RED4LIFE

19 hours ago, Gazred said:

If that's a concourse, I've got one under my stairs 

Surely it should be conc-horse?

3 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Nah, no, you probably didn’t see another post.  By “hitting the ground running”, I didn’t mean playoffs (only the buffoons genuinely thought that), I meant “continue to progress us”.  Sorry if that wasn’t clear.

As it stands we have gone a bit backwards.  The two wins make it look a bit more healthy, thankfully .

Prolonging the inevitable might’ve meant we got on a roll?

No need to apologise Dave, I know what you meant.

The point i was trying to make (possibly not well) was after a complete reversal of playing styles from counter attacking to possession based with the exact same players and expecting it to go smoothly isn't realistic in my opinion. The fact that highly paid professionals in the upper management used this as an excuse to bring in Manning is bordering on the ludicrous. To then spout the bollocks of top 6 as a minimum to the fans isn't just stupid, it's taking the piss.

The vast majority of us aren't stupid. We've been through this mill countless times over the years but for the board to expect us to lap up their excuses like the good customers they think we are they can **** right off.

11 minutes ago, Silvio Dante said:

And at the risk of going over old ground, this is why they probably won’t ever be forgiven. I’ve used the phrase “wilful sabotage” a few times and it was - Nige had his legs cut off in the summer recruitment.

Even if he’d been able to replace Scott with who we eventually did (short term) with Twine, then we wouldn’t be miles off. A side of O’Leary-Tanner-Vyner-Dickie-Pring-James-Knight-Sykes-Bell-Twine-Conway may not be top six but it would be competitive top ten. The lack of the playmaker killed us. 
 

Liam coming in, irrespective of what the board said, was never going to be able to improve on how Nige was doing as he didn’t have the squad (note - not his players but the squad). It was a shit comms.

What I don’t think the board expected was the regression we’ve seen from Liam misusing the resources he had - certainly up until Easter, which has been alarming. And that’s where the doubts lay, not in not getting top six.

But, make no mistake. Had they replaced Scott, even ponying up 1/5 of the fee, we’d likely be higher up the table.

But that would also have meant Nige still being in a job. And getting rid of him was more important than the clubs success this season.

Bottom Line.

Yep, that's exactly it in a nutshell.

The board took the fans for mugs and because of that I can't bring myself to blame Manning for what's happened. Could he have done better? Undoubtedly, but he was dealt a pretty poor hand to start with.

6 minutes ago, Natchfever said:

What were the stated pre season expectations of the club, can anyone recall?

I remember junior saying last year that the squad should be doing better.

Presumably statements emanating from bcfc top brass have enough gravitas to in turn influence the expectations of mere fans?

I do recall senior saying what the club earned it could spend hmm....

Yeah, can't really remember myself, but then I do take all their ramblings with a pinch of salt. 

Let's face it, we sold our best creative player and bought McCrorie, a right back and they expected miracles.

1 minute ago, Davefevs said:

Because that was the reason for changing.  It was expected LM would give us something akin to “hitting the ground running”, because he was the difference maker.
 

Had Nige had 2 or 3 more points, they’d wouldn’t have sacked him, they’d have had to tolerate him.

I respect your opinion more than most on here mate, but I would be astonished if they honestly thought that a young, fairly inexperienced manager would immediately make a huge difference to our promotion chances. That's like catching lightning in a bottle and history tells us it rarely happens.

With regards to the Pearson sacking, if he would've had 2 or 3 more points it would've only prolonged the inevitable. Besides, we had so many injuries we could barely field a decent starting 11 and that should've surely factored into their thinking but it seems they chose to ignore it.

43 minutes ago, W-S-M Seagull said:

I choose reality too. 

And in reality we should be doing better than we are doing. 

 

Why should we be doing better?

We lost 2 of our best players without properly replacing them, reduced the wage bill at the same time, then replaced a manager and completely changed the playing style. With all that happening why do you think we should be doing better?

49 minutes ago, W-S-M Seagull said:

Thats some strong language youve used there which im not sure is helpful.

Why should I as a fan of Bristol City accept that we've gone backwards because of the decisions they have made? Why should I not hold them account because my pre season expectations of improvement have not been met? 

Why should I just sit in a corner and remain silent? 

Strong language? Not in my opinion and trying to be helpful wasn't the point of my post.

