Graham Simpson resigned as the chairman of Watford yesterday minutes before the club’s extraordinary meeting at Vicarage Road. Simpson and two directors were set to face a vote of no confidence at the meeting, but the chairman decided to quit during a 20-minute meeting with Jimmy and Vince Russo, two former directors, who left the club under a cloud in May last year. Simpson had been expected to survive the vote of no confidence.

“If I have made mistakes, I sincerely apologise,” Simpson said. “I have always done the very best or what I believe to be the best for the club. Nobody gets it right all the time and I sincerely apologise to anyone who I may have offended by doing the wrong thing.” It is believed that the Russo brothers, who own Valley Grown Salads, are prepared to invest money in the club, but only on the condition that Simpson resigned.

Simpson became chairman at Vicarage Road six years ago and was in charge when the club were promoted to the Barclays Premier League in May 2006. Promotion was Simpson’s reward for giving the manager’s job to Adrian Boothroyd in 2005, but Watford were relegated after one season in the top flight and Boothroyd left the club last month. Last week, Brendan Rodgers, the former Chelsea reserve-team coach, was appointed as the club’s new manager, but from yesterday he was answering to Andrew Wilson, the non-executive director, who has become the interim chairman.

Simpson’s announcement was greeted by applause from some shareholders at the meeting. “For me personally, over the last few months, this has been a very difficult time,” he said. “I’ve enjoyed my stay as chairman immensely but I do feel in the event of everything that is happening at the moment and after discussing with my fellow directors that now is the time I should stand down.”