heck's closed season endeavours.

[danno]

Arriva run a bus (the AV1) to the ground on Sat/Sun league games from Tamworth. It's seven quid return and is normally fairly full. The bus driver gets a complimentary ticket often in the north stand lower. This season the service almost didn't operate because the club told Arriva that from this season they wouldn't give the driver a complimentary ticket. The bus driver not fancying two hours sat in a car park basically told Arriva he wasn't interested in driving the route anymore, and after a few days the club reconsidered.


I'm sure Heck has much bigger things to concern himself with, but I'd venture that there's probably other examples of the club being as petty as the above.

[Pat Mustard]

Watched it just and it had an overwhelming smell of bullshit.

Why is it bullshit? Are the things he said not true? There are loads of fans who envy what we have at Villa Park. It’s not perfect and some things need to improve. We all know that and I imagine he does too. But most fans would say that about their clubs and ground.

I don’t understand this need by some to hate everything Heck says or does. He’s made mistakes, or things he could have done better. But commercially we are absolutely miles better off than when he started.

He’s a twat. Lots of vastly overpriced hospitality that has huge swathes unsold. Meanwhile, everything else is just as shit as before.

Agreed, other than I’d say yesterday things were much, much worse than they’ve ever been before.

[littleoldme]

Chris DE Heck then.

[olaftab]

Arriva run a bus (the AV1) to the ground on Sat/Sun league games from Tamworth. It's seven quid return and is normally fairly full. The bus driver gets a complimentary ticket often in the north stand lower. This season the service almost didn't operate because the club told Arriva that from this season they wouldn't give the driver a complimentary ticket. The bus driver not fancying two hours sat in a car park basically told Arriva he wasn't interested in driving the route anymore, and after a few days the club reconsidered.

I'm sure Heck has much bigger things to concern himself with, but I'd venture that there's probably other examples of the club being as petty as the above.

But as the saying goes you take care of the little things and the big things take care of themselves.

[SaddVillan]

Heck's primary mission is to increase revenues.

He's done some excellent work on sponsorships - increasing what we get via Adidas and Betano compared to Castore and BK8.

That doesn't particularly affect the average fan.

What does is ticketing systems, ticket prices, and carving out space (where it doesn't really exist) to accommodate "customers" who are prepared to pay more for "premium seats".

I don't think he's fully recognised the resentment that has caused and giving happy chappy interviews to prAVda TV implying that everything in the garden is fine and dandy is just taking the piss.

He needs to front up and give some honest answers and explanations to what's been done, or else he'll become the new HDE.