So I just sat and had a half hour meeting with Graham Whittaker.
For what it’s worth, I appreciate him taking the time to meet and, using his own words, “you wouldn’t get an opportunity like this at Man U” and he’s dead right.
He began the meeting by addressing the main point of my email, his qualifications to represent the fans. He talked passionately about being a fan, that he offered his services to Bonser before now and heard no reply. That his first meeting with Pomlett was in hospitality at Northampton Town away first game of his reign.
I pointed out I appreciate that, and genuinely believed him to be a fan, but that didn’t answer my question. My question was why was he qualified to represent the fans. He said that it’s a trial position and that we couldn’t go through the CVs because of absolutely everyone who would apply for such a position. On my reaction he asked me what would qualify him. My answer was somebody who could believably be critical of the board, and not hand picked by the chair man. He insisted that he makes the chairman aware of any criticism he sees of the club and questions them himself as a passionate fan.
He mentioned the rent and that we start every season at minus £500K. I pointed out, while I appreciate that, in the very first Q&A which I attended, Leigh Pomlett pointed out we were very much in the majority paying rent and that we actually got a good deal and that some fans get too hung up on it. I acknowledged that I actually agreed with Pomlett but that meant I wasn’t willing to accept it as an excuse.
The next point in my email was season ticket refund and that he’d misunderstood the point about losing games. I reiterated it was a tongue in cheek request but was actually to do with feeling lied too by Leigh Pomlett about our aims, ambitions and methods of achieving that. Pointed out when you say you have a top 10 or 7 budget people will expect that to be reflected in the playing squad. Beyond stick with us he couldn’t offer much else on this point.
I acknowledged that on the pitch wasn’t really his realm but I did question the long term thinking behind sacking your manager 9 days after the transfer window closed. He pointed out that was Fullartons decision. I asked him why Taylor went and not Fullarton. He said because Fullarton was brought in to create continuity at the club instead of having managers walk out, like Clarke. I asked why the man brought into the club for continuity repeatedly left massive holes around his squad. He started talking about Devante Rodney and how that was a signing scheduled for the summer brought forward because of the need for him, I cut him off and said the less said about Devante Rodney and bringing in injured players to solve problems now, the better. I asked why we’d gone until January with one 36 year old left back. He responded with Zac Mills. I said he’s barely a footballer never mind a left back, but if we viewed him as such we wouldn’t have brought Devine in, and if we did view him as such that leaves us short at right back because you’ve got 1 player covering two positions. I pointed out after losing both Khan and Phillips we’re now short of wingers and we only have one striker. He said Khan just didn’t want to stay what could they do? I asked him if the deal offered was as good as Leyton Orient, he said he didn’t know but it’s not always about money. He said we don’t have one striker we also have Conor Wilkinson. I placed a steady hand on the table and explained Conor Wilkinson is a wide player, who is terrible every time he plays as a striker. He’s scored one goal centrally, the rest while playing as a winger.
He spoke about social media conduct and that it’s demoralising for players and staff to receive replies like “f*** off” or “get out the club” to anything they post, and considering that Jamie Fullarton believes confidence is the main issue with performances, that this wasn’t helpful. I responded to this by pointing out its 2022, that is the world we live in. Is it right? I don’t know. I’m not going to sit here and say I haven’t done it, but that’s passion. And that is what leads to protests like you will see today. He said he sometimes believes the club has become too open because of the abuse they receive, despite he himself telling the board multiple times upon his appointment that it wasn’t open enough but the abuse has just gone off the scale. I said there’s only one way to fix that, and the protest and that is to stick by some of the things Leigh Pomlett says in his Q&As and to turn it around on the pitch because unfortunately, social media is what it is. He asked me if I thought it was right the ticket office girls even cop flack and I said no, but that’s passion and you can’t account for everyone.
Finally he reiterated the need for fans to stick with us and that they are genuinely trying to do the right things for this football club.
I thanked him for his time and reiterated that no, you wouldn’t get this at a football club like Man United and he spoke like a passionate man and I didn’t doubt his claims at all about his intentions from speaking to him.
I only had this meeting at his request not mine, so I wasn’t expecting anything to be answered or solved. However I do feel that at least he understands what I and some other fans might have problems with, something I couldn’t say before todays meeting.