On 11 December 1972, with City 14th in the League and only five points off the relegation zone, Allison decided to roll the dice one more time.
The Manchester Evening News revealed that Allison had told the City board that he intended to sign George Best from Manchester United. Best had been transfer-listed the previous week after he had failed to report for training following a club suspension.
Although City chairman Eric Alexander ruled out any transfer, the following day Allison put in a written bid.
A month earlier, Edward Heath's Conservative government had introduced a freeze on pay, prices, dividends and rents to counter inflation. What Allison didn't yet realise was that City were about to introduce their own form of austerity.
In January, Allison was 'told to do something to balance the books'. On 7 January, the Sunday People exclusively revealed that City were prepared to sell England striker Francis Lee for £150,000.
"If City are that short of cash I'll lend them a few bob of my own," Lee told the Daily Mirror the following day.
On 7 February, club secretary Walter Griffiths, viewed as a close ally of the "old-guard" on the board, resigned due to "ill health". That same day, it was announced that Oldham secretary, Bernard Halford, would be his replacement.
A former Rugby League player, Halford was only 25 when the then Oldham chairman Ken Bates appointed him club secretary in June 1966. According to former manager Jimmy McIlroy, the club soon developed unorthodox methods to cut costs. He told the Sunday People,
'When it came to paying the meal bill we sometimes handed over a cheque knowing it would arrive back at the ground almost before we did.
For each cheque had to have three signatures, and several times it was sent with two. And while it was returned for the third, the club gained valuable breathing-space.
One afternoon we couldn't find any ball to play with, so secretary Bernard Halford had to dash home for the ball he'd just bought his son for a Christmas present.'
On 1 March, the Manchester Evening News reported that the financial shutters had now come down at City.
It revealed that City had a £200,000 bank overdraft, which was incurring charges 'in the region of £800 a week'. As a result, they were keen to balance their books 'as soon as possible'.
According to the Evening News, the club were looking to sell Colin Barrett and Ian Mellor, both valued at £80,000, as well as Alan Oakes, Frank Carrodus and Mike Brennan, who were each valued at around £50,000.
On 2 March, the Daily Mirror reported that 'City are £250,000 in the red after building a new stand and have imposed a freeze.' Chairman Eric Alexander told the paper,
"Our manager Malcolm Allison is aware that we are not, at this time, prepared to spend money on players."
But something didn't add up. The £390,000 cost of the new North Stand had been met by the club’s Development Association. Although City had suffered a £57,831 loss in the 1971-72 season, they hadn't signed any players since Marsh’s arrival in March 1972. The sale of 30-year-old Wyn Davies to Manchester United in September 1972 for £65,000—representing a profit of £10,000 on the player in just over a year—easily offset the overdraft charges. Gates were still good, and the FA Cup run that had ended at Sunderland on 27 February had included crowds of 38,648, 49,572 and 54,478 at Maine Road.
It's almost as though someone at the club was feeding the newspapers a line.
On 5 March, the day Halford took up his new role, a meeting of the club's finance committee turned into a 'full-scale board meeting'.
According to the Manchester Evening News, after the meeting ended an unnamed director phoned Allison, who was in bed with a heavy cold at his Baguley home. Allison was informed: "We expect some action to help balance our books." Swales told the paper,
"Not enough has been done.
We are concerned because we are drifting dangerously near to the end of a seller's market, with the transfer deadline on Thursday. Values deteriorate after then."
On 7 March, City sold 23-year-old left-winger Ian Mellor, a graduate of the youth team, to Norwich for £65,000. According to the Mirror, it was 'a deal conducted by the directors' and against Allison's wishes.
But Alexander, 'concerned at Allison's reluctance' to offset City's overdraft, was in a combative mood. He told the Mirror:
"Allison doesn't run City, despite the impression outside the club.
We need to show we're not dummies. Malcolm does not like weak people and when this is over he will respect us."
His vice-chairman was in full agreement. That same day, the Birmingham Post reported that Swales was unhappy that ‘Allison was reluctant to part with young players who could not command regular first team places’.
On the pitch, City were now in disarray.
On 27 March, City lost 1-0 at home to Chelsea in front of 23,973 fans—their lowest league gate of the season. It was their fourth successive defeat and meant they had only earned two points from the previous seven league games. During the match, 'Marsh received the ultimate humiliation of jeers and slow handclaps’ from City fans.
Unable to refresh his squad, Allison had had enough. In his autobiography, Colours of My Life, he wrote,
'Inevitably, a coach loses his edge with a certain set of players. In the last period at Manchester City I sensed that we had all become too familiar; a kind of complacency had taken hold of both myself and the players. It is at times that a man should either move on—or radically change the emphasis of the work.'
The Evening News urged Allison to give City ‘some heart'. But his heart now lay elsewhere. Allison had been having a long-standing affair with former "Bunny Girl" Serena Williams, who was now the PR for London's Playboy Club.
New Crystal Palace chairman Ray Bloye, who had made a fortune from his butchers business, was ready to offer Allison what he wanted: money, a free hand at his club, and the chance to move in with the love of his life.
On 29 March, Alexander received a late-night phone call from Bloye asking for permission to speak to Allison. Alexander agreed to the request.
The following evening, Allison agreed a five-year £13,000 a year contract with "the new millionaires of soccer", making him 'one of the highest paid soccer bosses in the game.'
That day, the Evening News reported that, 'Joe Smith, City's President, scoffed at the idea of Allison moving to Palace and he hurried to Maine Road for talks with the manager.'
Allison later recalled,
'They tried to persuade me to stay, offering me money to buy players, suggesting that we should have another look at my contract. They were offering too much, too late. But they couldn't budge me. Apart from the days in Italy when I lingered over the Juventus offer, I have always been a man of quick decision. I drove away from Maine Road without glancing back.'
As well as leaving City, Allison also left behind his wife and four children. But his life in the country’s capital would soon prove to be as tumultuous as his time in its second city.
That summer, City reported a record profit of £255,901 for the season. The club’s bank overdraft had also been reduced to just £62,171 during that time.
Despite the protests of the chairman and vice-chairman, the money had been there all along.
Part 8
If you want to read about City’s origins, you can check out my book, A Man’s Game, on Amazon here.