“It’s one of those amazing things in life that can make you feel shit one moment and then like it’s Christmas morning the next. It has the ability to make heroes and villains out of ordinary men. People love this game. My father loved this game. You all used to love this game. I’m sure of it. I knew this little boy, working class, from Richmond, and he loved football so much. He used to sneak into the matches because his family just couldn’t afford the tickets. One afternoon he finally got caught. The security guard smacked him round the face and knocked him on the ground but that little boy stood up, smiled, kicked the security guard in the bollocks and ran away. Never to return until twenty-five years later when he walked in and bought the entire club. And on his first day as owner, he went and found that same security guard and gave him a pay rise without any explanation. Just because we own these teams doesn’t mean they belong to us and I don’t want to be part of something that could possibly destroy a beautiful game because I would hate for all those little kids and grown ups out there to ever lose access to that beautiful, passionate part of themselves.”
