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West Bromwich Albion FC Forums => West Bromwich Albion FC => Topic started by: wappingbaggie on June 04, 2019, 11:50:46 PM
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Looking back on the last 15 or so years, it was great fun. I know there were some awful lows but there were plenty of highs - thats what comes with being a Yo-Yo team.
But I think those days are over now - J Pearce always said our 'natural' place in the world was mid table Championship, and he was right - I'm totally resigned to that for the foreseeable future - I'm not that happy about it but I'm facing reality.
There were plenty of forks in the road where our destiny might have been different,
- Roy getting the England job
- Not moving Pulis on at the end of 16-17 season
- JP selling to the wrong buyer
- Transfer dealings in the last 3-4 that were consistently appalling (as opposed to incredibly shrewd under DA and JP)
- Pens missed vs Villa
But the one pivotal moment that KILLED us was the appointment of the Dancing Grandad
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There are only 6 teams that have never been relegated from the Premier League and as such a downswing was always going to happen. The delusion is that somehow our Premier League status was in any way permanent. There are more teams outside the Premier League who have at some point been in the Premier League than those currently in it.
Providing that the club does not drop out of the Championship it is only one good season away from being promoted. It is should be remembered that Huddersfield, Sheffield United, Norwich and Cardiff City have all finished "mid-table" in the Championship and been promoted the following season.
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of course all what you say is true, but equally clubs have finished mid-table one year and gone down to Div1 the next season.
Next year yes we are still more likely to go up than down, but after that in my view its at best a 50/50 probability - in fact with the way the club is currently being run in my view from 20/21 season onwards we more likely relegated than promoted.
I know we all seen dark times and felt deflated about the club before but to me it feels more terminal this time around.
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of course all what you say is true, but equally clubs have finished mid-table one year and gone down to Div1 the next season.
Next year yes we are still more likely to go up than down, but after that in my view its at best a 50/50 probability - in fact with the way the club is currently being run in my view from 20/21 season onwards we more likely relegated than promoted.
I know we all seen dark times and felt deflated about the club before but to me it feels more terminal this time around.
Unfortunately, we can see that Villa and, especially Wolves, seem to have owners that mean business and give them real hope and excitement in the near future - something denied to us most of our time at the top level which makes us, in refection, feel even more frustrated and downbeat with the Club.
Just last season alone, Wolves fans had the season that we were always denied - good through a whole season; finishing well over 50 points; and the biggy qualifying for Europe. Not even mentioning a Cup run to go with all that ! :(
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of course all what you say is true, but equally clubs have finished mid-table one year and gone down to Div1 the next season.
Next year yes we are still more likely to go up than down, but after that in my view its at best a 50/50 probability - in fact with the way the club is currently being run in my view from 20/21 season onwards we more likely relegated than promoted.
I know we all seen dark times and felt deflated about the club before but to me it feels more terminal this time around.
If a team crash lands in the Championship they pretty much go straight through like Sunderland. While at this point it is difficult to particularly optimistic about the club's immediate prospects I think you are being far too pessimistic. I would be more concerned if we were in real financial difficulty but we don't have a massive debt overhang which is the thing that more often than not kills clubs at this level.
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I think when Peace said we were mid-table Championship, he meant in terms of our revenue streams. Other clubs have off-field income to boost their finances, we have been short-sighted in that aspect and so have little from other avenues than league position.
What we have done is waste every advantage we have built up, thanks to chronic mismanagement since Ashworth left. Peace went into 'short term thinking' to get a quick sale, and we are feeling the effects of that now.
Last term really wast promotion or bust, which makes the strange decisions from the club ever more self-defeating.
Long term I think we're in for a lot of pain, unless we either get smart and employ another Ashworth, or get a new owner.
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I think when Peace said we were mid-table Championship, he meant in terms of our revenue streams. Other clubs have off-field income to boost their finances, we have been short-sighted in that aspect and so have little from other avenues than league position.
