You can't play all youngsters ?

I'm sorry but if we continue to play 7 or so youngsters I fear we will get relegated. You must have a mixture, I'm not a Euell fan but to be honest he had a very good pre season and scored a couple of goals, plus remember he can play CB as well. Stern John should also come into the set up as I really don't think we should be playing 1 striker up front ie McGoldrick on his own. I would also keep Rasiak in the picture we all know he does not move around a lot but he is a great finisher. I'm not convinced by Holmes and he hasn't got a change of pace. What do you reckon ?

No wonder we lost if we only fielded 7 players.

You still haven't paid the fiver yet David? cheapskate!

I reckon you are wrong but that's just my opinion and only time will tell. This is what the majority of fans wanted last season and now it's here (and we have one narrow defeat to our name this season) and suddenly it's a bad idea? Stern John was banned for the first game so no doubt will figure during the season. Yes Rasiak is a class finisher but if he's sold on 31st August and we've been playing him regularly then we have to slot another striker in. If he's still here come Sept 1st then I'm sure Jan will start to utilise him (his words from the Saints Forum last Thursday). Have faith and remember Rome wasn't built in a day! Happy Clappy over and out!

Ponty, could you delete my other post on this thread.

Leave this one though, I quite like it.

Thanks for all your help. I have sent you a PM.

I reckon you are wrong but that's just my opinion and only time will tell. This is what the majority of fans wanted last season and now it's here (and we have one narrow defeat to our name this season) and suddenly it's a bad idea? Stern John was banned for the first game so no doubt will figure during the season. Yes Rasiak is a class finisher but if he's sold on 31st August and we've been playing him regularly then we have to slot another striker in. If he's still here come Sept 1st then I'm sure Jan will start to utilise him (his words from the Saints Forum last Thursday). Have faith and remember Rome wasn't built in a day! Happy Clappy over and out!

we were so poor upfront on saturday though, and defended with naievity, the spine of the team need to be experienced and the younger players can fit around them. I say Davis-Svensson-Wotton-Stern John would make a good spine. i'm not saying that wotton is our best midfielder but he is old enough and wise enough not to get mugged off the ball as often as some of our younger midfielders.

Ponty, could you delete my other post on this thread.

 

Leave this one though, I quite like it.

 

Thanks for all your help. I have sent you a PM.

**** off

I tend to agree with you smalls.

I expected that kind of ridiculous overeaction after 1 game, but it's still sad and frustrating. I'm guessing you weren't at the game. God knows what it'll be like if we lose the next two as well. Don't bother thinking that we might actually have got a worse result with more experienced players. Wasn't that long ago we had Idiakez, Euell, Licka and Safri getting outplayed in the midfield. I prefer what I saw Saturday. They need time, but on another day they could have got a lot more from that game.

 

Schneiderlin was excellent. The defence was individually good, but needs to become more of a solid unit. I'm not convinced Perry should play every week.

 

Cardiff are a strong home team, that's what it comes down to in the end. Not many will go and win there. For the first half hour they couldn't get the ball off of us. There is huge potential in there. Thomson provided a great threat. I didn't think much of Holmes, but then, it's his first game, and the fact that he'd be replaced by Dyer or BWP just means a player of similar age, so doesn't do much for your point. Personally I'd go Dyer left and Thomson right. We need to get Lallana involved more, but the system of him in front of Gillet and Schneiderlin will work well.

 

We lost, and in an annoying way, and we might well lose to birmingham, but it's a long season and I've seen more than enough to be positive about it.

yeah, but we did **** all with it. we had one shot on target in the whole game at that was the goal.

If you reduce the number of young players you will end up with the same dross we saw last season and before,as the experienced players will impose the same old failed methods of play.The young players will not suit this old style play and they will struggle.

This is why so many youngsters,who are introduced gradually to the first team,fail.They come into a team who play hoof-ball,when all their coaching has been about proper football.This is the problem throughout the leagues,bar the better premier clubs,where Arsenal are the ultimate example of All their sides playing the same way.Many youngsters

capable of making a pro. career never stand a chance because of the sh*te played by the first team.

For what Saints are trying to do,the young players must dominate,while some older heads are utilised to maintain a steady ship duirng times of pressure.That way the team will progress and the club will maximise the number of young players who will make the grade.

There are enough crap sides in the CCC that we should not be unduly worried that the boys can pick up enough points as they learn the pro trade.

