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I bumped into Nicky Hammond at the bottle bank earlier.

He said Cox is going to Northampton,wouldnt say a fee but said its a record for Northampton..

Its true I tell ya

that's scary. i bumped into him in the joke shop, he said the same thing but swore me to secrecy

Gasp! I don't believe it! Nicky Hammond at a bottle bank! He don't give a fuck about the recycling. I've heard the same though, Cox loves the cobblers long time.

The Cobblers record fee is £165,000 so Cox could fit the bill. They have clearly made a big (by their standards) offer for someone, to a club who are in no hurry to reply. Sounds like you could be right .... on the other hand, might be a load of cobblers.

I heard it was a load of cobblers but I actually think Oevil is right

Could be seeing Cox at the CG next week after all playing for the Cobblers :(  what sort of reception do you think he will get?

Booooooooooooooooo

How serious are swindon on wanting to make the playoffs im sorry apart from cox this season no one has looked like scoring more then 10 goals  i think that tells you something doesn't it.

not that I want to look back and yes, we have moved on, but I personally think we'd have had cox signed by now if sturrock was still here.....just my view on things, thats all....

true, but corr's doing ok and lets give moses a chance to see what he can do. I'll be gutted if we don't get cox but he's not the only player out there.

We all said at the start of this season that we wanted to condsolidate our postion in League 1 and then move up from there the following season. We're still in with a shout of the playoffs - we just beat Forest without Cox, even if we didn't put the ball in the back of the net ourselves.

Let's buy Perch and Breckin and then loan them to the opposition each week.

We need Coxy , he's already proved he can get us goals , he works his socks off and fits in well here. We cannot gamble again by getting someone in who may or may not be a good signing , Ashikodi , McNamee ,Kangyuka are all gambles.
It's time for the new owners to walk the walk NOT talk the talk.
They have stated they want championship football in 3 years so they need to get quality and that costs money !!

Or we could spend silly money on players and get into silly debts again couldn't we?

I have heard that this true. Northampton fans seem cetain the player in question is Cox. If they are prepared to pay silly money for him then that is there choice. Cox is a great player as we know but i don't think he's worth more than 200-250k.

Anything over £165K would be that record fee for the Cobblers. If AF offered £200K would that top their bid and swing it for us? We'll find out next week I guess, but why don't Reading give permission for Cox to speak to us and the Cobblers? If they have accepted an offer it suggests that we did not offer enough and that could be why Reading played the waiting game.

And I think the general concensus is that £200K is not silly money in this case.

Agreed, if spending £200,000 for a player that's going to get us 20 goals a season then it will be money well spent IMO.

I cant believe we could lose out to Northampton.
I thought we tabled an offer of £200,000 for Cox?

Fitton confirmed our bid was nowhere near that amount a the sponsors night.

I think that was conjecture (£200K) at the time on here. IIRC Fitton or Malpas said in a report that we had offered quite a lot less. Time to smell the coffee. Just because it appeared that Cox wanted to come here doesn't mean we would get him at less than his worth to Reading. That worth is the highest bid, and I am guessing that our first offer was considered inadequate. Will we get a chance to increase it? Do they want to increase it?

Cox is worth 250k of anyone's money

I thought Yeovil was joking  :?

Don't think so. A source told someone I know that Hammond is heavily into bottle banking.

Even if, it still raises the point that to get Cox it looks like an increased offer is needed.

200k would be money very well spent and i hope AF does increase his offer.

I didn't say spend silly money and get into debt I merely pointed out spending money on a player that's proved his worth here already makes sense. I agree with your comment he's worth 200-250K and no more but are we prepared to go that high.?

I thought our new owners had balls!

we need a striker
Simon Cox is a good striker
we want to sign him

Where is the problem, we want something.....go and fucking get it.

you spat your dummy out so far there that it has landed in my back garden.

would you like it back?

It's the Hollywood thing ....

The question is do they see £250k as a worthwhile investment? They are probably (quite reasonably) thinking that they could get a decent player for half that amount in the summer, if not on a free. Rushing in and throwing money at the club is what got us into the situation we were in before Christmas.

Not quite ... creeping in and throwing money out of the club etc ...

