Hammam: Missing fans costing millions
The article mis-calculated amounts of money being lost becuase of poor crowds. The paper claimed the club has lost £7.5m so far this season which of course is just not right.
Cardiff City responded with the following statement from the Official Website
An article in the Western Mail this morning, 30th of November 2005, and repeated in part this evening in the South Wales Echo stated that the current reduction of 2,000 in average attendances versus our budget of 13,000 has led to a reduction in our income of £7.6m to date.
This whilst a genuine error, is so inaccurate that we must put the record straight. Whilst our current attendances are extremely disappointing, especially given our performances on the field, per game an average reduction of 2,000 versus budget would result in a reduction of income of £600,000 over a whole season.
The Western Mail corrected themselevs in this article
Swans fans set the lead
Before that story had had time to settle down the Echo carried an interview with former Chairman Tony Clemo who was criticising the goings on at Ninian Park. Click link for story.
Clemo fears for club's future
While the paper was still on sale on the streets of Cardiff an official response was sent out from Peter Risdale.
His statement, that can be read here on the official site starts with
I read with interest the article in the South Wales Echo on the 1st of December 2005. It is interesting that now we are defying the doom-mongers who said we were favourites for relegation, jealous individuals with a chequered past come out of the woodwork and seek to criticise.
I am informed that Tony Clemo was a few years ago asked to leave the board room at Ninian Park due to inappropriate behaviour. Today he tries to pour scorn on our Football Club's achievements. Let us examine the facts.
.... click the link above for the full statement.
What this does to the manager and players I don't know.
6th in the table, a game tomorrow and at a time they should be being supported to the hilt it's off-field scraps that are dominating the headlines. I appreciate there are crowd level problems and financial issues that comes with low attendances but slagging off the club at the moment to me seems madness.