Thetownend.com

You don't mean me!?!?!

I think he means me

*shrugs shoulders*

no flash, the original comedian flash heart.  Posted months ago, rather than respond reasonably, him and a few of his chums responded sarcastically.  Like i have always said, i am a loyal supporter of Swindon Town, always have been and this will never change.  Just fund it difficult watching Lee Power tear us apart.  Cant even bear listen to him on the radio, even sounds untrustworthy. 

Did you think Jed was trustworthy?

Just a small thing.i dont hold with this "nothing to play for" reason for shit performances.its bollocks,Bury had nothing to play for either.

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No, him and Power are cut from the same cloth.

There we go, revert to type.  Maybe call me a baby face to face next home game?

Oh dear!

You won't find flashheart at a home game.

Let me know, i will be in Swindon from 12.

oh right, so Mr fucking opinion on everything Swindon Town contributes fuck all to the club.  That explains a lot.

Tragic! Hilarious, and tragic. How fucking old are you?

Sorry, i only converse with supporters, who support Swindon Town, not wankers that comment all the time but do not attend.

Would you attend every home game if you lived in Thailand?

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v490/jamiethon/your%20mom_zps7rhs3xuj.gif) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/jamiethon/media/your%20mom_zps7rhs3xuj.gif.html)

This has potential. Will check back later for updates.


My money on GL5 rage quitting the TEF.

I imagine not particularly, no one who had the pleasure of suffering the Diamandis era could seriously accuse Power of 'tearing the club apart'. I genuinely wonder how many of our extremely sensitive supporters survived that?

Wrong, been going since early 88' so also saw those wankers try and ruin the club.  We are talking present though, and i am very concerned with regards Power.

As for flasheart, just ironic that a poster who lives far away, attends few home games picks the bones out of posters such as myself who attend week in week out for voicing their concern at how the club is being run. 

Oh and i would not chose to live in Thailand, each to their own though.  But if i was far away and not attending on a regular i would not be so gobby, i would take a watching brief and maybe question why loyal supporters are getting fucked off with the current owner.

Did make me laugh Crispy, i do get wound up and thats because the club i love are being taken for a ride.

I don't think there's anything personal in this. Tensions are running high at the end of a poor/average performing season following a very successful one. It's totally understandable, but not really worth throwing the cat over.

I'll tell you what old bean, since you're closer and therefore so much more knowledgeable, why not present us with some kind of evidence that Power is actually what you say he is. That way we could then get on with working out what to do about it. Until then, I, and others, have no reason to take it seriously, do we? Oh, and "what's he done with the money" has been discussed already and nothing convincing was offered, so best present something else that we can get our teeth into.

I'll look forward to seeing that evidence then.

Cheers me old mucker.

Is GL5 Red, dosser reinvented?

old bean, old mucker, neither but instead of going of into the field and doing some research i will say that Mr saviour has sold, sold, sold since the disastrous Wembley appearance.  So, you have the transfer fees, you have the Wembley money and the crowds and ticket prices are not low end.  So, why are shopping in poundland?  We should be reinvesting should we not?  I do not ever recall saying Power should reinvest all revenue received, but the players who came in have been cheap and been painful to watch.

So, before typing, maybe consider some unfortunate fans have had to put up with the current dross for the past season and are tiring of Power and his excuses. 

Tans, seem to recall you being another poster who got very defensive earlier in the season when concerns over Power were voiced.
Please tell me you have attended a home game in the past 5 years, or are you part of the Thailand Reds?

(http://i.imgur.com/Y29tqc1.gif)

Ha ha Costanza!!!

As I explained earlier the finance issue has been discussed already, with nothing anywhere near approaching compelling being offered.

I'm not going through that again. It's boring. Come to think of it, your petulant little rants are boring. You're disturbing my gaming. Toodle pip.

Whatever, Mr Passionate fan who never attends games. 

GL5 Red, it is reasonable to ask you to support a claim that Power is ripping the club apart, is it not?

What evidence we do have, is that 2 years ago we made a loss in the region of £2m+.  Last year we made a profit of just over £80k.  It is entirely possible that with player sales and a Wembley visit, we made a profit in the current year, especially with a lower wage budget.  Over three years, given someone had to fund the initial loss, is it not fair to assume that we are about even?  In which case I imagine Power had paid down some of the loans he made to the club.  He also covered the previous year loss as well, so even a tidy profit this year would only just balance off his investment (which has all been by way of loans to the company).

He was also Chairman during  our best season since the 90's.  Unfortunately, his gamble on being able to replace so many in summer has backfired somewhat if we take him at his word that he wants to get us promoted and then sell.   This season has been a shit one, but even in recent memory we've had worse (and under seemingly better Chairman and owners).

Should he have paid himself back a little less and invested, probably.  He was banking on us maintaining last seasons form, which hasn't happened and them some - as such, while he's got back much of his money, he's probably ending this season in a state where he'll have to loan some more because turnstile money will dip and wages will need subsidising again.  Probably let one or two too many go in hindsight, or at least paid for a few stronger players who didn't need a year or two to get up to the required level.

Mistakes yes, ripping the club off, the evidence suggests now unless there is something else I am not seeing.

Yes i have a season ticket and have renewed for next season, so that makes me a better fan than you xx

Oh, im not keen on Power myself but there are bigger things to worry about in life

Tans, fair play for renewing, i will listen to your opinion as you support the club.  And yes, there are far more important things so lets just hope we recruit some quality over the summer.

I must be a shitter fan than flashheart as I live in Swindon and don't go to games....

