Its the same for every club but you can't do worse than signing no-one! We miss the boat every year. It'll late be loans again.

Sorry Hod---you beat me to it! A pretty obvious point Biz. Wouldn't it be great if we developed some momentum early?

Ha! as usual---a rotten start then?

Its not him we're worried about!!

Please tell us when the right time has arrived.

That's a valid point if the transfer market stood still and waited for us to get our act together. But that's not the case is it? And some of the right ones have already gone. Further we needed the players to be together for the pre-season for obvious reasons. But as usual we were slow appointing a new management team so that, in itself, slowed down the transfer process. We'll be signing what's left after the season has started, we usually do.They won't have the benefit of a pre-season with their new team-mates. Decision-making at the club has been a disaster ever since Venkys arrived and nothing has changed after 12 years.

Odd to lose Lenihan,Nyambe and Rothwell because we couldn't pay them and then to pay out that much to Davies. If that's what's required to get him, surely this has no chance.

Prepare to be called negative!

All waiting to get him on a free is my guess. No risk there!

Unless you spent and were promoted in the one season?

Makes no difference to us though. Anyone think Venkys would spend serious money on transfers if FFP went?

Yes--- FFS! Good name for it!

If I say "there is no positive news" am I being negative if its true?

Markanday will be playing centre-back at this rate.

Its funny, we watch the same player but reach different conclusions. We can agree on the failure to get a fee though.

Bloody hell! The over-65 concessions aren't exactly generous are they?!!

What can we talk about then?. The start of the season is 23 days away and we haven't had a single transfer in but we've lost several starters? We can only say it once!

Patience may be in short supply but there's no shortage of complacency on this MB

So we should have sold? No point in just allowing contracts to run down.

If the Club has handled this properly we would have got £9M for the 3 we lost. That would have given us a good start on its own without having to worry about ffp. Hopeless.

Somebody tell Chaddy that being linked with a player is the easy bit! Just over 2 weeks till the season starts and not one signing for a team that has been decimated. Got faith in the new Coach and Director but the way the Club operates may well drag them down too. We remain a basket case.

Ok, I don't disagree with any of that either! But--- Crawley needs replacing but by who? How often lately have we been 80 odd for 5 or 6 and had to be saved by the power order? And what about our pop-gun attack? English pitches are made for Anderson and Broad but what happens abroad? We have no world class spinner either. None of this detracts from the great summer we've enjoyed but if we are going to be the power in world cricket we should be there is a lot to do. Its not just a matter of finding the right players, they don't exist. The gene-pool has got too small. Whole generations have been lost to cricket-- ordinary kids don't play it or follow it as they once did---except for lads from India and Pakistan who play in the street but rarely get much further.

Doesn't look like coincidence does it?

Yes,can't disagree with any of his, the point I was trying to make is that are too dependent on too few players of which Bairstow is pivotal and that we won't get this particular set of circumstances every game. Sometimes a Test side has to dig in and play a long game. Can we?

Bairstow's form has been incredible but the situation has suited him perfectly----chasing runs on the last day on an English pitch. Played like its a 20-20. Do you really think he could lead England to make nearly 400 in the 4th innings at The Adelaide Oval. Or the Gabba? That's the bar which England has to strive for. This summer has been hugely enjoyable but out bowlers don't travel and our top order are woeful. Encouraging start but a long, long way to go.