BrizzleRed

19 minutes ago, Numero Uno said:

The first sentence of your last paragraph…….that’s what people need to be wary of, especially if we had a lesser Manager than Nige running the playing side.

Exactly, which is why I’m getting concerned at the lack of credit and backing being offered to NP from above, considering the job he’s done.  The silence is deafening and I pray we aren’t heading for another of his awful footballing decisions.

FWIW, I don’t see see the club’s existance being in any danger under SL’s ownership and the same certainly can’t be assumed under new ownership.  

That said, it feels like we’ve totally stagnated now and honestly can’t see any upward momentum likely under SL, as it looks like he’s completely lost interest in this ‘project’ now.

55 minutes ago, Bristol Oil Services said:

People make judgements about other people using information they are consciously aware of and information they are not consciously aware of. Even stat-minded, analytical people. This is a fact.

People make judgements about other people using cognitive short-cuts, or stereotypes, it saves time and mental energy. So, a short man will be subject to negative stereotypes. Like a ginger haired person, or an obese person. Fact.

Subconsciously, football club owners will have a mental idea of what a leader of highly paid, athletic young men will look like, and it won't be, for the most part, a short man. How many football managers or head coaches do you see of 5'7" or under? There's plenty of players of that height. It is the same subconscious processes that have up until recently hindered the opportunities for black football managers, still will do.

Highly paid professional "show us yer medals" footballers will subconsciously have a mental idea of what a leader looks like. What a football manager looks like.

Football crowds, or fans, are quick to pick up on "difference," and many are not given to careful consideration or sober judgement of facts. 

A six foot plus bloke has a "head" start over a 5'6" bloke. A short man has to do more to convince than a tall man (like chirpily inform you how he has been away with the SAS or a Michelin starred chef) . Because people are irrational, full of cognitive biases, and prone to falling in with the crowd when it comes to making their minds up.

And not everyone realises how they reach their conclusions about other people. Especially blokes (I think this is a Fact!, but I'm not sure. Just looking for the info now ....).

Take all this - not my opinion, but scientific fact - and add in someone thought to have been a beneficiary of nepotism, in his playing days, and his appointment as manager here, and you have a lively cocktail already for supporter ferment and irrational judgements. 

Basically, football is like being back in the playground at primary school. For most of us. A lot of the time.

Come on, lack of height hasn’t held Lionel Messi back, has it?

LJ, with his bullshit bingo and giving the impression of believing he was cleverer than most around him and a tactical genius, whilst the results and performances suggested otherwise were the real cause of the anti-LJ feelings I’d suggest. 

Height was just an additional stick to beat him with by some people.  You’re a plenty smart enough poster to be well aware of that, so that’s a really odd post.

44 minutes ago, Just8 said:

I agree with you, in that I look forward to outside investment or the day when Steve sells to someone a little more football savvy, but I think its unfair to suggest he doesn't want city in the prem or has zero ambition. We all know he threw money at the club previously and I feel its a case of sticking to FFP and a lot of that 'once bitten...' mindset.

Sadly we are in a better position now, yet he is showing little willingness to flex (hence his comittment to stick to a transfer budget mapped out in march, which was based on us keeping Alex).

To say he has no ambition is to over simplify things, but his stubborness and complete lack of desire to engage with the fanbase (through Jon, the CEO or himself) will lead fans to assume he has none.

Fair enough, but just a couple of points I’ll pick up on about SL’s ambition.  Cast your mind back to our Championship Play-off season under GJ.  We were going great at the top of the table and we could see the promised land becoming a real possibility.  We then hit some injuries and our form started dropping off in the run-in and we found ourselves battling with Stoke for the last auto spot.

This was our big chance to go for it.  Now Stoke strengthened significantly, while we did nothing and we all know the eventual outcome.  Did that look like SL REALLY wanted it?

Then we have the SC period and we had some great momentum and a great side when  we came up as Champions from League 1.  Does it really looked like he viewed that as an opportunity to ride that crest of a wave and make a push for the next level?  It certainly didn’t look like it to me!

Now onto your point that he has splashed the cash at times, where I completely agree, though maybe not for the same reasons.  The most obvious case is under LJ’s tenure and I’ve got a theory on that one.  Although LJ gets a massive amount of stick and I’m not a fan of his, I suspect this splashing of cash was down to MA.

As I said, just a theory, but SL has constantly talked about his aim to make us sustainable.  What if a certain snake oil salesman came in and told him something along the lines of ‘if you want to make your club sustainable, I’m your man! I’ve got an extensive scouting network and can pick you up some real gems, which you can sell on for mega-money.  It’ll take a significant investment to start with, but as a money man, you’ll appreciate you have to speculate to accumulate’.