My opinion counts for nothing...

Like your dinner, going by your daily Facebook posts! ;)

This thread makes me want to kill myself.

I've already renewed and in my opinion you're a massive twat.

Most definitely! :D

And you are a prize prick Jay, anything else?

GL5... any danger of you actually responding to RobertT - the one sensible post in this dick-waving contest... Or is the presentation of facts too much to handle?

@Panda Paws, but as we've already discovered, unless you show GL5 evidence Power is not fucking the club and/or disagree with him you're obviously mentally challenged; his evidence is too strong to refute.
 

Re Robert, i think it is accurate to say most on here do not have sensitive detail to hand ie accurate figures.  What i base my opinion on, (and may i add at the season started, lots said wait until the season finishes when we are right up there) is Power has dismantled a very capable squad.  A squad containing several players plus a few young lads (Derby) who have been sold and in the process resulted in several million being received.  Combine this with Wembley appearance, also take into consideration the revenue through the turn style then the actual outlay has not been acceptable, where has the money gone? Why do we now owe several million to Power? Why does Power not encourage interaction with the media? Sorry to upset a few, sorry that i feel we are being well and truly mugged off.  Unfortunately, as i have stated throughout i am not alone in my thinking, we will lose supporters at a rapid rate, the posters on here who respond with insults need to take a step back and maybe consider why loyal fans are genuinely concerned for the club they love.

a lot of these sales of players returns money in installments, over maybe 3 years, so it's not as clear cut as you think.

Pretty sure RobertT doesn't have special powers - he's just presenting the facts that are widely available and then making sensible conclusions based on those facts? Apologies Rob, if you do indeed have special powers.

In answer to your question re the media - we can agree or disagree with his media and comms strategy but why he does what he does? It's his decision. His strategy to build and implement as he sees fit. If he sees no monetary return or alternative benefit in widening media access beyond FL obligations, then he is within his rights to implement his strategy, whether we, as very biased commentators, agree or not.

To say he's dismantled it is inaccurate, you admit yourself we received several million for three players that we realistically were not going to hold on to for much longer anyway. Foderingham was the biggest loss and that was out of Power's control.


Isn't this exactly what you've been doing as well?

Someone calls me twat i respond, maybe thats wrong.

I'm glad it wasn't me!

This is kind off of topic - I don't understand people that are within close enough proximity to Swindon to go to games, but don't solely due to apathy (and not finances) yet still go on this forum?

Cracking post Joe.  Seems lots on here comment regularly but never make the effort to go to games.

I hardly ever go nowadays and when I do don't get worked up about it whatever happens. Pretty much a shrug shoulders, whatever attitude for me.
I can only speak for myself but people's lives and priorities change. Football isn't very important to me anymore. I still have a look on here as Swindon are still my team so I want to read stuff about the club and I like reading non football posts on the forum too but that's as far as it goes.

My trips to Swindon have been decreased this season by the fact my I'm a new parent. Even if we were top of the league, travelling to the CG would be a distant second to staying at home with my family.

Having never been a ST holder, I still get the buzz of stepping off the train for a football day. That is regardless of form, division and board members.

So I'll still have my opinion too, thank you very much.

I have chosen not to go since Donny at home. Not really out of apathy. It's difficult to explain really as I went every week when we were proper shite.

It just seems that nobody gives a shit - the owner, the 'manager', the players and a good portion of the fans. The reluctance to waiver from the tippy tappy nonsense when it's plain to all it doesn't work with the players we have.

The inability to seemingly even want to sort out the defensive shambles. I hated sitting there just waiting for the next horrendous cock up gifting yet another goal.

Scarily, I've found it easy to wean myself off my weekly fix

I said "solely down to apathy" - fair enough if you've got a newly born child, of course you're not going to go to as many matches.

I've asked before but does anyone know how sell on fees work? Is it paid in full immediately on the sale of a player or can they be paid in instalments?
I only ask as could it be that a lot of the money we've received from Byrne and the Luongo/Gladwin sales to date has actually gone to Spurs by way of the sell on clauses. We all know transfer fees are paid in instalments but I'm not sure how sell on clauses work. It might not be until we see later instalments from Wolves and QPR that we actually have anything much to spend, just putting it out there...

That could well be true, but any player we (hopefully) want to buy would be on the same instalment terms.

The money from those transfers was spent clearing debts and is gone - Lee Power says this every time there is a phone in and still the same question gets asked over and over

We were £5m in debt? Where did that come from when Black wiped the debt out.

And according to the accounts we were virtually debt free before we sold those players

Because in most cases it costs more to run a football club than the revenue they generate.  Black did not leave it debt free, he's got a debt secured against the club that has to be paid when it is sold.

He did however forego most of the debt he'd ploughed into the club.

We then get the next gang who had a go at running a club, and they ran it a loss of about £2m in a year, same as the year Power then took the reigns, hence the accumulated debt again.

Historically we run at around a £1m-£2m loss per year, with the odd year of player sales covering the losses.

Luongo and Byrne both had huge sell on clauses from Spurs, it's the reason we got them on the relative cheap - Luongo for £400k when he'd been on loan at Ipswich.  Given we sold a few players though there is a fair chance we more than covered the running costs this year, so made a rare profit.  Power has paid back some of the loans he made to the club, maybe a fair chunk of them.

