Bill Muddyman RIP

Last night I learned of the passing of a key figure in the boardoom in the last 43 years – Bill Muddyman.

In the 1980s Fulham Chairman David Bulstrode and his property company Marler Estates who owned the club sought to merge us with QPR into  Fulham Park  Rangers.

Fulham would be very much the junior partner and in all probability cease to exist in any form.

A supporters activist group was formed and Jimmy Hill at that time a director of Charlton sought to set up a consortium.

He was aided by an ex-player Tom Wilson, who played for Fulham in the 50s, caught pleurisy and in his period of enforced absence qualified as a surveyor.  He rose to become senior partner of St. Quentin Estates.

I attended a now famous meeting convened by Jimmy at the Wig and Pen in 1987.

I had just set up my business and money was short.

When the gathering was asked how much we would stump up I offered ten grand.

Fortunately another man alerted to the meeting by a sportswriter at the Daily Express offered £150,000.

That man was Bill Muddyman and he became Vice Chairman with Jimmy Hill as chairman. Tom Wilson was also on the board as was Bill’s son Andy.

Another was accountant David Shrimpton.

The Shrimptons once fielded four brothers in the same Fulham side.

Bill had made his money by bringing the liquified contact lens to the country. He was a shrewd businessman with a quiet reserved nature.  One ex-player said of him “Some people play their cards close to their  chest. Bill’s are inside his.”

Sadly the board could not appoint a manager to reverse the decline of the club till Micky Adams.

The team was the worst in London, Craven Cottage falling apart with one whole area of broken seats. Yet we we were still in business.

Marler went bust and the Royal Bank of Scotland took over the ground as mortgagees in possession.

The club had no more than a licence to occupy but Tom Wilson – to continue the metaphor – played his cards cleverly.

Finally Micky Adams brought success on the field and in 1995 Fulham achieved promotion to the old third division.

Bill got to hear of the Al Fayed interest. He bought the ground and club and sold it a week later to Al Fayed.

That transaction, of which the rest of the board except Andy was ignorant, led to a rift between Jimmy Hill and Bill Muddyman.

However, it was good deal for Bill who had 25% of the new company including the ground and Fulham.

Bill and al Fayed soon went their separate ways but Fulham went onwards and upwards and – within 4 years of Al Fayed taking over – we were in the top flight.

Bill had a box and continued to support the club.

His multifarious interests included a hotel in Provence, restaurant and property.

When I met him last at a dinner for George Cohen he was disappointed that a coaching team he had set up of Thierry Henry, Jean Tigana and Christian Damiano was not of appeal.

Last night he died quietly in a hospice.

I should not be the only grateful Fulham supporter that – at a crucial moment in our history – Bill was prepared to put his hand in his pocket to save our club.