Happy Anniversary Mark Ashton

[CyderInACan]

It's just popped up on my Facebook "On This Day" thingybob that Mark Ashton was appointed COO 2 years ago today. 

Given  that LJ was appointed in Feb 2016 this must've been one of his first jobs as well as being the man charged with bringing SL's vision to life. Back then we were 2nd from bottom; now we're in the semi finals of the league cup and 5th in the league. 

I know he divides opinion on here (at times) but you can't argue with what he (will no doubt claim) has done in only 2 short years. Long may the good work continue. 

[Phileas Fogg]

I remember his appointment being met with extreme suspicion at the time 

[LondonBristolian]

Ashton strikes me as ruthless, a bit of a shark and someone who cares far more about the business of football than the romance. I suspect he will never be universally popular amongst the supporters but we were crying out for someone like that behind the scenes and I think he deserves a great deal of credit for changes in how the club is run and perceived.

[Port Said Red]

15 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I remember his appointment being met with extreme suspicion at the time 

The crowd still has a majority of blue collar workers at it's core, so distrusting someone with a white collar background is almost ingrained.

So far so good, he appears to be one of the exceptions, a white collar worker who is good at his job.

[The Gasbuster]

3 minutes ago, LondonBristolian said:

Ashton strikes me as ruthless, a bit of a shark and someone who cares far more about the business of football than the romance. I suspect he will never be universally popular amongst the supporters but we were crying out for someone like that behind the scenes and I think he deserves a great deal of credit for changes in how the club is run and perceived.

Agree with this.

Not sure if he is unpopular though; it's more a case of the corporate speak which makes people groan.

[CyderInACan]

1 minute ago, The Gasbuster said:

Not sure if he is unpopular though; it's more a case of the corporate speak which makes people groan.

Agree - sometimes he needs to cut back on the boardroom stuff and talk to supporters in proper English. 

[Robin101]

4 minutes ago, Port Said Red said:

The crowd still has a majority of blue collar workers at it's core, so distrusting someone with a white collar background is almost ingrained.

So far so good, he appears to be one of the exceptions, a white collar worker who is good at his job.

This club is tired of experts!

[Coppello]

1 minute ago, LondonBristolian said:

Ashton strikes me as ruthless, a bit of a shark and someone who cares far more about the business of football than the romance. I suspect he will never be universally popular amongst the supporters but we were crying out for someone like that behind the scenes and I think he deserves a great deal of credit for changes in how the club is run and perceived.

That sums it up perfectly. I also feel the appointment was part of Lansdown trying to make amends for some of the mistakes he made during our last outing in the Championship, which is a very respectable thing to do. A section of fans complained that Steve was not a football man and, despite being successful in business, he did not have the ability to take us forward. Mark Ashton provides a bridge between the football and corporate worlds which is something we've needed to become a proper club. 

[Super]

Good old Mark Ashton.

[spudski]

1 hour ago, CyderInACan said:

Agree - sometimes he needs to cut back on the boardroom stuff and talk to supporters in proper English. 

No offence Cyder....But...He does talk 'proper English'.

What does 'Boardroom' stuff actually mean?

When you say 'talk to supporters in proper English' what does that mean? Dumbed down? Using very basic words?

There are just as many supporters that work in that environment than not. They don't all follow rugby ;-)

I'd find that even more insulting. Having to change your vocabulary for the fan base to understand? Surely that's demeaning?

It's almost like a reverse snobbery. An instant dislike to someone who speaks eloquently and wears a suit.

Thank God there are still people in this country keeping our varied language alive...it's become so 'Americanised' and dumbed down ( basic ) that we are gradually losing it.

Soon we will be talking only by emojis...:laugh:

Ironic...modern hieroglyphics . Going full circle....

 

[Taz]

A lot of people were worried that Ashtons appointment would be followed by the appointment of Michael Appleton (myself included).

[CyderInACan]

2 minutes ago, spudski said:

No offence Cyder....But...He does talk 'proper English'.

What does 'Boardroom' stuff actually mean?

When you say 'talk to supporters in proper English' what does that mean? Dumbed down? Using very basic words?