The biggest issue you can lay at his door is not trousering cash, more it's allowing all of them go without a plan to replace them - clearly we didn't have that as we made some last minute deals and ended up playing players who had previously been PR'd as being ones for the future (like Barry).  The test is what we do this summer - unlikely we'll see big departures of anyone significant, so we can judge our in-comings on whether they improve us or not.  If we hit late august and look like we do now, we can probably begin to justify complaints from the fanbase, but if we see a couple of signings that on the face of it create greater depth and strength in the squad, Power will have shown he has learned.

Agree with all of that, Rob, particularly the last paragraph.

This will be contingent on whether we're Div 3 or Div 4....I don't think Power is one to stand in the way of a player seeking more money, and another trip to the basement may well see an exodus of the few players who are worth keeping.

Judging by his username I'm guessing GL5 is from Stroud, do you get the train on match days? Quite an odd selection of supporters get on at Stroud and most don't seem to have a clue what they are on about....

Remember glos_red? He was a super grumpy/pessimistic Swindon Town fan.

Perhaps there's something about living in that county?

I've missed threads like this. Dexter80?

I don't even know what the original tantrum stems from. It's like having one of those girlfriends that remembers even the slightest thing months later and you're clueless as to what the flying fuck they're talking about. Except it's not really at all like having a girlfriend. OK, poor analogy, but you know what I mean.

Fucking hell, the special bus crashed somewhere this weekend on the way home from mongo world. And they have all found keyboards.

This is spot on..

Why is it hard to work out why fans don't go to games but still come on a forum?  Strange...  That's like saying if you don't watch football why would you watch the results?

Black also left behind a plethora of players on silly money who had fairly long contacts, the club had to pay them and sadly magic beans were not applicable as salary payments?

But a trip to the basement will also see crowds dropping, less revenue and likely Power having to lose money by ploughing more cash in, that sounds like a win win for many of our supporters?

I'm entitled to my opinion and nobody can tell me otherwise. Whether they want to pay attention to it is another matter. Football in general has lost it's appeal to me from, what were for me, the good old days. Still look out for results and hope the team/club can achieve something. I will probably go again, just not at the moment.

But the TEF isn't a 'normal' forum. The clue is in the headline..

I haven't been to a home game for about 10 years as its a 460 mile round trip and as noted by others I also have a young family to spend time with - plus from reading on here I am not sure I would be that bothered to sit surrounded by people moaning for 95 minutes - I do however get to 2-3 away games most seasons, however in light of the comments on here I will get a note from my mum to justify it so I can be considered a real supporter!

Is living that far away not about finances then? Because I'm pretty sure if I lived that far away I wouldn't be able to afford to go, which is exactly what I referred to in my original post.

Separately, maybe it's because I haven't fallen out of love with it yet, but I personally just feel if I didn't care enough to go (solely down to not being arsed) , I wouldn't care enough to see what other people have got to say about it.

Its a bit of both, I would probably get down for a couple of games a year by coinciding with trips to see mates/family etc, but the journey with a 3 year old would be murder and to be honest most of them come to us anywhere as they can combine a Lake District holiday with where we live.

I must confess on a wider scale I won't say I have fallen out of love with it, but I have other priorities and as I get older I realise there are more important things to worry about (doesn't mean I don't care, just has to fit in with loads of other stuff!).

In terms of being on here, I must confess working from home as I do it's often the only opportunity I have to rant about stuff with other grown ups (as I do the wife's head in and Ellie is only 3!).

I feel it's a bit of a reaction to being 'hurt'. Of course you still care, but you try and convince yourself you don't so watching us play shit and lose every week doesn't affect you.

Sam Morshead is a good example of this. Says he's not a supporter anymore, yet writes a huge article about it, gets involved with the Trust, posts on the forum and comments on the games on match days. I know how he feels as I was exactly the same after we lost at Preston! Essentially it's a grown up temper tantrum.

No it isn't (stamps feet and flails arms!)  :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

Ha, I pretty much did after Wembley tbf. Sulked the whole way home!

I took my medicine early after Wembley - I stayed, watched them lift the trophy (as our players were forced o do as well) then spent the evening discussing our abject performance with a group of Preston fans.  I feel it helped.

The season before, and the season of, our promotion to the Premier League, we had fans vocally chanting about the need for the board to "get yer cheque book out", especially after Kerslake was sold to satisfy the tax man.  During that period we barely broke even, despite having our biggest attendances since Reg starting losing the love.  The basic are always thus for the majority of football clubs - it costs more to run than you make, ergo, you need someone to fill the gap.  Sometimes they do so out of love, sometimes because they see a property deal, sometimes because they think they can buck the trend using a new model.  Power is the latter, it worked for him personally, he's having a season where not so well for the club.  Summer 2016 is the test of the model and probably his patience.

GL5 Red sounds like that bloke Rocky Knuckles who posted on ThisIs.

GL5 - I only make a handful of games these days at home.
Prefer the away games these days.

I have not enjoyed a game since last year.
In my opinion the chairman and the board have done a pretty decent job, apart from buying players of course, I also believe he is here for the long road and will invest.
The manager has already admitted he made a mistake saying the squad was good enough when the emergency loan market was open.

How does going to games regularly make your opinion on Power more valid ?
I don't get it ?
It's the same with the football itself. Some people have no idea yet go to games every week.

I'm guessing the logic is... It's your money he's not spending. Which isn't how it works at all, but some people are just that daft.

You might be on the wrong forum.

Not sure if that was aimed at me.
If it is, I only have my opinion, and completely no idea about the finances etc.
The club seems to have regained respect throughout the football industry, judging by the comments made by many in the game. I put this down to the chairman's running of the club. My opinion of course.

