Ipswich Town shirt sponsor Marcus Evans
MARCUS EVANS DEBATE: Ipswich Town are fortunate to have their multi-millionaire owner, say fans
By Stuart Watson
Friday, May 11, 2012
10:26 AM
IPSWICH TOWN Football Club is still fortunate to have owner Marcus Evans.
That was the view voiced by a 66% majority of supporters polled on this website.
The Blues have gone steadily backwards since multi-millionaire Evans took over the club in 2007, with the last three league finishes being a disappointing 15th, 13th and 15th.
However, fans appear willing to look past that fact and evaluate how much worse the picture could have looked without his investment.
Manager Paul Jewell has another rebuilding job to do this summer following the departure of a number of players, with Evans keen to show patience following his quick-fire sackings of Jim Magilton and Roy Keane.
Both will have learnt lessons from their time at Portman Road, with fans hoping that their team will soon be stronger for all the recent pain.
“I know I have the support of Marcus,” said Jewell. “I have huge respect for him, the way he stuck by me when we lost seven games on the spin. It was a lonely old place and I appreciate him standing by me.
“Marcus Evans has not got where he is in life by making rash, trigger-happy decisions. Even when he gave me the job, I have learned since, there was a lot of people in for the job.
“He doesn’t do anything without considering it carefully. He is a bit different to me as I am more of a hot-head and reactionary. He makes a good point – try not to make a decision the day after you have lost a game or won a game. You have to make your emotions calm down.
“Marcus has thrown a lot of money at it and he probably thought he would be in the Premier League by now.”
– See today’s EADT (online version available at http://www.eadt.co.uk/home/e-edition) looks at both sides of the Evans debate. We look back on a decade in the Championship, speak to two different supporters’ clubs with differing views, as well as getting David Sheepshanks’ reflections on selling the club.
More Ipswich Town news
- Tommy Smith signs new Ipswich Town deal
- Mick McCarthy seeing red as new Ipswich Town kits are launched!
- Aston Villa prepared to offer £4.5m for Ipswich Town defender
- Ipswich Town gates are down but there is room for optimism
- Ipswich Town: New kits leaked on Twitter
- Bryan Klug can deliver academy success again, says former Ipswich Town youngster
- Andy Drury: I should have played more games at Ipswich Town
- Ex-Ipswich Town midfielder Ed Upson believes Yeovil can be competitive in the Championship
- Ipswich Town priced out of a move for Lee Camp
- Bobby Ferguson recalls the challenges he faced when replacing an Ipswich Town legend
ADVERTISEMENT
15 comments
Like I have been saying for some time it is far too soon to judge...Many clubs before us thought they would benefit from an "investor" (Pompey & Rangers to name but two both had "rich benfactors" Frank) only for things to go drastically wrong...The debt is now nearly £70m which wipes out practically every penny to be gained from a future promotion which looks way off in any case...There are also signs that ME is not keen to expose too much more of his capital in the form of loaning the club yet more money so I suspect he has realised just how dire things really are...Lets see what the next 5 years bring before we draw our conclusions as the jury is very much out but for me the signs are not good at all....
Report this comment
bluearmy78
Sunday, May 13, 2012
@Kevin Bailey: Frank can answer for himself, but as I understand it the debt was bought for £6.4M and is now accruing interest at about £2.5M per year. In addition, there was an investment of £8.1M in 7% preference shares accruing interest at about £0.6M per year and a further investment of £3.9M in ordinary shares. This adds up to a total investment of £18.4M accruing total interest of about £3.1M per year, ie a 17% return on the total invested. The £8.1M can only be repaid after being in the premiership for 5 continuous years and the debt can only be sold for it’s net cost (ie £6.4M plus accrued interest). Have I got this right? If so, is a 17% per year return on a speculative investment not unreasonable? It is speculative because, in practice, this money will only crystallise if the club is promoted.
Report this comment
Chris Hampshire
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Town have made to many errors of judgement during the Marcus Evans era. Jordan Rhodes is close to the 40 goal mark this season. Town cannot find a player that can score 20 goals a season. Goals are needed to gain promotion. A Director of Football is required at Portman Road. Not a CEO.
Report this comment
Neil Gedny
Saturday, May 12, 2012
This piece goes beyond irresponsible and does Town supporters a grave disservice. Nobody has the facts at their disposal to make any informed decision on your fatuous poll - while all the evidence available points to offshore invisisible ownership being bad for the club at every level. You should expand your platform to include the somewhat cloudy information available to shareholders like myself and Kevin Bailey who have been trying to see where the money is allegedly going for 5 years... and an analysis of how Evans' UK companies (of which Town are one) are actually doing. Here to there is no good news whatsoever. You may as well ask Town fans on how rocket science has fared since the club was gifted to Evans... I suspect you would get exactly the same meaningless answer.
Report this comment
Rob Steroo
Saturday, May 12, 2012
frank , i sincerely wish i could forsee a time when Jewel could turn around to his detractor boys and say i told you so , but with the best crystal ball in the world i just cannot see it , his policy on youth and inability to nurture youngsters are my biggest gripes with the man , and his appointment as manager is the biggest complaint i have of marcus evans tenure.,
Report this comment
KEVIN FRANCIS
Friday, May 11, 2012
Oh for some reasoned debate from the Toms and Cyrils on this board, rather than the ever-spouted mantras of 'whingers' and 'moaners'. Gentlemen, you have your heads so far buried in the sand that you should be able to watch Test Matches in Australia live.