There is a place for the older heads in with the youngsters and that was perfectly illustrated on Saturday.

Depends on how good those youngsters are. This season I think we can stay up but I reckon it could be a fight. Either that, or they will shock everyone and cruise to promotion.

yeah, but we did **** all with it. we had one shot on target in the whole game at that was the goal.

4 on target, 2 off target actually. More than Reading and Burnley, same number as Palace, Sheff Utd, Watford, Preston & Ipswich. Actually not bad for an away team. I think some people are actually forgetting we played away on Saturday, at a place where not many teams will get a result.

If you reduce the number of young players you will end up with the same dross we saw last season and before,as the experienced players will impose the same old failed methods of play.The young players will not suit this old style play and they will struggle.

 

This is why so many youngsters,who are introduced gradually to the first team,fail.They come into a team who play hoof-ball,when all their coaching has been about proper football.This is the problem throughout the leagues,bar the better premier clubs,where Arsenal are the ultimate example of All their sides playing the same way.Many youngsters

capable of making a pro. career never stand a chance because of the sh*te played by the first team.

 

For what Saints are trying to do,the young players must dominate,while some older heads are utilised to maintain a steady ship duirng times of pressure.That way the team will progress and the club will maximise the number of young players who will make the grade.

 

There are enough crap sides in the CCC that we should not be unduly worried that the boys can pick up enough points as they learn the pro trade.

or get relegated go into administration saying how great we would have been....

Successful clubs do not field teams like we did Saturday. If it's to be believed, and we sell Rasiak, Scacel, Euell, Thomas, Davis, Dyer and Killer and Andrew Davies are out god help us!

Surely we need a balance of youth and experience? If this continues we will stuggle to even stay in this division never mind promotion.

4 on target, 2 off target actually. More than Reading and Burnley, same number as Palace, Sheff Utd, Watford, Preston & Ipswich. Actually not bad for an away team. I think some people are actually forgetting we played away on Saturday, at a place where not many teams will get a result.

Were you there?

I didn't think we looked like scoring at all after the 1st 30mins.

Deffo didn't look like it in the 2nd half.

 

There are enough crap sides in the CCC that we should not be unduly worried that the boys can pick up enough points as they learn the pro trade.

who are these sides and will they offer enough points for these youngsters to finish learning their trade in the CCC next season?

And Matron,the alternative is?

Carry on with the same pathetic journeymen,even weaker than last season. Great Idea.

Certain relegation.

Clear out and replace with a load of more cheaper journeymen of probably even less ability and even poorer attitude. ANOTHER GREAT IDEA.

Time people came down from the clouds to Starbucks.

Nobody knows who these sides are yet CHEZ.

But they are there every season.Or is this to be an exceptional season to suit the prevailing agenda of those living in cloudo cuckoo land and not prepared to accept the reality of the situation the club is in.

If you reduce the number of young players you will end up with the same dross we saw last season and before,as the experienced players will impose the same old failed methods of play.The young players will not suit this old style play and they will struggle.

 

This is why so many youngsters,who are introduced gradually to the first team,fail.They come into a team who play hoof-ball,when all their coaching has been about proper football.This is the problem throughout the leagues,bar the better premier clubs,where Arsenal are the ultimate example of All their sides playing the same way.Many youngsters

capable of making a pro. career never stand a chance because of the sh*te played by the first team.

 

For what Saints are trying to do,the young players must dominate,while some older heads are utilised to maintain a steady ship duirng times of pressure.That way the team will progress and the club will maximise the number of young players who will make the grade.

 

There are enough crap sides in the CCC that we should not be unduly worried that the boys can pick up enough points as they learn the pro trade.

I'm sure you are right. From the three matches I've seen it's the experienced players who have struggled to pass and move. Last year they didn't do much of either.

Can I sponsor EM to become a full member?

"You'll win nothing with kids" Hanson

Whilst you shouldn't draw too many conclusions from the Cardiff game as they are very strong at home and we never win there, only a fool would ignore the risks of fielding too many kids in this league.

I don.t see anyone offering an alternative that will work/and we can afford.

Why do people think those that failed last season will do the business this season?

Do they have players in mind,that we can get,who will do better?

I think people haven't come to terms with the fact that we are now playing affordable football. The high earners are going to go, it's no good criticising the kids they are doing well.

