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Agreed and I'd love them to face bankruptcy. I'm sure the fans would reform it and play on the Downs like they've always threatened but that's fine with me. Considering how much blood, sweat and tears (and money) all the City fans put in in 82 keeping us afloat while Rovers blocked the council helping us and tried to pinch the Gate cheap (history repeats itself with the Mem!) while revelling in our misfortune I'm happy to watch them go pop

WAQ and the beanstalk. Minus the pantomime horse, of course.

I tend not to read The Post these days because to be frank, it is horseshit, but Jack Vittles' Comical Ali reporting of their fortunes in it is always good for a laugh and true to form there are a couple of absolute belters here: "Sky high expectations" Seriously? From a club that plays in a ground that is easily one of the worst in the football league, can't apparently fund its own training ground & who have lost 7 out of 8, which he has described as a "sticky spell" bit of an understatement or what? Perhaps it is being less than 16 points behind Shrewsbury at this stage of the season, eh? My favourite though is their "top six fanbase' which is based on what, exactly? Certainly not on actual crowds, Bradford, Pompey and Charlton leave them absolutely standing, whereas Blackburn and MK Dons are better supported plus Plymouth, who had a higher gate recently on the same day against Rochdale when they were rock bottom, would certainly average more with comparable results.. Utter propaganda or as I said earlier, horseshit, you choose..

like you said we have a bigger fan base and we struggled to attract that, only time we did was when we were top, Why should we take away the emotion, they are reaping what the sown and deserve all the shit they get, and that includes bankruptcy if it gets that far,

During my tenure as manager of Daventry Town Reserves in the United Counties League, I really didn't't have any aspirations to move onwards and upwards within the beautiful game, so I resisted overtures from the likes of Northampton Old Chenecks and Peterborough North Star. However............ a sideways step to Chernobyl would interest me if and when it becomes available. Pen poised, ladies and gentlemen!

So he's saying there's a correlation between training facilities and results on the pitch, then provides an example to back up his argument which proves the opposite. Genius! (If Bury use Man City's old facilities why are they bottom of the league, sh*tferbrains?!) All he's doing is looking for excuses now their progress has stalled rather than admit he's run out of ideas. This was always going to be his acid test - getting Salisbury promoted or a club the size of Rovers out of non league is one thing but how was he going to handle the pressure when things weren't going his way? Not very well, at the moment. Long may it continue.

>>Certainly we have a top-six fan base, so the expectation is never going to go anywhere," he told BBC Radio Bristol<< the BBC missed out the word 'fingered' - do you see?

You are perhaps both allowing emotion to get in the way here. 1. If you look at most club redevelopments that offer more and better seating and facilities the vast majority of clubs, if not all, significantly improve their crowds and revenues dramatically; essential for exponentially rising running costs. City are no different and neither would be Rovers. And so in short they have little option but to develop and rightly so. 2. And Rovers, whether you like it or not and clearly its not, actually have a fairly decent latent support base. Not as large as ours but it is there. If their owners actually get their act together they would, in my opinion, easily attract average gates of 15k in the third tier assuming they are doing well. And even if they are not you would always receive a proven boost regardless when you offer something new and vastly improved. I am frankly staggered at how many people attend matches now with such a poor stadium which tells you how much real support is there and waiting in the wings. And they clearly have done their research on it. I hope they get it sorted its good for Bristol jobs and that alone is a good enough reason. The liklihood is there would be many Bristol City fans working on construction to deliver the stadium. That means more money spent at Ashton Gate and all around the city. So take away the emotion fellas, stand above the de based arguments and praise sporting investment in our great city. As long as they stay one place behind us, always, i am happy.

Why would you even take a football flag (and wear a football shirt) to Auschwitz? I'm going to use the filter privileges that come with being a mod to say... Fucking Scum

“The flag actually belongs to a Bristol Rovers fan who is not a regular at our club” Yeah, and if he’s like every other Gashead he probably isn’t a regular at his own club either.

