Board backing Slade/Wilko....week one update

Last week the board published its plan to get gtfc out of the mess. How are they doing?

1 Reduce size of squad....confirmed release of two players who were already out on loan.
2. Increase quality of the match day squad. Young striker who was already lined up to join confirmed. Slade says we have two other targets but may not come until the summer
3. Bringing goals....one is better than none
4. Bringing buzz to Blundell Park.....don't think so
5. Inject money .....we look forward to it being spent wisely
6. There will be bumps on the road. Achieved with our fourth consecutive bump losing yesterday. Will Colchester away next time up be the turning point?

Seventeen days and three games to closing of transfer window. Time is running out.

It was all spin to try and quell the tide of anger building against JF and the management team . Slade knows he won’t be given the £££ to sign any strikers who could make a difference, that’s why he said that he probably wouldn’t be able to get who he wants till the summer. The downward spiral we’re on will make it hard to sign any players I’d guess . Most players out there will probably know a player or at at least be able to find out on the grapevine what’s going on at town which will be another negative to getting anyone half decent in .

Quoted from IlkleyMariner

Last week the board published its plan to get gtfc out of the mess. How are they doing?

1 Reduce size of squad....confirmed release of two players who were already out on loan.
2. Increase quality of the match day squad. Young striker who was already lined up to join confirmed. Slade says we have two other targets but may not come until the summer
3. Bringing goals....one is better than none
4. Bringing buzz to Blundell Park.....don't think so
5. Inject money .....we look forward to it being spent wisely
6. There will be bumps on the road. Achieved with our fourth consecutive bump losing yesterday. Will Colchester away next time up be the turning point?

Seventeen days and three games to closing of transfer window. Time is running out.

Two weeks in....

1. No further progress
2. No further progress
3. Another goal. Well done
4. Wait and see
5. No further progress
6. Progress with a draw

Ten days to go before transfer window closes. Need to beat Yeovil away as a minimum

We are expected to lose next week so, in a sense, the pressure is off. It would be nice to see the players go for it rather than just contain Luton.

Sadly Ilkley, i fear the club are looking to next season now and have taken their eye off the ball. It is quite feasible that we could be 6 points from the danger zone on Saturday having played a game more. The bottom teams are not just creeping up on us, they are racing toward us, having gained 4 points in 2 weeks. The extra game we squeezed in against Morecambe was a disaster. Losing to a team lower than us with a worse goal scoring record  should have got the alarm bells ringing loudly in the boardroom. The next ten days could be pivotal for us and i don't want to be looking back at the end of the season thinking what might have been. Those players they say are 'over inflated' now, will be way beyond our reach if we fall out of the league again.

In my view, all those responsible for running the club, plus management and coaching staff need to get in a room, get some food and drink, lock the door, and don't come out until they have thrashed out a plan to make sure we don't slip up. The last 8 games, we are averaging 0.3 points per game and that is way way beyond relegation form. For me, that is sacking territory, so the club either need to sack him or back him and open those purse strings pronto.

Ginny "Those players they say are 'over inflated' now, will be way beyond our reach if we fall out of the league again."

This should be as loud and clear as a boats fog horn on Fenty's shoulder also there isn't the same spirit from the fans this time round like the season we went through the trapdoor, people are fed up with Sladeball and Fenty.

It is also the comment that concerns me the most, to me it means we are not willing to pay for the quality we need to keep us away from the trapdoor and the board and Sladeball are playing a dangerous game with the clubs future. For me the club and Sladeball have made the sort of comments the fans want to hear to ease tensions but in reality they are just sat on their hands waiting for football fortune to turn around.

Quoted from ginnywings

Sadly Ilkley, i fear the club are looking to next season now and have taken their eye off the ball. It is quite feasible that we could be 6 points from the danger zone on Saturday having played a game more. The bottom teams are not just creeping up on us, they are racing toward us, having gained 4 points in 2 weeks. The extra game we squeezed in against Morecambe was a disaster. Losing to a team lower than us with a worse goal scoring record  should have got the alarm bells ringing loudly in the boardroom. The next ten days could be pivotal for us and i don't want to be looking back at the end of the season thinking what might have been. Those players they say are 'over inflated' now, will be way beyond our reach if we fall out of the league again.

