WayOutWest Posted February 7, 2009 Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 I would say we have under achieved for much of the past 10 years or so. Many TV/Radio pundits and fans would likely agree. Now after one season in the Championship which we dominated, what are they saying now? Although we failed on automatic promotion and were losers in the play offs, I felt it was still a successful season. It surpassed my expectation of what was possible at the start of last season. After this last excellent run what have positioned ourselves very nicely. Instead of looking over our shoulders we can now seriously focus on the potential of play offs, again. Are we just an unfashionable club with the media? When we win nothing we are under archivers. When we were top of the Championship and beaten play off finalists we over achieved. If we got in the Premier League we would be candidates to come straight back down. Your thoughts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDOXO Posted February 7, 2009 Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 I would say we have under achieved for much of the past 10 years or so. Many TV/Radio pundits and fans would likely agree. Now after one season in the Championship which we dominated, what are they saying now? Although we failed on automatic promotion and were losers in the play offs, I felt it was still a successful season. It surpassed my expectation of what was possible at the start of last season. After this last excellent run what have positioned ourselves very nicely. Instead of looking over our shoulders we can now seriously focus on the potential of play offs, again. Are we just an unfashionable club with the media? When we win nothing we are under archivers. When we were top of the Championship and beaten play off finalists we over achieved. If we got in the Premier League we would be candidates to come straight back down. Your thoughts A notional conversation vis-a-vis promotion Like it..Something positive to take to work on Monday Under achieved for the last 100 years really...Certainly the gap between our apearances in the top flight was long and most of the last 30 years has been a waste land...In the light of these stark facts the media views us (certainly outside of Bristol) as being a bit of a backwater football club who pretty much have had a good season if we get mentioned as also rans..If you get my drift Failing as we did last season got us that also ran status mentioned above but most expected us to fail this season and make our way back to being the big club in Divvy three...so the season has been a success for us (for some) already (god pray we have done nearly enough to avoid relegation if it all starts falling apart) Judging by ITV coming to town for the Sthampton game next Saturday our current form is attracting attention so i guess you could think that one or two fancy us as the end of season dark horse that makes the run on the rails...And so do I: Unfashionable of course...anything outside of the normal 4 is unfashionable...But we are positively patchpocketed straw munchers compared to most clubs in the prem and the top 3 in the Championship Straight back down...Yeah well they said that in 76 and this season about Hull...That is a matter of who you bring in to complement your backbone...I remember the likes of Joe Royle and Norman Hunter...There is no reason to think it cant happen again should we make the play offs...and we're only 12 points behind Reading...just a thought...along way to go for sure...but it dosen't do any harm to reach for the stars....you never know what might happen! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Orns Posted February 7, 2009 Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 **** the media! They said some good things about us last year, but I'm happy for them to concentrate on Burnley & Preston being the 'surprise' teams near the top this year. Not many people picked up on Hull last year........ As for Hull, 0-0 at Chelsea - have to say fair shout to them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garlicbread Posted February 7, 2009 Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 Couldnt care less what they think of us or what they call us. We do seem to be a bit en vogue currently...since Johnson took over, Trundle, Playoffs etc. Even when I meet people in other parts of the country who follow the prem, they know who we are, they know how we play..that'll do me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Popodopolous Posted February 7, 2009 Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 A notional conversation vis-a-vis promotion Like it..Something positive to take to work on Monday Under achieved for the last 100 years really...Certainly the gap between our apearances in the top flight was long and most of the last 30 years has been a waste land...In the light of these stark facts the media views us (certainly outside of Bristol) as being a bit of a backwater football club who pretty much have had a good season if we get mentioned as also rans..If you get my drift Failing as we did last season got us that also ran status mentioned above but most expected us to fail this season and make our way back to being the big club in Divvy three...so the season has been a success for us (for some) already (god pray we have done nearly enough to avoid relegation if it all starts falling apart) Judging by ITV coming to town for the Sthampton game next Saturday our current form is attracting attention so i guess you could think that one or two fancy us as the end of season dark horse that makes the run on the rails...And so do I: Unfashionable of course...anything outside of the normal 4 is unfashionable...But we are positively patchpocketed straw munchers compared to most clubs in the prem and the top 3 in the Championship Straight back down...Yeah well they said that in 76 and this season about Hull...That is a matter of who you bring in to complement your backbone...I remember the likes of Joe Royle and Norman Hunter...There is no reason to think it cant happen again should we make the play offs...and we're only 12 points behind Reading...just a thought...along way to go for sure...but it dosen't do any harm to reach for the stars....you never know what might happen! That sounds about