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Leon Crouch


RobM

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I have openly voiced my thoughts on Leon Crouch numerous times in the past and have also expressed concern about him being Chairmen of SFC. I've also always tried to keep an open mind and avoid getting dragged into the blame game that is so popular amongst fans.

 

But I have to say we owe Leon a huge Thank You for keeping our club afloat during this difficult time. Love him or hate him, he has continued to put his own cash into the club to fund players wages while we search for a buyer, with little hope of ever seeing that cash again.

 

I fear that without this, our hopes of securing a future for the club would look even worse than they do now. Players and staff alike would have walked by now.

 

So just as we would all criticise him for making mistakes, it's only fair we say thanks for his selfless gesture.

 

Personally, while I don't want to see Leon as the Chairmen of this club, I would be very happy to see him secure a place on the board once we have found new owners. We need people like Leon on the board, somebody who obviously cares and wants to help.

 

Thanks Leon :)

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Sorry ,but as grateful as i am I think he should not have a place at the clubs board .He is part of the old guard and all that has gone on.I dont think he would be able to work as part of a team as he would rightly wish to run things his way.A powerful personality becomes too overpowering IMO

I expect there strings attatched to his loan ie guarentees.

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Sorry ,but as grateful as i am I think he should not have a place at the clubs board .He is part of the old guard and all that has gone on.I dont think he would be able to work as part of a team as he would rightly wish to run things his way.A powerful personality becomes too overpowering IMO

I expect there strings attatched to his loan ie guarentees.

A powerfull personality isn't half as overpowering as an powerfull ego, ring any bells?

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Sorry ,but as grateful as i am I think he should not have a place at the clubs board .He is part of the old guard and all that has gone on.I dont think he would be able to work as part of a team as he would rightly wish to run things his way.A powerful personality becomes too overpowering IMO

I expect there strings attatched to his loan ie guarentees.

 

While I agree Nick, and while I've never been Leons biggest fan this is an absoultely fantastic gesture and I for one am extremely greatful.

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Whilst there is no doubt that he derserves credit for this noble thing and has shown that he really does care about the club, despite probably getting a post kicking there are a couple of points:

 

1. He has my respect for these doantions/loans

2. Everyone who has donated has my respect and there are those on low incomes who have gifted a high percentage of their limited income that are equally deserving.

3. Does this gift absolve the mistakes made in the past? Because they did contibute to the over spend and our current stuation so seat on the board?

 

4. OK the most cynical question: If he is involved in one of the consortia, then its in his own interests to keep the club alive in this way whilst they try and find the cash rather than allowing Fry to sell components - again a good thing alround, but perhaps tehre is more to it than a simple gift or loan?

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perhaps there is more to it than a simple gift or loan?

 

Quite probably, but I believe the thread was raised with the primary intention of thanking him for this gesture in isolation to all the other gubbins and politics. Difficult to separate the two, I know, but worth a shot...even on the SWF :)

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A powerfull personality isn't half as overpowering as an powerfull ego, ring any bells?

 

He clearly has one of those as well.

 

If he's putting his hand in his pocket to pay wages, well great, thanks. If he's loaning it until new owners come in, ummm, yeah, kinda sorta ta-ish, and if he's planning on being on the board, eek, keep the gobsh1te away from control of the club, as far as I'm concerned.

 

No doubt he's a fan, shame he's not got the clout to do something about the situation properly nor the nous to stop spouting transparently fan-pandering guff.

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Quite probably, but I believe the thread was raised with the primary intention of thanking him for this gesture in isolation to all the other gubbins and politics. Difficult to separate the two, I know, but worth a shot...even on the SWF :)

 

Fair enough, but some of the love fest stuff is a bit...well you know... brown nosing a bit surely? ;-)

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Fair enough' date=' but some of the love fest stuff is a bit...well you know... brown nosing a bit surely? ;-)[/quote']

 

You love it though... go on... admit it ;)

 

No brown nosing at all though. I don't know the guy and will probably never meet him, so I've no interest in being best friends forever with Mr.Crouch.

 

I just think that we are all very quick to slam people for their wrong doings (quite rightly sometimes), so it's only fair we say fair play and thanks when somebody does something like this.

 

If he is involved in a consortium of some type, there is still no guarantee of ever seeing this money again as he could easily lose out to a bigger and better buyer.