The last two years we paid out a fortune in fees, wages and agents and what did we get, in the main dross. Players with no pace, motivation, pretty average fitness, poor results and before somebody mentions the playoffs we only performed in the last six games from a pretty average position to get there then lost at home to a pretty poor Derby side.

I don.t see anyone offering an alternative that will work/and we can afford.

 

Why do people think those that failed last season will do the business this season?

 

Do they have players in mind,that we can get,who will do better?

Sorry 1965onwards, but you have sense of reality which seems to be lacking in some posters on this site.

I'm sure people would be happy if we brought anybody in - I suppose a transfer in makes you feel that the club are doing something - leaving aside the reality that the player may not be any better than what's already here & we can't afford anyone anyway.

Most realistic fans realise this season will be a struggle, playing kids is a risk (and yes if we get relegated then administration awaits) but that has to be a better chance than repeating last years efforts of buying expensive ex-premiership has beens that WILL put us into administration & will probably get us relegated anyway (judging by last seasons efforts).

and derry joins the group in Starbucks - a strange sense of reality breaking out here.

I'm off to read the takeover threads & lie down!!!!

People have to realise that Burley was/is a washed-up freeloader who only looked for the easy option,giving only a fraction that a manager needs to give.

We now have 4 intelligent coaches giving their all,with players giving their all.

And people want the same as last season,with less able players?

Was it only me that thought Wotton was complete crap when he came on saturday??

You've given the lads one league game and have then decided to question whether they should all be playing. I didn't see many complaints after the game against WHU and it was the same side as saturday. Give them 10 games, then we'll see.

I dont know which older players yoiu want to see in the team. I cant see any of them fitting into our new system. Its no use complaining that McGoldrick isn't up to the job, IMO rasiak or john would fail to even get the ball judging by the style of football we are playing.

It was obvious from the stoke game that last seasons players haven't changed. They still lack motivation, intelligence amd the ability to create chances. At least when the youngsters play, you know they can create chances and undo defences with their intelligent link up play.

Its a natural reaction to a defeat to look for a simple answer - so, team loses, decide what is the weak spot, change it and play a different 11. But that is what Burley did all the time.

The team had the closest possible result at Cardiff and to change it because of a last minute free kick would not make sense at all. This team can only get better by playing together. Apart from the cup game at Exeter, when a run out for some of the second choice players would make sense, I hope JP will put out the same team against Birmingham, except if Davies is fit, he would be first choice alongside Killer.

Agree with the first post. I like the youth policy, but why does it need to be so radical? Why not include the likes of Euell and Rasiak with a mixture of the younger players?

Were you there?

 

I didn't think we looked like scoring at all after the 1st 30mins.

 

Deffo didn't look like it in the 2nd half.

Were you at the Coventry and Burnley home games last season. We wouldn't have scored if we were still playing now. Seems the 1st 30 minutes was an improvement over what we'e done at Cardiff in the previous 3 seasons.

Agree with the first post. I like the youth policy, but why does it need to be so radical? Why not include the likes of Euell and Rasiak with a mixture of the younger players?

The whole point is you can't play a system where 5 players run, pass, close down and play at a high tempo and the other 5 play the static hoofball our aging mercanaries served up last season. It's got to be all the team busting gut or there's no point anyone doing it.

Try a different thought.

We have a bunch of talented but inexperienced kids. They have done ok in pre-season.

A primary issue with kids is self confidence - belief in their own ability.

Then add in that we don't yet know who out of the "old guard" we will not be able to loan or sell.

So. The first game you give them the CHANCE. They LEARN and they improve.

What have you lost? Would we really have expected to WIN at Cardiff? But we NEARLY got a point.

OR the kids do well in pre-season and - you leave them out again, some get on the bench what a slap to their confidence - we've left Lallana & Gillet out for way to long. Sorry, I think the benefit of the result for them in the longer term is so much better. We STILL have 45 games left where we can re-introduce the balance of the wiser older heads, and surprisingly, we aren't the only team in the CCC who didn't win their first match AND we all can see how tough the opening fixtures are.

Same again Saturday, they are learning and we have time to tinker when we know better who will be here for the long run

Sorry 1965onwards, but you have sense of reality which seems to be lacking in some posters on this site.

 

I'm sure people would be happy if we brought anybody in - I suppose a transfer in makes you feel that the club are doing something - leaving aside the reality that the player may not be any better than what's already here & we can't afford anyone anyway.

