Five candidates revealed as Foundation of Hearts prepare to appoint new directors

Foundation of Hearts own Hearts on behalf of fans.

The fan group which owns Heart of Midlothian on behalf of 8,700 paying members is to reshuffle its board, with Garry Halliday and Louise Strutt due to retire. Strutt, who runs her own independent financial advisory practice in Edinburgh, is offering herself for re-election alongside four other individuals.

Gerry Mallon, Tesco Bank chief executive and a former Irish Football Association chairman, is standing having become a Hearts season-ticket holder since moving to Edinburgh in 2018.

The Northern Irishman is a board member at Tesco PLC and previously held chief executive positions at Danske Bank and Ulster Bank.

Foundation of Hearts are unhappy with how Scottish football is run.

Andrew Brown is general manager of IBM’s technology business in the UK and Ireland. He holds experience in the not-for-profit sector and is also a qualified English FA youth coach.

Brian Muir previously stood for election to the FoH board and is doing so again. He is a former police officer and also worked as head of security at Hampden Park.

The final candidate is Graham Robertson, who spent 15 years as national director of coaching for bowls. He is a winner of 25 titles including Scottish, British, International, World Indoor and World Outdoor level.

The quintet are bidding to secure a seat on the FoH board alongside chairman Stuart Wallace and other existing directors Donald Cumming, Alastair Bruce and Paul Cheshire.

After successfully securing ownership of Hearts in August when Ann Budge transferred her 75.1 per cent shareholding, the Foundation board will now increase from six directors to seven.

Three of the above candidates will be appointed at the organisation’s AGM on December 16 as the fan-led group enter a new era as owners of their football club.

Along with Budge, the Foundation were instrumental in helping Hearts out of administration in 2014, backed by financial support from thousands of fans.

All concerned agreed that Budge would transfer ownership to the supporters and that transaction took place in August this year. Three new faces will now get the chance to bring fresh ideas to the table.

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