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Seen it all before


Aberdeen Pete's Dad

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8 hours ago, Aberdeen Pete's Dad said:

Some things never change. I have heard it all before. LJ out. Sod out. McInnes out. Doherty out Houghton out . Osman out . Dicks out .  Whichever manager we have ever had will never take us to the promised land, apart from Dicks of whom the same was said before he did take us up ( and down again). So all those predictions over the years have proved to be correct.

We ( indeed the whole of the West Country ) has had a total of 4 years of top division football since the First World War - FACT 

Every team  except Millwall and Barnsley have spent more seasons in the top division than we have in the last 100 years- FACT

Every team in the championship except Preston and Brentford have been in the top division since we were last there - FACT

Plymouth is the biggest city never to have played in the top division- FACT

Exeter is the biggest city never to have played in the second tier - FACT

Why do we expect anything different ? Look at our fixtures and compare them with 50 years ago.- Blackburn Cardiff Hull Huddersfield Preston Millwall Charlton Middlesbrough Sheffield Wednesday Birmingham etc etc - pretty well the same. Of course, there are some teams in the Premier League who are smaller than us - Bournemouth ( definitely) Brighton Watford ( arguably) and good luck to them, , but in a few years they will come down again like Swansea and Wigan have done. Of course, for every one of those, there is a Sunderland Ipswich Coventry or Bolton who are below their “ natural” place in the order of things , but they will all come back - eventually. 

We all hope to get to the Premier League, at least for a while, ( although if/ when we do I hope we don’t go down 3 seasons in a row like the last time) , but it isn’t easy playing in a division when the great majority of teams are unquestionably bigger than us, and nearly all of  whom have a greater history. Bournemouth and Brighton have shown that it can be done.

What is it that causes us ( and all West Country teams) to apparently underachieve ? . Players come and go. Managers come and go. Directors come and go. Owners come and go, but for the most part things stay the same.

The only thing that never changes are the fans. However, the majority of those who are quick to come out and criticise after a few bad results, but remain quiet when the team are winning, refuse to even consider the possibility that their anxiety, negativity and pessimism may be  a factor in what many perceive to be the club’s chronic underachievement over decades. They are affronted they anyone should even suggest that this might be so.

It is funny how occasionally things from one’s childhood occasionally stick in the memory. I remember it clearly . Coventry at home in January 1967. We drew 2-2 with a team which won the Second Division that season. Some fans were moaning like they do now about City’s lack of achievement. I can clearly remember saying to my mate that if City were ever to win the First Division (as unlikely then as it is now) , some fans would say that this team will never win the European Cup !

Some things never change. I have heard it all before.

 

I don’t think we can ignore the fact that the atmosphere down the gate is shit most of the time and some of the blame lays at the door of us fans.

The team were boo’d off the pitch at half time after 10+ games unbeaten last season which quite frankly is embarrassing. I said last year, you could feel the tension in the crowd and that MUST affect the players etc.

We have expectations above our post at the minute. There’s no problem with wanting more and having ambition but we can’t have a home atmosphere that EXPECTS to win every game. We’ve always created our best atmospheres as underdogs/against the odds (Palace play off, United/Man City at home for example) 

Our home atmosphere is better in a relegation fight than a promotion battle and that needs resolving first and foremost. None of this “the team needs to give us something to cheer about” shit, we need to get behind the team.

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12 hours ago, Aberdeen Pete's Dad said:

Some things never change. I have heard it all before. LJ out. Sod out. McInnes out. Doherty out Houghton out . Osman out . Dicks out .  Whichever manager we have ever had will never take us to the promised land, apart from Dicks of whom the same was said before he did take us up ( and down again). So all those predictions over the years have proved to be correct.

We ( indeed the whole of the West Country ) has had a total of 4 years of top division football since the First World War - FACT 

Every team  except Millwall and Barnsley have spent more seasons in the top division than we have in the last 100 years- FACT

Every team in the championship except Preston and Brentford have been in the top division since we were last there - FACT

 

You could add to that:

Most expensive Bristol City squad ever assembled - FACT

which has undoubtedly increased expectations.

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I agree it is irritating when someone states FACT. That is why I said it. It is particularly irritating when people give opinion as fact eg Johnson is crap - FACT. I am taking the mickey out of them. At least my facts are facts !