In my view, all those responsible for running the club, plus management and coaching staff need to get in a room, get some food and drink, lock the door, and don't come out until they have thrashed out a plan to make sure we don't slip up. The last 8 games, we are averaging 0.3 points per game and that is way way beyond relegation form. For me, that is sacking territory, so the club either need to sack him or back him and open those purse strings pronto.

The problem is Ginny, that they have already done that.. twice.

The first was the Fan's Forum, they really planned everything then including the Slade powerpoint presentation, and look how that turned out. The second resulted in the official statement a week or two back.

We are talking about people that are already operating at their maximum capacities of ability and funding. Putting them all in a room once more and hoping they come up with anything better or different would be a pointless exercise and chucking more money around for the same people to spend? Are we sure there would be any significant return on investment.

Sometimes people try their best and it's just never going to be good enough, when what they are trying to achieve is beyond their capabilities..

It would appear as though they just said the right things to try to appease the fans because even our board couldn't have been so blind to not realise there was a huge amount of malcontent brewing. As it is, the fact we've seen virtually no movement suggests to me that they're not willing to put the money in that's needed to get the required players. Either that or they don't think there's a real urgency for new players which would suggest, quite shockingly, that they're not too alarmed by the recent performances and results.

Whatever the reason behind the lack of players in, it could result in us losing our FL status again which would be far more costly than stumping up for a couple of good players. Not like Fenty to be short-sighted when it comes to his cost cutting is it?

As already mentioned I think the next month is pivotal, of the games most winnable we've three away matches against Yeovil, Crawley and Cambridge and the home game against Cheltenham. Unless we manage to beat either Luton or Exeter in between, we are going to need at least 6 points from those games, otherwise we're going to be in a real dogfight for relegation, and the board will have left it to late.

[In my view, all those responsible for running the club, plus management and coaching staff need to get in a room, get some food and drink, lock the door, and don't come out until they have thrashed out a plan to make sure we don't slip up. The last 8 games, we are averaging 0.3 points per game and that is way way beyond relegation form. For me, that is sacking territory, so the club either need to sack him or back him and open those purse strings pronto. [/quote]


I completely agree we lose Saturday the bottom 2 win and then win their game in hand in theory we could end up 3 off the drop zone.

The plan for me is JF sacks Slade, the board get their hands in their pockets and pay for the privilege that the role gives you like dancing on the pitch at Wembley. Then get a half decent manager and give him enough  money for no more than 3 players, a poacher, a wide flyer and a left back.That should keep us up.

I am convinced if we go down we will end up staying there. The board still have time to act but no action will mean that the danger of the drop increases. We have an average squad others are building and adding better than what they have we are just hoping for the best.

When we came up we had such an opportunity and opportunity that has been wasted by poor decision making at numerous levels on and off the pitch. It was a hard road back to the Football League and the likes of our board appear to have forgot that.

If the likes of Fenty, Day and Marley think they are not popular now if we go down they should be tarred, feathered and  driven out of the Town.

UTM!

P.S. - Only joking about the tar and feathers but relegation would be unforgivable.

Makes you wonder where we would be now if the Americans had taken over.

In a better place probably and not fearing relegation.

If we go down the fan base will dwindle further and I think this time Fenty will lose those fans for good.

Being a big fish in a small pond might have worked a few year ago but times have moved on a lot of established ex-league teams are down there now.

Lincoln have proved if you get your act together you can be very competitive in this division and challenge for at least a playoff place.

Even the most optimistic fans will be thinking we are now looking at a survival scenario rather than a playoff chance.

Quoted from promotion plaice

Makes you wonder where we would be now if the Americans had taken over.

In a better place probably and not fearing relegation.

Yeah but at least the board listens to the fans on such things as Bra Gate, B teams and the clubs managemeant. At least we don't get called bullies ( for having a different opinion to someone) and get told to shut up by this board as well. Thank god the current gtfc board lets us have a voice...

