Count ourselves lucky

[suewhistle]

Sorry if this has been posted, but I only just noticed this Guardian blog about Ken Bates and Leeds. A bit lengthy but fascinating all the dodgy dealings there are in football and it underlines how it could have been worse for us:

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/david-conn-inside-sport-blog/2009/jul/10/ken-bates-libel-trial-defeat-leeds-united-full-story

[jam]

Have you seen their ticket prices?

 

Ouch.

[rallyboy]

didn't follow every legal detail but got the idea!

An interesting read, one might observe that he makes Ridsdale look like a shrewd character who made a decent attempt at running the club.

 

And presumably just as Leeds are trying to rebuild their finances they will be saddled with an additional £1.5 million legal bill that could have been easily avoided.

 

I'm not sure that Leeds have hit rock bottom yet, and the longer time goes on the less their glorious history will count when it comes to bringing in funding.

No one will do that under Mr Bates' tenure, and if he keeps on doing business in his distinctive style, he might one day meet his match - swimming with sharks ain't a hobby for the faint-hearted.

 

When people say there are no longer any characters in the game, they only need to look in some of the boardrooms, and I don't mean 'characters' in an affectionate nostalgic way, more the Lock Stock style.

[mcjwills]

Have you seen their ticket prices?

 

Ouch.

 

£646 for a season ticket, f*ck me didn't realise they were still challenging for the Champions League.

[chi saint]

Whilst I didn't understand every aspect of the article, I didn't need to.

 

Suffice to say whilst Rupes was an idiot and no doubt has been instrumental in dragging this great club of ours to where it currently is, ask me to choose between RL and Bates and i'd go for RL every time.

 

Bates I wouldn't trust as far as I could throw him, he leaves discord and devastation in his wake. No one who has dealt with him ends up having a good word to say about him.

 

He makes RL look naive.

[wightman35]

Whilst I didn't understand every aspect of the article, I didn't need to.

 

Suffice to say whilst Rupes was an idiot and no doubt has been instrumental in dragging this great club of ours to where it currently is, ask me to choose between RL and Bates and i'd go for RL every time.

 

Bates I wouldn't trust as far as I could throw him, he leaves discord and devastation in his wake. No one who has dealt with him ends up having a good word to say about him.

 

He makes RL look naive.

 

Two relegations in five years...................?

Not too difficult then.:confused:

[suewhistle]

I'd actually agree with chi saint about RL and KB, and that's saying something.

 

I'll be in that neck of the woods soon for me holidays. I'm a former member of the Emsworth and Bosham Saints Fan Federation: I elected myself unopposed.:-)

[swannymere]

Bates is scum, i'll happily post my copy of Broken Dreams to anybody who wants it FOC (provided i can find it!) it included 2 chapters on Bates and the time he had to be rescued by our armed forces in the Caribbean due to his dodgy dealing upsetting the locals. If Leeds ever manage to get back to the Premiership he would fail the 'fit and proper' tests in an instant.