Sunday 18 November 2018 13:54, UK
Is change needed at the PFA? Is Gordon Taylor still the right man to lead the players' union? The Sunday Supplement panel discuss...
PFA chairman Ben Purkiss wants an independent review into the way it operates. Purkiss is reported to have fallen out with chief executive Taylor and it has been claimed this week that Taylor wants Purkiss removed as chairman.
The London Evening Standard's James Olley, speaking on the Sunday Supplement, believes there are questions to answer as to whether the PFA is acting in the best interests of its members.
"It is very rare, in any walk of life, to have the same chief executive for 37 years," Olley said.
"If you look at the way the PFA is structured, I think [Taylor] earned £2.2m, which is 10 per cent of the PFA's overall money last year. Apparently their internal constitution requires there to be some sort of vote, some sort of offer to invite applications for a rival chief executive every five years, and apparently there has not been one for at least 10 years.
"There are questions to answer about whether the PFA is operating in the best interests of its members, or whether it has become a personal fiefdom that needs to be challenged.
"I have read that they have £50m in reserves. The vast majority of PFA members, certainly the higher profile ones, will never need the PFA, because they will have made their money.
"The players at the lower end of the scale, the younger kids who get released, or the guys who fall on hard times in League One, League Two - these are the people who need the help.
"There are cases, time and again, where players need more protection, the PFA needs to be more proactive, and it is impossible for that kind of money going on a painting, against somebody's livelihood."
Purkiss has a job on his hands to overthrow a leader who will have an army of supporters around him, according to the Daily Mail's Martin Samuel, but in the modern era, where younger voices are coming to the fore in other areas, Purkiss could expect to be successful if those other factions make themselves heard.
"While Gordon will have this bedrock of loyal supporters around him, there will be just as many people within the PFA who think their needs to be change," Samuel said. "When you get a governor's review, or even open discussion, these voices will be heard, and they will grow, more people will join that movement, and a tipping point will come.
"It is perfectly possible that this particular battle will be won and it is probably overdue. After 37 years, there is a need for new voices, new ideas.
"If you look at the Jeff Astle [brain injury] case, and the abuse [Barry Bennell] cases, Taylor is a man of his time, people with that much experience are often slow to act, but a newer, younger voice, will probably get things done a little quicker. There will be more of a sense of urgency, which is required."