What we have done is waste every advantage we have built up, thanks to chronic mismanagement since Ashworth left. Peace went into 'short term thinking' to get a quick sale, and we are feeling the effects of that now.
Last term really wast promotion or bust, which makes the strange decisions from the club ever more self-defeating.
Long term I think we're in for a lot of pain, unless we either get smart and employ another Ashworth, or get a new owner.
Working smarter on the key. Better scouting and buying younger, hungrier players with sell-on value. It’s how to strengthen. An extreme example, but Leicester will sell Maguire and Maddison for a combined c£140m in the coming weeks. That enables them to buy two direct replacements and strengthen in 2/3 other positions as well. All possible because they took the plunge on both players when they were very cheap, whereas we monitor endlessly before opting to buy a cheap 30+ year old with no sell-on value.
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Personally I think the club and the moral of the supporters is at the lowest since the Bobby Gould days.
We sack our manager when we are 4th in the promotion race and up until now we have no replacement. We are given little snippets of hope with potentially exciting manager appointments only to see it hanging on and on until it fizzles out. Supporters are now thinking the longer it goes on we will appoint another manager who is going to achieve nothing. Labbida would have been an exciting appointment. so would the lower league managers such as Cowley. But the more I think about it we will probably end up with Appleton.
We are also having to put up with talk about our better players leaving. Rodriguez and Dawson to Burnley, Gibbs probably to Fenerbache. Then on the other side there are no rumours of anyone coming in.
With the transfer window closing on 8th August , 2 months away and no sign of a new manager being appointed , I am getting the impression next season could be a tough one.
We supporters deserve better from the owner and the board. We were forced to buy our season tickets early and this is the way they treat us.
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I think a lot of it comes down to expectation.
I think the biggest mistake Darren Moore made was sticking with the experienced squad that had got relegated.
I think whenever we have been relegated previous we have pretty much bounced back the next season (except one season i think) so we had a reputation of being a yoyo club every season or two - we come up, we go down.
However when we were relegated last season we had been in the premier league for 8 seasons previous and expectations had risen, we kept the same same squad which on paper was supposedly one of the strongest squads (along with Stoke).
I think it was noticeable from the first game vs Bolton, there was an environment of 'entertain us and get promoted at the same time' from the supporters, probably subconciously, i probably did it myself without realising at times too.
In hindsight (and i did feel this at the time) i do feel Darren Moore should of ripped the squad apart, advise it was going to take a bit of time but we were going to rebuild and i think the pressure would of been off a bit (ie - Swansea) Look for the next Dorrans, Mulumbu, etc but fans also would understand more than when discovering these gems that they have bad spells before they get to their best, maybe even a average season for the team before getting better the next (ie - Norwich) and there probably would of been more patience and less pressure.
With the squad last year there wasnt that patience as they were supposedly proven players, so promotion was expected, it didnt happe so what has happened the rebuild will probably now take place this summer, we have just delayed the inevitable.
This year i would hope we will still be competitive but there is a chance that with the rebuild we may have an average season, not even top 6, ie - things will get worse before better and for a generation of supporters who have watched us for the last 15 years they will possibly see us playing in the championship for a 3rd (maybe longer) consecutive season for the first time.
Thats why the next appointment is crucial, get it right and i think Albion fans are pretty understanding and will give the right man time, they will buy into the project (ie - Mowbray days) because expectations are lower.
However if we get it wrong and go for a quick fix then if that dont work i fear the worst for the club in supporters keeping faith, ie - attendances drop, you dont attract the next generation, things are tense at the Albion right now and this is potentially new territory and so although it always seems to be said, the next few months are massive.
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I think when Peace said we were mid-table Championship, he meant in terms of our revenue streams. Other clubs have off-field income to boost their finances, we have been short-sighted in that aspect and so have little from other avenues than league position.
What we have done is waste every advantage we have built up, thanks to chronic mismanagement since Ashworth left. Peace went into 'short term thinking' to get a quick sale, and we are feeling the effects of that now.
Last term really wast promotion or bust, which makes the strange decisions from the club ever more self-defeating.
