Thetownend.com

This does seem to be growing on This is.

We may write it off as a site for mongs (and it mostly is) but it does worry me that quite a few posters on the stories there are laying into him recently.

I cant be arsed to write an essay about it but it seems like now malpas has gone that they need to throw some bile at someone and fitton is getting it for "doing things on the cheap" etc

I dont really have much of a point, it just saddens me that some people can be so negative, impatient and just plain wrong.

People see the "consortium worth X hundred million" and assume that means that is correct and a liquid amount all available to the football club. Then wonder why aren't they spending.

Playing Devil's advocate and ignoring a lot of stuff like credibility, if the old board had done some of the things the new board have they'd have been slated even more, and probably by people on here.  To quantify that I mean things like appointing Malpas, getting in loan players and  non-league trialists. Oxo instead of Bovril, etc.

To say posters are laying into Fitton is a bit OTT.
Looking at the team performances since the takeover has left a lot of supporters feeling a little let down.
We are now in a lower league position and the football is dire.
There was a long delay in appointing DW which again is not universally seen as a great improvement (time will tell).
The future does not look as bright as we had hoped for 12 months ago.
If performances improve (starting tomorrow) then the gloom will begin to lift and we can all start looking to a brighter future.

People should realise that putting piles of money is not an option, especially when you look at Fulham and Chelsea.

Abramovich and Al Fayed have put in £700m and £182m respectively, but it's an interest free loan, so they want their money back later !!!

Fitton has acknowledged his faults - what more must he do?

I consider myself an avid Town fan, but if I was chairman I wouldn't simply throw my money at the club, I'd want stability et al.

On the pitch business has been disappointing, very much so. However, we were a complete mess when they took over and I believe it'll take more than a year to sort our mess out.

My fear is that Fitton & Co will walk because of such comments.

No denying things havnt gone well on the pitch, and fitton had to and has taken blame for appionting malpas.

but off the pitch things have not been better for ages.  I appreciate the reason we all post on here is beacuse of the football team not how pretty the winners lounge looks but some people dont see the bigger picture and it gets on my tits.

Without a solid basis we'll just end up like we were before, paying out more than we make and in a spiral of debt with no plan other than stay afloat for another year.

Maybe I'm just gullable but I still firmly believe that in a few years the club will look a lot better both on and off the pitch under the stewardship of AF and co.  And because of that I'm willing to be patient. Most clubs that have success do it slowly and surely rather than just throwing money around in the short term.

Take a step back to take 2 forward! Have faith!

I still find myself often wondering what would have happened had BEST holdings taken over.

My conclusion remains the same - that under Fitton, STFC are in safer hands.

Mine too. And I cant help but think we were lucky to get owners that were well funded, profesional and sensible.

If they sold up I could see the next lot having a lot more in common with diamond mike and crew

i had a look on thisis for the first time in ages yesterday.started reading a wilson out thread, and gave up after reading about 4-5 posts on there.

It seems the default setting of all fans to cry sack the board as soon as anything goes wrong.  As fans do we really believe we know more about what is happening within the club than the people working there day in day out who put the money in?  Some fans really are negative retards and there are some on thisis who are prime examples of this.  

Like Rich Im happy that we are in Fitton and Co's hands rather than the last board and we're not gambling on the quick fix that splashing the cash would provide but trying to build strong roots for future success.  

Lets not give them any credit, this is is a forum for the mongs. The comments section is awful and full of mongs, retards and oxford fans. I'll eat my hat (I dont have a hat) if the likes of pinehurst red are genuine Swindon fans who go every week.

However, I think Batch has hit the nail on the head


Thats why there is so much negativity this season, hardcore fans and the some what floater fans saw we'd been taken over by some rich men and expected us to splash the cash and be at the top end of the league like Peterborough & Franchise.

It was never going to happen like that at all, sure I'll be the first to admit I wasnt expect this season to turn out as badly as it has but anyone expecting anything above mid table and anyone who was expecting us to spend millions on players was deluding themselves from the start.