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You love it though... go on... admit it ;)

 

No brown nosing at all though. I don't know the guy and will probably never meet him, so I've no interest in being best friends forever with Mr.Crouch.

 

I just think that we are all very quick to slam people for their wrong doings (quite rightly sometimes), so it's only fair we say fair play and thanks when somebody does something like this.

 

If he is involved in a consortium of some type, there is still no guarantee of ever seeing this money again as he could easily lose out to a bigger and better buyer.

 

Fair enough Rob, thats perfectly reasonable - its just we have had somany false dawns and promises, I think many wanted an 'all new' start as a the way forward. If CRouch in his donations has enable that he will always be fondly remembered and its fine with me that he is remembered fro the good rather than mistakes of the past which we ALL have...

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I really cannot believe the negativity attached to the response to Mr Crouch's loans.

 

Just remember that if the other major shareholders had either wanted or been able to they could have at any time either arranged a new share issue or put in debenture loans which would have secured both their investments and S.F.C.

 

The fact that didn't really suggests that most of them had gone past the point of caring what happened to Saints and were prepared to sacrifice their investments.

 

Of course Lowe still came out on top as he has milked such a massive amount from salary, fees and payoffs while he had the power to .

 

I for one would be perfectly happy to see Crouch as Chair as he has shown more committment than anybody else.

 

Whether he is the best person is a different matter but -"He who pays the piper calls the tune."

 

NB I have absolutely no connection with any of the persons involved, and if I met any of them it was a long long time ago, when we were very young.

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He clearly has one of those as well.

 

If he's putting his hand in his pocket to pay wages, well great, thanks. If he's loaning it until new owners come in, ummm, yeah, kinda sorta ta-ish, and if he's planning on being on the board, eek, keep the gobsh1te away from control of the club, as far as I'm concerned.

 

No doubt he's a fan, shame he's not got the clout to do something about the situation properly nor the nous to stop spouting transparently fan-pandering guff.

 

 

I cannot believe the hyprocrisy and deluded idiocy of your post. Sorry to rant but have you not realised the club as we know it is about to cease to exist. IT IS HANGING ON BY THE SKIN OF ITS TEETH! Just because Leon happens to have enough money to keep the club afloat in its hour of need does not entitle ANYONE to expect him to have the funds to buy the club outright! Its outrageous to expect anything of the man, but given that he is the only ex-major shareholder doing something positive, I suggest that you take your foot out of your mouth and start hoping that his generosity will actually help save the club.

 

I add my personal thanks to Leon for all he is doing AND all his support to the club over the years. He has more of a claim to SFC than any other shareholder I know of - he does more than talk the talk...the man walks the walk too.

Edited by Saint Fan CaM
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What did he do?

 

Anybody care to answer Deano's question with some facts and perhaps address the points made by NickH and Frank?

 

If he has paid his own money to cover wages I'm not sure I understand why he did not arrange to negotiate a salary reduction of some of the highest earners. If he didn't isn't he throwing good money after bad? Does this show him to be generous or foolish?

 

Also, whilst he may risk losing all the money he has contributed as some suggest on this thread that doesn't sound to me like a donation in the purest sense of the word.

 

Is it a loan, interest bearing or otherwise? Is it a guarantee for a future position at the club? Does he have a vested interest in the Pinnacle bid and perhaps willing to risk the up front fees? Is it a gesture of simple good will or a donation borne out of guilt?

 

His cash contribution whatever is of course very welcome and comes with thanks and gratitude from all fans but I'll reserve my full praise until the answers to some pertinent questions have been given and remain at this moment unconvinced he is the Mother Teresa of SFC.

 

In any event give Crouch a role or a voice within the club in the future and IMO any forward thinking owner would have regressed 5 years before they've even started.

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I cannot believe the hyprocrisy and deluded idiocy of your post. Sorry to rant but have you not realised the club as we know it is about to cease to exist. IT IS HANGING ON BY THE SKIN OF ITS TEETH! Just because Leon happens to have enough money to keep the club afloat in its hour of need does not entitle ANYONE to expect him to have the funds to buy the club outright! Its outrageous to expect anything of the man, but given that he is the only ex-major shareholder doing something positive, I suggest that you take your foot out of your mouth and start hoping that his generosity will actually help save the club.

 

I add my personal thanks to Leon for all he is doing AND all his support to the club over the years. He has more of a claim to SFC than any other shareholder I know of - he does more than talk the talk...the man walks the walk too.

