My cousin (once removed) Peter Donoghue almost took over City but the deal fell through at the last second

[The perfect fumble]

I'm going to email City about having a statue of Peter put up in the laundry room.....

We've had enough sports washing thank you very much.

 

[BillCarlisle]

I'm going to email City about having a statue of Peter put up in the laundry room.....

I'm sure that would be a lot of Comfort for the family.

 

[ancoats]

we would have been a bigger soap opera

 

[KS55]

I think I’d have preferred a fridge magnet to Swales!


I will back up the story of Peter Donaghue (spelt Donoghue in the MEN and so that’s how it appears in my books). He set up a group that wanted changes in the boardroom and his determination to change things increased when it was revealed that City’s vice-chairman had gone to Old Trafford to ask for a merger!

I‘ve covered all of this in a few books (probably Farewell To Maine Rd is the best for the story). Ultimately pressure from Donaghue and his backers killed off the merger talks BUT (and this is where there’s a sliding doors moment which in this case may still have led us to where we got with Swales) two of Donaghue’s group were Michael Horwich and Chris Muir. They were two of the key figures who in 1970 (after we’d won the ECWC & League Cup that year) launched a takeover claiming City was not as successful a club as it ought to be. The takeover was bitter at times and ultimately broke up Mercer & Allison; ended the Alexander family direction; brought Swales in and (apart from 76) killed off our successes! Horwich & Muir (plus Ian Niven) were very much Allison fans and one of those three even had a superior tone and the audacity to tell the 21 year old me when my first book came out about City that Joe Mercer had ’done nothing for Manchester City. It was all down to Allison, so why do you even have a photo of him in your book?’

That man also pushed Swales to bring back Allison in 79.

Maybe if Donaghue had succeeded though those others would have been supporting figures rather than leaders. I’d love to know why Donaghue didn’t form part of the 1970 takeover. He seemed to have a good grasp of things.

I knew Peter quite well. We had a few bevvies together over the years. Derby day at Maine Road was always an excuse for a big party at Peter’s. He lived in Ladybarn Crescent at the time. I always got home well pissed. After the laundrette trade he invested in property but lost a good deal of his paper profit in the property crash of 1970’s.
He was quite astute in business. He once showed me a packet of the very early computer chips, saying that they were going to revolutionise the world. Some thought him mad but he was not wrong.
Sadly Peter was very Ill later on and died in the 80’s iirc.

 

[Mad Eyed Screamer]

I knew Peter quite well. We had a few bevvies together over the years. Derby day at Maine Road was always an excuse for a big party at Peter’s. He lived in Ladybarn Crescent at the time. I always got home well pissed. After the laundrette trade he invested in property but lost a good deal of his paper profit in the property crash of 1970’s.
Hw was quite astute in business. He once showed me a packet of the very early computer chips, saying that they were going to revolutionise the world. Some thought him mad but he was not wrong.
Sadly Peter was very Ill later on and died in the 80’s iirc.

Thanks for that. I certainly never met him unless he saw me as a baby! He could have been at my grandmother's (his aunt) funeral in 1981 but I wasn't introduced.
Did he have any children?

 

[KS55]

Thanks for that. I certainly never met him unless he saw me as a baby!
Did he have any children?

No, I don’t think so. I got to know him about 1974 and he was not married then or later.