There are just as many supporters that work in that environment than not. They don't all follow rugby ;-)

I'd find that even more insulting. Having to change your vocabulary for the fan base to understand? Surely that's demeaning?

It's almost like a reverse snobbery. An instant dislike to someone who speaks eloquently and wears a suit.

Thank God there are still people in this country keeping our varied language alive...it's become so 'Americanised' and dumbed down ( basic ) that we are gradually losing it.

Soon we will be talking only by emojis...:laugh:

Ironic...modern hieroglyphics . Going full circle....

 

I'm fairly sure you know exactly what I mean. Jargon & Buzzwords that are more suited to the type of bellends you see on The Apprentice. You don't need to pepper your interviews with bullshit bingo winners to get your point across. It's not "dumbing down" it's just common sense. 

 

 

[downendcity]

1 hour ago, The Gasbuster said:

Agree with this.

Not sure if he is unpopular though; it's more a case of the corporate speak which makes people groan.

I think that in when he was first appointed the sceptics worried that all he would do was  "talk the talk".

Over the last 2 years he has increasingly demonstrated his ability to "walk the walk" 

While I suspect that many fans will be wary of a corporate person like MA, I also suspect that many now respect MA's ability and that he's doing a job that we've needed for a long time,

 

[The Coach]

14 minutes ago, spudski said:

No offence Cyder....But...He does talk 'proper English'.

What does 'Boardroom' stuff actually mean?

When you say 'talk to supporters in proper English' what does that mean? Dumbed down? Using very basic words?

There are just as many supporters that work in that environment than not. They don't all follow rugby ;-)

I'd find that even more insulting. Having to change your vocabulary for the fan base to understand? Surely that's demeaning?

It's almost like a reverse snobbery. An instant dislike to someone who speaks eloquently and wears a suit.

Thank God there are still people in this country keeping our varied language alive...it's become so 'Americanised' and dumbed down ( basic ) that we are gradually losing it.

Soon we will be talking only by emojis...:laugh:

Ironic...modern hieroglyphics . Going full circle....

 

Innit

[Bris Red]

Ashton seems okay and yes results and recruitment have improved since he has joined, i dont know weather or not its particularly Mark Ashton as an individual who should be hailed as the great massiah but more finally BCFC realising as a club that we needed to act more smart in our recruitment and that means buying young hungry players who can be sold on at a profit in future years.. I feel like there would have been plenty of Mark Ashton 'types' who would have been lining up for the said advertised job in 2016 who would have done just as good of a job especially with the resources available, but thats just my opinion. 

I think the thing with Ashton on a personal level that has caused many fans to not really feel engaged is just his general demeanor on camera.. i cant quite put my finger on it with him but he just dosn't come across as natural, almost as if he is reading from a script in a kind of act.. he reminds me of a slippery estate agent or high end car dealer you know.. 

[Bar BS3]

10 minutes ago, CyderInACan said:

I'm fairly sure you know exactly what I mean. Jargon & Buzzwords that are more suited to the type of bellends you see on The Apprentice. You don't need to pepper your interviews with bullshit bingo winners to get your point across. It's not "dumbing down" it's just common sense. 

 

 

There you go again though....! 

By “bellends you see on the apprentice” do you mean successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life..?

Football has changed a lot since the 1990’s and a large chunk of our support are made up of people who aren’t happy to stand on a factory production line or lay bricks all their lives. 

Buz word can indeed be annoying, mainly in their meaningless noise, but most of what Mark Ashton says has meaning & substance, which might intimidate or confuse some people, but not many nowadays as a large percentage will know exactly what he’s getting at. 

 

[Bar BS3]

5 minutes ago, bris red said:

Ashton seems okay and yes results and recruitment have improved since he has joined, i dont know weather or not its particularly Mark Ashton as an individual who should be hailed as the great massiah but more finally BCFC realising as a club that we needed to act more smart in our recruitment and that means buying young hungry players who can be sold on at a profit in future years.. I feel like there would have been plenty of Mark Ashton 'types' who would have been lining up for the said advertised job in 2016 who would have done just as good of a job especially with the resources available, but thats just my opinion. 