Lets be honest though, when it comes to this is. If we won 3-0 it wouldnt be good enough we should have won 4-0. If we spend 250k on a player, it should have been 500k on a better player. If we appointed Mourinho, we should have gone the extra mile and appointed Ferguson.

People see rich owners and expect the world.

I expect the solar system.

Wheres your ambition DV?

Our fans will whinge no matter what happens. Just let them get on with it,

I agree

the world is not enough

Our club was saved........a few fuck ups later...we still have a club and an experienced manager in charge and not (yet) in the drop zone..

He admitted he got it wrong with Malpas.

I posted before ...Season starts here.

If he is who I think (acquaintance of a friend)  then he genuinely does claim to be a fan, and was present in the TE at most of the games last season. Scary isn't it if he beleives what he says.
-----

FWIW I think we are in for a year or two stagnation (hopefully!) whilst the financial foundations are put in place to take us forward.

good job I dont have a hat then!

And I don't hugely mind that providing Fitton and co set the fans expectations accordingly.  Talk of Championship in three years doesnt help matters when we're in a relegation dogfight!  All due respect and all that Malarky!

Tis a fair point. However, we're one year into this target. Stay up this season and who knows....

Optimism is good :)

I haven't got any complaints with Fitton. He took a bit too long appointed the new manager but that's about it.

I'm sure there are plenty of fans of other clubs that would give anything to have the financial stability that Fitton has brought to the club. We might not get promoted, but we're not going to go in to administration or be wound up - something that is a major concern for a lot of other clubs at the moment.

The thisis mongs fuck me off. I haven't been in the forum for a long time. Mind you negativity in general isn't something i like. It takes no more effort to be negative than it does positive and all attitudes only breed more of the same. It's quite funny when you think about it though, he's responsible for saving the club and giving us a more stable footing and most importantly it's his money not Swindons ffs!

I think Fitton has come out and said really we're looking at 3-5 years now that the Credit Crunch has taken effect.

I think to be fair we would spend money if we were say just outside the playoffs etc to have that extra push. There is clearly more money if you are lucky to go up from bigger gates, bigger clubs, tv rights etc so... I think when we are settled financially and then we may see some funds used.

Who said there is not money? Spent money on casal and only friday wilson said he was trying to make perm signings. I personally think he is getting in what we need and in the summer we will see wilson get the backing

There are as many mongs on here as there are there.Personally im sick of having to give thanks for them saving the club.How long are we supposed to to be thankfull? will we still have to be thankfull when we are in Div3? Still thankfull when we are out of the League?

We are constantly told to stop looking back and start looking forward but some fans harp on about our saviours and the old board as if that makes everything alright now,just because something used to be really shit doesnt mean we should have to put up with the current crap.And no I wont be outside the ground protesting just yet but that doesnt mean they should be beyond scrutiny.

Yeovil Blue you've taken the words right out of my mouth, although I'd probably have chucked a few expletives in.

I would say that it's rare to now find a Swindon fan that will not acknowledge that errors have been made. It's just a case of how extreme people regard the boards mistakes thus far.

I don't go to Thisis these days because it is utter shite an half the posters there aren't "fans"  Its linked in with the main site these days and you see the comments on the non-footy stories are equally as retarded as those football related.  Usually by the same people who may live/work in the town but have no loyalties towards it.

As people have said before me, its the money.  I think that in the backround, the powers that be, are still some way of getting the club "financially stabe" and I think it will be next season before we are able to move forward.  There's still a lot going that we don't know about.

It was a gamble to sign Malpas. The board new this and they new that they, behind the scenes weren't ready to bring in "their man".  Malpas was a holding manouvre to maintain mid-table on low budget.  I think it's easy to see why they took that decision with MM's coaching "credentials". It could have come good. It didn't, they accepted it and apologised to the fans. We move on.

Timescale is the key here folks and anyone who expected anywhere better than a mid-table finish belongs on Thisis. it was never going to happen. We could still finish in mid-table, quite easily though and I reckon we'll finish within 2 points of whoever finishes in 13th place. :nod:

Ed: Oh and they may have to re-think their policy towards player agents in the long run.  All very admirable but until there's some sort of regulation of them, they're part of the game.  I can't help thinking that that's having some kind impact on our ability to bring players in.

