CanadaSaint

Well, if it is MLSE they've got pots of money, thanks (as Ottawa said) to owning the Toronto Maple Laughs who sell out every game but haven't won anything since 1967. In terms of fan affection, the Leafs are to Canadian hockey what Man United are to English football. Much as I'd like to see that kind of well-heeled ownership, I'm struggling with the whole notion that we would be related to the Leafs. What say you, Ottawa?

No kidding. Although that would still be a step up from losing games and losing money. Good thinking, Batman. If you feel comfortable you could PM me and I'll see if the name rings a bell (which could make him a telecom, I guess!).

Do you have a name for him?

The most likely telecom would be Rogers, who also have radio, television and publishing interests, and own the (baseball) Toronto Blue Jays. In some ways they are a better bet than Jim Balsillie or MLSE but they are a public company with the vast majority of their activities within Canada, so this would be quite a departure for them. In addition, their founder and chief visionary passed away not too long ago and they are still adjusting to life without him.

He's certainly got tons of dough - he and a buddy invented the Blackberry and run Research In Motion, which manufactures them. However, he's a hockey man through and through, and he's got more than enough on his plate trying to buy and move the Phoenix Coyotes. As Offside suggested, it's more likely to be Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment but I'd be surprised if they would start this low when they could afford to buy something a lot closer to - or in - the Prem. I'm sceptical about this supposed potential Canadian buyer but you never know, especially as MLSE's head honchos have been to SMS.

itk?

I don't know why people are getting so excited at the "Lucy Pinder's gash being on display at SOS". We've seen plenty of them on the pitch over the last few seasons.

Call me an optimist (which I am), Dave, but I'm not too concerned just now about a creditor pulling the plug. Okay, so they're not getting their money yet, but the way to make sure they don't get the money at all is to pull the plug. What they probably would receive, though, is a sh*t-kicking in the public arena. The only real exception to this is football-related debt and possibly the government stuff, which could bring a whole new barrel of crap down on us. I'm much more concerned that we have new owners who understand the importance of success on the pitch - not just development success off it, and that they cut themselves a deal that rids us of as much of the cost millstone (i.e. stadium debt) as possible. That leaves them with less pressure and more money to spend on the squad and management. We're playing for a longer term future here, so I'm quite content to wait - although just as anxious and frustrated as everyone else.

If he was even in the room they have a problem.

Please tell me you're kidding. How on earth could they allow someone in a clear conflict of interest to sit on that panel? That alone would add a lot of substance to any legal challenge.

Some of us appear to have completed the journey from beggars to choosers in record time.

I think he's been embalmed but I'm not sure he's dead yet, bless his cotton socks. Mind you, owning Saints could change all that in a hurry.

It caught my attention when Oakley said "I think players like Jason Euell have been in and out of the team because of wages and things like that". This suggests that some of the older heads we desperately needed as things started to unravel in mid season were kept out of the team because the club didn't want to pay appearance money or - god forbid - a win bonus. Players like Euell were going to get their base wages anyway, so those decisions had to be down to the extra money items. If so, that must surely have come from Rupert. Who else? It would be yet another example of interference in team affairs and false economies from the king of interference and false economies. It makes me want to scream.

Sooner or later I suspect that there will be a full forensic audit. I'm not sure who would commission it but somebody probably will. Perhaps one of the investigative media types, maybe the new owners (if they haven't waived their rights and if they can be bothered), possibly even the FL. We are one of the highest profile examples - with more to come, sadly - of what can happen in a very short period in modern football. When the dust settles on the season, someone will go poking around. Hopefully.

Sounds good, Dave. I'll wait with baited breasts!

I'm so glad that they have such a test. How on earth could anyone have worried that Rupert would have squeezed his sorry arse back into the club? The only thing that he's "fit and proper" for would require a large elephant and an even larger jar of vaseline.

I suspect that LC and LM are desperately reaching out to the only organizations (in their knowledge) who seem to represent blocks of fans. They don't understand all the politics, personal jealousies and relationships. What is killing us right now is that we are being divided by our differences before we ever unite around our similarities. Just read through this thread again! It's really sad. Never has there been a greater need for one group to step up on behalf of the fans generally. Not to buy the club or grab a seat or two on a board of directors, but to act as a platform for whatever needs to be done to save the club. As far as I can see that's what Derry and Mark are trying to achieve here, so I'd urge them to keep on going and try to take it to the next level. And we need to support them however we can. Berkhamsted Saint's idea to pull those other groups into the equation is a really good start.

Does the League have the right to ratify new owners? If so, Rupert has no chance after splattering egg all over their faces. But I don't think he has a chance anyway.

The league has to err on the side of caution - especially if we get enough points to stay up. Can you imagine the potential damages if they deduct the points and force us down? And how screwed up things would be if part of the legal remedy was reinstatement? It doesn't bear thinking about, and the league has to know it.

I don't think that's a rubbish translation. The article reads like his post-game press conferences - and probably his team talks - sounded. Pretty much incomprehensible. Anyone remember Stanley Unwin? Anyway, good luck to JP.

Dave, did you get my PM?

I'm torn. I'm almost wanting Forest to be clear of trouble, with nothing to play for, by the time we go there. Too many of our players don't know how to handle the kind of pressure that goes with a final "us or them" game. Today's Norwich win was a real barsteward.

Any chance of the protagonists parking the bickering? All of us are pretty depressed right now and it doesn't help much to read that crap. Thank you.

It's like the stock market. We need to hit rock bottom before things start to improve. Today we hit rock bottom. Hopefully.

I agree, although (granted) I'm looking for a silver lining here. This result will drive the value of the Club down even further, weaken the position of the creditors and make us cheaper to buy. The people buying us will be doing it NOT for what we are but what we're capable of being.