Coventry City comment from CoventryLive as we take a look at Dave Boddy’s tenure and what we can expect from his successor
A year after entering the scene, he’s becoming rather involved and is altering the club from the top down. It’s not that the departing CEO hasn’t been doing a good job; on the contrary, it’s just that owners occasionally have different views about what they want to achieve and who they want to do it for. And in this case, it looks like it’s time to start over with a fresh perspective. John Taylor, the former chief operating officer of Nottingham Forest, is an experienced and, hopefully, trustworthy pair of hands who understands the role, what it’s like to be promoted to the Premier League, and the significant financial impact that can have on a club.
Going back to Boddy, though, it’s safe to say that his place in the club’s incredible ascent up the divisions is cemented in the annals of history, along with that of Mark Robins, his staff, and the players during the last seven years. He joined in February 2017 and came from an absurdly long line of unsuccessful executives that Sisu had chosen to lead the team. And he offered stability and a level head that has benefited City ever since.
Naturally, one of his first tasks was to get Robins on board. Since then, he and the manager have developed a close working relationship in which he assists and supports the manager in every way possible while, more importantly, reestablishing a connection with the supporters. The CEO is a visible and approachable figure who is happy to meet and converse with supporters and who also tries to be as transparent as possible by listening to them and providing them with information.
After years of terrible judgments and poor management, he soon realized that Tim Fisher’s old guard had only exacerbated an already toxic connection between the club’s fan base and leadership. As a result, the former chairman quickly vanished into the background.
Boddy faced several difficulties in his role as manager of another extremely unpopular groundshare, but he persevered in getting City back to Coventry amidst the excitement of the Championship’s comeback and the return of fans following the epidemic. He should be acknowledged and appreciated for leading the team through hardship off the field and success on it.
Next month, he will depart with a sense of pride in his work, having left the football team in a much better situation than when he arrived and, hopefully, in capable hands.