Seems ridiculous to be getting anfry that we dopn't push the boat out for a player considering what we've been through, but if ever a player was worth the money, Coxy's it.

But, if we're going to run like a sound business, do we go out and get ANY payers for that money? Probably not - gamble on 3 or 4 and hope one comes good - for less than half the money.

I'll be gutted if he doesn't come here - he'd be a hero and chances are, would make us money.

I possibly think that the reason Ashikodi is starting today is to have a look at him in action for 90 mins and see if he could be the answer to the goal scoring problem, if not then they know the bid for Cox needs to be raised or someone else needs to be signed as well if we miss out

Cox will be our player if our offer is accepted.

To back up Yeovil's story about Cox. This sounds familier...

"But the club who have the player we are trying to get, are trying to bring someone in themselves.

"It might happen towards the end of the transfer window – from our point of view the sooner it happens the better.

http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/sport/Gray-may-smash-Cobblers-transfer.3692490.jp

Yes, thats how buying stuff works.

i expect that the nature of the transfer window is such that many clubs are reliant on other clubs.

after all, we need to shift some bodies before we can bring anymore in

Not if he doesn't agree terms  :wink:

if we miss out on Cox because our offer was say £100,000 less than Northamptons having a board worth £500M is useless, i dont mean useless as in them saving us, im grateful for that but they was bragging bout all the money thay have becomes irrelivant, we could have had a bloke worth £6m who just cleared the debts and spent no money on the team

It may sound arrogant, but I expect to us compete financially with Northampton Town.

Northmpton have spent a bit money over the last few seasons havent they?

That said I tend to agree

A few weeks ago we were all saying " we just want a properly run club"

Now it looks like we cant have what we want lets forget that and stamp our feet :D

So Yeovil wasn't joking?
I'm confused.

Forget Cox and sign Sam Parkin for half the price. He scored today and Luton are in no position to turn down offers for their players.

I'd hate for us to get Parkin back. I've got a horrible feeling that the seasons of injury have left him not as good. If he came back and didn't score it would be like killing a good memory. With acid. In the eyes.

played a handful of games in 2years, and u want to sign him cos he scored 1 goal when he came on for 15mins?

1 goal every 15 minutes is fine with me.

every 2 years though?

northampton went on a bit of a spending spree a couple of years ago, they've since tightened their belt.

i'd tend to agree with DV, we ought to be competing with not only northampton but more or less the majority of sides in this division in terms of finances - especially if fitton's ambitious.

if we could afford it, i'd be so tempted to bring parkin back even if he just sat around for the rest of his career  :D

Well having went today our strikers again could not hit a barn door with a banjo.

We should b competing with Northampton- if we cannot get Coxy its essential we bring in a goalscorer by Thursday if we are to have any chance at all of the play offs. Also need a central midfielder, we are very poor in this area

The way I look at the Cox situation is this.

If we get him, we get him.
If we don't, we don't.

Can you see where I'm coming from?

I know we should be competing financially with a number of clubs, but let's not forget that we've already committed to spend many millions on getting back to an even keel.

Level playing field in financial terms starts in the close season in my view.

And Parkin? picture in the paper today would suggest that  he's a bit on the unfit side to be a saviour. Let the good memories remain and leave him be.

I don't follow.

With our money we should be signing Cox and Parkin.... (before someone else says it)  :-))(

As someone else said- we may have a bit of money now but we are still shopping at lidl

Nobody said it was going to be easy Bart. Lets just look forward to shopping at Waitrose some time soon.

the way i see it .. if we get him we have a chance

if we dont .. we havent

I'd take that to mean you aren't fussed either way if we sign him or not, which if that was the case would be a shame because he's obviously a bit good for this league.

If we get him we improve our team.
If we dont get him we dont improve our team.

However, if Reading sell him but not to us - that would be an almighty kick in the balls.

Especially if its fucking Noton

theyve sold kirk to yeovil i believe, cox would be the perfect replacement. i hope we get him, but i cant help thinking when deals take this long they usually dont happen.

apparently megson wants lita and kitson aswell  :|  that would leave reading a touch short up top.

i bet we sign cox and he doesn't score for the rest of the season

If we don't get Cox, Quick Mick would be good...

