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Post by hongkongstone on Jan 21, 2019 10:13:06 GMT
Pretty sensible but a million light years away from the EFL ? One step actually but admittedly may be 2 steps by next season. Even if we do go down as Terry said our finances and ambition will see the club pushing hard for promotion again. No guarantees but we will be there or there abouts. Whether it takes one season, two seasons or three seasons, we will do it and be stronger and fitter for the experience. Interesting to note that Woking attendances have increased 20% this year following relegation and that is after the drop in away fan support. But assuming Woking and Torquay get promoted we will be by far the biggest and best financed club in the Naional South. Just such a gulf between the leagues ! I am pretty sure Aldershot will have a similar budget should they not avoid the drop. I think Billericay will still be there but is Tampon still willing to give the clown the financial backing? With the relegation places overloaded with southern clubs there could be a bit of a shuffle from north to South so we may inherit Hereford Or even Kidderminster Harriers possibly Leamington all of which are playing in the tougher northern section,admittedly Hereford may themselves yet get relegated so it will not be as straight forward as Terry hopes. You mention Wokings improved attendances well yes that could happen to us but if we gain 20% then we will only be clawing back the 20% that the clown has cost us this year.
I believe you may have got your logic arse about face my friend. If more 'Southern' teams are relegated from the NL then some NLS teams may have to be reallocated to he NLN. Gloucester City for example?
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Post by Better things to do in life on Jan 21, 2019 10:14:00 GMT
There were about 1800 home fans for Saturday's game, around 1500 of whom had left before the final whistle. Doubt if there was more than 100 or so in the main stand. Terry Casey's comments about reduced budgets may well be based on the expectation that gates are going to go down considerably for the rest of the season. We don't look like winning, haven't done so for five months in the league and our cup run will no doubt end at Salford. Throw in some cold, wet match days and who is going to turn out to see us bullied by the likes of Fylde, Halifax etc? Had we been doing reasonably well, gates of 2500 or more; as we are, wouldn't be surprised to see them drop to 1500 or less. That is a loss of around £30 000 a month in income. Win a couple of games and a bit of hope is created. If we still have a chance of avoiding the drop by mid March, gates could even go up. Another thought is the overall standard of football this season. When we get beaten, I try to get something from the game by trying to at least enjoy what the opposition do. In our first two seasons, there were some decent sides who came to the G and played good football. Boreham Wood, FGR, Macclesfield, Aldershot were just a few who were good to watch. Have seen most home games this season, but have yet to see a team who beat us through good football. If this is what the NLP is becoming, maybe we are better off in the NLS, where skilled players, albeit part timers, play for fun? Just a thought... Fun is what we have lost in NL, after the initial awe of playing teams like Tranmere, Wrexham and Hartlepool wore off. The semipros we all loved (The Margate bunch for example) were much more fun to watch, and we were winning. BTW, why did we never replace Flish with another long throw specialist? Sorely missed!
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Post by sword65 on Jan 21, 2019 10:18:53 GMT
I am pretty sure Aldershot will have a similar budget should they not avoid the drop. I think Billericay will still be there but is Tampon still willing to give the clown the financial backing? With the relegation places overloaded with southern clubs there could be a bit of a shuffle from north to South so we may inherit Hereford Or even Kidderminster Harriers possibly Leamington all of which are playing in the tougher northern section,admittedly Hereford may themselves yet get relegated so it will not be as straight forward as Terry hopes. You mention Wokings improved attendances well yes that could happen to us but if we gain 20% then we will only be clawing back the 20% that the clown has cost us this year.
I believe you may have got your logic arse about face my friend. If more 'Southern' teams are relegated from the NL then some NLS teams may have to be reallocated to he NLN. Gloucester City for example?
Yep I was just about to post about that as Malcolm had spotted that as well👨🚀👨🚀👨🚀👨🚀spaceman says silly old fucker👨🚀👨🚀👨🚀👨🚀.
