Sir Jack's legacy
There was one piece of news yesterday that really caught me (and, it seems, almost everyone else) by surprise - Jack Hayward's announcement that he's going to hand over the ownership of Wolves to someone who pledges to invest in the club and sell 25% of it to the supporters, effectively writing off £40 million and giving a multi-million pound business away for free. There have been no advance rumours of him doing this and it does appear to have surprised the club, the supporters and the media.
Hayward has put some conditions on the handover, though - he wants it to be taken over by an individual or consortium who are from, or connected to, Wolverhampton. There won't be an Abramovich-style takeover as he's stated he won't give the club to someone from 'antique lands' - a delightfully Haywardian turn of phrase, that. There is doubt about whether there are people who could meet his criteria, but I'm optimistic that even if there isn't an individual out there with the funds to be the new Hayward individually, there are enough people out there to form a consortium with the funds to do the job. One name I certainly expect to be linked with the handover is Robert Plant who's both rich and a devoted Wolves fan - I once read an interview with him that he'd play a gig anywhere in the world, as long as he didn't have to miss a Wolves game.
There's been a debate over the last few years amongst Wolves fans about what Hayward's motivations for owning Wolves were. Some argued that he saw it as a just another investment - this is the man who made his millions developing Grand Bahama and still lives there, after all - while others saw him as a benevolent benefactor, happily using his wealth to help his beloved football team get back to the heights they attained in his youth. It would appear that the latter side were correct and Hayward's statement, in which he described himself as just a caretaker, looking after the club for the benefit of the fans and the city of Wolverhampton, have been proven correct.
It would appear that Hayward sees the future for Wolves as being similar to the leading Spanish sides, such as Real Madrid or Barcelona, where the club is an organisation that's part of the culture of the city (with the members often electing the President) and those who invest in it are not necessarily doing it for the financial rewards, but for the prestige and kudos that comes along with it. With one of the conditions of the handover being that 25% of the club has to be sold to the fans, Hayward is certainly endeavouring to ensure that the fans and the people of Wolverhampton will have a stake in the future of the club.
What remains to be seen now, though, is who comes forward to take over the club and how much they'll be willing to invest. Jez Moxey, the club's Chief Executive, has been talking about having it sorted out by December, allowing the new funds to be invested in players during January's transfer window and should that be the case then the rest of the season could well be very interesting. For now, though, I'm just hoping we can finally get a win against Bolton this afternoon.
Hayward has put some conditions on the handover, though - he wants it to be taken over by an individual or consortium who are from, or connected to, Wolverhampton. There won't be an Abramovich-style takeover as he's stated he won't give the club to someone from 'antique lands' - a delightfully Haywardian turn of phrase, that. There is doubt about whether there are people who could meet his criteria, but I'm optimistic that even if there isn't an individual out there with the funds to be the new Hayward individually, there are enough people out there to form a consortium with the funds to do the job. One name I certainly expect to be linked with the handover is Robert Plant who's both rich and a devoted Wolves fan - I once read an interview with him that he'd play a gig anywhere in the world, as long as he didn't have to miss a Wolves game.
There's been a debate over the last few years amongst Wolves fans about what Hayward's motivations for owning Wolves were. Some argued that he saw it as a just another investment - this is the man who made his millions developing Grand Bahama and still lives there, after all - while others saw him as a benevolent benefactor, happily using his wealth to help his beloved football team get back to the heights they attained in his youth. It would appear that the latter side were correct and Hayward's statement, in which he described himself as just a caretaker, looking after the club for the benefit of the fans and the city of Wolverhampton, have been proven correct.
It would appear that Hayward sees the future for Wolves as being similar to the leading Spanish sides, such as Real Madrid or Barcelona, where the club is an organisation that's part of the culture of the city (with the members often electing the President) and those who invest in it are not necessarily doing it for the financial rewards, but for the prestige and kudos that comes along with it. With one of the conditions of the handover being that 25% of the club has to be sold to the fans, Hayward is certainly endeavouring to ensure that the fans and the people of Wolverhampton will have a stake in the future of the club.
What remains to be seen now, though, is who comes forward to take over the club and how much they'll be willing to invest. Jez Moxey, the club's Chief Executive, has been talking about having it sorted out by December, allowing the new funds to be invested in players during January's transfer window and should that be the case then the rest of the season could well be very interesting. For now, though, I'm just hoping we can finally get a win against Bolton this afternoon.
Nick got away with this at 12:59 PM
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