Viking Supporters Co-operative
Viking Chat => Viking Chat => Topic started by: DonnyBazR0ver on January 06, 2023, 10:56:22 am
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https://www.doncasterroversfc.co.uk/news/2023/january/ceo-statement/
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In todays football environment, that is some achievement. TB is the insurance that underwrites it all and we have to acknowledge we have been through some difficult times with Covid etc, but some instability on top of that, so to come out of it in relatively good health is positive for the future.
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Reading the club statement from GB shows the club financially is going in the right direction. SM as said we need to be in league 1 to get more financial benefits. So let’s ensure we bring in players in this window so we can achieve that aim this season.
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
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What a brilliant statement and even greater achievement well done GB and all the staff
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Interesting he does mention the club being in a good position for investment.
I find having a derby against Rotherham with no police to save money a little risky mind. It may have worked that one game but it’s asking for trouble isn’t it?
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Dear Gavin ,
your statement contains the essence required for every football club that cannot count on sugar daddy monies .
As a long standing fan I thank you and T Bramall and D Blunt for having conceived and delivered this strategy .
You of course have no one to officially highlight your own enormously important contribution to all of this but all thinking fans and TB and DB must know that without you Club Doncaster could not have been conceived and certainly never achieved .
Brian Grainger .
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There can't be many clubs in the EFL operating at breakeven without external investment. Sort of proud that my club is, although it doesn't sound like we'll be signing a million pound striker in the January window :laugh:
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A very encouraging statement, all genuine long standing fans will appreciate the security it provides those of us who above all else just want a decent, local club to support through thick and thin.
Well done and thank you to all at Club Doncaster
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Interesting he does mention the club being in a good position for investment.
I find having a derby against Rotherham with no police to save money a little risky mind. It may have worked that one game but it’s asking for trouble isn’t it?
Its quite interesting that a couple of seasons ago, just before Covid, we played Rotherham at the Keepmoat and I was invited to a briefing to discuss the security arrangements for that game. I was appalled at the overkill that went into that, it must have cost the club a fortune! I expressed my displeasure, and didn't take any satisfaction from it when it went wrong.
This time I was keen to see a Police free game, and even more pleased it went off with little incident.
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
...who will moan that it hasn't been said by David Blunt. FFS.
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I’m expecting a few people posting negativity, you could almost name them in advance. I don’t know how any open minded person could not be impressed with that statement and the work done to get us in that position
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I am willing to wager that not many football clubs will issue that sort of statement to their supporters. I’m as guilty as the next man for moaning and groaning when results aren’t positive. The Club engaging with supporters by issuing that sort of statement makes me proud to be a Rovers fan.
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Brilliant to hear how well the clubs finances are. In the economic climate we have had through Covid and the current cost of living crisis it is quite fantastic that the Club is so sound financially.
I do think this sort of communication is very important.
It’s when we hear nothing for long periods of time that the dissenters become most vocal.
The more communication the better. I would like to hear from Copps on his take on the football side of the club.
I understand we will be shortly, but it’s well overdue imo. We haven’t really heard from him since the summer other than when DS was appointed.
I think we should receive updates from GB every 6 months minimum and ones from Copps on football matters probably every 3 months.
Information is key. The supporters are then made to feel important.
Less rubbish will then be spouted on this site and other social media.
Of course there will always be a few that will never be happy, but that is life.
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I’m expecting a few people posting negativity, you could almost name them in advance. I don’t know how any open minded person could not be impressed with that statement and the work done to get us in that position
Have a look on Twitter / Facebook, they are all there. Apparently the statement says to them that the board bugger and burn John Ryan dolls on a weekly basis and we are destined to never again achieve anything . The fact that the statement is a fantastic achievement in this climate, to be able to out of the last 3 years solvent and with a sound base is something as SM mentions elsewhere will be something almost of clubs who still won't be promoted this year would kill for
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
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The club is run very well there is no doubt about it, but most fans want to see there team do well, it’s rare you hear Man City, Liverpool fans etc moaning they have spent 50 million on a player, how long will the club be able to run without losing money if things don’t improve on the pitch?