Long term I think we're in for a lot of pain, unless we either get smart and employ another Ashworth, or get a new owner.
This is the article you refer to:
West Bromwich Albion chairman: "We're a mid-table Championship club that is massively over-performing." (29th June 2013)
Baggies chief Jeremy Peace says staying in the top flight is the priority despite finishing eighth last season
Jeremy Peace has delivered a sobering analysis of Albion’s recent campaigns - claiming the Baggies are more of a ‘mid-table Championship’ club than an established top flight member, despite their progress.
The Albion chairman believes mere Premier League survival will be the club’s first objective next season, despite three back-to-back impressive campaigns.
The Baggies have finished 11th, 10th and eighth in their last three seasons.
The 2012/13 season saw them also break their points total in the modern era of English football’s top flight.
But the Baggies’ wage bill - around £50 million inclusive of all staff - pitches them around 14th or 15th in the Premier League (the figures vary according to different sources) with the likes of Newcastle, Sunderland and others boasting bigger overall salaries.
Peace, however, feels that Albion are actually punching above their weight in terms of their Premier League status.
He believes Albion’s rightful place is in the Championship, probably around mid-table.
Peace’s comments will come as a surprise to many - not least as expectation has been building among fans - but the 56-year-old has taken into account the club’s potential and the notion that they are ‘land-locked’ by four other clubs around them within a 10 mile radius, which, in his opinion significantly limits the fan base and was a big consideration in his decision to not redevelop the West Stand of the Hawthorns.
Albion, despite finishing eighth, actually finished nearer in terms of points to 17th-placed Sunderland than Liverpool, who were just one position ahead of them in the League table.
Peace said: “We’ve overachieved in the last few years. Look at the relativity.
“ Wage bill we’re probably sixth bottom, so when we set our budgets we set our targets.
“Our target won’t be to finish seventh. Our benchmark next season is that we’re placed 15th (in the Deloitte table) so 14th might be a good year for us.
“We have to be realistic: what are we, where have we come from, what is our fan base?
“The club is probably a mid-table Championship club that is massively over-performing.
“So staying in the Premier League is always the first target. And we build from there.
“We were nearer to 17th than seventh. We had 49 points. There were just over 10 points between us and the relegated clubs [relegated Wigan were 13 points behind Albion].
“In the cold light of that that’s a few results going the wrong way so the margins are very fine.â€
Despite his somewhat down-beat analysis, Peace feels Albion remain on a strong financial footing.
“Financial planning wise we’re reasonably good at it,†he added.
“We do look at our forecasts.
“When we look at a player we look at the transfer fee, a salary and a commitment to that salary on a worst case basis of us being in the Premier League this year, but getting relegated next year and staying down.
“We’re a mid-table ‘Championship’ side in reality who are over-achieving and surrounded by other Midlands clubs.â€
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And this is the follow up article, where he clarifies his statements in his first interview
Jeremy Peace: "I didn’t suggest we would be satisfied being in the Championship." (13th September 2013)
West Bromwich Albion: Jeremy Peace puts the record straight over his comments about being a ‘mid-table Championship team’
Jeremy Peace has spoken out to clarify his exact thoughts behind branding Albion as a ‘mid-table Championship team’.
In a recent interview chairman Peace, delivered what appeared to be a sobering analysis of Albion’s recent campaigns.
He said that the Baggies, who have finished 11th, 10th and eighth in their past three top-flight seasons, would continue to set budgets aimed at Premier League survival.
But he has today re-iterated his desire to keep moving the club forward as he enters his 12th consecutive season at the Hawthorns helm,
“There were some sensational headlines a couple of months ago following a lengthy interview with local journalists. When asked whether the club could be in danger of standing still in the Premier League, I stated that: ‘What are we? Where have we come from...The club is probably a mid-table Championship team that is massively over-performing’.
“I think it’s important that I put that quote into its proper context.
