GFH: Sultans of Spin?

14 Aug 2013 05:56 pm, by YorkshireSquare

Now, don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against GFH, I think they have done an ok job so far. But as Leeds United fans I think it is only right that we question the clubs owners, especially since the mess Ridsdale got us into and the divisions Bates caused over the last few years. After all, our new chairman Salah Nooruddin said in a recent interview that the fans are the de facto owners of the club, and as such we have a duty of care.

GFH and the new board are rightly trying to get the fans back on side. Some of the first things they did after the takeover was completed included cheaper ticket prices, half-season tickets and frozen season ticket prices. These were all much needed and brought fans back to Elland Road, they were also extremely good PR for the new owners.

Everything went a little quiet then, that was until the day Bates reign as Chairman came to an end. It was then that the GFH PR machine came into full force. Not only did they announce Bates was no longer Chairman, they announced the new board and announced the signing of a player for £1 million. This was followed up by the ‘past is in the past’ poster and t-shirt campaign and a bigger emphasis of engaging with the fans than at any time in our recent history.

With the start of the new season fast approaching and new signings not emerging the rumour about the potential repurchase of Elland Road came out rekindling excitement and potentially boosting last minute ticket sales ahead of the season opener. The cynic inside me may suggest the leaking of this information could have been to mask the lack of new signings, after all we are still waiting for any solid information regarding this deal.

The pre-game entertainment for the Brighton match mainly consistent of the new board doing a lap of honour and getting fans on the pitch to give them prizes. It was all very slick, all very well organised from a PR point of view and I’m sure it went along way to healing the rift between the board and the fans. I just couldn’t help thinking it was all a bit Ridsdale. It reminded me of him revealing Leeds United sports cars on the pitch at half time and singing with the crowd.

Ultimately though they will be judged on their actions in terms of backing the manager and signing players. They are making some bold promises and getting the fans on side but they have to deliver. Manager Brian McDermott said he feels Leeds United must be more "honest and open" with fans and he is spot on. So my message to GFH is simple, put the gimmicks side, be open and honest with the fans and deliver on your promises. If you do that they will back you all the way.

11 Comments

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theleedsmango wrote on 15 Aug 2013 09:38 pm

Guildford White wrote:
The percentage is not the point - the problem is the vast amount of the wage bill being paid to players who are simply not good enough. I could list many, but let's take Ryan Hall as an example. Why did we buy him (thanks Warnock!) and how much is he costing us that could go towards a player who might actually get into the team?

I doubt that the wage bill under GFH will be significantly different than under Bates, but I'd like to see whatever the total amount of money is be used better.

Exactly GW. With a 25 man squad, no Championship team should be paying professionals who aren't in that 25 man squad, never mind the fact only 18 of them feature in any given game. It's not good for morale and its not good for business.

Leeds will fund itself, as was pointed out somewhat by Gary; the wages are 57% turnover. You can go and buy another 5 average players on top of the 25, or you get rid of 5 and buy 5 better quality players. It's simple business.

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Martyn wrote on 15 Aug 2013 01:00 pm

Gary wrote:oh deary me, we used to have bates apologist now we have GFH apologist. Yeah sure brian gave GFH a list of unrealistic targets. Oh but you cannot stress enough about the wage bill, oh yes that will be massive. For the 2011/2012 season it was 57% of turnover. Bates was a tight git. If you think the wage bill was high under him you are deluded and if you think by magic it has increased under GFH you are even more deluded. Back the manager or F**k Off

The percentage is not the point - the problem is the vast amount of the wage bill being paid to players who are simply not good enough. I could list many, but let's take Ryan Hall as an example. Why did we buy him (thanks Warnock!) and how much is he costing us that could go towards a player who might actually get into the team?

I doubt that the wage bill under GFH will be significantly different than under Bates, but I'd like to see whatever the total amount of money is be used better.

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Paul G wrote on 15 Aug 2013 12:27 pm

[quote="Gary"]oh deary me, we used to have bates apologist now we have GFH apologist. Yeah sure brian gave GFH a list of unrealistic targets. Oh but you cannot stress enough about the wage bill, oh yes that will be massive. For the 2011/2012 season it was 57% of turnover. Bates was a tight git. If you think the wage bill was high under him you are deluded and if you think by magic it has increased under GFH you are even more deluded. Back the manager or F**k Off[/quote]

...... and you're typical of the negative Leeds fan who's caused almost as much damage to the club as Bates over the last few years. (OK, that's an exaggeration .... but you get my point).

I understand that 10 years of Bates has led some people to mistrust GFH .... but so far, they seem to have been pretty truthful. They have always said that there wouldn't be a massive amount of money to spend .... and whether you like it or not, clubs WILL have to start following the "financial fair play" rules. The days of the bottomless pit type of investor are probably in the past ....

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YorkshireSquare wrote on 15 Aug 2013 09:17 am

Jed wrote:Looks like the headline came before the story in this case. Can I suggest a follow up article that asks; Are Leeds in Dire Straits?

The idea of the article did come before the headline, though it did change a bit once I'd settled on the headline.

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Jed wrote on 15 Aug 2013 08:59 am

Looks like the headline came before the story in this case. Can I suggest a follow up article that asks; Are Leeds in Dire Straits?

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