 

Most realistic fans realise this season will be a struggle, playing kids is a risk (and yes if we get relegated then administration awaits) but that has to be a better chance than repeating last years efforts of buying expensive ex-premiership has beens that WILL put us into administration & will probably get us relegated anyway (judging by last seasons efforts).

Sorry you need to stop going on about last season because the season before using experienced players we did ok. Perhap last season was more down to the manager and board than the players.

Why is there a better chance of survival with the current team and management set up? We've not beaten a league team yet.

I tell you if you want certainty it is if we are relegated and not taken over we are finished!! I suggest people stop getting so damned precious about the young players and acknowledge we need experienced players in the side with them - and I don't just mean Killer, Perry and Davis - or we will be in deep deep **** very quickly... I attended the MLT dinner at Oakley and he stated very clearly that this was his view...

I think I've already sort of accepted that we will be relegated, just trying to enjoy the season as much as possible to be honest. I refuse to be as depressed about us as I was last year.

Why the polarised views? There's good solid middle ground to be found here surely?

The best thing JP appears to be doing is getting some consistency into the side...i.e. if a team is performing (and preferably winning) then don't change it. Succesful CCC sides are the ones that do not chop and change.

However, it is important to get a good balance of youth and senior heads. In this league, it is crucial that the backbone of the team needs to be hard and experienced, otherwise we face the danger of being the team that plays the prettiest football as we enter into administration. There is a very real danger this could happen IMO - it truly concerns me that JP and Lowe will not act in enough time to avert a disaster later in the season.

So in summary, there's room for a balance of experience and youth and I feel sure JP will include Stern to provide this.

You need the mixture of both. You need the experience of the older heads to help the young ones along in learning their trade and you'll usually find that the enthusiasm of the kids rubs off on the older ones. One game doesn't make the season good or bad.

I'm afraid I don't see how anyone knows enough after one game to think they know how the season is going to go. Why do we feel the need to prescribe radical fixes with just 2% of the season gone. To think we criticized Lowe for being reactionary...

Can't we just accept what is being played out, give the team the support they need, watch to see who develops and come back again to pass judgement in the New Year?

It seems we're all so eager to have our opinions vindicated that we're drafting our "I told you so"s the moment the final whistle goes. I don't know what I fear most of a Monday morning: A flood of "We lost - We're doomed" posts or a flood of "We won - Here comes our brave new dawn" posts.

Doesn't anyone have enough patience to sit back and watch the season unfold?

I'm afraid I don't see how anyone knows enough after one game to think they know how the season is going to go. Why do we feel the need to prescribe radical fixes with just 2% of the season gone. To think we criticized Lowe for being reactionary...

 

QUOTE]

 

Absolutely. Quite absurd. Some of the things being written after one game are ridiculous. Just imagine if we'd lost 1-0 at home to Doncaster. The telephone exchange at the Samaritans would have blown a fuse.

Sorry you need to stop going on about last season because the season before using experienced players we did ok. Perhap last season was more down to the manager and board than the players.

 

Why is there a better chance of survival with the current team and management set up? We've not beaten a league team yet.

 

I tell you if you want certainty it is if we are relegated and not taken over we are finished!! I suggest people stop getting so damned precious about the young players and acknowledge we need experienced players in the side with them - and I don't just mean Killer, Perry and Davis - or we will be in deep deep **** very quickly... I attended the MLT dinner at Oakley and he stated very clearly that this was his view...

But we didn't do OK though did we. We just about scraped into the play offs after Preston pressed the self destruct button. With the money that GB had spent that season, we should have been targeting automatic promotion.

If you reduce the number of young players you will end up with the same dross we saw last season and before,as the experienced players will impose the same old failed methods of play.The young players will not suit this old style play and they will struggle.

 

This is why so many youngsters,who are introduced gradually to the first team,fail.They come into a team who play hoof-ball,when all their coaching has been about proper football.This is the problem throughout the leagues,bar the better premier clubs,where Arsenal are the ultimate example of All their sides playing the same way.Many youngsters

capable of making a pro. career never stand a chance because of the sh*te played by the first team.

 

For what Saints are trying to do,the young players must dominate,while some older heads are utilised to maintain a steady ship duirng times of pressure.That way the team will progress and the club will maximise the number of young players who will make the grade.

 

There are enough crap sides in the CCC that we should not be unduly worried that the boys can pick up enough points as they learn the pro trade.

