Manager Race

[Madton]

Again he's made it clear he's not taking the job full time. 

3 weeks down the line, we need an appointment ASAP so the incoming manager can assess the squad ahead of the window.

The whole big changes chat suggests Laird and Davies have already identified new players to me which is rather worrying.

[Waverley]

21 hours ago, Greacen2000 said:

in August the articles were updated to - 

“The make-up of the GMFC Board shall comprise two members appointed by the majority shareholder (Morton Club Together) two members appointed by the principal club sponsor (Dalrada Technology), and three members mutually agreed between the majority shareholder and the aforesaid principal club sponsor”

Although as far as I know nothing has been done since then to update the board membership.  At present the board is made up of

Graham Barr - MCT appointee

Sam Robinson - MCT appointee initially, but I believe he would now be classed as a Dalrada appointee as him remaining on the board was a condition of this seasons funding

Paul Farren - stadium director with a background in architecture.  Pretty sure he would be classed as one of the “mutually agreed” appointees under the above article.

Ross Gourdie - Dalrada appointee

So this leaves the current make up of the board as 2 Dalrada, 1 MCT & 1 mutual appointee, with there being an available space for another MCT appointee and a further 2 mutually agreed.

The fact that Laird is not actually a member of the board really rankles me. 

 

 

So currently the majority shareholder (MCT) can be out-voted.  The fact that there doesn't appear to be any urgency to correct that is apathetic.

Again, who appointed Laird?

 

 

[Roger McQueen]

I would really like to know who appointed John Laird, who signed it off and what was his appointment not put to the MCT members? 

Also, is Laird still actively working as an agent? 

[Greacen2000]

22 minutes ago, Waverley said:

So currently the majority shareholder (MCT) can be out-voted.  The fact that there doesn't appear to be any urgency to correct that is apathetic.

look at tobys reply in the MCT thread.  It is being dealt with.

22 minutes ago, Waverley said:

Again, who appointed Laird?

 

 

Again, his appointment was agreed upon by both boards in 2023.

[Greacen2000]

3 minutes ago, Roger McQueen said:

I would really like to know who appointed John Laird, who signed it off and what was his appointment not put to the MCT members? 
 

as a purely advisory role with no decision making power I don’t think there would have been any requirement to put it to MCT.  The fact he wasn’t even appointed to the board means it may not even have required a formal vote by the GMFC board.  As to the specifics of the exact process of his appointment - it’s a bit of a moot point now as the composition of both boards has changed, and as things currently stand our Dalrada funding deal is conditional on him being in place.

3 minutes ago, Roger McQueen said:

Also, is Laird still actively working as an agent? 

This question was raised by myself and others over the summer at the time of the current funding deal being reviewed.  The answer given was that “John laird is not a football agent”.  Questions remained about his sons involvement in sports consulting & to what extent he had an interest in that, but no clarification was forthcoming.

[Roger McQueen]

4 minutes ago, Greacen2000 said:

as a purely advisory role with no decision making power I don’t think there would have been any requirement to put it to MCT.  The fact he wasn’t even appointed to the board means it may not even have required a formal vote by the GMFC board.  As to the specifics of the exact process of his appointment - it’s a bit of a moot point now as the composition of both boards has changed, and as things currently stand our Dalrada funding deal is conditional on him being in place.

This question was raised by myself and others over the summer at the time of the current funding deal being reviewed.  The answer given was that “John laird is not a football agent”.  Questions remained about his sons involvement in sports consulting & to what extent he had an interest in that, but no clarification was forthcoming.

No decision making power? This is the guy who flew to America to speak to Dalrada, sounds very much like a guy who has power. I think there needs to be greater clarity over his role. Most Chairman will have Directors report into them and have the final vote. Why would we have a Chairman with no decision making powers. Why make him Chairman, why not an associate director or advisor to the board. 

Seems that him and Davies both using Morton for grand titles on their CV and Ego.

His Son his Assistant Manager of Elgin City, I think? 

 

Edited December 16, 2025 by Roger McQueen

[Waverley]

19 minutes ago, Greacen2000 said:

look at tobys reply in the MCT thread.  It is being dealt with.

Again, his appointment was agreed upon by both boards in 2023.

Thanks for the info.

[Greacen2000]

29 minutes ago, Roger McQueen said:

No decision making power? This is the guy who flew to America to speak to Dalrada, sounds very much like a guy who has power. 

 

I’m only paraphrasing what has been claimed in documents shared at the time of the Dalrada deal being considered.  I use italics because I do take the truthfulness of this with a pinch of salt, but it is what’s being claimed.  
 

Specifically, the FAQ document issued by the interim MCT board on May 21 stated - 

Why is John Laird still Chairman when the articles prohibit this?

