Thetownend.com

Town statement on takeover and managerial situation
           
           


  SWINDON Town have issued a statement regarding the managerial and takeover situations at the County Ground.

           

http://www.thisisswindontownfc.co.uk/news/headlines/10239810.Town_statement_on_takeover_and_managerial_situation/?ref=rss
           
           
           

Ooooh! I like this bit...

Communication with the Football League continues as the takeover of the club nears completion

Can't be far off then :hmmm: :hmmm: :hmmm: :hmmm:

If they're taking advice from the players, hopefully that means Darren Ward as player/caretaker. Would much rather that than  Bodin.

Related to this has anyone asked Morshead where he was getting his recurring 'it will be sorted tomorrow' quotes from, I am sure the source is reputable but I have this image of Jed just saying 'yeah tomorrow' whenever asked.

So are the players going to be training themselves this week?

Surely the whole backroom staff can't be allowed to leave from one day to the next.

I've recently bemoaned the fact that the club have not kept us informed and although it's not much this statement at least explains what's happening today. Little bits of fact from the club is easier to understand than hearsay and rumours Via twitter etc and the local papers.

In 24 hours we've gone from a fascist junta to a workers' autonomous collective. Lumps would be so proud :)

 ;D

Brings new meaning to 'we'll keep the red flag flying high!'

Swindon web twitter

Jed McCrory has just arrived at the County Ground for Directors' meeting & is expecting a call from the Football League at 2pm.

The phone call will say, your take over is nearing completion, in fact maybe tomorrow.

Did Bob holt deliver this?

Knowing our luck the FA will have lost his number!

The Football League will no doubt advise that we have forgotten to pay Dairy Crest for 2 pints last week so the takeover will need to wait till next week

<pedantry>As it's the League who are dealing with all this, what the FA have or have not done with his number doesn't much matter</pedantry>.

Anyone seen any white smoke yet?

Hope he has his tie on.

Maybe the consortium has a Greek contingent?   

Maybe this is just a bad dream.There is no takeover.

Black continues, Ritchie is still playing and Paolo is on the pitch.

"Banbury is a shit hole I wanna go home"  :)

Seems Jed's twitter account has been hacked. That or a dodgy app. Or he meant to send the link that  downloads a presumably porn app onto android phones

Ha ha it just keeps getting better.

According to the BBC report -

It is now understood that Ward, who only signed for the club permanently in January following a loan spell from Millwall, and Miller, both 34, will take charge of the team for the next two league fixtures against Preston and Bury.

Sounds sensible

it certainly does sound sensible, and probably the right thing to do given the current circumstances...but if you take a step back and think about what is going on here, its fucking laughable.

There are under 7 sides in chippenham who are more organised than this.

I wonder who exaclty is at the CG at the mo...who is in charge there?

I'd like to know who will be on the bench shouting instructions out?

Yep, this is hilarious.

I'm not too concerned in the short term. I think letting the players get on with it is the right option at the moment, but to not have any owners or any management staff is simply bizarre! Coupled with the fact that we're low on fit players at the moment, our bench is going to be a bit sparse for our next game.

And we're top of the league!!

Typical Town.

What if Miller and Ward are both playing?

Ward: 'I think we should go 3-4-3 Millsy'
Miller: 'Nah, 2 banks of 4, 4-4-2 Wardsy'

Preston nip in and score whilst they are both having a chat. Recipe for disaster

A new matchday experience for the Sponsorship office to sell.

Should have realised it would be these two - they've both been cultivating Di Canio's patented 'management beard'


[url width=300 height=300]http://www.nononsensefootball.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Miller.png[/url]

[url width=478 height=358]http://www.swindontownfc.co.uk/cms_images/player/news-ward2247-429228_478x359.jpg[/url]

That'll be us!

Top of the League with a circus behind the scenes.
Why can't we ever have everything going our way !!

It seems a lot of forum members have turned on Paolo since his departure.
Up to a point I can understand why – but we do not know all the ‘facts’ behind the story
and I do feel we are going to regret it, sooner rather than later.

