The weekend witnessed the Baggies board making our financial situation public, and at a time when football clubs are announcing record debts I was astounded to hear we had made an £11million profit, writes blogger Jarrod Hill.
Jeremy Peace was quick to point out the money had already been spent, but nevertheless it served to give all baggie fans a lift knowing our club is in a stable financial position.
FIFA are keen to introduce a new ruling by which a club can only be in a certain percentage of debt based on turnover, currently there are only a handful of Premier League clubs that have nothing to worry about.
Having witnessed the situations at Leeds, Wimbledon, and more recently Charlton many football fans appreciate the balance between success on the pitch and ensuring your clubs’ financial future.
Jeremy Peace may have his critics, but at a time when we find ourselves 9th in the Premier League and the club turning a profit during a credit crunch it is hard to make an argument suggesting anything other than the fact the man has done a wonderful job stewarding the Baggies.
While it is openly known that we are looking for investment in the club, I do hope that if it were to happen Jeremy Peace would remain in some capacity to ensure the fugal nature now in place at the club.
Mowbray has stated on many occasions that he finds it easy to work with our chairman and it got me thinking, is this the best chairman and manager partnership we have ever had??
I feel with Mowbray at the helm we are only just embarking on our journey, already he has taken us so far, last season was the best I have witnessed and with the players at his disposal I cannot help but look forward.
So with a manager in place that entertains while achieving results and a chairman who funds team strengthening and keeps the club in the black I must admit I am a little reticent to see their partnership end.
As I see it, right now we seem to have the dream team in place, I admit it would be nice to be able to sign world stars and play champions league football, but not at the future cost of my club.
Peace has stated that it is essential the club receives outside investment to ensure the progression of West Bromwich Albion FC, to some degree I agree, but it also leaves me feeling a little wary should it happen.
Mowbray and Peace, sounds like a bad 1980s cop drama, but at the moment it sounds like the dream team!!
On another note my thanks go out to all those that have sponsored my rowing challenge. The training is doing my head in now and the ever looming 34k cannot come soon enough. If anyone else is interested in sponsoring me you can do it online at www.justgiving.com/jarrodhill
Again many many thanks.
21 Comments
Sounds like Mowbray is sticking to his Arsene Wenger approach by recruiting future first teamers as his under belly, does anyone know anything about Fabian Delph at Leeds???
Well said Jarrod !
A perfect combination, which should help us in the future when, inevitably, the big boys come calling for Mr Mowbray’s services. The strength of their relationship should keep them together for a few more years to come.
It’s a very good time to be a Baggie!!
We’re doing well in the league (for now), financially stable, playing attractive football, finally having training facilities and an academy that is looking to produce some real talent (long overdue, and well behind them lot down the road) as well as having one of the best young managers in the country.
Add to that the fact that we’re going to Old Trafford on Saturday, it’s a late kick off and I’m not driving, so will be having more than my fair share of apple based alcoholic beverages!!
Good times indeed. Onwards and upwards from here Baggie boys and girls!!
great blog bomber, and as we said last week, i wonder how the man utd’s and chelsea’s of the world would fair without their sugar daddies, and even more importantly could they sustain themselves without them. Its a very precarious situation for a lot of clubs, and its great to not be in that situation. Keep up the training mate
Nedball
Apple based drink, i thought they had stopped making thunderbird!!!
You are right tho, as everyone knows i can be a little pesimistic, but something tells me if we can hold onto Mowbray we are just begining our journey.
Hi Bomber - we baggies fans should be rightly pleased with what we have achieved and the way we have achieved it….. JP has put an excellent business plan into action - but without ToMo I’m not sure we would be enjoying the success we have now.
There is a balancing act between running the club properly and getting success - we have spent around 30 million over the last two years improving the squad (and brought in nearly 20 million in sales) - but would we fans be as happy to be in the black if we were 15th in the CCC ???
How far should we chase the dream ?? Should we spent 5 or 10 million in january just to keep our premiership place - or would we be happy to go down fighting, knowing we had money in the bank and parachute payments ?
My feeling is we Baggies have had a taste of the highlife now - and will want to stay there - whatever the cost…
i think he is the youngester who ripped Robbie Savage apart the weekend he suppost to be a top football with a massive future, but i can see a £5 mill price tag as he is young talented and ENGLISH which means he has to have a ridiculas price tag. The german kid we are looking at myt be an easier target. As for our club being in such a great condition financially im well chuffed with us doing exceptionally well in the league to top that, we have a team that could keep us up at the moment if injuries dont come our way, but i think we will want to see new faces january and the following summer BOING BOING
I know they didn’t see eye to eye for a lot of their time together at the club so maybe they’re not the perfect dream team but Paul Thompson and Gary Megson achieved minor miracles in both capacities - Thompson turning round 20-40k a week losses and Megson getting a Division 1 bound squad to the Premier League. Peace and Mowbray would not have been able to do the jobs they have done so well without the substantial foundations laid by Thompson and Megson…
As for Fabian Delph - I asked one of my best mates who is a Dirty Leeds fanatic…..
