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@BroadcastMoose: My understanding is Swindon number 2 Luke Williams will be named today as Tim Sherwood's assistant at Aston Villa

Hope this isnt true, bad news if so

And so... It begins!

(I'm mostly joking but we all know how highly regarded Luke Williams is at Swindon)

If true then time will tell how much he will really be missed.

Fucking marvellous timing.

Quite

Oh joy.

Shit, just what we don't need more disruption.

I'm confident that Mr. Power will work his Mojo and get somebody else in ASAP. Wouldn't be surprised if he calls in a favour and gets in a 'name' to help out for the rest of the season.

Anyone know who that was on cone gathering duty on Saturday?

A tall lad - must have been 6' 5" easily, dark hair. Wouldn't have looked out of place playing centre half for us. Think his initials were MJC. Any ideas?

Mark Jiant Cooper?

It's Michael Cooper... I thought it was another Mark, it's not... :-)

Kevin MacDonald?  :toocool:

It seems that the source of the rumour is far from reliable.

As in The Moose.... the one who eats chips for breakfast?

I will be slightly more concerned when or if it actually happens.

So far its just another twatter rumour.

Sam's reaction worries me.

Andrew Steele-Davis ‏@andrew_FLICW  3m3 minutes ago
Been told there is NO truth in these Luke Williams to Aston Villa rumours, hope to get something in writing later #stfc

Sam Morshead ‏@SamMorshead_  3m3 minutes ago
Response from chairman: Luke Williams not heading to Aston Villa. No approach either, apparently.

As you were.....

Now let's Lynch Tans

Dont lynch me, lynch that fat idiot from talksport!

Get in!

You're still a cunt though, Tans.

not going to breathe a sigh of relief until villa appoint someone else.

Bro in law was at mine the weekend ( villa fan ) seemed to think they were getting Hoddle as a number 2  :hmmm:

This is the truth.

That was in a few papers over the weekend.

Sherwood tells Birmingham Mail that a move for Luke Williams is a non starter.

Well thank God I decided against slashing my wrists then...

Sherwood has said at todays press conference that any pursuit for Williams is dead in the water, because he is in a FIVE year contract here, with Sherwood stating it would be a 'Non Starter'. Positive news for us.

http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/aston-villa-new-boss-tim-8654337 (http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/aston-villa-new-boss-tim-8654337)

Keep the razors handy, we're Swindon.

 Couple of seasons back, Villa seemed to be bringing through some decent young British talent.....I assumed it was a policy decision, so their academy may have some lads who could be of interest to us for next season...

Assuming LW is on a 5yr contract, Sherwood obviously knows of the calibre of LW to know this, which would suggest he's on his radar is some capacity. In the scheme of things, to buy out a 5yr contract for a Lg1 coach wouldn't break the bank for a premier league club. I'm glad it's been rubbished both sides, but still concerned.

  Williams seems a progressive coach, but the Prem really isn't a place for progressive football. 

 Which is why pragmatists, like Pardew, Allardyce, Pulis, Bruce do OK.  Fill your team with powerful athletes, play the %ages, and maybe have a modicum of quality somewhere and that should be enough to keep you up.

 Van Gaal, gets it, which is why he sends out a long ball team.

 

 

He does not! He has a clip board to prove it.

Proper progressive coaches, wear Google Glass, like German Burgos, Simeone's scary right hand man

(http://www.whoateallthepies.tv/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/burgos.jpg)

Maybe Cooper should start a trend here.....

hmmmm....

They're always close at hand :nod:

A dare say a couple of them will be coming our way in part X for Mass so finally.....

...Red Frog's prophecy begins...

(https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQhmwmbiifE81nUQqqvx-bBWb_GnCHZi0hjGst3Os9KbZDs3SLY6w)

If LW fancied a coaching job in the prem then I suspect that Power would let him leave as has been said before about anyone at the club for a reasonable compo but not in the middle of a promotion push though

A couple of likely lads, would be Isaac Nehemie and Tom Leggett.....both were at Soton's academy before switching to Villa.

Don't suppose Tom is related to Peter Leggett, who briefly shone for us in the early 60's Div 2 team.

Fond recall of Pete being played on the wing to allow Mike Summerbee to play more centraly....the reward being stuffing Hudders and Derby by 4....then beating Soton and Ipswich, throw in a 3-3 v Cardiff, not a bad return for his 9 games that season....Div 2 was a tough league then as now.

And now the Daily Mail are reporting that Barnsley have made a formal approach for Cooper. Already denied by Power.

What the fuck is it with silly rumours today?

Mark Cooper is currently the Daily Mail's lower league manager of choice whenever a position is made vacant.

Think that story sums up their knowledge of the lower leagues.

I read that rag for a laugh when I visit my old dear's. Their league 1 coverage on a Monday reviewing the weekend's action consists of 2 paragraphs compared to endless pages of the Premiership.

Official approach for Cooper from Barnsely rejected then. An odd one that.

Not really odd, just extremely optimistic.  I don't know if financially Barnsley are in a good way because that could be the only reason they thought they may have a chance of luring him away to a poor side from a very good one who have a good chance of reaching the championship.

Barnsley only average 1300 more fans a game then we do. I'd be a bit surprised if that would be enough to tempt an ambitious manager.

I didn't think they had minted owner, surly you'd go somewhere that could fund your ambition.

Jed tried to buy Barnsley :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

The fact that that Barnsley average that many more than we do would seem to dispel any ideas that we are a 'big club'.

