BTRFTG

Accounts due to be published soon. I'd be amazed were they anything other than catastrophic £40-£45m loss? Net debt pushing upward of £150m. In which case anything of value must go. Expensive liabilities we can offload, ditto.

Today was a microcosm of our season to come. We'll concede few, yet score fewer. We were better organised, though that's cold comfort. A poor Blackpool deserved a point. Martin did OK & won more headers than City did the final dozen games last season, as did the kid. Grealish wanabee maybe but socks and barnet aside he showed good aerial skills, balance and commitment. Brightest aspect on show today. King & James were unspectacular though were decently negative in stopping Blackpool playing. Atkinson looks no natural athlete and reminds of Flint. Did little wrong but Webster he ain't, so don't expect that of him. Vyner looked under pressure all afternoon, DaSilva coped with what he needed to, though their strikers were always ahead of our line and troubled us more than we did they. O'Dowda is one of WeeLee's 'Carousel' remainders and although only lasting 12 mins reminded why we never should have renewed his contract when we did. Could be the last we see of him. If so, that's not a bad thing. Palmer flatters. He does good things but gifts the ball far too easily and not in a creative, attacking sense. Pearson doubtless took him off for his final two, soft, ceded defensive passes. Either way it didn't work or matter. Flappy Wiemann flapped as always. Nearly gets there, never does. Wastes chances when given the opportunity. I personally would have subbed him after 50 in favour of Wells. We desperately needed to take the game to them and didn't. We're impotent upfront and the 1 in 6+ Flappy offers does us few favours. To those who say he isn't a stricker I'd counter then what is he? Nearly man, that's what. Bentley - needs to learn to how 'own the box' and 'catch and collect'. Until then we'll struggle as a defensive unit with speculative balls into the box. Were I an opposition manager I'd be exploiting his weakness all afternoon. Those players who didn't figure one assumes are the quid pro quo for the awful financial figures we'll post soon. We have to take anything for anybody of value, it'll be that bad. Pearson knows that. WeeLee's legacy pervades. It wasn't bad. It wasn't good. It'll be a long, hard season.

Wael-he-Quixote also channeled his inner Kevin Costner adding: "If I say I'll build it they will come..." though I may have misunderstood the last bit.

Because you never get to see the firing squad behind the photographer....

"Where the action isn’t That’s where it is State your position Vacancies exist" Strangely, Dr Clarke omits in his excellent biography any reference to his having visited The Gas & them inspiring his epic poem. As for, "Beauty problems are redefined," I couldn't have put it better myself.

The Disclosure & Barring Service receive nowhere near enough credit for the valuable work they do.......

I swear that was John-Joe O'Toole they hoisted out using the crane......

There's majesty in that photo. Every passenger appears to be wholly embarrassed &, upon pain of eternal ridicule, desperate to hide their identities (not I'd know any of them from Adam.) Heads bowed, faces tucked into elbows, masked in dark sunglasses, or last gasp using the 'I'm on my phone' trick. You can hear them thinking ' Please, please, please don't let anybody I know see me.' For a club who proclaim themselves "Prowed"© it's odd that none of its members appear to hold an ounce of pride when wearing their clown outfits.

I appreciate that standards at The Evil are at an all-time low, but I've just seen an alert that there's a very heavy police presence overseeing the eviction of a bunch of squatting travellers at Eastville. Reportage 35 years behind the times, by my reckoning.

SpaceTime is unidirectional. The Gas are ever compelled forward to oblivion, such there will be no space left for them in the Universe, let alone Bristol. Of course all Gasheads are proponents of the Multiverse theory. In every Universe, bar this one, they're the 'biggest & best'© football club in existence, billions locked outside each week, winning everything in sight.

Of course not overlooking those who helped make it all possible....

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Great minds think alike. Here's the reprise of the version I wanted recorded when they excited The Football League: "Playing at home but you are watching alone, As no one else will go – Downs League. The White and the Blue but the kit’s all worn through, The Keeper’s arse on show – Downs League. Just listen, green with envy, to the crowd down at The City, Money’s tight the standard’s shite still trading more’s the pity, Watching you lose. The fights are more spiteful there, And you are deep, deep in trouble, worse nobody’s cares, 'Cus you’re - Downs League, It’ll be great when you're - Downs League, City can’t wait till you’re - Downs League. Oblivion is waiting for you....

I must come to the defence of Mark Little as there's some keyboard numpty on the 'Forum For Failures' accusing him of stealing £3k per week for the past two seasons. It should, of course, read 'job well done, Sir.'

I believe their issue all season is they've attempted to pass akin The Chuckle Brothers, problem being they neglected the fact one of them ain't there anymore........ "Oh dear, oh dear......"

To be fair I've asked the same of 2/3rds of our squad all season.....

To those old enough to remember Junior Choice, all join in: "I know a convict Gaffer, He walks the Horfield streets, A thoroughly unpleasant chap, His team they just get beat. The Gas thought him their saviour, He came from Fleetwood Town, But City fans we love him 'cus, He took the F**ker's down. Oh, Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha, Ooh, Ha Ha Ha......."

Or you could just watch reruns of channel 4's 'Skint'.

'Big Girls Don't Cry'.... In Horfield I can assure you Gasheads identifying as all genders are bawling their eyes out....

Christ, and I thought I was getting on. Saw the remnants as a kid but believe it shut up shop shortly before I was born. Recently came across an old map of now defunct racetracks (both dogs and speedway,) and unbelievable how many there were and also where they were around the UK. I recall my old man saying just how big the dogs and speedway were in comparison to football, at how folks used to GO OUT to spectator events all the time rather than sit at home. Different era.

In theory any stadium sale, if correctly accounted for, should adjust out (if one has correctly reflected the value of the asset and disposed of it at the correct market valuation there is no profit, though we know what game folks make in valuing bespoke assets.) Not sure what FFP says but swopping assets for income should not be reflected as a measure of financial prudence. Given FFP exists wholly to keep the status quo at the very top of the tree and has had, demonstrably, no impact on improving financial prudence, it should be scrapped forthwith.

I haven't looked this time but in their original, qualified accounts, I think they claimed receipt of the total value of the stadium sale (sic) for FFP purposes whilst at the time not having banking a penny. I'm assuming for FFP one isn't allowed to utilise monies that may, or may not, be advanced in future accounting periods? That would make a complete mockery of what's already a farce. Clubs could agree to transfer players with compulsory buy back to resolve any overspend in any reporting period.

Not remotely surprising as, has been previously identified, the club didn't own the stadium on the claimed selling date. Haven't bothered to look but in these accounts were they still claiming to gave banked all proceeds upfront cf what FRS requires? That itself is a con given there's no guarantee the monies will ever be paid.

You'll recall the season they won promotion to the Premier they came bottom in just about every 'positive stat' in The Championship that season (possession, number of passes, successful passes, occupancy of other half et al...)