[Albion] Stay up, or win the cup and go down?

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Icy Gull

Back on the rollercoaster
Jul 5, 2003
72,015
Seems to be about a 50/50 split on those that would take winning the Cup and getting relegated

Wondering if those that would accept it were there the last time it (nearly) happened.

I do get why some fans would rather win the Cup but having experienced the thrill of two FA Cup finals I would definitely not trade it again, even if we’d won, for a Premier League place next season.

So a mod moved this before I had time to do the poll, has Harry Wilson’s tackle become a mod? :down:
 






hitony

Administrator
Jul 13, 2005
16,284
South Wales (im not welsh !!)
The FA Cup just represents 5 minutes of glory for me. I’d rather the club take another massive cheque from being in the PL. The last time we nearly did that, it took us over 30 years to get back again. Just because we have a shiny new(ish) stadium and an excellent chairman it doesn’t necessarily mean we will go back up again anytime soonn

This and even more so the bit I highlighted
 












Cheshire Cat

The most curious thing..
Stay up obviously.

Relegation in 1983 was the first step towards the paths of the dead.
 




Icy Gull

Back on the rollercoaster
Jul 5, 2003
72,015
I edited two posts (due to a certain person avoiding the swear filter!) and another mod merged the thread with I assume this one?

Yup, I had posted it and was just doing the poll, oh well it wasn’t a world class poll :smile:
 








Icy Gull

Back on the rollercoaster
Jul 5, 2003
72,015
Do you want a poll added? i can do it if you let me know what you want :thumbsup:

Kind offer, but not that big a deal, thanks anyway. I was just a bit taken with how quickly it was moved! :thumbsup:


No problem your welcome.......just so you know, when we merge or move a thread / post we can't see if anyone is adding a poll of indeed doing anything else, just bad luck in timing sadly, but if ever you need anything just give me a shout :thumbsup:
 


Cheshire Cat

The most curious thing..


BN9 BHA

DOCKERS
NSC Patron
Jul 14, 2013
22,693
Newhaven
It’s a ****ing stupid question, stay up and it’s worth what...£120m or win the cup and it’s worth what....didlly squat.

Fair point.
But with my old school football fan head on it would be win the FA Cup, unfortunately football is all about money these days and your point says that.
 






portlock seagull

Well-known member
Jul 28, 2003
17,780
Just to be clear, anyone who chooses PL mediocrity over FA cup glory is wrong. And infected with Skyvitus, a violent disease that’s has decimated proper football fans since it took grip in the early 90s. Help your community combat this threat by supporting your local team and highlighting football existed before 1993. Together we can protect our natural habitat!
 


razer

Well-known member
Mar 10, 2019
801
Ormskirk, Lancashire
I'd rather watch Brighton play the Manchester, Liverpool and London big boys every week than go to a bleak Rotherham or Burton Albion. The Cup is a nice short term diversion from the relegation battle but staying up for me is a no brainer.
 


Acker79

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Nov 15, 2008
31,921
Brighton
Pros of the cup:
Glory.
Being etched in history.
Getting there before Palace.
European football.
And extra £m or so in prize money.
Memories.
Expanded fan base from people watching around the world seeing their first FA cup final.
Appeal more to star players (both due to the credibility of winning the cup, and the prospect of european football)

Pros of Staying up:
Turned a profit for the first time last season. To stay up can continue to solidify the club's finances, and reduce the reliance on one man. Reduce the burden on someone who has given so much for this club.
Don't have to suffer palace goading us for not being able to hang with them.
Expanded fan base from people seeing us grow into a premier league team, not just that team that got promoted last year and managed to scrape safety
Appeal to more star players as a team that has shown an ability to stay in the top level of the game
More tv coverage (a pro for those that are unable to make it to the games for whatever reason).

Cons of winning the cup
European football. We saw with Birmingham, with Burnley, and I think middlesbrough - getting into europe when your a club of their (our) size will cost us. If we're in the championship or in the premier league, the early start to the season, the travel, the extra games, it has cost teams like us in the past and will likely cost us.
Raised expectations. Not just of cup runs next season, but in the league, too. And probably in Europe. We should be beating teams like Rapid Wien or AEK Larnaca!
Distraction from the league.
Relegation would mean more reliance on Tony and his willingness to dip into his pocket.
Losing a lot of players, just as we get the European games to deal with.
Sponsorship deals that expire being re-signed at championship prices, so even if we go up, we'll still be low on the income scale.
Destroyed squad as many move on to other prem teams, exhaustion from european football, hangover from relegation/cup win, a consecutive relegation isn't out of the realms of possibility


Cons of staying up
Coming close and failing in the cup could have a demoralising effect on players who see the limitations of staying with a club like us.
Players who maybe feel they owed it to us to stay will be getting bored with just about surviving and only being selected for england as a sub in a friendly when preferred options are injured.
Just about staying up each year will start to bore fans
There is a degree of soullessness due to over-corporatisation of football
The novelty of mixing it with the big boys is wearing off, expectations will start to rise - a need to see progress that might not be reasonable
Continue to be little fish in a big pond, rather than the excitement of a championship where we may not be the biggest, but would go into every game with the belief we could get something.


In conclusion. I don't know.
 




Blue Valkyrie

Not seen such Bravery!
Sep 1, 2012
32,165
Valhalla
Will settle for winning these 3 matches :

Man City
Cardiff (H)
FA Cup final
 


Perkino

Well-known member
Dec 11, 2009
6,053
Loosing to Man City and staying up would be a decent outcome as players and fans won't be too disappointed but it will feel like progress from previous seasons.

Loosing in the final will be awful to deal with as everyone will feel that in a 1 off game we have a great chance. I wouldn't swap an FA Cup win for staying up. But I'd love to see us push for a cup in the near future maybe after we've stayed up for 5 years
 


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