47er

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.

Prepare to be called negative. You might even qualify as Drama Queen material!

Dead right. Of course they know what we need. The question is "will they be allowed to sign them?"

Anything goes once you get in the Premier League though. I agree that FFP operates against smaller clubs till you do.

So you're advocating that we should keep it knowing it doesn't work?

VAR has largely put paid to many of the decisions that always seemed to go Manure's way! Flowers sending off at Ewood very early in the first half. Totally meant we couldn't win that game. That was probably the worst but there were so many!

It makes me laugh that some can't grasp that the finance available at Ewood to pay players isn't enough to sign them or keep them. All we can do is to keep getting loanees in and produce young players and hope they retain some loyalty to us. As we've seen already, its not working.

Injuries? Suspensions?

No---Johnson as our "false 9" takes first prize for me! Silver to Gally!

Settled!

I wouldn't mind the Phil Jones we sold them!

Its a joke, I made them up!

Jones? He'll have to take £4000 a week mind!

They won't delay the start of the season until we're ready though!

just wondering which I'd prefer! On reflection an easy decision!

Why do you always take the most optimistic approach to any discussion of the club? Its not like much positive has happened in 12 years, especially in the area of protecting our assets.

2nd post more accurate than the first there Dreams! Personally don't remember anyone attacking a youth policy per se. A lot of posters wanted Travis in long before Mowbray did as I recall and many have called for Vale to be given his chance. However we do need the correct mix of youth and experience--its a long season!

Time runs out though?