He and his team have been instrumental in:
1   Getting individuals of the squad to a peak of sustainable fitness
2   Treating injured players with care (not taking risks and playing them before they are ready)
3   Getting superior treatment for injuries that could take ages to heal
4   Maintaining a sense of professionalism  and discipline within the squad
5   In general making good tactical decisions on team and formation selection
6   Researching opposing sides for weaknesses and exploiting them
7   Generating a constant 100 percent work ethic  in training and matches
8   Strict training schedules and sessions aimed at skill and movement training

I am sure there are others things as well

The above list is bound to suffer without a good manager and experienced support team.
We have been blessed with both and I am not convinced that we can ever get that back
to the same level. Have some of you underestimated the impact of losing this?

I hope we do get it back quickly – and hope is the operative word.

Even if the takeover is ratified – I’m afraid I have doubts 

Saying these things hurts.
 

I'm sorry, but whilst I was an avid PdC fan he surely could have stuck it out until the end of the season and gone with his head held high and the thanks of everybody.

His departure has left a nasty taste in the mouth. He has bailed out at just about the most important stage of the season and knowing there is no new board installed has left the club right in the brown stuff.

He has been draining as a manager and a part of me is lokking forward to a  more 'normal' manager.

But I will miss the fucking loon

According to Sam Morshead Paul Godfrey hasn't resigned and so remains as physio.

Somebody referred to PG as the next Nigel Adkins  ;D

I agree.

I don't think we will ever fully replace Paolo. There is nobody else out there like him.

Would love to be wrong but we've clearly just lost our biggest and best assets of the last 20 years.

We'll see who we replace him with but can't help but feel its going to be a bit like replacing Fjortoft with Drysdale...

Who needs di canio, we've got our physio...

Not original I know

Good one.It's probably best to maintain a gallows sense of humour at this time.

I see O*ford being more of a banana republic....oh Samdynista.  Can we have Lumps back now please? Leftie solidarity etc

Paul Godfrey's Red & White Army!

I agree with most of those but you cannot deny that PDC comes at a cost, a cost that ultimately we couldn't afford. You only have to look at the agents fees we've paid (nearly all to his agent Phil Spencer) to see that.

He's a good coach, has an amazing work ethic and eye for detail but his approach comes with a large financial burden that a club of our size and turnover couldn't maintain. If he had achieved everything thus far on an average budget then I'd be more inclined to agree but as it stands our clubs future is more important than the Di Canio roller coaster.

I'm sure you are right, but his timing still sucks. After all his talk about "us" and about Black "running away" he's done the same. Maybe if we ever get the facts then this will change.

Right now we are in the brown stuff....

 Darren Ward....the new Adie Williams. Who will be the new Barry Hunter?

I think few underestimate the impact Paolo has had and what a superb breath of fresh air he has been. That's not the point though, no one is beyond reproach.

If we'd gone up as Champions and Paolo had gone, we'd be talking about him as a legend, one of the best ever, and only remembering the good points. We'd be exaggerating the work he'd done, blowing them up and making him some sort of flawless god like entity.

By fucking off when he did he's not made me think about what's great about him, he's merely highlighted his negative side by using one as a big statement to get himself out of a jam.

He hasn't dropped in my eyes, he's plummeted. The respect and admiration I had is no more. In a few years I might view things differently, but in the current heat of battle, the sour taste lingers and smarts.

Yes, that worked well didn't it?

Pretty much exactly as I see it too Barry.

I'm trying not to jump to any hasty conclusions on this.

- I'm disappointed at all the posturing, sensationalism, delay and furore around the take over
- If PDC and the team came back to finish the job I would be happy. I think that the bad side of PDC is tolerable if it creates more media interest and interest from players wanting to join
- If PDC and the team don't come back then I'm fine with that too. No one man should be bigger than the club. Quite who I'd want to take over I don't know.
- I want the club to be run as self sustainable as possible. I don't want to see us in this position for a number of years at least!

Jesus  - What a pair of drama queens. It's only football

Can we sing 'Fuck off Di Canio, Fuck off Di Canio' now?

Are you my wife?