Appointing Malpas and taking too long to replace him following his sacking (possibly by targetting the wrong people and finding this out too late) seem to be the Board's errors.

Seems we were willing to throw money at Cox who is rumoured to have cost up to £200k (4 times the price of Parkin) and Casal who is shit, but they backed Malpas on that one. In fact, I'd say the Board have helped Malpas out a fair bit and if they do the same with Wilson we should do well.

If the Board got it wrong by expecting better than a relegation dog fight then so did the fans because we were the ones saying we'd do better this year than last year, not necessarily the Board.

It's rare to find a Swindon fan....let's face it, when this Board took over there was a quiet sense of optimism, which was certainly built up talk of CCC within 3 years. Allied to the purchase of McManatee and Cox, the general consensus was a decent mid table season, we'd probably be a bit shit away from home, but should be able to put in a few exciting shows at the CG.  In fact a bit like Hartlepool.

This would be seen as progress, with  hopefully a few other players kicking on and making an improvement...I would say herein lies the problem, these aims were fairly modest, but certainly realistic...which is why fans are pissed off, that it's come nowhere near a reality.

Worse it actually looks like the Board have almost accepted L2 next season by the way matters have been handled since MM's departure.

Still as long as the egg chasers come to Town...

Its getting boring now reg. Can you explain how they have accepted league2. They have appointed wilson and backing him with money and turning down offers for cox

(said in the most conversational of ways) Could you elaborate on that further for me Reg?

I am guessing he means the seemingly low rent squad reinforcements we have just got in.

Am I right?

I'd say the Board have accepted league one more than anything. Doesn't mean we'll stay there after this season though.

I think Reg is entering the early onset of what I refer to as 'Old Git' syndrome. He's been a right pessimistic whinger for the past few months.

 I missed the bit where Wilson was backed with money, like when he tried to sign Anyinysah. We've turned down one offer for Cox of 500,000 , 300,000 to us after Reading's cut.  Barely more than we paid....

 Fact of the matter is we've been allowed to slide into a relegation fight we look ill equipped to cope with.

Wilson has said he is trying to get perm signings. As for ansinya we did offer cash the player decided to stay up north.

You were doing well until Para 3 Reg........

 So, in your opinion matters have been handled well since MM's sacking?

I would say from MM's sacking to DW appointment it was quite poor, the big name who will blow your socks off etc, it all dragged on a bit which ultimately saw us slip into our current position, Since DW has started full time I think things have improved a bit and with the new signings now, esepcially Robson-Kanu I am quite impressed. Let's see how they get on playing wise though. Let's hope they gel soon enough so we don't slip into the bottom 4. A win tomorrow potentially could give us a bit of breathing space for Oldham which will be a tough game Saturday.

Whilst many of the signings may not be awe inspiring, one must remember that Lou Macari brought a lot of players from the lower leagues who panned out ok.  I was young but remember enough and ofcourse read of the good old days now etc..

All we can do now Gazza is sit back and hope for the best...we still don't seem to have addressed the central midfield, but we've got to give these new boys a fair chance...20 mins sound about right?

You better watch out Reg.

I assume youve heard of Happy Slapping? be very carefull ive heard theres a contract out to Happy Clap you to death at the Walsall game  ??? :D

It's inevitable that a few TEF'ers propose dishing out those clapper things at matches a la Fulham.

[url width=500 height=332]http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3042/2792480716_6dc890fff9.jpg?v=0[/url]

Can I hide behind you, when an insanely grinning DRS and Samdy Gray come hunting for me?

Not sure I'll be there,I support Man City or that Scottish club that ive forgotton the name of these days.

