Is there a future for Port Vale under the present ownership

[Howjy04]

1.9m for Hugill (600k installments every 6 months I think), and then 6 figures for both Alnwick and Grant.

 

We've also just sold 3 youth team players to big clubs, and received compensation for it.

 

Vale hasn't seen this sort of income since the turn of the millennium and we're still scrambling around in the wrong end of League 2, after 2 seasons of abject rubbish. What do you think the cause of this is?

 

I believe we have received one payment,so far,for Hughill,Hagrid.Next one is due in January.

[Santa]

I believe we have received one payment,so far,for Hughill,Hagrid.Next one is due in January.

Look forward to seeing what Norm will spend that on. A non-league ground maybe, or perhaps another empty bank?

[Iron Curtain]

When did we get 2.2m?

 

Is your point that the hugil money comes in instalments which I’m well aware of?

 

How does that stop us reinvesting in the squad? That cash flow is locked in, so investing some upfront is a perfectly reasonable request.

 

Some other considerations:

 

1. I’m also sure we could negotiate our own instalment payments to match that profile if that’s your concern.

 

2. Norman has enough cash to buy nuneatons ground and bid for a bank building. So if he wants “pay for his own mistakes”, he may have to manage his own cash flow. Seems reasonable to me.

 

Now... Putting hugil aside... I can’t see that miller would have cost more than £50k... their chairman was desperate to get rid.

 

So £250k for Alnwick and £100k for Grant. £100k for the youngster to Man City, I’m not sure what they have paid for the recent one (I can’t imagine it’s much)

 

So that’s an estimated 11% reinvested before ANY of the hugil money has been considered.

 

Now let’s add Hugil back in... and we will do it on a cash basis. £600k instalments (corrected after my own more conservative guess)

 

So that makes a 50k investment in miller equal to 4.7%

 

Do you think that’s sufficient investment from a man who said he would fund his own mistakes to get us back where we were?

[Howjy04]

Look forward to seeing what Norm will spend that on. A non-league ground maybe, or perhaps another empty bank?

 

Wasn’t the empty bank being DONATED to the Foundation?Vale own Nuneaton then?

[Howjy04]

I know we make millions every season,I apologise for my comments.

[Hagrid]

Wasn’t the empty bank being DONATED to the Foundation?Vale own Nuneaton then?

 

The pedantic specifics of all of this is pointless.

 

Bottom line; Port Vale is in its most stable financial position in years, and the club is not seeing any of that influx of cash. The squad is not good enough to challenge the top 7. Fair enough, some might say, its a long road ahead.

 

However, shouldn't we be seeing improvements in the facilities and match day experience, if we aren't going to see real investment into the playing squad?

 

What makes it more galling is that Norm has spent his time buying Nuneaton's ground and shoehorning a friendly there, shipping two of our young lads there and giving Enoch a club.

 

Why can't he just spent all the money he's made on Vale Park/the playing staff?

[Iron Curtain]

I know we make millions every season,I apologise for my comments.

 

I think that’s our point... we don’t make it every season so when we do we should reinvest it... rather than see it disappear.

 

Do you think a re-investment of around 5% is suitable or appropriate?

[old sage]

Anyone who believes a word about the fortune that Smurthwaite has ploughed into Port Vale since his ill fated arrival is as naive as he is a fairy story teller.

[bookworm]

Things are going quite well for Norm right now.

 

With the transfer fees we've had rolling in (including money for several youth players in recent years), and there being a seemingly unshakable number of season ticket holders, the clubs probably in its most stable financial position in years. A token level of 'interest' in Dennis and Morais (which we were probably never close to getting), a bit of cash on Miller, and a few standard signings, and suddenly fans are back on his side, despite us making 600k every 6 months from Hugill (no one can reasonably argue that money is being seen at the club, via signings, stadium upgrades/refurbishment, matchday experience, youth academy investment). This is lucrative money to most League 2 clubs, and yet we've still lost 4 of out opening 6 and operate on a tinpot, non-league level.

 

As a result, he's free to buy up property as he's done all his life, now owning two football grounds. This is exactly what he wanted. He's absolutely obsessed with the acquisition of football property, as shown by his forays onto the Torquay forum enquiring about Plainmoor's freehold.

 

If anyone thinks that we've simply been unlucky that our last 4 managers have not been successful needs a good luck at themselves. There's one constant in that time, amidst vast player overhaul, managerial changes, new coaching staff, new CEO/secretaries, different chairmen.

 

The only man who's been a constant in these last 3 ***** years in Norm. The only logical conclusion is that he's the cause.

The greedy **** isn't particularly obsessed with football property his obsession is making money and to him this is easy loot,when the money tree withers and dies he'll **** off quicker than a rat up a drainpipe so until that day dawns we haven't got a hope in hell and the greedy **** isn't getting a brass washer of mine, hard going but such is life.

[bookworm]

Anyone who believes a word about the fortune that Smurthwaite has ploughed into Port Vale since his ill fated arrival is as naive as he is a fairy story teller.

 

Grimms fairy tales suit him down to a t, the Vale has no atmosphere, the staff don't give a **** the rancid feeling around the club is affecting the players the general feeling is GRIMM. and it will get worse before it gets better.

[Warren]

The players tried hard yesterday and at Carlisle. I have no criticism of their effort. I also think we have a team that should be in the top half of League 2. Aspin needs to get the best out of the squad. Certainly hasn't at Carlisle or Tranmere.

[PVTony]

The immediate future of Port vale looks to be very bleak. Speculation by investing in better quality footballers is the only way to a brighter future.

 

It seems obvious to myself that investment in a speedy and good deliverer of the ball to serve our strikers would be a good start to getting more favourable results.

 

(Feed the Pope and he will score)

[Heatwave]

The players tried hard yesterday and at Carlisle. I have no criticism of their effort. I also think we have a team that should be in the top half of League 2. Aspin needs to get the best out of the squad. Certainly hasn't at Carlisle or Tranmere.

 

And there's the problem. If we had won or even drawn at either this thread wouldn't even exist.

 

The Bloatcake was in meltdown after the Wigan match and the Coates family were being lambasted to put it mildly. Bear in mind that Peter Coates is a multi millionaire and a Stoke fan to boot. Today what has happened? Stoke played better against Hull, won and the pressure is off.

 

Vale have an owner in Smurthwaite who is neither as moneyed as Coates nor a fan, and to be honest we'd be better off with someone in the Coates mould. But as there's no one out there who ticks all the boxes, we can't - and as soon as Vale start winning again (and I'm sure we will) the pressure will be off both Aspin and Smurthwaite alike. They know all they have to do is wait. I'm not going to exercise myself about it - yet.