The news that club chairman Jim McMahon and acting CEO Derek Weir are to step down as the season ends heralds a major shake-up in the running of Motherwell.
McMahon has played a major part in the evolution of the club from John Boyle’s one man band to a fan owned enterprise under the control of the Well Society. His vision and financial acumen have been crucial and we owe him a huge vote of thanks for the many unpaid hours he gave since he joined the board in 2001.
Two club stalwarts, you served us well. Thanks
Derek Weir stepped up to fill the vacancy caused by the departure of Alan Burrows and by the end of March 2024 he will have completed a year as acting CEO. His departure on that anniversary will see the club make a step change at the top. The pair deserve to enjoy many more seasons supporting the ‘Well without the stress that comes from filling these thankless positions.
The club website offers a teasing look to the future.
The chairman says, “It has become very clear over the last few years that for the club to operate on a sustainable basis, provide the manager with a competitive player budget, meet the vastly increased cost of our other activities including having a successful Woman’s Team and maintaining a fit for purpose Stadium, Training Ground and Academy facility, that it will require significant investment; funding on a similar scale to that received by many others in the SPFL.
“We have undertaken a large amount of work and held numerous discussions to explore how we could best achieve this. The final stages of a fund-raising initiative are almost complete and will be ready to be shared early in the New Year.
At successive Annual General Meetings McMahon has repeated the need for the club to find a method of funding that will allow the competitive financing of the team and stadium without departing from the fan owned model. We await with interest for the unveiling of the master plan.
A renewed push will be made to find a suitable CEO. A proposal to enlarge the number of permitted directors on the club board will be presented At February’s AGM.
Interesting times ahead.