Purely conjecture, but it would certainly explain why he suddenly released the purse strings and it did work for a while, which may explain why he continued to chuck money around like there was no tomorrow.  This then began to go horribly wrong and SL suddenly finds himself with his pants around his ankles and seeing a shiny suit on its toes, heading in the direction of East Anglia!

I don’t think that spending spree signalled any real ambition to reach the Prem and was just a vain attempt to attain the sustainabilty he’d always wanted. Another of the many examples of bad footballing decisions made by SL.

I honestly believe he’s done things for the right reasons for the club, but unfortunately he clearly makes infinitely better decisions as a financier than he does as a football club owner!

2 hours ago, exAtyeoMax said:

Yes it has made me sad.

I wonder if SL still believes it himself, deep down. #AlwaysBelieve.

I doubt if he does to be honest.  

I suspect he’s decided after years of trying, that he’s reached his limit with City.  It looks like he’s now viewing the collective package of Bristol Sport as his legacy and City are just a part of that, rather than the main focus of his attention.

He certainly doesn’t look keen on giving the financial backing to us any more, so likely decided he can get far more bang for his bucks in the other areas of BS.

1 hour ago, Davefevs said:

There’s a big difference to listening to what your owner says and believing his aspirations.

There’s a big difference to listening to what your owner says and basing a decision to buy a season ticket on that.

I read very little on here of people being sucked in as you suggest.

I think most on here are just highlighting that he’s talking crap again, and in a lot of cases want him / can’t wait for him to sell-up.  I’m in that camp.

 

Maybe I’m overestimating the SL fanbase on here then Dave.  I’m well aware there are plenty who’ll question him, but there also seem to be a fair number who’ll spout the ‘look at everything he’s done for us’, ‘we wouldn’t have a club without SL’ and ‘be careful what you wish for’ line, when anyone mentions any desire for new ownership.

For the record, I’m firmly in the same camp as you and think we’ve gone totally stale under his ownership.  Imho, if he doesn’t sell up soon, I fear we’ll begin a steady slide backwards, especially if he’s decided he no longer wants to fund the club.  

As we all know, the Championship can be brutal if you take your eye off the ball, or get complacent.  SL has never been dynamic, so I’d love to see an injection of ambition and energy at the top, to help lift this club out of its self-imposed stagnation.   Oh for some belief that this club is genuinely striving for some success, rather than just pretending.

2 minutes ago, Numero Uno said:

Why though? Can't you look at the squad YOURSELF and make your own mind up on whether we have a chance of being in the mix or not? I can only speak for myself and say that if my reasoning for buying a season ticket was to watch us get promoted to the Premiership I would have knocked it on the head some time ago. I buy mine because I enjoy going to football not because I listen to anything that comes out of Steve Lansdown's mouth and froth at the mouth like some Rabid Gashead. Anyone who has yet to understand he has a very limited knowledge of football as in the game itself must have been in hiding for the last twenty plus years........

This is the point though.  Of course we can look at the squad and realise we’re short.  That’s why I think there’s a serious lack of belief or real optimism within the fanbase, especially ones of a mature age.  

I haven’t especially enjoyed going to the Gate for some time, but keep renewing each year anyway, out of loyalty to the club.  I’m certainly not doing that in the expectation we’ll be going up, and would actually be totally shocked if we did.  

There are plenty on here who go on about Steve saying this and Steve saying that though, so they are obviously believing that whatever he says, he must mean it and be ‘telling it as it is’.  He just needs to say he ultimately wants promotion and there will be plenty who will take him as his word.  I’m personally well past taking any notice of that sort of guff now.

It just feels a bit sad and slightly depressing when your lifelong club appear to have zero ambition to progress.  I suspect that lack of  aspiration and drive also contributes to the flat matchday atmosphere people constantly bang on about on here!

8 hours ago, exAtyeoMax said:

Yes, totally. Plus it could unsettle the players, coaches etc.

That spirit you mention is so very important…it has a 2015 back in the championship vibe about it. That loss of momentum then was catastrophic, and could happen again now…

And this is something people need to remember every time we sell one of our young stars.  

In the event of a Prem club coming in for one of our rising young stars, how can we hope to persuade them to stay with us, when we show such a lack of true ambition to reach that level ourselves.

Talk is cheap, but his actions over many years indicate to me that SL is frightened of the thought of the Premier League and has no intention or ambition for us to get there under his watch.

