Full time players? You're Joking!

[Pink]

Pink, as in terms of Manager or players ? To
Me it’s all down to the poor decision to appoint Hughes who in turn made poor decisions in terms of player recruitment.

After SC made his choice of Manager the buck stops firmly with him.  No point in blaming the fans for not turning up in sufficient numbers.

Yes I can see where you are coming from Mall. When I posted though I was thinking players. When I think back to when Hughes was appointed, I thought, well ok , give the guy a go, he knows the existing players and the club and he offers apresumably cheaper option than some more seasoned managers. So I could see SC 's reasoning.
 However we lost two good wing backs and the main goalscorer at the end of last season. I suspect funds were part of the problem in terms of recruitment, as they probably still are. We needed a goalscorer and we needed someone to provide width. It has been clear for some time that the remaining forwards are not big goalscorers...we have seen the evidence over past seasons. We brought in 3/4 very inexperienced forwards with no prior experience of NLN and few if any players to provide pace and width. We did bring in a very large number of young midfielders. We obviously don't have full info on what remits were given, but it was almost as if we were trying to find a few young gems to sell on. (Was this encouraged by SC and does this in anyway relate to his podcast comments.???) .

We have seen with IC, TW and now AL that managers prefer to play the same starting 11 on a regular basis and keep to a matchday squad of pretty well the same 15/16 if they can. They may say they need a squad of 20 plus, but rarely use them...they prefer consistency. Instead of the plethera of young hopefuls I would argue we needed just a couple of those and one experienced head up front, to help bring the likes of Cybulski, Fatjado on. He could have just been on loan for the first 3 months...just someone who has the know how at this level. Add a good wing back into the mix and we would have started in better shape I feel.

I am not sure it's fair to blame MH........we don't know if he had such players on his radar, but the funds weren't available. All we do know, is that we started the season a goalscorer and a wing back light, in terms of making a fist of the league.

A half decent start, with a few more goals ( small margins in many of the early games!) and we would have seen improved gates, a greater chance of a Cup run, but still probably have no one to sell on !!

I suspect it all comes down to money...but sometimes a lack of investment is false economy..........how much has been lost in paying Hughes off, not having Cup runs and falling crowds...........and how much would one experienced forward and a wing back have cost ?

[Gordon Chilvers]

It sounded positive that SC has a masterplan which will hopefully see the Club working to a break even model next year.  Not sure if this something new he has come up with or the idea of summer concerts will be going ahead.  If it is something new has he lost interest in the concert idea ?

Just a guess, but could it be his version of this fan equity idea?

If so, and it's linked to the big loan the club now has being written off, I don't think I'll be holding my breath on that one.

Can’t see how writing off that loan will equate to the Club reaching a break even point next year.  I though SC was having to pump in circa £200k to balance the books.  The loan plus interest is to be paid back over what, 20 years ?

According to the new Podcast the reasons we are struggling more this season is Three fold....

1.   No Cup run this year.. ( is this really factored into finance for a year ?)

2.  Lack of players being sold on  ( again how can this be factored into any budget?)

3.  Lack of Crowds turning up to watch, ( SC struggles to understand why fans won’t pay overpriced admission to watch crap football).

Think I would disagree with Pink's analysis of the above:
  1. Think SC needs to accept that last couple of years we have overachieved in the cup competitions.  Unfortunate that we went out of both cups at the first opportunity but really this shouldn't be a major line in the budget as the early rounds are hardly money spinners and the later rounds don't come round that often so should really be seen a bonuses
  2. SC has mentioned player sales on the past few podcasts and it is starting to become a concern (for me) in that he somehow sees this as a semi-reliable revenue stream.  I would argue putting players on mulit year contracts (so they potentially attract a fee at the end of a season) has cost us more than it has brought in and I also think there are a few of the current squad who have been brought in speculatively with the view that they will make the club money if they turn into good players that attract interest from higher up the pyramid.  I think there are a lot more building blocks to be put in place before the club can be seen as a good nursery club and also the fans need to buy into that model if it is to be adopted as it will undoubtably have an impact on the pitch.  Also can't blame MH for the lack of player sales funds as he only recruited during the summer unless he argued to keep JB if there was a bid on the table
  3.  Again, can't lay the lack of crowds solely at MH's door.  Yes, performances haven't been comparable to last season but SC has accepted the budget has been reduced and without a huge slice of financial doping we can't expect to see the same level of football which is why it I can't see how we justify the expense of a full-time squad.  SC says he is off to talk to investors (mugs) in the next few weeks but the truth is there isn't much to invest in at the Walks and the sooner SC and the fans realise what we can expect from a more sustainably run club the better.