West Bromwich Albion chairman: We're a mid-table Championship club that is massively over-performing;
“I didn’t suggest we would be satisfied being in the Championship. If that was the case, I don’t think we’d have even tried to entice the likes of Ben Foster, Nicolas Anelka, Scott Sinclair and Stephane Sessegnon to this football club.
“Supporters got excited by what we achieved last season and it’s great they have generally been feeling positive about the club’s progress – but it’s important we remain grounded.
“Since the inception of the Premier League, according to a table produced by Deloitte which is based on Premier League finishes, we are ranked 29th. Our average league position since 1992 is 26th.
“Also, during the first ten years of the Premier League, our Championship revenue streams were average by that league’s standards.
“If you take these stats on board, and look at where we are now, they show we have been generally improving.
“However, they also reveal we have been playing catch-up since 1992 when we were in the lower leagues, hence my comment.
“In terms of revenue and resources, there is still a sizeable gap compared to many of our Premier League peers.
“But it is a gap we are actively trying to close and, while that process continues, it is vital we remain competitive by making our resources stretch as far as possible.â€
Despite a slow start to the current campaign, Peace is hopeful that Albion can continue the upward trend that they have enjoyed in recent years.
“The club has made significant progress in the past 11 years but we have never rested on our laurels – and we certainly won’t now.
“We have to remain vigilant, keep thinking outside of the box and endeavour to improve all aspects of the club so that we can make our finite resources stretch as far as possible.â€
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Sometime we occasionally take things for granted and think the grass is greener elsewhere, but you only realise the value of a person when they are not there. Yes, JP is a divisive figure amongst Albion fans, he made a fortune out of West Brom, no disputing that, but his vision for Albion and where it took us was of mutual benefit to us fans. He carried out due diligence when selling the club and after having sold the club any responsibilities for its fortunes are not his. Not a popular view I know and some will disagree with it and try to degrade what he accomplished at West Brom, so before the pelters start and to avoid further differences of opinions, I will agree to disagree with you.
And the there is the article below, penned by Chris Lepkowski.
Jeremy Peace is ready to restore Albion's pride (15th may 2014)
Chris Lepkowski reflects on a recent meeting with West Brom chairman Jeremy Peace
I'm sat in a small room: five chairs, one table, the usual four walls.
I look to the left wall and I see Roy Hodgson smiling. Next to him Steve Clarke looks slightly bemused. Tony Mowbray is also there, gurning somewhat. Robbie Di Matteo, just to Mowbray's left, is wearing a fitted suit that is one Carbonara away from being too tight. All of these pictures are team photos, taken from over the years.
On the right-hand wall, as I sit, are framed newspaper clippings. Success stories, promotions, great escapes, happy times.
In front of me, on the window pane, are a collection of photos. Many are Albion related.
It could be the study of an Albion fan or a Baggies nut.
Only it isn't. Sat opposite me are Jeremy Peace and his Board members. This is the Albion chairman's office.
Of course, Jeremy Peace isn't a fan in the same way that 20,000 others are. His decisions are based on business models, financial targets and figures that run into eight digits. He doesn't sing, chant rude things or heckle referees.
Yet he is the most important man associated with the club for all manner of reasons.
And on Wednesday morning, something was different. I saw a man who has realised that something is badly remiss with his own football club.
This is Jeremy Peace's club. Whether he cheers an 89th minute winner or not is, in many ways, irrelevant - his name remains above the door. He has a duty of care.
As Albion chairman since 2002, Peace has overseen three promotions, two relegations, one FA Cup semi-final and eight Premier League seasons. The stadium has improved, the training facilities have changed beyond recognition.
This is his achievement. It's his achievement for keeps - nobody will take that away from him.
There have been some bad times too. Recently quite a few. Yet this is new territory. This has been an 18-month spell of decline, like no other.
Yesterday's meeting wasn't an ordinary press briefing. There was no 'on-the-record' comment. Now is maybe not an appropriate time in any case.
But Jeremy Peace came across as a man who is finally ready to listen, take notice and reclaim control of a club that has spun off the racing line.
