Level Of Optimism For The Rest Of Season

I think we over play the ‘Big crowd. Big Stadium’ hand.

What most L2 players want is a long term contract for the most money they can get.

Rory McArdle being a perfect example.

The size of stadium or the crowd are of secondary importance.

 

Sounds like what the admen call weasel
words. Saying decisions should be made by the manager is slippery. It’s suggesting they were but not actually saying it. The bit that says ‘are’ is clearly wrong and Is he speaking generally or of our club specifically. Yep it’s typical modem management gobbledygook, superficially impressive until you dissect it. The reference to financial pressures is meaningless. Every transaction is governed by the bottom line.

 

Maybe so. But neither Doyle nor Vaughan are on low wages and Vaughan has a three year contract. If the job conditions (ie not being a missile target) had been in any way decent they'd have both opted to stay.

 

I don't believe that one bit.

Bowyer might of been a poor manager but he's not a idiot.

He isn't going to let Doyle and Vaughan to replace with Guthrie.. seriously anyone that believes this is a mug!

 

That's disgraceful by the board then. No other word to describe it. Once Bowyer had that initial conversation with Julian about letting him go, that should have been his marching orders. Why give him any sort of authority to release players when they were planning to give him the chop? Another Own Goal by Rhodes & Rupp. The board are a disgrace for sanctioning that. Shooting ourselves in the foot time after time it is so embarrassing.

 

It is Ryan Sparks as well. Lower than a snakes belly. Wonder if it's still Doyle's fault come May if we haven't made the playoffs?

 

They would say that especially now he’s gone. He will have signed a gagging order as part of his pay off so he’s not going to contradict them.

 

TBH I wasn't really commenting on Doyle and Vaughan, it's been done to death and it's time to move on. I was making the point that there seems to be some bizarre correlation that if the clubs splashing the cash it's doing a good job and if it's saving money it's incompetent. I'm quite happy for the club to be doing everything it can to get value for money. In the Vaughan/ Doyle scenario maybe (pure speculation on my part) getting rid of those two gave them just enough wiggle room financially to be able to get shot of Bowyer as well. Who knows.

 

What is the point in Ryan Sparks? Seriously!

We'll know what Rhodes is about, so no need for Ryan to try to make out fans are idiots. Just say something like this:

We wanted to cash in for Doyle because unfortunately at Bradford City he can't provide what he does for Swindon and Oldham. It had nothing to do with Bowyer. It wasn't his decision.

Vaughan is doing ok but we need to think about next season now and Vaughan has a chance to play div 1 football and hopefully that's what he will be playing with us when he comes back..

As a football we need the money because we're not sure what the budget is going to be so we're planning ahead!

Stop with the BS Ryan and being a puppet! Director of B@ll Sh@t!

 

Didn't know you and Rhodes had a baby together.

Congratulations!

 

I agree that financial profligacy isn't good. But I still think allowing Bowyer to release two of the best goalscorers in L2 and replace them with journeymen, days before sacking him, was madness. It has hamstrung the new manager to a huge degree.

 

We need to change our thinking in terms of longer term progress and the financial profile of the club.

It looks to be a stark reality that the current owner wont invest in growing this club. There's no apparent plan or financial ambition that demonstrates a longer term strategy. Our approach has been to divert as much of our revenue as possible into the first team playing budget and I understand why we've done it. If you have a good manager, it can work well in the short term, but it's too volatile as a model and it only takes a bad decision or two and in a few months you're back where you started with nothing to show for it.

In the short to mid term, we need to reduce the playing budget and become accustomed to competing as most others have to at this and league 1 level. We need to invest in the fabric of the club - the pitch, our scouting, recruitment and coaching capabilities. Those foundations will lay the groundwork for longer term success and if done correctly, will create a legacy so that even in the absence of success over the next 3-4 years, we're in a materially better position to grow than we are now.

Ideally, the owner would be putting those foundations in place - or selling to someone who will - without the playing budget having to be trimmed. But if not, we need to start making some tough decisions and thinking about how we grow this club over the long term. Hoping for sell on clauses and a cup run every 10 years wont do it.

 

You don’t have to be a genius to work out that the owner has decided whatever happens it isn’t going to be at his expense. And who can blame him. He doesn’t even put in token appearances anymore. All the outward signs suggest he would sell if anybody made him a reasonable offer. Meanwhile the club is in a kind of limbo. and I don’t think there’s much long- term development going on or likely to be implemented. The crumb of comfort in the long term is that we have employed a scheme pioneered by Man City years ago of capturing the diehard fans of the future by giving kids cheap seats etc. This should eventually pay dividends.

 

Doesn't seem to be working for Man City mate. Do you see how many empty seats are at their games? Last night was an embarrassment.

I don't know any other club would be looking to drive Rhodes and Rupp out of our club now or at least asking them key questions about the future & their plans etc. It will happen if McCall doesn't get results but it will be too late.

Always wonder why we don't hear from Edin.. signed a confidentiality agreement? Wonder why?

 

Yes I take the point but Man City’s circumstances have changed and ironically they didn’t need their long term schemes because a super sugar Daddy chanced along. But at one time before they started spraying freebies around they were down to crowds of about 12k. New wealth has brought a new kind of supporter who are spoiled by success. I agree about demanding answers from our hierarchy and I can’t understand why the local paper doesn’t do that. I think their former journalists , Don Alred and David Markham. would have, and Stanley Pearson who covered the Avenue certainly didn’t mince his words. The current guy never even seems to know which players are injured never mind shows an interest in the bigger picture.

 

David Markham is a City fan, Simon Parker supports Portsmouth.

 

That says it all. I wonder if Fratton Park still has that open end. I remember standing there in the pouring rain when Nigel Pepper was sent off for a technicality. Long journey back it was.

 

No open end. I watched us get a good hiding last year when Drury was in charge. 5-1 was it? Think I was back in the pub by the hour mark.