Biggest mistake City have ever made?

[Gary James]

I'd also like to add that Thaksin did have a longer term plan for City. Not 20 years maybe, but at least 5. Anyone who sat in meetings during that time (which I did) will have heard him talk of his ideas to turn City into a global club (some ideas were very crazy, but others could have worked).
It was only when his assets were frozen that he struggled financially and was unable to do what he had planned to do.

What were his crazy ideas?

Read "Manchester The City Years" (I covered his time in detail in there) - one included creating a 'ManCity' cologne ('the scent of the Blues'). Probably would've smelt of the old Kippax!

 

[Tourist since 1971]

To my mind, it must be the break up of the Mercer-Allison working relationship. See Gary James' post on it above. Whether it was ultimately down to mismanagement, or Allison's ego and ambition could be argued. However, if the club could have come up with a long term plan for a sensible handover both Joe and Mal would have been happy with we could have seen a lot more success from what was a truly great team.

 

[maxwellblue]

Allowing Swales into the boardroom had to be the biggest mistake. That set the scene for 30 years of shit.

Gotta be this

 

[Gary James]

When I interviewed Quinn he said it was City's own announcer who told Ball the wrong information and that Quinn told him he was wrong, but the guy was adamant he was right (I quoted the full story in "Manchester The City Years").

That is possible.I was at the game and i think the guy in question with the radio was in the Main stand right at the front near the corner flag,by the Platt lane.Everyone was crowding around him and we had the ball in that corner.I remember people shouting down there and the players looking at the commotion.Word spread we needed a draw.He was too far to get that information to Ball[the radio man] but it would have filtered through to the players in the corner.

Quinn said he was watching a monitor in the dugout area and knew specifically the score but Ball trusted the announcer's version - even though there was a proper monitor nearby with the facts on it.

-- Thu Mar 14, 2013 1:27 pm --

To my mind, it must be the break up of the Mercer-Allison working relationship. See Gary James' post on it above. Whether it was ultimately down to mismanagement, or Allison's ego and ambition could be argued. However, if the club could have come up with a long term plan for a sensible handover both Joe and Mal would have been happy with we could have seen a lot more success from what was a truly great team.

Joe's own view of events will be shown at the film show I'm hosting on 26th April at Cornerhouse - details will be announced at the end of the month. We've uncovered an interview done with Joe on the day he left and can quite clearly here who he blames (not Malcolm) and what his own views were (he wanted Malcolm to have the job).

The film show will also include lots of interviews with Book, Allison and Swales on the period 1979-1980 when Allison returned. These are chronological and knowing what we know now it is very easy to spot why Allison's return went wrong.

(none of these clips have been seen since originally broadcast - they're not from the Granada documentary).

 

[paulchapo]

When I interviewed Quinn he said it was City's own announcer who told Ball the wrong information and that Quinn told him he was wrong, but the guy was adamant he was right (I quoted the full story in "Manchester The City Years").

That is possible.I was at the game and i think the guy in question with the radio was in the Main stand right at the front near the corner flag,by the Platt lane.Everyone was crowding around him and we had the ball in that corner.I remember people shouting down there and the players looking at the commotion.Word spread we needed a draw.He was too far to get that information to Ball[the radio man] but it would have filtered through to the players in the corner.

Quinn said he was watching a monitor in the dugout area and knew specifically the score but Ball trusted the announcer's version - even though there was a proper monitor nearby with the facts on it.

Typical City fuck up all round,though radio man played his part too in getting the wrong information through to the players and crowd.It wouldn't have mattered anyway as i doubt we would have scored another goal,but who knows?

 

[woolleyback blue]

Selling the club to Thaksin Shinawatra.

Didn't that lead on to the sheikh tho or is that a myth?

It's a myth. He nearly scuppered the sale to ADUG rather than facilitating it.

Allowing Swales into the boardroom had to be the biggest mistake. That set the scene for 30 years of shit.

THIS X1000

 

[paulchapo]

When I interviewed Quinn he said it was City's own announcer who told Ball the wrong information and that Quinn told him he was wrong, but the guy was adamant he was right (I quoted the full story in "Manchester The City Years").

That is possible.I was at the game and i think the guy in question with the radio was in the Main stand right at the front near the corner flag,by the Platt lane.Everyone was crowding around him and we had the ball in that corner.I remember people shouting down there and the players looking at the commotion.Word spread we needed a draw.He was too far to get that information to Ball[the radio man] but it would have filtered through to the players in the corner.

Quinn said he was watching a monitor in the dugout area and knew specifically the score but Ball trusted the announcer's version - even though there was a proper monitor nearby with the facts on it.

Typical City fuck up all round,though radio man played his part too in getting the wrong information through to the players and crowd.It wouldn't have mattered anyway as i doubt we would have scored another goal,but who knows?

 

[spanish blue]

This is beyond doubt Swales was the top one hundred of biggest mistakes no other comes even close

Agreed and he was responsible for a whole host of bad decisions,like Allison's second coming for one.I think he rubber stamped Allison's first appointment as manager too,which meant Joe Mercer left us.If anyone is in any doubt as to how shambolic we were run at that time,watch the old granada documentary they did on us.

Swales was only in power because of those who had launched the 1970 takeover - Muir, Niven, Horwich, Smith & Cussins. For years he had virtually no shares (10 I remember) and they could have removed him any time they wanted. One of them suggested bringing Allison back (according to Swales) but he was not influential when Mercer stepped aside for Allison. He was in all the years that followed however. Around 1983 after relegation he bought his first really significant volume of shares, but was still not a majority shareholder.

Those that kept him in power, for whatever reasons, have to shoulder much of the blame.

Joe Smith was my dads bestfriend and bought Joe's shares in the 80's. My dad also tried to buy Peter Swales shares I can't remember the exact year but Peter agreed to sell them and step down from being chairman, the day the deal was to be done he changed his mind and it was the beginning of the end for my dad as a director. I always wonder what would have happened if the deal had gone through.

 

[Ladybarn Blue .]

Selling Balotelli

This is the one for me .

 

[peoffrey]

Selling Balotelli

This is the one for me .

I don't want to threadjack about Balotelli but I don't agree. He made little contribution this season and blatantly wanted a move away. Selling Balotelli is the biggest mistake ever? Rubbish. Absolute rubbish.