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Guest Nairn Saint
Posted
I don't care who he is, but surely health is more important than what we think of Gretna. I hope he is able to recover from his illness and gets well soon.

Second that Dunc.

Posted
He comes across as a guy who genuinely loves the game so i for one hope he recovers. I think he made an error in the choice of club though.

Why? I dont think it mattered what small club he pumped his cash into, we'd still have hated them for it! He could've chosen Arbroath or Stenhousemuir but they'd still have essentially no fanbase and we'd still have called them the new livi, a poor experement etc etc

Posted
Why? I dont think it mattered what small club he pumped his cash into, we'd still have hated them for it! He could've chosen Arbroath or Stenhousemuir but they'd still have essentially no fanbase and we'd still have called them the new livi, a poor experement etc etc

That is highly offensive to Arbroath and Stenhousemuir who can still pull decent crowds for big games. Gretna are on a level well below any other team in the SFL, and were not existant to us until 5 years ago.

Posted

Hope Mileson recovers but it shouldn't mask the fact that the entire set up at Gr£tna stinks. Weekly paypackets that can only be signed by one person, absolutely no work done on the new stadium and a team that spent big to rise up through the leagues but left their ground with facilities a junior team wouldn't tolerate.

What gets me is that they have a chief exec and an operating officer any yet still dont have basic processes in place to handle mileson's illness. And its all fine and dandy for the players to come out and say they'll pay for nothing, it's the office staff and the folk that don't have SPL paypackets that will be more concerned with how to pay their bills.

We'll no doubt again be accused of sour grapes by the meedja but at the same time given what happened with Livi, Dundee, Well etc isn't it time both the media and the authorities started taking these clubs to task about their structure and ability to survive in the modern game?

In the meantime I hope we all remember to ensure Mr Irons gets a nice wee reminder of how loyal he was to the Gr£tna cause!!! :)

Posted

We'll no doubt again be accused of sour grapes by the meedja but at the same time given what happened with Livi, Dundee, Well etc isn't it time both the media and the authorities started taking these clubs to task about their structure and ability to survive in the modern game?

Spot on. Sometimes when I read the papers or listen to the radio I think we've been the bad boys for not spending or as they (or Sandy Clark) put it "not ambitious". It's a bit like advising an unemployed guy to take a mortgage on a house valued at £100,000. At one point the cash flow will hit you. It could only happen in football. I think the Gretna holding company will have sufficient funds to pay their back payments but the club doesn't seem to be set up as a business on its own, no new stadium, playing at Motherwell where both clubs have ruined the pitch over the winter, low revenue from home gates, and the release of most of the key players who took them to the SPL.

Posted

What really irks about this is that we all knew it was going to happen, yet the media has followed their progress with nothing but one-sided praise, and has blasted anyone who dares to criticise them. It's practically identical to what happened with Livingston, and no doubt it'll happen again with someone else in the future. Basically, another club has got away with cheating their way to success, while Saints play things by the book, keep their house in order, and suffer for it. Geoff Brown has taken huge amounts of stick for speaking about Livi and Gretna's folly, but both times he's been correct.

I find it incredible that Gretna's wages come literally out of Mileson's pocket each week and there seems to be no actual business structure in place for them to run independently. That's bad enough at the best of times, but considering Mileson's health has been deteriorating quite publicly for a long time, it beggars belief that this has been allowed to happen.

I pity their staff, who like the staff of Motherwell, Livi, Dundee etc before them are now paying the price for the way their employers conduct themselves. But I don't pity the club. And, on the subject of staff, I remember there was a thread on here maybe a year or so ago when somebody listed the ridiculous numbers of employees and crazy job titles that Gretna had on their books. Many on here questioned even then how they could possibly be affording this. I think some people even claimed it showed how ambitious the club were, and that Saints should be doing the same thing. I'm sure everyone's glad at times like this that Saints don't follow the "Gretna model" though. They'll pass us again soon enough when they're on their way back down to obscurity.

Posted
Gretna FC Non-Playing Staff

Honorary Life President

Tom Kerr

President

Brian Fulton

Chairman

Ron MacGregor

Vice Chairman / Secretary

Helen MacGregor

Managing Director

Brooks Mileson

Chief Executive

Graeme Muir

Operations Executive

Craig Mileson

C.E Secretary & Events Coordinator

Karen Jackson

Press Officer

Jon Tait

Merchandise Manager

Sandra Howey

Office Manager

Lynne Hampson

Catering Manager

Claire Dalrymple

Stadium Manager &

Health & Safety Officer

Mark Hampson

Head Groundsman

Paul Barnett

Assistant Groundsman

Phil Smith

Kitman

John Bryden

Club Photographer

Alan Watson

I.T Officer & Website

Keith Melvin

Admin & Merchandise Assistant

Lauren Campbell

Manager

Rowan Alexander

Assistant Manager

David Irons

Reserve Team Manager

Andy Smith

Director of Club Development

Mick Wadsworth

Director of Youth Development

David Holdsworth

Academy Director

Viv Busby

Academy Centre Staff

Lee Maddison

Tom Cowan

Head of Youth

Danny Lennon

Education & Welfare Officer

Bobby Patterson

British Scout

Ray Farnigham

Senior Coach

Derek Collins

Goalkeeping Coach

Andy Jackson

Club Consultant Physio

Marion Hamilton

Sports Therapist

Michael McLaughlan

Masseur

Billy Bentley

Youth Sports Therapist

Susan Pollock

Youth Administrator

Angela Busby

Community Coaches

Kevin Summerville

Paul Menlove

Darren Edmondson

To be fair it's good that Gretna have given all their supporters a job.

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