On FB swindon town fans thing

Swindon Town to are to call a press conference for
tomorrow. No Official Statement to come from the club today

So you are perfectly happy with how Paolo walked out on us then and he is totally blameless?

I think that most rational people knew that eventually PDC would be off to pastures new but not in the manner in which it has happened and that is the part that really annoys me more.

The turn around of our fortunes in eighteen months has been quite remarkable and it has to be down to PDC and his team and for that I thank them, but I cannot thank them for the situation we are left in regarding back-room staff.

I am trusting in the senior players charged with keeping the run going and cannot see them letting the standards slip just because there is no actual manager in the dug-out. However that is an added pressure that they should not be put under for longer than necessary and the sooner a reputable manager and his staff are in place the better.

Wonder who will be there to answer questions? Paul Godfrey I expect.

Curly Withers.  But he'll refuse to answer any questions apart from about the players preference for types of tea.  New gaffer Darren Ward sensationally reveals that he is partial to lotus blossom and jasmine green tea.

Sometimes in life when you're faced with huge setbacks and challenges you just have to get on with it and show your sense of determination to come through it all.

It is undoubtedly a really tough time for the fans,the players and the remaining staff at the club.But in footballing
examples do you think that the Swansea chairman Hugh Jenkins,when he continually loses a young bright manager,
he just gives up?

Yes it's a higher level,but he's seen their rise from the bottom to the top,but his sense of determination is a shining
example to fans of smaller clubs across the country.

Even though it's tough,keep the faith!

COYR

 Some may be able to cast their minds back to when Mark McGhee fucked off and left Reading in the lurch when going well...they appointed 2 senior players Jimmy Quinn and Mick Gooding...they did pretty well but got beat in a PO final v Bolton, that they really should have won.

My take....

It's like being married to the woman who gives the worlds best blow jobs. But no matter how good the blow jobs were in the past, if one day she pulls away before you're finished and announces she's divorcing you because you forgot to put the rubbish bags out you'll be the one walking away with a bad taste in your mouth and not her.

It will take some time for that bad taste to go. It will go quicker if you find a new wife who's also really good at blow jobs and/or if the ex-wife doesn't find someone better too soon.

:D Good one. Very fitting in this case. If we still go up as Champs, I think we'll remember Paolu well.

Think if you get rid of one wife...then you're pretty stupid to get another one...out of the frying pan etc. Don't know what sort of bj's PdC gives, but if you get majorly fucked about by your employees..then walking is a standard response.

Seems to me too that a lot of people have turned on Paolo since his departure. Some reasons come across better than others, but he has given some people the opportunity to vent their anger and others who never wanted him in the first place say 'told you so' as along with other persons he is not blameless for the mess.
I for one will miss him massively. When he was appointed I can't remember anyone saying this will be a boring, ultra steady, predictable individual running the show, quite the opposite, the consensus was we would either fly or crash and burn. Happily for a long time we flew. Through his tenure the unpredictability increased so why people seem so surprised how things have panned out is a bit short sighted in my opinion.
We have never had and probably never will have another quite like Paolo in charge and unlikely see the unusual sight of crowds actually waiting in the ground to regularly cheer a manager off the pitch.
I am sad and dissapointed the way things have worked out but so many good times in such a short space of time will not leave a sour taste for me.
I wish Paolo and his team good luck and thank him for the many good monemts we have experienced in such a short time.
So now and most importantly back to concentrating on supporting the Town. COYR.

We've got 2 extra players (Paolo's signings as well......) that are available now. Cox and Rooney. Hopefully, Ward and Miller will show a bit more common sense and put them on the bench at least.

He took a team from nondescript, recently relegated, 4th tier shite, and won the league in the first season.

He then takes the team to the top of the 3rd tier, despite having a great player sold behind his back.

In the meantime, Swindon have unprecedented coverage in the National press


I suppose you're right, he's rubbish

Frankly, although I am sad to see PDC leave I always felt that it would end this way, suddenly and acrimoniously.  However I am very pleased to know that we won't be having to pay Phil Spencer's agent fees anymore. That never sat well with me.

No, just a cunt for bottling it and leaving us in the shit.

