The takeover by Les Hutchison will stabilise the club's finances and give us some of the leadership and direction that has been missing of late. One of the first priorities will be to ensure that we have a squad with enough depth to ensure that we remain clear of the relegation zone.
When John Boyle took the reins from John Chapman in 1998 his declared aim was to make us the third force in Scottish football. Aided by increasing revenue from broadcasters and his own considerable fortune Boyle joined the expensive and ultimately futile race to spend, spend, spend until the club entered administration in 2002.
The club made every effort to run on an even keel and in 2011 Boyle announced that he would step down from his chairman's post and give his shares "to allow wider ownership and involvement in the club for all who care about it".
The Well Society became the vehicle to bring about this aspiration of fan ownership but despite the recent high finishes in the league in recent seasons the club has been losing money. Disappointments in the cups, costly forays into Europe, a lack of a main league sponsor and little transfer income combined to force the club board to renew the push for a long term solution.
Les Hutchison heard the warnings issued in May 2014 and made contacted the ‘Well Society with the offer of financial assistance. Months of negotiations followed and the Society made it known last week that we were “a few days” away from completion.
The need for support from fans and local businesses remains and the Society will start a new drive to increase membership.
With the comfort the deal will bring Motherwell supporters can expect a busy week as the transfer window reaches an end. The manager has targets identified as we aim to increase the narrowing gap over St Mirren and Ross County.