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
but without him glyn you would never have watched championship football
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
No need to slag Ryan off. He was a hero to this club, just as Terry Bramall is now, to most of us.
Perspective.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
but without him glyn you would never have watched championship football
I know. But it's like drugs, after the high it's a big come down.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
No need to slag Ryan off. He was a hero to this club, just as Terry Bramall is now, to most of us.
Perspective.
Telling the truth is not slagging off. I haven't badmouthed him in any way. Yes, he did a lot for Rovers but he was also flawed. And that is my perspective.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
No, he put money in. Are you saying he didn't spend other peoples' money?
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Really positive, interesting read. Shame that this thread includes this contribution given it will inevitably derail it. It is possible to admire the current board and praise what they’ve done without belittling the contribution of the guy that took us from the brink of extinction to League One (bankrolled himself), you know.
John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
No need to slag Ryan off. He was a hero to this club, just as Terry Bramall is now, to most of us.
Perspective.
Agree with this. JR is a great man. Even the greatest have their flaws though.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
No, he put money in. Are you saying he didn't spend other peoples' money?
I bet he put more of his personal wealth in than Bramall. Perspective
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
Strike 1, expected
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
Strike 1, expected
Whatever
One day your blinkers will slip.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
No, he put money in. Are you saying he didn't spend other peoples' money?
I bet he put more of his personal wealth in than Bramall. Perspective
I bet he didn't/hasn't - by a long way. Go check the accounts from 1998 to 2022 if you want proof.
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Does anyone know why the books aren’t as visible as they used to be? Be interesting read on how weve managed to become self sustainable.
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It’s really great to read the work that’s gone into producing a self sustaining football club. It’s a fine achievement in this day and age. However, the final proof will be how we ultimately perform on the pitch and that for most of us has been hugely disappointing for at least the past 18 months. As gavin rightly points out, self sustainability doesn’t sell season tickets, merchandise and commercial revenue. That boils down to performance and entertainment and that has to improve in the next 6 to 12 months.
To sum up, we need t find a balance between sustainability and steadily improving our performance/league placing. It’s been downhill for too long unfortunately.
Bottom line; sport is about winning. That’s the business. And we need to start doing more of it.
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It’s possible to be pleased by the fact that we are self sustaining, but also disappointed by our current position. I think this statement is balanced and recognises this, and so I applaud it.
Unfortunately this thread has started to descended in to the typical nonsense…
It must be nice to live in a binary world.
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A great statement, open and honest, the club is on a sound footing for the future, I like all of us hope that the stability and sure footing of the club’s finances helps us to see the performances and enjoyment on the pitch
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Does anyone know why the books aren’t as visible as they used to be? Be interesting read on how weve managed to become self sustainable.
How does that work?
It will only point out that Club Doncaster managed to increase the income stream by off-field activity, which is exactly what has been detailed, quite adequately and succinctly, in the New Year statement.
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
Strike 1, expected
Whatever
One day your blinkers will slip.
What blinkers are these? What can you see that we can't?
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Does anyone know why the books aren’t as visible as they used to be? Be interesting read on how weve managed to become self sustainable.
How does that work?
It will only point out that Club Doncaster managed to increase the income stream by off-field activity, which is exactly what has been detailed, quite adequately and succinctly, in the New Year statement.
I just wonder on why they’re no longer visible like they used to be. It’s a genuine question with no malice at all intended. There must be a reason.
I’m sure they used to be fairly detailed in relation to playing budget etc.
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John Ryan would never have got this club onto the self-sustaining base it now is. He was more interested in spending other people's money than in getting the club into a position to earn it itself.
So he never dug deep ? Just spent others
No, he put money in. Are you saying he didn't spend other peoples' money?