As me and a fellow poster on here have regularly said - if you try to stand still in pro football you go backwards.

Fenty has tried to stand still and guess what? We are going backwards.

He tried to stand still when we lost league status last time, and we went backwards.

If he hasn't got the money for new investment, or cannot or will not work with others that have, then he should move aside.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

As me and a fellow poster on here have regularly said - if you try to stand still in pro football you go backwards.

Fenty has tried to stand still and guess what? We are going backwards.

He tried to stand still when we lost league status last time, and we went backwards.

If he hasn't got the money for new investment, or cannot or will not work with others that have, then he should move aside.

Same as in any business, if you carry on doing what you are doing, you continue to get what you've got. This penny- rich, pound-thick mentality will not cut it, and, as you say LCL, he should move aside.

I saw more than enough yesterday for me to believe we wont go down. I know that goes against the majority on here but thats the way I see it

Quoted from Cloudy

I saw more than enough yesterday for me to believe we wont go down. I know that goes against the majority on here but thats the way I see it

I am desperate for you to be right, but sometimes events can overtake you as Hartlepool found out last season.

I think we just need one really good result to lift the gloom, and lets hope it is next week.

As Ginny and others have said though, all of a sudden you can be sucked right into it even if we did play well yesterday. I am pleased we played well of course, but suddenly you can be under intense pressure to get a result and then anything can happen.

I think the board showed how naive they are in their statement of support only  a couple of weeks ago more or less saying we were safe. Since then despite performances being improved we are much nearer the wrong end with a combination of our results and other clubs strengthening their squads.

Say Fenty sold up now.

Say he waived those benign loans, and found a suitable buyer to take over.

How would his reign be remembered?

In a nutshell, he'd be remembered for presiding over the darkest time in the club's history, when we reached our lowest ebb with six seasons in non-league.

He'd be remembered for taking the club on a downward trajectory over 17 years at the helm - with a couple of seasons near the end (2015/16 and 2016/17) that bucked the downward trend... before it showed signs of starting again in 2017/18.

Yes, we were in a financial mess when the ITV Digital collapsed. He stepped in and steadied the ship while things had to suffer on the pitch.

But all that was dealt with while we were a FL club. We continued to overspend and mismanage squads with poor managerial appointments that ultimately cost us our place in the FL.

If he stays, we'll continue making the same mistakes. The new ground is not the answer if we continue supporting the wrong managers and if we continue making PR gaffes.

We've backed the wrong managers and then failed to back the one that was worth fighting for once another club showed interest.

It has been 17 years of mostly bad decisions and I don't see anything to suggest that theme will change.

It's best he goes now before he really does do irreversible damage to our proud club.

He won't get those benign loans back because he'll keep putting his hand in his pocket to give managers like Slade the money to buy more players who don't cut it.

So he needs to accept his losses, do the decent thing and work hard to find someone who can come in, take control and run this club sustainably without asking them to cover the cost of his mistakes.

Quoted from RichMariner

Say Fenty sold up now.

Say he waived those benign loans, and found a suitable buyer to take over.

How would his reign be remembered?

In a nutshell, he'd be remembered for presiding over the darkest time in the club's history, when we reached our lowest ebb with six seasons in non-league.

He'd be remembered for taking the club on a downward trajectory over 17 years at the helm - with a couple of seasons near the end (2015/16 and 2016/17) that bucked the downward trend... before it showed signs of starting again in 2017/18.

Yes, we were in a financial mess when the ITV Digital collapsed. He stepped in and steadied the ship while things had to suffer on the pitch.

But all that was dealt with while we were a FL club. We continued to overspend and mismanage squads with poor managerial appointments that ultimately cost us our place in the FL.

If he stays, we'll continue making the same mistakes. The new ground is not the answer if we continue supporting the wrong managers and if we continue making PR gaffes.

We've backed the wrong managers and then failed to back the one that was worth fighting for once another club showed interest.

It has been 17 years of mostly bad decisions and I don't see anything to suggest that theme will change.

It's best he goes now before he really does do irreversible damage to our proud club.

