Major Isewater Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Bristol is my town and a beautiful place to live but I have also lived in Norwich which is equally beautiful and that doesn’t seem to have hurt them. What is the difference ? Why have the Canaries been so successful and we’ve stayed relatively still ? When I was a youngster Norwich were a third division club and a bit of a joke. They have a lovely ground in the city centre and great training facilities. They are two hours from anywhere but still attract quality players. It is amazing what they’ve achieved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
East Yorkshire CideRed Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 I remember a talented lad in my school being scouted by Norwich City back in the early 90s. Always seemed bizarre that a club from East Anglia would have scouts in Bristol. But perhaps therein lay the difference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archie andrews Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 They got alan partridge we got john darvall.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveybadger Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Maybe that 2 hours from anywhere is actually an advantage? Apart from that in the past they have possibly been better run than us, on and off the pitch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red_Alligator Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Delia. She's a nutter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon bristol Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Just now, Red_Alligator said: Delia. She's a nutter. She is on the board there and we have lansdown,,, no one would swap steve for her yet they have out performed us for years in pretty much all areas, apart from investment in their stadium in the last 5 years i suppose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phileas Fogg Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 16 minutes ago, Major Isewater said: Bristol is my town and a beautiful place to live but I have also lived in Norwich which is equally beautiful and that doesn’t seem to have hurt them. What is the difference ? Why have the Canaries been so successful and we’ve stayed relatively still ? When I was a youngster Norwich were a third division club and a bit of a joke. They have a lovely ground in the city centre and great training facilities. They are two hours from anywhere but still attract quality players. It is amazing what they’ve achieved. There isn't really a correlation between a town being 'nice' and the team being successful. Many of the successful Northern footballing cities are very nice and it hasn't stopped them. One thing we do have that's a disadvantage is lack of proximity to other successful clubs. It means we are less of an option for players who don't quite make the grade at Prem level and need to drop down a level. It's really helped teams like Brentford for example over the years. A successful team is just the result of effective decision making in player recruitment, manager recruitment and then a bit of luck. A club's situation can change very quickly - look at Leicester, Sheffield United and Bournemouth just a few years back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBB Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 20 minutes ago, East Yorkshire CideRed said: I remember a talented lad in my school being scouted by Norwich City back in the early 90s. Always seemed bizarre that a club from East Anglia would have scouts in Bristol. But perhaps therein lay the difference? I knew 4-5 local lads who were at Norwich around that time. Not sure what it’s like now but they had a strong network down here then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reigate Red Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 I have often wondered the same. It's often stated that Bristol is not a location that attracts players as it is distant from London/Midlands/etc where they would rather be - but the same (even more so) could be said of Norwich. They do seem to have good gates but then they are typically either in the prem or fighting for promotion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Isewater Posted April 26, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 14 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said: There isn't really a correlation between a town being 'nice' and the team being successful. Many of the successful Northern footballing cities are very nice and it hasn't stopped them. One thing we do have that's a disadvantage is lack of proximity to other successful clubs. It means we are less of an option for players who don't quite make the grade at Prem level and need to drop down a level. It's really helped teams like Brentford for example over the years. A successful team is just the result of effective decision making in player recruitment, manager recruitment and then a bit of luck. A club's situation can change very quickly - look at Leicester, Sheffield United and Bournemouth just a few years back. For many years Norwich bought in Spurs players who didn’t quite make the grade in London. They , also , don’t benefit from Prem clubs on their doorstep but I agree with you about Brentford and Preston are a club who have often had Man Utd cast offs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbored Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 24 minutes ago, steveybadger said: Apart from that in the past they have possibly been better run than us, on and off the pitch? Absolutely right. It really is that simple. City now have the infrastructure to be a PL side. It’s just the most important two factors that are missing, a proven manager and a squad capable of achieving promotion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phileas Fogg Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 4 minutes ago, Major Isewater said: For many years Norwich bought in Spurs players who didn’t quite make the grade in London. They , also , don’t benefit from Prem clubs on their doorstep but I agree with you about Brentford and Preston are a club who have often had Man Utd cast offs. Proximity isn't the only reason for why a team can attract players, but it plays a part. As you say, Preston and Brentford have benefitted from this. Blackburn also is another good example. Being in London is a big draw for foreign players particularly - although apparently we've really improved how we sell Bristol to foreign players. That side of it is a big part of our international recruitment and something we've really improved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinmans Love Child Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 59 minutes ago, East Yorkshire CideRed said: I remember a talented lad in my school being scouted by Norwich City back in the early 90s. Always seemed bizarre that a club from East Anglia would have scouts in Bristol. But perhaps therein lay the difference? Bradley Andrew’s? