'We Gave Him the Money and He Tossed It on Floor'
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40 SOUTH WALES EVENING POST T U E S D AY,J A N U A RY 24,2012 S WA - E01-S2 visit our website www.thisissouthwales.co.uk visit our website www.thisissouthwales.co.uk S WA - E01-S2 SOUTH WALES EVENING POST T U E S D AY,J A N U A RY 24,2012 41 Reserves Local hope run-out Jones set ‘We gave him the money and he tossed it on floor’ for action explains. “He either got for Ferrie GARETH something for the club by selling JUDO LLANELLI’S Fiona to us, or he ended up with Jones will be one of the FERRIE Bodde returns to nothing. A phone call came leading hopes for Wales at action for Swansea City’s VINCENT through to me and all he said was the Fighting Films reserves at West Brom today R E P O RT S something like ‘Do you want to Commonwealth Champion- as he continues his recovery buy a football club?’ ships at the Wales Millen- from more than three years DECADE on, “It was a worrying time, nium Centre this week. of knee injury problems. Tony Petty because I really don’t think he The 21-year-old competes Bodde kicked off his latest would probably would have cared if he’d walked in the senior section, with comeback attempt at away and left no football club Jade Lewis of Swansea Hereford a fortnight ago but argue —as he behind. another with high hopes in Adid when he left —that then sat out last weekend’s “The meeting that night started the junior event. practice match with Neath. he was good for around 7pm. I thought we would Competition gets under The Dutch midfield ace Swansea City. sign here and sign there and say way today with the Grand will play in this afternoon’s It was ten years ago today that a goodbye, but he was very difficult Masters, with the juniors in behind-closed-doors game dramatic, late-night meeting at to deal with and it dragged on action tomorrow. alongside Alan Tate, another Cardiff’s Copthorne Hotel ended until something like 11pm. “Judo has always been who is on the way back after with Petty throwing a pound’s “At the end, those of us who strong in Wales, but not very a long-term injury. worth of loose change on the floor were there —myself, Steve, Mel good at selling itself,”said A number of other senior and relinquishing control of the and Tim Jones (Nurse’s solicitor) event director Paul men will be involved, club. —had a whip-round to give him Williams. “When we bid for including Stephen Dobbie, The Londoner who lived in the pound he had paid for the club the event in Singapore in while new boys Rory Australia did not leave in the first place back. 2010 we had a vision for an Donnelly and Darnel Situ empty-handed —he walked away “We gave him it in loose change event that would make a real will also feature. with a supermarket carrier bag impact. Swansea Reserves: from stuffed with around £20,000 in “We hope we can make a Moreira, Alfei, Situ, Tate, cash. dent in the awareness of our Bodde, March, Dobbie, “I had held meetings with him sport. Welsh judo has now Bessone, Smith, Edwards, at the Vetch where he’d said he got an excellent reputation Donnelly, Thomas, Davies, wasn’t interested in selling,” in other countries.” Walsh, Elsey, Loveridge. remembers Steve Penny, a local solicitor and now a Swansea director who was there the night Petty finally walked. Ferry’s clash Clubs eye “Things suddenly changed. Eventually he said he’d had set for Friday Dobbie enough, that he would be leaving the country the following morning BRITON Ferry Llansawel SWANSEA City have and that he would like to pass have brought forward their received inquiries for control of the club over. home MacWhirter Welsh Stephen Dobbie —but are “Mel Nurse’s consortium gave League division three league yet to receive bid for the me a figure and we negotiated a match with Pontyclun to out-of-favour striker. price, but he said he was not going Friday (7.30pm). Blackpool are thought to to do the deal in Swansea. be keen on re-signing on “David Morgan and I dropped HELL How the Post reported CLEAR MESSAGE ‘You are the weakest link’. Swans fans let their feelings be known with a Dobbie, who had a stint on everything, we got the finances on the 2001-02 campaign. message for Tony Petty. loan at Bloomfield Road two arranged and drove to Cardiff to D011016/0071/JC years ago, while Bristol City buy the club.” and he just tossed it on the floor. have also been linked Penny, of John Collins and That was his parting shot.” many others doing the same. It perilously close to non-league reaching the Premier League had “We have had a few Partners, describes the method of WHAT ARE YOU DOING? Swans captain Nick Cusack questioning Tony Petty. The following morning, as Petty was a team effort, and thankfully football a little over a year later. he stuck around much longer. tentative inquiries about the payment as “slightly unusual”. D011010/4960/JC flew home, Morgan, Penny and Co we were able to keep The club were forced to do Yet perhaps the lows he availability of Stephen,”said Saying something similar about faced the media at the Vetch. professional football alive in things on the cheap for a time dragged Swansea to played a a Swans spokesman. the whole Petty reign would be TEN years ago tonight, a group of local businessmen “We were like rabbits in the Swansea. and they almost paid the price. part in inspiring the highs they tickets to “Clubs have obviously unfair. wrestled control of Swansea City away from controversial headlights,”Morgan remembers. “It’s incredible to think that “We were going from day to are experiencing today. seen that he has not played It was much more extreme than And Penny concedes: “The we are now a Premier League day,”Jenkins adds. “I don’t know where he is for a few weeks, but we have that. chairman Tony Petty, beginning the revival which has led press conference was an club.” “Nobody was ploughing in now,”Morgan says. WIN had no official bids from Petty had insisted when he took interesting experience for us. A debt of around £1.7 million millions of pounds to start us “But in a sense, he was the anyone and Stephen is still over at Vetch Field in October all the way to the Premier League. Here we look back on “We knew the club had severe —minimal now, but massive moving forward. All we had was reason why an ugly duckling SwansVChelsea regarded as a vital member 2001 that he was no white knight financial difficulties, but it then —had to be cleared by hard work, commitment and became a high-flying Swan.” of Brendan Rodgers’s who would pump big money into an incredible period with some of the key men involved. was only when we took Swansea’s new owners, hence belief in our club. squad.” the club. over that we found the company voluntary “We brought a bit of common Swansea City go in search of a vital Dobbie has struggled for He was not lying. to force him out by acquiring an Swansea player who became the did not fancy a final trip to out the extent of arrangement which came that sense into the way the club was Premier League victory when they WHAT IS THE NAME game-time at the Liberty Instead he took the cost-cutting £801,000 debt against the club and figurehead for those trying to South West Wales this time them. spring. run. We realised that everything take on the mighty Chelsea at the this season, and his approach, attempting to sack then calling it in failed in court. bring Petty down. ten years ago because he “I spent the “Everybody feared for the had to pay for itself, and that Q first-team chances have not seven players and slash the wages Petty won that battle by “But we came together as a city no longer felt safe in these next three long-term future of the club at started us on the path to where Liberty Stadium on Tuesday the 31st OF CHELSEA’S HOME been helped by the arrivals of eight others only seven days claiming he had £1 million of to make sure our football club parts. months that stage,”recalls Huw Jenkins, we are now. January 2012. of Josh McEachran and Gylfi after arriving in Wales. investment lined up, but there was survived. “The taxman was due basically work- a background figure as Petty was “I think we can all take a bit of GROUND? Sigurdsson. Within a few more days, the first no sign of the cash as the players’ “I suppose I played a big part in to come into the Vetch ing full-time toppled but one who would soon pride from the progress we have Only Manchester United have beaten Swansea Former Swansea boss meeting of the consortium which wages were not paid over that, and I am proud of what I the next day to seize for the club, become Swansea’s next made. on their own patch this season, and Brendan Kenny Jackett, meanwhile, would eventually oust Petty had Christmas.