I'm staggered at some of the retarded comments from BHA fans recently

[DerbyGull]

Exactly this, I was having much the same conversation last night with my son in law who prompty reminded me that I had forgotten what it was like to go on a really poor run and lose week in week out.

The future is incredibly bright and exciting. If we finish mid table then that is a MASSIVE achievement. We should all be so bloody grateful to Bloom and what Poyet and co are achieving. These are the most exciting times since i have been supporting Albion. We're going through a rough patch, which Poyet will fix.

 

[Muzzy]

Maybe this unwanted reality check could turn out to be a blessing in the longer term! Some are realising that just maybe our winning start was just us punching above our weight and that some of our players aren't of the required standard to compete at the top end of this league!

I personally do not think that we'll be involved in the promotion places or play offs come the end of this season, but consolidation in this league will satisfy my expectations!

Well said DT btw.

 

[DerbyGull]

Ain't that the truth (or worse still: No memories at all - apart from promotion last season & a few decent results this season).

ps Great Post DT. Spot on.

I despair about these people, i really do.

 

[fly high]

Before august 2010, most of us would have been happy with a top half of the table finish. Gus was making a few signings of his own, had his first preseason, and after a couple of years struggling we were looking for a comfortable top half finish, maybe a late push for the play offs. Gus himself spoke of top 10 and top 6. At which point was ok to start expecting us to win the division at a walk? Because our expectations changed based on results and the table.

This year we went 9 games unbeaten, including victory over premier league opposition. We still had a couple of highly rated players to come back from injury and were playing our fourth choice, largely inexperienced centre back. We showed playing our game would work, we beat last season's play off contenders quite convincingly on their own ground, we showed desire and fight to come from behind. We had topped the table.

Why is it so wrong, in the face of that to raise our expectation for the last few games? Why can't we express disappointment in the performances in the last five given the performances in the first 9?

This 5 game winless streak, with the exception of liverpool perhaps, isn't because we aren't as good as the opposition. It's because we've stopped playing. It's because we are not pressuring opponents. The palace game in particular made it look as if the players don't want it.

If we play even just close to as well as we can, when we show the desire to win the ball and close down our opposition, isn't it perfectly reasonable to expect to get results?

No, failing to get promoted this season isn't a disaster.
Yes, the club is in a good place with the ground and the plans and the infrastructure.
Yes the future is rosy.
But that doesn't mean we can't be fecked off that our team aren't playing anywhere close to as well as they can (and when they do, it's not for the whole match), that we yet again give our opponents so much time on the ball and allow them to pick out their shots, that the great start we made both with results, performances and effort has evaporated.

It's one thing to be 'f***d' off about recent results, it’s another to start taking about this player or the other being total rubbish, the system is rubbish etc, etc. Since when did Dunks go from being chased by the likes of Arsenal, City & others to being fourth choice defender o by implication rubbish. For me this season is about getting to April & not be looking over our shoulder worrying about relegation. Yes I’m disappointed by our recent run of results & maybe the defence does need to remember the Andy Rollings way, if in doubt kick it 30 rows back into the crowd giving defence time to reorganise but I’m sure they haven’t become total rubbish over night.

 

[glasfryn]

best original post and best thread since I have had the fortune to find this forum make the man Mayor of Brighton and Hove City

 

[algie]

Maybe this unwanted reality check could turn out to be a blessing in the longer term! Some are realising that just maybe our winning start was just us punching above our weight and that some of our players aren't of the required standard to compete at the top end of this league!

I personally do not think that we'll be involved in the promotion places or play offs come the end of this season, but consolidation in this league will satisfy my expectations!

Well said DT btw.

This is the way i see it. I would much rather find out about our weak players now then towards the end of the season where we are either going for promotion or avoiding the drop.

Temporary changes can be made now with the loan market and then some movement in Jan. Players like Painter,Brez,Capser,Nav and Barnes i think are into there final year of there contracts. Obviously Barnes i would defo keep but the rest i would move on and find replacements.

 

[stss30]

At last somebody talking sense. Fed up with the numerous he's not good enough, he needs to be dropped, no plan B etc threads. Was going to say these people have short memories but I think the buffoons posting this tripe have no memories of BHA as they must all be new plastics, can't believe a true fan with a memory would be whinging that we are 5th in the Championship.

Agree with the OP, but what a load of shite. Why shouldn't we talk about these issues that are clearly affecting us at the moment. We need to iron out these issues in the next couple of seasons so we can try and get promoted, ie get rid of dead wood and try and come up with a plan B if our passing game isn't working. Do you want everyone to be saying 'brilliant performance' despite obvious flaws in our game?

 

[Own Goals Galore]

Common Sense... Well done

I think there is finally alot of common sense being written on here. Finally! Read alot of shit in the last week. We must all remember where we came from, where we are right now (the Amex, 20,000+ each week, CMS, Vicente, Nooney, Dunk, 5th in the flipping Championship) and how bright the future looks.