I bet he put more of his personal wealth in than Bramall. Perspective
Actually no, let’s put things straight, without JR we wouldn’t be in a position where we can debate how much of a sure footing we are on. He has a legacy that will always be a part of Rovers Folklore, it was a real shame the way things ended but he left with the same amount of money as he had when the adventure started, I wonder who funded that.
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You see, this is when things get all toxic and the division of fans comes to the fore and it's so unnecessary.
What the club achieved under JRs leadership from a standing start to the Championship was exceptional. It wasn't the norm. It's a once in a lifetime period. We were privileged to be part of that journey that not many clubs can boast. However, some seem to cling to this period as if it was the norm.
To judge TB, DW, DB, GB etc against that benchmark is unfair. TB and DW played a massive part in that journey too. So many factors worked in our favour. Two managers worked wonders with players who more often than not did what it said on the tin. Dave Penney and Sean O'Driscoll. One unproven and the other proven at our level. We had slices of luck too. We also had the optimism that the new stadium brought and people, fans, managers and players all bought into that. We rode the crest of the wave until....we woke up after the dream became a reality.
Things have moved on in football now as we know, so getting anywhere near those heights is probably beyond what JR, TB & DW could achieve in todays climate as it's not sustainable. It wasn't sustainable then hence why JR is no longer on board.
I understand why people say, so where's the ambition. Ambition doesn't have to be in transfer fees and unsustainable wages, it can be in trying to put all those things together that gave Dave Penney and Sean O'Driscoll a chance. Getting value for money out of the players on the pitch irrespective of how they got here.
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The club is run very well there is no doubt about it, but most fans want to see there team do well, it’s rare you hear Man City, Liverpool fans etc moaning they have spent 50 million on a player, how long will the club be able to run without losing money if things don’t improve on the pitch?
Most EPL clubs are profitable operations, which means they are more than self-sustainable.
The EFL is a hotch-potch of clubs that are desperately trying to be self-sustainable, those who are loaded up with debt, and those who are gambling furiously to get themselves into the EPL.
For years football has tried to fix this, to stop it from operating the way it does. That's why we've had various FFP schemes over the years to try and correct all this. The Fan Led Review had this constant debt and gambling addiction at the forefront of all its investigation and evidence led reporting.
Just because supporters want to see their club being successful on the pitch does not warrant the pigs ear of a football operation that we currently have. Its accepted by everybody that this has to change, and when it does we will be ideally placed to take advantage of this.
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I would hope the ambition is now that the club has gone from needing £3mill a year to now breaking even, the structures that have enabled that will continue on from breaking even to start generating extra revenue that can then be used to increase the budgets. There's the ambition that some people say isn't there.
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I'm not sure we can be a Championship side for a couple of consecutive seasons as we were under SOD under the current model. That's fine with me.
Getting back into League One and being competitive there is a good objective. It's a decent league and were are more often than not going to see Barnsley and Rotherham United in there, along with a few former Premier League sides.
The game seems to have moved on quite a bit since 2008 and even the millions we spent then wouldn't now seem to buy us much of a chance of getting there and staying there. Such is life.
We just can't be in League Two for much longer. It's a bit shit if we are all honest.
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In the last sustainable two years the majority of the non happy clappers amongst us have also been subjected to the worst soul destroying league defeat to our local rivals at home 5-0 to Rotherham, not forgetting a 0-6 defeat on a few occasions, seen us embarrassed as mugs on transfer deadline day, seen us relegated and have 18 months to 24 months of shocking results and performances, humiliating defeats this season to bottom placed Hartlepool and Colchester, appoint a number of cheap rookie managers aswell. So sorry if i baulk at a small number of Rovers fans lauding our frugal board with their virtual silence over two years too, and dont get too excited until like most Rovers fans I suggest, we see some real consistent performances and results on the pitch and some honours. Its like a minority of Newcastle fans lauding Mike Ashley for 14 barren years but a frugal profit driven club and zero success on the pitch and zero ambition.
