The more I read your comments actually, the more I'm starting to see you view it as a case of 'identity' and a word to replace 'fan' in that context. That's not what anybody is driving at. Our identity as it relates to Rovers is of course as fans. Stakeholder is something else altogether, that fans are one chunk of, and whilst you're claiming to understand it, you very clearly aren't. So far at least. I don't think anybody can explain it to you any clearer than we all have though, so I'll leave it there as I'm sure it's gotten tiresome for some.

You're talking with authority there, but you have none and you're simply wrong. Being a fan does automatically make you a stakeholder. Nobody will force you to use the word in reference to yourself, but it's true. I don't refer to myself as a stakeholder (though I might in the appropriate context) but I'm aware the definition applies. It's a bit like insisting you're 'a man' and not 'a male homo sapiens'. Nobody is expecting you to refer to yourself as a male homo sapiens, but you still fit the definition anyway. I don't know why you're choosing to die on this hill, other than sheer obstinacy.

15k a week and a 750k transfer fee? What decent striker at this level would be available for that? Not to say it can't be done, but you have to take a fair gamble there. In England you'd be looking at someone washed up, or who hasn't fulfilled their early promise, and hope you can make them come good. Might be a few more promising propositions than that in Europe, but the work permit regulations make that number much smaller. To use the analogy, I'd often rather ask the ex for a quick shag than go chatting up several women until one wants a relationship and hoping she's any better than the ex! But then, I'm jaded 😂

What have Blackpool supporters got to do with anything?

I fully stand by it.

That wouldn't be the correct context for the word. Fans are stakeholders, but not all stakeholders are fans. (In a way it would actually be more damning, as stakeholders refers to a much wider group of parties, so it would be like saying nobody has a vested interest in their club at all! But obviously the rhythm doesn't fit and it's too technical for a football ground 😛 ) We're both. It doesn't matter whether you like it or not. The word exists, has a definition, and a fan of a football club falls under it. No matter how much it 'wasn't like that in your day' or whatever. You seem to think it's just a straight swap word for 'fans', but it absolutely isn't. A fan is one category of stakeholder, but stakeholder is a far more encompassing term. Nobody is calling themselves a stakeholder instead of a fan, either, in a general sense. But it's a term that can have an appropriate use in the right context (a wider business context), sometimes when referring to fans. You're not going to start hearing it replace matchday parlance, don't worry. Managers aren't going to start thanking the stakeholders for being a good crowd today etc. Other people seem to think it's interchangeable with shareholder, and so it only applies if you part own the club. That's wrong too.

It's everybody affected by the dealings of a business. In the broadest use it can mean pretty much anyone, including society at large, governments etc. And in that sense it can become a bit meaningless. But it can be used more specifically and there is a whole school of thought around it, so your summation probably isn't quite right. It can be used in a legitimate context. For BRFC, the external stakeholders would essentially be fans when used on this board, or the local area, council, the league etc if used more widely. Like almost any word, it can mean different things in different contexts. Some people are definitely misusing the term here, but encouraging companies to consider stakeholders is probably a beneficial thing for society. Even if most of the time it probably doesn't make a company act any differently. Reminding customers and other groups that they have a 'stake' in what happens in a sense (not a financial one for customers or fans, other than spending money with the company for goods or services) can be empowering for them too and encourage them to put appropriate pressure on companies. Fully expecting to catch flak here from people who have finished expanding their vocabulary years ago and don't want to hear any new words or new uses of words, as though this isn't how language evolved for millennia. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stakeholder_theory

Probably as much chance of him doing that as there is of him stopping predicting Rovers to win every match by a landslide. I'm pretty sure he does both things to wind people up, as he has been asked many times to stop, so you might be best just not rising to it.

Like who? I can't think of two players who would come here for 15k p/w who are better than Brereton. Hell I can't think of one.

Best resource I have for that is FM20, where Sevilla's squad starts the game with 15 players earning 30k or more. 9 of them earning between 43-110k. Not gospel of course but they research thoroughly and wage figures usually seem to be ballpark. Given he is a free transfer that would ordinarily cost 8 figures, I'd be astonished if he's not being offered at least 40k. In fact if he isn't, he would really be advised to look elsewhere. There are Championship clubs who would pay him that.

We have been paying circa 20k for our top earners for a while, it's more like a 50% increase. We were also paying that (30k) to Rhodes nearly a decade ago, and we all know how inflation works in football. It's a lot for us, sure, but a one-year deal is hardly a huge commitment. It's 1.5 million on a player we were rating in the 20 million plus bracket. We could probably put him up for sale in the summer for 3 million even if he only scored another 5 goals this season, and have a long list of suitors. Moreover, as I said earlier, it's highly unlikely to be more than Villareal are offering (probably a nice signing on bonus thrown in over there too, wouldn't be surprised if that alone was worth more than our offer).

I can't see how it would do that unless we got incredibly lucky in the market.

Very odd that Nixon is describing a 1 yr 30k a week contract as 'huge' and 'stunning'. Does he think it's 1998? I'd be stunned if Villareal aren't offering more money, and supposedly it's a 5 year contract. This offer is surely a non-starter.

That was true for Brereton too until this week wasn't it? Shocking goal droughts they've been on, even if they'd just notched 2 or 3 each in that period we would probably still be in a strong position in the playoffs breathing down Boro's neck. Depends when they're scored of course.

I'm confused that you see 20 minutes of football and 90 minutes of football as being the same in terms of strain on the body. You've played football, right?

Unfortunately, I think that's exactly what it will mean. I'd much rather see Leonard given the shirt, but I can't see it happening.

So we're 7th, level on points with Millwall (who have a game in hand) and Sunderland, both above us on GD (by 10 for Millwall, 16 for Sunderland! We won't be beating anyone to a spot on GD this year) Only 1 point (and GD of course!) separating 4th and 7th.

Only downside is potential injuries to Brereton and Dack, our top two scorers. Someone said stick Ayala up top...we might not have much choice soon at this rate!

Well I'll take that!! By hook or by crook.

Someone has to!

You know that doesn't make any sense, right?

Not getting in the team only adds to the evidence that they were worse.

He gave you a whole list, and your only response was to shift the goalposts again.

Probably the Mulgrew days, and half the time he had to put those in the net directly from the corner... (Nah not really, I remember Wharton heading one or two in...did he have one earlier this season, I wanna say in the cup against Hartlepool?)

Those are usually based on numbers of appearances and goals, not whether fans think he's 'one of the worst ever'. Over 100 appearances and over 20 league goals...he has probably triggered some or most, if that was indeed how the deal was structured. There might be something based on the club's performance though (making the playoffs, getting promoted) and those won't have been touched.