The GMFC Board interprets Article 9 as allowing the board to delegate responsibilities, including the appointment of a Club Chair. It is important to clarify that John Laird serves as Chair of the Club, not Chair of the GMFC Board. His role is advisory in nature and does not carry formal decision-making authority.

Will John Laird be joining the Board? If not, please explain why?

There are currently no plans for John Laird to join the GMFC Board. The board believes his advisory role is the most appropriate structure at this time, allowing him to provide strategic support without assuming formal board responsibilities.

Will John Laird be a registered (with Companies House) director of GMFC?

No. As John is not a director of the company, he does not require to be and will not be registered as such with Companies House.

Is or has John Laird ever been a member of MCT?

No, John Laird has never been a member of MCT.

MCT members weren't consulted on John Laird's appointment, why is that?

The GMFC Board did consult the MCT Board in place at the time regarding John's appointment. As previously noted, John's role is advisory and non-executive. He has never exercised authority independently of the GMFC Board and all decisions have remained within the board's remit.

The interim MCT Board have been notified that for as long as Dalrada remain as a principle club partner, they wish to have John Laird as Chair of the Club continuing to provide strategic support.

In the past year, how many times has John Laird met with the board (any composition) of MCT?

John Laird has met formally with the MCT board on at least four occasions, all of which were approved and known to both parties. In addition, he has held some one-to-one or small-group discussions with members of MCT leadership, all of which were disclosed to the GMFC board. There was, however, one meeting on 25 March which John understood to be a discussion about MCT/GMFC relations. On arrival, it became clear the meeting was not sanctioned by the full MCT board and was instead an attempt to discuss the removal of MCT representatives from the GMFC board without the knowledge of the rest of the MCT Board or GMFC Board.

Has John Laird invested any of his own money in the club or MCT?

Yes, John Laird has previously personally invested in Greenock Morton FC. The amount and terms of this investment are commercially confidential.

 

 

Having worked previous as a Football Agent, and with family links to a Football Analytics company, has John Laird declared any conflicts of interest?

With regard to the alleged family links to a football analytics company, John has no knowledge of any such connection and is unsure what is being referred to.

Regarding his previous work as a football agent, this was addressed at the joint GMFC/MCT Board meeting on the 15th January. John confirmed he has not worked as a football agent for over six years. This was corroborated by Michael Harkins, the club's Financial Director at the time, who was a partner in the firm responsible for John's financial affairs

Edited December 16, 2025 by Greacen2000

[Greacen2000]

To be clear I fully agree that the current situation is a farce, but it’s one that we were left with no alternative but to support at the time, and is certainly not the doing of the current MCT board.

Now that the MCT board is comprised of guys whose intentions I trust, as well as relationship between the 2 boards hopefully improving a bit, I think the best  course of action is for us to let them do their work - they will come back to the membership when our input is needed, and as Toby mentioned they will provide us with regular updates.

If there are any questions or issues in the meantime they are easy to contact and quick to respond.

[Roger McQueen]

We effectively have a sponsor choosing the Chairman of the club who doesn't have a vote, if that is to be believed, but also selecting people on the board of directors but said sponsors do not want to buy the club, just as Technical Head Coach, does not want to be manager. 

Jesus Christ. 

[Greacen2000]

1 minute ago, Roger McQueen said:

We effectively have a sponsor choosing the Chairman of the club who doesn't have a vote, if that is to be believed, but also selecting people on the board of directors but said sponsors do not want to buy the club, just as Technical Head Coach, does not want to be manager. 

Jesus Christ. 

It is a truly kafkaesque situation for sure.  

[vikingTON]

11 hours ago, dunning1874 said:

I'm generally not someone who's bothered by managers choosing to do non-Morton related things in their free time. For example Ayr fans are routinely up in arms about Scott Brown doing punditry because it's a waking moment that he's not thinking about Ayr, but it never really bothered me when Jim Duffy was regularly appearing on Radio Clyde. If it's not distracting from their job and it's a neutral platform then there's not an issue.

However, is it really appropriate for Billy Davies to be appearing on "The Gers TV" just now?

 

 

Colour me shocked and stunned that you have changed your tune when it comes to, err, a caretaker manager rather than an actual manager doing the media work then. 

You don't like Davies being at the club, we get it by now. The reality that Davies  could be doing nothing other than helping needy children at Cappielow and you'd still find something to be furious about - selectively, in this case - makes your stance not very credible though. 

[vikingTON]

25 minutes ago, Greacen2000 said:

It is a truly kafkaesque situation for sure.  

