When do we start to question Hopkin?

You talk like we are the only club to have indifferent performances. Get real and smell the coffee. We are just like every other league club. Its just how it is.

 

Did you go yesterday? Did the players look unmotivated?

 

You mean like Wimbledon, Shrewsbury, Oxford, Bristol Rovers, Rochdale, Walsall and Gillingham.
But not Luton, Portsmouth, Sunderland. Barnsley, Chatlton or Doncaster ?.

 

Two good posts. In agreement with you both

 

No I mean all. All clubs have indifferent patches. Surely you know that?

 

Did the players look unmotivated? that was the question. Don't be a politician and answer a different question.

 

Portsmouth are on extremely indifferent form.

Very poor indeed.

 

Having supported City for coming up to 60 years I think the answer to your question is naivety. In the football world most of the people who have owned the club over the years were well-meaning but just not aware of what it takes to be successful. In some ways it's a geographical phenomena. Just look at the success, both financially and on the field, of the clubs on the other side of the pennines, both large and small, and compare them with the serial failures and administrations of those in Yorkshire. It's hard to take but nevertheless a fact. It all boils down to acting according to certain principles.

Firstly, the best players are in the first teams of the Premiership. the next best players are in the first teams of the Championship. The third best players are in League 1 and premiership reserves. The fourth best are League 2 players and Chmpionship reserves. There are always exceptions but they are rare. Consequently, Alex Jones who came from Birmingham reserves is really a League 2 player, as we found out. Tyrell Robinson, from Arsenal reserves, is fine at League 1 level but probably not in the Championship. The difference between players at the different levels is not that much in terms of ability. They can all turn it on at times. It's consistency that makes the difference and Premier league players will be very good match after match, less so as you go down the leagues.

Secondly, never buy a player from a team in your league who are happy to let him go. There's a reason they don't want them and it will be a good one. So we should never have signed Omar Patrick, never mind giving him a three year contract on the basis of a couple of goals, and Charlton should never have signed Billy Clarke who did very little for them. The folly of us resigning him leaves me lost for words. Look for promising loans from the Premier league or promising young players who have potential from below, like Wyke.

Thirdly, you never get out of Leagues 1 or 2 without a lot of height and physical strength, both in defence and attack. As you go down the leagues skill plays less of a part as players are so inconsistent, and that is when you must have a big physical presence to be successful.

Lastly, on the occasions that you have money, spend it wisely by buying one or two key players who will have a big impact, rather than several who won't, but will cost the same money. Bradley Dack; need I say more.

In all these categories City have fallen down for most of the time I have supported them. Those in charge of the club have been very well-meaning but just not in the game for most of that time. And at the moment we certainly aren't. Aside from the Edin disaster, we had an opportunity in January to at least try to put things right by signing players in crucial postitions to improve us. And we didin't. We signed player after player in an area where we could have been said to be at our strongest. And no one of any significance in the crucial areas where we were weak.

Naive.

 

I'd swap places right now no matter how indifferent their present form is .

 

Me too, but the question for them is, will they make the play offs?

If they don't, I doubt you would have enjoyed their position too much

 

So you agree the players are NOT unmotivated.
Yet you said they were unmotivated.
You really have no idea do you?

 

I think they both need to go work out their frustrations together

 

No, i have had jobs where i was working every other saturday, plus i might be a masochist but you need to be committed for 25 years.
If the Flexicard can be used by more than one person then the club need to really push this to cover the expected shortfall after this dire season.

 

In that case your options are either a season ticket for £150 or a flexi for £50. Your post seemed to suggest you could get both for £150, unless I misread it

 

No, i want my options to be to get a season ticket and be able to buy a Flexi in my name =£200, which is just £31 more than i paid this year for a season ticket.
Helping to bring in more people but not on a regular basis.