right. re the underachievers/overachievers point....for a city the size of Bristol to have been represented int he top flight for so little is underachieving. In fact, the entire region of the West Country has won one League Cup as a major trophy which is hopeless. Many teams from smaller places than us have certainly won more and done better. So for us to have been in League One for as long as we were in recent times was poor considering. Therefore, coming up without spending that much and with teams with bigger reputations, ie last season makes us overachievers in the short term. Overall though, we have definitely been underachievers all things considered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Percy Parrot Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 In fairness I think the club has attracted a fair bit of media attention over the last couple of years. To be fair this season only now have we been seriously in the play-off mix. But compared to a couple of years back we're on TV far more often, have match reports in the nationals far more often*, have TV features far more often, are commented on by friends/strangers far more often who these days know what we're doing. Of course that's largely due to the on field success but also in no small part I would argue to Gary and others on the commercial and media front within the club doing a good job of raising the club's profile. As for over/under achieving. Well I don't think the media see it very differently to us fans really. Third tier is underachieving for this club. It's not uncommon or extraordinary but to be there for so long was underachieving. To push promotion with our finances and fan base is overachieving. Historically and club fan base wise we are a low second tier side. What I think is CRUCIAL, and I seriously mean this above team performance, is that at a club we build upon this and establish ourselves at a higher level than we have been before. A lower second tier club will have the mentality and approach of a lower second tier club. We need to establish a professionalism, brand and fan base that is better than that so that a play-off run is no longer an overachievement or a good finish but the norm. And, to be fair, I think the club is doing pretty much everything right in heading in that direction. The media team have been rightly applauded for their efforts in creating the Bristol City brand, on a commercial front we're signing record sponsorship deals and working with major kit manufacturers. Even the bars and stadium seating are now more in line with Reading and Ipswich rather than Chesterfields and the like. I honestly believe that alongside the teams good performances if we can also keep boosting crowds, great a brand, get the new stadium etc. then in a few years time we'll no longer be looked at as a lower second tier club or even third tier club - but as an established, progressive and attractive football club to be a part of. Of course things can go wrong on the pitch in an instant - but generally speaking I see no reason why we can't be getting 25,000 each week in a 30,000 stadium and attracting some quality footballers to the club. As such we can establish ourselves as a top Championship club or maybe even a Premier League one. *Our match reports still seem to be when we play "bigger" clubs and you'll notice that we often don't get much of a write up while Leicester and Leeds still do...even if they draw 0-0. But that is not just us, same goes for half the teams in our division and in fairness Leicester, Leeds etc. probably do still have far more fans reading after them each week. And in many ways if I'm to read any match report from League One it's more likely to be one of those two than a Hereford report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walshy-shuffle-carl-shutt Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 I think that if we had a foriegn manager the media would be falling over themselves to give a coverage and credit. Just look at Martinez he seems to be courted alot by the media because he is a foriegn manager whereas Gary J was in a similar position if not better and he got virtually no credit. It real sorry state of affairs when good english managers are not seen as prehaps a foriegn counter part is. However the pressure may well tell on the teams and managers in the spot light and we didnt do to badly without media spotlight last season so long may it continue. Oh and it also seems to be overlooked by alot of the media that the likes of swansea and QPR are littered with foriegn players where as the majority of our players are not. The pressure is deffinatley telling on the top four they are all missing the chance to pull out a big gap and that was story of last season so there is still all to play for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Percy Parrot Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 I think that if we had a foriegn manager the media would be falling over themselves to give a coverage and credit. Just look at Martinez he seems to be courted alot by the media because he is a foriegn manager whereas Gary J was in a similar position if not better and he got virtually no credit. It real sorry state of affairs when good english managers are not seen as prehaps a foriegn counter part is. However the pressure may well tell on the teams and managers in the spot light and we didnt do to badly without media spotlight last season so long may it continue. Oh and it also seems to be overlooked by alot of the media that the likes of swansea and QPR are littered with foriegn players where as the majority of our players are not. The pressure is deffinatley telling on the top four they are all missing the chance to pull out a big gap and that was story of last season so there is still all to play for. Not entirely sure it's because foreign managers are seen as any better but they are remembered well and make for a better story I suppose. As a fan I remember Martinez as one of the Three Amigos at Wigan. Wigan were rubbish back then but I remember the story of the three Spaniards. And to be fair he's done very well with Swansea. Gary and City got a lot of coverage last season too. I think the media respect and like Gary. He's done those Powerade adverts on Sky Sports news and was of course on Match of