We don't remember breakeven balance sheets as fans we remember beating Leeds at Wembley, Stoke and getting back into the league, Brentford away, Paul Green, Blundell, Marquis, Whiteman (an example of what sensible investment can do to glean a return both in performances, results and saleable assets) Rob Jones.. not downsizing cos the owners won't invest anymore.
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Oh it's been dogshit alright these last two years, no hiding that. But if we had the right manager in place and recruited properly, there was no need for that to have been the case with the budget available. It has been terrible footballing decisions that have led us here, not the finances. If we had given the last couple of managers more cash it would likely have been an even bigger shitshow.
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
Strike 1, expected
Whatever
One day your blinkers will slip.
What blinkers are these? What can you see that we can't?
Your support for this board is bordering on obsessive now.
Is the club in safe hands... yes
Does the club have ambition....no !! Just look at how it was run last season.
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Does anyone know why the books aren’t as visible as they used to be? Be interesting read on how weve managed to become self sustainable.
How does that work?
It will only point out that Club Doncaster managed to increase the income stream by off-field activity, which is exactly what has been detailed, quite adequately and succinctly, in the New Year statement.
To be fair I’d be very interested to see the breakdown of income like we used to have in the accounts to see how matchday income compares to commercial, broadcasting etc.
There’s no reason that should be visible, though - if the club are able to take advantage of exemptions allowing abbreviated accounts then they should. Year-end accounts are an absolute ballache to pull together.
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I'm sure it could be unwound but Doncaster Rovers does appear to be part of a job lot with the Dons and Belles, under Club Doncaster. If someone wanted to come in and buy Rovers, then given as Gavin said we are only sustainable due to the sharing of the operational cost base through Club Doncaster, then the new owners would maybe have to buy Club Doncaster as a whole, which is an odd set up. I guess they could just strip out Rovers, but (a) they are buying something that would need it's own operations establishing again, and (b) Terry would be sending Dons and Belles to oblivion, which doesn't appear to be his style.
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CBcb somebody gave one of those two managers more money,and his shitshow is top of the league, we play them tomorrow, the board were right, they chose a winner, the supporters drumming him out were wrong.
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
Strike 1, expected
Whatever
One day your blinkers will slip.
How can any Football Club be successful long term if the clubs finances are a mess.
We are now in a position to move forward thanks to the revenue Club Doncaster has achieved.
If you can’t see that, no eyed deer then you really do have no eye deer.
I think your the one that needs to take the blinkers off. You need to live in the real world not some fantasy one.
Any idiot can run a club like Bury were run or Bolton or Wigan or Derby etc etc etc. Where does that end up
Look at Crawley now, that’s going to end in tears.
Just be very very careful for what you wish for.
We all want a successful football team but it has to be built on solid foundations otherwise it will fall down.
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We don't know how much money Wellens has been given at Leyton Orient, in a lower league than where he was managing with us. What we do know is that he made a number of poor signings as our manager.
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You see, this is when things get all toxic and the division of fans comes to the fore and it's so unnecessary.
What the club achieved under JRs leadership from a standing start to the Championship was exceptional. It wasn't the norm. It's a once in a lifetime period. We were privileged to be part of that journey that not many clubs can boast. However, some seem to cling to this period as if it was the norm.
To judge TB, DW, DB, GB etc against that benchmark is unfair. TB and DW played a massive part in that journey too. So many factors worked in our favour. Two managers worked wonders with players who more often than not did what it said on the tin. Dave Penney and Sean O'Driscoll. One unproven and the other proven at our level. We had slices of luck too. We also had the optimism that the new stadium brought and people, fans, managers and players all bought into that. We rode the crest of the wave until....we woke up after the dream became a reality.
Things have moved on in football now as we know, so getting anywhere near those heights is probably beyond what JR, TB & DW could achieve in todays climate as it's not sustainable. It wasn't sustainable then hence why JR is no longer on board.
I understand why people say, so where's the ambition. Ambition doesn't have to be in transfer fees and unsustainable wages, it can be in trying to put all those things together that gave Dave Penney and Sean O'Driscoll a chance. Getting value for money out of the players on the pitch irrespective of how they got here.
