Former Billericay owner Glenn Tamplin takes over Romford FC

[Dulwich Mishi]

Presumably you mean a 'respectable' level for a club with a support base & stadium like Hereford FC, and not a generalization on Step Five?

 

[bringbackelmo]

I don't think it's sad at all. They didn't pat their bills, and went bust. Re-formed as a community club, and are having to work their way up.

I feel saddest for any local traders who lost money by not being paid by the badly run defunct Hereford United FC.

Where they are now? From what starting point? They are a new club.

I can assure you it's pretty sad as a fan. I completely agree about the old club not paying its debts of course, but we weren't a case of spending beyond our means in the Tamplin sense. We simply had a totally inept owner who refused to sell the club to the Supporters Trust and instead passed it on to a bunch of crooks. That was the beginning of the end.

We are now in the Southern Prem after two promotions in the first two years. Would be amazing to see us up at Champion Hill in the Conference South in the next year or two!

 

[Pink Panther]

Billericay have set themselves up to be talked about, and given the increasingly bizarre antics going on at the club, then I think there's nothing wrong with talking about it.

That's the key really. Margate were proclaiming themselves as ambitious and prepared to spend big to get what they wanted a few years back, but their first priority was to bring in a big name manager with a great track record and just let him get on with it. That all looked fairly sensible other than the size of the wage bill.

What's happening at Billericay seems insane. When Mr Tamplin showed up early this year and started bringing in big money players with Craig Edwards still as manager, the weekly wage bill was reported at £9K. But instead of just letting Edwards get on with building a side that could win the league this year he put himself in charge and tried to buy instant promotion via the play-offs, and by the end of the season the bill was reported as £24K a week, with deadline day signing Jake Robinson costing a £20K transfer fee when they could have had him for nothing a month later. Robinson was only on the bench for Saturday's defeat and the wage bill has now escalated to £30K. No doubt all the current players are on contract and if more bad results occur even more money will be spent and more new players brought in, leading to an enormous squad with out of favour players turning up for training and going through the motions to collect their wages, because other clubs won't be offering them a way out for the same money.

Someone on Hendon's forum posted a link to a blog article by Nikki Bull, who was Margate's keeper during that era and eventually became manager when the wheels fell off. I found his comments very insightful as to what it's like in a dressing room where everyone inside and outside expects you to win every week. He says he's never enjoyed a season less, even though they eventually won promotion via the play-offs:

My time at Margate – where do I start?

 

[bringbackelmo]

Presumably you mean a 'respectable' level for a club with a support base & stadium like Hereford FC, and not a generalization on Step Five?

Of course, I have respect for clubs at all levels. It's not even a comment on Hereford's fanbase or (crumbling) stadium. We are where we are.

I just mean in the sense that it's nice to be able to go to what I would describe as 'proper' grounds and play against good quality sides. Again, no disrespect intended to Steps six and seven but we haven't lost an away game for two years. TWO YEARS! We all like winning but it isn't that much fun when it's a procession.

 

[Poids]

Someone on Hendon's forum posted a link to a blog article by Nikki Bull, who was Margate's keeper during that era and eventually became manager when the wheels fell off. I found his comments very insightful as to what it's like in a dressing room where everyone inside and outside expects you to win every week. He says he's never enjoyed a season less, even though they eventually won promotion via the play-offs:

My time at Margate – where do I start?

Thanks so much for sharing that. One of the best pieces I've read about non-league in a long time. Really heartbreaking stuff. Hope he has better luck with his next role. He seems like a decent and principled bloke.

 

[SDE]

What a great article that is!

 

[editor]

Wise words from a poster on the Lowestoft Town forum

Tamplin is throwing crazy cash about and turning the whole thing into a circus that's all about him, him, him. Instead of putting money in and building the club up in a sensible, gradual, sustainable and ultimately respectful fashion. That's why people are being very critical of him and the club as they're showing a complete lack of respect for themselves, their supporters, their opponents and non-league football.

Plus they claim to be building a community and family club. However, if you see the language Tamplin has been using in public and the way he conducts himself; it's laughable. If I had a child, I wouldn't want them anywhere near the club or this guy. The club and Tamplin have completely gone about it the wrong way and it WILL end badly at some point. Either when he gets bored of his toy thing or realises that it's harder than he thinks to just climb the leagues. Ask whitehawk, Salford, etc.

Let's hope tomorrow night we can do as Kingstonian did and claim another victory for non-league football.

Lowestoft Town FC Fans Forum - Billericay (H) 15/08/2017

 

[Jimbob73]

Have you seen Glen's Ferrari picture today!? I have to check that it's him posting now rather than a spoof site as it's almost impossible to tell. He is the Essex Donald Trump, without the nukes and hair

 

[Scolly]

"Classy moment by Tamplin at the end, giving the middle finger to all the Lowestoft supporters. What a classless prick!!" Lowestoft Forum .................

He's going to love us Saturday


We’re The C*nts in Your Jungle – Billericay Town (A)

 

[pinknblue]

And here's a right twat:

Rodney, you plonker!