The point I wa trying, unsuccessfully as is happens, to make was your pre-season expectations mean nothing to anybody at the club. They are based only on your opinion or hopes for how things should pan out. They are literally pointless without all the facts to hand. 

You are more than welcome to have any opinion you want but it means nothing. That isn't a slur on you personally either as everyone can have their own opinions. Not everyone can have their own facts though and you are basing your points on your thoughts alone with no basis around them. Essentially a straw man's argument. 

22 minutes ago, W-S-M Seagull said:

 

So as a fan of Bristol City I'm not sure why my pre season expectations should now be invalid because we decided to bring a new guy in?

 

You've answered your own question there.

'As a fan' your pre-season expectations are seen through eyes that don't, and will never, have all the information at hand about the club, players and manager to make a fully informed opinion with all the facts laid out in front of you. For that reason alone, how the hell can you think any argument you make about the way things have gone  relating to your pre-season thoughts have any relevance?

The club, for whatever reason, have decided half way through the season to go for a different plan, manager and style of playing, yet you still think that your (personal) pre-season expectations should be met. That to me is utterly insane. To expect the same or better results with such turmoil is idiotic. That isn't just aimed at you but the board too, although I don't think the board believed a word they said either which is reprehensible l.

Forget all the bullshit spouted by JL and Tinnion about top 6. It was blatantly obvious the issue was the boards relationship with Pearson had deteriorated to a point of no return which is why he got sacked. A blind man could see that and, admittedly, I was fuming over it but, to use the top 6 excuse to bolster your opinion about how we should do is naive at best.

Without getting into the whole racism argument (which I find abhorrent btw), I am good mates with a City fan who was banned from all football matches for 3 years by the club/courts and also had to hand his passport whenever England played.

His offence was for standing up in, what was then, the Grandstand and telling the Millwall fans who had been giving it loads all game to, "**** off you cockney c*nts".

A steward decided he was inciting violence, threw him out and reported him to the Old Bill who immediately arrested him, took him to the station and chatged him. It went to court and he hence got the above ban and a criminal record.

The whole point of the above post is only to show that when it comes to incidents involving football fans, things can be completely blown out of all proportion.

Again, I'm not, and wouldn't ever condone racism against anybody, but I do think if the bloke who got a very light punishment for this did it anywhere but in/near a football ground, it wouldn't have ever been reported in the press.

Let's face it, as footy fans we have to put up with being treated as scum. Whether that's by the Old Bill or the press it makes no difference.

Edit: Before anybody posts the usual, if it wasn't for the hooligans years ago, this wouldn't be happening argument, do you honestly believe that a phenomenon that happened 30/40 years ago is relevant today is right?

To tar every football fan with that brush in 2024 is ludicrous. We all know that what was prevalent back then has been marginalised now and the vast majority of fans are being subjected to draconian situations ONLY because it makes the Old Bill's lives easier, not because of the potential of serious disorder.

Just now, One Team said:

Same here mate. 

The link posted earlier is working fine for me via a VPN

The standard of football tonight is so poor I wouldnt be surprised if it ends up with both teams losing

I usually watch from the Atlanta mountains but it didn't show as available on RTV, so I will watch it on Sport 10 which was great on Saturday after the shambles of the City feed.

3 hours ago, Davefevs said:

Problem is, a lot of people just see the word “versatility” and think “Jack of all trades, master of none”.  It’s possible to be good / excellent in one position, but also have the propensity to play other positions, maybe not to the same level as their best position.

Yep, agree with that Fevs.

'My' position was CM. Thats where I thought I was most effective and where I would play my best football, but in my mid 20's I was probably 11 stone. Depending on what team we were playing against, if I was up against 14 stone, 6'4" bruisers, I would often either play as a full back or one of the wide positions to negate the opposition nullifying my comparative lack of size and strength..

I could still do a good job in either of those roles, and as captain of most sides I played for, I could still lead by example. I didn't care where I played as long as I felt I was helping the team.

There is more ways than one to skin a cat, but in football you need to sacrifice personal gain for team achievement. Not every player is willing to do that, and not every fan is able to see that.

That's probably why I relate to Cornick so much, as he's essentially doing the same thing I used to do, albeit at a much higher standard than I ever did.

1 minute ago, ChrisBW said:

Well they said they were planned for it, hence the plan a and plan b.

They? The only person who mentioned that was NP, unless I've missed something.

