Anybody Else Starting To Actually RESENT The Club For Their Lack Of Focus On The Pitch?

[Mutts Nuts]

Yes, it was really obvious in pre season before the second season. The club only invested in Kuszczak, Bruno, Orlandi, Lopez, Dobbie and Crofts (and only Bridge and Hammond on loan). Then in January we only spent money on Upson and Ulloa. It was so obvious, I can't believe we didn't all see it.

Threads like this are so boring. It's not about keeping the club on their toes. They don't read NSC and especially not dross like this. It is just so people can moan continuously all summer. As others have said, wait until we see who we're signing and then moan if you must.

And nothing on strikers when it was obvious to all by then that McSmudger was shit , and Barnes was out of his depth

 

[Bwian]

Slight tangent, just had a look at Hughtons signings at Norwich (strikers):

- Elmander - 28 games, 1 goal
- Becchio - 13 games, 0 goals
- Hooper - 32 league games, 6 goals
- Van Wolfswinkel - 1 goal in 27 games
- Kei Kamara - 1 goal in 11 games
- Harry Kane (on loan) - played 3 times, no goals.


It doesn't look great, does it, even if that is Premier League statistics. The only one of those I'd consider is Hooper, and I'm sure Norwich are keen to keep hold of him.

So it looks like a bid for Best is on the cards-he fits right in with that lot! Best on the bench at Middlesbrough-why? Unless Hughton wants him to feel as though he's wanted!

Also have to question why he made that substitution with 10 seconds left in the game. What the feck was that all about?

 

[seagullwedgee]

Sorry, but the academy thing is a non-starter. Take Walton as a benchmark. Will he still be here in three years time? Of course not. He'll already be in somebody's little black book and the best we can hope for is a fee and a sell-on fee. We'll be regularly watching him on MOTD. Ditto anybody else coming through the academy. We'll remain a selling club, albeit with a lovely training ground.

No, no, no! Walton is not an academy player, he's been in the first team squad for most of the last season. By 'academy lead' I mean fledgling talent in the age range 14 to 18, most of whom may not even have joined the club yet. Look at the 15 year old Irish kid we signed recently who turned down offers from many clubs supposedly bigger than us. Expect many more of the same.

 

[symyjym]

Slight tangent, just had a look at Hughtons signings at Norwich (strikers):

- Elmander - 28 games, 1 goal
- Becchio - 13 games, 0 goals
- Hooper - 32 league games, 6 goals
- Van Wolfswinkel - 1 goal in 27 games
- Kei Kamara - 1 goal in 11 games
- Harry Kane (on loan) - played 3 times, no goals.


It doesn't look great, does it, even if that is Premier League statistics. The only one of those I'd consider is Hooper, and I'm sure Norwich are keen to keep hold of him.

Thanks for that but at least we can go into next season with realistic expectations.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

So negative...

Based on this thread you would think we'd been in a twenty year decline. Until this season, we'd has three very good seasons at the Amex. The sad thing is one bad year brings out so much negativity.

There's not been a single season at the Amex where we've looked like genuine Premier League contenders. Said it before, say it again, the play-offs is the start point, not the end point. We're a country MILE off the Premier League. Even the bottom bit.

 

[Finchley Seagull]

And nothing on strikers when it was obvious to all by then that McSmudger was shit , and Barnes was out of his depth

CMS scored 10 in just over half a season that year. Barnes has shown that he clearly wasn't out of his depth. We signed Dobbie in the summer window and, when that failed, we signed Ulloa in January. Clearly you're just making stuff up.

 

[Finchley Seagull]

There's not been a single season at the Amex where we've looked like genuine Premier League contenders. Said it before, say it again, the play-offs is the start point, not the end point. We're a country MILE off the Premier League. Even the bottom bit.

Ignoring the second half of the first play off season when we topped the form table and ended the season only four points off automatic promotion. But don't let facts get in the way of your negative drivel.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

There's not been a single season at the Amex where we've looked like genuine Premier League contenders. Said it before, say it again, the play-offs is the start point, not the end point. We're a country MILE off the Premier League. Even the bottom bit.

Derby failed to get to the playoffs this season crashing from the top to 8th, Wigan were in the playoffs last year with us, & now relegated. We have no divine right to the Premier League. Three teams get there 21 don't.

 

[Bwian]

So negative. All clubs are selling clubs. Man U had to sell Ronaldo to Madrid. Liverpool sold Suarez to Barcelona. Southampton sold Chambers, Shaw and Lallana, all academy products in the summer. They've been a better team as a result due to good management.

Based on this thread you would think we'd been in a twenty year decline. Until this season, we'd has three very good seasons at the Amex. The sad thing is one bad year brings out so much negativity. Until I see otherwise, I remain hopeful that Hughton can bring in more signings like Kayal who will help us improve.

It's not simply a case of 'one bad year' though is it? That 'one bad year' saw us go from playoff hopefuls to hanging on to Championship survival by our badly gnawed fingernails. Jones managed to break the Hyypia slump. Hughton, I believe, enjoyed the benefit of that giving him/us a few wins, then we went back to form. In fact, we went from poor to fecking shit towards the end.

I mentioned on another thread that some of the backroom staff were drinking past 2:30 am (less than 10 hours before kick off). If that attitude/culture has been present for most of the season who knows what impact it has had on the players? Even if it was a one-off, to be seen drinking that late, in club training gear, the night before our last game, after the shit season we've had, was not right. Regardless of their roles at the club-they should be leading by example.