An excellent post and one with which I totally agree

I think people haven't come to terms with the fact that we are now playing affordable football. The high earners are going to go, it's no good criticising the kids they are doing well.

 

The last two years we paid out a fortune in fees, wages and agents and what did we get, in the main dross. Players with no pace, motivation, pretty average fitness, poor results and before somebody mentions the playoffs we only performed in the last six games from a pretty average position to get there then lost at home to a pretty poor Derby side.

Like the phrase "affordable football" - sums it all up really

Sorry you need to stop going on about last season because the season before using experienced players we did ok. Perhap last season was more down to the manager and board than the players.

 

Why is there a better chance of survival with the current team and management set up? We've not beaten a league team yet.

 

I tell you if you want certainty it is if we are relegated and not taken over we are finished!! I suggest people stop getting so damned precious about the young players and acknowledge we need experienced players in the side with them - and I don't just mean Killer, Perry and Davis - or we will be in deep deep **** very quickly... I attended the MLT dinner at Oakley and he stated very clearly that this was his view...

I go on about last season because we were so poor & almost got relegated. Some of the 'experienced' pro's are still at the club drawing their huge wage & apparantly not able to play the football we are now trying to play. and yes I do prefer us playing a quick passing game than the hoofball from last season. The season we got to the playoffs, we spent £7m that we didn't have (and look at the accounts if you don't agree). Last season was largely with the same group of players & the same manager.

I don't know if there is a better chance of survival playing this way, ask me at the end of the season - but football is also about entertainment & I wasn't entertained last season. What is apparant is that JP does not believe that the older players can play the type of football that he wants to play. So you make the choice - you players who adapt quickly & have been schooled well, playing a similar style of football at the academy, or experienced pro's who don't give a monkies, play hoofball because they can't do what the manager wants & may adapt in half a season.

I agree if we get relegated & there is no investment then we will be in administration, however my point was that if we had continued paying the experienced pro's (Wright, Powell, Idiakez, etc) then we would probably go into administration during this season - and if we weren't already in a position to be relegated then we would be with 10 point deduction. At least playing the kids, our affordable football as its been coined is entertaining and will probably keep us afloat financially until the end of the season.

The reality of our situation is that balancing survival in footballing terms & survival financially is all we can try & do.

and derry joins the group in Starbucks - a strange sense of reality breaking out here.

 

I'm off to read the takeover threads & lie down!!!!

I thought that was the position all along, losing £5m last year despite selling circa £21m of players. I am a realist, the football last year was absolutely dire, I know that for a fact because of the 30 odd games I attended. On top of that we escaped relegation by the skin of our teeth.

This year I have seen the three main friendlies and have been delighted with the transformation. I couldn't care less if every one of last years team with the exception of Davies, Surman, BWP, and Dyer went. In fact I hope they do.

The passing, movement, enthusiasm is brilliant to see. The concerns are all the attacking players weighing in with goals and the ability to attack and defend crosses.

I actually think, as I've said before, it's going to be a roller coaster. As I watch about 30 odd matches a season, I know what I prefer.

This team can get a lot better, last years team would not and could have been even worse. If we can unload the highly paid underperforming journeymen, we may be able to get in a couple of young reinforcements.

Cardiff are a strong home team, that's what it comes down to in the end. Not many will go and win there. For the first half hour they couldn't get the ball off of us.

So for a third of the match they couldn't get the ball, but for the entire match we had only one third of the possession. So that means that we didn't have the ball at all the rest of the match.

For me, the big worry is not playing the kids, as several of them aren't kids anymore anyway and they are at least used to playing together. My worry is that the essence of their style of play is that they should keep possession and yet they only had one third of it. What changed after the first 30 minutes? Did they suss us out that quickly, or did we stop passing effectively? And as stated already, what precisely did we do with the ball even when we had most of it during that first half hour? Not a lot, was it? Considering that Poortvliet has urged the lads to get into the box and shoot on sight, there didn't seem to be much evidence of that. I'm personally not much enamoured of having effectively a lone striker up front and although McGoldrick has done well so far, the back-up for him is not so far a weapon with much potency. I hope that John gets to play now that his suspension is over.

Derry:

The last two years we paid out a fortune in fees, wages and agents and what did we get, in the main dross. Players with no pace, motivation, pretty average fitness, poor results and before somebody mentions the playoffs we only performed in the last six games from a pretty average position to get there then lost at home to a pretty poor Derby side.