I can tell you that its more than a few Dicks on thisis who are dissapointed with this season,Fitton has said he made a mistake,fair play to him and all of us are more than happy with what hes done off field...but unfortunatly alot of fans whether we like it or not want more onfield...the average joe dont want to hear that the off field scenario is kicking ass..the average fan wants us to start kicking ass on field so in my view you have to take a little gamble to go forward.
Simon Cox has shown that by flashing the cash responsibly pays dividends...we need to flash abit more responsibly.we have taken a gamble on two trialists and two loanees and time will tell if they are the answer...i doubt it myself.
Ime very very happy with Danny Wilson as manager and as always will be behind the team during the matches...we were lucky to get him,if we can survive this season ime convinced he can push us forward.

How can he push us forward without money leefer?

Wilson has said today he won't rule out making more signings.

"We are still looking to bring one or two more in," he said. "We had to be patient but I am delighted to have made the signings. If their arrival puts one or two noses out of joint in the rest of the squad then so be it, we need results.

So obviously Fitton is giving him quite significant backing. Don't forget we did offer cash for Anyinsah too, and that might be spent on these couple of possible signings Wilson mentioned above. I have complete faith in what Fitton is doing and will support him completely. It's the least he deserves in my opinion.

D.W. was the only choice to make, and now he's getting new players.  You cannot ask for any more than that.

Bit ott isn't it

This board have had merely 12 months anyone who expected a total revamp in that time need shooting. They backed malpas and have admitted that was wrong i dont know what more people want. They are now backing wilson so i really am confused what more they can do

No-one is saying that the new board are beyond scrutiny.  I see it as part of our job as supporters to do that.

But there is scutiny and there is negativity and knee jerk reactions. They got Malpas wrong. Most of the problems on the picth stem from Malpas. I'm willing to give them more than 12 months to get it right.

If we have a good month on the pitch the mood will change - at this stage it doesn't fully feel like a relegation season, maybe because we were far worse in 2005/06 and bottom of the table for the majority.

Question is, can we have a good month? After Leeds away, there's a run of fixtures that will truly decide whether or not we deserve to stay up.

H   Hereford
A   Yeovil Town
H   Crewe
A   Brighton
H   Leyton Orient
A   Carlisle
H   Bristol Rovers

Still alot of points to play for this season.

Talking of staying up, I see Huddersfield are sniffing around Lambert. If he goes they can do us another favour by getting relegated instead of us.

The old board got about 5 years before getting a concerted effort of negativity being thrown their way.  Given what they managed to do to the club in that period, I'd say the new gang should have a few months more!

Have they/will they get things wrong? Yes

The good thing is they seem to be very keen to learn by the mistakes unlike the previous wankers

Well James Wills is there to offer advice...although he's never seemed the brightest. I wonder where he gets his advice from?

To answer your question, no I don't.

But I can't buy into your assumption/opinion that the Board have accepted relegation at this stage of the season. Which is speculative conjecture at best IMO.

James Wills is on the Board by token gesture. His input consists of answering the question previously this was a mess, wasn't it James? by nodding and not saying a word.

Still, you can't beat a bit of comedy at an AGM.

I'm pretty sure I can recall Fitton pretty much saying that if Wills disagreed with anything the rest of the board thought they would out vote him anyway.

This thread is full of wank.

Half you are sounding like fucking plastic premiership wankers who expect the chairman to flick a switch, plough loads of cash and get results in a week.  It doesn't happen like that, get a fucking grip.

Theres only one piece of wank on this thread ...its abit rich you telling us to get a grip...youve got the answers to all of mankinds problems and your telling us to get a grip...fuck off back to politics,you know fuck all about football.

Thats way to harsh.

I think Ironsides probably right and im probably one of the people guilty of it.

Think you will find i am the only one who is right

Fuck you Leefer.  Stick to murdering prostitutes.

I'm righter.

You're right about that and i was wrong.

Its clear that I was right 1st as I started the thread.

What gives you the right to say that?

Its an ancient rite and he has the right to use it!

its my right

He, He he!!...think Ironside is more Righter than all of us.

I'm right and so is my wife.

Nice to see we've turned down a bid of £500k for Cox.

Us old buggers remember times when the board would have sold off the whole squad for an offer like that :D