 

[el punal]

At what point did building the infrastructure and add-ons become the main focus of our football club?

I'm sure a very lovely training complex exists somewhere in the county. I'm sure the players swan around within it like GODS wearing bathrobes and slippers.

It's all Emperors New Clothes tho eh?

None of that sh*t will get you promoted to the hallowed ground of the Premier League, then finishing bottom 3 and scooping the parachute payments. You need serious investment and/or team spirit to make that leap. How do we recreate that team spirit nowadays? Used to be easy in the Withdean days cos there was f*ck all else going for us. How do we do that NOW?

The season is now over. I heartily recommend a holiday and then you can come back refreshed and angst-free.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

The season is now over. I heartily recommend a holiday and then you can come back refreshed and angst-free.

No. No it isn't. For us maybe. But the play-offs haven't even started.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

It's not simply a case of 'one bad year' though is it? That 'one bad year' saw us go from playoff hopefuls to hanging on to Championship survival by our badly gnawed fingernails. Jones managed to break the Hyypia slump. Hughton, I believe, enjoyed the benefit of that giving him/us a few wins, then we went back to form. In fact, we went from poor to fecking shit towards the end.

I mentioned on another thread that some of the backroom staff were drinking past 2:30 am (less than 10 hours before kick off). If that attitude/culture has been present for most of the season who knows what impact it has had on the players? Even if it was a one-off, to be seen drinking that late, in club training gear, the night before our last game, after the shit season we've had, was not right. Regardless of their roles at the club-they should be leading by example.

Absolute rubbish. I have stayed at hotel/spa near Bristol a couple of times, where football teams have been booked in on the Friday night. The backroom staff were enjoying a drink in the bar both times. It happens at all clubs.

 

[symyjym]

So it looks like a bid for Best is on the cards-he fits right in with that lot! Best on the bench at Middlesbrough-why? Unless Hughton wants him to feel as though he's wanted!

Also have to question why he made that substitution with 10 seconds left in the game. What the feck was that all about?

Yep, that decision swung my view and leaves more questions than answers and there were negatives on many levels because of it. Hughton said that if he brought him on earlier and we lost the game it wouldn't be nice for the lad Daft reasoning in my eyes, it's not as if it was a crucial game, and giving him 10 secounds without kicking the ball is like celebrating being old enough to drink with a glass of water.

 

[symyjym]

There's not been a single season at the Amex where we've looked like genuine Premier League contenders. Said it before, say it again, the play-offs is the start point, not the end point. We're a country MILE off the Premier League. Even the bottom bit.

Best thing to do is lower your expectations because next season we will be a country mile off the Championship as well. Bristol City and MK Dons are more prepared for next season than we are. Even with new players coming in it will take a few months to "gel". The Championship is about pace, blood and guts these days.

 

[Fungus]

Yep, that decision swung my view and leaves more questions than answers and there were negatives on many levels because of it. Hughton said that if he brought him on earlier and we lost the game it wouldn't be nice for the lad Daft reasoning in my eyes, it's not as if it was a crucial game, and giving him 10 secounds without kicking the ball is like celebrating being old enough to drink with a glass of water.

Yeah, if he brought him on earlier and we lost the game, even the ******s on here wouldn't have made him the scapegoat. Would they?

 

[Theatre of Trees]

Assuming the board monitor this, er, board, the more hi-vis threads the better. IMHO, like. If we don't let constantly let them know they need to do better, they'll be overly complacent about ST renewal figures (many of which are due to sheer laziness, same as most people who can afford it don't change their energy supplier)

If you think the board monitor this forum and will be swayed on what you post, you really are absolutely ****ing deluded.

 

[El Presidente]

It does indeed. But the more pressure we can heap on them in the meantime the better. IMHO, like. Cos you REALLY get the feeling that left to their own devices the club would just look at the ST renewal figures and let things DRIFT. Same as they did this season really.

If you look at ST renewals for the last TWO seasons, they are down over 20%. I suspect that has focussed minds.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Best thing to do is lower your expectations because next season we will be a country mile off the Championship as well. Bristol City and MK Dons are more prepared for next season than we are. Even with new players coming in it will take a few months to "gel". The Championship is about pace, blood and guts these days.

Don't actually have any personal expectations. Have sat through far worse shit than this while having a far better overall Match Day Experience. Just trying to do my tiny wee bit towards shaming the board into action. It's their money after all and it does sometimes seem like they need serious nagging about how best to recoup on their investment. Else they'd probably just settle for building one or more mid-priced hotels while aiming for a top-of-bottom-six league placing

 

[El Presidente]

I mentioned on another thread that some of the backroom staff were drinking past 2:30 am (less than 10 hours before kick off). If that attitude/culture has been present for most of the season who knows what impact it has had on the players? Even if it was a one-off, to be seen drinking that late, in club training gear, the night before our last game, after the shit season we've had, was not right. Regardless of their roles at the club-they should be leading by example.

Were they blind drunk? Or were they just having a quiet drink?

 

[Working class pride]

Were they blind drunk? Or were they just having a quiet drink?

During the games this season or off the field you mean? Difficult to tell on ythe field, cant comment about their spare time..