In his words, he wanted to draw a line underneath this season. There is a need to press the 'reset' button. There is a want to start afresh.
This is exactly what is needed.
But he has work to do. Words won't be enough. Action will help more.
One supporter contacted me with an expletive-filled rant to inform me that, after 35 years of being a season-ticket holder, he was 'finished' with the club.
He contacted the ticket office during a lull at work on Monday and cancelled his season ticket, without quibble. He went home that night and cried.
A big admission for any bloke to make. That underlines a feeling of hurt.
Four days on the fan remains troubled with feelings of frustration, anger and, more worryingly, a sense of liberation.
I suggested that the supporter contact Jeremy Peace directly and express his emotions in the form of a letter or email. He declined. But he was happy for me to mention this. He wants this out there.
(Note: I have since discovered that he has written to Jeremy Peace, after all.)
This is why Peace is correct to step back into the fray.
People will make mistakes. Chairmen appoint managers, who sign players, who make mistakes against better players, which lead to goals being conceded, which lead to the manager being sacked because of bad results. The next manager is then appointed, who then signs players, who make mistakes...and so on. Fans will tolerate that cycle. It's football.
But the chemistry which binds a fan to his club can be so easily damaged. The supporter I mention above is one such person.
There are others. And the worst thing is that some fans might opt out of renewing a season ticket, find other things to do on a Saturday and slowly but surely stop caring. And that's where the big danger lies. Once passion is replaced by apathy, the flame might never return.
These are the people Jeremy Peace and West Bromwich Albion have to reach out to.
This isn't about signing a footballer for £5 million, or tying down a star striker to a four-year contract. This isn't about free coach travel, or offering cheap tickets for games against certain clubs. This is about restoring the relationship between supporters and their club. And there is no better person to do that than Jeremy Peace.
And yesterday I saw a sign, a hint, that maybe Jeremy Peace is ready to wrestle his football club back onto its feet.
I saw a warm, human side to him yesterday. I saw a man who realises the club needs his leadership more than ever before. Albion need a 'hands-on' Jeremy Peace back behind the controls.
It might take some time to repair some of the damage, but his involvement can only help matters.
Albion's survival buys them some time and grace. All is not lost.
Yesterday I met a man who realises he has a new challenge. I hope Jeremy Peace does what is needed to point Albion back in the right direction.
All of this must be considered as a positive. Of course there will be cynicism and a sense of 'yeah whatever' but let's wait and see whether Jeremy Peace is ready to act. I get the impression he just might.
And, who knows, one day there might be many more positive newspaper clippings to attach onto his office walls.
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I think any success for WBAFC was a side effect of Peace's determination to get the most money possible for his asset. Any blip along the way was seen as an opportunity for him to strengthen his own position at a low cost, with the greater goal in mind. Essentially his tenure was beneficial to WBAFC, but what is his legacy now?
I also remember him saying that he had taken us as far as he could. It was time to sell up to someone had the finances to invest into the club and take us further forward Then he sold to Lai...
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If we are not careful we will land up in League 1. Get this next appointment wrong, and fail to support the manager on and off the field, and we could be looking at a very long road ahead. TBH im not bothered about the Premiership 'Greed League'. It's slowly ruining football in England. At some point professional football in this country will implode. I cant say when, but its a ticking bomb waiting to go off. Clubs the size of ours run perilously close to the wind to try and achieve success. Just ask Portsmouth, Bolton et al. Once you are down, its a long way back, if you can get back at all. The once mighty Ipswich will be playing in League 1 next year. No more will there be a level playing field. It's kill or be killed. The big boys get bigger, whilst the rest of us feed off scraps. Problem is, the clubs in the Premierships cant see that they need the rest of the teams in the Championship and beyond. It wont be long before League 1 & 2 clubs are semi professional. Football is dying in front of us, yet no one can see it. The players are so up themselves, they have little or no interest in the fans. The clubs have become 'Ivory Towers'. Football has forgotten its roots, and as we all know 'roots' are what keeps nourishing the plant, or it dies. Take me back 25-30 years when football was a working mans game, your local club. Players met in the Supporters club after a game. A time when i had pride in supporting WBA, even if we were sh*te on the pitch. I knew that every one of those players were giving us 100% on a cold Tuesday evening. RIP football - I fear we will never see those days again.
