By Nick Mabey.
Tough times at St Mary’s continue with a run of form that led to the departure of the manager (thus answering the puntastic question as to whether Will Still will still be in charge at the end of the season).
At what proved to be his last game, a depressing 2-0 home defeat to Preston, the crowd saved most of their vocal criticism for the owners of the club “Sports Republic get out of our club” and “Sack the board”. This is both understandable for a fan base that has endured a torrid last eighteen months, and at the same time risky.
Sports Republic, a newly created company, bought an 80% stake in Southampton in January 2022 from previous majority shareholder Gao Jisheng and his family, who had owned the club for the previous four and half years. Gao had owned up to not having any money and the club was run efficiently but on a tight budget. Sports Republic arrived with an aim to create a multi-club company with Southampton as it’s pyramid-topping cornerstone (mixing metaphors but hopefully you get the point). The Saints are now one of four clubs in the stable and the owners seems as committed as they were at the start of their venture.
The cause of the current dismay among fans seems to be not about the investment in, or vision for, the club – but the ability of the board to deliver the outcome we all want. Their judgement has rightly been called into question, particularly over the recruitment of the first team coach, as well as transfer strategy. We’ve had eight mangers since Sports Republic took over if you include caretakers, which is an average of one every five months. Hardly a recipe for success. It’s much worse if you remove Russell Martin’s tenure from the equation and discount Ralph Hassenhutl, who was already there when the owners took over. The remaining six managers have been in charge for a grand total of 75 games, of which 15 were won. It’s depressing and it’s easy to point the finger at those who appointed them.
My concern though is that getting rid of owners is not like firing failing managers or transferring/loaning out poor performing players. The only way owners go is if someone buys them out. And the last thirty years is littered with owners who severely damaged, and in some cases destroyed, the clubs they were responsible for. Much as it pains me, I’m also thinking of April 2009 and our own journey into administration and near bankruptcy. We were rescued by our saviour, Marcus Liebherr, and put back on an even keel. Perhaps our fans believe something similar will happen again if Sports Republic sell out, but I see that as naïve wishful thinking. Just ask Sheffield Wednesday what ownership issues in 2025 feels like.
So, to my fellow fan I say be careful what you wish for.
Thankfully things have stabilised in the last couple of much-needed wins. The atmosphere, with regard to Sports Republic and individual directors, remains febrile, at least on line where keyboard warriors are watching carefully as to how they go about filling the manager seat. My wish is that fans stick with the current owners. I still believe in the aims and the ambition. Of course, hold them to account for the quality of their actions, but my fear of what happens if they sell outweighs my anger at their seeming incompetence in the area of recruitment.
Talk of boycotting games and other such protests might just end up dragging us down a road we live to regret.
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