Has anyone actually said he's rubbish? Doubt anyone could ever say that, the bloke was a genius. Only like all genius, it's sometimes tinged with madness. :)

I've not seen a single person say he was rubbish.

Jed is still at the CG, and apparently drives a Bentley, trust a few locals will go down and "interview" him!!

Tea is the new cheese

Have we ever had a thread on the merits of various teas on the TEF....I'll drink most, but think Earl Grey sucks..

I just did

Indeed, just not the legend certain people seem to be arguing he was.

Agreed he got us promoted from the 4th division but its worth bearing in mind our budget which I wouldn't be surprised if it was double most others in that division.

And this year he did well but fuck me he became tedious since the Autumn, constant griping whining and general hissy fits, agreed it wasnt rosy behind the scenes but probably little different to what many others face.

Actually wonder for his sake it would have been better not to win title (although great for us) as after that he seemed to rapidly disappear up his own arse and think he was Mourhino and untouchable!

In conclusion did well and an interesting ride, but on reflection high maintenance and way to dear at this level.

Totally agree with this,  his constant moaning has taken the gloss off many a decent result when listening to him on the radio whilst driving home after matches this year.  The win ratio has been fantastic as has his engagement with the fans, but I believe that there will be life after PDC.  Ward and Miller is a good place to start.

If I have a choice, Russian Caravan or Orange Pekoe. Russian Caravan with milk, orange pekoe without.

To be honest, I pretty much agree with you

However, I did notice the irony of people who rated Paolo a week ago, turning against him for perceived disloyalty

Agreed. And, despite Paolo's self adulation as a great manager - I've lost count of the times he's said he's a great manager which is proven by the number of times he's been linked with other jobs that come up - as far as we know Swindon has never been approached by another club enquiring about his services.

He confuses speculation in the press with interest from other clubs.

It will be interesting to see if/when another club takes him on.

Hows that ironic. You can still think he's brilliant but disloyal.

Good old Yorkshire Tea for me...

I'd have him back in a heartbeat.  For all his flaws he was the best since Hoddle and gave us many special moments.

Most of us would

Absolutely.

This, many times over. I find it phenomenal how many people now only have bad things to say about him, the same people who 3-4 weeks over would have backed him to the hilt in anything that he did. Sure he had his flaws, some which unfortunately he didn't seem to notice himself, but this was part of the beauty of the man. If at any point somebody had tried to change his traits they would have been robbing him of the assets that made him what he is in the 1st place. Some people have very short memories and would do well to wait and listen to all angles of the reasons for his departure before passing judgement. In my mind he must have been getting royally fucked over behind the scenes considering that loyalty is such a huge part of his personality. That of course is just my opinion and may be disproved a couple of weeks down the line but my underlying belief is that we have lost one of a kind who has given me my most enjoyable moments in my near 20 years of watching the Town.  

Whilst Paolo has given me many many great memories, Danny Wilson/Danny Ward/Stephen Derby gave me mine. Paolo could have eclipsed it, had he stayed.

He'd owe the fans a big apology if he came back. If he did, I would forgive him.

For now, he's a cunt.

Oh joy. Our new commander in chief is on twitter celebrating being out on the lash.

Am I the only one who finds it cringeworthy?

No man is bigger than our club. Thanks for everything Paolo, you gave me many happy memories but like an ex girlfriend, it's over, we move on and don't look back.

Just noticed I need to change my avatar !

Probably not. You could just unfollow him though.

Hopefully he's just received some good news and treating himself to a pint or two. He does have a life, nobody seemed to mind when Paolo went to restaurants and the such.

All totally irrelevant now, apart from the enjoyable moments. Hang on to those.

I find some irony that Paolo waited until Monday 5pm for the takeover to complete and then resigned. It appears the delay was due to loan fees on Giles Coke who was one of Paolo's duff loan signings who didn't fit into Paolo's methods. We bombed him back to Wednesday because of his injury and Paolo kicked off about his fitness. Had that been sorted at the time or we kept him then the takeover goes through and Paolo still might be here!