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Looking back on the last 15 or so years, it was great fun. I know there were some awful lows but there were plenty of highs - thats what comes with being a Yo-Yo team.
But I think those days are over now - J Pearce always said our 'natural' place in the world was mid table Championship, and he was right - I'm totally resigned to that for the foreseeable future - I'm not that happy about it but I'm facing reality.
There were plenty of forks in the road where our destiny might have been different,
- Roy getting the England job
- Not moving Pulis on at the end of 16-17 season
- JP selling to the wrong buyer
- Transfer dealings in the last 3-4 that were consistently appalling (as opposed to incredibly shrewd under DA and JP)
- Pens missed vs Villa
But the one pivotal moment that KILLED us was the appointment of the Dancing Grandad
You forgot Dan Ashworth leaving. he was the main protagonist in our clubs success IMO.
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Sometime we occasionally take things for granted and think the grass is greener elsewhere, but you only realise the value of a person when they are not there. Yes, JP is a divisive figure amongst Albion fans, he made a fortune out of West Brom, no disputing that, but his vision for Albion and where it took us was of mutual benefit to us fans. He carried out due diligence when selling the club and after having sold the club any responsibilities for its fortunes are not his. Not a popular view I know and some will disagree with it and try to degrade what he accomplished at West Brom, so before the pelters start and to avoid further differences of opinions, I will agree to disagree with you.
And the there is the article below, penned by Chris Lepkowski.
Jeremy Peace is ready to restore Albion's pride (15th may 2014)
Chris Lepkowski reflects on a recent meeting with West Brom chairman Jeremy Peace
I'm sat in a small room: five chairs, one table, the usual four walls.
I look to the left wall and I see Roy Hodgson smiling. Next to him Steve Clarke looks slightly bemused. Tony Mowbray is also there, gurning somewhat. Robbie Di Matteo, just to Mowbray's left, is wearing a fitted suit that is one Carbonara away from being too tight. All of these pictures are team photos, taken from over the years.
On the right-hand wall, as I sit, are framed newspaper clippings. Success stories, promotions, great escapes, happy times.
In front of me, on the window pane, are a collection of photos. Many are Albion related.
It could be the study of an Albion fan or a Baggies nut.
Only it isn't. Sat opposite me are Jeremy Peace and his Board members. This is the Albion chairman's office.
Of course, Jeremy Peace isn't a fan in the same way that 20,000 others are. His decisions are based on business models, financial targets and figures that run into eight digits. He doesn't sing, chant rude things or heckle referees.
Yet he is the most important man associated with the club for all manner of reasons.
And on Wednesday morning, something was different. I saw a man who has realised that something is badly remiss with his own football club.
This is Jeremy Peace's club. Whether he cheers an 89th minute winner or not is, in many ways, irrelevant - his name remains above the door. He has a duty of care.
As Albion chairman since 2002, Peace has overseen three promotions, two relegations, one FA Cup semi-final and eight Premier League seasons. The stadium has improved, the training facilities have changed beyond recognition.
This is his achievement. It's his achievement for keeps - nobody will take that away from him.
There have been some bad times too. Recently quite a few. Yet this is new territory. This has been an 18-month spell of decline, like no other.
Yesterday's meeting wasn't an ordinary press briefing. There was no 'on-the-record' comment. Now is maybe not an appropriate time in any case.
But Jeremy Peace came across as a man who is finally ready to listen, take notice and reclaim control of a club that has spun off the racing line.
In his words, he wanted to draw a line underneath this season. There is a need to press the 'reset' button. There is a want to start afresh.
This is exactly what is needed.
But he has work to do. Words won't be enough. Action will help more.