 

With respect there was little evidence of this in his short tenure as Chairman and if he talks the talk can we point to his ability to be interviewed under pressure in particular his interview on R5L regarding the set up of SLHplc / points deduction and local radio when he was asked about his offer to inject £2m prior to administration.

 

People are talking on this thread about his 'loans' and 'donations' and these terms obviously have different connatations. I would repeat Deano's question what exactly has he done, why has he done it (risks) and under what terms?

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In any event give Crouch a role or a voice within the club in the future and IMO any forward thinking owner would have regressed 5 years before they've even started.

 

 

And yet there are some on here saying they would accept Lowe back if he could save SFC. Look for the last time, the club is about to cease to exist...gone...capput....no team....no Saturdays....no ritual beer in pub....etc....etc. We're past recriminations. Why the inquest into the motives behind Leon keeping the club afloat? I know the guy and I am confident that the primary driver behind his gesture is just to keep SFC alive because he loves the club, his football experience at SMS, the staff at SMS. I also would hazard a guess that there are no guarantees to him in terms of any connection to a future board or any other reason - who would be able to give assurances?! Not Fry.

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[/b]

 

With respect there was little evidence of this in his short tenure as Chairman and if he talks the talk can we point to his ability to be interviewed under pressure in particular his interview on R5L regarding the set up of SLHplc / points deduction and local radio when he was asked about his offer to inject £2m prior to administration.

 

People are talking on this thread about his 'loans' and 'donations' and these terms obviously have different connatations. I would repeat Deano's question what exactly has he done, why has he done it (risks) and under what terms?

 

 

So if he has put money in, are you saying you would rather he had not ?

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[/b]

 

With respect there was little evidence of this in his short tenure as Chairman and if he talks the talk can we point to his ability to be interviewed under pressure in particular his interview on R5L regarding the set up of SLHplc / points deduction and local radio when he was asked about his offer to inject £2m prior to administration.

 

People are talking on this thread about his 'loans' and 'donations' and these terms obviously have different connatations. I would repeat Deano's question what exactly has he done, why has he done it (risks) and under what terms?

 

I think you need to take a reality pill...seriously. I don't know what involvement you have in connection to the club, but I cannot believe you have any grasp or indeed care for how close we are to losing the club. Are you prepared to throw your personal money into the potential lost cause that is SFC? If not, then reel it in, cool down and take the long view. I wonder if you would have given Mr Corbett the same grief all those years back when he saved the club from meltdown? Answer honestly.

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This thread is to thank Crouch for what he is doing at the moment and should remain just that imo, many threads have descending into the politics of who did what and when but right now we have a man, despite his losses, putting up MORE money in order the man in control of our clubs destiny has MORE time to find a buyer, I am grateful, if it is structured as a loan, good, interest is something he should be entitled to, is it secured ? for his sake I hope so, is there an ulterior motive i.e involvement in any new set up ? a set up may not exsist without him so there is an entitlement there, again imo

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He clearly has one of those as well.

 

If he's putting his hand in his pocket to pay wages, well great, thanks. If he's loaning it until new owners come in, ummm, yeah, kinda sorta ta-ish, and if he's planning on being on the board, eek, keep the gobsh1te away from control of the club, as far as I'm concerned.

 

No doubt he's a fan, shame he's not got the clout to do something about the situation properly nor the nous to stop spouting transparently fan-pandering guff.

 

Someone else who was an avid reader of the matchday programme when Leon was chairman. I use to liken his 'message from the chairman' as fairy tales or tales of the unexpected but fan-pandering guff may become de rigueur as regards to any action or communication from Leon Crouch. IMO the man tries to curry more favours with the fans than Madhur Jaffrey.

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This thread is to thank Crouch for what he is doing at the moment and should remain just that imo, many threads have descending into the politics of who did what and when but right now we have a man, despite his losses, putting up MORE money in order the man in control of our clubs destiny has MORE time to find a buyer, I am grateful, if it is structured as a loan, good, interest is something he should be entitled to, is it secured ? for his sake I hope so, is there an ulterior motive i.e involvement in any new set up ? a set up may not exsist without him so there is an entitlement there, again imo

 

Well said.

