The main priority is.....?

[Greenford Bee]

A couple of months ago we were all cock a hoop and talking about auto promotion. In the 'greenwich', loads of stuff has happened regarding Noades, the ground etc. Like all true fans, we want everything for our club but being realistic what would you choose?

1. Promotion to Division 1

2. Noades out and a new more committed owner (or owners)

3. Real progress on the new stadium

4. Keep our best players for another push next year

1) is only achievable if our on field form dramatically improves and probably only via the play offs. 2, 3 and 4 are linked but if we continue to play as we are then they must become the priorties IMHO

 

[Infatuated Bees Alter Ego]

Point #4 ... Maybe ?? If we were more commited to keeping our better players now, our form will/would've been a lot better and we wouldn't have to look to next year, but DO IT this year. I know the players can't leave till the end of the season, but they can look as from the 1st of January and maybe they ain't focused for anything with Brentford anymore, cos no one is trying to sort out their contracts and extend them ??

 

[Gaz_Thomas]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Infatuated Bees Alter Ego:
Point #4 ... Maybe ?? If we were more commited to keeping our better players now, our form will/would've been a lot better and we wouldn't have to look to next year, but DO IT this year. I know the players can't leave till the end of the season, but they can look as from the 1st of January and maybe they ain't focused for anything with Brentford anymore, cos no one is trying to sort out their contracts and extend them ??
</font>

Are you not Surprised about that ????
Paul Smith extended his contract about 2 weeks back.

 

[Infatuated Bees Alter Ego]

No I'm not surprised by this, but it is very sad. I wouldn't say Paul Smith was one of our better players ? I was talking more of the likes of Evans, Mahon, Powell, Ivar etc.

 

[Silly Chip]

Point 2 without a shadow of a doubt. I think us Bees fans want to know now that our future is secure for the long term. It's a shame Mr Lange abandoned us when he did in '92-93. Who knows, we might still have been in Div 1. The worse thing for this club is to get promoted, inflate our players wages or buy crap, get to 7th in Div 1 by December giving the impression to fans that the premiership is beckoning and then lose every game and get relegated on the final saturday of the season. This is typical fare for being a Brentford Fan. Let's clearout this club of driftwood; directors and players and start our foundations again with a Bees fan that can finance the dream and won't pull the rug a few seasons down the line. So are there any closset Bees fans out there with loadsofmoney? How about writing to the Barclay brothers? Scrub that, they might move the team to their island off Sark.

 

[Greenford Bee]

I agree with PB36 about inflating wages etc. and stuggling in the 1st. Obviously, I am as desperate for us to go up as anyone but only if we can flourish. Frankly, less than half of our current squad are good enough for the 1st. We seem to have a few good juniors coming through but this will take time.

Ron retiring but hopefully being magnanamous enough not to leave us in the cart, new owners and keeping Steve Coppell + the key players would be something to look forward to + winning at Adams and Vale Park next season if we don't go up!!!

 

[Jay Bee]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by PutneyBee36:
The worse thing for this club is to get promoted, inflate our players wages or buy crap, get to 7th in Div 1 by December giving the impression to fans that the premiership is beckoning and then lose every game and get relegated on the final saturday of the season.</font>

Hmmm. Intentional irony there?

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by PutneyBee36:
Let's clearout this club of driftwood; directors and players and start our foundations again with a Bees fan that can finance the dream and won't pull the rug a few seasons down the line. So are there any closset Bees fans out there with loadsofmoney? How about writing to the Barclay brothers? Scrub that, they might move the team to their island off Sark.</font>

Too optimistic, I'm afraid. You know any Brentford lovers who would buy the club from Noades, clear our debts, secure a new ground and give Coppell a shedload of money to spend on new players/contracts? We all need a John Madejski, but 90% of clubs don't have one. Football at this level is very unlikely to make a profit, someone has to be prepared to finance the club until we reach a higher level, e.g. the top half of Division One, for that to happen (Noades: take note!). Yes we got out of Divison 3 in his 1st season but that was a return from wherehence we came. Promotion again might actually get people excited, after all we've only been there for 1 year in the last 45!

Sadly, point 4 will not happen without point 2, as things stand.

[This message has been edited by Twyford Bee (edited 13 January 2002).]

 

[Mr Tree]

wish everyone would stop being so gloomy!!

the facts of the matter are...

bristol city, 2nd place, are catchable if we win our games in hand

last time we won a championship, we lost 13 (?) and had an awful jan/feb

we have a super team

I know recent form has been poor, but why do we just give up???? the team has been sh*t, but we know it can be better, so let's keep cheering it on, it can happen.....

 

[Nigel Brooks]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Dan the Bee:
wish everyone would stop being so gloomy!!

the facts of the matter are...

bristol city, 2nd place, are catchable if we win our games in hand

last time we won a championship, we lost 13 (?) and had an awful jan/feb

we have a super team

I know recent form has been poor, but why do we just give up???? the team has been sh*t, but we know it can be better, so let's keep cheering it on, it can happen.....</font>

Spot on Dan. It's Division One or obscurity.

No promotion= best players leave= smaller crowds= increasing losses= bank pulls the plug= ground share (possibly)= administration (at best)= eventual liquidation (unless a white knight can be found).

Promotion would= television cash= opportunity to retain good players= larger crowds= chance to reduce overdraft= no non-league ground share (against the current regulations)= staying afloat= higher visibility and a better chance of a committed owner with real cash.

 

[AB]

Number 1.

2- no candidates present themselves at the moment; I'd rather we tried as far as possible to work with Noades until one does or we are in a position to suggest a viable alternative with an attractive exit strategy for Noades.

3- hard to tell. I think that there are possibly opportunities for doing things with GP which would be a short term fix (eg replacing the top tier of Braemar with executive boxes, rearranging the use of office space within GP so that staff whose jobs did not need to be done on site were housed elsewhere and then resiting the Fan Attic in better premises within the stand- freeing up some parking space in the forecourt for guests, putting a retractable canvas roof over Ealing- OK cue jokes about tents).

4- unlikely to happen unless we get promotion (and/or new sugar daddy!).

We're still in sight of promotion, despite an appalling run of results and form away from home. Our players have already shown they are good enough and we have a very experienced manager- we can turn this round if we as fans do our bit by remaining upbeat.

I don't think that the fact that some of our players' contracts are about to end should have any impact. Their best chance of a good deal, either here or at another club is if they play to their abilities. Remember that what was possibly his best performance came in Price's last game for us against Reading. Even though he probably knew he was going, you could see that he was playing his heart out, particularly from his goal celebration. I don't see any of the other players as being any different.

 

[Bucks Bee]

Basically, if we gain promotion, the rest will fall into place - more help from LBH with regard to a new ground, Noades will probably f*** off anyway, so a first division club will look a more promising prospect to a prospective buyer, and we'll gain more money, with which we can secure key contracts and maybe buy a few players. So it all stems from promotion - Division 1 or start all over again!!