Wasn't aimed at you.

Just got to love those comments.'Swindon play the game the right way'.

Before mugging us for another 3 points

I think he was more aiming it the fact we are not seen as the basket case we were at one point - making guest appearances on Channel 5.  Port Vale used us as a model to follow - seems this year at least they are doing a decent job of it.  It is indeed risky to buck the trend of spending on wages -  bit like when Fitton decided we wouldn't use agents, we backed away from that one in the end, spectacularly so.  The flip side would be Bury, or Fleetwood - clubs using high risk strategies like high interest loans or relying solely on an investor (Bolton being another good example on that front).

Good example, that. Before season's start Vale were most people's tip to go down - including their own fans.

If you attend more games then you're likely to have a more informed opinion on team performances and what is good and bad on the pitch than if you didn't attend.

Whether the business/investment model is a factor in that is down to further opinion and would not necessarily be influenced by attendance.

We've had a bad season and you can put that down to not spending enough money or just not getting the right formula like we did the season before. The year we went down with Danny Wilson in charge for most of it wasn't due to not spending money - our budget was huge compared to what it is now.

 However unlike many who flip in and out of fandom, and that includes a lot on here, I've never given up. 

I might think the owner is dodgy, change wording to Board/Chairman and that has always been the case. I might think a lot of the players are crap, with poor attitudes for professionals, but it wouldn't be the first time. I might think at the start of the season we should get to 52 points and then think about the next season....with 4 games to go still waiting.

Proper hardcore Town fans are a hardy breed, we don't expect much, and are temporarily happy when we do something, which has been known to happen occasionally.

I was in the library earlier looking a at a WW1 collection of stuff, from an old boy who I used to know. He'd been dragged from the Works to the fledgling RAF, for the duration....there was a certificate from SBC, thanking him for his contribution to defeating The Hun.

I recall going to White Hart Lane with him for the replay in 1980, he'd seen Fleming, Silto, Bown, Denyer, Harry Morris, Maurice Owen....mostly shit mind, but surviving the Great War gives perspective....his enthusiasm was undiminished.

  :bye:
I never said I wasn't a supporter any more. Let's not put words in my mouth. Losing a real, pure, old-fashioned love for the club you've grown up with and wanting it to succeed are not mutually exclusive. Yes, there's a feeling of being 'hurt'. But I can say for certain that I don't feel anywhere near how I did about any results three or four years ago. And in my second year covering the club - the relegation to L2 - I really did care, despite results.

Also, the article was not really about one fan losing love for his club. It was advice to journalists not to cover their club - a very particular circumstance. There's a difference there.

I don't go to games now because of two reasons - 1. Work and 2. Because I really don't want to support the current owner. Yet I still found myself paying for a ticket for the Blackpool home game last minute when I had convinced myself I wouldn't. We won 3-2 and I didn't get the urge to cheer. Maybe that's the conditioning of being in a press box for so long. Maybe it's something else.

Anyway, my point is... you can be a supporter of the club (the name, the history, your memories) and not a fan of the club in its current state (be that for whatever reason). Feel free to disagree.

This is spot on.

We don't look like having a plan A at the minute, let alone a plan B.

Never mind we will win tomorrow night, shock everybody and the season can be binned.

Fucking part-timer.  ;)

You can justify it whichever way you want, but the article read to me like a bit of a condensed hissy fit. All a bit too dramatic from a journalist who is normally pretty level headed. Don't get me wrong, I like you as a journalist and some of the stuff you've written in the past is fantastic. I also have empathy on the falling out of love as after Preston I felt the same and I haven't had the same passion this year either (I'm also living out of Town now so I don't go as regularly as I used to).

I've got mates / family who support Oxford, Gills, Shitheads, all sorts of teams and that article was used to rinse me something silly (as if our results weren't enough!) so maybe I'm just a bit sour about it. Not sure. Respect to you for not slating Power as much as you could have though. If I'd gone through what you had with him I doubt I'd have bitten my tongue as much.

Oh and don't pretend you didn't have the time of your life when the good times were rolling. We were national news and you were at the forefront of everything STFC. Swings and roundabouts surely?

Fair enough if that was the perception of the piece amongst you and your friends (and sorry for laying foundations for yet more piss-taking about this season!) but I can promise that wasn't the intention. As for the good times, they were bloody great, absolutely, and they gave me a huge career leg-up too.

But I had my run-ins with Wilson, Fitton, Wray, PDC etc on occasion, and the difference there was a willingness to talk things through. To be communal. It's a soppy view but I think a small club needs to keep itself open to the idea of community. The current owner doesn't do that (again, as he is entitled) and I don't feel any attachment to the place any more. I still have an attachment to its history and my memories, though, which is what will undoubtedly drag me to another game when I get a chance... and another. Regardless of results, until Swindon Town feels like the Swindon Town that I remember, I'll be as disillusioned.
 
We've probably hit a wall here in so much as I know exactly how I feel and you know exactly how you feel about this sort of situation, and we're not of the same opinion.

Fair enough.

Is it true that Danny Wilson lined all of the press guys up against a wall and then laid into you all and handed you a leaflet or something?

Not me. I've not heard that one before. He took exception to a piece I wrote in 10/11, about the rapid decline post-play-offs. Pulled me in for a 'chat' one lunchtime. Made my sausage baguette go cold - which was irritating.

Is that a euphemism?  :D

Sam, do you know, or have you heard things about Power that aren't in the public domain that are of concern to the club? If anyone on this forum is likely to know anything it's going to be you.
As opposed to people speculating that he's the devil.

