Niall Quinn has opened up about his considerable regret over Martin O'Neill's tenure at Sunderland. Connecting with fans via the club's YouTube channel, Quinn spoke of the short overlap between his time as chairman and O'Neill's management stint, which barely lasted 16 months.
"Martin O'Neill was flying, I was delighted Martin had come in," Quinn reminisced with a hint of 'what could have been'. He added, "I just find it hard looking back as to how Ellis (Short, then owner and chairman) and Martin didn't gel and Martin could have been there for years to come. That's the way I thought it was going to happen, but it didn't."
It's clear that hindsight brings its own heartaches for Quinn, who mused, "Have I regrets about that? Yeah. I wish I was around to have been between the two of them, maybe, looking back, because I think you had a meeting of two great minds there, that were probably clashing as opposed to someone in the middle to keep the peace."
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The former Sunderland chairman reflected on his departure and considered the difference he might have made, saying, "I think that's probably the one regret I had, that when I did leave I wasn't there to support Martin, or indeed to support Ellis to make sure he was happy with the way things were going," reports the Irish Mirror.
Quinn reflected on the past, saying: "That (O'Neill's departure) began, I think, a demise that eventually, despite hanging on for a little while, would see the club go down two divisions." He admitted, "I wouldn't change a lot, but I think the one thing I would change, I'd maybe have gotten to the end of that season."
Looking back on his own departure, he shared, "I left in February or March, I think. Even though it finished alright, things were in good shape, Martin had done a great job and it looked like they were going to sign a few players, it just didn't happen. Then there were a succession of managers." He also expressed his appreciation for the former chairman, adding, "As a chairman I couldn't have had a better owner."
Delving into the history of Sunderland's takeover by the Drumaville Consortium, Quinn recounted how a crucial meeting in London with officials from Anglo Irish Bank was pivotal in securing their controlling stake at a time when the Black Cats desperately needed financial support. He remembered, "What was most prevailing was they had just let 90 people go from the staff and it was a really horrible time at the club."
Quinn described the dire situation further, "The worst points total ever to get relegated, staff being made redundant, 14 professional players were left, it was pretty low, pretty flat. But to me it was the opportunity of a lifetime. We weren't allowed to sign players for money for the first few weeks. Scottish Bank, who were owed a lot of money, £22m I think, pulled out of the deal at the last minute, they didn't like what we were or who we were.
"So we had to find money overnight and literally we were playing Coventry first game of the season. On the Friday when I should be training with the team I was down in London with Anglo Irish Bank trying to get money to make sure the deal went ahead. That's how tight it all was.
"Imagine, my first business gig and Anglo Irish Bank let me go on the train back up to Durham with a guarantee of the £22m to pay to Scottish Bank. So it was mad stuff. I hadn't been to business school, I'd left school at 15 or 16, but it started to work. Obviously I struggled at the start, but when Roy (Keane) came (as manager) and I was able to go off and do my job and he did his, the belief came in the air."
"Thanks to the guys in Drumaville, we were able to get the club back into shape. It was a matter of getting it as high up as we could over the next few years. But it was a strange time. Did I spend my career thinking I was going to be chairman of a football club? No. It happened."
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