Obviously has something big to celebrate, what's wrong with that? Were your relations on the Mayflower?

I follow him in the vain hope that they'll be some concrete news. The undeniable point is that this man's public image now matters. He will be representing Swindon Town and as supporters, we have a vested interest in the club being taken seriously. The image he creates for himself is not professional and not in the best interests of the club.

:soapbox:

Can we recall Benson and/or Caddis?

I agree with you to a point.

He's just said he's at The Pig on the Hill and tweeted #Guinness. Hardly a pissed Delia Smith moment, unless I'm missing something.

Nope, season long loans I think.

 :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick: :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

Oh my. That is special.

Laugh all you like. Perhaps I haven't articulated my point that well... but I think you'd all trade an apparent pisshead being in charge for what we're leaving behind. Rant over!

'Apparent pisshead'? The bloke's gone down  the pub! Talk about an overreaction. ...

In terms of first impressions, the new bloke with the ever changing name has done pretty shitly in my eyes, but I can't figure out if that's because he's acting unprofessional or just different

An apparent pisshead?

Behave!

I forgot to ask, I didn't follow this afternoons events. I assume the takeover is happening tomorrow?

100%  ::)

Good, good. Unless Jed the pisshead loses the club in a lock in game of poker.

It would be quite poetic and almost certainly prophetic if we had a Friday statement.

I bet he's not even wearing a tie.

Wonder if he's wearing a pink shirt and his mate Ray is with him.

Maybe Ray is the temp goalkeeping coach?

Apparently he has homemade indian ink tattoos

So Jed's having a pint?! Dunno why, but I somehow thought it was McCormack having a pint?!

'love' and 'hate' on his knuckles?

Ward and Miller would drop him from the next game, just for continuity.

 ???
Jed can't afford a tattoist ? ???

I've been critical of di canio at times during his time here but unlike most it would appear think he deserves credit for walking. He came out and said what the problems were and that he couldn't continue. He obviously thinks people should do what they said etc. He could have stayed like many managers do under all sorts of shit but he didn't. I like him more for what he's done. His staff walking too says it all for me.

Flogging the club and its best player when they have is the biggest pisser

Cox is at Plymouth, isn't he?

Re Jed....
I recall hearing jez Wray talking to chappers on fve live some weeks back, talking about  some pdc antics or other....I recall thinking what an articulate, intelligent and considered man he was.  I thought to myself this guy is a credit to the club and felt that the club was  in safe hands.
Not exactly getting  the same fuzzy feeling from Jed at the moment.

Ironically it's Jed that has the fuzzy feeling at the moment  :pint:

You've heard Jed giving an interview then?

Jed's on the karaoke at the moment with his tie around his head

What song is he singing?

Rubbish, he doesn't own a tie.

Don't leave me this way...

Di Canio is the new Hoddle.

regardless of what he does from now, he will be linked with every managerial vacancy we have for the next 20 years.

That would be the meth and coke.

He is indeed.  Quite a voice, by all accounts.  But talks with the Football League seem to have aged him a little.

[url width=480 height=360]http://i.ytimg.com/vi/1uwWliIg3CA/0.jpg[/url]

What exactly has he had to put up with?

I make it one player being sold without his knowledge and uncertainty over the ownership of the club for about a month.

I could understand if it was making his job impossible but he has been exceeding expectations all season and since selling our best player we've moved to the top of the table. He will last no more than 5 minutes at most clubs when he experiences the problems most managers have to face every day of the week.

Spot On!

He's had it easy compared to others and the higher he goes the bigger egos he'll have to control, the bigger risks he will take and the higher the chances of perceived failure.

I would still have him back in a heartbeat though.

I doubt we will ever know everything,but think the club must have gone back on promises-previous agreements. Di canio is many things but the bloke is honest and demands the same from those he works with.

Glad you can predict his future as I can't. Jeremy wray thinks he's destined for the top and his results here were nothing short of brilliant.

Hes not honest though is he. Preaches about loyalty and all that jazz and fucks off at the first opportunity. Preaches proffesionalism and strips the captaincy from McCormack for being ill ffs. Spiteful bloke.