“He looks like being a great player mate, really hope he stays where he is. Loads of running, box to box, excellent on the ball, traits of Viera/Rocastle/Dacourt. Tendency to get booked, youthful exuberance, will sort that out with experience”
I have no issues with going down the route of buying young talent but the £4m being quoted sounds huge for a player who has only League One experience. Performance related fee would be essential in my opinion.
Bomber, I’d put myself down as a pessimist when it comes to the Albion, but you’re the King of pessimism!!
Thunderbirds….bad memories indeed!!
Beevower 8 - I agreee that Meggo and thompson worked miricles - however I don’t think we were ever a “premiership” club under them, even when we were in the prem.
Under mowbray we have played premiership football in the CCC and now the prem - and Peace see’s us as a premiership club, whereas thompson always seemed pleased and a bit suprised just be there.
West Brom is now a Premiership club - we have aspirations to improve and not just cling on - we are spending decent money - not just on one player a season, but in rebuilding the entire squad….
West Brom have officially “arrived” !!!!
Happy - I couldn’t agree more with you. Don’t get me wrong I am a massive fan of Mowbray - he has completely restored my love for the game after Robson did everything to destroy it. I also agree that Mowbray has taken us further than what Megson ever could have. I’m just very appreciative of the “dirty” work that Thompson and Megson did to lay foundations for perhaps more ambitious (in Peace’s case) and more talented (in Mowbray’s case) personnel to take advantage of. Perhaps the dream team isn’t each pair but actually all 4 of them…..Thompson, Peace, Megson and Mowbray?
Fingers crossed that Bomber is right and the past couple of years is just the start of the Mowbray/ Baggies journey!
I agree with Happy, under Megson and Thompson, we were never going to do any better than finsih 19th in the Prem.
The job they did was outstanding, from saving ourselves from releagation to the 3rd tier of English football to automatic promotion in 2 seasons was unbelievable. BUT, now we’re set up a lot stronger and have built on those foundations.
Gone are the days where anyone at the Hawthorns needs to be putting any lipstick on pigs, we’re a good, strong football team and a club who is growing and progressing on and off the pitch.
Onwards and upwards Baggie boys and girls!!
NedBall, Thunderbirds was brill. Unfortunately I now look very much like the hood.
An away banker for us on Saturday I think?
13 - Wakey, talking about the alcoholic beverage Thunderbirds……it was horribly, horribly wrong!!
However, when 14 years of age and with my only income being from my paper round and the occasional quid from my Nan, it was the cheapest option to get completely wasted in the Park on a weekend on such a tight budget, without having to nick cans out me Dad’s garage!!
Thunderbirds was the nuts RIP.
I remember my dad (who is a wine snob) remarking how any wine that has a screw top must be rubbish. 20 years on and many of the top wine producers are using screw tops as they have found out it does nothing to diminish the taste,LMAO.
Personally i was a blue fan.
Ok… got my tickets for the Blackburn game. Couldent get 2 tickets together in either Smethwick or Birmingham road end. Very difficult to book tickets online when you dont know the stadium that well. Anyway, ended up with f1-f6 East Stand row b nr 59 and 60 !!!! Any good ? See you on nov 1st. “Boing Boing Danish Baggies”
Danish
15 Could you give me some examples of top wine producers using screw tops?
Normandy Baggie
Always happy to help, if ound this in the telegraph which recently printed a story arguing the cork versus screw top debate.
Three dry screwcapped white wines topped the tasting, all of them Sauvignon Blancs from Marlborough, New Zealand.
Top was Jackson Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2002 (Majestic, Tesco and Waitrose, £8.99), described as “very fresh, with gooseberry and citrus notes” and “well balanced”.
Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc (Unwins, £8.99) was praised for its “clean, crisp, juicy, passion fruit flavours” and came second.
Third best was Dashwood Sauvignon Blanc 2002 (Oddbins, £7.49), which the panel thought relatively “light”, with “tropical fruit” flavour.
Hello………. have I found the wrong site ???
HB
Im branching out!!!
morning my fellow baggie supporters.id rather have a stella personally but each to his/her own.like i always say.THE CLUBS IN SAFE HANDS WITH JP&MOGGA,YOUVE SEEN THE LIGHT NOW KEEP THE FAITH…