One supporter contacted me with an expletive-filled rant to inform me that, after 35 years of being a season-ticket holder, he was 'finished' with the club.
He contacted the ticket office during a lull at work on Monday and cancelled his season ticket, without quibble. He went home that night and cried.
A big admission for any bloke to make. That underlines a feeling of hurt.
Four days on the fan remains troubled with feelings of frustration, anger and, more worryingly, a sense of liberation.
I suggested that the supporter contact Jeremy Peace directly and express his emotions in the form of a letter or email. He declined. But he was happy for me to mention this. He wants this out there.
(Note: I have since discovered that he has written to Jeremy Peace, after all.)
This is why Peace is correct to step back into the fray.
People will make mistakes. Chairmen appoint managers, who sign players, who make mistakes against better players, which lead to goals being conceded, which lead to the manager being sacked because of bad results. The next manager is then appointed, who then signs players, who make mistakes...and so on. Fans will tolerate that cycle. It's football.
But the chemistry which binds a fan to his club can be so easily damaged. The supporter I mention above is one such person.
There are others. And the worst thing is that some fans might opt out of renewing a season ticket, find other things to do on a Saturday and slowly but surely stop caring. And that's where the big danger lies. Once passion is replaced by apathy, the flame might never return.
These are the people Jeremy Peace and West Bromwich Albion have to reach out to.
This isn't about signing a footballer for £5 million, or tying down a star striker to a four-year contract. This isn't about free coach travel, or offering cheap tickets for games against certain clubs. This is about restoring the relationship between supporters and their club. And there is no better person to do that than Jeremy Peace.
And yesterday I saw a sign, a hint, that maybe Jeremy Peace is ready to wrestle his football club back onto its feet.
I saw a warm, human side to him yesterday. I saw a man who realises the club needs his leadership more than ever before. Albion need a 'hands-on' Jeremy Peace back behind the controls.
It might take some time to repair some of the damage, but his involvement can only help matters.
Albion's survival buys them some time and grace. All is not lost.
Yesterday I met a man who realises he has a new challenge. I hope Jeremy Peace does what is needed to point Albion back in the right direction.
All of this must be considered as a positive. Of course there will be cynicism and a sense of 'yeah whatever' but let's wait and see whether Jeremy Peace is ready to act. I get the impression he just might.
And, who knows, one day there might be many more positive newspaper clippings to attach onto his office walls.
Less than 1 month later he appointed Alan Irvine and our problems really started... Words are wind.
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If we are not careful we will land up in League 1. Get this next appointment wrong, and fail to support the manager on and off the field, and we could be looking at a very long road ahead. TBH im not bothered about the Premiership 'Greed League'. It's slowly ruining football in England. At some point professional football in this country will implode. I cant say when, but its a ticking bomb waiting to go off. Clubs the size of ours run perilously close to the wind to try and achieve success. Just ask Portsmouth, Bolton et al. Once you are down, its a long way back, if you can get back at all. The once mighty Ipswich will be playing in League 1 next year. No more will there be a level playing field. It's kill or be killed. The big boys get bigger, whilst the rest of us feed off scraps. Problem is, the clubs in the Premierships cant see that they need the rest of the teams in the Championship and beyond. It wont be long before League 1 & 2 clubs are semi professional. Football is dying in front of us, yet no one can see it. The players are so up themselves, they have little or no interest in the fans. The clubs have become 'Ivory Towers'. Football has forgotten its roots, and as we all know 'roots' are what keeps nourishing the plant, or it dies. Take me back 25-30 years when football was a working mans game, your local club. Players met in the Supporters club after a game. A time when i had pride in supporting WBA, even if we were sh*te on the pitch. I knew that every one of those players were giving us 100% on a cold Tuesday evening. RIP football - I fear we will never see those days again.
A very good and accurate post. I’m sure a good many fans across the country, apart from those of the elite clubs, can sense things will go pear shaped at some point, but we, as fans, can do nothing to stop this juggernaut of greed. All we can hope for is that our respective clubs somehow come out of the wreckage reasonably unscathed.
