To subject myself or family to –Trust chair quits

tions from individuals who are prepared to give up their own time to join the Trust board.

“This sort of personal attack does nothing to encourage fans to come forward and we sincerely hope this will not be repeated.

“The Trust board wishes to place on record its thanks to Will for the huge amount of time and effort he has devoted to the Trust during his time on the Trust board.

“We are sorry that he has decided to leave the board at this time, and his significant contribution will be missed.

“A further announcement regarding the chairman’s position will be made following the next Trust board meeting at the beginning of December.”

Mr Morris will also no longer serve as an associate director to the football club. He has acted as an observer at club board meetings, attending alongside supporter director Stuart McDonald.

Mr Sumbler stood down last Tuesday after over 11 years at the helm of the fans’ group, stating he did not agree with the direction in which the organisation was moving.

A decision on who will succeed Mr Morris as chairman of the Trust will be taken at a board meeting next month.

The Trust has faced the most challenging period of its existence following the takeover of the club by a consortium led by American businessmen Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan in the summer of 2016.

The Trust has repeatedly stated it felt left out of the sale process and claimed it had no knowledge of the deal until it was at an advanced stage.

During the summer the Trust presented an offer to its members to sell up to half of its stake in the club to the majority shareholders, with a consultation process and ballot subsequently seeing that deal approved.

Talks over the detail of the transaction have continued since, but Mr Sumbler claimed he no longer felt comfortable with that deal and its make-up.

He added that he felt it put the supporters’ body in a situation where the relationship with the club’s owners had broken down, leading to his resignation.