Failure to retain Championship status is main concern for Sheffield Wednesday

The appointment of Howard Wilkinson as interim chairman is a good move in the short-term, mainly due to his ability to assist manager Alan Irvine with transfer negotiations, but only serves to illustrate the fragility of the Hillsborough board.

Rome is burning and no-one is willing to throw money on the flames. The easy, if unethical, solution would have been administration a long time ago, the search for new investment is a long and painful process.

Now the departure of Lee Strafford is another major loss. A successful businessman with a genuine love for the club, Strafford worked unpaid for the club for the last 18 months.

He instigated major improvements, boosted attendances, increased commercial revenues, and restored the club's battered image. And all without spending a penny of his own.

But some supporters felt unhappy that he had the keys to the safe.

Naively, some questioned his motives and argued that he was not entitled to wield such power. There were even death threats. Strafford should not have been chairman without personal investment, they cried. How wrong they were.

Strafford, more than anything else, was a figurehead for a board who, along with the club's major creditors and shareholders, actually retained control of the purse strings.

If anyone else had been willing to come forward to take on the responsibility, he would not have stood in their way. His was a labour of love, not a desire to asset strip or take advantage of a situation.

In the back of his mind, I suspect, there may also have been dreams of a role at the Football Association. If Strafford had proved his administrative skills at Hillsborough, where he tackled football issues in a modern way and with emphasis on the club's wider role in the local community, he would have caught the eye at Soho Square. If Dave Richards can pull it off with the Premier League, why shouldn't he?

It was Strafford, pictured right, who invited Wilkinson, a former technical director at the FA, back into the fold to work on behalf of the club without a fee.

Together, the pair drew up a list of everything that needed improving at the football club.

Major changes were made in the medical department, reducing the number of injured players which had long been a problem to a succession of Wednesday managers. Whether buying tickets, ordering a hotdog, or making a complaint, Wednesday supporters were made to feel valued again.

The so-called feelgood factor returned to the club after several years of simmering tension between its supporters and those in charge.

In the absence of a new shirt sponsor, the Children's Hospital, Sheffield were also invited to put their logo on the club's shirts.

While Strafford worked in the limelight, chief executive Nick Parker worked behind the scenes with Inner Circle Sports trying to find new investment.

Chicago-based Club 9 Sports (cruelly dubbed 'Cloud Nine' Sports by the cynics) were viewed as credible investors and the structure of a 20m deal had been agreed towards the end of last season.

If the Owls had only avoided relegation on the final day of the season, the deal might just have come off and Strafford might not have walked away.

But, in the end, the current set of players were simply not good enough; the size and quality of the squad a bi-product of years of decline.

The Americans' subsequent offer was an insult. Perhaps the straw that broke the camel's back? Strafford has gone and will look to pick up his career and family life.

As for the Owls, they remain in talks with potential investors. There has been progress over the last 18 months but the majority of supporters don't care about that.

They just want their club back in the Championship.

Strafford Timeline

Jan 7, 2009: Strafford becomes chairman of Sheffield Wednesday, with a promise to restructure the club's 25m debt.

Jun 1, 2009: Appoints specialist advisers Inner Circle Sports to help facilitate investment of 20m from interested parties in North America.

Nov 24, 2009: Re-elected as chairman at AGM, having stabilised running costs and made the operation more transparant by encouraging interaction with fans.

Dec 13, 2009: Sacks manager Brian Laws after no win in nine games. Appoints Alan Irvine three weeks later.

May 1, 2010: Wednesday are relegated after five years in the Championship, following 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace in front of near-capacity crowd.

May 14, 2010: Proposed investment deal by Club 9 Sports, which Strafford has been working on, collapses after the Chicago-based consortium offers just 2m for a 40 per cent stake in the club.

May 17, 2010: Strafford resigns as chairman of Owls after 16 months at the helm.