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plenty of scope for yo-yoing between the champ and League 1
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Football has forgotten its roots, and as we all know 'roots' are what keeps nourishing the plant, or it dies. Take me back 25-30 years when football was a working mans game, your local club. Players met in the Supporters club after a game. A time when i had pride in supporting WBA, even if we were sh*te on the pitch. I knew that every one of those players were giving us 100% on a cold Tuesday evening. RIP football - I fear we will never see those days again.
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Globalisation has done this . English football is everyone's now. People in Zaire, thailand and Australia all support a prem team now...in the process its been taken away from us - and when something gets as big as that money comes into play, which distorts everything even more
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If we are not careful we will land up in League 1. Get this next appointment wrong, and fail to support the manager on and off the field, and we could be looking at a very long road ahead. TBH im not bothered about the Premiership 'Greed League'. It's slowly ruining football in England. At some point professional football in this country will implode. I cant say when, but its a ticking bomb waiting to go off. Clubs the size of ours run perilously close to the wind to try and achieve success. Just ask Portsmouth, Bolton et al. Once you are down, its a long way back, if you can get back at all. The once mighty Ipswich will be playing in League 1 next year. No more will there be a level playing field. It's kill or be killed. The big boys get bigger, whilst the rest of us feed off scraps. Problem is, the clubs in the Premierships cant see that they need the rest of the teams in the Championship and beyond. It wont be long before League 1 & 2 clubs are semi professional. Football is dying in front of us, yet no one can see it. The players are so up themselves, they have little or no interest in the fans. The clubs have become 'Ivory Towers'. Football has forgotten its roots, and as we all know 'roots' are what keeps nourishing the plant, or it dies. Take me back 25-30 years when football was a working mans game, your local club. Players met in the Supporters club after a game. A time when i had pride in supporting WBA, even if we were sh*te on the pitch. I knew that every one of those players were giving us 100% on a cold Tuesday evening. RIP football - I fear we will never see those days again.
Whilst there's a lot in here I agree with, my biggest concern is that drop to league one.
This season is a big one and I have not seen any confidence in the football club over the last few years to trust them to get things right.
There are far too many relatively big football clubs who have had poor ownership, poor decision makers, apathy within the stands and found themselves faffing around in league one. There is no easy recovery either as the fans of both Sheffield clubs, Sunderland, Leeds, Charlton and others will tell you.
I think we have to face up to the reality.
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Ever since I started supporting us we were in the Premier League. I had not really supported or got interested in football before I just played it and used Albion as a team to pretend to play for as my Dad supported us whilst kicking my ball in the Garden before that it was England. When I started to understand football I was taught about our Rivals. I already knew about Wolves from my Uncle and Cousin saying Support Wolves to get this toy. When we went down I asked my Dad who was very busy if we could try to go more Albion Games. I went to the game against Wigan and loved it. Next Season my Dad who has now finished being busy said he has something planned to go to more games. But I know there was once we were planning to go to some European games when we very damn near. Now However I realise me pretending to play for Albion in my back garden winning leagues having a class team based of my Fifa Career mode was just a fantasy. I Realise that the Prem is just a greed league owned by rich Arab, American, Chinese owners trying to franchise a once local club, Man City were once a team in Man Utd's shadow who were a small local side much like us now they have a fantastic team that anyone playing Fifa Ultimate team or Career Mode would love to have. They keep winning leagues. I wanted Liverpool to do it So to do a Wolves fan. But watching Liverpool win the Champions league made me look back at the Glory Days. I Used to make Albion do that but now I've established we are just a Local Black Country Side who no one cares about apart from us that what makes every smaller club different it's true fans that what forms it Identity. Man City, Arsenal, Man Untied, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool all have fans from around the world who have never been to a game. At least our fans can say I was there when we won the cup or so on. So In a way I've realised that we will never be big and that we are just a Black Country Side with plenty of History.
Because We are Albion