Home >Story Index> Tony Petty and Swansea City - A Brief History |
| Tony Petty's name was revealed to the fans of Swansea City by us at JackArmy.net on 1st October 2001. Two days later, he was revealed at the Vetch Field as the new owner amongst promises of investment from Australia to take the club forward. |
| Research carried out had suggested that Petty was not the saviour that Swansea fans wanted/needed and this was soon proved by Petty's own actions. |
| October 10 2001, or Black Wednesday as it became known in Swansea, was the day that Tony Petty revealed the extent of his ambition for the football club. News hit us early in the day that Glan Letheran and Glan Walton had been sacked and that seven more people would be dismissed from the Vetch Field staff that day. The carnage was underway. |
| However, no-one and least of all me, expected the news that was to follow soon after from the Vetch Field. Seven first team players were shown the door by Petty - namely Matthew Bound, Jason Smith, John Williams, Nicolas Mazzina, David Romo, Steve Watkin and David Romo as Petty began what was termed to be illegal by the PFA. But he didn't stop there - he asked others including Nick Cusack and Roger Freestone to take dramatically reduced terms and in effect when they refused he decided that these people could go as well. |
| And that was the end of Petty's chances with any Swansea City fan. I remember the day well, I was working at home and could not believe what I was hearing. Roger Freestone was in a state of disbelief when I spoke to him and who could blame him. Swansea City was now a club in the middle of a major crisis. |
| Petty was here and he had made his mark and hatred was the only word that could be used at this point. That hatred was intensified as leading goalscorer Stuart Roberts was sold to Wycombe for the measly sum of £100,000. |
| Fan feeling was growing and marches were held before the games with Brighton and Leyton Orient in protest at the way Petty was running the club. Support came from far and wide as people realised what this man was doing but there was to be a long battle ahead. |
| John Shuttleworth, right hand man to Petty found the feelings of the fans out first hand when he decided to pop into Jumpin Jaks on a Saturday night in October and was asked to leave because of the crowd gathering around him. |
| Mike Lewis gave us a glimmer of hope on October 22 by saying that he may be able to take the club back but as with most things that come out of Mike's mouth they were empty words and he was to repeat the statement several times over the Petty reign without ever proving anything with actions. |
| Petty was spending more time out of the country than in it - usually making an unpopular decision and then disappearing back to Australia for weeks on end but it was against Rushden at the Vetch that Petty really felt the pressure. A mass protest in the centre stand and serious vocal abuse visibly shook Petty and Shuttleworth and they were escorted from the ground after the game. Mike Lewis was attacked outside the Harry Griffiths bar as feeling boiled over. |
| Mel Nurse at this time made his first move to try and save the club by resigning his directorship and then buying the debt off Ninth Floor in a bid to force the club into administration. Just three days later a writ was served on Tony Petty and Swansea City Football club and the case was heading to the courtroom. |
| The decision was given in favour of Petty and it looked as if we were stuck with him. Petty tried to placate the fans with offers of free shares but the more astute saw through this and the offer was thrown back in Petty's face. |
| With the court case over, it was time to turn the pressure up even more and fans stood at the forefront as they decided that Petty could be forced out with pressure. Petty said on 12th December that he was staying and as with most Tony Petty statements we rubbished what he said and turned up the heat in writing. |
| Mike Lewis popped up every now and again to look for some sympathy and every time he popped up we shot him back down again stating that the man deserved nothing at all. |
| Christmas was coming to Swansea and Santa for the players bought nothing on Christmas Eve, not even a pay packet as Petty left Don Goss to break the news that there were to be no wages in December. Tony Petty had put the club on the very brink of extinction |
| Thanks to the PFA the players were paid but as 2002 dawned we learned that other staff pay cheques had bounced. Allegations were thrown at the club of mismanagement of the club's striker fund and the Petty months were coming to an end. |
| Tony Petty was asked to appear before a football league committee to answer 15 points and the end was very nearly in sight. It was Mel Griffin who seemingly led the race to take over the club and he spoke to the fans for the first time via this site five days before he signed a heads of agreement deal with Petty on January 18. |
| But of course there had to be one more twist in the tale of Tony Petty and this came on Tuesday when the deal with Griffin collapsed with both sides blaming each other for the collapse. Swansea City were back in turmoil. |
| Then yesterday was completed with Petty saying he was ready to sell to anybody and that led to talks with the Mel Nurse consortium and here we are today with the confirmation that they are now formally in charge of Swansea City. |
| It's been a long three months and a three months that I never ever want to experience again. Swansea City came close to dying thanks to the actions of people who wouldn't understand the love of a football club if it jumped up and hit them (very hard please) in the face. Tony Petty was not welcome at Swansea and oh, how we all wish he had never ever heard of the place. Couldn't he have had a sister-in-law living in Cardiff? |
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