As for this times podcast, I thought it was one of the weaker ones with SC going off on tangents about crypto etc and he didn't really seem to understand how low a level of football Real Bedford actually play at - even Buster made step 5 work!

Off to see investors. What an absolute joke. Who the hell wants to invest in his bottomless pit? Ever since the day he swaggered into this club all we have heard numerous times is sponsors on the table, don't know which one to choose, investors talking etc etc.
Then there was the scout who scouted Wayne Rooney, here at great expense. Score boards that we do not justify, full time football that we do not justify. Houses and accommodation for those full time, The Bentley, etc etc.
Hopefully when he goes on his travels he takes his wallet, as he has a habit of leaving it at home. Isuppose because its empty. Also using cards abroad that get confiscated etc etc.
Now we have an operations manager. Will he still be here at Christmas for his Christmas bonus? Best of luck Mr Shilling. You are going to need it!(I wonder if he googled Stephen Cleeve of Norfolk before he appied for the job)?

[Mallard]

Not sure Cleeve can be accused of having an empty wallet GC.  He has pumped a fair old wedge of cash into the club since he walked into the building.  Whether it’s his cash or came from elsewhere, he’s been the one spending it, and he continues to do so.

As for  him not carrying cash, maybe he feels he is Royaty 😂

[Gordon Chilvers]

Not sure Cleeve can be accused of having an empty wallet GC.  He has pumped a fair old wedge of cash into the club since he walked into the building.  Whether it’s his cash or came from elsewhere, he’s been the one spending it, and he continues to do so.

As for  him not carrying cash, maybe he feels he is Royaty 😂

just talking from experience

[Blue_and_Gold]

Not sure Cleeve can be accused of having an empty wallet GC.  He has pumped a fair old wedge of cash into the club since he walked into the building.  Whether it’s his cash or came from elsewhere, he’s been the one spending it, and he continues to do so.

As for  him not carrying cash, maybe he feels he is Royaty 😂

just talking from experience

I'm sure you still owe me a BigMac!
 

[Mallard]

A ride in a Bentley don’t come cheap.  I hope you ate it outside.

[Gordon Chilvers]

A ride in a Bentley don’t come cheap.  I hope you ate it outside.

My car, my fuel. My cash for a McDonalds. ME FOOL.

[Mallard]

Did you get the deal to supply the kit for the Club? If so that must have been a sizeable order and worth having. Must have been worth it for the cost of a McDonald’s.

[Gordon Chilvers]

Did you get the deal to supply the kit for the Club? If so that must have been a sizeable order and worth having. Must have been worth it for the cost of a McDonald’s.

At that time the club were under contract to Joma. In respect to the 50% cost to Double G of the MASSIVE 1st team Gift of Kit (excluding the print and embroidery cost) +the 100% cost of everything that the Reserves required, including the embroidery and print i would imagine there was enough in the kitty for both of our burgers.
The clubshop sales were massively down compared to the Bobbins tenure as SC would not commit to stock, regular new lines etc to keep supporters interested. So that was a massive drop in income for the club and Double G.
To Double G it was about being a sponsor, one that actually handed over many thousands of pounds either in Gift of Kit, Contra or whatever, having personally followed the club since 1962.
For us to walk away as we did as soon as the ledger card read £0.00 owed by KLTFC was a massive wrench on our behalf, but i can honestly say what i know now was definitely the right thing to do.