• The forum upgrades are now largely complete.
    Please read this thread for more details.
    New user registrations are currently disabled.

Sale is close - Barnsey

Status
Not open for further replies.
This is absolutely not what was said though, is it? Those dates were mentioned, yes, but also with the line that the whole thing could well be concluded before then. If anyone has misled people here it's whoever has told Barnes that extra bit. Can't be blaming the fans this time for having an unrealistic expectation of completion. "100 points" situation all over again.
Its funny how we are now being told by the experts on here that there is no way you can put a timescale on things of this nature. The fans bloody didn't, a bloke supposedly involved did though.
 

Apparently Barnes should have proven what he was told was correct within the same margin as a prosecuting barrister proves a killers guilt, what a bunch of idiots some people are.

I agree with this, and with the comments basically saying that Barnes can't be blamed for passing on what he heard. He passed on something from someone at the club (99% certain it wasn't Donald, but still), and people would have gone mad if he didn't. As mentioned getting confirmation would be difficult due to the small number of people involved and the likelihood of NDAs etc.

The only thing I would say is that, having passed that on and in a fairly specific way in terms of timescales and the likes (which had presumably been given to him by someone with knowledge of how long things take and what stage they were at), it's a bit of a shame that he doesn't seem to have been pushing for a further update as the season gets closer. If I'd been told something and had put it out there, pretty much at the behest of the club, and was then constantly getting questioned about it, I'd be back onto the source asking for some sort of update. Maybe he's doing that in the background like, but for all I think a lot of the criticism is way over the top, I don't think it's asking too much to want him to try and follow up on it.
 
Its funny how we are now being told by the experts on here that there is no way you can put a timescale on things of this nature. The fans bloody didn't, a bloke supposedly involved did though.

Aye, I get GOMs point about these things taking as long as they take etc, but there's also comments asking the lines of people being unrealistic for thinking it could ever have been completed in the timescale given. That's unfair imo, fact is the information will have come from someone involved high up in the club. Presumably they are best placed to know what stage they were at, they've (certainly Donald has) bought and sold businesses and even football clubs before. Plus, the only reason it seems tight is if we believe Donald that no one was in the data room when he spoke to RAWA, but I think we've moved past believing what he says. Given how specific Barnes was about things not being an issue, and hoping to complete by the season starts if not earlier, it's not unrealistic for fans to think that could have been a likely outcome.
 
I agree with this, and with the comments basically saying that Barnes can't be blamed for passing on what he heard. He passed on something from someone at the club (99% certain it wasn't Donald, but still), and people would have gone mad if he didn't. As mentioned getting confirmation would be difficult due to the small number of people involved and the likelihood of NDAs etc.

The only thing I would say is that, having passed that on and in a fairly specific way in terms of timescales and the likes (which had presumably been given to him by someone with knowledge of how long things take and what stage they were at), it's a bit of a shame that he doesn't seem to have been pushing for a further update as the season gets closer. If I'd been told something and had put it out there, pretty much at the behest of the club, and was then constantly getting questioned about it, I'd be back onto the source asking for some sort of update. Maybe he's doing that in the background like, but for all I think a lot of the criticism is way over the top, I don't think it's asking too much to want him to try and follow up on it.

maybe he is and he is not getting an answer
 
Barnes is a reporter not an investigative journalist. He reported what was told to him as I assume he thought fans would be interested. What do people want him to do to "prove" the veracity of what he was told? Unless he is the seller or buyer how could he possibly verify whether what he was told is kosher? Christ this is a new level of stupidity.
I don't think most people want him to prove anything, they're just making the point that he's open to being used by Donald. He's quite happy to call Storey out because he's a bullshitter but doesnt afford Donald the same level of caution. He's consistently come out with "I understand..." and put timescales on stuff when he was under no obligation to do so, no one forced him to. If Storey was telling him this stuff he wouldnt report it would he? Its not having a go at him, its not abuse just an observation, he shouldnt have put himself in this position.

Look at it this way. Barnes never reports Sunderland news or rumours until this. He reports after the fact on the radio but as you say he isnt an investigative journalist. No one else is reporting on this in the media just Barnes, right after his radio interview with Donald. That suggests that Barnes has been selected to "know" about the takeover and Barnes only. This means he "knows" exactly what the club want him to know and will report exactly what the club want him to report. He's being used.
 
Last edited:
maybe he is and he is not getting an answer

To be fair that's why I said "maybe he's doing that in the background" in the part of my post you put in bold ;) I know he might be asking, it's just seeing the replies and things he's giving on twitter (someone asking if he had an update and him saying "if only" and things) it doesn't sound like he's particularly chasing. Maybe he is, but I'd have thought you'd say something along the lines of "not at the minute, but I'm trying to get an update" just to keep people quiet if nowt else!
 
Irrespective of Barnes background as a commentator, he clearly fancied himself as a journalist when he asked Storey to come on the show and also had an interview with Steward Donald. He failed miserably because he never asked questions that we needed answering. Unless of course people were expecting him to say "Storey, on the left now, passed the toilets, he's in the lobby, there's a chair free in the middle, he goes for it and its in. A great run by William Storey finished off nicely"
Imagine him as a detective,
"did you do it?"
"No"
"Ok cheers, you are free to go"
Ha ha!
It was quite incredible that he didn’t pull SD up when Donald mentioned his daughter’s situation with a supposed trio of Sunderland supporters at a bus stop in Oxfordshire!
This was surely quite a major and shocking revelation and should have been explored and was surely worthy of being a major news item on local and possibly national news bulletins?
Sorry, but this sums up an absolute lack of journalistic professionalism.
He may have been told something about the current talks (which ARE happening but not finalised) but again after the FPP last minute breakdown last year nothing should have been said by anyone that a possible takeover/investment was happening.
Most supporters simply want to hear some really positive news about our currently ailing football club once it’s all signed off.
 
Last edited:
Clear as day no one is allowed to say a word anymore. Press, staff the lot. If nothing was happening the club would just say so.
When this all started there was talk about not another penny going to Donald. This place had never been so united behind that cause. Now all we talk about is this takeover and people think FPP are about to walk through the door. People have renewed their tickets, people are buying the new kits and theres very little in way of protest at the regime. I can't see a single reason the club would want to say there's nothing happening.
 
Simple misrake from a limited bloke really I'd say.

He's clearly been told something, by either Donald or someone speaking for him. But being so precise about a timeline was a major error, especially given who we are dealing with here.

"Some definite interest" or something along those lines would have been better and more likely to be true.

We'll see. It might or might not happen. If it does, it'll happen in it's own time.
 
Clear as day no one is allowed to say a word anymore. Press, staff the lot. If nothing was happening the club would just say so.
There's no need for them to comment on anything, otherwise they would have to comment on every rumour and face potential backlash before the season rather than people being optimistic of change. They never commented on previous attempts of purchase except after the facts
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top