I thought the overwhelming opinion was that the solution to our problems was to pick a settled side. To hear that there was booing and chanting at the end is embarrassing, i didn't think sections of our support could sink any lower after poster gate at the training ground, and the behaviour at Altrincham. We are going through the usual BRFC november/december rough patch, we are 11th in a league where the squad is a bottom 8 squad, if you are looking for people to blame then i would look higher up the chain than the players and DC. Lack of player investment and piss poor communication adopting the silence approach, reeks of the old regime.
I agree about player investment,prefer quality rather than quantity, and the lack of communication is deafening in its silence. Remaining hopeful,patient and confident that DC can turn this round.
With what's happening off the pitch, trying to put right years of neglect and under-investment, the fact that Wonga are paid off, quick decision to draw a line under the Sainsbury's farce so that everybody could concentrate on their jobs, the manager says that it was his decision to give these players a chance at this level and he's been backed with the loan players, in what way can this be spun to criticise the owners?
I've just read the nonsense you've written again, ''lack of player investment'' you do know how many players we have, don't you, and are aware that the manager has been told that he has backing to bring in even more in January.
However ridiculous any posters at the training ground or booing from terraces may have been, your post is right up there with them.
Big squad doesn't equal decent investment, quality players is what defines if a squad has had money invested into it. Apologies that I've not been swayed by some new paint in the bars, new gates and hot food after training. You mention the Wonga loan, that was part of the deal when they took the club on, the Sainsbury farce was hardly a difficult line to draw, and loan players are the cheap option. Something hasn't been right for the last 6 weeks, in that time a director has resigned, rumours on the stadium and training ground continue to grow, the chairman has gone from speaking to the press once a week to once every couple of months. Not one single piece of significant news has come out regarding the stadium since the takeover in February. I like the fact that so many supporters have faith in the new regime, but it seems that the old regime was so poor even a 5% improvement is met with staunch support. I think we deserve better than 5%, and the one year anniversary is rapidly approaching.
That really is so wide of the mark. Are you on drugs ?
Which bit? I appreciate that any kind of criticism of the new regime is met with a fierce defence, and the fact the fanbase is fully behind the owners is not only unique but important. It's easy to like them because they are extremely decent people, but if questions need to be asked over the stadium/training ground/investment/lack of communication then it's unhealthy as supporters to take an overly passive approach.
They've said when there is something to say they will say it. After Steve Hamer got it so wrong I would guess they now are making sure everything is sorted before they announce.
They are very easy to contact !
Because the last year's been without meaningful progress has it? Any sensible review of those twelve months should probably consider the automatic promotion back to the third division, only twelve months after promotion from Vauxhall Conference non-league.
You are arguing with yourself here, it wasn't the owners' idea to give last year's players a go at this level.
A tenner on a pot of paint is more than the previous owners managed. How long did we wait for a Radar key for the disabled toilets?
Things are moving in the right direction with UWE, hang in there. If we get what we want it'll be worth the wait.
The training ground, again, at least it's happening.
Taking players' diet after training seriously, that's down to 2 things, having professionals around and a budget, wasn't happening before, was it?
I would say that Wael is probably talking to the manager most days, but the last thing Darrel needs right now is the owner saying anything at all in public, you know what'll happen, people will be all over it looking for hidden meanings, looking for what wasn't said as much as what was and the pressure will increase.
We have some geezer to identify players, Darrel says he has a budget, if we are still have the same squad, are shipping goals and look a mess in Feb then we should be standing the owner and the manager side by side and asking whose fault it is.
One year anniversary, so what? Oh hang on, I get it, just the one promotion, OK, I see your point.
The promotion had nothing to with the new owners, Wael has even said that in a post match interview after the Dagenham game. The feel good factor of them coming in helped, but that wasn't a direct contribution.
We have the largest squad we've had in years!
So you believe DC has been told to make a squad that is quantity over quality? In essence that DC does what he his told rather than being his own man?