I reckon his ambition ceiling is the Championship, where fans can always dream that the Prem is only one great season away.  We get played like a fish on a hook, with the odd throwaway comment about our ambition for promotion and we swallow it hook, line and sinker and ST sales continue holding up.  This summer has been particularly blatant and somewhat cynical and leaves a bad taste.

Sadly, believing ‘spin’ is an area where we’re uncomfortably close to the Sags by accepting bs all to readily.

16 minutes ago, 1960maaan said:

Curtains , sprinklers , awning and a mural ....... pretty much a new stadium right there 

….. oh and we forgot the new tarmac!  A trip to the Go Outdoors end of season sales and it’ll be as good as done.  

22 minutes ago, 1960maaan said:

So they had a chance at the UWE,  12 years ago. That one they wouldn't have owned and UWE would have taken a cut in revenue. 
They didn't like that as money from the Mem would have been their input into the ground.
The Fruit-i-had , they wouldn't have owned ( long lease ) and CONYGAR would have had a share in revenue. 
The sale of the Mem going towards the build . 
So that sounds the same to me , only they would have been in years ago.

Now they are going to redecorate the Mem, which they could have started 10 years ago . 

absolute shambles FC ?

BRF see how incompetent 

 

Well, at least they’ve already got the new curtains towrds it!!!

1 hour ago, Gert Mare said:

Yeah, Pirate Gas has done some further research and has come up with this…..

As you previously pointed out the Al Elmam Real Estate Company website ( www.elmamrealestate.com/ ) was last updated a decade ago and had little evidence of any activity anyway and the Foodco. Website also doesn't reveal much as it seems the small Al Firya Kuwaiti Restaurant has permanently closed (link on website doesn't work anyway) and the other two links to the restaurant franchise chains of Buffalo's Cafe and Quiznos that Mr Al-Saeed owns the franchisee rights to are also broken and unaccessable. I'm still wondering and fascinated to know how they made their fortune and what other business interests they are involved in that enabled them to buy into a League One football club? 
 

 “Stick a pony in me pocket……”

 

I’m beginning to think that the ‘G’ in their much loved acronym is for ‘Gift’ not ‘Gas’. Up the Gift!  

… well, you can safely say McDonalds have nothing to fear from that lot, looking at your evidence.  Come to that, the local cafe would probably piss all over them too!

11 hours ago, pongo88 said:

Perhaps it’s just a case of stupidity by the new owner, who knows nothing about football - e.g. 5.00 pm Wael phones him to say he can have a deal at £800k. He checks the piggy bank and decides it’s just about possible. Later he realises it’s £800k + £200k add ons + 3 years salary + agents fee. That’s when panic set in and the cunning plan of missing the deadline was devised 

Not a bad shout there.  I honestly couldn’t believe it when I heard they’d supposedly landed him for 800k.  So out of character for those losers to bid that kind of money, when the Tilson record had stood for so long.  

I did wonder if it was more cynical and calculated than that though.  I certainly wouldn’t put it past them to try and con their imbicile fanbase by supposedly bidding big, but with no intention of actually following it through, hence the last minute hitch..

The result is that their bunch of simpletons are now thinking their new invester is loaded, so it’ll be interesting to see if he follows it up next transfer window.

36 minutes ago, Alessandro said:

I’ll sneak this post in on the back of a win….

But is SL potentially playing a blinder here?

(Takeovers aside for now…) Hear me out.

He’s spoken about a ‘nest egg’ and given the squad time to ‘develop’

Interestingly since City started down the path of developing way to success, I was thinking this is the first time in 5 plus years we actually have the potential that a core of our young squad hit their peak performance windows simultaneously:

Pring, Vyner, Dickie, McCrorie, Roberts, Tanner, Atkinson, Knight, Sykes, Bell, Conway, Mehmeti all on good long contracts, all heading to that window at the same time.

It feels like this season is at least one season too early for several of them (especially with injuries) - so what I’m getting at is, perhaps the club have recognised we’re still working our way up the development ladder and additional spending this season may have been wasted. We have enough quality to stay up, give the current squad chance to get games and don’t block minutes for the next group coming through for now. Save spending till next summer or summer after with more of the above players hitting their prime peak, any new academy products making their mark and 3 or 4 real quality additions in the spaces left by the older members of the squad and go for it then.

Patience doesn’t tend to go hand and hand in football, but keep this squad together and developing, losing only one or two to big money prem moves (notice we don’t lose our best players to Championship rivals anymore) and we’re in one hell of a position in the coming years IMO.

For the first time, you can see shoots of the plan working - reasons to be positive. Or perhaps I’m just a deluded disciple - answers on a postcard.

