Sunday Contemplations

[flammableBen]

"What if"'s are by there very nature a bit of a futile area of debate, but they can offer some nice gentle discussion for a Sunday afternoon, and putting the evidence of the past into an alternative context isn't the most boring option to think about.

So anyway. Whist I was just having a shit, I was contemplating how the last 5 (4 and 2/3rds) seasons of would have gone if we'd beaten Brighton then City in our play-off achieving year. Would that slight change of one result and success in another made much of a difference to where the club stands now?

There's a fair bit to consider. Would the old board finding a new level of income to cash in on left us in a worse position than we are in now? Would the protests have gathered as much force if we'd had a one league advantage over the next few seasons?

And what about the on the pitch... Would we have survived a season in the Championship? Would the extra relegation required meant we avoided dropping down to league two over the next couple of seasons? How would have Parkin done with a season with town in the Champ., would he have faired better with us than he did with Ipswich and Luton?

I came to the conclusion that we'd have probably got relegated from the Championship first season, and probably now be in about the same place as we are now, or maybe mid-tableish  in League two having got relegated last season. Off the pitch we'd probably be in a worse situation that we're in now though - the extra income from a season in the Championship having given the old board the leeway to fuck us over a bit more, and possibly have lessened the anger from fans, maybe we'd be stuck with them still, or maybe we'd have been lumbered with the potential disaster of a BEST style takeover.

I didn't really think much further than that because I had to wipe my arse.

A futile brain exercise maybe, but it's still got some interest.

Thoughts?

[Nemo]

Tommy Mooney would probably be our player manager.

[DV]

We'd have got relegated from the Championship.
Finished mid table in L1.
Got relegated to L2.
Got promoted from L2.

[Reg Smeeton]

 Don't think we'd have hung about for too long....the CCC is now a very difficult league to play in.

 A lot of traditional medium sized clubs, have settled in at that level...they have big crowds and decent income.  A number of smaller, but well off clubs like Wigan  Fulham Blackburn Bolton continue to occupy the Prem slots.

 The CCC is the 4th best supported league in Europe....clubs of our size can maybe hang about for a season or two, but we'd need to make significant improvement in ground and crowd size to cope....

 I now see us as a lower L1/L2 yo-yo club.

[flammableBen]

Where's League one on the xth most supported league in Europe list?

[Reg Smeeton]

Where's League one on the xth most supported league in Europe list?

That's one for DV...

[reeves4england]

Where's League one on the xth most supported league in Europe list?

Probably not much lower than the CCC I'd have thought - lower league football is not the same elsewhere. Reg's point still stands though, we'd be a small club in the CCC if we make it back up there any time soon and would struggle financially without a new ground and the associated influx of plastics

[Spencer_White]

Could have done a Luton?

[Ardiles]

The biggest (only) step forward we have taken in the last 5 years is the replacement of the old board...and their odious 'adviser'.  I think you are largely correct in your analysis.  I would have thought that, even with just one season in the Championship, the anti-Wills/Diamandis sentiment would have taken longer to surface.  They would probably still be 'in charge' right now had there been more success on the pitch and greater revenue streams.

The new board have not yet delivered on the pitch, but I remain hopeful that they will - eventually.  On balance, probably just as well we didn't go up in 2003/04, fun as it would have been at the time.

[Reg Smeeton]

Where's League one on the xth most supported league in Europe list?

In 06/07, L1 was the 21st best supported European league.

[dogs]

If we had King and Crosby now this season, would we be doing better!?

[Batch]

The current board took a bit of time to explain the average revenue for a league 1 team compared to a championship team. It was something like £4M v £12M. A large amount of this would come from TV money, but I think by their calculations if we went up today (erm, er I know I know) we'd still be a few £M short. The fgures probably aren't spot on but you get the idea.

So to answer the question we wouldn't have been playing on a level playing field financially, so in all probability would have gone down. But you never know I suppose.

The problem with the "if we'd kept the old board" question is hard to answer. They spent far more money than we (the blub) or they(the Wills) had. I'm not so sure they'd have done anything differently and would have pissed away more money. I think the protests had reached a stage where only change of ownership would e accepted. However I think most of the fan base would have backed off if it had gone right on the pitch. Thankfully things were brought to a head by necessity (of survival)

What happened to BEST anyway. Did they ever acquire anyone? I'd love to know what it was all about, but without us being the subject of the takeover.