Merrick's Marvels

You've misunderstood my point.

Thanks for posting and demonstrating, once again, that you don't get it. Or don't want to. By all means have the hump with how things are going - join the queue - but try not to talk such bollocks, eh.

His time and money which, pro rata, represents a greater percentage of his disposable resources than £214M does of Lansdown's, I'd imagine. For starters.

They weren't but I dread to think what our recruitment "department" consisted of back then.

Doubt they'd be doing this if the manager was off. Which he's not.

Or at least re-negotiate some of those expensive contracts that are currently a millstone around our neck. Don't forget, if you let Kalas and Wells leave, the club's stated policy is that we'll be shopping at Poundland (free transfers, players ooc) for their replacements. Last summer, this policy delivered a player from the Fourth Division, a player from the Third Division and a player from Luton Town. The result - we've stagnated at best, probably gone backwards. More of the same next summer is not a pleasant thought but that's where we find ourselves thanks to Ashton and Lansdown. So let's hope Wells can be persuaded to stay, on half his current wage, to build on his partnership with Conway as our first choice strikers. Let's hope Kalas can actually get fit. Then be persuaded to stay on half his current wage. Kalas - Naismith - Atkinson isn't too shabby, although I'm far from convinced by Naismith, personally. Let's hope we can find some sucker to pay us a squillion quid for Semenyo. It'll have to be a squillion because we have no wing backs good enough and central midfield needs a complete revamp in support of Scott/Weimann. And we'll need another keeper because Bajic is a Ronnie Sinclair midget. Not much to do then.

No idea about notice periods but staying in post until the January transfer window closes is too much of a coincidence, surely? January is never the best time to be wheeling and dealing and we don't have a pot to piss in but a relegation battle is on the cards if we carry on with the status quo. The other alternative is to sack the manager but I don't sense an appetite for that amongst the suits, albeit Guernsey is probably fuming about last night - join the queue mate. The worst 13 quid I've spent in a long, long time.

Richard Gould deferred starting his new job until the end of January 2023. Let's hope that isn't a coincidence.

Ticket office by the Atyeo statue ?

Bloody hell. Be afraid, be very, very afraid.

Well, he did get a round in at the last Q&A - if that's what you mean.

That's the plan.

Kalas. At last!

Bristol City The Modern Era A Complete Record by David Woods

Who knew, indeed. This is a quiz show where 100 people are asked a question and you have to think of an answer none of them came up with, ie an answer that's obviously Impossible, Untenable, etc. Which means - if the impossible, untenable, pointless answer is "gAsshole fc" - what on earth is the question: Who really is "The greatest team the world has ever seen"? Who playzzz in da famus qorterzzz? Which team isn't a stain on their city? And so on and so on. Endless possibilities.

I refer the OP to Mr Aden Flint on the night of Tuesday April 7, 2015. To paraphrase Flint, the answer to the OP is - "Don't be daft, you silly billy".

Could be worse, the Mirror's "super computer" predicts we'll finish 23rd. For reference, last season they predicted: 1. Fulham 2. West Brom 3. Sheffield United 4. Bournemouth 5. Swansea 6. Middlesbrough 7. Nottingham Forest 8. Cardiff 9. Stoke 10. Barnsley 11. Reading 12. Blackburn 13. QPR 14. Millwall 15. Hull 16. Birmingham 17. Derby 18. Preston 19. Luton 20. Bristol City 21. Coventry 22. Huddersfield 23. Peterborough 24. Blackpool

And..... whooosh. Diddums. Chill out. It was a joke. FFS. Time of the month? Take yer pick.

One team town - what would be the combined total season ticket sales if both City & Roverzzz were in the Championship? Quite healthy I'd say. In addition, there's eff all else to do in Sunderland. Literally. I don't mind them, certainly compared to the deluded neighbours across their river, but if Bristol was a cultural wasteland, a post-industrial irrelevance, and a one team town, we'd have 10% buying season tickets too. But we're not and the existence of places like Sunderland just remind us how god damn lucky we are in so many ways (apart from the bloody football!)

Trouble is, how confident can we be that it'll be much more than that this season? Hoping and praying, crossing all our finges and toes, but if you're a betting man what odds are you being offered? Not great ones, I'dimagine. More likely, Williams' hamstring goes ping or James gets a flare up of his plantar fascitis thing.

9 players out of contract next summer so tons of work yet to do. Won't see Pearson's own team for at least another 12 month.

Wells more useful than Kalas? Blimey. If everyone's fit, Bristol City get 46 games out of Kalas while Wells sits on the bench watching Semenyo, Martin and Weimann do their thing. Results did improve but I struggle to put that down to Kalas being absent. More likely to my mind, it was due to finally settling on a 3-at-the-back formation, fitness allowing the manager to pick a settled starting XI, the emergence of Semenyo, the arrival of Klose. Imo, results improved even though Kalas was absent, not because he was absent. It was a co-incidence, not the cause. The cause was the reasons above. Put it another way - if you think our results picked up because Robbie Cundy was playing instead of Tomas Kalas, you might what to check outside your front door because the men in white coats have arrived to cart you off to Barrow Gurney. And it ain't for to see your brother Ernie. I do agree though on the leadership/organisation point - a Kalas weakness (he's the strong silent type) but a strength of Klose and Naismith (vocal types it would appear). It's a vital component of any successful team but even more so in one that's blooding wet behind the ears youngsters who will only benefit from older heads guiding them through games - last season we had Pring, Tanner, Atkinson, Scott, Benarous, Bell all making ther debuts. Semenyo is hardly a veteran and Vyner always needs someone in his ear. As far as Kalas is concerned, we just need to negotiate a new contract that we can afford.

Why Kalas and not Wells? If Kalas left we'd need to sign 2 central defenders (we're already looking for one, to replace Vyner). If Wells left we'd not have to sign anyone. Imo Conway can do what Wells will probably do this season - make cameo appearances from the bench, the odd start, score a handful of goals. And Conway will do that for about one fifth of the price, ie a massive wage saving.

I was just going to ask that - I haven't a scooby what the actual score is

Blige.