Yep we might need a couple to strengthen the squad, but who doesn't. Gus is no mug and knows better than anyone where the issues might be. A few might be out of their depth a bit, but still they were all playing blinders for those first few games and therefore I am sure they are up to it. Its about whether we are serious to attempt back to back promotions. It might be too big an ask right now. But the foundations we have are as good and if not better than 80% of the champ.

 

[Acker79]

It's one thing to be 'f***d' off about recent results, it's another to start taking about this player or the other being total rubbish, the system is rubbish etc, etc. Since when did Dunks go from being chased by the likes of Arsenal, City & others to being fourth choice defender o by implication rubbish.

But fans have always been calling players total rubbish, always been giving their opinion on the way we should play. Barnes was slated last year by some fans, despite us running away with the league. The goalkeeper debate is one that's been going on for at least 6 years. It isn't anything new or anything that is coming out just because we're on a poor run.

For the record, I don't mean to denigrate Dunk with the fourth choice comment, but at the start of the season our centre backs would generally be accepted to be in preference order: Greer, El Abd, Elphick, Dunk, Cook. I point to him being fourth choice to show how how if our defensive record (in the first 9 games) with 1st and 4th choice is that good, imagine how much better we'd be with first and second choice (Greer and El Abd) back there, and how that hypothetical will obviously increase expectations.

 

[getreal1]

Travelling back from Portman Rd yesterday and listening to many supporters walking back through the marina I could not believe what I was hearing.

Poyet doesn't know what he's doing, the squad is shit, we're going down etc etc. If people thought that we were on our way to a promotion season then they are either on crack or f***ing brain dead.

Why on earth do you think Poyet has signed a five year contract (yes he may leave but clearly the intent and committment is there)?

Why are we pumping money into an academy?

For the love of Christ we have been playing with no infrastrcture at the club for the best part of 20 years. We have a competitive budget but compared to the likes of Southampton and Leicester and West Ham its tiny.

It's perfectly adequate to take us through the next phase of the plan - which is to survive in this league and compete. Regardless of the last four games we are on the way to doing that - I felt before a ball was kicked that between 9th and 15th was probably a decent solid start.

The next phase is to put together a squad that will compete at the top six - and that needs to be done over a two-three year period. As the academy starts to flourish I guess the club are then looking to start unearthing, nuturing talent to help grow the club.

Yesterday evening some absolutel morons seem to think that if we are not promoted this season the whole thing is a f***ing disaster - I honestly don't know what to say to them........

Kevin Nolan is on 70k per week. Ipswich had 9 players yesterday who have played at least 30 games each in the premiership. Leicester City spent over £20million in their attempts to get out of the Championship this season.

Middlesbrough, until their relegation, spent 7 successive seasons in the Premiership. Derby County (I have to visit Derby for work and read their local rag last week) are going to provide £10million for the manager to spend in January if they are still in the mix to get back to the Premier League.

The whole objective I think Bloom, Gus and the club have are to sort our club out first., Not throw money around to have one potentially epic attempt to get up in the first season. It's a plan that will be realised over a number of seasons to give BHA what it has lacked for almost three decades:

Infrastructure

Sound basis financially

An effective academy and scouting network

A stadium that will encourage supporters (both hard core and fairweather) to want to experience the BHA match day event on a regular basis.

When those blocks are in place I will then turn an eye to a East Anglia, the North West, East London and think about how we are going to compete with those clubs.

For now I'm frankly loving every minute (bar Palace) of this season. We can improve and the great thing is we have a board and a manager who will not accept simply being happy with where we are.

But for those who are getting frustrated and depressed about the current run, I feel so sorry for you. I've waited f***ing years to get to this place and safe in the knowledge that this season is only the f***ing START makes every week a pleasure for me.

Aye

 

[sydney]

we will come good but i doubt we will make the p'o's.........if we do we won't go up. lets take stock

wham
lester
ipswich
blackpol
cardiff
soampten
hull
leeds
need we say more....?

 

[sydney]

cough

 

[brunswick]

very well said.

 

[lichfield seagulls]

Top post D.G would be more than happy to finish mid table. its a long season plenty of ups and downs along the way.

 

[empire]

well done thread starter top post,must admitt,im getting used to the same old moaners,i tend to ignore now.

 

[Dave the OAP]

we will come good but i doubt we will make the p'o's.........if we do we won't go up. lets take stock

wham
lester
ipswich
blackpol
cardiff
soampten
hull
leeds
need we say more....?

you don't need to say more, but you could do with a few more letters.

 

[RexCathedra]

BHA, as always, stands for 'Bipolar Hove Albion.'

Lithium carbonate on sale at the Amex, and all is well.

 

[blue'n'white]

great post - at last someone who thinks and speaks sense !!
good on you sir !

 

[SULLY COULDNT SHOOT]

DT is absolutely right. I predicted mid-table at the start of ths season and we re still on for that. Yes its depressing when we lose but GP is building a future not a pipe dream. To really challenge we need at least six more competetive players and we are unlikely to find them this year or afford them. So enjoy the ride and give Gus the time to build team ready to really challenge.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Bozza should award Digweed's Trousers a gold star for his post. Without these very recent results we would have still been suffering from "Leeds United Syndrome". The reality of the situation is we need to consolidate before pressing forward into the big time.