He won't get those benign loans back because he'll keep putting his hand in his pocket to give managers like Slade the money to buy more players who don't cut it.

So he needs to accept his losses, do the decent thing and work hard to find someone who can come in, take control and run this club sustainably without asking them to cover the cost of his mistakes.

I think he wanted to be the local man who 'saved' the club who then discovered that it wasn't just as simple as that.

Quoted from RichMariner

Say Fenty sold up now.

Say he waived those benign loans, and found a suitable buyer to take over.

How would his reign be remembered?

In a nutshell, he'd be remembered for presiding over the darkest time in the club's history, when we reached our lowest ebb with six seasons in non-league.

He'd be remembered for taking the club on a downward trajectory over 17 years at the helm - with a couple of seasons near the end (2015/16 and 2016/17) that bucked the downward trend... before it showed signs of starting again in 2017/18.

Yes, we were in a financial mess when the ITV Digital collapsed. He stepped in and steadied the ship while things had to suffer on the pitch.

But all that was dealt with while we were a FL club. We continued to overspend and mismanage squads with poor managerial appointments that ultimately cost us our place in the FL.

If he stays, we'll continue making the same mistakes. The new ground is not the answer if we continue supporting the wrong managers and if we continue making PR gaffes.

We've backed the wrong managers and then failed to back the one that was worth fighting for once another club showed interest.

It has been 17 years of mostly bad decisions and I don't see anything to suggest that theme will change.

It's best he goes now before he really does do irreversible damage to our proud club.

He won't get those benign loans back because he'll keep putting his hand in his pocket to give managers like Slade the money to buy more players who don't cut it.

So he needs to accept his losses, do the decent thing and work hard to find someone who can come in, take control and run this club sustainably without asking them to cover the cost of his mistakes.

He should...be he won't. Ego too big to walk away now and he wants his money back, sometime, somehow. The money he has put in is the cost of 17 years of doing as he wished and it should be written off but as much as I agree with you, it is unlikely to ever happen.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

I am desperate for you to be right, but sometimes events can overtake you as Hartlepool found out last season.

I think we just need one really good result to lift the gloom, and lets hope it is next week.

As Ginny and others have said though, all of a sudden you can be sucked right into it even if we did play well yesterday. I am pleased we played well of course, but suddenly you can be under intense pressure to get a result and then anything can happen.

I think the board showed how naive they are in their statement of support only  a couple of weeks ago more or less saying we were safe. Since then despite performances being improved we are much nearer the wrong end with a combination of our results and other clubs strengthening their squads.

This is my worry. If you find yourself at the wrong end of the table from early on, you have a fighting chance to do something about it. If you drift into this position over a period of time after a relatively decent start to the season, it can catch you unawares, and by the time you realise the danger, it can be too late. Panic sets in and pressure builds when games start to run out. Stop it before it gets too late is the way, but i fear the club haven't taken our position seriously enough. Slade is still talking like it's a blip and we will rise up the league. Still talking play offs last week. It is not a blip, it's 8 games and the little run we had previously only saw us narrowly beat the current bottom two sides. The Swindon game aside, i am seeing too many similarities with our demise to non league.

Quoted from RichMariner

Say Fenty sold up now.

Say he waived those benign loans, and found a suitable buyer to take over.

How would his reign be remembered?

In a nutshell, he'd be remembered for presiding over the darkest time in the club's history, when we reached our lowest ebb with six seasons in non-league.

He'd be remembered for taking the club on a downward trajectory over 17 years at the helm - with a couple of seasons near the end (2015/16 and 2016/17) that bucked the downward trend... before it showed signs of starting again in 2017/18.

Yes, we were in a financial mess when the ITV Digital collapsed. He stepped in and steadied the ship while things had to suffer on the pitch.

But all that was dealt with while we were a FL club. We continued to overspend and mismanage squads with poor managerial appointments that ultimately cost us our place in the FL.

If he stays, we'll continue making the same mistakes. The new ground is not the answer if we continue supporting the wrong managers and if we continue making PR gaffes.

We've backed the wrong managers and then failed to back the one that was worth fighting for once another club showed interest.

