ray savino

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Yes, think that’s right. He came up from Plymouth with another young striker called Kevin Griffin. Think Brum made him a very good offer that we couldn’t compete with. We signed Griffin, although he was a decent prospect, not in same league as Francis, so we kind of missed out there you might say. I think Kevin Griffin played a few first team games for us but never fulfilled the promise he originally had. Francis was a great player but was in the era when Keegan was around. Always rated Francis a better footballer than Keegan, but Keegan just had that extra workrate, energy and enthusiasm and more of the team player time that Revie liked. Greenwood seemed a bit more sympathetic to playing more flair players like Francis. He also performed well in Italy, which like Brady, Souness, Wilkins was no mean feat at that time.

Strange with all the talk of Alex Scott going to the Prem. Chris Garland was the young starlet that everyone chatted about going to play at the top level when I started watching City. Upset when he went to Chelsea, but no one blamed him because we all wanted the local boy to do well. Believe the fee (£110,000?) helped pay for the Dolman Stand! Really was the local hero especially the night his goals beat Liverpool at an overpacked Gate and helped keep up us up in our first season back in the top flight.

RIP Chris. So sad. Condolences to all his family and friends.

Thank you very much FM!

One of my favourite footballers in the seventies. Always thought underrated. Sad news. RIP John Hollins.

Marley Watkins starting in the line up today!

Football’s all about the emotions. That’s why it appeals. During a game we all get frustrated and can slag off a player for messing up, etc. Then with the chance to reflect or see a replay can have a totally different opinion. I get the frustration when it is genuinely a poor performance or the attitude looks bad from a player/the team, but I don’t get continuously slagging players off when we had a match like the other night v Boro. Yes there were things that were wrong, i.e. annoyed for their goals when we couldn’t clear our lines or stop the cross, but all in all was a good game with both teams going to try to win. Good entertainment, City might deserve some constructive criticism in most games, but overall put in a shift, played some neat football and competed. We’re no worse or better than most clubs. Nature of football, game of opinions. We all think we know better, especially in the heat of the moment. I’ll have a moan cos we all want to see City win, but as I’ve had years of our under achievement, I appreciate and thoroughly enjoy a good honest match like the other night, despite the frustrations of the result.

Funny, I was thinking about starting a topic like this earler, prompted by yesterdays match reaction threads. The result was disappointing or more frustrating in the end. This probably has been the theme to the last few seasons. But all in all, I really enjoyed the match, and generally (apart from a few crap performances) I’ve enjoyed the games. Yestrerdays was a good game of football, action, goals, excitement, entertainment form both teams. Pearson has got us more competitive which is the biggest plus alongside introducing young academy prospects who generally don’t look out of place. The big key to this now is to continue to build on this direction and get us to the Millwall/Coventry/ Luton/ Preston attitude of the past few seasons. Pearson has perhaps helped us all as a club to face up to the truth that we’ve historically been a bit nice as a club and we’ve got to get a more hungry attitude around the whole place. So I hope that we can start to properly compete for psomotion next season, and above all play the type of entertaining football that we have began to see this year. I’ve actually started to look forward to attending matches again this season.

Football support is emotional, tribal, fickle, impatient and quite often (especially supporting City at times) irrational. I’ve left the ground after games cussing almost every manager we’ve had over the years during a bad run, and only later may think I was wrong let alone admit it! Reality often comes somewhere in the middle. Pearson’s had some crap results since he came, not surprising given the mess we’ve been in, but nonetheless crap. Given we support a club that has promised a lot at times but delivered disappointment, it’s not surprising we as fans feel so frustrated. What I do like about Pearson is that he has told so home truths to the club and us as supporters that we’ve got to be show less of the cosy west country club approach and develop a more driven attitude to getting success. If he ultimately doesn’t deliver the success, he will hopefully laid the groundwork for someone to do it. He’s built foundations before, knows what it takes. Although we could argue this was a long time ago now and tactics, styles may develop on the field over the years, the principles of building a driven, hungry culture that fosters collective spirit doesn’t change that much.

