Ashley: May be fat, but not a “Cockney”Has Mike Ashley reduced Newcastle United’s debt?
Hmmm.
Well, it has been several months since Newcastle United published their last set of audited accounts at Companies House (March 2011), and that was for 2009/10. However, at that time it did appear as if the debt had actually risen significantly, though it is hard to deny that the the club are in a somewhat less perilous position finacially since Mike Ashley took over the club from the gruesome twosome, Freddy Shepherd and Douglas Hall.
In June 2007 when Ashley finally gained full control of the club, it looked as if the club was £71 million in debt, however, after Ashley’s takeover, it became apparent that the mortgage on the ground had to be paid off, and the level of debt was actually £124 million. More details are available from the site NUFC Finances site.
In the last published set of accounts, published in March 2011 (for 2009/10), they revealed that the club’s net debt at that time stood at around £150 million, most of this figure being owed to a certain Mr.MJW.Ashley of Totteridge, Hertfordshire. It also revealed that despite a slightly misleading statement by Newcastle United in May 2010 which read: (more…)
Unwavering support.Yesterday evening I attended a fan meeting at The Irish Bar. It was a bit weird being in the Irish with 20-20 vision but once I got used to sobriety, we began discussing the items on the agenda.
In that meeting were some of the online elite of Newcastle United fan reporters. Malcolm Dix, shiteseats, Newcastle United Mad, MAOC, Steve Wraith and various other supporter groups. Myself, naturally, being the guest of honour.
Joking aside, the meeting in total lasted around 3 hours or so and we discussed a good few things and especially regarding the supporters group, the club, campaigns and various other things.
This article is primarily to bring awareness to certain fans. My notes are actually subjects for articles and I feel I’d be doing some of them a disservice given the weight of some of the points that were made. (more…)
“Get ’em off Mikey boy.”As published in today’s ‘People‘ newspaper, this is a photo of Newcastle United’s proud and dignified owner, Mike Ashley, doing a striptease and flagellating himself to Tom Jones’s “You can leave your hat on” from the soundtrack of “The Full Monty” film.
According to the newspaper, Ashley was pictured at a birthday celebration for a Sports Direct employee at a Chinese restaurant near the company’s headqurters in Mansfield. It reported that:
“As he undressed, workers yelled “More” and “Get ’em off Mikey boy.”
Then quoting from a reveller at the Ash bash, it read:
“Mike was in great form. The DJ started playing that song and all the blokes were egged on by the girls.
“Mike was one of the first up, to applause and cheers. He didn’t think twice about stripping, especially as he’d sunk a few pints.
“Mike gets stick from some people but he’s a brilliant boss.”(more…)
21 - but who's our ace?Newcastle United names a 21-man squad for official notification to the Premier League.
Newcastle United have named a 21-man ‘official’ squad for the season, as required by the Premier League. Rules state that up to 17 of the squad can be anybody (although preferably a footballer), whilst the remainder – up to a maximum of 25 players in total – must match so-called ‘home-grown’ criteria. Players under the age of 21 can be played anywhere and anyhow and do not need to be included in the list passed to the Premier League.
Midfielders: Ben Arfa, Cabaye, Guthrie, Gutierrez, Marveaux, Obertan, Raylor, Smith & Tiote.
Strikers: ShAmeobi, Ba, Best & Lovenkrands.
However, we can additionally use any under-21’s (specifically, they must have been under 21 on 1st January 2011) for ‘free’, which includes the likes of: Santon, Abeid, Vuckic, Ferguson, Gosling, Ranger and Sammyobi. (more…)
Passion, pride, loyalty - NUFCI’ve spent much of the morning nursing a hangover after yesterday’s debacle, and trying to organise my thoughts and come to some decision on what on Earth happened in the past few months.
Like all of you, I’m racked with disappointment, anger, frustration but most of all betrayal. We pay our hard earned cash for the privilege of watching those 11 lads play in the black and white stripes, to sing our heart out and ultimately to support the club we have stood by for so many years. There was one time when hell or high water wouldn’t keep me away from the Cathedral on the Hill that so dominates our skyline and now I’m finding it a struggle to check the news of a morning to find out how the board of Newcastle United are going to insult the loyal Geordie nation.
My daily routine is fairly basic. I wake up late morning, make a cup of tea, come back to my computer and check the usual blogs, News Now and then start checking my emails. Depending on the events, I’ll plan out an article for publication around evening time. During the transfer window, my phone becomes my greatest friend and I often don’t even wait to get on the computer to see what’s happening at this wonderful club. (more…)