 

[editor]

"Classy moment by Tamplin at the end, giving the middle finger to all the Lowestoft supporters. What a classless prick!!" Lowestoft Forum .................

He's going to love us Saturday


We’re The C*nts in Your Jungle – Billericay Town (A)

That's a bloody good piece:

But Billericay are different, and that’s due to the very unusual nature of their benefactor, Glenn Tamplin, who isn’t like the other monied owners we’ve seen before at this level. One of his first major investments was to have a giant mural – or “muriel” as he prefers to call it – painted along the outside wall of the main stand. Its largest feature is a gigantic and genuinely disturbing representation of Glenn himself, in bed, having his epiphany of investing in Billericay in order to “win trophys” [sic] and “get to professional leagues”. The small detail that he first tried to buy a completely different football club – Dagenham & Redbridge – in order to realise his dreams is mysteriously overlooked. The point being that these are very much his dreams, rather than his dreams for Billericay Town Football Club. His first major decision as owner was that he would become first-team manager, making highly-respected and successful gaffer Craig Edwards’ position untenable. Billericay’s loss was fortunately Kingstonian’s gain, as Edwards moved to Kingsmeadow and masterminded a great escape from relegation at the end of last season, before plotting his revenge this year. Meanwhile, Tamplin began signing new players for ‘Ricay in numbers, and on wages, that have never been seen at this level of English football before. In addition to a host of top quality non-league talent such as Billy Bricknell, this summer saw the signings of Jermaine Pennant, Paul Konchesky and Kevin Foley, all of whom need no introduction. The Non-League Paper has estimated that ‘Ricay’s wage bill may be as high as £30k per week – something Tamplin denies, completely missing the point by saying that “nobody is on over a grand a week”. When Kingstonian’s wage bill is about £3k per week in total, having one single player on a grand a week puts Billericay’s spending into perspective. There may never have been such a colossal disparity in any league between one club’s wage spending and the others.

This spending is of course totally pointless: a good manager could easily win the league with a third of the budget, meaning that Tamplin is pissing his apparently hard-earned money up the mural, as it were. It almost feels like he’s spending such ludicrous amounts of money simply because he can – like the classless millionaire in a West London club spending £10,000 on a mediocre bottle of champagne. But what leaves a really sour taste in the mouth of owners, players and fans of other clubs in the Isthmian League is his total lack of respect for the competition, who don’t have the advantage of ex-Champions League and FA Cup finalists in their starting elevens. He has said that ‘Ricay would be top all season and anyone who (however respectfully) disagreed was a “hater”. He has said that Billericay are going to “smash this league”. He puts his pre-match team-talks up on Twitter to show what a great leader he is – of course, all they show is an angry, ranting man whose most insightful piece of advice to his clearly embarrassed players is “DON’T LET ANY CUNTS IN YOUR JUNGLE!”. Anybody who asks him to show his peers more respect is labelled a “sad keyboard warrior”. And, most critically of all, he thinks that football at this level is so tinpot that he – Glenn Tamplin, with no footballing experience – can manage a team to the title without losing a match.

And this is what I've feared ever since that idiot took over:

Some of the locals, the kinds of losers drawn to watch Billericay this season only by the certainty of victory, didn’t react particularly well to their bubble being burst by a proper non-league football club and a proper non-league football manager. A young Gary Monk look-alike and his mates even took the brave step of trying to start a fight as they were walking out, and then seemed surprised that people might take them up on their offer.

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

And this is what I've feared ever since that idiot took over:

They had a few of those before tbf.

 

[editor]

They had a few of those before tbf.

There was a couple of muppets when I went there last season when they thought they were going to stuff us, but before that their crowds were so non-existent and quiet I can't imagine anyone getting into bother.

 

[Lucy Fur]

"Classy moment by Tamplin at the end, giving the middle finger to all the Lowestoft supporters. What a classless prick!!" Lowestoft Forum .................

He's going to love us Saturday


We’re The C*nts in Your Jungle – Billericay Town (A)

to the tune of kim wildes kids in america perhaps....
"we're the cunts in your jungle....woah!
We're the cunts in your jungle....woah!
Everybody listen to the sound of kerching!
la la la la la, la la la la la
Kerching!"

 

[EDC]

It's laugh a minute on Twitter tonight regarding the lions Muriels in the dressing room. I've given up trying to do anything else.

 

[vornstyle76]

Does anyone know or have any inkling whether Tamplin is paying for everything via loans to the club? I always wonder that when people say at least he's building infrastructure. There's a huge difference between being given, say, Football League standard training facilities and having to suddenly pay for Football League training facilities when you're in Conference South.

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

Does anyone know or have any inkling whether Tamplin is paying for everything via loans to the club? I always wonder that when people say at least he's building infrastructure. There's a huge difference between being given, say, Football League standard training facilities and having to suddenly pay for Football League training facilities when you're in Conference South.

I'm not sure it matters that much to be honest. It's not like a Premier League club where he could try and actually recoup the loans - if he pulls out they're bankrupt regardless of how it's been structured financially.