I bet the cunt never got the tattoo done either.

Agree with some of the sentiment, but it was hardly first opportunity.

The McCormack thing must be more than was said, at face value even for PDC it is bonkers. Probably didn't ring up to explain he was missing training or something...

Should rephrase that. I mean as soon as the going got tough he did

Song for Paolo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ul-cZyuYq4

I think getting here on the back of our worst season ever and only having about 7 pro's was pretty tough...

It's Eric Bristow FFS!  ???

Some of the posts about Jed on the last couple of pages are  :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

I think what gets me about Paolo's departure is that in leaving the way he did he was almost trying to shit on the new owners and "teach them a lesson", but what it has resulted in is punishing "his" players and the fans, the two sets of people who he said were most important.

I think that is why some of the people who "loved" him a matter of days ago now feel a bit bitter and betrayed.

agree, much

Not sure the man that got sacked for pandering to Paolo's every whim is the best judge of his potential.

I said literally the same on one of the threads last night, although I think I used slightly more harsh language.

I still love Paolo. I think he did a fantastic job. He made mistakes but someone else is going to benefit from it. I wish him the very best and i hope he goes on to have a fanstastic career and we can look back at it and say proudly he started it here.
I have no problem him leaving the way he did and I admire him for keeping his principles.
I'm not bitter towards him but I am really fucking bitter about what has happened.

The problem with Mr Mccory is he forgets what he has said.. at the Supporters meeting he said he would not leave Banbury for Swindon he is now saying to supporters would you mind if I left ?? on investment I believe the new stand seats were donated and fitted by supporters, cans of painted were donated by Dulux ,tatty secondhand furniture was brought in from a local night club for the clubhouse. I reckon the playing budget is the same as last season, so I ask again what investment and would it matter if Jed did leave ?? the supporters are the ones that deserve a pat on the back.   

Banburyian Sun Feb 10, 2013 9:08 pm

???

Just cannot agree with that Jonny..

Anyone who forgets what Paolo did for the club should look at the league table and also the highlights of lasts nights match...it was all down to Paolo.
It was obvious he wanted to stay.......other peoples actions made sure that didn't happen.

Of course he made you grimace at times in some of his actions,but there is no way that he would ever want to walk away.....and i for one does not feel bitter and betrayed...not by Paolo anyway.

Probably..................potty mouth

Paul Bodin gave me mine...20 years ago this May...

Potty mouth.

Jed's just tweeted 'Welcome back Fraser Digby'

We've got our new (temporary?) goalkeeping coach!

Nah, he's just had some shampoo and a comb returned.

Another body to add to the bench for Saturday then  ;)

Nah. We are selling Wes and need cover.

I'm not debating or knocking his achievements.

I think he's made a mountain out of a molehill and when (if) he goes to another club he'll quickly realise just how good he had it here. When you see someone as calm and restrained as Wenger losing the plot during a press conference, what chance does Paolo have at the top level?

Don't feel particularly bitter, betrayed or annoyed. It's his decision, life goes on, we're top of the league. But I feel let down - he continually goes on about loyalty and respect all the time but has shown fuck all of either to the fans and players this week.

If we're going to be without a manager for a while, having players like Digby around can only help.

Is there anyone else we can round up?

I'm honestly surprised Bodin hasn't been put in temporary charge. He hasn't even been mentioned to help out Ward and Miller.

Strange.

Has Digby done any keeper coaching since he last did some here whilst also being commercial manager or something?

Local and cheap. Short term to, hopefully...

I think your molehill might well turn out to be a mountain. I'd have Paolo back in a heartbeat, but 'jed' and his merry men's takeover would have to fail, and God knows what shit that would land us in.

He coached my son Alex a couple of times. I got called "Alex dad" by Fraser, which practically makes me royal I think.

He was mooting setting up a goalkeeping academy, not sure it ever got off the ground.

That said, none of this is relevant to whether he can coach at a professional level.

##And I happen to know exactly where that paint came from and who organised it, donated by Dulux of course. I know the bloke who runs the bar at BUFC.

Yep, exactly.