Report this comment
Mike Wyatt
Friday, May 11, 2012
lets hope cleggy stayswith past form& lets PJ contract run out so we can get rid for nowt. PS. have no probs with evans,it would be nice if he donned a town shirt & scarf and mixed with the lads in sir bobby stand he mite feel what its like to be a tractor boy.
Report this comment
david peters
Friday, May 11, 2012
Old timer.....Megson turned the job down......otherwise he would have been here...
Report this comment
Kevin Bailey
Friday, May 11, 2012
Its funny Tom, you are probably on here more than most pushing your view. You are of course welcome to that view, but it is slightly hypocritical of you to try and bully others into not posting theirs...
Report this comment
I am Spartacus
Friday, May 11, 2012
Frank, please can you explain how buying £32M of debt for £6.4M, and then charging interest on the full £32M at 8% is ploughing millions into the club?
Report this comment
Kevin Bailey
Friday, May 11, 2012
Town are indeed very fortunate to have Marcus Evans as its owner and you only have to look at the Portsmouth's and the Rangers of this world to realise just how lucky we are! Some may argue that with his enormous wealth he should plow more into Ipswich Town but personally, I think for the moment at least, he has got the balance about right. Sticking with Paul Jewell convinced further e of his business prowess and that that he can see real progress being made - even if it is not to date reflected in results on the field. He is not putting the manager under pressure which gives him the opportunity to develop his ideas and lay down the foundations on which to build for the future. This will take time but the trick is not to panic. Let's get the building blocks in place first, to not only get to the Premier but also to stay there when we do.In Paul Jewell we have a manager who has done it before with two very unfashionable clubs so his pedigree is good.Only through continuity can we seriously expect to progress. Sadly however, time for a football manager is something you normally don't get a lot of but in the proud traditions of this wonderful club, I sincerely hope that Paul Jewell is here for a very long time and then Marcus Evans can modestly boast, "See...I told you so!" And so will I!
Report this comment
FRANK WESTON
Friday, May 11, 2012
I just want our club to be pulling in one direction again. I would’ve preferred that we hadn’t lost the close-knit family club we had but then there’s a lot about football generally I would’ve preferred we hadn’t lost but it is what it is now and I still want to see us succeed so we have had to adapt. Personally I have no problem with ME and like others have seen the mess made by owners at other clubs and the destructive effect that has had on them. Perhaps we should be grateful that what represents a crisis at this club is that we’re still stuck in the Championship rather than starting life in the lower leagues with points deductions or even worse going to the wall. HOWEVER, after years of investment we should have got to a position where we should be at least challenging for a place in the PL and the fact we’re not speaks more about those around him and the decisions taken. He’s not immune from blame but I truly believe he needs a footballing man to advise him, not SC whose footballing knowledge – at least before he came here – seemed tantamount to those friends we know who try to have conversations about football but only because it is fashionable. He needs someone who knows about this club, who holds respect amongst those in football that will still run this club as a business but also as a football club. Yes, we need to adapt to modern football but as the English game is now waking up to we also need to learn from past mistakes and successes. For ITFC that means we need our youth system now more than ever before and reject the expensive PL hand-me-downs. So yes, I am happy with ME but he needs someone alongside now who will heed these lessons.
Report this comment
Mike Rotch
Friday, May 11, 2012
We may be fortunate to have ME as owner ???? However this does not mean that his decision making is necessarily correct. Firstly despite various disagreements on this site I have yet to see anybody actually supports the appointment of Clegg. As regards Jewell opinion is divided but I would suggest the vast majority feel he has failed. When ME made the appointment he said he wanted a manager who had experienced 'both success & failure' I have 2 problems with this thinking - a) it would exclude such men as Ferguson & Wenger & more realistically b) would it not be better if the successes were more recent than the failures ?? Any triumphs at Bradford or Wigan have long since been overshadowed by the debacles over which he presided at Wednesday & Derby. Jewell seems intent on reliving his former glories by replicating what he done before - whereas the game has moved on & he seems unable to grasp this or move on himself. He still hankers for his Dads Army philosophy to succeed & bases team selection purely on who sweats most in training. l would dearly love to know who were the other people 'in for the job' when Jewell was appointed - which may give a better indication of ME's acumen at choosing the right man. We may indeed be lucky to have him as a backer - but this is a football club - that's our business & as he was never going to be hands on he should have appointed shrewd football people to run the club on his behalf. Clegg has shown a staggering lack of understanding for all things football - while Jewell is a dinosaur living on past glories lumbering around confused as evolution passes him by & a new breed of young hungry players & managers take over.
Report this comment
Old Timer
Friday, May 11, 2012
Cue attempts by the whingers to discredit the poll and label fans as sheep who stick by the team and realise that being backed by a multi-millionaire owner is ever so slightly preferable than going bust. Glad to see that two-thirds of people agree with the likes of me, Cyril and not others on here who, often at great length, repeat themselves endlessly as if their view is one shared by the majority.
Report this comment
Tom
Friday, May 11, 2012
The truth is, if Marcus Evans did not invest in Ipswich this club could of folded. Fans should think there selves lucky that we have a club to support. There have been other clubs that have folded due to money problems. I know things haven't gone the way we would like them but I'm sure our glory time will come. Come on you blues!
Report this comment
Jason Pilbury
Friday, May 11, 2012