It has been 17 years of mostly bad decisions and I don't see anything to suggest that theme will change.

It's best he goes now before he really does do irreversible damage to our proud club.

He won't get those benign loans back because he'll keep putting his hand in his pocket to give managers like Slade the money to buy more players who don't cut it.

So he needs to accept his losses, do the decent thing and work hard to find someone who can come in, take control and run this club sustainably without asking them to cover the cost of his mistakes.

When he came in he said he "always wanted to own a football club" shame that was before the days of Fifa Ultimate Team. I'd agree with all of the above but it feels like he has stopped putting money in to back the manager hence our average squad with no pace or credible striker/finisher.  

He's been (was) an enthusiastic amateur with cash back then it used to work the game has changed though and you need cash and professionalism, we lack both at the moment which could ultimately lead to another drop to the abyss.    

Quoted from Cloudy

I saw more than enough yesterday for me to believe we wont go down. I know that goes against the majority on here but thats the way I see it

I still don't accept that that is the case.

Whilst yesterday we played very well especially the first half I would temper that with the fact that Colchester were utter crap until their manager sussed out the way we were set up, changed it for the start of the second half and really looked dangerous especially down our left hand side.

Yes we could have been 2 or 3 up at half time but we weren't and still managed to come away without keeping a clean sheet.

At the end of the day we slipped closer to a relegation spot.

I'm not expecting much from the Luton game but the following few games are vital to our League survival.

Quoted from Cloudy

I saw more than enough yesterday for me to believe we wont go down. I know that goes against the majority on here but thats the way I see it

I don't see enough points for safety for you to feel that optimism with our points per game. We need a few wins before we can breathe comfortably because at the minute we are sinking into the shite with only a straw to breathe through and the fans want more air.

Quoted from arryarryarry

I still don't accept that that is the case.

You dont accept that I believe we wont go down??

You dont have to!!

Quoted from arryarryarry

I still don't accept that that is the case.

Whilst yesterday we played very well especially the first half I would temper that with the fact that Colchester were utter crap until their manager sussed out the way we were set up, changed it for the start of the second half and really looked dangerous especially down our left hand side.

Yes we could have been 2 or 3 up at half time but we weren't and still managed to come away without keeping a clean sheet.

At the end of the day we slipped closer to a relegation spot.

I'm not expecting much from the Luton game but the following few games are vital to our League survival.

This is where my mind is. Yes we passed through them to a degree for the goal but a better side than Colchester would have pushed up on Davis and Dixon and cut off any width.

Far to often did we go sideways and the middle 3 of Summerfield, Berret and Rose lacked a ball carrier and to be fair in the last 20 it was even looked like Summers was carrying Rose for a bit. I’m amazed that DJ didn’t get on either instead of Woolford or in the middle 3.

The work rate & application of the players suggests we will be safe the lack of a finisher, pace and someone attacking to partner the ever busy Summerfield in the engine room indicates it will be a nervous run in.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

This is where my mind is. Yes we passed through them to a degree for the goal but a better side than Colchester would have pushed up on Davis and Dixon and cut off any width.

Far to often did we go sideways and the middle 3 of Summerfield, Berret and Rose lacked a ball carrier and to be fair in the last 20 it was even looked like Summers was carrying Rose for a bit. I’m amazed that DJ didn’t get on either instead of Woolford or in the middle 3.

The work rate & application of the players suggests we will be safe the lack of a finisher, pace and someone attacking to partner the ever busy Summerfield in the engine room indicates it will be a nervous run in.

We were saying that Rose looked fooked, not sure if he is still suffering from an injury but he does seem to struggle to last 90 minutes.

Quoted from promotion plaice

Makes you wonder where we would be now if the Americans had taken over.

In a better place probably and not fearing relegation.

You don't believe they actually existed do you?

