DARREN Royle, Oldham Athletic’s newly appointed chief executive officer, explained why he was the driving force behind the takeover at Boundary Park.
The 48-year-old from Delph had been working on putting together a consortium before striking lucky with Greenfield businessman Frank Rothwell who he describes as the “dream ticket”.
“I was inspired by my love for the club,” explained Darren who was eight years of age when his father Joe was appointed manager.
“I attended most home games last season and was drawn by the passion of the fans.
“There were low points but, when fans went on to the pitch, I maintained it was in desperation and they were doing their best to effect change.”
As he sets about his new job, Darren added: “I am also reminded about the fear of failure.
“I am committed to do my best to get the club with the first objectives to bring stability and regain our EFL status.”
Darren believes the Frank, 72, the founder of successful business Manchester Cabins, shares the same values as the board of directors did when his father Joe was the most successful manager in the club’s history.
Back in the glory days under Joe, Latics’ board comprised local businessmen who had the interests of the club at heart and provided stability off the pitch, something which resonates with the new regime.
Frank is joined on the board by his son Luke, daughter Sue Schofield, Darren and Joe Royle who have Latics ingrained in their DNA, former Football Association lawyer Peter Norbury, from Lydgate, and Kevin Roberts, a former chairman of Saatchi and Saatchi and CEO of Pepsi.
And lawyer Karen Procter, from Knights PLC who advised the new owners, is also from Lydgate and a former pupil at Hulme Grammar.
“When you look at all the lawyers in the world, what are the chances we got somebody from Lydgate,” mused Darren.
“The deal was certainly made and baked in Saddleworth.”
After previous owner Abdallah Lemsagam had 10 managers in his four-and-a-half years as owner of the football club, the club desperately needs a period of calm.
Darren draws comparisons from when his father managed Latics, saying: “The directors then had the club’s best interests at heart.
“They were local people who made sensible and not rash decisions. The main one was dad had time and it takes time in football management to build a team.
“There was consistency with the same ownership and decisions were not made for the short term. That is something which is massive for us going forward.”
The takeover, believed to be about £12 million to bring the football club and ground back under the same ownership, came almost 40 years to the day since Royle was appointed manager in 1982 and 30 years when Latics became founder members of the Premier League.
“Yes, they are milestones, but we are not looking back, only forward,” Darren explained.
“We need to have a one-page plan, a period of stability, be patient and everyone to work hard towards our immediate aim which is to get back into the EFL.”
Darren, a former central defender who played non-league football locally for Ashton United and Mossley, explained that he had been speaking to various parties for some time about buying the club, but there had been “various false dawns”.
He was putting together a consortium when he spoke to Frank for advice because he is Oldham Council’s business ambassador.
But Frank became sold on Darren’s vision for the club and bought into it and decided to take the plunge.
He said: “This was a great opportunity in which all the planets aligned, and I believe in Frank we have the dream ticket.
“When you look at Frank as a person, his success in business has been brought about by hard work, humility and resilience which are great qualities.
“He has done lots of good work for the area and for charity.”
Darren described it as “complex” negotiating two deals in parallel for the football club and ground and consolidating them back as one. The deal for the ground has yet to be signed off.
He said: “The ground has taken longer, but we have a fantastic relationship with Simon Blitz and trust him implicitly.
“When it came to the legalities, it was a huge effort to get the club deal over the line, but we managed it.”
It had been reported in some publications that Latics had debts of £2m before the takeover was completed and the club had been in danger of being placed into administration.
And in an interview Frank admitted he had to move quickly to get the deal done which has cleared the debts and removed the threat.
Darren added the new ownership has appreciated the support received from the club’s various supporters’ groups, the Football Supporters’ Association and Oldham Council.
Father-of-three Darren, who has had a career in sports analytics, marketing and commercial and a spell as chairman and director at Wigan Athletic, described it as fantastic to have his dad on board in an official capacity as a director.
He said: “I am open to his role but, from a technical perspective, the team is John Sheridan’s bag.
“He has mentioned that if John wants to talk football, he is happy to do that. But it is about having a successful ex-manager on board.”
And looking ahead, Darren added it would be nice to bring a feel-good factor which would in turn help Oldham which has also endured challenging times.
He said: “Oldham was once the powerhouse of the industrial revolution and from a sports perspective the club had a great time in the 1990s.
“The football club and the town have both suffered declines, but a successful team can also provide a focus for the town.”
Sure looks like a winning team off the field and one that has the heart and soul to turn things round on the field. Things certainly looking up for the team and the town. All the best.