It will take time for everything to settle into whatever form it is going to take, so I may change my views down the line.

I was one of those in the middle ground - fascinated, excited and moved by him on the one hand, frustrated
and somewhat suspicious on the other. So I settled for 'enjoy the ride cos it will all end in tears' approach. And I
enjoyed the ride.

Suspicious inasmuch as I wondered (for example) how much of the scarf-waving stuff we saw was more about ego than about 'love for us' [of course it can be both]. But this business of the poor players being left to train and select their own team [imagine what a headache that will be, given that the captain was fired by someone who had already left !]...welll....

Whats that saying about 'nothing in life reveals a man so much as the manner of his leaving' ?? Something like that.

It's all started to remind me of a certain dynamic that can be found in certain 'gang' types of communities. I use to live in the EastEnd of London [during my pertiod of exile] and you would hear 'It was much better round here when the Krays were around - much safer' etc. A kind of 'follow your leader and he will look after his children' dynamic.

Thats what I'm starting to sense here. We love him partly cos he buys pizzas and clears the snow, and all of that wanting to be the figurehead stuff etc.

So by those standards, right now I have no hesitation in saying 'PDC, you ran away ! You are the chihuahua [sp] !

More than that, you left your players in the lurch as well as the fans. You failed to live up to your own self image. You have failed the test of a leader, and reveal yourself to be a tantrum-throwing wannabe Samurai, more upset by perceived slights to themselves than the community they pledged to protect.'

And so on.

As for Black and the rest - you are beneath my contempt for how you have treated the club.

I can pop round the Dolphin and have a word with Phil King

Personally I think that made it easier for him... If he had to take over the dressing room responsible for the relegation it would have cost even more money to get rid and in likelihood resulted in an all out brawl...

Totally agree Paddy. When the going got tough, the Italians reinforced their own national stereotype and headed for the hills.

Yes, he may well have been lied to. Yes it may have been a bit of a mess behind the scenes which lead to transfer deals falling through - Boo fucking hoo. Welcome to the rocky and perilous world of football management where amazingly enough, not everything always goes your way. I would have thought that the desire to finish the job that he started, the fantastic squad of players that he himself assembled and the fantastic support from the fans would have made him want to stay and tough it out and see the job through and bollocks to the other stuff.

Clearly not.

This better get sorted sooner rather than later... he's been gone less than a week and it seems the players have already forgotten about professionalism and discipline, getting legless and arguing down the pub.

Care to elaborate??

That's it really... few of them apparently got battered and were arguing amongst themselves. We didn't really hear stories like that often in the last year or so.

No press conference after all. Statement expected today to confirm takeover

But I mean, where?....when?.....sauces? etc etc

Getting pissed up is not a crime in itself, it all depends on the circumstances.

A mate of mine runs the Vic. There were a few players in last last drinking and doing karaoke apparently.

On wacky Wednesday, they must've got right on it. Paolo's teachings obviously failed to impact them in a way that would change their careers then.

Oh right... few friends saw them in the Vic last night. I know having a beer isn't a crime, and after the week they've had they probably need to unwind, but was just concerned that the old school bad habits might creep in without the influence of a permanent disciplinarian. A lot of our success has been down to fitness and a professional attitude.

I expect they are already looking forward to a Thursday night out and cheap drinks down the bottom of town as we speak!

love hearing stories like this when a manager goes. Back to the old ways, we're all doomed, we will get relegated now, Swindon will implode etc etc

let the players unwind and relieve some pressure that they've had on their shoulders for quite some time. They're top of the league and deserved a drink. I'm sure they're focused on what is required

You're probably right, wish I'd not read so much into it!

Not at all. Its disappointing to hear.

Not really Batch. The players from every on of the other 91 teams go out for a few drinks. Why should ours be any different? I don't suppose for one minute that it stopped completely when PDC was still around.

It doesn't really matter what other teams players do, its not a about a few drinks, its was the bit about  "a few of them apparently got battered" which disappoints (if true). It ain't great with a game a few days away. I don't expect them to live like saints mind.

