Brierley interview........the questions

 It's reported Richard Graham is unhappy with the new contract terms he's been offered, and that he could decide it's now time to leave Oldham. The defender, whose current four year contract is up on June 30th, was originally offered a six month deal, but this was later upped to one year after his agent intervened. But it is reported that if he agrees to stay he could face a 50 per cent cut in his basic wage. It is believed that the new deal is mostly based on a pay-as-you-play basis.
It is thought that the Latics have decided to err on the side of caution because of the 25 year olds injury problems over the last two seasons. In that time he has made just 30 appearances. The biggest blow for the former England under-21 player saw him miss nine months of the season before last after undergoing major surgery for cruciate knee damage. The pay-as-you-play contract would be no problem for Graham if he played regularly, but if he was hit by injury again he would find himself out of pocket. Graham admits to being hurt at his treatment and insists he has made a complete recovery from the knee injury that once threatened his career. The defender has already been told by the Latics that their offer is final and it has now got to the take it or leave it stage.

 The Latics have been delighted with season ticket sales. The offer of a 15 per cent discount before the end of May brought in tens of thousands of pounds in season ticket sales. The Latics currently have 234 more season ticket holders than last season.

Do you agree that the recent developments regarding the new stadium show a huge lack of foresight and a frightening level of incompetence by all concerned? Was this possibility ever considered and if so what measures were put in place to address it? If the stadium on Clayton Fields is dead, as it seems is true, what prospects does he see for the bankrupt, homeless, assetless Athletic in five years time?

Where Sports Park 2000 is concerned, wouldn't it be fair to say that OAFC are being bullied and rail-roaded into the venture, by the local council, and that the club is merely a passenger on the councils gravy train? Also, is there any idea of a percentage of all revenue raised by the new development, that the club might receive?

In the light of yesterday's news that Hull City were locked out of Boothferry Park by the bailiffs for non-payment of ground rent. And given that we are reported to be losing £1m a year, how close are we to being in a similar situation, now that we no longer own Boundary Park and that the new ground has been canned?

With the change of leadership in the local council having said no to the Sports Park 2000, why not stay at Boundary park and develop the George Hill stand etc., followed by the Lookers stand etc. later? Obviously the funding would have to come from some housing / retail development on part of what is now the car park / training ground areas. For a comparatively small club, as we are it would be best to proceed one step at a time and are not the two stands behind the goals more than adequate for the foreseeable future.

Given the new council leader has squashed the chances of building the new stadium on Clayton fields, which are the other two (private) sites supposedly under consideration and where does this actually leave the club now that they have already sold boundary park?

Are there any plans to buy back the ground from Hiretarget given the recent developments?

Is the club still ACTIVELY seeking additional backing from investors and if so how is this being done?

If the club was not managing to maintain healthy finances when we owned Boundary Park, and was moving further and further into debt, how is it envisaged that the finances will be in a better position with the additional outgoing of rent to the new ground owners? I understand that this move got the club out of financial trouble in the short term, but many of the press reports originating from the club insisted that the move was beneficial in the long term. What was the difference between the cost of the upkeep of the ground in comparison to the rent being charged by Hiretarget? And in any financial comparisons of the two options, how much was the benefit of owning the asset given? Banks etc. will be far less willing to lend money to an organisation without its major asset.

Leeds link up

Where any other club’s besides Leeds United considered and how did you decide to approach Leeds with the idea?

If the proposed Leeds deal is blocked are there any other plans to obtain additional sponsorship?
 
 

The Players

If we were able to offload a few players (e.g. Allott and McNiven) in the summer would the money be used SOLELY for strengthening the squad?

David Reeves has been mentioned as a target. Has any consideration been given to Marco Gabbiadini who is out of contract at Darlington and is looking to move on considering Darlington failing to gain promotion?

Given that Scott McNiven and Paul Allott have the same agent of Paul Gascoigne. And in the light of Richard graham's agent telling him to turn down what appears to be an eminently sensible offer from Latics, what does Mr Brierley really think about the effect agents have on the game?

Has any agent EVER recommended that their client sign a contract on first offer?

Which agents represent the Latics players?

Does anyone at the club know what happened to or the whereabouts of Oooh...Roger Palmer since he left the club? Oh, how we needed a (fifteen goal / season) replacement for him last season!

Is Andy Ritchie’s inexperience a concern? He appears to struggle to get players to join Oldham and he is often tactically naive. Cannot we afford another more experienced manager?

I am sure you will agree that Paul Jones is an excellent prospect for the future. Was it a Latics scout that first recommended him? How is the Latics scouting system operated and what is its budget?

The Past and the future

With the benefit of hindsight would you agree that the appointment of Graham Sharp as manager was a mistake and that one of the many experienced managers who applied for the position at the time would have been of better benefit to the club. I am thinking of someone like Howard Kendall who was said to have applied at the time.

What are your ambitions for the club during the next few years?

Have the "good times" in the late eighties and early nineties given Latics supporters unrealistic expectations of where a club the size of Oldham Athletic belongs?

Many of the long time supporters where very unhappy with the way they were treated in the top flight days and often felt they where marginalised by the club in preference for the "hangers on" and "Johnny come lately’s" almost all who have now deserted the club for pastures new. That period was a disaster in customer relation terms for the established supporter. Would you change the way things where done at that time?

Where do you hope to see the Latics in 5 years time? I.e. league position, attendance’s, ground capacity/location, and do you think your hopes will be fulfilled?

Does the club have a professional produced set of goals e.g. a 5 year and a 10-year plan. If so what are the
targets (are we just ambling along living or is there a definite target/objectives/performance indicator in
play for ALL areas of the club)?

What expectations does the board have of the forthcoming season? It is clear that many fans believe that next season might be the dawning in a turn of fortunes, but does the board follow the same attitude? And will any of the ambitions that the board might hold, be backed with a small financial investment to the transfer kitty?

The Children

I believe that Oldham Athletic offer free tickets to schools, allowing a number of children to see the games during a season. Couldn't this be increased? If a large number of empty seats around Boundary Park could be filled, extra revenue could be made, through the sales of refreshments, Latique goods, programmes and the possible conversion of youngsters supporting the Latics in the future. Even better, wouldn't it be possible to offer schools in the surrounding areas, a number of tickets, spreading the
OAFC catchment area even wider.

I have a 14-yr. old daughter who is a very talented footballer. Unfortunately, she has to travel outside the area to get a decent grounding in football. At present she is at the Stockport county school of excellence, where her coach is also an oldhamer. Do athletic have no aspirations in this area, as I see that Oldham Curzon are no longer affiliated to the club which is a shame as a great opportunity to promote the club in the community has been lost.

Inside the club

Does the club monitor the number of people who get into Boundary Park on matchdays for free? To my untrained eye there are many that know someone or are related to someone who does a job on matchdays and they "get them in for free". How about an audit, of everyone who shows a pass on matchdays.

Has the travel agency been a success in the Latique? On my frequent trips to the club shop they never have any customers.

How will the pitch recover in time for the new season?

Is there any plan to re-install the money-raising friendly, against Stalybridge Celtic in the near future?

Yourself

Have you read the Boundary Bullet-zine newsletter that Gary produces and what is your thought’s on it? Could any more be done to improve the Official Web Site?

Have you supported Latics ever since you were a boy?

Why isn’t there a blue stripe down the back of the kit!

By the end of your time as chairman of Oldham Athletic what are the main goals you want to have achieved?