Sugar daddy may not be best Weir’s way to go for Thistle and fans
Daddy Warbucks would no doubt have been a Partick Thistle fan.
In the dastardly world of football, somebody needs to step forward to save them from Miss Hannigans, venture capitalists and investment groups out to do them harm.
Enter Colin Weir and his Three Black Cats takeover with the prospect of gifting ownership to the fans.
It has always been thus for Thistle, a bit of a struggle in the hope the sun’ll come out tomorrow.
But there has been a nagging feeling this week in the latest twist in the plot for the club that they’ve missed a trick.
EuroMillions w i n ne r We i r ’ s announcement that he has bought the majority shareholding at Firhill maybe needs a more forensic light shone on it.
It has only been a matter of a few months since he removed his funding due to his dissatisfaction over a boardroom coup which dislodged his close friend Jacqui Low as chairman.
Wal k ing away wasn’t on a petulant whim but make no mistake, it was personal and all about the return of Low’s arch enemy David Beattie to the big seat.
Removing his funding as a show of solidarity to a mate as well as his concerns over the direction the club was taking, should send shivers through all and sundry at Firhill.
In the end, negotiations with Paul Conway and the NewCity Capital investment group which had such grand ambitions for the Jags, came to nothing.
And with that the club waved goodbye to the billionaire backers of Nice and Barnsley as well as their grandiose plans for the Jags to be challenging at the top of the Premiership and playing European football. A new interim board that will run the club until it is passed on to fan ownership next year has been put in place.
But one has to ask who’s pulling Weir’s strings?
He has already had a stand named after him, another bit of an issue to be honest. Winning the lottery is one thing and dishing out a few bob to your boyhood heroes doesn’t come close to ensuring your name goes up in lights in a way which should only befit a club legend.
Anyway, no matter. What lies in wait is of bigger concern as Thistle For Ever and the PTFC Trust are two groups preparing to be gifted the club and tasked with putting a fan-based model into operation.
The likes of Paul Goodwin will then come into play and there are mixed reviews within Scottish football’s corridors about his sel f- procla imed powers as a club saviour.
Thistle have an average 2800 fans per home game this season, a fan base which will remain roughly the same no matter how much money you throw at it.
They currently sit at the bottom of the Championship but with Ian McCall now steering the ship, an upward climb should be imminent.
It’s off the pitch, and Weir’s whichever way the wind’s blowing in the boardroom decision making, which is a concern.
With the plan to gift the club to the fans while turning their noses up at investment from a billionaire-backed group, the Jags better be ready for rainy days ahead – of that you can bet your bottom dollar.