£29m (Training Facility)

[JJB]

We have them now. How are your development squad doing?

Not too bad, 3rd in the u21 premier league. Not that it counts for anything as developing quality players is more important that winning leagues. FWIW the u18's are top of the u18 premier league with a game in hand. I'm more impressed that we have a 17 year old in the first 16 and 3 other 17 year olds in the first team squad who will go on to be a big part of our future.

 

[MACROBLUE]

A little tester for you all to ponder-no right or wrongs just an open disscussion..

Would £29m be better spent on players and get there first?

I don't think we are too far away from being a sucess,however we seem to be faltering of late,be it tactics,style of play,the 1st 10 games versus *easier?* opponenets,or just the fact that our team has cost only £5m odd to assemeble.

Perhaps we need to spend a little,easy to say it's not my money and i/we are gratefull-

BUT

25,000 crowds will last for only so long and Tony if your reading this,it would be nice to strike now,and go for it,before some people in these times of austerity decide to spend their money elsewhere...

It seems like you don't understand the reason for a training facility. Sit down have a real think about it and I'm sure you will come to the right conclusion. THINK FUTURE.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

The training ground will help us attract much better players than we can at the moment what with our training facilities basically being a school sports hall.

This is the crux of the matter. We don't have any training facilities at the moment, we just hire a field and sports hall. We've had players injured whilst training because of a rabbit hole, and not been able to train because it's slightly frosty.
We need our own training facilities so whilst we're achieving that, we may as well build for the future and get the best that we can which will benefit many players and managers to come. Building for the future doesn't mean short term investment as it won't last.

 

[GoldWithFalmer]

It seems like you don't understand the reason for a training facility. Sit down have a real think about it and I'm sure you will come to the right conclusion. THINK FUTURE.

I do,honestly i really do,and yes we need it and all it can provide for the club for many years to come,my point was highlighting a point of balance.

Example-when we reached division 1 in 1979 we spent more on players than on the ground,there was only 5,000 seats at the Goldstone and this was never enough,now i know the Goldstone was by design somewhat hemmed in but even with the Lego stand we could not compete.

so now we could find ourselves with a traning/Academy facility completed 2 years from now (this is what we need) but gates of 15,000,Gus gone because he is bored and all momentum lost..

like i say no right or wrong just disscussion and i feel proud we will have a superb facility-

My main point is with rising costs you cannot always BUY a crowd of 26/27,000 to back your ambitions.

 

[withdeanwombat]

Build the centre before costs rise,and opponents bring in colonies of crested newts,bats,build duck ponds and spot a flock of dodos.

£29 m spent on players might - MIGHT - get half a dozen lower premiership players,and some of them might - MIGHT - turn out to be good.

The centre at Lancing will be an excellent facility immediately it is opened.and though there is another big MIGHT involved,it might just get us developing our own talented youth so that we are less dependent on transfer windows and the chance involved.

 

[Seagull over Canaryland]

The need for a proper training complex and academy is a no-brainer for any Club that aspires to be competitive in the Championship / Premiership. Its not just about having facilities suitable for the quality of players we now have or hope to attract. When the financial fair play rules really take effect those Clubs with quality academys based in the sort of state of the art environment we will have at Lancing to create quality home grown talent will be in a strong position.

I really hope that in 3-5 years we will see several more youngsters of the calibre of JFC (or better) emerging through our academy into the development teams and becoming established members of the first team squad. A succesful academy will pay for itself - look at Southampton to see how much they generated for Walcott and Oxo. Although on the downside it must hurt to develop such talents and see other clubs benefit.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I do,honestly i really do,and yes we need it and all it can provide for the club for many years to come,my point was highlighting a point of balance.

Example-when we reached division 1 in 1979 we spent more on players than on the ground,there was only 5,000 seats at the Goldstone and this was never enough,now i know the Goldstone was by design somewhat hemmed in but even with the Lego stand we could not compete.

so now we could find ourselves with a traning/Academy facility completed 2 years from now (this is what we need) but gates of 15,000,Gus gone because he is bored and all momentum lost..

like i say no right or wrong just disscussion and i feel proud we will have a superb facility-

My main point is with rising costs you cannot always BUY a crowd of 26/27,000 to back your ambitions.

Good crowds follow success. Success doesn't always follow large investments in players looking at Ipswich, for example.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

We have them now. How are your development squad doing?

We have one young player with the ability to play in the first team, Jake Forster-Caskey. None of the others are ever going to trouble the first team. We saw against Wrexham at the Amex last season that our kids aren't particularly good. It's going to take a decade before we're churning players out like Southampton do. Say whatever you like about that club, their academy is amazing, and consistent. They are the role model for ours, and there's no shame in that. We're still a long behind some clubs in terms of developing the club off the field. We've come a long way in a short time on the pitch, and in many ways we've come a long way in a short time off it as well. But all the time we're training at the University, we'll be stunted. We can only realise our full potential when we've got the training ground fully built and in use.

 

[GoldWithFalmer]

Good crowds follow success. Success doesn't always follow large investments in players looking at Ipswich, for example.

Your right and i am pleased with how things are being run at this club.

Message for Tony

Please give Gus some spending power for the forward we require..

Message for Gus

If we lose today let the players play their own natural game versus Leeds and sit up in the West upper and study them.

 

[Phat Baz 68]

No because this is Albions long term future we are talking about here,
We don't just want or need a quick fix to get into the Premier League, spend no money when we get there
and get walloped every week.
Yes. we al want to get to that promised land and yes, we need to buy a striker and a midfield killer ball specialist,
but long term invest in the future, i would take any day over the quick fix scenario.

 

[HastingsSeagull]

Spending the money on players would be mostly wages and signing fees, don't think we'd spend more than a quarter of it on transfer fees....... so no spend it on the acadamy

 

[Paul Skinback]

No because we would piss it on some Palarse reject striker.

What was you injecting last night?

 

[Triggaaar]

Would £29m be better spent on players and get there first?

No. Even when teams spend big it doesn't guarantee success. Players also get injured. Spend it on players, see the team do well, lose the manager and get some injuries and falter as the new manager implements his system. No, and thrice no.

 

[Icy Gull]

I do,honestly i really do,and yes we need it and all it can provide for the club for many years to come,my point was highlighting a point of balance.

Example-when we reached division 1 in 1979 we spent more on players than on the ground,there was only 5,000 seats at the Goldstone and this was never enough,now i know the Goldstone was by design somewhat hemmed in but even with the Lego stand we could not compete.

so now we could find ourselves with a traning/Academy facility completed 2 years from now (this is what we need) but gates of 15,000,Gus gone because he is bored and all momentum lost..

like i say no right or wrong just disscussion and i feel proud we will have a superb facility-

My main point is with rising costs you cannot always BUY a crowd of 26/27,000 to back your ambitions.

Albion will have no problem at all filling the ground if we are knocking on the door of the Premier League. We could fall away over the next 4 years and crowds drop to 15k ish but at the 1st genuine sign of good successful football we 'd fill the ground in a flash. There are more glory hunters down here than you might think.

The academy money should not be spent on trying to gain instant but unsustainable success. If we have to go backwards to go forwards again so be it. Bringing through our own players is definitely the way forward IMO.