Puts me in mind of Steve Foster's conversation with Bellotti at the height of the troubles

[Lincoln Imp]

I can't believe anyone would seriously think otherwise. TB owns 99% of the club so it doesn't matter what the other directors vote for!

A major task of a board is to provide the chairman and executive with advice, guidance, perspective and wisdom, irrespective of how much dosh they've put in. It seems that they are all in thrall to Tony Bloom and it's up to him to do something about it. And it's up to Barber to help him. Meanwhile, with an apparently supine board in place, I seriously think Tony Bloom would benefit from an hour's chat with Dick Knight once a week. It would give him some perspective he's lacking.

 

[dannyboy]

Whatever anyone says, there are a lot of us who feel that Barber is fast becoming a David Bellotti type character. The way he talks to us, the fans, through media channels and face to face is extraordinary. My father, (71yrs old and a STH since the 1950's) recently had a particularly unpleasant conversation with him, leaving my mother and other witnesses very shocked and upset.

In any other business or profession he'd have been sacked months ago.

do tell

 

[Monkey Man]

A cold night, a long queue for the train, and several hundred Millwall fans about to be unleashed. I'm not sure it's the ideal environment for a mass protest after a match. All I wanted to do was get to my curry.

 

[Horses Arse]

It is an utter disgrace to compare Paul Barber with Bellotti. I am extremely surprised someone of your standing, Harty, would come on here and say that. I don't doubt your passion, and there's no question how important you were during the campaigning years but that absolutely does not give you any right to slate Barber and even hint at a "far darker motive" - let alone come right out and use those words. I think people are in danger of completely losing context and sanity, the perception of a wider problem at the club is very dramatic and unhelpful.

Maybe the only difference between Barber and Bellotti is the difference between Archer and Bloom? Swap Barber and bellotti round and would you really notice the difference?

 

[dejavuatbtn]

Barber, like Bellotti, is doing what he is instructed and paid to do by his boss. If the boss doesn't like it he gets fired. Bellotti didn't get fired by Archer and Stanley, and it doesn't look like Barber is either. Fossie had nothing to lose but I don't see any of our senior pros taking Barber on, and why would they? Like most of the current club management, they don't have the club in their bones - which is no different to most pro clubs these days. Mercenaries from all over the world kiss the badge but underneath it all it means nothing other than selling a few more shirts to keep their extortionate wages rolling in.
It's sad, but the way of the football world that will be hard to reverse, even if they wanted to.
From our fans perspective, I think most of us are so tired after years of protest and fighting the system that there is little strength left to take on this latest challenge.

 

[Icy Gull]

And here lies the problem. Tony Bloom won't admit he's made a mistake and he's surrounded himself with yes-men who won't dare suggest to him that he has. What is obvious to the fans isn't getting through to the Chairman and the rest of the board are, frankly, not interested in what the fans think.

It would seem that way but it is inconceivable that Bloom, the football fan, cannot see what a pig's ear Burke and Hyypia have made of a club that was on the brink of great things 18 months ago. I am personally stunned at how little Bloom seems to care about the football side of the club.

 

[kevtherev]

It would seem that way but it is inconceivable that Bloom, the football fan, cannot see what a pig's ear Burke and Hyypia have made of a club that was on the brink of great things 18 months ago. I am personally stunned at how little Bloom seems to care about the football side of the club.

It certainly appears this way from the outside. We all as fans have different points of view and thank god for that. But from where i'm standing it looks to me like Bloom either a) Doesn't give a shite or b) Doesn't know anything about football what so ever. Because no one can make a case for saying anything other than Hyypia, Burke and Jones and probably Barber are all, not doing there jobs properly. We all knew what we needed in the summer, an experienced championship manager. But Bloom gambled again as he has made a living out of gambling and doing well out of it. Only this time he has dealt himself a shite hand and doesn't want to admit it.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I love these conspiracies to try and find a way to blame Barber, who's just Bloom's right hand man...

He's more than a right-hand man. Many things including the culture of the club is down to Barber. And this is one of my main gripes.

 

[Lenny Rider]

The Bellotti Barber comparisons do stand up, I remember even long time über fans like Damian 'The Real Deal' Huffer freely admitting they got sucked in by the former Eastbourne MP in the early days.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

The Bellotti Barber comparisons do stand up, I remember even long time über fans like Damian 'The Real Deal' Huffer freely admitting they got sucked in by the former Eastbourne MP in the early days.

Wtf is this?