My point still stands. If we knew Scott was going, which we damn well should've, why haven't we actioned  Plan B yet and strengthened the squad? The deals should've been lined up to be completed as soon  Scott had gone. As it stands, we are playing with a weakened team. That's not taking into account the Conway injury as well.

A blind man can see that Bell isn't ready to be our main striker for the.next 4-5 months if we're serious about a playoff push

Just now, ChrisBW said:

It’s all on the Alex Scott sale. Losing him has taken us from a playoff chasing side to lower mid-table. To not reinvest just 4/5 mil of that is incredibly harsh on Pearson. 

I see your point, but Scott was always going to leave us this summer. 

The club should've been prepared for this and had a plan to reinvest a chunk of that income in other players as soon as his sale went through to strengthen the team. We don't even need to spend 1/4 of that to make us better, yet all we hear is that we are at our wage limit so incoming players are unlikely. 

Poor planning in my opinion, especially considering we have a squad bulked out with Academy players no matter how good they might become in the future.

The optimist in me is thinking that we actually aren't playing too badly and will be OK this season although not pushing for top 6 as stated by NP.

The realist in me is thinking that NP has done a brilliant job in dragging us out of a shit storm created  by LJ, MA and both Lansdowms, but now those financial issues have been overcome, the board expect NP to all of a sudden turn us into a top 6 side without the required investment. 

Are we a better side than the one that NP inherited? Without a doubt. Are we as good as the board think we should be? Not a chance.

Without significant investment in the team, we will float around mid-table and I can see NP getting let go, which will be a huge shame.

This club is what it is because of the top brass and the decisions they have made in the past and their expectations for the future. We will never succeed until they either sell up or wake up.

1 hour ago, stephenkibby. said:

Has to be your best post ever.

The irony behind his post is that he has alienated virtually anyone with a brain cell on this forum yet still has the audacity to think that most of us agrees with whatever he posts.

There's all the evidence I need to keep him on my ignore list for another 10 years 

The saying don't feed the troll has never been more apt when it comes to that particular member of this forum. 

Yep, as I've mentioned in another thread, Zak was outstanding.

Commanding, calm and composed. The 3 C's are all you can ask from a CB.

Without him, we.would've been lucky to get the point.

As an aside, I though Dickie played well for a debut but Zak was immaculate throughout. Easily my MOM.

6 hours ago, ExiledAjax said:

I hope you like legal thrillers.

Yep, that's one of John Grishams finest.

1 minute ago, And Its Smith said:

Saying that a poster obviously knows nothing about football is certainly provoking 

I think it says more about the person behind the post rather than the post itself. 

2 hours ago, johnbytheriver said:

Shows you know nothing about football!

Really? 

I played at a semi-pro standard for years and have got FA coaching badges. It's only work that has stopped my doing my UEFA badges.

Besides that, I see football as a team game, not a blame game.

I think you fail to understand that there are 11 other professionals trying to stop our team achieving their aims. 

I find it bizarre that you have stated as fact that a Pro footballer cannot even control the ball. If that was the case there isn't a hope in hell he would've made it as a pro let alone clubs spending good money on signing him. 

Fwiw, Cornick didn't have a great game but neither did the vast majority of our team yesterday and because of that he was starved of service. He can't do well without the ball and players around him giving him outlets.

But hey, if you say I know nothing about football, then who I am I to argue? After all, if I try, you will only bring me down to your level and beat me with experience yeah?

5 hours ago, johnbytheriver said:

My eyes don't decieve me! Cornick can't even trap a ball! He is never going to come good!

That's the spirit. 

Thankfully, we have professionals running the club not knee-jerk reactionists.

I actually didn't think he did too badly yesterday but I suppose haters gotta hate.

On a related note, I though Zak was excellent yesterday and a section of fans were saying the same about him as they are about Cornick in the not too distant past.

Just thinking that the next time Barton is in Crown Court for another crime (which is inevitable), would it go something like this....

Mr Jospeh Barton, do you swear to tell the truth, and nothing nothing but the whole truth?

Yes your honour.....as long as the prosecuting team, the judge and the members of the jury agree to pay a £5.99 monthly subscription fee.

When I tried to pay my card details went in automatically but didn't show on screen. I just typed in my security code and it worked fine.

Also, don't press the play button in the middle of the screen, click anywhere but on that.

2 hours ago, cityal said:

This thread has descended into electricity jokes - things really are in terminal decline

You rwally should look at the positives and not the negatives