lessons to be learnt

[bedale rover]

as we seem to be almost certain to be relegated to league 1 we need to learn from the this season and what we need to do to stop any further relegation and hopefully put ourselves in a position to make a realistic challenge for promotion

probably the first priority is to ensure that the club is on a sound financial footing this season we have seen the perils of spending more than the income we generate not only did this contribute to the demise of SOD but more importantly it meant that one of our sugar daddies decided to withdraw his money meaning that this forced the other 2 daddies to either put more money in or reduce expenditure in other words we have pay only what we can afford or \"quelle horreur\" we have to either become a selling club or a nursery club through the the youth set up

so the second priority is to sort out the squad i assume the \"shop window\" will be shut so we will need to cast our net wide to sign up promising players from  the lower leagues or cast offs from higher up the pyramid look at peterborough who have adopted this approach and are making it work for them to the extent that they were amongst the favourites for relegation (like we were/are) but seem to be almost safe and have sold some impressive players to continue to fund the team   lets face a 700% profit on matt mills was good even though it was seen to be a bad thing retrospectively it was good business  but and there is always a but we must ensure that when we sell we have a replacement lined up  too often we seem to be totally unprepared when  someone moves on

players too often we seem to be a yard slower than the opposition we need to be fitter quicker and more switched on to the team plan as well as more able to tackle to win the ball back as well as stronger in the tackle to resist losing possession

we need a review of the whole set up so we can put the club and team in a position to move forward

[River Don]

I think we've learned we need to see an increase in support if we have hopes of returning to the Championship and staying there, without the funding of wealthy donors.

That is quite a challenge.

[donnyroversfc]

Obviously i dont know how much these would cost and whther we could afford it but if we are to go down the route of looking at lower league players to sign (which i hope we do) then i have a list for DS and JR.

Eunan O'Kane- Torquay United midfielder
Doug Loft- Port Vale utitlity man
Adam Dugdale- Crewe defender
Billy Kee- Burton striker
Peter Leven- Oxford United midfielder
James Collins- Shrewsbury striker
Emmanuel Ledesma- Walsall midfielder (out of contract soon)

All good players from the leagues below, some maybe unrealistic but most i think would be realistic signings for us.

[pubteam]

Billy Kee's going to Real Madrid isn't he?

[donnyroversfc]

Billy Kee's going to Real Madrid isn't he?

Depends on the situation with Gonzalo Higuain so i'm told.

[BobG]

It's a nice ambition Bedale. But not a very realisatic one I'm sorry to say. You only have to recall that we're budgetted to lose between 3 and 4 million this season and JR himself says relegation will cost us another 5 million. So, without changing anything, we would be looking at a loss of between 8 and 9 million next season. With a turnover last year of 14 million, something is broken already.

Once Bramhall and Watson pulled their plugs, there's only one way this club is going. And it don't take a genius to work out which direction it is does it?

There are massive changes coming at DRFC. Changes none of us are going to like. And there's nothing anyone can do about it - except pray for a Fairy Godmother. Even if JR chucked in another 3 million, which he's never done before in a single season, we'd still have a loss of between 5 and 6 million. No bank is going to stand for that. So, things have to change. A lot. And cutting huge swathes from the budget can only lead one way.

BobG

BobG

[mushRTID]

Hmm bob, iv been reading with interest recently. You have mentioned you have left enough clues recently.

Are you hinting at administration?

[donnyroversfc]

Hmm bob, iv been reading with interest recently. You have mentioned you have left enough clues recently.

Are you hinting at administration?

Certainly sounds like it. If true, looks like we wont be able to afford Billy Kee afterall

[BobG]

Sorry. Double post for some reason.

BobG

[BobG]

I don't know Mush. It's clearly a possibility. But more likely, I think, is that massive cost cutting will have to take place. That's why I suggested the other night that I doubt the reserve team will happen, why I think Cantley Park will be scaled back, why I think buying the KM is a dead duck (unless it has realisable value that I cannot see of course), why we're going to lose almost all of our better players over the summer and why looking to the future in any sense of developing youngsters is going to take a back seat.

Knocking 6 million quid of costs off a 14 million turnover business is one helluva task. It's bloody enormous. The Banks won't help to anywhere near that level. They're likely to be pretty scared already with the departure of Bramhall & Watson. There's always the risk that Bramhall and/or Watson may call in their loans. JR can't afford to fund the gap. So, this club is going on a steep downward spiral. Administration is certainly a possibility - though it's nowhere near being a certainty yet. But it is going to be painful. We're going to have to get used to losing for a while.

BobG

[eastender]

Emmanuel Ledesma ,i remember this lad tearing us apart at Loftus road just when we thought the championship was going to be a piece of p#ss . He must have gone off the rails somewhere to end up at Walsall.