So it’s been bullshit all the way. Strange you’ve gone from the 6th richest club in England. (You’re fans ) to having nothing

Happy Days.

Imagine it... LJ: Oi! DARYLL. This kit is still soaking. Put it on a spin cycle for 30 minutes. DC: Okay boss. Leave it with me. 30 minutes later... LJ: I don't think this is going to work out. DC: I did what you said. Come and look.

30 years sounds about right, thats when I got my first set of white patio furniture.

Happy days . My heart bleeds . **** um

When they got relegated to non league it was fantastic. If they went into administration or worse . I would absolutely love it . Please let it happen.

Wally Baba and the Pikey Thieves

Yep, well remember Aberfan chants at AG, replied with chants about the Swiss air dissaster. There will always be misinformed/stupid people, and I was guilty of that back in the day, I'm sorry to admit.

JP, I've been there and you cannot fail to be aware of the significance, it's truly shattering. I don't mind admitting that I sobbed like a baby when I went there but certainly don't regret going.

Why would you want a photo by the entrance to Auschwitz? Let alone holding your clubs flag? I’d sincerely hope that he wasn’t unaware of the significance of the place.

I genuinely thought someone had photoshopped that flag. To what depths can their fans sink? Unbelievable.

Sick scum.

Darrell is talking rubbish. Rovers are nowhere near 30 years behind. More like 50 or 60.

They have to provide fiancés?? Is that because of the Arab involvement? Sounds dangerously like people trafficking to me.

No chance! However, if Scott Murray were to retire...!

You’re obviously a good manager. You don’t want to go backwards . Bigger clubs will come available. Like Eden grove

Probably earn more than there centre backs anyway

Looks like someone’s trying to create their own dismissal (& pay off)

I would imagine an industrial sized fan and a huge pile of poo will meet.

He's spot on ! http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/42014186?intlink_from_url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-bristol-41948221&link_location=live-reporting-story

This. Rovers surely pulled out because they were only being offered a lease, not any freehold?

UWE is a great location for a modern sports stadium, with good corporate & conference facilities, no doubt about it. However, who is going to invest huge amounts on building something on land that will never belong to them..? I’m surprised that UWE haven’t gone down the route of obtaining funding for a multi sport venue, that could be rented to Rovers. Although that would not help Rovers overall because non matchday revenue would go to UWE.

There was no emotion in my post - I’m also one of those that do not hate Rovers and I would not be upset if they were moderately successful in a division one below ours. However, there are posters on Gaschat convinced they will easily match Brighton and Reading if they have a 20000+ stadium and I just can’t see it , not in the short term. They ignore the fact that Brighton and Reading are in higher leagues, feeling the larger size of Bristol is more important. That overlooks the competition from City and the fact that third tier football is not a great draw. I can’t see them with 20000 crowds in less than five years of gradual improvement and a promotion to the Championship. If that happens, maybe. But pigs might fly too.

I don't want to quote all of @havanatopia 's post, but he raises some good points. Let's face it, as much as we are all pleased to see the extra bums on seats, it's the additional non match day revenue that will see the stadium prove it's worth and the Rovers board will see it that way too. UWE would bring in events due to its location and the smaller size might make it more attractive for some businesses. I am not sure they would achieve those 15k average gates, though I could see an initial jump from curiosity which might be sustained with any success, they might even finally attrct those students they keep banging on about. However I don't think a rebuild of the mem has anywhere near the same potential for extra draw, it's cramped and not well positioned.

They’re convinced that if they build a 20000 capacity stadium, they will instantly do a Brighton and fill it, as the demand is there but is being held back by the poor facilities. It’s nothing to do with struggling to make a mark in the third division.

I think this saga is shaping up like a re-run of “The Tiger Who Came To Tea”. A story of a tiger who arrives and eats everything in the house (takes all the assets) and then leaves never to be seen again.