 

[Dave the OAP]

The Bellotti Barber comparisons do stand up, I remember even long time über fans like Damian 'The Real Deal' Huffer freely admitting they got sucked in by the former Eastbourne MP in the early days.

I think a lot of us were drawn into the Bellotti love in. Do you remember at Plymouth in the depths of winter where he came around to us fans who had made the trip and spent ages chatting to everyone about the future.

Typical of how we were all caught by his slimey greasy lies.

 

[Lenny Rider]

I think a lot of us were drawn into the Bellotti love in. Do you remember at Plymouth in the depths of winter where he came around to us fans who had made the trip and spent ages chatting to everyone about the future.

Typical of how we were all caught by his slimey greasy lies.

We gave him a standing ovation at the Gulls Eye dinner and when we sponsored two games at the Goldstone one of our party shared a 'herbal cigarette' at the back of the West Stand with the then Mrs Bellotti.

 

[portlock seagull]

We gave him a standing ovation at the Gulls Eye dinner and when we sponsored two games at the Goldstone one of our party shared a 'herbal cigarette' at the back of the West Stand with the then Mrs Bellotti.

Of Robbie fowler fame?

 

[ROSM]

He's more than a right-hand man. Many things including the culture of the club is down to Barber. And this is one of my main gripes.

Indeed. CEOs can sermonise from a lectern as often as they want, but there are many ways to balance books and engendering a giving culture around the club works better than slashing costs and treating your customer base as cash cows to be milked

 

[Lower West Stander]

The Bellotti Barber comparisons do stand up, I remember even long time über fans like Damian 'The Real Deal' Huffer freely admitting they got sucked in by the former Eastbourne MP in the early days.

No they bloody well don't - what a load of utter rubbish.

No other group of fans would be making the comparisons you are making. Bellotti, Archer and Stanley were the lowest of the absolute low with no morals or interest in the club. I am no fan of Barber - I find him a corporate parrot with an extremely condescending way of talking to fans (especially in his programme notes) but to compare him to those three is ridiculous in the extreme.

As fans we went through more than most in the late 90s but just because it happened then does not mean it will happen again (which is what you are implying). Bloom has sunk an absolute fortune into the club, we may not agree with his decisions but to compare this regime with those of the past is irresponsible in the extreme.

I'm getting more annoyed as I type - I'll stop now.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Indeed. CEOs can sermonise from a lectern as often as they want, but there are many ways to balance books and engendering a giving culture around the club works better than slashing costs and treating your customer base as cash cows to be milked

This.

 

[Lenny Rider]

No they bloody well don't - what a load of utter rubbish.

No other group of fans would be making the comparisons you are making. Bellotti, Archer and Stanley were the lowest of the absolute low with no morals or interest in the club. I am no fan of Barber - I find him a corporate parrot with an extremely condescending way of talking to fans (especially in his programme notes) but to compare him to those three is ridiculous in the extreme.

As fans we went through more than most in the late 90s but just because it happened then does not mean it will happen again (which is what you are implying). Bloom has sunk an absolute fortune into the club, we may not agree with his decisions but to compare this regime with those of the past is irresponsible in the extreme.

I'm getting more annoyed as I type - I'll stop now.

He's now got you doing exactly what he wanted......

 

[portlock seagull]

No they bloody well don't - what a load of utter rubbish.

No other group of fans would be making the comparisons you are making. Bellotti, Archer and Stanley were the lowest of the absolute low with no morals or interest in the club. I am no fan of Barber - I find him a corporate parrot with an extremely condescending way of talking to fans (especially in his programme notes) but to compare him to those three is ridiculous in the extreme.

As fans we went through more than most in the late 90s but just because it happened then does not mean it will happen again (which is what you are implying). Bloom has sunk an absolute fortune into the club, we may not agree with his decisions but to compare this regime with those of the past is irresponsible in the extreme.

I'm getting more annoyed as I type - I'll stop now.

Good. Because you missed the point in your opening rant...best stay quiet if you don't understand.

 

[Lower West Stander]

Good. Because you missed the point in your opening rant...best stay quiet if you don't understand.

I understand the point completely.

You don't need to be so patronizing to disagree with me. Just take a step back and look at the point the OP is trying to make - the logical conclusion being that Barber will ultimately be as bad as Bellotti.

Talk about hysterical reactions because the club is on a bad run.....

 

[Seagull73]

I understand the point completely.

You don't need to be so patronizing to disagree with me. Just take a step back and look at the point the OP is trying to make - the logical conclusion being that Barber will ultimately be as bad as Bellotti.

Back step taken
OP points considered
Yep I think he is right / going to be right