Chairman Martin Ron rambles incoherently - EXCLUSIVE TO ALL PAPERS

Chairman Martin Ron rambles exclusively and with erratic punctuation to the Southend Afternoon Echo Sportsdesk The decision I have had to make today was a very hard call but one I instinctively know is correct and in the best interests of Southend United Football Club's chief shareholder, South East Lesiure Ltd's chief shareholder Dawn Martin plc's chief shareholder, Martin Ron. Most people associated with the Club are currently thinking of “the day out” at Wembley. The 7th April will be a Special Day, a day in the Club’s history….a day for the Town of Southend and a day for the manager, who I have invited along as mascot (provided he pays for his kit - note Paul that doesn't say kilt!) I too will look forward to “our day out” but as Chairman my responsibility and focus must also be on the wider interests of “Martin Ron”. The primary objective last season and again this season was get the fans off my back. The Manager and Players have understood that from the outset. We came up short last season in the Play Offs and the recent results against relatively low League teams such as: o Accrington o Barnet o Wimbledon o Plymouth and o Torquay have not been good enough…..2 points out of 15 by any standard is poor. ALL these Teams’ tax bills are settled considerably earlier than Southend United’s and 4 out of the 5 teams are around half of what I or my numerous chief executives (has the latest one quit yet? - MR) have invest in “its” Squad by imposing marquee signings like Freddy Eastwood and Neil Harris in an attempt to fill seats. The amount of investment in these players must be one of the fundamental criteria for success – otherwise I could argue that by cutting the Clubs budget in half we should still expect promotion. Our investment has enabled the Manager to build a squad both last year and this year of having more, quality, players at his disposal than most Teams in the League. Therefore in the event of injury or suspension other players were readily available to “step up to the plate” and prove themselves. Except when I sold Kane Ferdinand and we had only one central midfielder for the start of the season and were under embargo so we couldn't get anyone in. All Teams in football have injuries and when that has happened at Southend we have "supported" the Manager too late. The Board has recently sanctioned an additional six players (5 loanees) to help maintain the challenge at the top end of the Table, although let's not too many questions about why Ben Reeves and Tam Mkandawire's loans did not go through in time for the Wimbledon game one of the games I say we should have won. However the form, just as it did last season, has dropped off when it should have been pushing for automatic promotion - it was almost as if the new players didn't have time to settle! Let’s be clear, promotion should always be a realistic prospect for Southend United in League 2. We are not a League 2 Club even though we have played in the basement division for much of the club's history. Promotion has always been the first priority except when we desperately needed to beat Orient in the Area Final in order to get the Wembley gate receipts needed to pay off the tax-man before our latest visit to the winding up court and so the Manager rushed back from injury his two most experienced defenders who subsequently ended up missing the rest of the season and the Manager has always known that. If one knew nothing of football one could reasonably expect to win all the above games and that would have seen us currently 2nd in the League Table…even 12 points would have seen us in the Automatics. So we're obviously not that far off and the margin between success and failure is fine. However with just 2 points out of 15 when judged against that arbitrary selection of 5 games it ignores that we won away at high flying Port Vale during that period and have taken 5 points from the last 15 obviously still not great but not sufficient to be sacked hence the random choosing of those five matches out of context. Paul Sturrock’s three year contract comes to an end this season and The Club will not be renewing Paul’s contract. Paul’s first year was difficult after I tied his hands behind his back but the last two seasons he has had a free hand to achieve the clear objective of getting the Club out of this League with only the one tied behind his back - at least most of the time. No matter how much I personally wrestle with the positive arguments (Paul is experienced, a nice man, honest and likeable) and is better than the alternatives named so far my responsibility is to myself and the disappointing season ticket renewal numbers which leaves me short of cash. If the Club were to appoint a different Manager during the Close Season the new man would have no opportunity to assess the ability of the current squad of players in, and crucially, a competitive environment. That would mean that we would start next season with uncertainty, inevitable changes and a loss of continuity as he got to grips with each players ability (strengths/weaknesses), the individual characteristics and how those temperaments mould within the squad as a whole. Instead, with the season over we will see the players compete in midtable games with nothing riding on them and suffer from a lack of continuity next season after the new man brings in his own signings. The next 7-8 games (at least) is an opportunity for the players to prove their ability. After all, one can change a manager on just 5 games in nearly three seasons so 7-8 games is plenty to judge players. I have not lost faith in this Squad, they are good people who haven't griped when I've paid them late, with talent and many capable of playing at a higher level and who will no doubt now walk away at the end of the season to do so. I would like to keep much of the Squad together but it is now up to each and every player to prove beyond any doubt that my faith in the new Manager, is not misplaced. The Club as I say above will not be renewing Paul’s contract at the end of this season and will appoint a new Manager tomorrow to ensure interest in season ticket sales are protected and tickets are sold in advance both now and from the first day of next Season. They say “there is no money to be made in football” I do not agree, we are all human and have to understand the emotions influenced by our decisions. The decisions here are, as I say at the beginning of this Statement, driven by the wider interests of Southend United…..its success and growth whilst remaining conscious of what is fair and just. These may not be sentiments consistent with what I've done but it is the way I want this Club to be run and you don't get a say. For all these reasons I have suggested to Paul he leads the Team out and manages them at Wembley. He has earned that privilege and agreed to be mascot for the day. Martin Ron Chairman