West Brom chairman replies to e-mails from angry fans

The Baggies chief promised to make decisions to the best of his ability and in the interest of the club.

Several unhappy supporters have contacted Williams and asked him to act following a run of two wins in 20 league games spanning the past two seasons.

Albion's chairman has replied to the majority of them, and in e-mails seen by the Express & Star he thanks fans for their messages before saying he read them with interest.

Williams goes on to say: “I will, together with the board, make decisions to the best of my ability and always in the interest of the club.”

Before the defeat to Huddersfield, the former Blackburn Rovers chairman was planning to give Pulis until Christmas to turn form around.

Williams handed the head coach a 12-month contract extension at the start of the season and has been reticent to rush into a decision after the Welshman guided the club to a top-half finish.

However, he is aware of the growing discontent among the fanbase. Williams attends every game and witnessed first-hand the toxic scenes in the away end at the John Smith’s Stadium when supporters were calling for his head.

Fans welcomed the chairman’s willingness to respond. Paul Hill said: “I told him not to feel under any obligation to reply but he did to be fair.

“He said that he and the board would always do what's best for the club. Wouldn't expect him to say anything else at this stage.”

When Williams was installed as Jeremy Peace’s successor in August 2016 he promised to be a fan-friendly chairman and this is not the first time he has engaged with fans.

The chairman has invited several die-hard Baggies to have tea with him before games at The Hawthorns this season, attended supporters’ clubs on several occasions over the past 12 months and also bought drinks for a group of fans in Hong Kong during pre-season.

His response to the e-mails comes after two other board members fielded questions from supporters about Pulis at The Hawthorns last week.

Chief executive Martin Goodman and director of football administration Richard Garlick were praised for ‘fronting up’ to the fans after agreeing to put a special item on the agenda at the Albion Assembly fans’ forum.