Steady on everybody! A month ago we were nailed on for relegation after Boxing Day defeat to WBA, now play-off possibilities. To be fair it’s nice there’s a bit more positivity around and nothing is impossible, but I do think that it is pretty improbable! After the ups and downs of the last few seasons I would be seriously happy if we could end up in the top ten, consistent signs of good results and performances, and plans in place to action over the pre-season to make us seriously competitive next season, to account for with or without Alex Scott’s presence in our team. That’s not a touch of the complacent “it’ll do” attitude. I certainly think we should approach every game with a play-off chasing attitude, aim high, etc., but just keeping my supporters feet on the ground after a few good and well deserved results. Meanwhile I’ve felt more entertained by the action at Ashton Gate, can’t wait for matches again and hope it continues till the end of this season... and crowd and team spirit continues to grow together ready for next season.

Yes, got to say he looks the most assured and mature 19 year old I’ve seen play for City, and started going in 1966. Gow was a great inspirational midfield player (more of a destroyer who could play as well), but I would say that at this moment Scott looks to have the most potential and talent of home developed players I’ve seen at the Gate. To look on that pitch today, he played as though he’d been playing at this level for someone having 10 years more experience. What he lacks over the likes of Mount and Grealish at a similar age is probably that explosive goal at the moment. If he can add more goals to his own game (I think he can) then he’s going to a top six team because he looks to have all the tools to become the complete midfield player.

Part of the cost cutting exercise. If we were in a stable position we would probably be considering upping our offer to him and he ’d be part of our long term planning. Move him now instead of him leaving in the summer for nothing. Every little helps, etc. I like Bentley, decent keeper, more experienced and overall a better keeper on his day than Max (at this stage of his career), but he ain’t going to keep us up on his own. He isn’t going to make a Peter Shilton difference to our team (if I remember correctly, Cloughie inferred that spending big money on the goalie was as important as on a striker). If we go down it will be because of loads of problems unless Max resorts to throwing the ball in the net every game. Max isn’t the best goalie in the league, but he isn’t that bad and I think we need to free up space to get in extra bodies that will have an influence on the game and try preventing the ball getting anywhere near Max. Cover is the big question undoubtedly. I can only assume we will get in adequate cover until the end of the season. If not then then I think we will be taking a crazy risk, so there must be cover lined up. Meanwhile, good luck to Bents, good move for him, like most at this level he’s made mistakes but has also been outstanding in some performances. He also appears to have conducted himself well in representing the club off the field so wish him well. We should get behind Max, he’s been pretty good and consistently solid in most games. The biggest thing is to get to the summer and stay in this league, to sort out the last of the contracts and start to build again. Just a reminder, we’re skint as far as FFP rules are concerned. It breaks my heart when I see clubs perceived smaller and poorer than us taking on players of a seemingly decent calibre. We’re in this mess because the club have been reckless in it’s use of recuitment funds trying to chase the dream. It failed. Now we’ve got to start again, hence getting rid of a very good Championship keeper who we can no longer fit into our new wage structure. Sad but that’s the reality. Something I’ve had to get my head around and a lot of our fellow fans have difficulty with too. I just hope that our owners have learned the lesson of the McGinnis and SOD era and we don’t end up going down again obviously.

It’s frustration, simple as. We all feel it I think. No problem with people protesting but as others have said, while there are lots of things that seem to have gone wrong with the club and certainly flaws at board level, we are pretty much like the majority of clubs and fans up and down the country. Believe me, I’ve lived up and down the country and the supporters are no different. I don’t think the need to protest is that strong and is misplaced in the context of football and all of the shady crap that has gone on at loads of other clubs compared to our club’s current situation. However fair play to any of those protesters that go home and away in all weathers to stomach some of the poor showings we’ve consistently endured over the last few (and more) years. I get the frustration and it’s their right to do this if they want. All I can say is that I hope we can see some constructive ideas and proposals from them apart from the Pearson Out chant. If he goes, he goes. We might strike lucky for another 12 months till things start to get mediocre again. But to me it’s the structures involved in making the managerial appointments that needs putting right. And maybe that is going on behind the scenes now. Who knows... We are not a successful club, we don’t have bulging trophy cabinets. I was thinking the other day that the only team in the west country to have actually got to the Prem and won a recognised major trophy is Swindon Town, 1969 League Cup and 1993(?) Prem. We might not like that fact, but that’s it. Granted we had some early years in Div 1 and a Cup Final, four years in Div 1 in the late 70’s and a few league cup semi finals. Yes, after supporting this club for 57 years, I’m sick of this fact. The last time I really had a sense of local pride in the club (apart from the good community stuff the people from that department do) is when we played Utd and City in the league cup, 2017/18. I’ve enjoyed some of the games since, even on occasions when we’ve lost if it’s been a good match. But sadly, most games have been generally very mediocre, glimpses of occasional promise then disappointing badly. Rinse and repeat is the current popular term I believe. We have always been that area and that club with untapped potential. However, I can’t give up on the club, as much as I often would like to. It’s ingrained in me now and has been since 1966. Pearson knows all this. Like him or loathe him but he’s not dumb or at least unaware. I think we’ve got him 6 or 7 years too late to be honest, but I do think he’s shining a light and trying to address the issues to put in place the foundations to build a more competitive club. I don’t think he will see it all through, time and results will catch up. But I do think an opportunity* will arise from this period of change to make managing this club an attractive proposition for talented coaches or managers again in the near future. We can only hope that the new CEO and structures being put in place will at last see the club in a growing, progressive place again and with the nous to appoint the right coaches. We might then attract the right type of investors to buy the club either outright or bring fresh ideas to the Lansdown boardroom table. *We’ve not been good at doing this, time we need to grasp things when we get moving on an upward curve again. At the moment all I can do is get behind the team when I go down the Gate like the many times we’ve been in this type of situation over the years and hope we stay to rebuild in the Championship. And then moan if it doesn’t happen...rinse and repeat!