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Post by jdl on Jan 21, 2019 10:29:02 GMT
It's worth remembering our first season in the NL - before all the 'full-time' business.
Not only did we end up 14th - just GD away from a top half finish at 11th - but this was our final day team:
Lee Worgan Seth Nana Twuamasi Kevin Lokko Magnus Okuonghae (Jamie Coyle 65) Tom Mills Bobby-Joe Taylor Reece Prestedge (Jack Paxman 57) Stuart Lewis Alex Flisher Yemi Odubade Joe Pigott (Harry Phipps 88)
Subs not used: Anthony Achaempong, Jake McCarthy
Basically the core of our old semi-pro NS side, plus Jay's new signings - and yet our best ever finish.
And that side formed the core of the team that went on to 5th place by early Nov of the following season (before we lost Pigott and Hines).
Nothing to say we can't do that again.
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Post by Better things to do in life on Jan 21, 2019 10:52:11 GMT
It's worth remembering our first season in the NL - before all the 'full-time' business. Not only did we end up 14th - just GD away from a top half finish at 11th - but this was our final day team: Lee Worgan Seth Nana Twuamasi Kevin Lokko Magnus Okuonghae (Jamie Coyle 65) Tom Mills Bobby-Joe Taylor Reece Prestedge (Jack Paxman 57) Stuart Lewis Alex Flisher Yemi Odubade Joe Pigott (Harry Phipps 88) Subs not used: Anthony Achaempong, Jake McCarthy Basically the core of our old semi-pro NS side, plus Jay's new signings - and yet our best ever finish. And that side formed the core of the team that went on to 5th place by early Nov of the following season (before we lost Pigott and Hines). Nothing to say we can't do that again.
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Post by Better things to do in life on Jan 21, 2019 10:53:33 GMT
It's worth remembering our first season in the NL - before all the 'full-time' business. Not only did we end up 14th - just GD away from a top half finish at 11th - but this was our final day team: Lee Worgan Seth Nana Twuamasi Kevin Lokko Magnus Okuonghae (Jamie Coyle 65) Tom Mills Bobby-Joe Taylor Reece Prestedge (Jack Paxman 57) Stuart Lewis Alex Flisher Yemi Odubade Joe Pigott (Harry Phipps 88) Subs not used: Anthony Achaempong, Jake McCarthy Basically the core of our old semi-pro NS side, plus Jay's new signings - and yet our best ever finish. And that side formed the core of the team that went on to 5th place by early Nov of the following season (before we lost Pigott and Hines). Nothing to say we can't do that again. Absolutely! Now that was an exciting team with some Stones legends in it that we loved and could get behind. That's where we need to get back to.
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Post by gromley on Jan 21, 2019 12:24:29 GMT
is there any way I can hear it again?
Terry is on from about 33 minutes in.
Interesting comments I thought.
A lot of emphasis on the problem of moneybags chairmen (and the fact that many of the managerial candidates expect to work for one!)
That made me think; whilst we've been successful, we've all been very supportive, proud even, of the fact that we have a sustainable business model - now that we're not doing so well, apparently it shows a lack of ambition!
Hmm.
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Post by Better things to do in life on Jan 21, 2019 12:32:38 GMT
is there any way I can hear it again?
Terry is on from about 33 minutes in.
Interesting comments I thought.
A lot of emphasis on the problem of moneybags chairmen (and the fact that many of the managerial candidates expect to work for one!)
That made me think; whilst we've been successful, we've all been very supportive, proud even, of the fact that we have a sustainable business model - now that we're not doing so well, apparently it shows a lack of ambition!
Hmm.
Not a contradiction, we are just getting our heads around the fact that our sustainable business model doesn't cover being a pro NL team that can compete, but is only for semipro NLS level or a plucky semipro approach holding its own in NL. Unless we get a moneybags chairman who can pay for us to compete as proper pro NL.
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Post by pwoodstone on Jan 21, 2019 13:39:04 GMT
I guess the club are still paying the directors loans that we needed for the ground improvements. Is this right?