The voice of reason. Good post. Just a pity some people are living in fantasy land.
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At the time we probably had the worst talent identification scout in history, that was where the mistake was made.
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Not bad reading , but shows we are no longer just a football club
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We don't know how much money Wellens has been given at Leyton Orient, in a lower league than where he was managing with us. What we do know is that he made a number of poor signings as our manager.
Maybe a decent manager but failed at building a completely new squad from scratch (not that he should have had to - thanks Darren)
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And then we get the sack the board brigade.........
And then you get the happy clappers.
Strike 1, expected
Whatever
One day your blinkers will slip.
What blinkers are these? What can you see that we can't?
Your support for this board is bordering on obsessive now.
Is the club in safe hands... yes
Does the club have ambition....no !! Just look at how it was run last season.
Instead of trying to insult me, why don’t you just answer the question?
What is it that you can see and we can’t?
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I'm not sure we can be a Championship side for a couple of consecutive seasons as we were under SOD under the current model. That's fine with me.
Getting back into League One and being competitive there is a good objective. It's a decent league and were are more often than not going to see Barnsley and Rotherham United in there, along with a few former Premier League sides.
The game seems to have moved on quite a bit since 2008 and even the millions we spent then wouldn't now seem to buy us much of a chance of getting there and staying there. Such is life.
We just can't be in League Two for much longer. It's a bit shit if we are all honest.
Totally agree, whilst we have a lot to be thankfull for, & this statement proves that, we need to be in, & we have the support for league 1, think our supporters deserve that. We should be above the level we are at, & leaving no stone unturned to get back there, & that's no disrespect to teams in league 2.
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I can see something about no eye deer that he can't see.
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Not bad reading , but shows we are no longer just a football club
I don’t believe any football club is just a football club anymore, not in the league pyramid anyway
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I can see something about no eye deer that he can't see.
Have to go now. Up early tomorrow, off to Leyton. Up the Rovers
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You can fool some of the people some of the time ..
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I can see something about no eye deer that he can't see.
Have to go now. Up early tomorrow, off to Leyton. Up the Rovers
And that's the bottom line. We're going into tomorrow's game at Orient with just the same enthusiasm, hope, anxiety excitement as the same opening fixture in 2005.
If only all fans could feel that same underdog mentality and throw ourselves into supporting those XI players as we did back then, we would be in a better place.
If we win tomorrow, I guarantee the feeling of satisfaction will be just the same and even more so for those who make the journey. I made that journey back then because I was excited to see Greg Blundell, Leo Fortune West, Michael McIndoe, John Doolan etc pit their wits at League Two level. George Miller, Luke Molyneaux, Kyle Hurst, Harrison Biggins etc all deserve that same support.
Why have we become so superior to believe the game tomorrow is somehow below where we should be?
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I can see something about no eye deer that he can't see.
Have to go now. Up early tomorrow, off to Leyton. Up the Rovers
And that's the bottom line. We're going into tomorrow's game at Orient with just the same enthusiasm, hope, anxiety excitement as the same opening fixture in 2005.
If only all fans could feel that same underdog mentality and throw ourselves into supporting those XI players as we did back then, we would be in a better place.
If we win tomorrow, I guarantee the feeling of satisfaction will be just the same and even more so for those who make the journey. I made that journey back then because I was excited to see Greg Blundell, Leo Fortune West, Michael McIndoe, John Doolan etc pit their wits at League Two level. George Miller, Luke Molyneaux, Kyle Hurst, Harrison Biggins etc all deserve that same support.
Why have we become so superior to believe the game tomorrow is somehow below where we should be?
Supported this club since 1980 lincoln at home.
So seen more lows than highs, and loved the conference days.
My biggest problem is the PR machine on here goes into overdrive wherever anybody dare question the running of the club or the direction they are taking us.
Its not what league we are in, its fashion we got here.
Just wish the owners had your passion.
