Friday Fulham Stuff - 08/05/20...

[WhiteJC]

Bill Muddyman: 1937-2020

The Club was saddened to learn of the passing of Bill Muddyman yesterday at the age of 82.

A lifelong fan, Bill played a key role in saving Fulham when we were at our lowest ebb, and ended up spending 16 years on the board.

With the Whites struggling in the lower tiers, there was a time when it genuinely looked as though the Club could go out of business, but Bill provided a considerable amount of his own money to keep things afloat.

Further down the line when Bill was in position as Vice-Chairman, he helped facilitate the purchase of the Club, along with his son Andy, by Mohamed Al Fayed's company, Fulham Leisure Holdings.

"For Andy, myself and other members of the board, this marriage between Fulham FC and Mr Al Fayed is our dream scheme come true," Bill said at the time. "It presents a wonderful opportunity for our football club to return to its former glory and to take its place where it belongs - at the top."

Bill remained heavily involved in the running of Fulham as we achieved his dream of returning to the top of the football pyramid, until leaving his position on the board in 2003.

Upon learning of Bill's passing, our Chairman Shahid Khan said: "It's hard to imagine what generations of Fulham supporters would have lost if not for Bill Muddyman and his commitment through trying times to keep the Club alive, independent, and playing at Craven Cottage.

"Everyone who loves Fulham owes a debt of gratitude to Bill, his son Andy and their family for their care of the Club. Fulham remains London's original and oldest club, and for that we thank Bill Muddyman."

Everyone at the Club would like to offer their condolences to Bill's family and friends at this sad time. His contribution to Fulham will never be forgotten.



http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2020/may/07/bill-muddyman-1937-2020

[WhiteJC]

Joe Bryan issues upbeat Fulham message amid EFL break

It's a frustrating time to be a football supporter at the moment, with recent off-the-field events calling a halt to fixtures across the globe.

No scheduled return date has been put in place as of yet for matches to get back underway, as the relevant authorities continue to monitor the situation.

It means that the promotion race in the Championship has been put on hold for the time being, with it being a closely-fought battle heading into the final nine games of the season.

Fulham are one of the teams in contention to challenge for a timely return to the Premier League under the management of Scott Parker.

The Cottagers are currently sat third in the second tier standings, and are just six points adrift of the automatic promotion places at this moment in time.

One player that has been a regular in Parker's side is full-back Joe Bryan, who has made 38 appearances in total for Fulham this season, as they look to return to the top-flight at the first time of asking.

Bryan has been impressive at both ends of the pitch, and has chipped in with one goal and eight assists in all competitions this term.

Bryan recently took to Instagram to express his eagerness to get back playing competitive football again, even though no return date has been finalised as of yet.

The Verdict:

I think we're all looking forward to seeing football return.

However, it should only return when the relevant authorities have deemed it safe enough to do so later this year. Even when it does, I'd be surprised if supporters were allowed back in the stadiums.

Fulham need to find a positive run of results heading into the final nine games of the season, and if they can do that, then the likes of West Brom and Leeds United will be looking nervously over their shoulders.

Bryan has really impressed me this season, and is going to be a key player for them heading towards the conclusion of this year's campaign.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/joe-bryan-issues-upbeat-fulham-message-amid-efl-break/

[WhiteJC]

Three players Fulham must not lose for free this summer

Fulham have a few first-team players out of contract next month. Here are three they should keep hold of-

Denis Odoi- The full-back has been a great servant to the club since 2016 and deserves to be handed an extension. He has played over 100 games for the London side since his move from Lokeren, having previously played for Sint-Triuden and Anderlecht in Belgium.

The 31 year old played a key part in their promotion to the Premier League under Slavisa Jokanovic two seasons ago. He adds more options and depth to their defensive department.

Jordan Archer- He joined Fulham on short-term contract in January having spent the first half of this season at Oxford United but is also due to become a free agent again this summer.

The former Tottenham Hotspur and Millwall goalkeeper provides decent back-up to their current goalkeeping options and handing him a new deal would be a sensible by the Championship promotion hopefuls.



Neeskens Kebano- If Scott Parker's side are not promoted this term, they could face losing some key attacking players over the coming months which could leave them short of options up there. Kebano, who is a DR Congo international, is likely to leave this summer but the Cottagers should not rule out his departure just yet.

The ex-Charleroi and Genk wide man moved to Craven Cottage during the same summer as Odoi. They hold an option to extend his stay by a further month and could exercise this if they are playing in the Championship again next season.



https://the72.co.uk/164293/three-players-fulham-must-not-lose-for-free-this-summer/

[WhiteJC]

Former Fulham vice-chairman Bill Muddyman dies aged 82
Muddyman remained heavily involved as Fulham rose to the Premier League and left his place on the board in 2003.

Fulham have paid tribute to former vice-chairman Bill Muddyman following his death at the age of 82, saying "his contributions will never be forgotten".

The lifelong fan spent 16 years on the Craven Cottage board and helped keep the club afloat at a time when they were on the brink, as well as playing a key role in Mohamed Al Fayed's purchase of the club.

Muddyman remained heavily involved as Fulham rose to the Premier League and left his place on the board in 2003.

Fulham said in a statement: "All at Fulham were saddened to hear of the passing of lifelong fan and former vice-chairman, Bill Muddyman.