Nice idea, but I fear it’s far more likely any of the young ones who develop this season will go the same way as the previous young stars and get added to the ‘nest egg’!

I’d really love to be wrong though

2 hours ago, Shauntaylor85 said:

No matter how bad or frustrated we can be, imagine how they must feel! Can always rely on the Gas to cheer us up!

This ....... a bleeding' depressing final day of the transfer window, only lifted in part by the cynically delayed news of Zak signing a new contract.  Then the gift come to the rescue and we all end up pissing ourselves.  In all my 65 years of life, I never dreamed the sags could possibly maintain this level of tinpotness and total incompetence for so long.

Only sobering thought is they're showing a level of ambition that is sadly lacking in SL, so it's lucky they are such a total shambles. 

4 hours ago, The hand of RO'D said:

Excited with the prospect of Nige potentially leaving after this season?

Controversial post I know. Now, don’t get me wrong, the job he has done to this point has been great. He has trimmed the wage bill and has had limited funds at his disposal since he’s arrived which could be detrimental to how his success will be perceived in years to come. Look at when Leicester won the premier league, a lot of credit came Niges way from the players who were involved who said if it wasn’t for Nige sorting issues behind the scenes they wouldn’t have had that success. Are we at a similar crossroads?

The football since he’s taken over hasn’t been great. We had terrible form at home for a long time, struggled to take the game to the opposition and have treaded water in mid table for his reign. Has Nige sorted the club out off the pitch but has subsequently ran his course with the club? Is SL ready to take the plunge in another manager with fresh ideas who will bring, in my opinion, a much needed footballing identity to the club? Perhaps why we’re seeing the purse strings tightened after the sale of Scott & Semenyo?

Entitely my opinion but I feel we need a new coach, not a manager, with a clear footballing identity and style of play to take us to the next level.

Imho we’ve got the best man for the job …. as long as he’s properly backed by the ‘man at the top’..

As for your final paragraph, bear in mind we’re talking about Bristol City here.  How likely would it be for us to employ a new manager who’ll not want any of our current squad and want to rip it up and start again?  I may be old and cynical, but I reckon it’s practically nailed on!!!

1 hour ago, Monkeh said:

We could write a book.on the gaffs the blue few have made :laugh:,

The statement telling us only spurs have done more to their ground then rovers, that was a good one

Yeah, book with a title of Mind the Gaff might have some legs.  

Have to be oversize though, as there’s so much to pack in!

1 hour ago, And Its Smith said:

There were no signs it was going to improve. We were going down under SOD.  Terrible football and awful results. The players we had were not world beaters but were better than he produced.  I remember one game where his tactic was to put Baldock right wing and smash balls to him. Embarrassing.  

Horrible memories od those dark times.  Our tactics seemed to have consisted of knocking at least 20 aimless, square passes across our defence, before smashing an aimless ball forward to nobody in particular.  This would usually result in giving possetion to the opposition attack and we’d either be picking the ball out of our net, or rinsing repeating the sad process.

Excitement level was zero, and the only time my arse would leave the seat in the 90 minutes was at half time!

He’s been widely credited for sowing the seeds of our current academy and for that, we can be eternally grateful.  As a Head Coach though, that has to be one of our darkest times as supporters.

24 minutes ago, pongo88 said:

I agree entirely. In the first referendum I voted for a mayor for the reasons you mentioned. Then we got, as you say, two right pillocks so I realised the error of my ways and voted to get rid of an elected mayor in the second referendum 

Yeah, in theory the Mayor was a good idea, but needed the right person in the job …… that’s where the plan went horribly wrong!!!

3 hours ago, pongo88 said:

I agree that the issues you mention are crazy but a couple of them are not the fault of Bristol City Council. In 2012 a referendum voted to have an elected mayor in Bristol and the first incumbent was red trousers George Ferguson. The mayor, who is separate from the Lord Mayor, has dictatorial powers and can make decisions without the support of the elected councillors. The decision to move the arena the Patchway was taken by the second mayor, Marvin Rees.  Thankfully, the voters saw how crazy having an elected mayor was, and following a second referendum the post was abolished as from 2024. The Portishead railway line is also not under the control of the local councillors. However, the park and ride is operated by the council, but not wholly owned by the council. The council has been trying to amend the opening hours for several years without success. Whether this is the fault of the current councillors or the original contract is unclear 

Bear in mind, one of the main reasons Bristolians voted for a Mayor in the first place was due to the fact there was a hung Council for years.  Remember the days when there was constant political in-fighting within the Council, who seemed therefore seemed incapable of making any meaningful decisions.

