Leigh Pomlett: Ben Boycott has final say on Walsall signings
Leigh Pomlett is excited to get to work with new co-chairman Ben Boycott at Walsall, while stressing: “Ben has the final say.”
Pomlett has agreed to stay for four years to help the Trivela Group make a smooth transition.
Asked about that period and how the running of the club will work now, Pomlett said: “It might be shorter, it might be longer.
“With a contract, you have to put a timescale on it.
“I won’t pretend there’s any particular rationale or logic to being four years, but it just seemed like a sensible timeframe to make sure everything we’ve said is going to happen happens. We may review it and extend it, but it just seemed like a sensible timeframe.
“Ben lives in Birmingham, Alabama, so he can’t be here for every game. There has to be some stability here, so I’ll continue doing much of the role I had, other than the fact I’m now the second biggest shareholder not the biggest shareholder.
“We collaborate now. Michael (Flynn) has given us a list of players he wants to bring in, and we’ll collaborate on who we can bring in and who we can’t.
“It’s a collaborative process, but Ben has the final say.
“He owns more of the football club than I do, so the final decision of whether we sign X striker or not, it’s his.
“I’m there to help him, mentor and advise him along the way.
“I’ll be here in the same way as I have been but, ultimately, whether we buy that player from whoever, that decision is with Ben.”
Trivela, of which Boycott is managing director, have initially acquired 51 per cent of Pomlett’s shares in the club.
Along with that, they have injected around £300,000 for infrastructure inclusive of the rundown Saddlers Club.
They have then pledged to provide the funds to secure the freehold to Bescot within the next two years.
Negotiations have taken place over the past 12 months and Pomlett insists Boycott was consulted when Michael Flynn was appointed as head coach in February.
“I met with Michael and then spoke to Ben, who has football advisors,” added Pomlett.
“I said I was thinking about bringing in Michael, and he thought it was a really smart move.
“So, we made a concerted effort to get Michael in. Ben was involved in that decision, yes.”