Where there is lack of fitness, motivation and poor results, you are blaming the players. I blame the manager for the lack of fitness and motivation and suggest that his constant tinkering with the squad and playing some out of position might have had a lot to do with the poor results.

As for the "pretty poor Derby side", it turns out that they were the third best side in the league that year, having led for much of the season. If they were so poor, just think how crap the teams below them were, eh?

Derby were a team criticised for the style of football they played, dismissed as hoofball and Stoke were considered to be a similar team this last season. The fact is that both teams played to the strengths of their squads and succeeded.

Had we had Billy Davies managing us, no doubt the lack of motivation and fitness wouldn't have been a problem and it would have been us promoted instead, even with the squad we had which some are so disparaging of.

In conclusion, I believe that if we play with too many of the youngsters without the balance and experience brought by the older heads, we will not be playing to our squad's strengths, but as financial restraints dictate our policy there is not a lot we can do about it, as most of the quality we had will have been sold.

I go on about last season because we were so poor & almost got relegated. Some of the 'experienced' pro's are still at the club drawing their huge wage & apparantly not able to play the football we are now trying to play.

and yes I do prefer us playing a quick passing game than the hoofball from last season.

 

Hoofball? You're having a laugh! Even last season, we hardly ever played hoofball.

 

The season we got to the playoffs, we spent £7m that we didn't have (and look at the accounts if you don't agree). Last season was largely with the same group of players & the same manager.

 

Again, stop trying to rewrite history! As has been pointed out before, at the time of George Burley leaving, we were mid table and then had Dodd and Gorman and Pearson in the second half of the season. Do you reckon that three changes of manager in a season is not too much of a problem?

 

I don't know if there is a better chance of survival playing this way, ask me at the end of the season - but football is also about entertainment & I wasn't entertained last season. What is apparant is that JP does not believe that the older players can play the type of football that he wants to play.

 

Or more accurately he has been told that players earning over a certain amount are not to be played as they are to be sold.

 

So you make the choice - you players who adapt quickly & have been schooled well, playing a similar style of football at the academy, or experienced pro's who don't give a monkies, play hoofball because they can't do what the manager wants & may adapt in half a season.

 

You are entitled to your opinion, but your sweeping generalisations are exactly that; without any argument or proof to support them and easily torn apart. To you, it's all black or white, youngsters or older players. It never crosses your mind that there is a middle road, with a mixture of both.

 

I agree if we get relegated & there is no investment then we will be in administration, however my point was that if we had continued paying the experienced pro's (Wright, Powell, Idiakez, etc) then we would probably go into administration during this season - and if we weren't already in a position to be relegated then we would be with 10 point deduction. At least playing the kids, our affordable football as its been coined is entertaining and will probably keep us afloat financially until the end of the season.

 

It's far too early to say whether it's entertaining or not. It has been during the friendlies and even perhaps against Cardiff, although frustrating. But will it continue to be entertaining if we lose every match?

 

The reality of our situation is that balancing survival in footballing terms & survival financially is all we can try & do.

All the indications are that we might carry on like this, selling any players who shine to keep afloat until somebody takes us over. In other words purely as a feeder club to the Premiership, never acumulating enough momentum to give us a decent chance of a promotion push, as we will have to accept any reasonable offer for our better players, whether we wanted to sell them or not.

All the indications are that we might carry on like this, selling any players who shine to keep afloat until somebody takes us over. In other words purely as a feeder club to the Premiership, never acumulating enough momentum to give us a decent chance of a promotion push, as we will have to accept any reasonable offer for our better players, whether we wanted to sell them or not.

Yes a good post.

The only comment I have why are we obsessed with getting to the Premiership in our present condition there is no all little chance we are a Championship side now and should accept it.

I would have thought most sides going up to the Premiership will come down anyway.

Yes a good post.

 

The only comment I have why are we obsessed with getting to the Premiership in our present condition there is no all little chance we are a Championship side now and should accept it.

 

I would have thought most sides going up to the Premiership will come down anyway.

The reason going up will be good for the club (even if we come straight back down) is we should be able to address our mounting debts and it means we will be more competitive in the CCC. At present we are behind the likes of Ipswich, Coventry, Norwich, QPR, Stoke, Hull etc etc all of whom we were "superior" to financially, just a few seasons ago. I remember loaning Coventry Crainie and thinking how far they had "fallen" borrowing our reserves/youngsters. Now we snap up Plymouth rejects.