If you ask the right questions you might get the wrong answers!!
Questions above at least some can be answered without going to BA. Why was Hoban allowed to leave? Manager outlined his plans for 2024, didnt sit well with Hoban, he decided to leave - could have been resolved financially with new ownership but damage done on a football level between manager and player, done now and move on. Why are players still needed 4 weeks out from the season start? Change of ownership restricted recruitment when budgets were up in the air and yes its a case of playing catch up. Why was the bar closed? Previous ownership run down the level of staff and stock and initially there is need to (re)build volunteers/staff to give a dig out and get someone in to oversee things on at least an interim basis. Its not just about pulling pints, its also about palatable pints from a bar thats been out of use for a while. No shop, no soup, no tayto.....probably cause a lot of such stuff just gets done by volunteers, if a club is a miserable place to be the volunteers, even the stalwarts can take a step back with a wait and see on the new owner. Next game bar oopen and fully stocked, tayto and all and if not then yup, time to ask why.
Again its a case of wait and see if BA's leadership will make a difference but in the time he has had since buying in, I reckon there was a lot more pressing issues to deal with, Hoban, squad recruitmet/retention in general, licencing stuff, exemptions pending eg grant applications. Getting to know staff and volunteers and appropriate delegation. Convincing investors to buy in etc etc.
A lot of the outstanding issues would be under the remit of a general manager, COO or whatever other fancy title. Do we have one? A more pressing question imo if so is what have they been doing to prepare for a new season irrespective of ownership - basic tidy up of the ground, having the stalwart volunteers on soup duty - doesnt or didnt need the new owners endorsement. Unless so many people have stepped back that a major effort is needed to reconnect with volunteers and for some micro managing a few old egos to get them back.
There are questions that answer themselves, ones that wont get an answer (yet) and ones that ye couldnt be bothered trying. Time has been against the club and new owner, not for the first time for Dundalk FC in recent seasons, its a tad too early to expect widespred fixes to the broad number of supporter gripes. If Im about come the 2024 close season I will lead from the front with all the difficult questions + some!!
