It's not like that at all.
When SISU took over the club, while the rent was too high, it was still relatively managable and so was not prioritised. The priority at the time, I believe, was restructuring the club, bring balance and value to the squad on a budget and to get to the Premiership. I think we'd all agree that at the time, we were in desperate need of all three of those. Next on the priority list was aquiring a share of the stadium, but I definitely remember RR saying that this would come once we achieved Premiership status.
The trouble was that, despite having a young, bright and balanced squad, we hired Chris Coleman to manage the team. That was the first error, and SISU have been firefighting ever since. Not to mention the economic downturn.
The butterfly effect. As gates fell, SISU and the club continued to instil their faith in inadequate jokers such as the Skill Set board, Boothroyd and Thorn; costs grew, income fell and the liklihood of Premiership football and stadium ownership fell with it. The need to address the rent was one of the first items Fisher said we needed to do in his first interview in the match day programme as interim CEO.
Now whilst I agree, witholding the rent and then going all out for ownership at whatever cost wasn't the best way to go about things, it's a little more complicated than that of a hard up tenant in a flat.
Things change - environment, people, circumstance - I'm surprised people haven't noticed that. As things change, as do priorities - any parent will tell you that. Things that were affordable, suddenly are too much.
ACL refused to negotiate with City because they thought the alternative was unthinkable. Well, they thought it and then acted on it. ACL tried to play hardball with heartless capitalist venom, with no feeling for sentiment or community and have ended up losing the club for us.
Coventry City Council are here to protect us as a community, instead, their greed has lost one thing that unites us all and cost me and my daughter our favourite activity to do together.
SISU are capitalists, this is what they do - it is to be expected (not agreed with or condoned) of them.
Coventry City Council are meant to protect the interests of the people, not their own.
Whilst I hate SISU for what they've taken from us, we have to accept that this was a risk when getting into bed with the devil. What I can't forgive, is a socialist local authority for ripping up a community for the pound sign. Maggie would have been proud
What a load of rubbish, what circumstance changed for sisu,? what do you mean the rent wasn't prioritised , you can not sign agreements and then just rip them up, if I asked sisu last year half way throu the season for my season ticket back beacause my priorities had changed do you think they would give me my money back? How correct that means the 300000 or so people that don't go to the ricoh not the 10000 that did or the 1500 now
The majority of the city has been affected by this. Local businesses (Of whom Labour claim to have the best interests of), relatives of City fans... anyone who has a memory of HR or the Ricoh. The local economy, and the coal face staff at both the Ricoh and the club.
A football club is way bigger to its community than just those who attend match days.