So once they are paid, the club should have more "disposable" income?
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Post by bear5 on Jan 21, 2019 13:59:36 GMT
Every club has its natural level. NL feels right for us, or possibly above, but the complicating factor is the sustainable business model. This means, quite obviously, that the club is at a disadvantage to others that have sugar daddies with no real interest in sustainability and also league clubs falling down a division who have the infrastructure that means investment in the ground, etc. is minimal, whereas we still have much to do in terms of the ground compared to others.
It all means, I think, that NL and NS is the foreseeable future.
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Post by 61666 on Jan 21, 2019 14:21:42 GMT
Absolutely! Now that was an exciting team with some Stones legends in it that we loved and could get behind. That's where we need to get back to. Much as that was one of our best sides in the NL, I am not sure that it would prosper now. By the time they left, both Pigott and Hines we increasingly marginalised by the robust defending we see every game and they were getting fewer and fewer chances. Even in the last two seasons, the league has moved on, if not necessarily upwards, with bigger/ever more savvy players who are rarely pretty to watch. Of the defenders, maybe Mills would have been able to stand the pace now but even Seth had his off days before he left, while neither of the centre backs is exactly prospering now. We may not have done the best deals in the last year or so (WDH, Phillips and Turgott excepted), but we have also suffered from just how much further other sides have moved on in the same time. The more I think about it, NLS is starting to seem more attractive each game that goes by. Trouble is, paying to see the same old mediocrity from now to the end of the season is not at all attractive, not least because even the visiting sides offer so little as well.
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Post by 1018 on Jan 21, 2019 14:33:10 GMT
Every club has its natural level. NL feels right for us, or possibly above, but the complicating factor is the sustainable business model. This means, quite obviously, that the club is at a disadvantage to others that have sugar daddies with no real interest in sustainability and also league clubs falling down a division who have the infrastructure that means investment in the ground, etc. is minimal, whereas we still have much to do in terms of the ground compared to others. It all means, I think, that NL and NS is the foreseeable future. In the longer term I think that the Club's natural level would be at least L2. Maidstone has a much larger population than Morecambe, Accrington, Cheltenham, Crawley etc. & is similar in size the places like Colchester for example. This season and next will be a blip in the process of becoming a League Club.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 21, 2019 15:32:00 GMT
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Post by aristotle38 on Jan 21, 2019 15:39:26 GMT
As someone else said on this, or another thread (have read so many I can't remember which - they all ultimately merge into one) we need to stop thinking of ourselves as an ex-League club. For a long, long time, we were a pretty good non-league club. I would be quite happy with that right now, with the odd cup run thrown in. I'm not sure that the size of a place has much to do with the prosperity of a club - look at Gloucester or Chelmsford. Nope, for me, its our current League....I nice comfortable 8th place for the next few years.
Sadly that seems a long way off at the moment...........
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Post by Deleted on Jan 21, 2019 15:49:27 GMT
Every club has its natural level. NL feels right for us, or possibly above, but the complicating factor is the sustainable business model. This means, quite obviously, that the club is at a disadvantage to others that have sugar daddies with no real interest in sustainability and also league clubs falling down a division who have the infrastructure that means investment in the ground, etc. is minimal, whereas we still have much to do in terms of the ground compared to others. It all means, I think, that NL and NS is the foreseeable future. In the longer term I think that the Club's natural level would be at least L2. Maidstone has a much larger population than Morecambe, Accrington, Cheltenham, Crawley etc. & is similar in size the places like Colchester for example. This season and next will be a blip in the process of becoming a League Club. As long as there are resourceful-rich non-league clubs, and sugar daddy supported teams in the NL, L2, and quite possibly NL consolidation over a number of years, is some way off for the Stones, as long as Maidstone's current business model is maintained as is. I am not against the model, far from it, it is, after all, logical and profitable, however, some adaptation to the model will be necessary, should League 2 be a target for the owners, as I cannot see the big boys, and wannabes going away soon.
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