Just seen the goals. What the hell was Puddy thinking? Managers cannot legislate for poor decision making like that. Think Hartley was a bit unlucky with he penalty as it was blasted at him from close range but if you raise your hands, you will run the risk of a penalty being awarded. That said, no shots on target throughout any game is poor but against the bottom club is pathetic.
Do you want the minutes from each meeting with the UWE? And will you then be happy to learn that negotiating has taken place and its back to the board of governors for another period of consultation, WAQ has done nothing but improve the entire set up of the club in the past 9 months and has achieved more in that time to turn us from a pub team off the pitch to a professional than any previous board since returning to Bristol in 1995 FACT, still everyone likes a scapegoat eh, someone to blame, pathetic and 1982 like.
As you are so on the money about who to blame can you email WAQ and advise him how he invests in the team when the transfer window is closed, i'm sure he would appreciate your expert analysis and how to run the club better.
interesting. Can you tell us what that means in practice please 1986 - the governors (of UWE) need to consult with the parties that they represent/lead before anything else can happen?
Not blaming them or looking for a scapegoat, simply pointing out there is still more questions than answers, something i'm surprised by 10 months into the ownership. It's too easy for you and others to jump on the bandwagon and bash me, when all i'm saying is scratch the surface and you will see there hasn't been the progress i was expecting, if anything they have gone into the bunker when the heat has been raised, something the old regime was notorious for doing. Your so called ITK info is hardly something inspiring, another round of consultations 9 months after discussions first began, it's seems that all the previous noises being made about the stadium back in the summer now don't make much sense. Whilst your feeding us with acorns of ITK info, any news on the training ground, great that PP looks like it will be granted, but pretty pointless if there is no agreement in place to purchase the land.
Back in Feb, when Higgs handed over a basket case of a club that he had run in to the ground and an unfunded UWE project, what were you expecting to happen in 10 months? I know the question has more than a hint of an edge about it, but that's directed to Higgs and his hopeless BoD, not you.
Seriously, what did you expect to happen by the end of the calendar year?
What's happening on the pitch was almost inevitable, it happened when Trollope did the same thing in giving his promotion team new deals, I'm not saying that was the wrong thing to do, those players then, as now, earned the chance to show what they could do at the next level, but some of them have gone as far as they can go.
The manager is also learning on the job, I hope he takes 2 things from this slump in form; take advice and be prepared to bring in a new defensive coach if it's frigging obvious that we aren't organised enough to keep L1 teams out, and don't criticise your players in public.
I may have missed something, but who is our defensive coach?
Well, call me a heretic, but some necks need to be seriously wound in.
We lost (dismally) away to bottom of league 1; the manager speaks sensibly about lessons to be taken from that. Last summer, a squad that had delivered was given a chance to prove itself at a(nother) higher level, whilst being augmented, and we're down to 11th in league 1, with a chance to reassess coming up. The only people who should slash their wrists at that scenario are people whose prime interest is slashing their wrists. A proper club infrastrucure is being built and we're securely in league 1 (but might not go up): is anyone with a greater memory than a goldfish expected to freak out to that? Congrats to those who set out to find something to moan about and spotted the fatal flaw, but get real with your expectations. Anyone who can't take this mild disappointment has no bloody right celebrating a promotion.
Oh, and rejecting daft posts that say 'all is lost, the owners are crap, the manager's crap, all is crap' is not the same as rejecting any constructive suggestion as to how best to get the next improvement.
that's all very well. But I'm wondering..
Well that says more about you than me, sweetheart. It's because I'm a highly sexed character from one of the greatest comic novels ever. Google me and enjoy. Be honest, though, all this moaning about a bit of a slip in league performance is ball-aching.
By the way, which picture do you like best, and should I change it again?
Edit: If you've never read 'the book' please do, it's fabulous.
so I've just googled the character, and Seth Starkadder from Bristol Rovers Independent Fans Forum comes up 7th!
Make that a pledge: it's quite short and very readable. The title is a bit misleading as to the style, but will make sense as you get into it. Enjoy it.