David Sharpe backs Bantams CEO Ryan Sparks after tough times

Angry fans were calling for Sparks and Stefan Rupp to go as City’s season collapsed in March.

The chief executive was targeted with chanting during the loss at Harrogate and there was a protest before the home game on Good Friday.

Sharpe, who was the youngest CEO in the English game before Sparks, admitted he came in for similar treatment when he started at Wigan.

Speaking exclusively to the T&A, he said: “I was 23 when I was chairman in the Championship and I was really in the spotlight.

“I got a lot of stick early on and really couldn’t disagree with it. I didn’t get that role because I’d built my way up, it was because I had a grandad who owned the football club.

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“I couldn’t say anything different. But in my head, I wanted to prove to people that I could do it.

“My grandad’s not a stupid man. He wouldn’t have passed me that role if he didn’t think I was capable.

“It wasn’t all perfect at Wigan. We got relegated and people were questioning everything I did early on.

“But in the end, you stick to what you believe in and have to surround yourself with good people.

“That’s what I did, surrounding myself with people that I could learn a lot from. It saw us in a good light.”

Creating a strong support team is the best advice he can give his good friend, who lured him back into the game after a 10-month exile with the newly-created role as City’s head of football operations.

Sharpe said his eyes were opened to the all-encompassing nature of being a chief executive when he left Wigan for Mansfield.

“Wigan was my own club. I grew up there and knew everything about it inside out.

“I started going from the age of four or five when the family owned the club.

David Sharpe and Ryan Sparks feel they can help each other (Image: Thomas Gadd)

“I wanted to see if I could do it at another football club and what it was like when I was working for people and not just at the top.

“That’s when I joined Mansfield and I definitely learned more there because you’re reporting to people.

“I was director of football and then chief exec, whereas at Wigan I had a chief exec to do a lot of the nitty-gritty and a big recruitment team. I could dip in and out.

“But as CEO, you have to be on top of everything.

“I’ve been in football for about 11 years. I started at Wigan when I was 21 and took over as chairman two years later.

“I’ve had a lot of stick, had good times and I’ve said to Ryan that if you surround yourself with good people – and hopefully he sees me as one of those – then everything will work out.

“You’ve got to have patience. Nothing happens at the click of a finger.

“Football fans ultimately judge you on results on the pitch.

“You could have the best stadium, your commercial deals could be unbelievable, you could have everything running so smoothly. But if you’re losing games, that is all you get judged on.”

With owner Rupp absent, Sparks found himself in the firing line as frustration grew among supporters during an up-and-down campaign.

City did rally in the final month to finish a point outside the play-offs but still face a sixth straight season in the bottom tier.

“It’s a difficult one because of course you take it personally,” added Sharpe.

“But everything Ryan has done at this football club has been with the best intentions. You’re doing it for the right reasons and working non-stop.

“I’ve been on the phone to him 10pm Saturday and Sunday nights, it was 10pm again the other night and I know how much he cares and wants it to work.

“I’ve seen other people at different clubs that hardly put anything in. But they get a bit of luck and win promotion and everybody thinks they are great.

“Things haven’t gone as well as hoped but we’ve had a play-off finish and finished one point outside.

“Yes, we want to do better and Ryan will admit himself that he will have made decisions that he regrets. I’ve done exactly the same in my time, appointing managers that I shouldn’t have.

Ryan Sparks was targeted by fans as City lost at Harrogate (Image: Thomas Gadd)

“Nobody’s perfect and we all make mistakes. But you learn from them and make yourself better.

“Ryan’s brought me in. There are ways I feel I can help him and ways that he can help me.

“Ultimately, the only thing that matters is getting results on the pitch.

“If we stick to our principles and don’t have people going off at a tangent and doing their own thing.

“What goes on in our meetings stays there. I don’t like people talking behind each other’s backs.

“We make every decision with clarity and hopefully it will all work out.

“Of course, the aim is to get promotion this season but sometimes it doesn’t happen like that.”