It is true most expensive Bristol City ever assembled -FACT

One final FACT. Most expensive Bristol City sales in any 2 yr period . More than the cost of assembling the current squad.

Happy New Year

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11 hours ago, ashton_fan said:

AD didn't have millions to play with (no manager in Div 2 did in those days) but he wasn't forced to sell his best players either. I'm sure he did moan about the players on occasions although in those days there wasn't much interaction with the Press and there wasn't any internet, and certainly before the promotion season he did make regular changes to the team introducing youngsters and playing experienced players where required as well as dropping players who didn't perform.

Nor were there parachute payments distorting the competition. The financial playing field was far more level.

Of course you are right about keeping key players. If we had 2 players wanted by Arsenal now, as we did then, we would sell like a shot.

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23 minutes ago, Mad Cyril said:

After going up in '68, Coventry went 50 years without finishing above 5th in any division. Bit turgid that.

But finished top ten in the country several times - a 6th place finish, 7th twice, nine seasons better than our best finish of 13th in 78/9 - in those 33 seasons at the top and they won the cup, making their mark upon the national football consciousness something we have never done and never will outside the top division. 

If you are going to be "turgid," then be so at the highest level possible against the best in the land and for clubs like Cov and us there is no shame in that. While Cov were being "turgid" at the top, we were often being crap in Division Three.

Our four seasons from 76 - 80 are remembered fondly by us, but to the rest of the country we were generally pretty "turgid" too, if we are remembered for it at all. In truth, we were unremarkable and largely forgettable to the rest of football. 

We did gain some national notice shortly after that time though, between 80 and 82.

 

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28 minutes ago, Aberdeen Pete's Dad said:

I agree it is irritating when someone states FACT. That is why I said it. It is particularly irritating when people give opinion as fact eg Johnson is crap - FACT. I am taking the mickey out of them. At least my facts are facts !

It is true most expensive Bristol City ever assembled -FACT

One final FACT. Most expensive Bristol City sales in any 2 yr period . More than the cost of assembling the current squad.

Happy New Year

That's also true, but of those sales only one was a player purchased by the current manager, the others were inherited.

Never before, for example, has Bristol City had the luxury of having an £8 million player on the bench, or another example, a £2 million player out on loan for 3 seasons, or another example, a £5 million centre forward who was not a first choice until our loan player was injured, or another example a £3 million goalkeeper, or another example an £8 million centre half with a £4 million centre half not a first choice selection, and so on - all FACTS of course and says to me, looking at the teams above us and their spending power, we are currently slightly under achieving. 

Having said that, 4 games ago we were currently in the play off positions with very few if any suggesting the manager should be sacked. For me the jury is still out on Johnson - which is an improvement on what I thought when he was first appointed -  but even I accept it would be absurd to suggest sacking Johnson on the strength of just 4 games.

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9 hours ago, Aberdeen Pete's Dad said:

33 years of unbeaten top division football would do me nicely, like Coventry who went up in 1967,  especially if it included an FACup win and a season of European football (would have been two were it not foe English clubs ban).

Of course, as you say , we have underperformed for decades. Of course, every club’s fans pay to watch their team and can criticise if they want, but in any one season only 20 teams can play in the Premier League. No one has a right to be there. The moaning of some fans when their team does not make the top 4 to play in the Champions League makes me laugh/ sick.

All I am saying is that fans should consider whether their anxiety and negativity which has gone on for ever,  is a reason why we are an underachieving club. After all, the last 2-3 years have been one of the better spells in the last 100 years - perhaps only our golden era of the 1970s has been better - it was the only time that we have managed more than 6 seasons without being relegated- if we stay up this year it will be our 6 th season. Actually, thinking about it, every time we have managed to stay in the second tier for more than 6 seasons we have gone up shortly afterwards. Perhaps, hope is round the corner !

if Coventry can stay up for 33 years so can we.

Yes, the crowd is too negative, or not encouraging enough. It would be much better if we collectively encouraged the team more and provided a more positive environment for them to go about their work.

But looking at our long long history of under achievement and disappointment when compared to similar sized clubs it really is no great surprise to me that we are lacking in belief and positivity and that the crowd isn't what we would like it to be.

However, to believe that this is the reason why we have been so poor and under achieving for so long is missing the point to my mind, and letting those with the ability and power to direct our fortunes off the hook.

 

 

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