Quoted from ginnywings

This is my worry. If you find yourself at the wrong end of the table from early on, you have a fighting chance to do something about it. If you drift into this position over a period of time after a relatively decent start to the season, it can catch you unawares, and by the time you realise the danger, it can be too late. Panic sets in and pressure builds when games start to run out. Stop it before it gets too late is the way, but i fear the club haven't taken our position seriously enough. Slade is still talking like it's a blip and we will rise up the league. Still talking play offs last week. It is not a blip, it's 8 games and the little run we had previously only saw us narrowly beat the current bottom two sides. The Swindon game aside, i am seeing too many similarities with our demise to non league.

The thing is the panic that's setting in now was so avoidable. Along with a few others on here, I was posting warnings way back.. and quite a few that weren't, were being extremely loyal or hanging on to hope rather than expectation..

March - Severe misgivings about appointing a divisive manager on the downslide
July - Severe misgivings about the quality of signings, the pace of the squad
August - Severe misgivings about the balance of the squad and panic buys at the end of the window
September - Predicted an 18th-22nd finish
October - Predicted a relegation battle

That's back then. It hasn't needed the past eight games..

As a fan, I take no pleasure in making perceived "negative" comments. I just post what I believe in at that moment in time. I really wish that we were playing great football and romping the league. Hate having to be eternally disappointed and frustrated being a Town fan..

My point is.. there is not enough footballing knowledge in the boardroom to be proactive when the writing's on the wall early doors.. and worse still, they're not putting in enough personal resources season by season to make up for their lack of knowledge or acumen.. And while we're floundering, they're still sitting on their hands..

My concern is that this is history repeating itself and if we do avoid relegation on the last day and Fenty is carried shoulder high round Forest Green's ground (shudder) we will not learn the lessons and be relegated next year.

Quoted from arryarryarry

We were saying that Rose looked fooked, not sure if he is still suffering from an injury but he does seem to struggle to last 90 minutes.

Agree, shame to be honest as he can do some great stuff.

Quoted from friskneymariner

My concern is that this is history repeating itself and if we do avoid relegation on the last day and Fenty is carried shoulder high round Forest Green's ground (shudder) we will not learn the lessons and be relegated next year.

Nah............ It will never happen, we'd all be in headlocks before then. The irony of VGR sending us down after the way we came up is frightening.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Agree, shame to be honest as he can do some great stuff.

Certainly agree that Rose tired significantly ( or he may have taken a knock) but I think he was a major part of our domination of the first half. His positional play as the defensive midfielder was very good. Time and time again Colchester had possession and looked to feed it in to Guthrie or Smodzics feet but couldn't because Mitch was a screen in front.
Does a lot that goes unnoticed. He isn't silky but makes himself available, closes down well and wins plenty of loose balls

Quoted from Cloudy

Certainly agree that Rose tired significantly ( or he may have taken a knock) but I think he was a major part of our domination of the first half. His positional play as the defensive midfielder was very good. Time and time again Colchester had possession and looked to feed it in to Guthrie or Smodzics feet but couldn't because Mitch was a screen in front.
Does a lot that goes unnoticed. He isn't silky but makes himself available, closes down well and wins plenty of loose balls

Don/t disagree but looking at him and Summers I sometimes struggle to see which one of them is the holding player and which one is meant to advance. If only Osborne hadn't been such a fanny as he would have fitted in a 3 or 5 really well with both of them. Thought Berret had a good game but the 3 of them feel very similar.

I guess the more full games Mitch gets on the bang the fitter he will get.

Quoted from IlkleyMariner

Two weeks in....

1. No further progress
2. No further progress
3. Another goal. Well done
4. Wait and see
5. No further progress
6. Progress with a draw

Ten days to go before transfer window closes. Need to beat Yeovil away as a minimum

Three weeks in...

1. No further progress
2. No further progress apart from loan youngster, who we hope does well
3. No further progress
4. No further progress
5. Maybe but don't know
6. Another bump against 10 men

Three days to go before window closes.
Need to beat Yeovil and probably c
Cheltenham

If I was giving a Management Performance Review there would be only one outcome unless we get at least two points from next two games.....

We'll not have any of the Management Performance Review  nonsense round here this is a local club run by local people.

Quoted from friskneymariner

We'll not have any of the Management Performance Review  nonsense round here this is a local club run by local people.

As opposed to an autocracy run by King John.