investment or patience?

[thornerover94]

just sat here thinking and wondered what other peoples thought were on this mainly regarding the signings of billy n jason in summer

JR has stated a few times that next season albeit we finish in another respectable league position he wants to make a playoff push, surely he cant expect SOD and ROK to form one out of the team we have now so i would expect the club in all will be lucking to spend money but the problem then lies in if it does not work out we could be in the s**t, so is it a risk worth takin and doing what most fans want getting billy and shacks whatever the cost and a few others alongside or do we consolidate for a little longer?

dont get me wrong i would love to see us in the prem against the so called big boys of football and reaping the rewards of seeing the keepmoat full nearly each week but how many clubs have failed in doing so and we have all seen the effects, do we need investment or do we need patience?

[irishcontingent]

Investment every time. There is not a professional club in UK, maybe the world, that can have big aspirations and not invest, most clubs owe money to the Banks, HMRC, or other parties, some to a lesser xtent than others. Its ok TRYING to live within clubs means, but that doesnt bring success. DRFC are no different, Ryan, Bramhall etc have \"Covered\" all excesses so far, but, there has to come a time when a calculated gamble needs to be taken, if Ryans \"wish\" for play off push is to be enjoyed.

If the gamble comes off, say by investing 10 million over 3 years, then DRFC and board are quids in, if not and all goes tits up , then there always seems to be people out there willing to take over these \"In trouble\" clubs.

The lure of premiership status is too big for most clubs to forfeit by not investing.

[CottyRover]

I'm sure JR and the board will have thought of this, but is there any way extra investors could be brought in? When League One clubs who have been in administration can now pay higher transfer fees and higher wages than us and nothing is done about it it looks as though the only way we can compete effectively is through greater investment. It is no wonder so many clubs spend way beyond their means, especially when they know that ultimately the FA and the Football league will not let them go under.

[thornerover94]

i believe 10 million over 3years would be a sound investment, i think whats more important to the club on a whole than gaining promotion is aquiring the stadium as our own which would generate more profit making more money for new players and wages a little, we all want the stadium sole d.r.f.c im sure.

maybe that should be the first step?

[Bristol Red Rover]

Any investment at the club that involves loans and the like, especially if spent on players, leaves us very vulnerable. Its best spent on getting the punters in and keeping them happy. One cheap way of doing that is spending time on sorting the standing issue raised in other threads, plus time spent on real engagement with the fans and taking on proposals and offers of help like those that have been put forward in the past.

We are punching above our weight in the CCC. If we can stay in this league for the next ten years, and grow the heart of the club and the infastructure, that would be a real result

A bit of team magic and luck, followed by one season getting some cash in the prem would be icing on the cake, but not if bought with dodgey cash and a team of foreign mercenaries, thats souless.

[MrFrost]

How much are the KM2 investing into the club at the moment, does anyone know?

[Muttley]

MrFrost wrote:

How much are the KM2 investing into the club at the moment, does anyone know?

At least 2 people know, and most probably at least 3!

There was a share issue of £2.7m in the year ended 31/5/09 that I believe was taken up by the 3 key directors - Ryan, Bramall and Watson.

Year on year the business is losing £3 to 4m and this is being funded by the board, so they are already investing \"£10million over 3 years\".

If anyone is suggesting they double that, then they need to think how deep JR's pockets really are - he might have been able to make tits bigger at will but I doubt he has the same control over his bank balance. Sure the KM2 should be able to afford it given the amount they received when they sold out, but who knows what they've domne with that cash - I doubt its sat under the mattress waiting for a rainy day.

I say we continue in the prudent manner as we are now, there's going to be some football casualties this season I'm sure (Portsmouth, Cardiff etc) No point that being Rovers in a couple of years. Hopefully we'll get lucky and go up via the play-offs and then we can use the parachute payment when we get relegated to invest for the future (although JR and the KM2 may also want a piece of that cake).

[thornerover94]

i said that to my mate a few months back i would to sneak up through the playoffs and accept we would prob get relegated and then build off the parachute payments for a stronger return within a few years

[MrFrost]

In the close season I was demanding the board get the cheque book out. On reflection with the way footbal is going, i'm more than happy with how the board seem to be doing things, although I wish we heard more from them.

JR's programme notes are basically the same notes re-written every week, we never hear about their plans for the future, what the next goal is.

I would love us to push the boat out and sign Sharp and Shackell in the summer. But it won't tie in with how the board want to run the club, so in my view it won't happen.

[Superspy]

personally im happy with the way they are doing things now, i really, really, REALLY dont want to see donny rovers in debt, even if it takes us 5 years plus at this level to be able to afford somebody of shackell/sharps calibre, one thing about donny rovers that i am extremely proud of is the fact that i KNOW we will be playing football next week/month/season, there arent THAT many clubs that can say that at the minute.

[Perks]

[Perks]

Donny will never make the premier league becasue A) the board will never invest the kind of money required and B) the squads not big or good enough. Our strongest 11 are pretty strong when fully fit n playing well, but lose a 2 or 3 of our best players and it's always going to be a struggle.

[Nudga]

Ye have little faith Perks me old fruit n nut.

[thornerover94]

i like how everyone has different views on whats the best thing to do is and strangely enough i kinda agree with em all dont think there is a right or wrong way about it just case of luck through the season nobody really going through a bad spell and havin luck on the day, its easy to criticise board members for not stumping up the money but in the present situation i do feel they are the doing the right thing by keeping club out of debt thats more important than any player, one or two players dont make a team it would make the team better to have them but there are 11 taking the field each day and in them we must trust just as SOD/ROK/JR and the rest do

[Perks]

Keeping the faith pal, just being realistic. Investment is required, but won't happen. Best we can hope for is a glorious run in this division and maybe an improved cup run along the way!

[Nudga]

I'm quite happy for us to stay in this division for a few years and build the club up to the required level. It would be nice to flirt with the play offs but there is still a lot of work to be done behind the scenes as well as on the pitch.