| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference 09:43 - Jun 10 with 5274 views | clive_baker |
And I'm sure this won't be popular, but I've decided I'll be cancelling my season ticket if Lambert isn't removed from his post. What I really think we need is both a new 1st team manager and an experienced DoF in role too. Frankly it's a circus at the moment with Lambert, Taylor and O'Neil. None of them have a pedigree of note to justify their existence in their respective roles. Lambert more so, but his tenure here has never got going, and doesn't threaten to.
The club isn't a charity, and I feel less inclined to treat it as such the less it acts like one. It's been run as a business first and foremost in recent years, balancing financial sustainability with competitiveness in the market, and for that I don't blame Evans one jot. I've said as much in the past, the way of the Derby's of this world isn't responsible football club ownership and it's destined to go pop for a lot of clubs. But that comes with consequences, and it's felt increasingly like a 1 way street for me, by way of loyalty, which wears thin after a while.
The lack of leadership I've witnessed run throughout the club over the past few years is a disgrace, and as much as it pains me I'm not prepared to be a part of it until things change. I'll always support this club, but if we're kicking off next season with the same clowns in charge, I'll feel less compelled to financially support the regime than I ever have before. |  |
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| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 13:57 - Jun 10 with 1208 views | TJS |
Totally see where you're coming from and can't argue at all with that.
I'm only continuing as I feel withdrawing support will give Evans even more excuse to write us off as a lower league club with gates under 10k |  | | |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 14:29 - Jun 10 with 1154 views | patrickswell |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 12:51 - Jun 10 by Funge |
I admire your optimism, and wish I shared it - truly, I wish I do.
However, I don't know if the Wolves analogy is apt. To apply it here - ITFC would look to build a team around Flynn Downes, Woolfenden and KVY; we would have a genuine 5-year plan centred around these 3 excellent young players, and look to grow and build around them; like Wolves did with Bull.
The reality, however, is that Downes will go to the PL for £3m shortly, Woolf will follow him for £1.5m, and KVY will probably depart at the next transfer window for a few million more.
Meanwhile, we are left with dear old Chambo, Jon Nolan and Freddie Sears - erstwhile players, certainly, but not the future. |
I now feel like Ipswich is tipping towards the kind of time that Wolves, Swansea, Fulham, Brighton, Bristol City, Burnley and Bolton went through in the 80s or 90s. There’s always a club that declines through poor leadership and we are looking odds on to go that way for a considerable period of time. |  | | |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 14:38 - Jun 10 with 1134 views | BrixtonBlue |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 13:52 - Jun 10 by JDB23 |
You make some valid points but I guess it depends what your view is on whether funding this current administration is actually good for the club or not.
On the face of it, of course giving the club money is a good thing and helps towards running costs, I think there are other angles for consideration. If everyone just carried on attending games every year no matter what then surely that is giving the message to Evans that we are happy with that position? That we are happy for him to continue on like he has done the past 13 years, for him to continue handing out ludicrous contracts to failed manages etc. If he sees fans leaving in their droves then maybe that will be the spark for him to either make a fundamental change to the structure of the club or look to actively sell? That could be the thing that starts to get us finally moving in an upward direction. Is that not more beneficial for the club than giving a joke of a manager an extra million pounds transfer budget?
Of course none of those things I mentioned could actually happen and we could carry on sliding down the leagues, no one has a crystal ball and all the right answers, other than Fishers. I just don't think it's as simple as "supporting your club financially is always the best thing to do no matter what". |
You make some valid points fella. On the other hand, people can't really moan about Evans putting in enough of his hard earned when they aren't prepared to do it themselves. I'm not saying they're all the same people, but I bet there's a bit of crossover.
Also, if everyone takes a stance and votes with their feet, the club dies. Evans would just wind it up.
So yeah, it's a fine balance, and as you say, no-one knows the answer. |  |
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| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 15:14 - Jun 10 with 1108 views | Coastalblue |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 14:38 - Jun 10 by BrixtonBlue |
You make some valid points fella. On the other hand, people can't really moan about Evans putting in enough of his hard earned when they aren't prepared to do it themselves. I'm not saying they're all the same people, but I bet there's a bit of crossover.
Also, if everyone takes a stance and votes with their feet, the club dies. Evans would just wind it up.
So yeah, it's a fine balance, and as you say, no-one knows the answer. |
I'm in the camp that has to travel a reasonably long way to games, about an hour and a half each way, and am just not sure I'm going to do it much next season, assuming we get a next season.
I've not had a season ticket in about 8 years now so no worries about whether or not to renew, but apart from my nephew I don't know or see any other Town fans these days (and he must hate me for doing that to him) and when I do go to games it's on my own.
I've never criticised Evans for his lack of spending, and won't do either. I suspect what he puts in is probably toward the top end of what he's capable of anyway, and reality is, with Covid he might not actually have much of a business left.