If we get him we can build our team around scoring goals, if not we will have to build the team around a solid defence and hoping to nick a goal or 2 rather than having a striker that you know if he get's the ball in the right position he will score.

I think if we are outbid by Northampton, then depending by how much we should match that offer as I think Cox will be worth a lot of money in the future as he is going to be a proven goal scorer.

I'd be fucking pissed off if we lost out to Northampton of all teams.

http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/sport/New-signing-will-complement-Hubertz.3716333.jp

Sounds very much like Cox hes describing though in this article.  If we lose out to them then its ridiculous. Our future aspirations are far better.

Relax. SSP for 50k  :D

time is ticking .. 3 days

With all due respect to Northampton if we can't outbid them then the new board's promise of the championship in 3 years is going to be very difficult to achieve. Class costs money and sooner or later we are going to have to start paying for players to improve the team. Where better to start than with a player who's already proved his worth here.

The money we spend on Cox + his wages could probably get us a good two or three in the summer on free transfer.

That said, goalscorers are hard to come by.

But you don't want to be paying over the odd's, just because Fitton & Co are willing to put a bit of money up for t/fer fee's does not mean to say they are going to be paying silly money or more that what a player is worth, in Cox's case as he is proven then we should be looking to pay his market value and doing our best, but I'm sure there is a way of making the fee up with clauses, like sell on fee's, promotion, goals scored etc.

If we lose out to northampton that basically shows zero ambition. Northampton are a mid table league one club at best. If we cant compete with them then no way will we make the championship in 3 years

Now we've got rid of Almeida and and Arrieta, do our chances of getting Cox improve?

Lets face facts. If anyone had said three months ago we were even considering bidding for players rather than paying the taxman, the CVA etc., you would have been slaughtered on here.

FFS, Fitton and co may have secured the club's future, but they've made it very clear that they are no Roman Abramovich types.

Yes, I'd be pissed off if we lost out on Cox to Northampton, but if we can't or won't match their offer, then so be it. I guess that's down to Reading FC ultimately, not the player himself.

Survival has been attained, but at a price.....

You dont get promotd out of this league by shopping in the bagain basement.

We should be competing with Northampton. Its not as if we are up against the likes of Leeds/Forest in the bid is it

Well said, to be honest some just won't ever be happy, i'd like Cox and will be pissed off if Northampton got him, but so what, we still have a club and that, ultimately, is what matters imo.

I can see both sides really I think we need to be cautious in our spending as these guys are clearing a mountain of debt and trying to get us running at an even keel again but at the same time I think Fitton is a smart business man so he should see Cox as an investment bring him here for a bargain £200k and 2 years of 20+ goals and he will be worth 2 million.  I'm very hopeful he will realise that and make sure if he comes to League 1 then he's only returning here.  8)

Actually I think that's bollocks.

I think it's definitely possible to get out of league one whilst staying sensible financially.

Southend did
Colchester did
Scunthorpe did

Obviously spending money helps, but the clubs above prove that it can be done without spending money.

I'll be delighted if we sign Cox, but I'm going to go mental if some of you retards start whining about "lack of ambition" and writing off the new regime already because of missing out on one (admittedly good) player

For fuck sake you miserable negative cunt. You weren't happy with Wills, you weren't happy with BEST, you say the new guys have no ambition Just what the fuck pleases you? Who do you want to run the club?  Someone that is going to throw stupid money around so we end up in the shit again?

As Paul D said in another thread, the club as a business is a shambles and it will take a while to turn the club into a business. Why pay over the odds for a player? Whats to say we wont up our bid if Reading say match Northampton and the deals done? FFS For once be positive.

Why don't we all go get razors and slit our wrists?  We are doomed, Under Fitton we are clearly heading for the conference or below... THINK POSITIVE FOR ONCE YOUR PISSING EVERYONE OFF with your negative attitude.  :x

Roar

Im not to displeased if we dont get him. If its a case of having to spend over the odds to buy him then we'd be best not too anyway. Its going to take something drastic for us to get relegated, so lets just bob along in mid table for the rest of the season, then take stock from there

You're right because:

A) obviously Cox is the only good player in the football league so we should pay over the odds for him and if we don't sign him now it's the end of world as we know it.

