NL, NLS, or what?

[61666]

Fall out from recent games suggests there are divided opinions of where the club is going. No surprises there of course.
But just what sort of club is Maidstone?
Justifiably, Hak and his team still retain a fair bit of Lurv, following the exploits of last season. However, football is a fickle mistress and you are only as good as your last game a lot of the time. Even Jurgen Klopp's lustre appears to be wearing a bit thin these days.
Reading the post match views from the two Daggers games, it seems the majority are still on Hak's side and 'happy' to go down at the end of the season. Is this really the case?
Personally, I enjoyed last season, not just because we won a lot, but because it felt right. This season, we are once again struggling to stay afloat and it is far less enjoyable to see favourite players running themselves into the ground for little reward.
Big fish in a small pond or small fish in a big pond? Ambition, or happy to just go with the flow?
Right now, given our lack of financial clout, I think I'd be happier to see us back in the NLS, with a longer term plan to go into the NL, equipped to hold our own. Both promotions to there seem to have come before we were ready.
We may yet survive of course and hope springs eternal, but it doesn't feel like that. A win and soon, would certainly help.

[bear5]

I think the NL is the place to be - the standard of football is better and there are some genuinely good players in most sides. Having a lot of ex-league clubs is also interesting.

The issue is that we have struggled in the NL, other than the calendar year of 2017 when we did well at the end of one season and the beginning of the next. A long-term plan, I assume, that is different from now would involve a great deal more revenue generation but the problem is that looking at this season and last season, you get much better crowds doing well in the NLS than you do struggling in the NL and that surely is quite a large hit even if prices are higher? As we already have a plastic pitch that is used every day and night, there doesn't seem a lot of other areas to maximise.

It's a conundrum and I don't have the answer is but, as others have pointed out, the likes of Maidenhead, Woking, etc. survive year-on-year.

[sword65]

SE Counties league please then I could watch every game and not be bankrupted doing it.

[Benny]

It would be nice to have a few seasons in the NL, not worrying about relegation and with a few cup runs. But until someone invests a few million upgrading the infrastructure we are very definitely NLS, something most of us would have loved a few years ago.

[daveu]

We're clearly good enough to get promoted from NS but currently not good enough for the NL. Until there is some kind of financial restraint where we don't have to compete financially with clubs losing hundreds of thousands a week then we will remain a yoyo club. Happy with that as I would rather fight for promotion every other season than remain mid-table showing no ambition.

[pwoodstone]

I want us to be a NL team, well managed and would be happy with a mid-table struggle. How long I would be happy with that - I don't know.

I want to be as high as possible and if that means a season struggling then that is that.

Ask Dartford fans if they are happier now, winning most weeks, and usually finishing top 6, or those last few seasons of struggle in the NL.

I get the financial constraint but I also see other teams over-achieving and have to hope we can do that.

Until every team views the game as we do, and operates sustainably, we will likely be a good NLS, poor NL side though.

Southend are losing £2m a year but still buying good players. Notts County are overspending as they have the backers and infrastructure to go straight back up. That money they spend doing so wont be recovered - ever.

Is it us that needs to change, or the game?

[61666]

The game - all day, every day, but while there are people with more money than they know what to do with, willing to spunk it on potentially lost causes, then nothing will change.

[Terry]

I find it difficult to understand why some supporters get 'angry' because we struggle in the National League.
Personally I could afford to visit at least double the number of NLS clubs which I enjoyed.
The more relaxed atmosphere with a pint in my hand was good too.
Winning rather than losing was the icing on the cake.
So if it is to be the NLS next season, this is one punter who won't be unhappy.

[steveh21]

Maidstone United's level as a club has traditionally been the NL. However, unless we change the model and get more investment our natural level is NLS. This season is totally depressing and could have been so much better. The recruitment and retention of players has been a shambles really if we are honest. We will support the club whatever level.. KCL, Kent League, Isthmian, National.. it is just very disappointing that when we make it into the NL we make such a pig's ear of it :-)

[Benny]

We might have been traditionally NL, but the modern NL bears no resemblance to the early days.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979–80_Alliance_Premier_League

Nobody would have predicted that one day the top five clubs would have average attendances over 5000.

The modern NLS is much closer in club size to the original Alliance Premier League.

We haven’t changed, everyone else around us has.

[pwoodstone]

Jan 4, 2023 16:28:35 GMT Benny said:

We might have been traditionally NL, but the modern NL bears no resemblance to the early days.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979–80_Alliance_Premier_League

Nobody would have predicted that one day the top five clubs would have average attendances over 5000.

The modern NLS is much closer in club size to the original Alliance Premier League.

We haven’t changed, everyone else around us has.

