Derek Chapman has a swipe at DK

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Now the truth is coming out about Dick Tight it doesn't make pleasant reading for those who felt he walked on water

He neither walked on water nor was the devil incarnate. Like us all he is somewhere in between.

 

[Simster]

You wish!

Nothing in DC's statement contradicts anything in the book.

No. As a proper Albion fan, I'm fairly sure he "wishes" that this had never come out at all.

 

[Monkey Man]

It is some sort of pact with the devil. Good publicity for the book - but once things are out in the open everyone has their own view.

Quite. Dick has every right to write a book and as others have said, there's not much he could do that would tarnish his reputation. His role in saving our club is beyond question.

But was writing the book more important than annoying fellow directors as he seems to have done - people who love the club at least as much as he does?

I don't get this argument that "he has to be a bit controversial, he has to do publicity stunts, he has a book to sell". It just doesn't seem very dignified.

Derek Chapman seems to be going out of his way to use moderate language but it seems pretty clear he's upset.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

The way this is playing out in the media and books and so on is messing with my head.

The fact is that Knight initially poured money into the club without expectation of recouping it. Chapman is suggesting that Bloom's arrival should have seen Knight get some of his money back. I'm not sure why, how much was poured in by whom and who did what, but it's horrible seeing all this come out.

Horrible ? Fascinating more like.

These are all grown-ups with broad shoulders.

 

[The Large One]

DC says at the end of the story "Anyway, I do wish Dick good luck with his book. Like most lifelong Albion fans, I’m sure I will buy a copy! "

Maybe he should have read the book first before defending what doesn't really need defending?

Another thing I thought of when I read DC's statement - he appears to be defending himself against criticism that hasn't been levelled at him, at least not by Dick (i.e. that he cashed in on Albion-related projects).

 

[Simster]

Horrible ? Fascinating more like.

These are all grown-ups with broad shoulders.

No-one is going to come out of any of this looking like a grown-up.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Derek Chapman seems to be going out of his way to use moderate language but it seems pretty clear he's upset.

And I suspect he did run it past Tony Bloom before printing it. This is getting closer to TB's view I would think.

 

[Vatican Citys No.2 Keeper]

My first thought - especially as Dick has taken quite a swipe at Andy Naylor.

And seeming as the Argus didn't have permission from Dick to serialise what was written in Fridays edition - thats according to Dick himself at Saturdays book signing in Hove - then that seems the case to me too.

 

[Creaky]

I think it's very fair and I think it's entirely justified too.

We were at Withdean for over a decade and in that time the club was a money pit. I was always eternally grateful that the half dozen or so members of the board were stumping up to keep the club afloat. Any glory or hero worshipping in their direction was richly deserved.

So the question is: was he doing it out of the goodness of his own heart and the glory, or was he just another investor expecting a return at some point?


Of course he is FFS. He is expressing "amazement" at the fact that Knight wanted his money back, with the insinuation that he had taken control of the club and poured money in without expecting a return on that "investment".

Are you of the same opinion regarding TB?

Has DC expressed "amazement" that TB has put millions in the club by way of a loan rather than a gift?

I doubt DK or any of the others who worked so hard for the club expected any of their money back at the time it was put into the club - they didn't enter the amounts into the club's books as a loan. That doesn't mean that it wasn't reasonable to ask for some back when they handed over control to TB.

 

[dougdeep]

The book doesn't take a swipe at the club and DC isn't taking a swipe at DK. The Argus are stirring things up.

You're a little bit wrong there. The Argus has a different headline.

 

[Triggaaar]

It is claimed that BHAFC wasn't worth anything - it was "worth" far more than if it didn't exist.

Financially, it wasn't.

Will we be critical if TB at some time in the future takes some of the money he has ploughed into the club in such a way that it doesn't threaten the club's future but actually enhances it?

If our club becomes worthless again, and some rich person turns up to save it, then I would be critical of TB if he wants his money back. If, however, our club has a good ground still, and is worth a lot of money, then I would expect TB to want a fair price for it.

Why should anyone expect to sell something for more than it's worth? TB has spent over £150m - why should he have had to also pay more than the club was worth to buy it in the first place? What if TB had said 'I'll pay you all what it's worth - nothing, and then spend £150m making it great' and Dick had said 'no thanks, we're doing great as we are'?

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

No-one is going to come out of any of this looking like a grown-up.

That is how it looks. It must be the share issue that has got the club (assuming DC is speaking unofficially on their behalf) upset. Could have been a step too far from DK.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Dick Knight got £400,000 back (and left with some shares) from the £2million he invested which helped save the club.

Bill Archer got around £700,000 for nearly killing it.

Far too simplistic I appreciated, but I don't think Dick Knight is unreasonable in expecting some of his money back.

I would also suggest people read the book before jumping in on this debate, not just the sensational sections printed / highlighted in the media. The book really isn't as bitter as the headline grabbing odd paragraph or two might suggest.

 

[Monkey Man]

And seeming as the Argus didn't have permission from Dick to serialise what was written in Fridays edition - thats according to Dick himself at Saturdays book signing in Hove - then that seems the case to me too.

Fair dealing under copyright law, surely? No need to get permission for excerpts of that size, I would imagine.

 

[blockhseagull]

No-one is going to come out of any of this looking like a grown-up.

I'd argue that Tony will, he has kept a dignified silence over all of this

 

[Simster]

Are you of the same opinion regarding TB?

Has DC expressed "amazement" that TB has put millions in the club by way of a loan rather than a gift?

I doubt DK or any of the others who worked so hard for the club expected any of their money back at the time it was put into the club - they didn't enter the amounts into the club's books as a loan. That doesn't mean that it wasn't reasonable to ask for some back when they handed over control to TB.

I'm not sure I agree with this. I think you could make a case either way. Football owners are like philanthropists - they tend not to expect a return. On the other hand, this went on for over a decade with only a handful of people putting their hands in their pockets at all. Maybe it cost DK more than he expected.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

DK was very lucky to get 400k; he is not coming out of this very well at the moment. Ungrateful.

Out of interest does dk actually go to games any more ?

Yes, home and away. He sat with the fans at Doncaster. Didn't you see him there?

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

I'd argue that Tony will, he has kept a dignified silence over all of this

Indeed. He does seem a grounded, sensible sort of bloke.

 

[Simster]

Indeed. He does seem a grounded, sensible sort of bloke.

In the interests of balance, you wouldn't expect Bloom to come out any other way than dignified. He holds all the aces in this spat. He owns the club, he built the stadium, he is today's man. Knight may have cause for grievance, I don't know, so if anyone was going to be accusatory about anything, it's Knight.

 

[Ernest]

I just hope Tony Bloom maintains his dignified silence and just lets the potless pillock continue to show everyone what he is really about