Clarke Osborne

[dawlishmatt]

Well all you people who doubted Mr Osborne and his motives for our beloved club, I wonder what all the critics of him are thinking now? Mr Osborne had a five year plan ending in Torquay United being a successful football league club. As we are about to enter year 3, and after the blip of relegation during his first year, wow what a transformation we have seen throughout the club. Behind the scenes we have George Edwards running the club, a newly established youth set up, the best manager in the lower leagues by a country mile and a backroom full of staff that most league 1 and 2 clubs can only dream about. Added to this we have achieved stage 1, as promised by Mr Osborne of bouncing straight back to the conference premier ( or whatever it's now called) at the first attempt. We know that up until June 2018 Mr Osborne had pumped around 1.5 million pounds into the club and early indications are that the accounts for the year ending 30th June 2019 will show a similar loss.
Following today's news of 4 new signings, it is clear that Torquay United football club are very serious about winning the league this season. If Torquay fail to gain promotion then it will be a damn good team that wins the league this season. If Torquay fail to gain promotion this season, then the last person in the world you can blame is our chairman and owner Clarke Osborne.

[Southampton Gull]

Still thinking exactly the same. The real positive is a proper manager using his contacts to obtain the services of young prospects.

How many of our squad are proven at National League level? It might look great on paper but in reality we're full of players who walked a part time league.

Nice to see you still trying hard to champion the merits of Uncle Clarke though.

[Jerry]

We know that up until June 2018 Mr Osborne had pumped around 1.5 million pounds into the club and early indications are that the accounts for the year ending 30th June 2019 will show a similar loss.

This is the important part of your post and frankly it bloody terrifies me!

[MellowYellow]

If Torquay fail to gain promotion this season, then the last person in the world you can blame is our chairman and owner Clarke Osborne.

I don't think anyone is going to blame CO for us not gaining promotion, in fact his expectations may be higher than ours. From a business perspective I think he has done a fantastic job and I think we are all just enjoying the success and long may it reign. That said, given the initial known agenda of CO you will be hard pushed to eliminate the reservations.

[brucie]

Things seemed to have moved upwards since Edwards replaced the Fat Waddling Duck.

Osborne may not know anything about football but it didn't take too long for him to suss Harrop out did it?

Yeah we walked a fairly rubbish league in all honesty and its going to be far more difficult this time around but you can hardly complain about the signings.

Kalala, Reid, Edwards, Evans and Andrews are football league players - and that's just off the top of my head.

[dawlishmatt]

Southampton Gull. That is the sort of comments I expected from you. I respect and understand your opinion on Clarke Osborne as you have quite correctly stated he has destroyed many sports teams with his agenda. I can only go on and am only interested in what he has done and will do in the future as owner of Torquay United.. Apart from one blip, can you please tell me just one negative under his ownership?

[DWB]

Southampton Gull. That is the sort of comments I expected from you. I respect and understand your opinion on Clarke Osborne as you have quite correctly stated he has destroyed many sports teams with his agenda. I can only go on and am only interested in what he has done and will do in the future as owner of Torquay United.. Apart from one blip, can you please tell me just one negative under his ownership?

Totally agree Dawlishmatt there are always those that ‘have their own agenda’ I for one am enjoying the here and now and long may it continue. Is it not the usual for football clubs to go through ups and downs, just look at the likes of Bury, Bolton and Notts County to name a few. Some people are never happy!!

[grockle]

This is the important part of your post and frankly it bloody terrifies me!

Other clubs in this Division are making even larger losses. Chesterfield have just had a "loan" of £2 million written off by their owner, but they still owe him nearly £10 million. We have all read about financial problems at Gateshead, Ebbsfleet, Notts County, Yeovil in the past 12 months. Look at the problems in the Fl as well, Bury, Bolton, Macclesfield, etc., Coventry not in Coventry, and it puts things in perspective. If Mr. Osborne did decide enough is enough, and pulled out we may find ourselves in a similar position. Until then, let us enjoy the most exciting football I have seen at Plainmoor in decades.

[MellowYellow]

Other clubs in this Division are making even larger losses. Chesterfield have just had a "loan" of £2 million written off by their owner, but they still owe him nearly £10 million. We have all read about financial problems at Gateshead, Ebbsfleet, Notts County, Yeovil in the past 12 months. Look at the problems in the Fl as well, Bury, Bolton, Macclesfield, etc., Coventry not in Coventry, and it puts things in perspective. If Mr. Osborne did decide enough is enough, and pulled out we may find ourselves in a similar position. Until then, let us enjoy the most exciting football I have seen at Plainmoor in decades.

Valid point!

[Plainmoor78]

This is the important part of your post and frankly it bloody terrifies me!

In order to recoup the loans he has made he will have to include them in the asking price when he sells the club and quite frankly I don't think anyone would pay it.
It's not Osborne's fault that the club was financially unstable when he acquired it, but I would be concerned about the future. If we don't start turning a profit in the foreseeable future it could be curtains, but has the club ever made a profit?
I think this is the very last chance the club has to try and secure its future but if can't or Osborne can't get his hands on some development land then that will be that.

[dawlishmatt]

Although I 100% am in support of what Clarke Osborne has done for the club thus far, I am not stupid. Clarke Osborne is a multi millionaire businessman who has made his money by being ruthless. He said when he purchased the club that he had little knowledge of football and his agenda is to me very clear. Osborne isn't bothered about investing several million into the football club and seeing a return on his investment. I believe that he will eventually sell the club at a huge loss. Mr Osborne will make his millions out of his new stadium plans and housing developments in Torbay. Putting it another way, it's worthwhile loosing 5 million pounds in Torquay United if he ends up making 20 million quid from his real agenda. I also believe that Osborne will give the club away to his friend Peter masters who tried unsuccessfully to purchase the club a few years ago.

[Southampton Gull]

Totally agree Dawlishmatt there are always those that ‘have their own agenda’ I for one am enjoying the here and now and long may it continue. Is it not the usual for football clubs to go through ups and downs, just look at the likes of Bury, Bolton and Notts County to name a few. Some people are never happy!!

Be careful what you wish for.

I've said plenty of times that I'm enjoying the here and now BUT I'm not fooled into thinking everything in the garden is rosey.

I have no agenda other than wanting a secure future for the club I've supported my whole life. A few loan signings and failures at other clubs hasn't got me fooled. I would love nothing more than to be totally wrong about Osborne but history strongly suggests I'm not. In fact there's zero evidence to suggest I am.

As for the notion that Osborne soon realised the Fatman was out of his depth is nonsensical as relegation and a piss poor start made the penny drop when most on here saw it way way before.

I'll enjoy the type of football Gary Johnson has us playing but let's not kid ourselves into thinking the leopard has changed its spots. If it walks like a duck it's probably a duck........... or Geoff Harrop walking to lunch.

[Forest gull]

I stand corrected. I questioned his motives, and his track record. But he has delivered all we could ask for. Before people say the players walked a part time league etc, it is King Gary that has chosen the players. I believe in Gary and thank Clarke.

[Southampton Gull]

Kalala, Reid, Edwards, Evans and Andrews are football league players - and that's just off the top of my head.

None of those listed have proven themselves in league football which is why we've got them. I do agree that most would cut it at a higher level eventually but let's not be fooled into thinking any of them are the finished article.

I've always seen a player in Reid ever since he joined but he's had one decent season in regional football. That doesn't make him a league player. I love the fact you're happy with the playing side as am I but there's a couple of million reasons to be fearful at the same time.

[Teigngull]

And with the backing GJ has got from CO, would KN achieved similar? I very much doubt it myself