The Rovers saga is shaping up to be like a re-run of Evelyn Waugh’s novel Decline and Fall. The prosperity promised through Nicholas’s millions turns to dust and the prospect of dire mediocrity coupled with interest slavery looms. Then, miraculously like a genie from a lamp, the Al Qadi family appear and spirits are raised to new heights. But with the UWE Stadium on the eve of construction it suddenly all falls to pieces and gloom descends once more. Rovers look as though they are finished completely when an unforeseen helping hand enables them to revert to the lowly position they were trying to escape from. But this time, effectively neutered, they are quite content to accept their status as permanent underdogs. Sorry it couldn’t be a happy one but Evelyn’s endings are notoriously realistic. Many people are unaware that we actually came down from Oxford together although I got off at Stapleton Road and she carried on to Temple Meads. There are even claims that I was the inspiration for her masterpiece Bridewell Revisited.

I think this is indeed what the future holds for them; I await the comedy hour when Geoff interviews the new Chairman on "Having a Gas". "Well Mr Henbury; I understand that the ground has been sold so the council can build an incinerator, Stu Sinclair is back to begging in the precinct again, you're renting at Twerton again, the club never owned the training ground in the first place because it was bought directly by Dwane Sports, and you're bottom of the fourth division. It's not looking good is it?" "You been listening to them gurt Teds, Geoff; it's all going really well. I have total faith in myself as owner and anybody who doesn't isn't a proper gashead. We have lots of assets but they just don't show up in the accounts and our league position is in no way reflective of the way that we have played in those games, all the referees are secret Teds who just want us to lose."

Imagine Clarke kicking off if he had to turn all the socks inside out?

That's how I read it too BS3.

Who would want to give up the stability of benefits to go and work there..?!

I think it would be splendid if a well known local billionaire built a 10,000 seat indoor arena there. Could house Bristol Flyers and Uni teams and both parties could share the revenue from concerts and exhibitions etc. It would also of course **** over the blue few as they wouldn't be able to do their usual cuckoo stunt...

it fell through because they couldn't meet their share of the fiances, The UWE asked for proof, they couldn't so they pulled out trying to save face, hence the UWE being in the dark and still willing to go ahead wit the project, Ever since WAQ and Hamer have been in charges they've been trying to whore themselves to try and find investors to pay for the UWE, they didn't find any, the shit is still hitting the fan and the money is running out fast, unless they get a cash injection from the family then the shit really will hit the fan (the fact the father has only guaranteed the funding until Mar 2018 should be a massive concern)

Has anyone thought that it's the 'non matchday' stuff that caused the UWE to fall through? Maybe the University wanted a bigger slice / all of it meaning the sags would have to get bigger crowds just to remain in the status quo and never receive the benefits of the new stadium apart from ticket revenue from which rent would have to be paid I assume? It does make sense TBH and could explain why the Al Q's pulled the plug? Why would the Uni allow it to be built on their land if they wouldn't make any ££££ after all?

There is no way that is Henbury Gas in that interview, that answer is way too well thought out and put across for the to be him.

Upwardly mobile?

I'm pretty certain that they wouldn't attract gates of 15k easily. Except when we're taking on big teams or have been doing really well this season, we've only been getting 17 or 18k at times these last few years. As you say their support is lower than ours so I doubt they could get that close to it, apart from the initial curiosity bump, especially if the on-pitch entertainment stays so poor. Also think you missed my biggest point, which was that selling out a 12k stadium with great conference facilities etc. that makes millions each year from corporate income is better than a 20k stadium they'd be unlikely to sell out with very little corporate facilities. They're losing money hand over fist and quite clearly need non-matchday income.

The one with Dopey in.

I’ve always worked hard and now, at nearly 39 years old, I have enough money to retire and live out the rest of my life in retirement, enjoying regular luxuries and treats for myself and my family. Well, as long as I die before I’m 40 I can..!