Former directors hold ‘investment’ talks
The Sentinel newspaper reports that former Port Vale directors Bill Bratt (pictured) and Stan Meigh have held talks with potential investors in the club.
Meigh, former Vale chairman Bratt and current director Glenn Oliver met the two men at the Moat House Hotel on Festival Park before Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat by AFC Wimbledon.
Meigh told the Sentinel: “I was asked to go along, although I’m not sure why because I’m no longer a director of the club.
“Maybe I was asked to go along and say ‘hello’ because I’m a major investor.
“But I think one of the reasons they wanted to meet us was because people like Bill Bratt and myself have been involved in Vale for years.
“These men were interested in putting money into the club, but I’ve no idea about any level of investment because it was just a preliminary chat that only lasted for half-an-hour or so.
“They were nice fellas, but neither of them said ‘I’ve got £5 million’. They did not talk money.” Meigh claimed not to know the identity of the pair and said no further talks were planned at present.
Many fans will treat this development with scepticism. Prior to the June EGM, called by fans group North London Valiants, the board enthusiastically announced a sponsorship deal with Ameriturf as “great news for Port Vale and its fans.”
Just four months later, the club announced the deal was dead due as “it was clear that things were not as they were presented.”
Many fans will believe this latest move is not a move to bring more money into the club, but simply a cynical PR move by the directors past and present to try and secure (or regain) their positions of power within the club.