Not really- it's quite common for sponsors to not want to buy a club, and for a technical head/DoF to not want to be its manager. Is Klopp likely to rock up as manager of RB Leipzig any time soon? I very much doubt it. 

The structural issues at Cappielow lie in the chairman position, the lack of a full board of representatives, and the yawning gulfs where a Financial Director and Chief Executive are supposed to be. If even the last two were filled, then there would at least be a clear line of responsibility for keeping the club ticking over on a week to week basis. 

[Greacen2000]

12 minutes ago, vikingTON said:

Not really- it's quite common for sponsors to not want to buy a club, and for a technical head/DoF to not want to be its manager. Is Klopp likely to rock up as manager of RB Leipzig any time soon? I very much doubt it. 

The structural issues at Cappielow lie in the chairman position, the lack of a full board of representatives, and the yawning gulfs where a Financial Director and Chief Executive are supposed to be. If even the last two were filled, then there would at least be a clear line of responsibility for keeping the club ticking over on a week to week basis. 

Nowhere have I suggested that Dalrada “should want to buy the club” or that Davies “should want to become the manager”.  If he is as you suggested now in a DoF/technical director/performance director type role then let’s see some clarification from the club on the matter.

Guy with a made-up job title acting as manager but who doesn’t want the gig full time “due to his loyalty to our previous manager”, while seemingly being involved in planning as to what’s going to happen in January - CHECK

”Chairman” with no formal decision making powers but who claims to be steering the ship and a hard taskmaster, whose position has only remained tenable upon the insistence of our main sponsor - CHECK

90% owner of the club having 25% representation on the board - CHECK

Sponsor having more say in the running of the club than the owner - CHECK

I would definitely say this is a kafkaesque situation.  

[Roger McQueen]

We need minerals. Bring back Dale! 

[vikingTON]

16 minutes ago, Greacen2000 said:

Nowhere have I suggested that Dalrada “should want to buy the club” or that Davies “should want to become the manager”.  If he is as you suggested now in a DoF/technical director/performance director type role then let’s see some clarification from the club on the matter.

You were responding to a poster who stated both of those things, agreed, and described the subsequent system as 'Kafka-esque'. It really isn't though. 

'Rudderless ghost ship' would be a much more accurate description, but the semi-detached status of Laird has been known about and Davies has already stated he has no intention of being the first team manager. 

Edit: As for your "made up title", that's just you describing a role that you don't approve. There are plenty of football clubs in this century that no longer just appoint a guid fitba man to manage the team, have a board to hold him account, and no level of decision-making in between. It's not 1994.

Edited December 16, 2025 by vikingTON

[Greacen2000]

40 minutes ago, vikingTON said:

You were responding to a poster who stated both of those things, agreed, and described the subsequent system as 'Kafka-esque'. It really isn't though. 
 

sorry, what did I “agree with”, and where/when did I state my agreement?

40 minutes ago, vikingTON said:

'Rudderless ghost ship' would be a much more accurate description, but the semi-detached status of Laird has been known about and Davies has already stated he has no intention of being the first team manager. 

Edit: As for your "made up title", that's just you describing a role that you don't approve. There are plenty of football clubs in this century that no longer just appoint a guid fitba man to manage the team, have a board to hold him account, and no level of decision-making in between. It's not 1994.

I have no issue whatsoever with the sporting director/performance director/DoF type role.  All I’ve said is that “technical head coach” is a made-up job title.  Please let me know if you can find a single example from your “plenty of football clubs this century” who have ever appointed a technical head coach

Edited December 16, 2025 by Greacen2000

[Cet Homme Charmant]

Surely the 'gentleman's agreement' between Davies and Imrie would only be applicable if Imrie was sacked? If Imrie left on his own volition for a position he applied for, why on earth would Davies feel any kind of moral obligation not to replace him? It's bullshit.

Edited December 17, 2025 by Cet Homme Charmant

[dunning1874]

The initial update on Davies being caretaker:

https://gmfc.net/club-update-on-first-team-coaching-arrangements/

"The current coaching structure will remain until at least the Airdrie game on 13th December, after which we will provide supporters with a further update."

It's now the Thursday after. Are the club going to lower themselves to informing fans what's happening at any point, or are we just to turn up at Perth on Saturday not knowing who the manager is and hope for a surprise unveiling in the dugout?

Even if the update is merely a couple of sentences that the recruitment process is ongoing and Davies will still be in charge this weekend, say that. The club really make it hard not to criticise, the board have evidently learned nothing about transparency from the shambles of the summer.

[John369]

Just seen Ian McCall in Glasgow Central and he was in a suit, which would make you think he might be heading for a job interview. Could be nothing, but he was heading towards Platform 15 where the Gourock train leaves from, so maybe he was off towards Greenock.