English cricketer and Newcastle United fan Steve Harmison has destroyed Mike Ashley after he was asked his opinion on talkSPORT (via ChronicleLive) about the lack of refunds for season tickets.
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As per the outlet, the pundit has admitted that he has been tolerant of the tenure of the CEO of Sports Direct, which could possibly be ending after 13 years if the proposed takeover of the Tyneside club is to be approved by the Premier League.
However, Harmison has stated that the owner at St. James’ Park has gone too far for his liking as the club are yet to communicate with holders of season tickets with regard to whether theirs will be refunded or not. Indeed, they are now the only outfit in the Premier League who haven’t offered a refund to their supporters (Chronicle).
Speaking to talkSPORT, the Durham and England cricket legend argued that taking cash away from members of the Toon faithful during the global pandemic crisis was not the right thing to do and has urged for them to be refunded.
“That was the final straw for me,” he said to the outlet.
“I’ve been quite tolerant to Mike Ashley and thought that he’s not going to be here forever – it’s our club, it’s Newcastle United, this is the club we support and owners, managers and players come and go but the black and white will always stay.
“It’s just a little part of our history and maybe we’ve got to take a backward step to go forward.
“But when you start taking money out of pockets when the pandemic was going on… people in the area, in the north, it’s not a vibrant area when it comes to finances.
“In this area there’s a lot of people will need the money that’s been leftover from the end of the season.
“I’d say if they give the option to give it to charity, the NHS or the Foundation – Newcastle United have a fantastic Foundation for the food banks – whatever was left of the five games, say £100 or something like that, I’d happily give it to the Foundation.
“I think a lot of Newcastle fans would but some wouldn’t as they need the money at this difficult time.
“Not to have the option is disgusting.”
Indeed, the potential money lost from the season tickets could be given to charities in the area as Harmison suggests, but instead Ashley is set to benefit given that he still remains the owner of the Magpies.
However, the CEO of Sports Direct may not be in the hot seat for long, as Amanda Staveley’s Saudi Arabia-led group look to swoop in, but that is not a guarantee at this stage in time.
The majority of members of the Toon faithful will surely be hoping that Ashley is replaced by the consortium, which also consists of Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and his Public Investment Fund (PIF), as well as the billionaire Reuben brothers that are based in London, to start off a new and fresh era with a potential abundance of wealth.
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