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milo1111 Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 53 minutes ago, steveybadger said: Maybe that 2 hours from anywhere is actually an advantage? Apart from that in the past they have possibly been better run than us, on and off the pitch? It’s 100% that they have been run better all day long. We have been poorly run really. Not in a reckless crazy foreign owner kind of way but in a naive and just lacking that drive and ruthless streak. Placing too much faith in the wrong people because they are nice. we have a CEO who has assembled a squad full of cowardly dross and our owner thinks he is some sort of messiah. Says it all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh Louie louie Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Keith Floyd lived local, at one point. The daddy of regional chefs. And he could hold his drink, unlike mrs smith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tin Soldier Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 1 hour ago, steveybadger said: Maybe that 2 hours from anywhere is actually an advantage? Apart from that in the past they have possibly been better run than us, on and off the pitch? Precisely, we can attract good players also, Andy Cole, Tammy Abraham’s came here amongst others. Most actually enjoy it here. Andy Cole speaks very well of Bristol. BUT Bristol City FC is a shambles when you compare how it is run v Norwich. Norwich’s scouting network is well known to be excellent (as are others such as Southampton who have had a presence around Bristol for many years), just to name one. Southampton’s local scout lived near me (I know him well) and he has good connections around Ashton Gate and other local clubs along with amateur football around the south west including Bristol. Bristol City FC are light years behind them. I am sure NP will have raised this with SL at some stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
East Yorkshire CideRed Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 2 hours ago, Tinmans Love Child said: Bradley Andrew’s? Yeah. That's was him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
054123 Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 3 hours ago, Major Isewater said: Bristol is my town and a beautiful place to live but I have also lived in Norwich which is equally beautiful and that doesn’t seem to have hurt them. What is the difference ? Why have the Canaries been so successful and we’ve stayed relatively still ? When I was a youngster Norwich were a third division club and a bit of a joke. They have a lovely ground in the city centre and great training facilities. They are two hours from anywhere but still attract quality players. It is amazing what they’ve achieved. Norwich is lovely. If there was a Norwich Rovers which split the city I doubt that Norwich City would be as successful. Sheffield, Liverpool, Manchester etc. have historically been more passionate about their football. If Bristol only had one club, I firmly believe it’s football history would have been much different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Isewater Posted April 26, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 9 minutes ago, 054123 said: Norwich is lovely. If there was a Norwich Rovers which split the city I doubt that Norwich City would be as successful. Sheffield, Liverpool, Manchester etc. have historically been more passionate about their football. If Bristol only had one club, I firmly believe it’s football history would have been much different. Do you honestly believe that without us the Gas would be in the Prem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phileas Fogg Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 1 minute ago, Major Isewater said: Do you honestly believe that without us the Gas would be in the Prem? Well it's possible, who knows. One club in a large city like Bristol is far more attractive for investment. Easy to aftertime about these sort of things, but theoretically the only club in Bristol would've had Bryan, Kelly, Reid and all our other successful academy products over the years. I think it's far more likely a one club Bristol would've had a prem team by now, although the amount of 2 club cities who've had footballing success proves it isn't a prerequisite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneCity Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Bristol itself is not to blame, Bristol itself is just fine. It really is all about how the club is run. If you look back to the 70s, we were a top flight team then. We had no problem attracting quality players (Hunter, Royle, et al), and even prior to that, in building that promotion side, we had no problem attracting top talent from even as far away as Scotland (that squad had a number of Scots). Back then everything was peachy. City's success (or lack of since the 70s) has been entirely commensurate with how the club has been run, from administration at the executive level, through to scouting and recruitment, down to training and team management, ethos, and culture. That's what I automatically think of when someone says infrastructure, or the 'DNA of a club'. If the DNA is lacking or broken that translates to the product on the field. Basically, garbage in garbage out. There's nothing wrong with Bristol at all, the city or its location. If you're looking to explain the last forty years, and why it hasn't been good enough, why we haven't lived up to expectations of the club's potential (given the size of the city) all faults lie with the infrastructure in place. Success on the field is proportionate to the framework off it. For Norwich, or Southampton, both less than half the size of Bristol and just as distant from 'big' football centres, theirs - over the same 40 year period - must have been in much better shape than ours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCFCinNW6 Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 No rugby in Norwich either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slartibartfast Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 4 hours ago, SBB said: I knew 4-5 local lads who were at Norwich around that time. Not sure what it’s like now but they had a strong network down here then. Used to be Ron Veal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
054123 Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 2 hours ago, Major Isewater said: Do you honestly believe that without us the Gas would be in the Prem? Somebody would Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laner Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 31 minutes ago, 054123 said: Somebody would About a million of them if that recent tweet is to be believed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr X Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 I always think it's an excuse when people say Bristol's location and rugby support is the deep lying issue with the club not being successful. Swansea are significantly further from Premier League clubs than us and you'd think there's greater support for rugby around Swansea than Bristol and yet they've had a significant recent spell in the Premier League and may get promoted back again this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter1450 Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 Delia showed more passion in her drunken half time rant than Steve has in 20 years spent shuffling between league 1 and the championship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBB Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 3 hours ago, slartibartfast said: Used to be Ron Veal. Not heard that name in a long time! Was a Villa scout for a while too, I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arsene's Wanger Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 5 hours ago, 054123 said: Norwich is lovely. If there was a Norwich Rovers which split the city I doubt that Norwich City would be as successful. Sheffield, Liverpool, Manchester etc. have historically been more passionate about their football. If Bristol only had one club, I firmly believe it’s football history would have been much different. Probably time for a merger then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red_Alligator Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 8 minutes ago, Arsene's Wanger said: Probably time for a merger then. Or a takeover and quiet disappearance????! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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