A week is a long time in football
As someone once said.
It is now a week until D Day, and I’m content, or at least accepting, that the club will require every minute of that whole week to make signings. It’s the way the window appears to work and the expectation is that the final day, hours and minutes of this summer’s will be extra chaotic.
Jim White will need an extra pot of coffee that morning ☕️
We have another game in that time, at home to Crewe on Saturday. The Valley home numbers were down 1,800 on last Saturday against those that watched the Sheffield Wednesday game, one that was also televised. Crewe’s travelling numbers will be half of Wigan’s I expect, so possibly an attendance down around the 12,000 mark.
We all love a lift, and don‘t we need one, and the club has the rest of this week to encourage fans and relight the spark that is flickering like a tee light bought from the pound shop.
You know what I’d like in the meantime, and it maybe a little needy, but how about some kind of statement, an update, something to buy into. I mean Roland told us nothing, but Thomas likes engagement, so how about some honesty and redacted expectation management?
Even if it is Thomas’ de-facto executive Ged Roddy who addresses us. I think we’d all like to get to know him better.
A week can be a long time in football. Let’s see what the next seven days brings.
Chicago Addick 
Yeah, last-minute panic and injury-prone players no doubt and sorry for not getting excited.
Maybe one through the door but how many out?
Totally agrre. The fans need something to lift them and get them positive and behind the team on Saturday. It was horrible to stand in the covered end hearing fans booing and negative chanting as the team went off. Some of us were still applauding but not sure the team could hear us. It made me think how I would have felt when I was at work and had a bad day or made a mistake. If my work mates or bosses had booed me and told me I was rubbish and not fit to be in their Company, my confidence would only have got worse. But they didnt, they always supported me and tried to help.
Lets get right behind the team and Nigel on Saturday to give them the lift they need. We are all in this together. COYR
This team is fit enough to wear the shirt they are just not good enough. Many players in my time have deserved that chant but not this lot.
Don’t hold your breath. It is looking very like we are going to undershoot even the basic recruitment requirements from here. I think they will all go into hiding until we win a couple of games when they might feel emboldened to get their excuses out. It’s so fucking frustrating when it’s been glaringly obvious for months now.
Before the season ended they had decided on those to be released like Shinnie and Pratley. They had a very good sense that Chuks and Amos would leave. And they knew that JFC would be out until after Christmas. Purrington was injured early in pre-season and Gilbey contracted Covid in early July.
Incredible to say it. But Bowyer and Gallen selecting players and left to convince RD and he saying yes or no looked extremely more streamlined.
At this late stage with our paper thin squad we need so many players we will be lucky to get just one quality player in, as the rest will be as jw has put, incl some waste of space loanees. Hopefully I am wrong, but every other team, including Portsmouth who have been moaning about trying to get players in have done most of their business already with many having lesser budgets than ourselves, whereas we need at least half a new team brought in with just a week to go!
Gunter and Watson should be straight out the door, but they won’t, as Adkins believes they are valuable members of his team.
there still seem to be a few options floating, Tom Lowery is available (and hasn’t played for Crewe yet this season) Josh Sims is still available so is Hal Robinson-Kanu, Jack Wilshire, Joe Bennet, along with Henderson…
then there is the loan market, and there are a few decent centre backs playing u23s for Prem clubs still available, and there is always the old firm reserves too
Whilst TS has brought some stability to the Club, I’m not sure he has the financial clout to see the success he forecasts for the future. We are told that “we have to work to a budget” whatever that is, but it seems that we can only afford loanees so we are not going to get a quality permanent squad in this competitive league.
I would like to optimistic, but I have seen this all before in my many years at The Valley.
Perhaps we should rename the team The Loan Rangers!
Normally at this time we would be recruiting players, permanent or on loan, to put the icing on the cake, this season we haven’t even got the cake. TS obviously hasn’t got the financial resources that was implied when he took over the club and the recruitment so far bears that out. As you know I have supported CAFC for over 60 years and the only period when the team was as bad was the early 1970’s when we had the doubtful talents of Bolland, Endean, Hunt (Bobby) and Dunphy,
TS needs to seriously consider bringing in a co-investor. He should also be carefully judging NA’s performance in the next few games as so far it has been extremely poor.
Thinking back to what seems like magical times.. what Lennie Lawrence was able to achieve when he had a team of very much mixed ability. They played their hearts out for him. Christ on a bike we didn’t even have a ground for most of the time !.. I’m sure the money was just as tight then. Has the game changed so much that the idea of playing for club and manager loyalty is just a quaint outdated idea from the past ? Maybe it is but other L1 clubs seem to be coping ok on tight budgets..Maybe TS has been sold a dream and he’s just woken up to reality. He’s a successful business man and it must have dawned on him that without owning the associated real-estate he’s got little in the way of assets, just outgoings.. Rich people get rich and stay rich by being careful how they spend their money. However none of this should prevent NA from trying new strategies cos the existing one ain’t working.
Now Lennie could build a team with no budget!
Popped in today CA to see if everyone had calmed down. Apparently not.
Its all about expectations isn’t it? And we live in a time when the youngsters all expect instant success – I’m guessing most of the north standers booing are of an age that they have grown up watching premiership football at the valley. So the last 5 years must have been a bit of a shock. Not so for us olduns. The biggest problem, and something I am not envious about not having had in my youth, is social media. When Alan Curbishley and Richard Murray announced a 10 year plan did they get inundated on twitter with people wanting details? Was their every move analysed and criticised?
Anyway, my suggestion for today after last night is you should all start watching the Under 23s. Or perhaps they should all be playing in the 1st team.
Oh, and CA, if the numbers go down a bit for Saturday I’ll be happy with that if it means the boo boys stay at home.