the Day (2?) once. But as most people above have said - as long as he keeps doing the business for us I wouldn't really care if he was totally ignored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olé Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 One of the more interesting aspects of the proliferation of Premier League money and the way in which the media do anything to cling onto that bandwagon, is that these days I don't think you can be viewed as a serious Championship outfit unless you've been to the Premier League before. Teams like us are not viewed as legitimate contenders, in fact at times you'd think they see us as simply keeping the ex-Premier League teams honest in their expected progression back to the Premier League. No one said half as much about Stoke or Hull as they did West Brom and Watford, and whenever you watched highlights or read articles you'd get the impression it was the ex-Prem teams season to lose, whereas clubs like Hull and Stoke were more plucky and progress more unexpected. The same expectation is true this season of Birmingham City, Reading and Wolves. Yes they occupy the top three, but I don't recall the media 'crowning' us already when we were top 3 for long periods. So in answer to your question, I always get the impression that the media see us as some sort of unofficial participant in the Premier League promotion race, teams like us and Cardiff are like the womens London marathon, we might lead 'a' race, but the comments will always be patronising and the spotlight will only be temporarily off the main race which the media consider far more worthhy - in this case the race between well financed ex-Premier League clubs to claim their rightful return. Never mind the fact that teams such as Leeds, Man City and Leicester have all tumbled down the divisions upon exit from the Premier League, the media will still fall over themselves to cover teams like Birmingham City with a more expectant and serious tone than they would Bristol City, even if the positions were reversed. If Birmingham were in eighth and had just won 6 of 7 we'd be hearing that the big boys were moving into gear at just the right time to secure a return to the top flight. As it is we're just doing quite well but the height of our ambitions is apparently just to do quite well from time to time, no one in the media would refer to anything we do as a serious Premier League challenge. There is no better example than Cardiff. No one will thank me for illustrating their recent successes (don't worry, I hate them as much as anyone) but when you look at what they have done you really see as legitimate a Premier League promotion contender as there is at this level: They've had long spells in first, they've been to the FA Cup Final, they've sold a couple of young players for big money to the Premier League, they've brought in several ex-Prem players, they have an ex-Prem manager. As loathsome as Cardiff are, you'd think this qualified them to be viewed by the media as heir apparent to an imminent Premier League place. But no, they (like us) are still viewed in a kind of unofficial 'And finally..' tone. Default coverage and expectation is always with the ex-Prem teams. Our average position now for 18 months must be what, just 5 or 6 places off the Premier League, but I'll bet we're still viewed as a lower division club. Lower division no longer means Divisions 3 and 4, it just means not played in the Premier League. There are teams a division below us who are viewed more seriously. If you asked a pundit who they could foresee in the Prem first, Bristol City or Leicester, I'll bet they'd need to hesitate and think about it. The media can't escape that ex-Premier League glow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedM Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 I don't really see that we are that interesting to the media, and long may it continue, allowing us to slip under their radar! We don't have any big name players, flash manager or flamboyant chairman. We own our pretty decent ground, aren't crippled by debt and have fans who are on the whole well behaved. Quite boring aren't we! It is nice to get positive recognition but really the praise is only good until the next game. With all that comes added pressure and attention. I'd be quite happy to be the underdogs and take a playoff place, perhaps leading to greater things, and then bask in media glory when the job is done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbored Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 I rarely read the national papers so any national coverage that I notice is via the TV and radio. I haven't heard any mention of Bristol City on Radio 5 but then they hardly ever mention anyone in the CCC unless its fromer PL team. Talk Sport have recently been talking a lot about Swansea but not even a passing reference to Citys unturn in form. Maybe tomorrow.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Man In Black Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Media coverage has definitely increased significantly but I think we're still seen as plucky play-off contenders by many quarters and it will take several years of being established in this league to change that. I do agree that in order to be properly 'on the radar' we need to have been up to (and more than likely failed in) the Premier League. All the focus on this league is on the teams that used to be there but I'm not overly bitter about that because at least we're not bogged down by expectation. Interestingly, when we came up last year and started mixing with the 'big boys' and staying high all season most people I know who followed teams in this league referred to us as 'lucky' and kept telling me that we would run out of steam. I think they were smarting a little that we were above them. Two of the most vocal were a Sheffield Weds fan (last day relegation fight last year) and a QPR fan. This season Wednesday aren't exactly setting the league on fire and QPR, for all their investment, aren't exactly flying high either. If we finish above both of them yet again this season I will have to re-ask the question about whether we have been lucky for two straight seasons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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