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DICK KNIGHT OUT ? Just one little question for you....
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ChutneyStirrer
New member
- Sep 14, 2003
- 145
Question for Berkshire - are you certain Fat Boy put 2.50 million quid into the Club??
The Great Cornholio
New member
ChutneyStirrer said:
I think we went through this one the Ernest One Trick Pony thread. I'm pretty sure it was £500,000 used to buy out Archer. No idea where this £2.5m figure came from.
ChutneyStirrer
New member
- Sep 14, 2003
- 145
The Great Cornholio said:
Just took a look at that thread and it appears that not only did FBS put in £500k to buy our Archer but he has also sponsored the club to the tune of £2mil over the past few years, except 'Fat Boy Slim' wouldn't fit on the shirts so he got 'Skint' put on instead....
Berks - contrary to popular misconception (and lazy journalism) Norman Cook does not own Skint records, he is simply an artist signed to the label. It could be said that without his success they would not be able to sponsor the Albion as much as they do but the sponsorship is down to the three people who do own the record label. And they definitely are not paying £500k a year for the priviledge of having their names on the shirts - the first season they were asked to sponsor the Club they were outbid by Donatello's!!
The Great Cornholio
New member
Words from Mr Boy Slim himself from the Guardian Website :-
Because I grew up in Reigate, I'm ashamed to say that for the early part of my life I supported our arch enemy, Crystal Palace. But about five years after I moved to Brighton, to go to college, my mates took me to an Albion game. I'd just been dumped by my wife and it was a case of them trying to cheer me up for the afternoon. But I was instantly hooked and ended up going to every home game for the next two seasons. The problem for me now is that Saturday nights are my big work night, so I do miss a lot of matches through being away.
The great thing about supporting Albion is that there's never a dull moment. It's either championships and promotion or relegation dogfights. Someone came up to me in London the other day and asked who I supported. When I told them they said, 'Nah, what proper team do you support?' As if not being on the telly every week means you're not a proper football club.
That's not to say I haven't witnessed some dreadful games. The worst was losing to Notts County in the Division Two play-off final at Wembley in 1991. We didn't look like the team I'd been watching all season - it didn't help that we played in a weird pink strip. That was when the rot set in. We were 90 minutes away from the First Division but we lost and within the week had sold our four best players and started tumbling down the leagues. I'll never forget the drive back to Brighton after the game. Palace fans were lining up on the motorway bridges on the M23 to wave us goodbye. A terrible day.
The highlight was winning the Second Division championship last year. We'd drawn at home and had to wait for the Reading result. They were playing extra time and we had to sit there knowing that if they didn't score we were champions. The ground was eerily silent. We could see them getting the podium out to present the trophy. I thought, 'Ooh, surely that's tempting fate'. I couldn't bear the thought of them having to pack it away. Eventually they announced the score and the whole place went ballistic, and we ended up singing 'We are the champions' for about an hour.
It wasn't my idea that Skint, the record label I'm signed to, should sponsor the Albion but I was well up for it. Skint are a local company and the vanguard of the Brighton music scene, so it's a good fit. And the irony of having Skint on your shirt when you're short of cash wasn't lost on people. I remember we played Barnet, who were sponsored by Loaded at the time - has there ever been a better clash of shirt sponsors?
I've also put some of my own money into the club. The chairman Dick Knight took me out to lunch and I asked him whether Bobby Zamora was going to be sold. He looked at me and said: 'Well if someone puts a lot of money into the club then we can afford to keep him.' I said that sounds like blackmail and he replied: 'Call it what you like dear boy but that's how it is.' So I guess he tapped into my guilt. It wasn't just a donation, I do own a piece of the club. But then, a piece of nothing is still nothing isn't it? It's more of a hobby for me. I don't have to turn up for board meetings or be involved in decisions about whether we sell Bobby, I don't want that on my hands, but I do get a nice parking space - right next to the away fans' coach.
I don't make a big deal of my involvement in the club because of what I call the 'Elton John syndrome'. As soon as you become affiliated with a team, that's all you become known for and you end up getting grief off opposing fans. I haven't had it that bad yet. People do come up to me in the street and lightly take the piss, which is fair enough because I'd do the same.
The annoying thing is that the club's always going to be financially vulnerable until we get planning permission for the new stadium. It's ridiculous that a city like Brighton hasn't got its own stadium - the council really should have been more co-operative. The things that have gone on have been obscene - it'll all come out one day.
Part of me wants to keep the club at arms' length because it hurts enough when we lose but if I started going into the dressing room, that sort of involvement would make me ill. As it is, I can just about take the knocks. Although the 12 defeats in a row at the start of last season was difficult to handle. In a way, I blame myself. I've got a lucky blue-and-white striped woolly hat and when I started wearing it to games we went on a winning streak. At the beginning of the season, Zoe [Norman's wife] put it away somewhere and I lost it. That was at the start of a run of 12 defeats. Eventually I found it and the losing streak ended. I wish I'd looked for it a bit sooner. The season might have turned out differently.