"Without Bill's intervention, Fulham as we know it may no longer exist. His contributions will never be forgotten. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time."

Upon learning of Muddyman's death on Wednesday, chairman Shahid Khan said: "It's hard to imagine what generations of Fulham supporters would have lost if not for Bill Muddyman and his commitment through trying times to keep the club alive, independent, and playing at Craven Cottage.

"Everyone who loves Fulham owes a debt of gratitude to Bill, his son Andy and their family for their care of the club.

"Fulham remains London's original and oldest club, and for that we thank Bill Muddyman."



https://www.bt.com/sport/news/former-fulham-vice-chairman-bill-muddyman-dies-aged-82

[WhiteJC]

Bill Muddyman – Fulham Legend

TOOFIF editor and new Fulham Supporters' Trust Honorary Life Member David Lloyd reflects on the massive contribution made by Bill Muddyman, who has died at the age of 82, to our Club and to him personally.

"Happy Days are here again!" proclaimed the front cover of the matchday programme for the Division Three fixture against Chesterfield on 11 April 1987. And there was every reason to rejoice because the grotesque Fulham Park Rangers merger had been firmly put to bed and its instigator, David Bulstrode, Chairman of both Fulham and QPR, had been ousted by a new consortium that included Cyril Swain and David Gardner.

Fulham v Chesterfield, 11 April 1987

The unmistakeable face of Fulham's new Chairman, Jimmy Hill, graced the programme's front cover. Buried within its pages were a few words from our new Vice-Chairman, Bill Muddyman.

    Let me introduce myself. I was born in Fulham, just off the Fulham Palace Road, and went to Fulham Palace Primary School, which I understand is now called Melcombe School. From there, I moved on to St Clement Danes School and continued to live in Fulham until I was married.

    I attended my first match at the tender age of five, persuaded by my brothers, and have kept up an interest in Fulham Football Club ever since. The last thing I ever imagined was that I would become involved in the way that I have, and even when I agreed to attend the historic meeting at the Wig and Pen Club I still thought it was an uphill battle. However, the enthusiasm for Fulham Football Club that was generated at that meeting, led by Jimmy Hill who finally agreed to be Chairman, convinced me that not only had I a part to play, but that in some way it was fate.

    I was very impressed with the attitude of those who will be my colleagues and together I can promise you that we will do our best for Fulham Football Club in the future. We certainly won't fail through lack of ambition or hard work by everyone involved. All we need now is your support!

It may have been a Happy Day on 11 April (we even beat Chesterfield 3-1, having lost our previous home game, against Port Vale, 0-6!), but as we all know it got a whole lot worse before it got better. Relegation to the bottom division ensued and the Club's very existence came under real threat as crowds dwindled and because the fabulous Craven Cottage site still belonged to property developers. It was hardly a rosy time to be a Club director.

The Club's delaying tactics (plus a brilliant rearguard action by the stalwart supporters) were given a mighty boost by the property market collapse. But it's worth remembering that even if we could somehow raise the millions of pounds to buy back the freehold of the ground at a "bargain" price, the best-case scenario back then for the Cottage was a forever-limiting 12,000 ground capacity part-funded by having other buildings on the site. Against the option of going out of business, that seemed highly desirable, even if it would have probably meant lower-division football and relative obscurity.

In that Chesterfield programme, Jimmy Hill wrote about the new board: "There is not an 'Elton John' amongst them." Maybe not, but there was a Bill Muddyman. Having astutely persuaded the ubiquitous Jimmy to be the very public face of Fulham FC, Bill pulled a lot of the strings backstage. And we have Bill to thank for looking beyond that limited model of the Cottage.

So, not only was Bill instrumental in saving our wonderful football club but he also oversaw our miraculous revival. With the Mickey Adams promotion season ensuring that the sporting world took notice of Fulham once again in 1997, Bill Muddyman sold Fulham to Mohamed Al Fayed.

Andy Muddyman, Mohamed Al Fayed, Bill Muddyman

Incredibly, not only was a Premier League adventure on the horizon but a highly unlikely European Tour as well. Bill continued to attend Fulham games and was a driving force in getting the George Cohen statue erected. He enjoyed the highs as much as any Fulham fan and was especially pleased to enjoy our Play-Off success at Wembley with his son Andy. Happy Days indeed!

I have a special reason to thank Bill Muddyman. It was at his chateau in the south of France that I proposed to Heather. That 'Cottage Chance' weekend was almost 30 years ago. Much more recently my eldest son Matt accompanied me to Cassis to interview Jean Tigana at his vineyard. Surreal is hardly the word.


Bill Muddyman and Jean Tigana

Jean was on brilliant form and he remains incredibly passionate about his time at Fulham. Also present at the interview was Bill; he'd not only engineered the whole thing but, with his partner Linda, was putting us up too. Jean drove us to a fantastic beachside restaurant that, naturally, served the splendid Domain La Dona Tigana wine. The four of us were treated like royalty by the staff, and Jean and Bill were supreme company. Matt and I kept exchanging disbelieving glances; what a truly fantastic experience.

Thank you, Bill.



https://www.fulhamsupporterstrust.com/news/2020/05/bill-muddyman-fulham-legend/