Yes, found this baffling. Okay players got injured, burnt out, left (Reid, Bryan) etc., but surely we should have tried recruiting around that style that was the most successful 6 month period of LJ’s tenure and probably of the last 8 years. ( We finished in a higher league position the next season - 8th? - but there seems no doubt that the first 6 months of 2017/18 showed the most promise and potential. We seemed to tear up the latest strategy everytime we had a downturn. Hence we recruited in what appears to have been a scattergun manner. Compare this with the likes of Brentford during the same time. With us it seems to have been long term planning for the club infrastructure but not the team. Who was to blame, LJ? MA? SL? Or all 3, to greater or lesser degrees? Whoever, we’re still certainly feeling the effects of the waste of vital funds from that post 17/18 period.

Ha! No, but that’s why they are higher than us in the league and were last year. Tonight we were organised, we concentrated and stepped up to compete. If we can show that from now on, our confidence will get better, we will pull out of this mess and push up the table. If, though. At least a point at Coventry is going to be something to build on before the Brum game.

Yep. Play people in their familiar positions. Genuinely thought we looked a much better football side than Millwall. In fact we have quite a few teams. What we lack are 3 or so players with that agressive winning mentality that the likes of Millwall have. Keep that second half performance and (despite his bad miss!) keep Weimann in a position where he can upset the opposition, and we can get out of this mess.

Apologies, not read all of this, but thought this was the most appropriate thread to put my thoughts on yesterday and generally. Basically, as many have said, play people in positions that they have knowledge of, i.e. square pegs for square holes etc. Also, even if the individuals aren’t in great form, still go back to the closest line up that has been successful for us. Get them up for a scrap. I seem to feel that not just NP and other managers we have had, but a lot seem to try to be tactically too clever, try converting/using players in positions beyond their capabilities and nous. I remember McGinnis starting the 2012/13 season in great form, then we got a couple of key injuries and we tried switching things around and it all went downhill. LJ did the same many times, switched around what was successful when there was an injury, etc. Yes I know, when things are down you sometimes have to try something new, we don’t see what happens in training, etc but we do seem to go away from what has made us decent at times. Remember the high press side of late 2017, yep we burnt out and didn’t necessarily have individuals to replace the knackered individuals at the time. But instead of developing the system and identifying players for that system that was entertaining and had some success, our recruitment seemed generally random and inappropriate for that system. Most players are rarely so good to continuously play in an unfamiliar position at this level. So many managers say we must get back to basics when it all starts to unravel, but they should at least start by putting players in their most effective positions to occupy the opposition. Let’s start by putting Tanner or Sykes at right wing back (they at least have some defensive experience there) and use Weimann’s energy and movement in a positive way to press and put the opposition on the back foot. Finally, on the manager debate. I don’t care who’s in charge providing they start to get the turnaround needed and give us something to look forward to watch. I’m unsure about NP’s longterm coaching abilities for this club, however I still hope can still stay (without us going down!) to clear the decks of this comfy, nice club that has always been a backwater since I started following in 1966 (bar around 3 teams during that time - we always lapse back). He’s the only manager that has pretty much told it as it is - the culture has been shit, mediocre at best. If we can get to the summer with the chance of a fresh build to a plan, even with a new coach, decent youngsters, new experienced CEO and stick to a plan and real vision, then I’ll still have some hope. If the next two games we lose, I think he will be gone, so if we do get a new manager it will have to either be a good stop gap to keep us up then recruit in the summer, or someone who can hit the ground running. The thing is, I can’t change the team I love. Ha, wish I could sometimes, but it’s my late dad’s fault, so I can’t!