Because I grew up in Reigate, I'm ashamed to say that for the early part of my life I supported our arch enemy, Crystal Palace. But about five years after I moved to Brighton, to go to college, my mates took me to an Albion game. I'd just been dumped by my wife and it was a case of them trying to cheer me up for the afternoon. But I was instantly hooked and ended up going to every home game for the next two seasons. The problem for me now is that Saturday nights are my big work night, so I do miss a lot of matches through being away.
The great thing about supporting Albion is that there's never a dull moment. It's either championships and promotion or relegation dogfights. Someone came up to me in London the other day and asked who I supported. When I told them they said, 'Nah, what proper team do you support?' As if not being on the telly every week means you're not a proper football club.
That's not to say I haven't witnessed some dreadful games. The worst was losing to Notts County in the Division Two play-off final at Wembley in 1991. We didn't look like the team I'd been watching all season - it didn't help that we played in a weird pink strip. That was when the rot set in. We were 90 minutes away from the First Division but we lost and within the week had sold our four best players and started tumbling down the leagues. I'll never forget the drive back to Brighton after the game. Palace fans were lining up on the motorway bridges on the M23 to wave us goodbye. A terrible day.
The highlight was winning the Second Division championship last year. We'd drawn at home and had to wait for the Reading result. They were playing extra time and we had to sit there knowing that if they didn't score we were champions. The ground was eerily silent. We could see them getting the podium out to present the trophy. I thought, 'Ooh, surely that's tempting fate'. I couldn't bear the thought of them having to pack it away. Eventually they announced the score and the whole place went ballistic, and we ended up singing 'We are the champions' for about an hour.
It wasn't my idea that Skint, the record label I'm signed to, should sponsor the Albion but I was well up for it. Skint are a local company and the vanguard of the Brighton music scene, so it's a good fit. And the irony of having Skint on your shirt when you're short of cash wasn't lost on people. I remember we played Barnet, who were sponsored by Loaded at the time - has there ever been a better clash of shirt sponsors?
I've also put some of my own money into the club. The chairman Dick Knight took me out to lunch and I asked him whether Bobby Zamora was going to be sold. He looked at me and said: 'Well if someone puts a lot of money into the club then we can afford to keep him.' I said that sounds like blackmail and he replied: 'Call it what you like dear boy but that's how it is.' So I guess he tapped into my guilt. It wasn't just a donation, I do own a piece of the club. But then, a piece of nothing is still nothing isn't it? It's more of a hobby for me. I don't have to turn up for board meetings or be involved in decisions about whether we sell Bobby, I don't want that on my hands, but I do get a nice parking space - right next to the away fans' coach.
I don't make a big deal of my involvement in the club because of what I call the 'Elton John syndrome'. As soon as you become affiliated with a team, that's all you become known for and you end up getting grief off opposing fans. I haven't had it that bad yet. People do come up to me in the street and lightly take the piss, which is fair enough because I'd do the same.
The annoying thing is that the club's always going to be financially vulnerable until we get planning permission for the new stadium. It's ridiculous that a city like Brighton hasn't got its own stadium - the council really should have been more co-operative. The things that have gone on have been obscene - it'll all come out one day.
Part of me wants to keep the club at arms' length because it hurts enough when we lose but if I started going into the dressing room, that sort of involvement would make me ill. As it is, I can just about take the knocks. Although the 12 defeats in a row at the start of last season was difficult to handle. In a way, I blame myself. I've got a lucky blue-and-white striped woolly hat and when I started wearing it to games we went on a winning streak. At the beginning of the season, Zoe [Norman's wife] put it away somewhere and I lost it. That was at the start of a run of 12 defeats. Eventually I found it and the losing streak ended. I wish I'd looked for it a bit sooner. The season might have turned out differently.
The Great Cornholio
New member
And this
But it’s not just the music that’s keeping Norman busy these days; small things - the Seagulls sticker in the car window and the kiddie-sized Albion football lying under the kitchen table – provide big pointers as to the other passion in his life: Brighton & Hove Albion. During the whole of last season Norman only missed five games at Withdean due to work commitments, and he’s also recently ploughed a significant slice of his own cash into the Club. ‘Well I’ve got a nice house; got nothing else to do with my money’ says Norman, ‘so the idea was to put some cash in to tide us over until we get to the new stadium. At the moment, because we can only get 7’000 into Withdean, the gate doesn't even cover the players’ wages, so we lose money every single match we play. We needed something to tide us over and to keep the books vaguely balanced until we get to the new stadium. Dick basically press-ganged me into it, with the promise of …well, with the promise of nothing really,’ he laughs. ‘When Dick said, “What do you want for it?” I said, “A parking space would be nice. Mind you,’ he adds, ‘I have been promoted to the Director's portacabin at halftime.'
