Lowe takes share of relegation blame

Southampton chairman Rupert Lowe has taken his share of the blame for the club’s relegation from the Barclays Premiership.

But the man who has had seven managers in eight years – including three this season – claimed: “I’m not the only one.”

Lowe was jeered by Saints fans as the team’s demotion from the top-flight for the first time in 27 years was confirmed by a 2-1 home defeat in the final game of the season against Manchester United on Sunday.

But he bravely faced the media 24 hours later to reject any suggestions that he would quit.

Instead he outlined plans for how he intends to lead Southampton back into into the big time and how they will cope with the massive debts that relegation will bring.

He also outlined how they will deal with aspects of lower league football, like possibly having to face Crewe on a Friday night at their St Mary’s Stadium instead of Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United on a Saturday afternoon.

And how they plan to keep hold of most of their best players, like new England call-up Peter Crouch, £2million signing Nigel Quashie and brilliant Finland goalkeeper Antti Niemi.

Even though under the terms of their contracts all have had to accept massive wage cuts, some believed to be as much as 50%.

Lowe insists his own salary is a matter for the board but he refuses to bow to those who are calling for his head.

“Just as I didn’t expect to take all the glory when we got to the FA Cup final (in 2002) I don’t think I should take all the blame now,” he said.

“As the person at the top of the organisation I have to take my share of that responsibility but if you are asking me if I am going to quit then the answer is no. I am not a quitter.

“This is the biggest setback the club has suffered under my chairmanship and, arguably, since we were promoted 27 years ago.

“It is a big problem but we will resolve it. Yes, I am upset as anybody at what has happened is but I’m intent on putting that right.

“I have been criticised for nine years since I’ve been here. Someone with a name like Rupert in football is going to be.

“I take a share of the blame – as do the board, as does Harry Redknapp, as do the players, but I don’t think you can apportion blame entirely on management changes

“You have to lay blame at the door of people who have been in charge of decisions that involve player purchasing, player selection and, to some extent, the people who are on the pitch. That is the bottom line. Let’s get real boys.”

Manager Redknapp, brought in as a firefighter in December after leaving Portsmouth when it became clear that youth coach Steve Wigley could not carry through the job that Paul Sturrock had “left by mutual consent” after just two games of the new season, has has still not committed his immediate future to Saints.

But Lowe wants him to return and they will hold meaningful talks after both have had a break.

Lowe will lose his place on the Premier League Management Board and the Professional Game Board and admits that will be “painful” but he added: “I will now have even more work to do here.”

He added: “Players have contracts with the club and we are hopeful of keeping most of the ones we want to keep after discussions with Harry.

“We certainly want to keep people like Peter Crouch, who is signed with us until 2008, and I think he is the kind of guy who wants to stay and put right what has gone wrong. It must be our aim, too, to hang onto Niemi, and Kevin Phillips and Nigel Quashie.

“We have taken the precaution of having contracts that impose pay cuts on players in the event of relegation but inevitably we will lose some because this team was good enough to be in the Premiership and they will be wanted.

“We know what it means to our fans but already 9,000 have bought season tickets for next season and the figure was 14,000 at this same time last year.

“We are all shell-shocked but we don’t back away from the problem and it will be the same with the players.”

Saints are four years into paying off a £32m loan on their new stadium, shelling out £2.4m every August to an undisclosed lender but the loan is at a fixed rate of interest, unaffected by divisional status.

Managing director Andrew Cowan said: “The bulk of our debt is that loan and we can still easily service it but, of course, we are sure to lose sponsorship money and other commercial income such as replica strips.

“I would be lying if I said there was no danger of redundancies among the staff at the stadium and there is a possibility the chairman might have to accept a cut, but everybody will suffer one way or another.”