And just when you thought it was all going swimmingly again, it’s all kicked off. And typically, I’m on deadlines, so I’ll try and flesh this out as much as I can in a short space of time. I’ll go into it all in more depth when I can, but for now you’ll have to make do with this. Apologies for any wrong ends of the stick, I haven’t really proof read this.
Firstly, Kris is gone. Or, if you want to be more formal, the CEO has stepped down from his role. Read all about it here. If I’m being honest, I can’t say I’m massively surprised. Not at anything blindingly obvious as such, but for the recent period, something hasn’t been right. I mentioned it last year quite a bit, and it’s been rearing its head again since this season’s began.
Actually, I wouldn’t have said that Kris would have been the first major figure to step down at AFCW. In fact, he would have been one of my last choices. Mind you, when you think about it, AFCW has been a massive pressure cooker within the past four years. Whether it’s just time to move on, or tempers have been frayed I don’t know.
Speaking of tempers frayed, looks like Vicky and Dennis Lowndes are gone from the club. It appeared to all come to a head Saturday, in public no less, for what reason we don’t know. Or at least don’t know sufficiently to put it down as gospel. Now, these people have been at AFCW since the start, so again it’s a bit of the end of an era.
The one thing that intrigues me is how this has all come about together quickly. In the past week I’ve seen some pretty vocal infighting (to put it mildly) on the SW19 guestbook and elsewhere. It’s been suggested that it’s been going that way ever since Mr Smith entered the building for some fun. It’s certainly true that it couldn’t have continued like it had, and if it puts the club down on a calm footing (with a bit more oomph than it’s generally shown recently), that’s only a good thing.
Also, and probably coincidental, a review of how the club operates was announced in the programme this weekend (what do you mean, you don’t read it?). Personally, I reckon none of this is totally out of the blue. Kris leaving will certainly force a re-evaluation of how the top brass is structured.
So, now what? Well, we’ll need a new CEO (if we feel the need for one still), matchday secretary and kit man. Unless somebody can put up with the manhours for diddly squat, all three will need renumeration. The CEO certainly will, anyway.
One final thought for now, I wonder if anyone has already gone to Wimbledon Bookmakers and asked for odds on who will be the next club official to quit……?
Anyway, see you at Slough. At least I won’t be the only one unable to concentrate on the game 🙂