Anywho, no takeover press conference today but a statement of confirmation expected instead apparently to avoid detracting from the pre-match preparations/routine.

If we were bottom of the league rather than top how would people feel about the players going out and getting battered the night before training?!

Just because we are top of the league after 32 games is no reason to lose the professionalism and have a few drinks to celebrate!

I'm sure I read somewhere they were allowed to go out on the piss. Just not x days before a match.

Indeed.

Although expecting the players to keep up the discipline now Paolo is gone would be like expecting a class of 13 year olds to sit quietly and do some work without a teacher.

Has the press conference been cancelled?

Yes!!  Although there is one at lunchtime with Miller and Ward apparently, a staatment will be issued by the club but they didn't want a press conference to distract the players.  The press conference is expected next Wednesday after the Bury game!

Miller and Ward sounds a bit like a cheap ITV cop show.

Or a BBC1 sketch show, I'm thinking Friday nights at 830

Sounds as though it's done

JedMcCoy‏@JedMcCoy

Finally ..!!.... Look forward to meeting you all at STFC Saturday ..Thank you for youre patience

Sam Morshead ‏@SamMorshead_SA
The Advertiser understands the sale of #stfc to new owners, fronted by Jed McCrory, is complete & has been signed off by the Football League.

A very cautious hurrah.

Relief, of sorts.  The fun starts here.

So who are Jed's pals?

Your, it's your!

(Pale imitation, I know.  :-[)

Jumping the gun but has Jed or his crew given any indication via Twitter or otherwise that he is going to contact the mad Italian?

He definitely indicated that he would on the day PDC resigned.

He doesn't seem to be ruling out a return for PDC, but it may be clutching at straws to think it will happen.

It would take some nerve for PdC to come back as he would look like a bit of a tit, even the main stream media seem to be reaching the conclusion that it was a bloody odd thing for him to do.

PDC did meet the new owners a few weeks ago...and subsequently resigned.  That seems pretty final to me.

It's good news for the time being. At least we can bring in a new manager and some loan players now.

This forum's software throws a wobbly whenever something is announced!

...or when we are about to go top of the league.

ha, true!

Indeed I am hoping that a consortium will take over the TEF and sort such matters as the present board are letting things slide  ;D

I'm not sure I want a new manager (unless it was the old one back). I'm genuinely interested in how this whole workers' collective thing we've got going on pans out...

Indeed... ;)

I thought this but then as di vita said di canio went into such detail on every opponent and everyone knew their exact jobs. Who is going to do this on the side?!

If Paolo Di Canio's phone rang and it was Darren Ward I think he'd pick up. You're right though, it isn't viable in the long term, but 14 games?

See, this is where we miss out not being in the Prem. If we were in the Prem, we could just send someone down to Smiths to buy a complete set of Match Attax and Hey Presto! Complete stats on every opponent!

Black having a mountain of dosh didn't stop the horrendous mess he left the club in.

It's not really about the money, it's about honest intentions

They would keep setting unattainable targets, then claim they had achieved them, then fall out with each other.

So actually on reflection much like football management normally is.

and realistic goals...take Cheltnumb, who this lot wanted to buy, but Baker decided against. They're a well run club, who've come a long way in a relatively short space of time. Their aim in life is to yo-yo between Div 3 and 4, get the odd lucrative cup game, and generally make ends meet. They do own Whaddon Road, and sometimes a move to the Racecourse is mooted, but is it really necessary for their ambitions.

We may have slightly more grand ambitions, to compete in Div 3, with the odd foray upwards, but do we have any resources to back this up.

Perhaps, it's time to accept we're more Cheltnumb Town than Charlton Athletic....

The problem is that fans' realistic goals are different to (most) owners' realistic goals.

Cheltenham have achieved fuck all, while we have tasted the promised land, won a cup final and punched above our weight on numerous occasions - and it is this history that fans cannot see the reason why we cannot do it again

I would struggle to think of many club owners who really have the club's interests at heart and not just as a financial vehicle for themselves.

Maybe Dave Whelan and before him Jack Walker at Blackburn - and how he must be turning in his grave at the Venkys (if, indeed, he is no longer with us!)