B) Also our player's budget is set in stone at the current level - for ever, so it will be exactly the same in 3 years time as now, despite having (probably) paid off our debts and significantly improved our income. So if we don't match Northampton now then we never will.

In other words you're talking bollocks

funny thing is promotion for us would be too much for the club to sustain this season as they are clearly not geared up for the championship. we dont have the players to compete at that level yet. i  think if cox had a choice  he wont go to northampton.

Fitton is the new Diamindis, he has no money he will be syphoning off all assets and fiddling the books.

DO US ALL A FAVOUR AND CHANGE THE FUCKING RECORD

Im not an accountant Im a fan.

I dont care about balancing books thats not my job.

I want Simon Cox as a Swindon player,the people  in charge are supposed to have the money to make it happen so...

Make it happen.

We arent talking about a million quid here.

Barts right.

True. I agree with Bart and Yeovil.

Thinking in a business sense, Simon Cox will be a saleable asset. In 2 years he will be worth far more than what we paid for him.

Just because the club are not geared up for the Championship now doesn't mean they shouldn't aim for as high a finish as possible. A successful team will improve gates and revenue, and if promotion didn't happen then at least this season will have given us a good foundation for a determined push next season. Cox could be an integral part of that successful team and should be well able to compete in the Championship, especially if he maintained his form, with STFC preferably. Getting him at the right price (which most seem to agree is around £200K, obviously less if possible) would show continued ambition and prudence as well as helping to ensure we still have a challenging club in 3 years.

Whilst the club needs sorting out and converting into a clean, well run business that should not mean that achieving stability stops them from grasping an opportunity so long as it is within reach.

I have every faith in the new board to do the right thing. Even if it doesn't all get done immediately.

Can I just ask....

Do any of you actually have the first fucking idea of what's going on with the Cox bid? Or are you just running with a few assumptions and a rumour of a Northampton fan site?

As far as any of us know the negotiations are still ongoing and until someone else like N'hampton actually sign him I don't see what you're all moaning about.

FWIW I'd be tempted to trust Fitton, who's managed to make himself a multi-million pound fortune from his business dealings, to get us a decent deal on Cox, or to walk away if the price got stupid.

I can only agree with WTRRA. I've got faith in this lot. Could some of you lot try to find some.

It is possibe that Cox may not want to go to Northampton, there is no obligation for him to sign for them even if the clubs agree a fee. I would have thought if it was acceptable to all parties the deal would have been done by now. If Reading do not offer him a new contract he will walk for free in the summer so this may be their last chance to get a fee for him. It could be that he wants to come to Swindon, Fitton is aware of that and has offered a fee that Reading may have to accept if Cox does not want to go elsewhere. If true, a dangerous ploy but could save us a lot of money.

Im not saying we have to sign Cox but we definately need a top striker who is going to hit 20 goals in a season before the window closes otherwise we arent going up .. simple as ...

we did alright last season without a 20 goal a season striker

And we were in a league lower. We need a natural goal scorer if we are ever going to get promoted. None of our current players are natural goal scorers.

As much as i love the opposite sex i would say Barry Corr was

A strong defence will win you more games than a strong attack. Corr is more than capable of getting 15 goals a season, paynter 10. If the midfield chipped in with some more goals we'd be flying

Again it comes down to midfield, we have a + goal difference which suggests goals is not the main problem, How many does our midfield have 5 between them? no where near good enough

Rubbish, if you don't score you cannot win, end of chat. I'm not saying you want a shit defence but at the end of the day you can concede 4 goals and win, you can keep a clean sheet and fail to win.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A30416753

as this shows :D

The Likelihood of winning 5-4 every game os very slim though. You can go through a season conceding at most one goal a game and still win matches. Most of the teams that do well, baring a few exceptions, are the ones built on solid foundations from the back

To be fair the best teams are decent in every department we are decent in 3 out of the 4

The likelihood of winning 0-0 is very very very slim  8)

According to some guy on the adver forum cox is having a medical at northampton :?

Must be another loan deal if true.