Newcastle United make new boardroom appointment as local property mogul takes up new role

Newcastle United's board continues to evolve three years on from the day the PIF officially took over the club from Mike Ashley.

The likes of Amanda Staveley, Mehrdad Ghodoussi and Dan Ashworth have all left their lofty positions at the club with CEO Darren Eales due to step down in the near future too.

Meanwhile there have been plenty of boardroom additions over the past three years as the club continues to shift into its final form.

The latest appointment to the boardroom is Roger Thornton who has close ties to Jamie Reuben and his family.

newcastleunited.com

Roger Thornton joins the Newcastle United board with immediate effect

In a statement put out by Newcastle United via the club's official website it has been confirmed that Roger Thornton will take up his new position with immediate effect.

"Born in South Shields, Roger is Head of Property at Motcomb Estates Limited, an asset management company that focuses on a portfolio of global office, retail, hotel and leisure assets for the family of Newcastle United co-owner, Jamie Reuben.

"Roger retains a keen interest in his native North East and has played a key role in recent developments in Newcastle city centre, including the transformative Pilgrims Quarter project, as well as supporting property matters for Newcastle Racecourse.

"He also has strong family links to the Magpies. His grandfather, Ben Sullivan, was an administrator who moved from Lincoln City to relaunch the Newcastle United Development Association in the mid-1960s.

"Ben played a key role in supporting ground improvements at St. James' Park over many years, including securing funding to build the existing East Stand structure which opened in 1973."

This looks like another appointment made with the St James' Park redevelopment in mind

With his local ties and connections, Thornton could be a huge asset to have on the board as the club looks to finalise plans for the next phase of what to do with St James' Park.

Having already appointed Brad Miller who oversaw the Heathrow Terminal 5 development, Newcastle's board is now looking very strong in terms of people who can get the job done.

An update is expected early next year which will let fans know what the club plans to do with St James' Park in terms of a redevelopment, rebuild or stadium move.