IT'S been another strange week in Saints' boardroom with the axing of acting football club board chairman Leon Crouch.

Following Monday's decision by the executive directors to oust the New Forest businessman, what exactly is the state of play at Saints off the field?

The Daily Echo attempts to make sense of the ongoing row.

Who are the executives?

They are the group mainly put together by Michael Wilde whose job is to ensure the day-to-day running of Saints.

They are chief executive Jim Hone, operations manager Lee Hoos and commercial director Andy Oldknow, who was brought in by Hone shortly after last summer's boardroom changes.

The fourth executive, finance director David Jones, served under Rupert Lowe's regime.

PLC chairman Ken Dulieu was brought in as a non executive, but now draws a salary. The plan was to initially use Portugal-based Dulieu for a year, but earlier this year he agreed a new contract to prolong his stay.

None of the above are Southampton Leisure Holdings PLC shareholders, though they all serve on the PLC board.

Who are the non executives?

Local businessmen Leon Crouch and Patrick Trant were appointed as non executive directors on the PLC board. Their role was an overseeing one to ensure the executives were running the club effectively for the benefit of fans and shareholders.

The only other non exec left on the PLC board is Keith Wiseman, who served on the Lowe board.

Wilde, Paul Thompson and Brian Hunt have all left the PLC board in the last 10 months.

Crouch is the second largest SLH PLC shareholder with around 10 per cent. Wilde remains the largest with around 16 per cent while Lowe is third with seven per cent.

So the major shareholders have no real say in the decision making?

Correct.

What about the football board?

Following Crouch's removal, it now comprises Hone, Hoos and Jones plus Lawrie McMenemy and Mary Corbett.

Will a new chairman of that board be appointed?

Unlikely.

The executives are not keen to do so immediately because the club could still be taken over in the near future, in which case the present structure would cease to exist. Any potential buyer would almost certainly want to strip the club of its PLC status and return it to private hands.

Crouch and Trant have publicly criticised the executives this week following the former's removal as football board chairman. Have we heard from the executives?

No, and we're not expected to in the near future. That's despite Crouch and Trant's statements and also a repeated call from the Saints Trust, the largest fans group, to explain their recent board decisions - ie, promoting Oldknow and removing Crouch.

The executives are not expected to make any public comments, apart from to the Stock Exchange, while the club remains in an under offer' period - the state of play they have found themselves in since April 27.

An under offer' period can be lengthy - over a year, on occasions - and can only end when a purchaser completes an unconditional purchase or Saints go to the Stock Market to say all talks have ended.

Where do we go from here?

The PLC board is due to meet on Friday and the ongoing possibility of new investment will no doubt be top of the agenda. Saints recently stated they are in talks with "more than one" interested party - believed to be three.

Who are those parties?

We do not know their exact identity.

What scenarios are there with regards to the takeover?

A wealthy individual could emerge from the shadows, or an investment company - backed by either English or foreign institutions - could make a bid for the 28m SLH shares in existence. The latter seems more likely than the former at the moment.

How much would any company have to pay?

Despite Saints currently being in the Championship, the club's shareprice remains higher than during their last few years in the Premiership. The current Stock Market price of 61.25p a share means the club's value is over £17m.

Any serious investor would want to make a decent bid - all shareholders could be offered something around 65p a share. For the likes of Michael Wilde, who bought the bulk of his at 50p a share, there would be a good profit.

Would the executives keep their positions?

Possibly.

Certainly if an investment company were successful in a takeover bid, the suits behind such a group might see the current group as having done a good job with regards to the overall business. Don't forget, they wouldn't look at the club from a football fan's perspective.

Alternatively, any prospective new owners might prefer their own men in charge. Any company that invests around £17m just to acquire a football club would obviously want to put in further money for team strengthening.

That then gives them the best chance of a return on their investment.

They might want their own people to oversee that.

You could say the executives must be confident they will be staying, otherwise why get drawn into a bitter row with Crouch and the other non-execs if they felt they could leave in the not too distant future?

What if there is no new investment and no takeover?

The squabbles could be ended at Saints' AGM in the autumn. Crouch won't resign from the PLC board, so he will have to be voted off by the shareholders. Should the Lowe camp - who still account for about 25 per cent of the shares - and Wilde vote for his removal, chances are he will be forced to stand down.

Will that further strengthen the executives' powerbase?

Not really. They have all the power now. If Crouch is voted off, there is just one less dissenting voice to be heard, though obviously more non-execs will have to be voted on.

Such as?

Now that is a very good question. Are there any other local businessmen in the Crouch and Trant mould who would want to get involved with Saints at boardroom level given the events of the last two years?