LATICS owner Simon Corney spoke exclusively to oldhamathletic.co.uk earlier today following his return to the UK for the Carlisle United game.

Corney - who took over the club with Danny Gazal and Simon Blitz in late 2003 - spoke about John Sheridan's start to the season, the drop in attendances, and the plans for the new stadium.

Mr. Corney also gave us an insight into his hectic lifestyle - he, Gazal and Blitz juggle the affairs of the football club with a highly successful telecommunications business.

"There's quite a few air miles on my account", Corney joked. "In an average month, I probably spend three weeks in the UK and one week in the States. When I'm over here, I split my time between Oldham and London."

And how does Corney view the team's start to the season?

"I'm happy.I've only seen one game live, but I've listened to the commentary on all of them.I also get plenty of feedback from the club and supporters, and I read what's being said in the papers and on the website."

"People seem reasonably happy, and if they're happy then so are we."

"Of course, we're frustrated - as is everyone - and if you'd have told me before the start of the season we'd only conceded 3 goals, I'd have said we'd have 12 or 13 points on the board."

"If we'd have scored three or four more goals, we'd be thinking we're the best side in the division.I've not seen a defence or midfield better than ours, so how can I have any complaints? We just need a little more up front."

"We're still trying to get a striker in, but understandably John doesn't want to commit what amounts to a large sum of money on a player that isn't absolutely right."

"However, he knows there are no transfer fees available.I don't want to go down the old road about season ticket sales - everyone knows about it."

"I expect people to be pleasantly surprised by the kind of season we have - with the right guy in up front, or if the current squad start banging in the goals, I think top six is realistic."

"However, if John Sheridan gets the side finishing tenth or twelfth in his first season, then that will also be a major achievement."

Latics' first few home games of the season have seen a significant drop in attendances. Simon expressed his disappointment, but had a special word of praise for the loyal fans that continue to back the club week in and week out:

"[The downturn] is a trend we've come to accept, but I suppose people have their reasons. To a degree we've come to see it as inevitable."

"People say we've appointed the wrong managers in the past, and that's fair enough, but lots of people from Oldham now go to places like the City of Manchester Stadium and Old Trafford to watch their football, instead of coming down to Boundary Park."

"I also think Sky, plus our facilities here at Boundary Park, also have an impact, along with the general apathy of the town towards football."

"However, I feel bad when I make negative comments about attendances, because they're usually read by the loyal fans, and not the people I really want to get the point across to - the stay-aways."

"Our hard-core fans, such as those who were there on Sunday, are absolutely fantastic. We have one of the best hard cores in the division, and I'm sure any club in this league would want them."

Oldhamathletic.co.uk ran a feature on the proposed stadium development a couple of weeks ago, and asked the Latics' owner for an update:

"We're still fighting to get what we want, so we'll just get our heads down and keep trying. It's been a hard slog, and we've come up against several people who just don't want to help us. However, this isn't a unique situation, as many other clubs and businesses run into similar problems."

"If planning permission goes through, there's an outside chance of work starting next summer."

And how is Simon finding the experience of owning a football club?