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[/b]

 

Someone else who was an avid reader of the matchday programme when Leon was chairman. I use to liken his 'message from the chairman' as fairy tales or tales of the unexpected but fan-pandering guff may become de rigueur as regards to any action or communication from Leon Crouch. IMO the man tries to curry more favours with the fans than Madhur Jaffrey.

 

 

Crouchey is a God:smt041

 

19 :smt075

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[/b]

 

Someone else who was an avid reader of the matchday programme when Leon was chairman. I use to liken his 'message from the chairman' as fairy tales or tales of the unexpected but fan-pandering guff may become de rigueur as regards to any action or communication from Leon Crouch. IMO the man tries to curry more favours with the fans than Madhur Jaffrey.

A very expensive curry. Damned if he does and damned if he doesn`t.

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This thread is to thank Crouch for what he is doing at the moment and should remain just that imo, many threads have descending into the politics of who did what and when but right now we have a man, despite his losses, putting up MORE money in order the man in control of our clubs destiny has MORE time to find a buyer, I am grateful, if it is structured as a loan, good, interest is something he should be entitled to, is it secured ? for his sake I hope so, is there an ulterior motive i.e involvement in any new set up ? a set up may not exsist without him so there is an entitlement there, again imo

 

Is there not a duty though that whilst acceptng the generosity that affords survival that its placed in context - afterall we all saw where the blind unquestioning got us with respect to Wildes entry. OK so CRouch has proven his worth with his positive contributions, but also made us qusetion it with his mistakes and public gaffs (persoannly I aslo struggle with the Mr popular thing). Everyone has pros and cons and his cons dont mean he is to be tarred, but merely put the pros in context - as we do with all the other protagonists....;-)

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Hoping he is part of any deal to buy the club.

 

Thank you Crouchey.

 

Do you? I mean, do you really? Good grief.

 

The final knockings will reveal that dear old Leon has more than his fair share of blood on his hands re the demise of SFC and in the, what is seeming increasingly unlikely, event of a new Board I would rather that he, together with all the other former protagonists, is as far away from the controls as possible.

 

Insert 'oh so funny' winky thing ->

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As I've said before, I don't want to see Crouch as chairman. What I would be pleased to see is Crouch on the board with a voice as a fan and somebody who obviously cares.

 

I think he needs to be reigned in a bit and he needs somebody above him to control what he, as SFC, says to the press and when. But we have always shouted about the benefits of having a fan on the board and we could do a lot worse than Crouch, who is willing to step up when needed.

 

I'm cautious and wouldn't like Crouch to be the mouthpiece of our club. But his passion and love of the club, combined with his willingness to put his money where his mouth is, could make a positive difference.

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Hoping he is part of any deal to buy the club.

 

Thank you Crouchey.

 

Do you? I mean, do you really? Good grief.

 

The final knockings will reveal that dear old Leon has more than his fair share of blood on his hands re the demise of SFC and in the, what is seeming increasingly unlikely, event of a new Board I would rather that he, together with all the other former protagonists, is as far away from the controls as possible.

 

However, he has nevertheless 'stood up and been counted' in the last few weeks and one or two others who have made money out of the club could have followed that example.

 

Insert 'oh so funny' winky thing ->

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And yet there are some on here saying they would accept Lowe back if he could save SFC. Look for the last time, the club is about to cease to exist...gone...capput....no team....no Saturdays....no ritual beer in pub....etc....etc. We're past recriminations. Why the inquest into the motives behind Leon keeping the club afloat? I know the guy and I am confident that the primary driver behind his gesture is just to keep SFC alive because he loves the club, his football experience at SMS, the staff at SMS. I also would hazard a guess that there are no guarantees to him in terms of any connection to a future board or any other reason - who would be able to give assurances?! Not Fry.

 

OK, a few months ago it was reported that a company Leon Crouch owned or was involved with had to lay off 50 employees. Does he love the staff at SMS more than those who worked for him? If there are guarantees to him in terms of repayment, interest or position does that make it a donation or simple business decision based on risk and reward? If the latter i don't understand why he would make any contributon without an agreement to cut salaries.

 

The man's contribution is welcome please don't get me wrong but that does not mean he is above questioning.

 

Lowe failed in some areas but he also achieved a big reduction in our operating costs and overdraft but because of bigots and the easily influenced he was unable to address falling revenues unless he walked away which IMO was at the time a Catch 22 situation. Please also remember long before administration and Leon's offer of £2m I was advocating for Lowe to invite Crouch on to the Football Board as Chairman in an attempt to address the decline in attendances. It transpires Crouch had similar ideas with his £2m although they were packaged in a way that Wilde would never have agreed to it.

