Mel Goes From Morris Minor To Major As New DCFC Owner Thursday, 3rd Sep 2015 14:47 by Daniel J Sewart Unless you have been in a Rip Van Winkle type slumber until you read this article — you could not have missed the news that DCFC Chairman Mel Morris has become the outright owner of the club. Mel Morris, who is a well known figure to Derby as a life long Rams supporter, originally invested in the club in May last year and became Chairman of the club in May of this year. Today Morris became the outright owner and majority shareholder after purchasing the shares owned by American Partners LLP. At this stage the team running the club on the ground will remain the same with Sam Rush continuing as chief executive while a new board of directors will no doubt be next on the agenda. The reaction from fans and the media was hugely positive as Morris is seen as a solid and sensible figure who is willing to invest with a vision for Derby to once again be competing in the top flight. In the statement that Morris released following the announcement, that vision was clearly outlined: "Whilst I firmly believe that the club's ownership is very much a tertiary concern to most fans, I hope together we can help steer this club back into a sustainable place in the Premier League." "We have many of the key components in place, but I am conscious that we must all commit our total support in pursuit of this goal, which I know is shared by all of us, as fans of this great football club." "I wish to pay tribute to the North American Ownership group, who collectively provided the finance and leadership stability the club needed following the traumatic times which followed the 2007/08 season in the Premier League." "They have been terrific to work with and I am sure they will continue to follow the Rams well into the future." Famously Mel Morris was involved with mobile gaming company ‘King’ — where he was Chief Executive when the best selling app ‘Candy Crush Saga’ was developed. This fact is something not lost on Rams fans who themselves seem to have developed something of a crush on their new owner — who in the last couple of days — has signalled his intent by authorising some big money signings. Personally I think this is a great development for the club and its fans as it seems this is the next step required if DCFC is to once again not just challenge for the top flight, but also compete and stabilise within it for years to come. New Rams manager Paul Clement will be feeling the heat more than ever as it is obvious that Morris and his team want promotion sooner rather than later, and when I say sooner, I mean this season. For Clement this means the longer it takes to get that win, the hotter it will get in the kitchen. With new quality signings and a quality squad to call on — it will be hard to make excuses if in 5 games Derby have not started to turn their slow start into required forward momentum. Being a Rams fan is never boring but today has brought with it a real sense of hope and positivity that DCFC is really starting to rev its engine and once again stamp its authority on English football. We can only hope the revving off the pitch results in some chequered flags on it. The Rams new owner spoke to the official site — and in case you are not the type to twitter or just missed it — we have embedded part of the interview the club released today below (the full interview is available on RamsPlayer). Good luck Mel — may the road ahead for Derby County FC be paved with gold… or should that be candy? COYR!
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