But it would be a mistake to think that Norman's love affair with the Seagulls is a relatively recent relationship. He’s been going to home games for the last ten years or so, first on his own and then with Damien Hirst – now MD of Skint Records. ‘Yeah, smiles Norman, ‘Damien started getting into it too, and so then it was him and me, and then Andy Mac (another Skint stalwart) started coming along too. Then one day I went into Skint and they just said, “oh, by the way Norman, we’re going to sponsor Brighton,” which I thought was a great idea. To begin with it was a good joke, given that the club was particularly, well, skint at the time, but the main thing was that it was nice to keep it a local thing; plus there's a good crossover too, as a lot of the supporters are into our music.’
But it’s not just the music that’s keeping Norman busy these days; small things - the Seagulls sticker in the car window and the kiddie-sized Albion football lying under the kitchen table – provide big pointers as to the other passion in his life: Brighton & Hove Albion. During the whole of last season Norman only missed five games at Withdean due to work commitments, and he’s also recently ploughed a significant slice of his own cash into the Club. ‘Well I’ve got a nice house; got nothing else to do with my money’ says Norman, ‘so the idea was to put some cash in to tide us over until we get to the new stadium. At the moment, because we can only get 7’000 into Withdean, the gate doesn't even cover the players’ wages, so we lose money every single match we play. We needed something to tide us over and to keep the books vaguely balanced until we get to the new stadium. Dick basically press-ganged me into it, with the promise of …well, with the promise of nothing really,’ he laughs. ‘When Dick said, “What do you want for it?” I said, “A parking space would be nice. Mind you,’ he adds, ‘I have been promoted to the Director's portacabin at halftime.'
But it would be a mistake to think that Norman's love affair with the Seagulls is a relatively recent relationship. He’s been going to home games for the last ten years or so, first on his own and then with Damien Hirst – now MD of Skint Records. ‘Yeah, smiles Norman, ‘Damien started getting into it too, and so then it was him and me, and then Andy Mac (another Skint stalwart) started coming along too. Then one day I went into Skint and they just said, “oh, by the way Norman, we’re going to sponsor Brighton,” which I thought was a great idea. To begin with it was a good joke, given that the club was particularly, well, skint at the time, but the main thing was that it was nice to keep it a local thing; plus there's a good crossover too, as a lot of the supporters are into our music.’
berkshire seagull
New member
Yes 500k lump sum and his shares and are you not forgetting years of SKINT which means sponsorship money and not small amounts dear o dear.The Great Cornholio said:
Do you honestly think we get £50 a season for sponsership
ChutneyStirrer
New member
- Sep 14, 2003
- 145
berkshire seagull said:Yes 500k lump sum and his shares and are you not forgetting years of SKINT which means sponsorship money and not small amounts dear o dear.
Do you honestly think we get £50 a season for sponsership
How can I put this simply for you?? Norman Cook does NOT own Skint records therefore the sponsorship money is not coming from Norman.
If Skint hadn't sponsored the Club then somebody else would've.
How much do you think Skint gives the Club every year for sponsorship??
berkshire seagull
New member
I clearly heard 1 million for the 1st 2 seasons and without norman we wouldn't get skint.
Charlies Shinpad
New member
Lord Bracknell said:
So for the sake of a few weeks ,instead of the months of MH being in charge and a press conference , and losing a bit of his credability ,we might still be in Div 1 now then?
Say no more
Ernest
Stupid IDIOT
Charlies Shinpad said:Lord Bracknell said:
So for the sake of a few weeks ,instead of the months of MH being in charge and a press conference , and losing a bit of his credability ,we might still be in Div 1 now then?
Say no more
And people still think this vain old skinflint is fit to run our club
The Great Cornholio
New member
berkshire seagull said:I clearly heard 1 million for the 1st 2 seasons and without norman we wouldn't get skint.
What part of this are you struggling with?
It wasn't my idea that Skint, the record label I'm signed to, should sponsor the Albion but I was well up for it. Skint are a local company and the vanguard of the Brighton music scene, so it's a good fit. And the irony of having Skint on your shirt when you're short of cash wasn't lost on people. I remember we played Barnet, who were sponsored by Loaded at the time - has there ever been a better clash of shirt sponsors?
The Great Cornholio
New member
Ernest said:And people still think this vain old skinflint is fit to run our club
berkshire seagull
New member
Me struggleThe Great Cornholio said:
Charlies Shinpad
New member
Just thought i would bounce this to the top by saying ;
9 Pages and still going strong!!
9 Pages and still going strong!!
Lord Bracknell
On fire
Yes, Ernest.Ernest said:And people still think this vain old skinflint is fit to run our club
Who else is there who will get us to Falmer?
alan partridge
Active member
berkshire seagull said:I clearly heard 1 million for the 1st 2 seasons and without norman we wouldn't get skint.
you better get your ears tested then mate
one hundred THOUSAND a year. hell of a lot of difference wouldn't you say? 1 million a year!!!!!! now i know you live in cloud cuckoo land. how can you get pissed off with people questioning you when you come out with rubbish like that?