Big problem was, the mayoral solution didn’t work either, because the two who got the gig turned out to be right pillocks!!  

12 minutes ago, Bar BS3 said:

Surely, by nature, the best solution to that would be for there to be a steady flow of busses from the park & ride, dropping off outside the stadium.

It utterly ridiculous that there is a park & ride site, a stones throw from Ashton Gate, yet it's such an issue to park near the ground & the park & ride option isn't open to use..!

If people can't safely walk between the 2, then fair enough - but why not be able to park & ride, from the park & ride.?!

That’s Bristol for you!  

I remember going to Brighton a few years ago. Stayed in a hotel in Lewes and having a match ticket meant you could get a return ticket on the train for £1.50, which dropped you at the station by the Amex!  
 

Contrast that with Bristol, where we bring in loads of local traffic restrictions, whilst introducing a new Metrobus which doesn’t have a dedicated stop for the stadium; have a nearby Park & Ride which often can’t be used on matchdays and talk of reopening the Portishead line, but practically ignoring Ashton Gate Halt.  

You could be forgiven for thinking Bristol doesn’t actually want a successful football club and is actually literally throwing rocks on the tracks to hold the club back, by preventing supporters getting to games!

The older I get, the more I dispair of this city and it’s little wonder they get f all of note done.

59 minutes ago, SirColinOfMansfield said:

 

You will be better off with a fabric dye ... perfect for any tent!

DYLON Fabric Dyes are the easy way to add colour to your home, wardrobe & dilapidated football stadium. From all colours bright and beautiful to rich and intense shades

Now that would be handy if you can find where their home kit storage tent is!

51 minutes ago, mozo said:

On what basis should Sheffield Wednesday be shorter odds than us? I really dint get that. They barely got promoted from League 1 by the skin of their teeth, they done have money to spend, they dont have squad depth (sorry, Tyreeq) and they done have any virtuoso players.

To be fair to Wednesday, they may have only got promoted via the play-off’s, but don’t forget they were only 3 points short of our points haul when we finished as Champions under Cotts.  

They pushed the top right to the end, so can’t be too shabby.

3 minutes ago, gl2 said:

At 70 plus yes I remember.......so lets say we finish next season in 3rd and end up at Wembers against a 6th place team but were 10points ahead of them at the end of the season, the 6th place team get a dodgey pen and we lose the game= madness and not many happy bunnies on here.

Why not have play offs at top and bottom of the leagues then?

Point being we all play each other twice, top 3 up bottom 3 down, the best 3 over the season should go up not the top 2... plus 3rd, 4th, 5th or 6th....... why stop at 6th then, lets all play each other again in the new super improved play offs involving all the teams.

We wouldn’t be that happy if we were in Luton’s position, but that’s the way it goes.  There’s way more interest at the end of the season now than there used to be, that’s for sure and it’s hard to argue that it isn’t for the greater good for spectators.

As for teams in a relegation fight being involved in play offs, didn’t we relegate Sheff U in one of our play off battles?!

13 minutes ago, gl2 said:

The wife just watched Coventry fans getting all excited on local news about their big day tomorrow; "What final is this" ...play off final I said then had to try and explain why a team can finish 10 points behind Luton 3rd place and yet have a chance of beating them to the top division.

Madness she said why cant the top 3 go up just as the bottom 3 go down?

Well maybe something to do with someone making money, got to agree the season should be the season imo, top 3 should go up and bottom 3 down...the end.

The season shouldnt come down to an overpriced one off game where a bit of luck could swing it one way or another...........what next?..... top team goes up and the next 8 play off against each other......madness but watch this space over the coming years.

3up, 3 down simple

 

Maybe you aren’t old enough to remember how many meaninless games we had to endure at the end of the season, before the play offs were introduced. 

Not the perfect solution granted, but keeps the season alive for so many more teams now and their supportsrs now.

16 hours ago, redordead1 said:

Taking photos of people’s private devices from behind them without their consent is concerning behaviour and not something I’d be advertising.

Hope this doesn’t creep into other areas of your life. 

Mods - would suggest this is removed.

Better tell the club to stop filming us then!!!

1 hour ago, Oh Louie louie said:

Anybody knows the biggest insult in football is to Train with the kids. I'm sure the city players do enjoy working with the kids port, but they ain't being painted as wrong uns and doing three o clock sessions I'd wager

Yes and when I read that, I immediately thought Lee Tomlin.

If his attitude was really as bad as was reported, you definitely wouldn’t want that example being shown to your younger players

Senior pros like King, Klose etc would be great role models for younger players, but to to expose them to the more troublesome members of the squad sounds a very odd way of working to me.