 

[Dulwich Mishi]

I'm not sure it matters that much to be honest. It's not like a Premier League club where he could try and actually recoup the loans - if he pulls out they're bankrupt regardless of how it's been structured financially.

Not if he 'gifts' them as 'donations' rather than 'loans', either from an individual or a 'shell company'.

If my six numbers ever came up I would never offer 'loans'. I would just pay for things as 'gifts'.

All VERY hypothetical I know, as I very much doubt I'll ever have the six numbers come up!

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

Not if he 'gifts' them as 'donations' rather than 'loans', either from an individual or a 'shell company'.

If my six numbers ever came up I would never offer 'loans'. I would just pay for things as 'gifts'.

All VERY hypothetical I know, as I very much doubt I'll ever have the six numbers come up!

Normally I'd agree with you - usually what happens in that case is that the club needs to have a painful reduction in its spending but they can keep going, where with loans (which are banned now at higher levels) they can be in trouble. At Billericay though I'm pretty sure the gap between their income and assets and their (even very short term) commitments is too large for them to be solvent without him continuing to put in the cash, regardless of the building. I doubt they could cover Pennant's wages for a week tbh.

 

[YTC]

He's really outdone himself today.

 

[editor]

He's really outdone himself today.

That's disgusting.

 

[Cyclodunc]

he was skating on thin ice already re: his social media behaviour non?

 

[editor]

Love the blood splatters. Very tasteful.

 

[Joe K]

Not if he 'gifts' them as 'donations' rather than 'loans', either from an individual or a 'shell company'.

If my six numbers ever came up I would never offer 'loans'. I would just pay for things as 'gifts'.

All VERY hypothetical I know, as I very much doubt I'll ever have the six numbers come up!

I think if your numbers came up you wouldn't try and buy several other clubs first; if you were to invest millions in/ donate millions to Dulwich Hamlet it would obviously be as a labour of love.

The Billericay situation is most likely different. From bitter experience, I know that investors can behave as if they're donating then, when it goes tits up and everyone's angry at them, they can claim that those donations were loans and, amazingly, get treated as preferential creditors (over and above, it would seem, the local businesses who you rightly point out are often the real victims of lower-level overspending). Given GT doesn't seem to have had a huge emotional investment in Billericay before buying them, and the fact that he seems to have a Rizla-thin ego, I'd say he's a lot more 'George Reynolds' or 'Bob Laslett' than he is 'hypothetically rich Mishi buying Dulwich'. If I was a long-term fan there - a long-term fan who'd somehow had my brilliant experiences of club bankruptcy - I'd be at least wary about what's going on, and particularly so what with him making himself manager. As a fan, I think the thing you want when a new major investor comes in is the employment of some trustworthy footballing and administrative personnel.

Also - and I know I'm contributing to it here - it does seem a bit weird to me that the Billericay conversation has got this long, particularly given Tamplin isn't really anything new in non-league football. But for the lack of teams beginning with X and Z you could probably make a full alphabetical list of clubs where this sort of thing has happened (look up Colne Dynamoes, who were a real classic of the genre.)

 

[Joe K]

Love the blood splatters. Very tasteful.

That lion's supposed to be offering me some advice but the look on his face suggests he doesn't really have my best interests at heart.

 

[hackbridgeharry]

Even I hope you win Saturday......

 

[cambelt]

Even I hope you win Saturday......

Thanks Harry, that means a lot dude.

 

[vornstyle76]

That lion's supposed to be offering me some advice but the look on his face suggests he doesn't really have my best interests at heart.

I think the lesson is 'Always Use Spray Paint In A Well Ventilated Space'.

Also - and I know I'm contributing to it here - it does seem a bit weird to me that the Billericay conversation has got this long, particularly given Tamplin isn't really anything new in non-league football. But for the lack of teams beginning with X and Z you could probably make a full alphabetical list of clubs where this sort of thing has happened (look up Colne Dynamoes, who were a real classic of the genre.)

Hmmm... the big difference is with Tamplin it's all so incredibly attention seeking and even oddly satirical. I do wonder if this is part of the plan - the coverage in The Sun, the rumoured TV program etc. It seems designed to be consumed.

I also wonder if we Dulwich fans are lapping it up cos we're enjoying no longer being the Isthmian Circus Team.

 

[pompeydunc]

- it does seem a bit weird to me that the Billericay conversation has got this long, particularly given Tamplin isn't really anything new in non-league football

Why? It's happening now. It's in our league. And it's a particularly spectacular version of it. Today he suggested someone commit suicide.

It's not human nature to ignore that and instead spend pages wondering why Kottoy didn't sign and has instead gone to Ireland...

 

[cambelt]

I think the lesson is 'Always Use Spray Paint In A Well Ventilated Space'.

Hmmm... the big difference is with Tamplin it's all so incredibly attention seeking and even oddly satirical. I do wonder if this is part of the plan - the coverage in The Sun, the rumoured TV program etc. It seems designed to be consumed.

I also wonder if we Dulwich fans are lapping it up cos we're enjoying no longer being the Isthmian Circus Team.

Nah, we're lapping it up because it is so funny and will get funnier before eventually ending in ruins. So many things wrong with the new set-up there.