Gavin Cowan’s Shrewsbury Town takeover stance after major development

Gavin Cowan says he will be excited to work with Shrewsbury Town’s prospective new owners if the club’s takeover is completed.

Town are closer than ever to a change of ownership after the English Football League (EFL) and Independent Football Regulator (IFR) approved the American consortium led by Scott Davidson seeking to complete a takeover.

If finalised, the deal would bring an end to Roland Wycherley’s 30-year ownership of the club. And Cowan, who previously played for Town, paid tribute to the 85-year-old’s contribution when asked about the latest development.

He said: “If it goes ahead, then it’s something that all parties want, isn’t it?

“First of all, it’s been an incredible 30 years so far that the chairman’s given his whole life to this football club.

“Just thinking back now over the years I certainly owe a lot to him, when he brought me to the county as a player and everything in between.

“He’s done a phenomenal job. If he continues to do that, then great. If there’s a takeover, then obviously I’ll be really keen to work with the new people coming in.”

The club announced today (September 11) that the consortium seeking to acquire Town is being led by Miami-based businessman Davidson.

He is joined by former United States international and ex-Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Friedel, who will become a director at Town subject to approval from the Independent Football Regulator (IFR).

If completed, the deal would mark a significant moment in the club’s history and usher in a new era following years of takeover talk and collapsed deals.

But with the future of the club potentially changing off the pitch, Cowan insists his focus must remain on matters on it as he looks to turn around Shrewsbury’s difficult start to the new League Two season.

“It’s a bit of a boring one, because, for me, I’m a bit of a compartmentalist,” he said.

“Since I came into the club, it’s been a precarious position - there’s always been a lot of talk around the ownership and takeovers and so on and so forth.

“I just have to compartmentalise. I can only focus on what I can focus on, which is the football side.

“I have to reserve opinion and just get on with the job in hand, because we’ve got a big task trying to compete in League Two and making sure that we’re winning football matches.

“From my perspective, I can only focus on what we do here at the training ground and on match days. That, obviously, from a results perspective, needs to be better.

“At the moment, I’m hearing the news. I normally meet with the chairman today (September 11), but I haven’t spoken to him since it came out.”