Harrison insists he is the right man for new role at Exeter

CLIVE Harrison has defended his new role as general manager of Exeter City following his brief stint as interim chairman of the club.

- STUART JAMES [e-mail]

Harrison stepped into the role as interim chair following the resignations of club and Trust chairman Nick Hawker and chief executive Joe Gorman when news first broke of a cash flow problem at St James Park in the summer.

By Harrison’s own admission, the situation was far worse than he foresaw leading to the club ultimately going cap in hand to its owners - the Exeter City Supporters’ Trust - for two separate loans, _ totalling £600,000, to help with their financial issues.

Given Harrison served on both Club and Trust boards, many feel he should also be accountable for the situation the Grecians now find themselves in ~ along with his fellow Trustees that also sat on Club and Trust boards ~ citing negligence at the running of the club. But both he and Richard Pym, who Harrison persuaded to return to chair the financially troubled club, state that given the departures of Hawker and Gorman, there would have been no one else to pick up the pieces if Harrison had not stepped up to the plate.