Indeed, and the irony is that we (as a club and chairman) campaigned for it for so long. It's an inevitable result of promotion and relegation.

[1018]

We should be in the NL or possibly higher but the disappointing performances in the FA Cup & KSC confirm that something isn't quite right this season.

[sword65]

Jan 4, 2023 16:28:35 GMT Benny said:

We might have been traditionally NL, but the modern NL bears no resemblance to the early days.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979–80_Alliance_Premier_League

Nobody would have predicted that one day the top five clubs would have average attendances over 5000.

The modern NLS is much closer in club size to the original Alliance Premier League.

We haven’t changed, everyone else around us has.

Let's not forget that we are not really the same club as back then, we are a reformed club that started life at the lower regions of the pyramid,in fact the pyramid didn't really go that far down. We were not in the Alliance Premier and never have been. We have fought our way up the divisions with crowds of 3-400 until we came home and then we had 2000+people who hadn't missed a game in 20 years. If someone had told me 15 years ago that we would be playing in Maidstone with crowds of 2-3000 I would have pissed myself laughing. We as a club have come a f**king long way in a short time and to be honest the only people moaning are those that were not around before the club came home. To succeed in the NL takes time and if it means going up and down another 3 times then so be it by the third time the ground may be finished, new financial partners or owners may be in place and all of you eill be happy,I'll probably be dead but I'll watch from below if allowed . So forget all this crap about the Alliance Premier League and the 1980's as we were not there,just like AFC Wimbleshite have never win the FA Cup and have no right to say so.

[sword65]

Jan 4, 2023 17:12:06 GMT BringBackIggy said:

What do Maidenhead, Wealdstone, Bromley actually have that is better than us? We’re just not ambitious enough, I appreciate many here would rather have a club but this isn’t about over investment, it’s the right investment in the right areas. Dagenham get a lower crowd than us every week and have been in this league a good while now yet were better than us on Saturday, yes the players tried their hardest but D&R should of put more chances away. Based on attendances, potential and history we should be a national league midtable club however we’re not willing to put the effort in to get there it feels. About 20 clubs want those 5 spots between 9th and 14th in this league and currently we’re not adept enough to get there. If last season winning the national south wasn’t the moment to give us a good chance at this league what was???

Hak cannot stay if we get relegated, our club will be gutted of players because all the good ones will leave, quite frankly Hak should be respectfully shown the door how many clubs should would Hak still be employed at if he had won THREE in 24 games including defeats to Needham Market and Corinthian. We’ve played every single team in this division it’s simply not acceptable, He is the manager, he is responsible for the lacklustre recruitment, personally as a supporter it’s not good enough saying in post match interviews that you’ve got a contacts book the length of your arm when you clearly haven’t?? How many of our summer signings have actually made a difference to our team? Precisely ZERO. Ahem let’s look at dorking as a prime example, signed the best midfielder in Jack Jebb and the best striker in Ryan Seager from the national south outside of us and them. Attendances wouldn’t drop if we weren’t shite therefore there’s more money to strengthen the squad, sentiment was never a trait in a good manager so what’s the point in keeping half that national south squad? Hak goes on about winning this league twice as a player and twice as a coach, when did he win it as a player about 25 years ago!!! Last won it as a coach in 2013, I think we’ve established that obviously the league is a different ball game these days, doesn’t mention the fact he’s been relegated twice as manager more recently. He is the manager he takes responsibility for recruiting.

We claim to be much more prepared as a club since we last went up, yes we don’t have to do the ground works this time but we’re making the same mistakes as last time, Oliver’s Christmas message really annoyed me it effectively stated that we’re giving up, they are there to create a product we are the consumer, they’ve got my season ticket but it’s pathetic that they aren’t attempting to even try. I think there is a lack of respect towards supporters of all sorts Main standers, Genco or Townenders and nomads. Needham Market is a prime example, Hak is a good man and said any supporter can come and see him which obviously nobody will do. The owners should have put on a free coach. Of course there is a core support of around 1500 stones fans at home but they’ve got to sell and promote their product we could easily go and get a season ticket at any Championship club for the same price but we choose to come down to the Gallagher. Of course new investment would be lovely but it’s not the main factor for staying in this league we should be able and I feel the human factor is letting us down - and it’s not the players I’ve seen a lack of effort from the team and it’s certainly not that.

Maidenhead,Wealdstone and Bromley all have completed stadiums that meet the criteria needed therefore their money can go to the squad without worrying too much about the ground. Our ground is only half built and after 10 years needs serious attention as well as a ridiculously expensive new pitch. Bromley will find in a few years when their pitch is fucked that they dont have the money to splash out on players and may be back in the NLS.

[Dickie]

Not sure why Dorking was cited as a comparison.
Playing budget double that of Stones is why they can recruit certain players.