We know we aren't a big club
OTIB told me so

But they are just above the relegation zone and have come down from the Championship so imagine if they were doing well in the division, I would guess they would get 12-14k through the door if they were in the upper echelons of the league. We struggle to get 10k at home when top!

maybe. but is that enough of a jump? if they were in the championship is be more concerned.

this isn't a 'not big club' thing, it's just an 'are they more attractive' thing.

they could of course just offer to double cooper's wages, which is a test of any sane man :)

I don't get this fixation on being a 'big club' anyway.

Seems a bit ridiculous to me. You see all over social media people arguing about who's the bigger club....

Does anyone genuinely give a fuck? Does it actually mean anything?

I do sometimes lead on here that some seem to think that we are some manner of sleeping giant...

That was the point I was trying to make badly, the fact that our average crowd is a fair percentage lower than that footballing powerhouse of Barnsley suggests that perhaps we are roundabout the level our support can sustain?

its all hearsay as to which club is more attractive than another I would say.

Personally i'd be surprised if Cooper wanted to move from a potential league 1 championship winning side to a team struggling at the bottom. That said, who is to say that next season we could be swapping places in league 1 (assuming we don't go up).

 :girlgiggle: :girlgiggle:

but he can't 'wait and see', he would have to decide now.

i take your point though, personally I'd think there is a high risk for us next season either way. we all know the championship is a struggle. we all know there will be a high turnover of players stating in league 1...
----

I don't agree with horlock. our crowds do suggest we are at our level. but I think it is possible to move to the next level and get the crowds to match.

reading, Swansea,  etc,etc used to have shit crowds. look at them now. whether we could emulate that in our current state I very much doubt mind. they had massive investment.

I don't disagree with you, we could emulate Chelsea with suitable investment - I just don't see where its coming from and thus in our own little self sustaining way I am not sure where we go.

The examples you have raised have moved/developed due to massive external investment, either from the Council (no hope) or a wealthy lunatic (possibly some hope one day), which then possibly creates a new level of sustainability. Whilst the wealthy fan approach could work here sadly I cannot see it working on the CG site as the Council aren't going to accept a great increase of income from the asset without hoisting the rent up accordingly.

I have always thought that 'our level' is probably bottom half of league two and top half of league three with a cheeky little flirt up or down every so often just to keep it interesting.

I think we agree then.

No never!  :D

The argument of being a big club is one that gets me.  It generally means, we're a big club so we can pay agents and players more and more obscene sums of money.  And we can also charge more and more.  And we can get more loans and allowance to be in more and more debt.

It seems to me morally repugnant.  But being a football fan I still want my team to get bigger.  Its a bugger being a football fan.

It's only something fans mention to either big themselves up or belittle a rival.

Makes no difference at all.

You support who you support.

 End of.

For example, Bristol City are a bigger club than us in most respects - except achievements.

 Returning to my point that Williams is a progressive coach, therefore not suited to the Prem.....it's interesting to see what is happening with Poyet, and of course Williams is a Poyet man.  Gus is getting pelters for trying to play a possession based game....his response is to suggest that Sunderland fans are "living in the past" and crave "kick and rush"
 
It's difficult as we know to educate fans, and many of ours still moan about our style of play....Appleton at Oxford has been trying to do something similar, but made the basic error of pointing out, quite correctly, that Oxford fans are too stupid to understand what they're trying to do.

Barnsley haven't spent 15 years in the bottom two divisions recently, plus they had ground development which always seems to get a few extra punters in.

Sunderland fans are fed up with negative tactics and players not giving 100%.
Nothing to do with kick and rush.

Oxford are near the Conference trap door and simply need and want points.

Could you imagine if we went up AND Oxford went down. Would that not be a wonderful thing? The world would a better place for it.

With regards Gus, I'm merely quoting what he's said about their fans...same with Appleton. 

Oh that would be so joyous I'm not sure I could cope...well ok I'm sure I'd find a way  :)

And and and.....

Bristol City bottle it and don't go up.

 I'll settle for Cheltnumb going down...

You have to remember with Gus that nothing is ever his fault.

He has turned into a right whiny bastard since he went up there.

http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/yoursay/letters/11731707.Oxford_United_fans_want_a_winning_team__Mr_Appleton/

I think you will like this I did ;)

 :clap:

Is that Tans' work?

No not me.

My texts regularly get read out on BBC Oxford though :D

Haha that's glorious.

No, I think P Harris of Witney (100% red) is happy enough to have this published under his own name.

Classic - I'll buy him a pint from the TEF next time I see him.

Wonderful letter. Let's take it in turns to write to them each week.

 So, Sherwood appoints Mark Robson as his coach....ex Norwich coach and Barnet manager.

What is really interesting is the 3 comments - no one going mental and spitting bile, just kind of grudging acceptance

I can understand fans being fed up, but coming to watch Swindon instead?!

is that post ironic r4e ?

No. I genuinely find it hard to understand people giving up watching one side to go to their rivals instead. Even if the former is Oxford.

Am I missing something, I though this was written by a Town fan taking the piss..

So did I. Actually I still do.

Think you're right. I'll get my coat.

Haha, always helps to read some posts :)

More praise for Williams from Ajose:


http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/sport/13651504.Ajose_____I_am_hungry_to_prove_myself_at_Town___/ (http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/sport/13651504.Ajose_____I_am_hungry_to_prove_myself_at_Town___/)

That fat gimp Moose from Talksport blocked me on twitter the other day when i asked him his sauces and said i was still waiting for this move to happen  :D

I'm still blocked by Vital for mocking their 'story' that Cooper 'had left the club'.

I'm not quite sure how I've managed to stay so well informed without them on my twitter feed, it's been a real struggle.

it's 'top drawer' not 'top draw' or put (sic) after it, you fucking stupid journalists. Ah, I see it's now corrected

Love it. So nice to hear praise like that. I bet LW appreciates it. COOPER OUT.  :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick: