Passion alone is just not enough

Jan 17 2010 by Neil Farrington, Sunday Sun

IN trying to nail a deal for a club whose owner cannot be pinned down, the Newcastle United Supporters’ Trust were always likely to have to move their own goalposts at some point.

So it is the NUST appear to have reset their sights in the bid to unseat the amply-upholstered but ever elusive Mike Ashley at St James’ Park.

It now seems the plan, as it may have been initially, is for fans to buy into United rather than buy out Ashley altogether.

The rest of the investment required to actually send him on his way now looks as if it would come from NUST-friendly businesses or financial institutions.

A marriage of amateur and professional investors may ring post-credit crunch alarm bells for some.

However, I cannot help thinking such a union seems more straightforward than the prospect – wonderful as it sounds – of supporters buying and running Newcastle outright.

Or is the chill wind of recession blowing ever wilder though the top flight not proof major football clubs can no longer expect to self-sustain AND succeed?

Cut your cloth accordingly these days, and you risk more than flirting with relegation and the financial oblivion of the Championship beyond.

Chase dreams of Europe and silverware on the never- never, though, and a harsh reckoning – just ask Portsmouth, Liverpool and even Manchester United – awaits.

The best route to success in early years of the Premier League was via the offshore bank accounts of a genuine philanthropist. Now, it may only be a road to consolidation.

It should be the chosen path nonetheless.

For Jack Walker in 1992/93, read someone like Randy Lerner or Ellis Short today.