Goodbye from TS

[bexleyboy]

Please see below a letter from Thomas Sandgaard.

Dear Charlton fans,

After nearly three years as Charlton Athletic Owner, I am pleased to announce the handover to new owners. During my time with Charlton, I sincerely appreciated the excitement, gratitude and connection with you as fans and supporters of this great club. The welcome when I purchased the club was incredible and I am hopeful the new ownership receives the same warm reception as well.

My time at Charlton Athletic was not without its challenges. I shared the frustrations and disappointment that stemmed from the results we faced. The journey has indeed been bittersweet, painted with both criticism and appreciation, each equally important in its own right.

Thank you for supporting the club's progression in some key areas the past three years including advancing the women's game when we turned the women's team full-time professional in 2021, engaging in the early excitement and togetherness around the infamous 'Our Club, Your Car' campaign and watching the continued progression of the academy and academy players.

One memory, in particular, stands out among the rest - the electrifying match in the Carabao Cup against Manchester United. The echoing chants from our loyal fans at Old Trafford still resound in my ears. Facing a club of such magnitude on their home turf was no small feat, but our team, coaches and support staff turned the challenge into a display of incredible perseverance and unshakeable belief. It was a monumental evening, filled with adrenaline, suspense and immense pride. That night, we showed the world what Charlton Athletic is capable of.

I would be remiss if I did not express my deepest gratitude to our dedicated and hard-working staff and players. Your tireless efforts and commitment have been the lifeblood of this club. You have shown remarkable resilience in the face of adversity and your passion for the game has been a constant source of inspiration. To Dean Holden, Karen Hills, Steve Avory, as well as Peter Storrie, who has done an excellent job since his appointment in February, to our sponsors who trusted and supported us throughout this journey; we are grateful for the role you played in elevating the club to its current stature.

As I pass the reigns over to SE7 Partners, I wish the new owners all the best in leading this great club back to the Championship and eventually the Premier League again.

In closing, while the journey has been demanding, it has also been immensely rewarding. Charlton Athletic is more than a football club. It is a community, a family, a bond that unites, from the staff to the players, from the sponsors to the most crucial part of our team - you, the fans. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of this journey.

I move on from Charlton Athletic, not with a heavy heart, but with a sense of pride. I am leaving this club knowing that its future is bright and full of potential.

My deepest gratitude for allowing me the honour of being part of this remarkable club. Continue the chants, hold the faith and let the spirit of Charlton Athletic soar high. As I step away, I remain, as always, a supporter and a lifelong fan.

Kind regards,

Thomas Sandgaard

[bexleyboy]

We will owe TS our thanks for being the only one to take on the crooks and save this great club .. was not easy through a pandemic but unlike all the others he wanted the club .

I think this just proves that it’s the end of a single person ownership in football .

Thanks TS ..

[reamsofverse]

Fuck off you bullying Danish bastard.

[jonkool]

Jul 21, 2023 17:35:20 GMT reamsofverse said:

Fuck off you bullying Danish bastard.

Yep … the way he and his family treated hard pressed staff was a disgrace.

There is a responsibility to employed staff which includes respect and and appreciation!

[bigandy99]

He says he’s pleased to hand over to new owners.. not as much as we are!! CYA…

[seriouslyred]

Jul 21, 2023 22:40:41 GMT bigandy99 said:

He says he’s pleased to hand over to new owners.. not as much as we are!! CYA…

If he were that pleased then he might have completed the deal Feb/March instead of booting SE7 Partners 10th Feb.

Fortunately SE7 Partners waited patiently for other offers to vapourise and haven't lost too much momentum.

That's it! Time to look forwards now to window activity and the first ten games.

[Mundell]

Captain Bullshit’s last stand. He left his most nauseous and insincere statement until the very end. Good riddance to bad rubbish. He made Duchatelet look good and though the Belgian was never the devil incarnate some believe he was, that’s saying something.

Hopefully, we’ll now get some sincerity, some integrity and some professionalism. 

[kings hill addick]

Jul 22, 2023 11:16:31 GMT Mundell said:

Captain Bullshit’s last stand. He left his most nauseous and insincere statement until the very end. Good riddance to bad rubbish. He made Duchatelet look good and though the Belgian was never the devil incarnate some believe he was, that’s saying something.

Hopefully, we’ll now get some sincerity, some integrity and some professionalism. 

I couldn't agree more!

[earlpurple]

Ok, this is my message to Thomas Sandgaard:

You started well. You got rid of ESI - we were in a desperate state yet with virtually no transfer window we were able to get a competitive squad and had I think 6 wins in a row making us look like promotion contenders.

However when we suffered injuries to key players, especially Ryan Inniss on whom we appeared to be dependent, we had a really bad run. Maybe as soon as we hit the January transfer window we should have put that right, but I recall we did not and the bad run continued pretty much until Inniss returned.

You appointed Nigel Adkins which didn't seem too bad at first, and he got us nearly into the playoffs.

You hired Ged Roddy which may have seemed a good idea at the time, but whoever was in charge of the 2021 summer transfer window did a disastrous job. I think you were expecting late bargains which never happened. Other clubs like MK Dons were meanwhile signing the players, and we started the season in relegation form, possibly partly due to Nigel Adkins feeling he'd been badly let down having been promised that we'd be strongly competitive, thus his statement after the Hull game "That will be us next season".

After getting rid of Ged Roddy, probably the right decision, you felt your son was equipped to do the job which he was not. You also brought your partner in to do Human Resources work, which was not appropriate.

Clearly your targets after that were mostly misplaced and we were nothing but mediocre in your last season in charge and it took the temporary Senior Management Team to turn us around, but you still refused to sell the club in January / February when you had the chance, and you knew by then you were never going to take the club forward yourself. As you clearly knew when removing Ben Garner as manager, if you can't take the club forward you don't belong here. That applied to you too. So clearly you had to go.

Maybe from your experience take on a Danish club. Perhaps more within your budget. And bring football people in to make football decisions.