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I can see something about no eye deer that he can't see.
Have to go now. Up early tomorrow, off to Leyton. Up the Rovers
And that's the bottom line. We're going into tomorrow's game at Orient with just the same enthusiasm, hope, anxiety excitement as the same opening fixture in 2005.
If only all fans could feel that same underdog mentality and throw ourselves into supporting those XI players as we did back then, we would be in a better place.
If we win tomorrow, I guarantee the feeling of satisfaction will be just the same and even more so for those who make the journey. I made that journey back then because I was excited to see Greg Blundell, Leo Fortune West, Michael McIndoe, John Doolan etc pit their wits at League Two level. George Miller, Luke Molyneaux, Kyle Hurst, Harrison Biggins etc all deserve that same support.
Why have we become so superior to believe the game tomorrow is somehow below where we should be?
2003 DBR :)
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Nice speech ,now lets see some encouraging signings in this transfer window to show they mean business.
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It was a good statement with solid information to the fans from a finance point of view. I mentioned in another post of things I'd like to see from the club in 2023 and beyond;
I'd update weekly via social media and website; interviews with HOF, CEO, Chairman and Physio. Information to the fan base is key. This ranges from commercial partnerships, community involvement to injuries, details of our players out on loan and contracts. A weekly update from each of these would be great.
I get that we don't need a weekly financial statement from Gavin and what he placed was excellent (despite some of our disappointment in terms of league position and what division we are in).
We DO still need regular updates from physio department and HOF. The statement was good but didn't really relate to the football side of things (which is our passion).
How are the youth team doing? What's the vision there long term. What is Green doing in his role as "first team transition coach?" Let's understand what the club is doing and what progress is being made.
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It was a good statement with solid information to the fans from a finance point of view. I mentioned in another post of things I'd like to see from the club in 2023 and beyond;
I'd update weekly via social media and website; interviews with HOF, CEO, Chairman and Physio. Information to the fan base is key. This ranges from commercial partnerships, community involvement to injuries, details of our players out on loan and contracts. A weekly update from each of these would be great.
I get that we don't need a weekly financial statement from Gavin and what he placed was excellent (despite some of our disappointment in terms of league position and what division we are in).
We DO still need regular updates from physio department and HOF. The statement was good but didn't really relate to the football side of things (which is our passion).
How are the youth team doing? What's the vision there long term. What is Green doing in his role as "first team transition coach?" Let's understand what the club is doing and what progress is being made.
The Youth team has a dedicated Twitter account which provides updates on a regular basis. There are also updates on the official site.
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I can see something about no eye deer that he can't see.
Have to go now. Up early tomorrow, off to Leyton. Up the Rovers
And that's the bottom line. We're going into tomorrow's game at Orient with just the same enthusiasm, hope, anxiety excitement as the same opening fixture in 2005.
If only all fans could feel that same underdog mentality and throw ourselves into supporting those XI players as we did back then, we would be in a better place.
If we win tomorrow, I guarantee the feeling of satisfaction will be just the same and even more so for those who make the journey. I made that journey back then because I was excited to see Greg Blundell, Leo Fortune West, Michael McIndoe, John Doolan etc pit their wits at League Two level. George Miller, Luke Molyneaux, Kyle Hurst, Harrison Biggins etc all deserve that same support.
Why have we become so superior to believe the game tomorrow is somehow below where we should be?
Supported this club since 1980 lincoln at home.
So seen more lows than highs, and loved the conference days.
My biggest problem is the PR machine on here goes into overdrive wherever anybody dare question the running of the club or the direction they are taking us.
Its not what league we are in, its fashion we got here.
Just wish the owners had your passion.
Please tell us what the owners should be doing. No good whinging all the time. Tell us how they should be running the club.
The fact is mistakes have been made in the management appointments. Moore, Butler, Wellens and McSheffrey.
The recruitment of players has been flawed. Moore was obsessed with loan signings and then left us high and dry.