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i respect Leon Crouch a great deal but I expect it comes with watertight guarentees.He has lost enough he doesnt deserve to lose more.I hope he stays as a fan only

Did anybody else thing the echo's picture make him look a bit smug?

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Is there not a duty though that whilst acceptng the generosity that affords survival that its placed in context - afterall we all saw where the blind unquestioning got us with respect to Wildes entry. OK so CRouch has proven his worth with his positive contributions' date=' but also made us qusetion it with his mistakes and public gaffs (persoannly I aslo struggle with the Mr popular thing). Everyone has pros and cons and his cons dont mean he is to be tarred, but merely put the pros in context - as we do with all the other protagonists....;-)[/quote']

TBF Frank, I think that Crouchs pros and cons have been (and still are being) discussed to death on here. Can we not just accept that he is doing something that none of the other protagonists in this "soap opera" have - put his hand in his pocket and just for once say "Thanks". There have`nt been too many specks of light in the darkness recently. Maybe this is one.

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Do you? I mean, do you really? Good grief.

 

The final knockings will reveal that dear old Leon has more than his fair share of blood on his hands re the demise of SFC

 

Not one bit of evidence to suggest this im afraid.

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i respect Leon Crouch a great deal but I expect it comes with watertight guarentees.He has lost enough he doesnt deserve to lose more.I hope he stays as a fan only

Did anybody else thing the echo's picture make him look a bit smug?

Yeah the bastard! Oh Dear, Oh Dear!:confused:

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That Crouch is bankrolling the players wages is awesome. He alone is keeping this club afloat at immense personal cost, and if we do somehow survive we will owe him an enormous debt of gratitude, whatever we think of his past role.

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OK, a few months ago it was reported that a company Leon Crouch owned or was involved with had to lay off 50 employees. Does he love the staff at SMS more than those who worked for him? If there are guarantees to him in terms of repayment, interest or position does that make it a donation or simple business decision based on risk and reward? If the latter i don't understand why he would make any contributon without an agreement to cut salaries.

 

The man's contribution is welcome please don't get me wrong but that does not mean he is above questioning.

 

Lowe failed in some areas but he also achieved a big reduction in our operating costs and overdraft but because of bigots and the easily influenced he was unable to address falling revenues unless he walked away which IMO was at the time a Catch 22 situation. Please also remember long before administration and Leon's offer of £2m I was advocating for Lowe to invite Crouch on to the Football Board as Chairman in an attempt to address the decline in attendances. It transpires Crouch had similar ideas with his £2m although they were packaged in a way that Wilde would never have agreed to it.

Have you actually been reading this forum (apart from your own diatribes) recently? People have been "questioning" Crouch almost as much as they have Lowe. It`s getting very boring. We have bigger things to worry about than your vendetta against Crouch (and McMenemy)

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Do you? I mean, do you really? Good grief.

 

The final knockings will reveal that dear old Leon has more than his fair share of blood on his hands re the demise of SFC and in the, what is seeming increasingly unlikely, event of a new Board I would rather that he, together with all the other former protagonists, is as far away from the controls as possible.

 

Insert 'oh so funny' winky thing ->

 

Crouchey is a God:heart:

 

Big Richey, NO idea:smt075

Edited by ottery st mary
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I think you need to take a reality pill...seriously. I don't know what involvement you have in connection to the club, but I cannot believe you have any grasp or indeed care for how close we are to losing the club. Are you prepared to throw your personal money into the potential lost cause that is SFC? If not, then reel it in, cool down and take the long view. I wonder if you would have given Mr Corbett the same grief all those years back when he saved the club from meltdown? Answer honestly.

 

With respect I was very very worried about administration and my worst fears voiced back at the start of the year if not before have been realised.

 

I have no connection with the club or any directors past or present whatsoever and my personal inability to make a donation does not exclude me from questioning those who do and their motives for so doing.

 

I remain unconvinced that 3 the protaganists couldn't have worked together with Leon clearly able to splash his cash and avoid administration in the first place. That is the basis for my long view/opinion and the simple fact we need the spite and pettiness removed from this club for good, hence my questions.

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