Said it before, say it again. We need a new impetus to our ownership/board. It feels very stale, has been for a few seasons now. Need football world nous to join to help decide/ change or implement a direction instead of changing strategy with every downturn. Lansdown has put his money where his mouth is in terms of infrastructure, buildings, etc. However his largely poor/mediocre recruitment and football decisions have floated between panic and desperation at times. I don’t want Pearson to go in terms of him basically telling us the shit we have put ourselves in, and hope that he can at least steer us out of it to leave the platform clear for new enthused investors and a new progressive manager. Times running out result wise/fans patience wise, so the Lansdown board had better have a bloody inspired plan B if the next few results are crap. History doesn’t paint a good picture though. This is where we discover that Pochettino is a huge cider connoisseur and would jump at the chance to fulfil his ambition to settle on the mendips according to Roy DeAlien.

Yep. Just get the feeling that the club know whats going on here. Last chance for a decent football move for him, so can’t see him staying. Wells not sure. He genuinely seems to be more committed in his performances and interviews than he ver has. Maybe he’s realised he’s had to get his finger out to get a new contract with either us or elsewhere.

Kalas may well have had niggling injuries, but can’t help thinking that he could well go this window. Think the club are hard at work trying to shift players on this window, namely Kalas, Massengo, Bentley, and possible Dasilva and Semenyo. Think they are desperate to get something back before they can walk for free and get a few fresh bodies in that might turn things around. Don’t think the club want to be faced with giving Pearson the heave-ho as I’m not sure they would know where to turn at the moment. FWIW, I do think that in broad terms, the stuff that Pearson has said about the club and it’s culture is absolutely bang on. However, although at our best we’ve looked pretty decent, but we haven’t shown it enough and results are crap. Think time is running out unless we can string some consistent results together. Rumours about Scott don’t surprise me. Really sad that we can’t ever buy enough time to keep our best young talents for longer, i.e. Reid, Kelly, etc. but that’s modern football and our place in the pecking order. So wouldn’t surprise me to see Scott or Semenyo go. Must admit, the frustration of following this club never ceases, but cant help thinking that our patience is going to be tested for a lot longer yet. No denying the financial input of the owners over the years, but just feel we need fresh impetus and energy beyond the manager and added fresh drive at board level. The biggest signs of hope is that the academy may at long last be showing it’s potential. Could do with a real kick ass performance and win against WBA and cheer us all up!

Yep. Typical of media nowadays. I get that a lot of people want to know the situation, but really just leave all that till the facts come to light.

Yep, King had space to move it forward. Poor from both our senior players who are there to help manage the game. If we could get rid of these crazy mistakes we have the makings of a very decent team. Short of a strong midfield ball winner and no nonsense CB. The others are decent players but we lack that mental steel and game management from those type of players. Decent result though against a really awkward team, just disappointing not to get 3 points as we looked the better footballing side. Let’s get at Huddersfield and get 3 points on Wednesday.

Fear? I think we lack a midfield destroyer, fighter, calm downer, bloody leader. Guess what we haven’t had that character for years. Our midfield seem to invite pressure. Yes we make crap mistakes in defence but it’s always inevitable as our midfield drop so deep so almost inevitable so many balls into our box we’re going to concede. We have no real outlet up front without AS in the team. So when we aimlessly panic and hoof the ball anywhere upfield we just lose possession as there’s no one to press the opposition effectively, physically unless AS plays. We need a solid organising midfielder, and a fast, pressing physical forward to fill in for when AS doesn’t play. Or we play 2 upfront and add an extra body for protection in midfield. We just get overrun in the second half. I think big efforts from Mr Lansdown to get in that investment. He was right about one thing that’s for certain - we need some fresh ideas and enthusiasm invested in our club as well as money.

Early in the season I know, but the pattern and manner of our performances are worrying. I actually think Pearson has done a job starting the clearout, but we can’t even afford to get any effective loans in. We clearly need some fresh players and ideas. We are very light in how our midfield is set up. Martin is a good squad player, but clearly not a 90 minute player. He’s not providing an outlet when we’re under the cosh. So obvious we need AS back sooner than later.