Well, after that press conference I don't know whether I am reassured or worried ! Sisu have pumped in £8m to keep the club afloat until the end of the season as the club loses £6m a year. Presumably the money will be used to service the existing debt, pay off some of the creditors and to subsidise the club until the summer.
Just before the conference began, the news broke that former chairman Ray Ranson had quit as consultant. He had intended to stay on as a football consultant until the end of the season, but now he has severed all ties with the club. It was also announced the the new Chief executive Officer (CEO) of Coventry City would be Paul Clouting who was formerly at Derby County.
The new chairman Ken Duleiu opened the conference by apologising for the very poor communication between the club and the board. In this he is right, the club have been woeful in keeping those who love the club informed of what is going on.
While it is understandable that all and sundry should not be told any sensitive business information, it is at the very least good public relations to keep the fans up to date this board room decisions and why they have been taken. The continual drip, drip of rumour, innuendo and misinformation can only lead to suspicion and animosity which, in turn will lead to fans staying away fro The Ricoh.
The money came from Sisu, not from outside investment, so does that mean that Sisu don't want outside money or they can't attract any? Any substantial investment in Coventry City would mean that Sisu would have to share and money when they do relinquish control and it may mean that whoever puts in a lot of money will want their say in how it is managed, which means a seat on the board which they have struggled to rid of those who opposed their strategy.
All of what was said revolved around the short term future of the club, there was no long term strategy mentioned at all. So we can be confident that the club will survive until the end of May, but what of beyond?
The bold statement that the club was not for sale was also not reassuring. Presumably the statement was meant to emphasise that Sisu are committed to staying at Coventry City for the foreseeable future, but it could also mean they intend to continue running the club as it has been since they took over with the emphasis on running a business rather than on the footballing side, which does not bode well for those fans wanting to see competitive and entertaining football.
The promise to buy The Ricoh prompts me to ask whether that would be for the benefit of the football club, or to be used purely as a capital raising asset in a similar way that the Ryton training ground has been re-mortgaged? No mention was made of how any prospective purchase would be funded, or even if the current owners had anything to say on the subject.
There are no plans to place the club in administration, but that was never going to be an option of Sisu unless forced upon the club, they would stand to lose too much money by doing that and Sisu don't like losing money. If push came to shove, they would have been more likely to liquidate the club and sell their assets and if they do buy all, or part of The Ricoh Arena, this would add considerably to the property portfolio.
No mention was made of how the club was going to be turned round to stem the losses and where any investment in playing staff would come from. On a positive note,all those directors at the press conference did seem to be singing from the same song sheet, so hopefully there will be no more power struggles in the board room so there will be a period of stability.
The new board were very damning about previous boards which will not go down too well with Coventry City fans as Joe Elliott and Gary Hoffman have been fantastic servants of the club for much longer that Sisu have been around. Whether or not there is any truth in their opinion that previous directors were not up to the job, it was very poor public relations to publicly demean the likes of Messrs Elliott, Hoffman and Mr Ranson, all of whom had the very best interests of Coventry City at heart.
The positives that come out of the press conference are that the board say they will improve the communication with the fans. This should go some way to reducing uncertainty among the fans and hopefully reassure them that the club is in good and safe hands. Whether it will remains to be seen.
The club is safe from the spectre of administration, in the short term any way.
The board have issued statement of intent to buy all or part of The Ricoh Arena and that can only be good news for the long term survival of the club, so long as the property is not used a tool to raise loans or sold as a capital asset.
The negatives revolve around the lack of long term plans, more essentially what plans do Sisu have for next season, player contracts, new manager, other than confirmation that Andy Thorn and Stephen Harrison have applied for the managers job.