This is an excerpt from this week's Claret and Amber Alert, a free Motherwell newsletter written by Graeme McGarry that goes out every Thursday at 6pm. To sign up, click here.
So, the Claret & Amber Alert is back after a couple of weeks off. Did I miss anything?
With the greatest of respect to new signings Kofi Balmer and Tom Sparrow, and even the hideous Dundee United-esque training kit that has been released, the main news of course is that the proposed investment from the Barmack family has reached the point where it is to be put to the club’s shareholders.
The ‘Well Society immediately poured scorn on the deal, with dissenting WS board members resigning their positions, and urged its members to vote against it. Erik Barmack took to Twitter, and even the messageboards of Pie & Bovril, to defend it. And the rest of us were left to mull over the best course of action in what is a critical moment in the history of the club.
Or, more accurately, in the future of the club. Because the way this vote pans out will shape the direction of Motherwell in the coming years, and the club’s identity.
Personally, I have taken a pride in supporting the first fan-owned top-flight club in Scotland, and this deal threatens that status. Make no mistake.
I have teed up an interview with Erik Barmack to discuss the detail of his plans for Motherwell, so it is only fair that I allow him that platform before forming a view of whether or not he is the sort of investor we want to be involved in the club.
He seems personable, approachable, and willing to listen to the concerns of supporters, recognising that while he is now clearly passionate about Motherwell FC, the club has been a way of life for many of the people he is preaching to for generations.
What was immediately worrying for me at first glance though is that this deal would dilute the ‘Well Society’s shares to 46 percent, leaving Barmack’s Wild Sheep with 49 percent, and five percent with private shareholders. Crucially, the relatively low investment of £300,000 in the first year would give Barmack not only the chairmanship of the club, but a deciding vote on the board too.
Leaving aside what seemed a criminally low valuation of the club, this meant that at the end of six years, Wild Sheep would invest £1.95m to gain effective control of Motherwell. The Society’s gripe, justifiably so, is that they would be asked to contribute almost an equal amount – including the writing off of loans to the club – to see their shareholding drop from the current 71 percent to a minority stake.
I won’t go into the minutiae too deeply here, because the information is all out there in the public domain, but as I have said in previous newsletter, the loss of the ‘Well Society’s majority shareholding represented a red line for me. And I’m sure, many other supporters.
Reading between the lines of Barmack’s social media output, it seems though that – hearteningly – there may be wiggle room on this point.
Barmack’s contention was that as 51 percent of shares would still be with ‘fans’, once the five percent of outstanding shares were added to the ‘Well Society’s eventual 46 percent, that this would still leave Motherwell as a fan-owned club. An assumption that was misguided, in my view, and one that is at odds with how many fans would see it.
He seems to recognise this now after the outpouring of criticism that has come his way, and I wonder if there is a way forward where Wild Sheep accept a smaller shareholding, and the ‘Well Society retain 51 percent.
Such a deal, I believe, would certainly be more palatable to supporters, and would likely find widespread support. Because I do believe there are a great many ‘Well fans out there who are open to what the Barmacks have to offer, with their energy, ideas and the connections they have seeming to represent a refreshing opportunity to grow the club’s revenue.
The ‘Well Society has in the past made mistakes, and could certainly have been run more efficiently. The great irony of course is that with an executive board that seemed at odds with the WS board now taking their leave, and with new impetus behind the WS with their own refreshed board, this would seem a perfect time for them to really show what the WS can do for the club.
If Barmack really does see the fan ownership status of the club as a hugely positive thing – as he has said on numerous occasions – then I hope that he will go back to the drawing board and come up with an arrangement that actually reflects this, by ensuring the ‘Well Society remain as the majority shareholder. And that he works with the Society towards what is surely the common goal – a prosperous future for the club.
Minds should remain open, but the deal in its present form, is one that I would struggle to back.