:clap:

I guess people would call me someone who supports him, but if you want to know what is MO is, then research his time at Cambridge.  I can confirm you'll see exactly the same sort of approach to the media as we have here now.  They are there for him to used when he wants to, he see's no use for them outside of that.  I believe his view is that success at a club is the only thing that matters in terms of how the club is viewed, whether he is any good at achieving that is another question.

I have heard things that aren't in the public domain that sit uncomfortably with me. But not devil-level uncomfortable. More like cold businessman uncomfortable. And as owner of the club he's entitled to run it as he wants.
Would I prefer someone else to be running the club? Yes. Is he the worst man to be involved with the club during my time as a fan? No.
I'd be much more comfortable with some level of transparency beyond 20 questions on the Beeb every six to eight weeks - a full set of accounts would be nice, but there's no obligation for him to produce them. He's also got no obligation to do any kind of press, but it'd be nice to hears answers to questions that aren't softcore.
Ambiguity is kind of necessary as I don't want to libel.

It's no secret that he's a ruthless fucker, that's not necessarily a bad thing for the club though.

On a purely business level, while he is at the club, you're right - it's not. As I mentioned before, I think there should be much more to a small club than business and he's shown no desire to engage with the community. Or build a rapport in any way whatsoever. Many will disagree.

In your opinion is there cause for concern with regards to the well being of the club? Should people be digging out their orange hats just in case, because with the way people are talking on here. That's what a few seem to want to do.

I'm as big a Power fan as is probably possible for a Town fan and I couldn't agree more with the point Sam is making. There is more to running a League One club than business, and his media approach is divisive and unnecessary.

Not for as long as he is still in charge, I don't think there is. As and when (or if) he chooses to leave, I personally am concerned about what the state of play would be. That is all based on 'well-being' meaning ongoing functioning of a FL club.
Personally, I feel the 'well-being' of the club is already damaged by the way it has become a soulless, heartless shell with a disenchanted fanbase caused by a lack of transparency or consistent communication. But that is just my opinion.
In terms of it continuing to function as a business under the current owner, I don't think there's too much reason for concern.

Are we Blackpool lite?

The Oystons are on a different level.

Go on illuminate us....

I want a fight between Power and Oyston

With Charlie Richardson as ref

My worry is the training ground, I see this as being Powers 'Kassam' moment. He's obviously going to tie the club into a contract with regards to use of the training ground, which the club will then pay him for the use. While he is still owner its all well and good, but when he leaves, will he be able to put the rent up as he wishes, with the club having no say?

No chance of knowing for years.
The Oyston's did invest initially, a bit like Power, but it was the extra investment that came in that pushed them up - something they were probably not expecting.  They changed once his name got sullied, quite rightly, locally.  After that they began selling the club assets to themselves and then getting the club to buy them back - on top of paying themselves dividends from the PL profits.

Ultimately, all legal.

The same circumstances don't exist around our club in terms of assets on both sides.

Power's background is one of a hard nosed approach and he will ensure he is personally protected - he does however fancy himself as being some sort of new way in being a club chairman, as he did at Cambridge.  Therefore, for him to "succeed" and feed that ego, he needs the club to do likewise.  It's for that reason I'm less concerned about his motives.

He'll never make friends of the press, at least never in the long term, he just uses them.

His retort to Sam would be (in private) that while this "community" thing sounds great, it's not really necessary and then refer Sam to the attendances that still hold relatively firm considering the season we have had.  You won't win on that front, and it's not that much different at most other clubs these days.  The 90's changed all that.

If he could have been arsed, he could have made quite a convincing case for himself this season, based on losing the promising Liverpool first-choice players (viz where Kevin Stewart is now) and the damaging injuries to key personnel. This might have helped provide some balance which would in turn have helped to save some s/t sales for next year. But he couldn't, and he'll have sacrificed some income because of it.

Of course. That's him - a businessman. He'll run it while he makes money and when he can no longer do so he'll move on to something else. While he's here, the business will still function fine. I don't worry about the A word while he's in charge. I worry about legacy more than immediacy.

And then there's the rest of it - and yes, community is not necessary in football because of fans' remarkable loyalty.

It's not just the relationship with the media (again, driven on money as the Beeb are paying rights holders - it'll be interesting to see what happens if that contract goes out to tender); it's about relating with the community independently, working with fans' groups, just raising a smile. Compared to most clubs in the FL, Swindon are Scrooge-ish.

I know the owner is there to make his money via having a successful football team - that's how he'll exaggerate his profit margins, and if he has a successful football team a lot of fans will be happy. Admittedly, I'd be happier. But look at the engagement with its audience - even call it a customer base - and it's piss-poor. All brands need to concern themselves with their customer bases, whether it's bog roll, booze or football clubs. And this one doesn't, at the moment. It's sad.

So, just where did Power make enough money to force him into tax exile?

I've had bosses like Power....want yes men around them and dismiss anybody who questions what they do or doesn't fit in.

Power cannot sack reporters for not printing what he wants so banning them is the next best thing.

The fact that Power views the Trust as more of a threat than an ally should tell us which side we need to be on. Like the economics, be wary of the rest.

These are the type of quotes that i find over the top. How does he find them more of a threat

I doubt he sees them much as a threat, more an insignificance to what he is doing, or a pain.

If his dislike of the Press (that don't do as he asks), his lack of community engagement and mistrust of the groups purporting to help the club are enough to make people want a change, the option exists to offer him exactly what would make him walk - a return on his remaining investment.  I reckon he'd sell.

