IT’S fair to say that Kelvin Thomas of Oxford United is not your typical football club chairman.

He is not out to make a mint off the back of the fans, has no desire to raise his own personal profile and clearly does not possess the itchy trigger finger of some of his counterparts.

If he did, there is a reasonable chance that Oxford United manager Chris Wilder would be out of work by now.

Wilder’s team had been in contention for promotion all season until the final few matches, when they slid meekly out of the play-off places. A classic case of defeat snatched from the jaws of victory, even if they did finish higher than last season.

That does not mean Wilder deserves to be sacked. Some tough questions need to be asked of him, no doubt, but he has improved the team’s final placing over three successive campaigns.

However, there is no doubt many chairmen would have pushed the eject button on the manager’s hot seat and gone for a new broom for the coming season.

Not Thomas. In an unequivocal show of support for Wilder today, he has made it clear that the 44-year-old’s job is safe.

Agree or not, this is an administration that is clearly seeking long-term development, rather than short-term fixes.

After years of strife, uncertainty and disappointment, everyone who loves the club should welcome that.