I think the thing with Ashton on a personal level that has caused many fans to not really feel engaged is just his general demeanor on camera.. i cant quite put my finger on it with him but he just dosn't come across as natural, almost as if he is reading from a script in a kind of act.. he reminds me of a slippery estate agent or high end car dealer you know.. 

But that’s his job. He is there to be ruthless and get the best deals for Bristol City Football Club, not to be a jovial, lovable rogue for supporters to warm too. 

Much like the reasoning why many internal promotions don’t work, in any industry. You need some people to put clinical efficiency above popularity. 

[Phileas Fogg]

5 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

There you go again though....! 

By “bellends you see on the apprentice” do you mean successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life..?

Football has changed a lot since the 1990’s and a large chunk of our support are made up of people who aren’t happy to stand on a factory production line or lay bricks all their lives. 

Buz word can indeed be annoying, mainly in their meaningless noise, but most of what Mark Ashton says has meaning & substance, which might intimidate or confuse some people, but not many nowadays as a large percentage will know exactly what he’s getting at. 

 

Oh come on, the Apprentice is basically reality TV. Most of the candidates are absurd caricatures - are you telling me you've never watched that show and known you could've done better on a task? Lots of them are fairly deluded who have been picked because they are ridiculous - see Big Brother. You can obviously see what he was saying.

I think with Ashton, I don't really mind his buzzwords personally. It's the language of agents and directors and works for him when dealing with them.

I don't think supporters appreciate it though. It may subconsciously remind them of that director or line manager at work that they hate. Fans want to escape from that at the weekend and are used to football people speaking simply. A bit of a culture shock to hear Ashton or LJ talking about synergy or whatever.

I think Ashton used to be a bit waffly and it came across as insincere. I don't necessarily think he should 'dumb down' what he says, but avoid too much cliche and corporate speak. It's not necessary. Corporate speak overall is full of awful waffle and I wish it didn't exist.

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

2 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

There you go again though....! 

By “bellends you see on the apprentice” do you mean successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life..?

Football has changed a lot since the 1990’s and a large chunk of our support are made up of people who aren’t happy to stand on a factory production line or lay bricks all their lives. 

Buz word can indeed be annoying, mainly in their meaningless noise, but most of what Mark Ashton says has meaning & substance, which might intimidate or confuse some people, but not many nowadays as a large percentage will know exactly what he’s getting at. 

 

Sorry, but I've got to call you out on this.  I can see no connection between The Apprentice and 'successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life'.  I do think, after due consideration, that 'bellends' is a more accurate description.  Vacuous, vain, self-centred, unethical, clueless, are also words that come to mind.

I think Mark Ashton has enhanced the club, and long may it last.

[Sir Colby-Tit]

4 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

There you go again though....! 

By “bellends you see on the apprentice” do you mean successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life..?

Football has changed a lot since the 1990’s and a large chunk of our support are made up of people who aren’t happy to stand on a factory production line or lay bricks all their lives. 

Buz word can indeed be annoying, mainly in their meaningless noise, but most of what Mark Ashton says has meaning & substance, which might intimidate or confuse some people, but not many nowadays as a large percentage will know exactly what he’s getting at. 

 

Having watched The Apprentice, I'm pretty sure he meant bellends. 

I don't mind Mark Ashton though. 

['Orns]

2 hours ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I remember his appointment being met with extreme suspicion at the time 

Some vitriol from Watford (?) fans that I remember, pretty sure they were accusing him of making an awful lot of money out of his time there. Certainly left them with a bad taste in their mouths

1 hour ago, LondonBristolian said:

Ashton strikes me as ruthless, a bit of a shark and someone who cares far more about the business of football than the romance. I suspect he will never be universally popular amongst the supporters but we were crying out for someone like that behind the scenes and I think he deserves a great deal of credit for changes in how the club is run and perceived.

Agreed. Absolutely what we needed. Right bloke, right time, right club

[Phileas Fogg]

2 minutes ago, Woodsy said:

Some vitriol from Watford (?) fans that I remember, pretty sure they were accusing him of making an awful lot of money out of his time there. Certainly left them with a bad taste in their mouths

That's right I think. Can't remember the full story there. 