He doesn't engage with them. That's the factual bit.

The rest is my interpretation, which goes like this: he's not interested in sharing any of his power-base with a fans' organisation, and won't do anything to support their initiatives. It's his privilege to prefer to listen to partners who can stump up rather bigger investments, just as it's the fans' privilege to remain wary of an owner who so clearly wants to keep his distance from them.

Is this contentious?

Agreed. "Threat" only in the sense that in a small way their existence challenges his sole decision-making power at the club. And that's the way he wants it until someone buys him out.

I didn't expect this thread to turn into such enlightening reading.

I still think those fans would have not renewed on the basis that they feel the business model isn't a good one.

I don't disagree it would be much better if Power was to at least try harder at this sort of stuff though.

It's turned into an interesting debate which is surprising considering it started like a scrap in a nursery playground.

Lovely bit of respect for children with special needs there, well done

Ha ha. Who said anything about kids?

They aren't allowed to be racist anymore innit.

It's not funny. Forget about the mention of kids. The original post is fairly offensive to a lot of people I would imagine.

Its in relation to our special fans. of which there seem to be a few more commenting on the wrong end of the stick after reading what they want.

I've been diagnosed on the PC spectrum and i thought it was quite a funny turn of phrase myself.

Certainly seen far more offensive views on here, often without any rude words in them.

:D
 
I went on an "appropriate language training seminar" not too long ago, I think sutton should go. Not because I think he needs to or that he'd learn anything, just that it'd be appropriate punishment - it was so fucking boring. Even the biscuits were rubbish.

He's referring to children in a "special bus" coming back from mongo (mongoloid) land, I'm very surprised anyone with any understanding of the issues around discrimination  would be ok with that. There are some (loads) of bigoted wankers on here, football fans aren't the brightest, but why pretend that sort of language is acceptable?

Jesus wept  ::) (I dare say you're offended by me taking the name of The Lord in vain as well)

I can't believe so much has been made over absolutely fuck all. I've never met Sutton but I'm pretty sure he's a pretty decent bloke and is most definitely not a 'bigoted wanker'. Get off your high horse and get offended by this - you're a condescending wanker. There you go - get offended - go crazy, fill your boots (and watch this. N.B. You may get offended so watch with caution).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceS_jkKjIgo

Unless you're sat listening to someone speak and understand the context of what they are saying and how they mean it why get offended ?

Always grated me how people judge others based on words typed into a forum. I could call someone a stupid, daft cunt and just be joking. That gets lost on a forum as people see words then see and think the worst.

Stupid cunts.

You country bumpkins thought it was ok to call people p*kis and n ***ers a few years ago. You are too fucking stupid to see taking the piss out of children with disabilities through the language you use is unacceptable to most right minded people. I really don't give a fuck what you think of me you ignorant twats.

On the other hand, I could call you a stupid, daft cunt and it would be a statement of fact.











That was a joke - which in fact, backs up your point  ;) 8)

Gerry Stilton, is that you? I think it is  :hmmm:

Haha!  8)

And we have a rage quitter.

Never did like that sneery, obnoxious cunt anyway.

I'm convinced that was Gerry Stilton.

No, too literate and coherent.

And certainly a lot less full stops and other random punctuations. Still think it's him though. Did he delete his account before or after I accused him of being Gerry?  :hmmm:

After Samdy posted that gif.

Tbh, I agree with him - it was offensive even if it was in jest.

It's all agendas on here

(http://i.imgur.com/mOTLk7g.jpg)

If it wasn't meant to offend then why be offended ? I'm pretty sure it wasn't meant to be.

What agendas?

Ok. I should have used dribble bus, which is what we country bumpkins in London jokingly call our supporters coaches, where our more uninformed supporters get around to matches. Maybe in hindsight I wont use that anymore. As for kids etc, no idea where that came from. I've helped put one of my sisters on a bus to go to her day centre and school for 30 years, there's nothing special about them for sure. As for mongoland I'm sure that's made up by the odd guy, as I've never heard of it.  Anyway I await the next daily mail reader to rage quit on me.

Who's flounced off now, Tapatalk just deletes their name from their posts?

There are agendas, finally, I have so many things to raise under any other business 😁

Someone called Levi Lapper

..."It's all agendas"...I have not got the faintest idea what that means. Is there any chance you can explain what you mean by that? It's a genuine question - I would love to know the answer...

Look up who Levi Lapper was. Odd name. Interesting history.

Yes - interesting. Makes me even more convinced it's Gerry. I know, I'm obsessed.

At the risk of looking stupid myself. The agenda is probably not pissing Audrey/Kerry off so he hasn't an excuse to delete/recreate account without looking stupidish himself. or herself as assuming  it was a male would label me sexist...

Well, it appears it's not what is posted but who posts it that causes ructions.

Some hardly ever post an opinion but are more than willing to show off how clever they are by attempting to belittle those that do.

So much drama lama on one little site. Let's be honest it's been a shit season so we have to find the entertainment elsewhere

Well, I for one am offended at being labelled a country bumpkin..

Let me have another cuppa and I'll come back with a suitable response, flip out and delete my account also.

Wait, nah fuck that shit, can't be bothered..  I am fully aware that you lot are a bunch fucktards already, no need to expend my energy with a meltdown.

Bunch of joeys.

:D

I'm gobsmacked that the herd on here has jumped on "Levi Lapper" because he tried to point out how offensive "sutton red" was.
Can you not see how offensive his language was ?

