A healthy relationship between Tranmere's and Everton's chairmen could lead to all kinds of benefits for Rovers, couldn't it? Tony Morris explains why it is the complete opposite
Frank Corfe Resigns. Not a headline to shake the foundations of British football, but nevertheless important to supporters of Tranmere Rovers. After 11 years with the club, the last four as chairman, Corfe announced his intention to sell his 86 per cent stake in Rovers following a 1-1 home draw with Bristol City. His stated reason? He was booed during a half-time presentation on the pitch. A post-match press conference was hastily arranged, fans and media alike assuming it was to announce the sale of goalkeeper Steve Simonsen to Everton. Although observers were wrong about that, they were right to think that the Simonsen deal was behind the drama.
Frank Corfe blamed his resignation on sub-6,000 gates and the consequent pressure this put on the club to sell players. While no one likes the situation, most Tranmere fans accept that it is necessary while Wirral’s footballing public continues to cross the River Mersey every Saturday. What angered supporters, and caused some of them to vent their frustration, was the cut-price deal with Everton that was seemingly on the brink of completion that Saturday.
Everton, you will remember, are owned by Peter Johnson who was formerly chairman at Tranmere. Frank Corfe, who was chief executive during Johnson’s tenure at Prenton Park, bought Johnson’s shares on his departure for Goodison and became chairman. When the possibility of Simonsen’s transfer to Everton first surfaced, many fans expressed doubts that Tranmere would get full market value for the player, given the previous connections between the two chairmen.
Frank Corfe moved to ease these fears by stating that Simonsen would not be sold for less than the £5 million asking price. However, the day before the Bristol City game local newspapers reported that a deal with Everton was about to be concluded, with the fee variously quoted as £2.5 million all-in, or £2.5 million plus appearance money. When the team was announced and Simonsen’s wasn’t in it, it appeared to fans that the deal had been done.
The supporters were not alone in their displeasure. Interviewed shortly before Corfe’s resignation, manager John Aldridge echoed supporters’ concerns by calling the fee Everton had offered “ludicrously low”, and went on to say with some irony that as manager he hoped he would have a say in the deal .
The club seem to think that fans who believe in a hidden agenda are paranoid, which is not unexpected given their complete lack of understanding of how football supporters think. Frank Corfe, for example, called Rovers fans “short-sighted” for cheering Manchester City’s relegation last season, citing the loss of revenue from their large away support. He didn’t realise that for fans of a small club like Tranmere, seeing City’s big-time Charlies go down was part of what football is all about. Similarly, the decision to sell Everton kits in Tranmere’s club shop, and then appearing mystified at fans’ anger, shows Corfe’s distance from what is going on at terrace level.
And if fans have jumped the gun by reading too much into press reports, why have the club suspended the monthly forums that were set up to improve communications between the club and the Prenton Park regulars? If the club have nothing to hide, why not tell supporters what is going on?
The rumours of double dealings have been heightened by speculation that Corfe is to link up with Johnson once more at Everton. Corfe had pledged to remain at Prenton Park as chief executive until a buyer could be found for his shares, but his sudden departure on September 30th suggests he has received a better offer from elsewhere.
It also prompted the remarkable admission from John Aldridge that he had been close to resigning over the Simonsen affair. Aldridge confirmed fans’ suspicions by revealing that over half of the £3 million payable would only be received after the player makes 150 appearances for Everton, well into the next millenium. Rovers only stand to receive £500,000 this season, plus defender Graham Allen as a £300,000 makeweight. In a further swipe at Corfe, Aldridge promised that the club would in future be “up front and honest” with the fans, whose support he has frequently praised during the crisis.
Questions still remain to be answered. Tranmere fans will welcome the news that money is to be spent on players, but where will it come from? If the reorganised board is to be more honest in its approach, when will the fans’ forum be reinstated? And perhaps most importantly, if Frank Corfe does resurface at Everton, followed perhaps by more of Rovers’ best young talent at knock-down prices, will the growing calls by supporters for an investigation into the Corfe-Johnson relationship become too loud to ignore?
From WSC 141 November 1998. What was happening this month