I imagine he's a very easy man for supporters to dislike if things aren't going well. I think he's made us a more serious and respectable club. At times before the way we were run was a bit of a farce and I have no doubt we had a bad reputation in the industry. I imagine between 2010-2013 when we had our decline we were thought of as a backwater club who pay too much for sub-standard players.

[Bar BS3]

4 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

Oh come on, the Apprentice is basically reality TV. Most of the candidates are absurd caricatures - are you telling me you've never watched that show and known you could've done better on a task? Lots of them are fairly deluded who have been picked because they are ridiculous - see Big Brother. You can obviously see what he was saying.

I think with Ashton, I don't really mind his buzzwords personally. It's the language of agents and directors and works for him when dealing with them.

I don't think supporters appreciate it though. It may subconsciously remind them of that director or line manager at work that they hate. Fans want to escape from that at the weekend and are used to football people speaking simply. A bit of a culture shock to hear Ashton or LJ talking about synergy or whatever.

I think Ashton used to be a bit waffly and it came across as insincere. I don't necessarily think he should 'dumb down' what he says, but avoid too much cliche and corporate speak. It's not necessary. Corporate speak overall is full of awful waffle and I wish it didn't exist.

 

3 minutes ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Sorry, but I've got to call you out on this.  I can see no connection between The Apprentice and 'successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life'.  I do think, after due consideration, that 'bellends' is a more accurate description.  Vacuous, vain, self-centred, unethical, clueless, are also words that come to mind.

I think Mark Ashton has enhanced the club, and long may it last.

 

3 minutes ago, Sir Colby-Tit said:

Having watched The Apprentice, I'm pretty sure he meant bellends. 

I don't mind Mark Ashton though. 

Yes, I’m fairness The Apprentice is a TV show and certainly has its fair share of Bellends, in the initial stages. 

I was referring more to those from the latter stages. You quickly tend to forget the others. 

It does seem that some people view ambition and professionalism as a bad thing though, just because it’s different to them. 

Mark Ashton has been instrumental in the positive changes to the club. For someone to be ruthless enough to have that effect, they never will (nor would wish to be) universally popular amongst people who probably just don’t understand what he’s here for. 

[Phileas Fogg]

Just now, Bar BS3 said:

 

 

Yes, I’m fairness The Apprentice is a TV show and certainly has its fair share of Bellends, in the initial stages. 

I was referring more to those from the latter stages. You quickly tend to forget the others. 

Yes ok, in general though they pick ridiculous reality TV contestants for that show. Imagine how boring it would be if it was filled up with highly capable, intelligent and sensible, (but a bit boring), accountants. (Apologies to any OTIB accounts )

Just now, Bar BS3 said:

It does seem that some people view ambition and professionalism as a bad thing though, just because it’s different to them. 

Disagree and not really sure why that's relevant to Ashton 

Just now, Bar BS3 said:

Mark Ashton has been instrumental in the positive changes to the club. For someone to be ruthless enough to have that effect, they never will (nor would wish to be) universally popular amongst people who probably just don’t understand what he’s here for. 

Agree

[Unan]

30 minutes ago, CyderInACan said:

I'm fairly sure you know exactly what I mean. Jargon & Buzzwords that are more suited to the type of bellends you see on The Apprentice. You don't need to pepper your interviews with bullshit bingo winners to get your point across. It's not "dumbing down" it's just common sense. 

 

 

 

15 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

There you go again though....! 

By “bellends you see on the apprentice” do you mean successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life..?

Football has changed a lot since the 1990’s and a large chunk of our support are made up of people who aren’t happy to stand on a factory production line or lay bricks all their lives. 

Buz word can indeed be annoying, mainly in their meaningless noise, but most of what Mark Ashton says has meaning & substance, which might intimidate or confuse some people, but not many nowadays as a large percentage will know exactly what he’s getting at. 

 

 

11 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

Oh come on, the Apprentice is basically reality TV. Most of the candidates are absurd caricatures - are you telling me you've never watched that show and known you could've done better on a task? Lots of them are fairly deluded who have been picked because they are ridiculous - see Big Brother. You can obviously see what he was saying.