This forum rightly has a zero tolerance of racism, so why is it OK to refer to people as "Mongs" ?

Because some of our fans are mongs and it's a very apt label for them! The Facebook group and Adver comments section are good examples!

But don't you understand?? It's offensive - Now you've OFFENDED ME!!! OMG WHAT AM I GOING TO DO??

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RybNI0KB1bg

I think the prevalent use of offensive language is harmful even in harmless contexts, but anyone who has read this forum for more than 5 minutes knows (presumably) that suttonred doesn't hate disabled kids. I'm not sure how kids even came into it to be honest. That was a mental extrapolation to make it sound worse than what it was.

There is such a thing as context, with everything, and especially with humour. I'm a prissy little lefty guardian reading feminist, but even I can accept things that are said with a comedic intent. I wouldn't personally have used those words, but he's hardly Hitler cos he did.

At any rate it seems better to debate your point rather than run off in a strop, delete your account or assume there's some sort of Masonry-Stonecutters thing going on. (Ryan's still training, and we're still controlling the British crown.)

Fellow lizards, would anyone be able to recommend a good supplier of dried flies? My previous supplier has recently shut down and I am currently being forced to chase fresh ones around the garden.

(https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/2330201343/image.jpg)

Shouldn't you be washing up?

(http://i.imgur.com/VTkkbJw.gif)

(http://i.imgur.com/e66N0IF.gif)

This thread has been interesting.

At the risk of also being burned on the pyre of the righteous, I can confirm something Sutton said earlier.

The term 'Dribble Buses' has been used occasionally by a number of London Reds, myself included, in the past to describe the Supporter Coaches.

No it's not big nor clever, and it probably should stop, but it has nothing to do with disabled kids..

I think being offended on social media has become almost a career for many, the other forum I frequent is a heritage one and populated in 99.9% of cases by men 40+. Firstly amusingly it is considerably more bitchy and unpleasant than here but also there is one poster who doesn't post much but seems to trawl it like some sort of puritan picking up anything sexist or non PC and picking people up on it, possibly supported by a Guardian link...

I'm sure that some actively look for reasons to take offence, even when there are none.

Seems a lot of people get offended by almost anything these days.

What the fuck did you just fucking say about me, you little bitch? I’ll have you know I graduated top of my class in the Navy Seals, and I’ve been involved in numerous secret raids on Al-Quaeda, and I have over 300 confirmed kills. I am trained in gorilla warfare and I’m the top sniper in the entire US armed forces. You are nothing to me but just another target. I will wipe you the fuck out with precision the likes of which has never been seen before on this Earth, mark my fucking words. You think you can get away with saying that shit to me over the Internet? Think again, fucker. As we speak I am contacting my secret network of spies across the USA and your IP is being traced right now so you better prepare for the storm, maggot. The storm that wipes out the pathetic little thing you call your life. You’re fucking dead, kid. I can be anywhere, anytime, and I can kill you in over seven hundred ways, and that’s just with my bare hands. Not only am I extensively trained in unarmed combat, but I have access to the entire arsenal of the United States Marine Corps and I will use it to its full extent to wipe your miserable ass off the face of the continent, you little shit. If only you could have known what unholy retribution your little “clever” comment was about to bring down upon you, maybe you would have held your fucking tongue. But you couldn’t, you didn’t, and now you’re paying the price, you goddamn idiot. I will shit fury all over you and you will drown in it. You’re fucking dead, kiddo.

I really hope that you copied and pasted that from somewhere rather than typing it yourself.... :D

Samdy is trained in guerilla warfare....he's a big old softy when it comes to silverbacks.

Used to go on the Travel Club coaches years ago.
The description is probably a little unfair.

The main danger was ending up being sat next to Mad Phil on some 4 hour trip up North.

Phil is possibly best described as an extreme Swindon Town empath but entirely harmless.

To be honest I find the "you can't say anything these days" rhetoric just as tedious as the people who continually look to find offence in things. Not only because it reeks of "in my day.." which is almost always bollocks, but because it's patently a good thing we're trying to be more understanding as a society. Obviously some people take it too far - they will with anything - but that's better than a society of people running around calling people spastic faggots without a care in the world.

Anyway, on with the gifs.

I think I know who this is.

If yes, I think the stewards tried to throw him out at Peterborough away this season.

Everyone knows who Phil is, surely?

Most stereotypical Westcountry accent ever!!!!

If you don't know who Phil is - you're not a real fan.

Oh blimey, football Phil. Had him behind us at Southend a few years back, he doesn't like to let a point go.

I've heard the name but probably wouldn't recognise him by it. Tbf the Swindon regulars I've got to know over the years are more recognisable by smell

That was Nobby whom the Stewards tried to throw out at Peterborough this season. I can't imagine Football Phil causing the authorities to much aggro these days.

Football Phil really should have his own thread so everybody can share their 'memories'!

He burped in my face at Supermarine

Even I know about football Phil. What does he look like? I imagine him to wear a cardigan and thick-rimmed specs held together with plasters.

Was Football Phil in the "That's Football" documentary? About 21:45 in....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwnrenHu7gc (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwnrenHu7gc)

Yeah in the god awful grey jumper and in true football Phil style lingering around outside the club entrance. Other than his Baseball cap not a lot has changed....

(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)(http://i.imgur.com/wbB7bzi.png)

That has to be one of the most terrifying sights you could see, second only to seeing him sat in the seat next to you at a game!

Ah, himmmmmm!!!!

Not to be confused with Him.

 He looks proper old school & nawty in that photo!!

