Saints fan Chris Newman has written to the Daily Echo to express his frustrations over the current situation concerning Southampton Football Club.

His views are published in today's edition.

Newman writes: In order to PARTLY understand the dreadful problems Saints have got themselves into off the field (let alone on it), it's necessary to revisit some of the history.

Back in 93/94 Saints were also in great danger of losing cherished top flight status after then chairman Guy Askham had suddenly changed managerial horses at the end of 1990/91.

This was to bring in his favoured option, Ian Branfoot.

Like now, top name players were being sold.

Askham knew that Branfoot would be more than willing to work on a limited budget and what made it worse was the limited playing style that went with it.

It was most mostly dreadful stuff of the hoof it' variety. Even the genius of Le Tissier was becoming stifled.

Also, fans were concerned that the important replica kit/leisure wear aspect, having gone out of house, had lost its way a bit.

In addition, the newly-converted covered terrace at the Archers Road End was ridiculously, at first, given over to the highly vocal away faction.

These were just some of the reasons why an Independent Supporters' group (in those days gaining huge momentum and hundreds of members) came together, fuelled by a growing fanzine culture ... to try and persuade the club to address a few problems.

Fast forward to 1997 and with Askham still chairman, him and his board have a Eureka' moment.

Hey presto, a takeover. However, with a difference.

A reverse takeover (smaller company takes over the larger) and in walked the devil himself, Rupert Lowe, and fellow demons.

An absolutely brilliant ruse from the board's point of view. Unless, of course, you happened to be a fan.

We were never big enough to venture on to a Stock Exchange that wasn't really intended for the likes of us.

Therefore, slowly but surely - as a few of us always feared - it's ended up in disaster.

Add this to Lowe's idiotic refusal to invest properly in the playing staff when the time was right (after 2002/03) and we are where we are.

I only wish I did have a magic wand I could wave and produce someone very rich, with a passion for football, with real business acumen (or true genius is probably more appropriate) to point the way forward.

Lowe and cohorts made realistic further investment extremely difficult for even successful businessmen.

I fully confess I know very little of such matters - but I do know a bit of old-fashioned plain as a pikestaff' common sense when I see it.

At least if Graeme Souness and his people were to come in and buy Saints, you'd have a football-orientated person fully involved. Surely that's what's needed, isn't it?

As a lifelong fan, I have reached a state of almost perpetual numbness with it all.

I suspect many other fans have long felt helpless to influence anything in any case, having been largely disenfranchised by the initial flotation and continuing wheeling and dealing in shares by the major protagonists.

This while the football is supposed to continue on regardless as a separate issue, as if nothing has happened.

Add this to some ongoing poor decision-making by George Burley - who seems to alter the plot so much he just keeps losing it again - and you've got a one fine mess' of Laurel & Hardy proportions. At least THEY were funny.

To be perfectly honest, part of my dumb resignation comes from the fact that for some time now, I've realised that although I, like thousands of others, am a paying customer - my club doesn't really give a hoot about me.

So therefore, why me them anymore? There is only so much people will take.

Football these days, like it or not (I don't, being a traditionalist) is massive business.

If you continue to take the revenue from customers (the fans) for granted - or present a divided club at boardroom level - it will inevitably trickle down to the field.

End result: low morale on the pitch, in the stands and rubbish performances.

Consequently, customers will no longer bother.

I may even end up making that decision myself one day in the not too distant future.

NOBODY benefits from that kind of exodus, do they?

However, it was hardly the loyal, long suffering fans killing this once proud club.

It was the greedy, self-interested and ultimately incompetent, who were SUPPOSED to be running the show, that have now put us all in real danger of ever really recovering to what we once were.

Chris Newman, Midanbury.