I think with Ashton, I don't really mind his buzzwords personally. It's the language of agents and directors and works for him when dealing with them.

I don't think supporters appreciate it though. It may subconsciously remind them of that director or line manager at work that they hate. Fans want to escape from that at the weekend and are used to football people speaking simply. A bit of a culture shock to hear Ashton or LJ talking about synergy or whatever.

I think Ashton used to be a bit waffly and it came across as insincere. I don't necessarily think he should 'dumb down' what he says, but avoid too much cliche and corporate speak. It's not necessary. Corporate speak overall is full of awful waffle and I wish it didn't exist.

 

11 minutes ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Sorry, but I've got to call you out on this.  I can see no connection between The Apprentice and 'successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life'.  I do think, after due consideration, that 'bellends' is a more accurate description.  Vacuous, vain, self-centred, unethical, clueless, are also words that come to mind.

I think Mark Ashton has enhanced the club, and long may it last.

 

11 minutes ago, Sir Colby-Tit said:

Having watched The Apprentice, I'm pretty sure he meant bellends. 

I don't mind Mark Ashton though. 

 

3 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

 

 

Yes, I’m fairness The Apprentice is a TV show and certainly has its fair share of Bellends, in the initial stages. 

I was referring more to those from the latter stages. You quickly tend to forget the others. 

It does seem that some people view ambition and professionalism as a bad thing though, just because it’s different to them. 

Mark Ashton has been instrumental in the positive changes to the club. For someone to be ruthless enough to have that effect, they never will (nor would wish to be) universally popular amongst people who probably just don’t understand what he’s here for. 

 

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

8 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

 

 

Yes, I’m fairness The Apprentice is a TV show and certainly has its fair share of Bellends, in the initial stages. 

I was referring more to those from the latter stages. You quickly tend to forget the others. 

It does seem that some people view ambition and professionalism as a bad thing though, just because it’s different to them. 

Mark Ashton has been instrumental in the positive changes to the club. For someone to be ruthless enough to have that effect, they never will (nor would wish to be) universally popular amongst people who probably just don’t understand what he’s here for. 

I thought the biggest bellend of all got to the final this year, but maybe that's just me.

[Fordy62]

Things are going well so Ashton is doing a good job. Not so long back he was doing an awful one. 

Always inclined to take things like this with a pinch of salt because at the drop of a hat we can have a polar opposite view. As football fans were a fickle bunch and I absolutely include myself in that. 

Oh and let’s not pretend that the appointment of LJ would have had anything whatsoever to do with Ashton!

[Bristol Rob]

7 minutes ago, Fordy62 said:

Things are going well so Ashton is doing a good job. Not so long back he was doing an awful one. 

Always inclined to take things like this with a pinch of salt because at the drop of a hat we can have a polar opposite view. As football fans were a fickle bunch and I absolutely include myself in that. 

Oh and let’s not pretend that the appointment of LJ would have had anything whatsoever to do with Ashton!

I'm going to run this post up a flagpole and salute it.

(Or I might just give it a like).

[CyderInACan]

28 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

By “bellends you see on the apprentice” do you mean successful ambitious young people who are striving to achieve their goals in life..?

No. I meant bellends. 

 

['Orns]

25 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

That's right I think. Can't remember the full story there. 

I imagine he's a very easy man for supporters to dislike if things aren't going well. I think he's made us a more serious and respectable club. At times before the way we were run was a bit of a farce and I have no doubt we had a bad reputation in the industry. I imagine between 2010-2013 when we had our decline we were thought of as a backwater club who pay too much for sub-standard players.

Whatever gave people that idea.....!

14 minutes ago, Fordy62 said:

Things are going well so Ashton is doing a good job. Not so long back he was doing an awful one. 

Always inclined to take things like this with a pinch of salt because at the drop of a hat we can have a polar opposite view. As football fans were a fickle bunch and I absolutely include myself in that. 

Oh and let’s not pretend that the appointment of LJ would have had anything whatsoever to do with Ashton!

Bang on, Fordy. I avoided twitter on Saturday night, mainly because I was driving back from Nottingham, because I could imagine some of the comments on there
As for the last point, even more bang on. That was happening regardless