With an election on the horizon there have been comments from politicians, some of whom are suggesting football boards should include supporters.

It could well be a way of trying to win votes but when I am asked the question I give the same answer I did many years ago.

The directors when I came to Southampton Football Club were true gentlemen, and some of them had businesses in the area and themselves represented the man on the terrace.

Naturally things have changed and the Premier League particularly is now a massive business.

I would hesitate to have a supporter’s representative for the simple reason that many items at board meetings are about players who may have problems away from football and a lot of subjects which need to be kept in house – similar to the recent fuss about the Liverpool player Sterling (pictured), which continues to go again, where whatever was said or not said should have remained in the dressing room.

I think it would be difficult for a supporter’s representative not to answer to the people he represents on certain rumours or items.

The other major topic in football at the moment is one that has cropped up before, which apparently now the football authorities are about to address by appointing someone to look into it, and is whether black managers are being given opportunities.

In my experience as a manager I never bothered about colour, race or anything. It was whether the player or the coach or whoever could do the job.

I have got to think that goes right across the game.

I would suggest instead of all these big appointments and committees, etc, being set up, why don’t the players’ union ask publically for all black managers who have applied for a job and think they were turned down because of their colour to let them know, and also name the clubs that either refused them or interviewed them and then gave it to someone else?

This would surely be the quickest way and could then be answered by the clubs themselves.

I could suggest that anyone, of whatever colour – and I know there are lots of out of work British coaches – could apply to Watford, who at the moment are flying high but have had an average of a manager per month since the season started.

This could be the way forward.