Butler was a mistake no question especially with a squad made up of so many loans who simply downed tools once DM left us.
Wellens seemed like a good appointment as he had some previous success as a manager. His recruitment though was nothing short of awful. He had a budget from what I understand that should have been good enough to obtain a comfortable mid table place in League 1. So sorry was that the boards fault or Wellens?
GM was in hindsight a mistake, it could have worked as he is a good coach, but it didn’t.
In the summer the board changed the way they run the football operation by appointing a HoF in Copps.
He was then very instrumental in identifying DS as our next manager after GM was sacked in October.
He did his homework and hopefully this appointment will set us on the right track.
It’s early days and the team performances have been very inconsistent. DS though is working with a playing squad he inherited. Time is needed. We need to give him 2 windows to bring in the players we need to become a team that can compete in League 1. We need a squad that can compete in the league above.
It’s no good going up and then coming straight back down again.
The board have provided a budget that will be in top 4/5 in League 2 this season.
We are on a sound financial footing and now in a position to move the club forward on the playing side.
Mistakes have been made, of course they have. The board know that. Changes have been made. Now let’s see where we go from here.
Promotion is still a possibility this season but if it’s not achieved then it’s not a disaster.
Given some really good recruitment in the summer we should have a squad next season that gets a top 3 place minimum. Maybe even Champions.
We have in Mitchell, Knoyle, Anderson, yes even Williams ( based on his performance v Carlisle ) so jury out on him i think. Olowu, Faulkner, Maxwell, Rowe, Close, Biggins, Molyneux, Hurst & Miller, the nucleus of a squad that can imo compete at the top of this league and probably hold their own in League 1 imo.
Many of the above players are young and will only improve with game time and good coaching.
We need to clear out the rest. Jones ( not sure he will be happy to be no 2 for ever ) Seaman, Long, Ravenhill, Clayton, Taylor, Agard & Griffiths. Also Woltman loan player who is imo not good enough imo.
Ollie Younger I am not sure about. We need to see him when he is fit again.
Recruitment is the key. Get it right in the next 2 windows and Rovers will be a team that we can be all proud of once again.
If the owners had no ambition for the club, why do they bother. What’s the point. Seriously, surely you can see that.
Be very thankful for what we have got because the alternative could possibly be very unpalatable. We have been there in the 90’s and I never want to see that again.
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If showing passion meant anything Kevin Keegan would still be England manager.
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If showing passion meant anything Kevin Keegan would still be England manager.
Or Smithy..?
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My worry is that there seems to be a constant reduction in our on pitch goals. In the last 18 months we've gone from a goal of consistently challenging for Lg1 playoffs, down to Lg1 consolidation, down to bouncing back decisively to Lg1, to now, in the statement, seemingly being happy with our current position challenging (just about) for the Lg2 playoffs. We're better than that, aren't we?
To be clear, I think every other aspect of that statement is extremely positive, and as fans we should be genuinely proud of the club we support and how we operate off the pitch.
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I took a bit of time to think about the statement before posting. My initial thought was it seemed very 'back slapping, well done boys'. To a point it should be as well, to make us self sufficient is a terrific effort, and one that shouldnt be ignored. I never understood why Gavin has always been the one picked out for stick from the Yellow and black guys, I did ask them at one point and I questioned why Blunt didnt , I don't think I got an answer.
This is a massive moment for us now. Without a shadow of doubt they have made some awful decisions in recent times, mainly the manager role and the recruitment. Also, when we had the opportunity to invest a small fee (on a player) when money came in, we didnt. My feelings has always been we needed someone who had experience. An experienced manager could have kept us up last year. My worry has always been lack of football knowledge on the board, we have a inexperienced manager and now we have Copps in the role which is a massive gamble. When they picked DS I hoped they would go for an experienced assistant. It didnt happen.
A big January, a big year for us in general. As self sufficient could we make it back to the championship one day, yes why not. It would be a big ask, but it could happen. The board needed to take the well done, but then look at what they could have done a lot better.