No, I think you mean: HIM!

Hahaha Jed's let himself go

Ah, you are right.

We had him in our carriage on our train back from Southend, quite the character!

I actually don't know or recognise this Phil chap!

Interestingly I note that the Guardian, the self appointed moral and liberal compass of the United Kingdom and the go to manual for the majority of those who seek to police the internet with their self important smug version of what is right and wrong is now giving a platform to Frankie Boyle who has some history for being a little naughty regarding disabled kids for comedy effect - the internet may break......

Frankie Boyle has it right I think.
People need to differentiate between jokes and seriousness.

If he was capable of either it would be a start... cannot abide the bloke and at best an incredibly lazy 'comedian', just saying something shocking doesn't make it funny!

Hang on, hang on. Am i being compared to a four eyed ginger scottish twat?

I think he does both pretty well.

I used to like Frankie Boyle but in time I found him to be a one-trick pony.

Tramadol nights was atrocious.

Oh, I've always known him as Paddington (no idea why)

No not at all, he is apparently Ok as he is an edgy comedian and writes stuff in the Guardian, you are however instead just rude about disabled children!  :D

Each to their own, I just prefer comedy that is a little more nuanced and not just saying things that shock people to get an easy laugh - as said above its funny for a while then you realise it goes no deeper than that, I do wonder whether he will be looked upon much the same as people like Manning and Davidson in future years, but we all like different stuff and it would be dull if we didn't!

He is capable of both it just happens to be he doesn't appeal to you(or me tbf)

I can see why people think that of Boyle and a lot of his stuff does descend into banal shock humour, but he is a very intelligent man and very capable of more than "rape soapy tit wank" style stuff. When he does incorporate some kind of satire or point to his humour I think he can be very funny. If you look at his earlier stuff it becomes clear he's a bit of a parody of himself in his later work - I think that's why he's essentially retired from comedy.

Also, the difference between him and the likes of Manning/Davidson is that they clearly believed a lot of the things they said. I think people should be able to joke about whatever they want, whether it offends me or not, but it's different to make a racist joke and actually be a racist.

As I said earlier each to their own although I have to confess I find the argument that because Boyle apparently doesn't 'believe' what he says and instead just says the things that many find hurtful for commercial and career gain makes its somehow better somewhat perverse, is that not in fact worse as you are just attacking people for your own benefit and thus one would expect that you understand the harm rather than based upon any ingrained prejudice?....

So I assume you are saying that suttonred is more Frankie Boyle than Bernard Manning?

The more I think about this, the so called London Reds or should that be more accurately Home Counties Reds have got off lightly here.

The Dribble Buses thing smacks of some innate sense of superiority as a result of living and or working in the capital.

Spend a lot of time London but thankfully don't live there and am surprised that groups of away support, our own included, lack the confidence to give it the "London's a shit hole...." thing.
Although, suspect that some confidence & pride in the place that they have travelled from would be required in the first place.

 :)

Well, even though you might be right in the assumption we are supposedly very white collar, you aren't right with the rest. The term was premiered by one of our Reading (not quite London, but almost) members who now lives in Birmingham. I await some geographical based opinions on those towns  now ;)

Actually, making people laugh, I would draw a distinction between the two! But then as I said I am of the belief that it's okay to joke about anything, really.



Fuck that, as a semi Londoner myself I'm not having Reading on my turf. You'll be saying Essex is in London next.  :no:

I thank the heavens that Essex is as about as far round the M25 that its possible to be from me.

Fully appreciate that people move away from their home towns for many reasons.
Regardless of where they end up, not sure how many manage to retain a "warts and all" respect for place of origin. It's a shame when people don't.
Just a gentle dig at the end of the day.
Nothing against London, Reading or Birmingham, just hum drum towns same as anywhere else.

I didn't realise he did it all for altruistic reasons, no wonder the Guardian and their readers love him so much the mans a bloody saint.....  ;)

Haha I had a feeling someone might say that. Of course there are more cynical motives, but most comedians start doing what they do because they enjoy making people laugh. That is still their goal at the end of the day, if no one laughs then they don't further their career or make any money, do they? Anyway, like I said, if you think there should be limits with what's suitable for comedy then I totally get that, it's just not my view. I don't think it's something that can be argued for or against particularly well, especially if you have strong feelings on the subject. Offense is just a surprisingly arbitrary thing when you think about it, and I think unless someone says something with the intent of being hateful, the best thing to do is challenge them (if they need to be educated) or forget about it.

90% of what Comedians say is bollocks. They're all actors.

FWIW I don't give a toss what comedians say and many comedians who the main find offensive can be funny, thats not the point I was making.

What does irritate me is the fact that papers like the Guardian (and by extension their unquestioning readership) take great pleasure acting as the unappointed arbitrator of taste and Liberal correctness in this country and then on the other hand give a platform to someone like Frankie Boyle who has a history of censure for bringing disabled kids into his 'routine' (hence the relevance to this thread), it just reeks of sheer hypocrisy of the type which Guardianistas like to sneer at the Mail!

I only mentioned it as it seemed very relevant to this thread as much of the urge to leap on anyone who says something deemed non PC seems to be informed by much of the media and then exacerbated on social media by people who robotically follow this imposed idea of right and wrong.

FWIW I don't like Frankie Boyle as I don't think he is particularly funny and there are plenty of other comedians who deliver similar material in a much more thought out and nuanced manner but if it sells for him good luck to the guy. 

John Cleese obviously supports Suttonred 😀

http://youtu.be/QAK0KXEpF8U