Smurthwaite promises debt-free Vale
Sole owner Norman Smurthwaite delivered an upbeat message to a Fans Forum saying that “I want to rekindle the Bill Bell days.”
The more people who come in, the more people who buy merchandise and the more people who buy pies then the more can be spent on the field…
Smurthwaite told the audience that: “I’m sorry to see Paul go and I’ll miss him, but for anyone who thinks I’ve come out of the sunshine to parachute myself into the club, then I’m sorry to disappoint you. Vale has got hold of me and whatever is right for this club I will do. Once this little storm is over, it will be business as usual.
“It’s not a difficult business to run, other than keeping you (the fans) happy, the manager sweet and players motivated. That’s actually a bigger job than worrying about what comes in and what goes out.”
“The more people who come in, the more people who buy merchandise and the more people who buy pies then the more can be spent on the field. It’s that simple. It’s not a job I can’t do and I have a good team behind me.”
“There’s no debt now and there won’t be during my time at Port Vale,” he added. Whether that’s five years or 20 years I don’t know, but I want to rekindle the Bill Bell days.”