What I do criticise him for though is his strategy, he should have got a right hand man/Chief Exec/CEO/Director of football or whatever label you want to use years ago, somebody with connections who knew the game and let whoever it is have some actualy sway in the running of the club. All he has seemed to do after his first couple of seasons is firefight.
For all Mick's achievements here I don't think there could ever be any doubt that what he was doing was short term, in fact I actually believe if he'd stayed eventually we'd have been relegated under him.
I quite envy those who have a social circle at Town, the only one I have football related is on here, but it does mean it's very easy for me to just decide not to go this week, and do that more and more often. |  |
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| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 15:30 - Jun 10 with 1094 views | Warkystache |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 14:38 - Jun 10 by BrixtonBlue |
You make some valid points fella. On the other hand, people can't really moan about Evans putting in enough of his hard earned when they aren't prepared to do it themselves. I'm not saying they're all the same people, but I bet there's a bit of crossover.
Also, if everyone takes a stance and votes with their feet, the club dies. Evans would just wind it up.
So yeah, it's a fine balance, and as you say, no-one knows the answer. |
Yeah, I agree with that. I mainly go because, like Dolly, my friends are Ipswich fans and we love a drink or two before the game.
The game itself has been a major disappointment in these last few years. That's down to Evans. I get the feeling he feels Sheepshanks sold him a pup all those years ago; a quick way to make more money by buying a Premiership-ready club without any of the day to day involvement that is intrinsic to owning a club like ours.
People say that the nature of football has changed. I don't see it. There will always be clubs who are untouchable, the challenge is being able to form your own identity and be successful at doing it. Our problem is that no-one has a clue what they're doing to achieve this. There's no set parameters for achieving success (that we know of, so I'm assuming they're not there), there's no considered options for achieving success (trust in the academy and pay big wages for freebies, who aren't committed to the cause) and there's no direction, just endless reminders of why we're probably the only club sticking to FFP because we want to, rather than out of necessity.
We're mired in mid-table of a league where teams consider six thousand attendances a bonus. We should have walked this league; good start, looked capable, promising players. Hurst and Lambert have shown themselves to be utterly bereft at being able to make us successful. McCarthy understood the limitations but his management skills thrived on them. Now we all want a change again, a third manager in two seasons. And the trouble is, you just know Evans will cock it up again and we'll be back here in another season, asking why we still do this.
That's why I'd've welcomed even Mike Ashley as new owner. Yes, I know. But something's gotta change. |  |
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| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 15:34 - Jun 10 with 1082 views | RobTheMonk |
The appointment of Mick was either genius or fluke. The man held us together for years but ultimately we were going nowhere. Hurst at the time wasn't an awful appointment on paper but my word did he crap the bed. So two reasonable managers at the time of appointment. It soon became apparent that Hurst was crap.
But then we get Lambert. Not done much of note in recent times, said the right things, the football was awful and we got relegated with a form on par with Hurst.
Then an implosion in League 1 struggling against anyone inside the top 10. Hmmm. Oh wait have a new contract. Oh okay, 18 months? Well, How does 5 years sound? What the....
And now we're in a position where we can't get rid. The only saving grace is I really can't see us being any worse next season. Could be famous last words... |  | | |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 15:39 - Jun 10 with 1066 views | Warkystache |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 15:34 - Jun 10 by RobTheMonk |
The appointment of Mick was either genius or fluke. The man held us together for years but ultimately we were going nowhere. Hurst at the time wasn't an awful appointment on paper but my word did he crap the bed. So two reasonable managers at the time of appointment. It soon became apparent that Hurst was crap.
But then we get Lambert. Not done much of note in recent times, said the right things, the football was awful and we got relegated with a form on par with Hurst.
Then an implosion in League 1 struggling against anyone inside the top 10. Hmmm. Oh wait have a new contract. Oh okay, 18 months? Well, How does 5 years sound? What the....
And now we're in a position where we can't get rid. The only saving grace is I really can't see us being any worse next season. Could be famous last words... |
See now, I can see us being worse next season. We'll sell Downes and Woolfy, we'll replace on the cheap with players who're past their best but command relatively high fees, we'll implode again and we'll wave a tearful bye bye to any hopes of promotion with the official club line being "New Team. Needs time to gel. Paul's still the man for the job". Rinse and repeat. | |
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| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 15:52 - Jun 10 with 1033 views | JDB23 |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 14:38 - Jun 10 by BrixtonBlue |
You make some valid points fella. On the other hand, people can't really moan about Evans putting in enough of his hard earned when they aren't prepared to do it themselves. I'm not saying they're all the same people, but I bet there's a bit of crossover.
Also, if everyone takes a stance and votes with their feet, the club dies. Evans would just wind it up.
So yeah, it's a fine balance, and as you say, no-one knows the answer. |
Yes I agree regarding the financial input of Evans. I think he could have invested slightly more in the team and/or facilities but I'm not expecting him to dump in millions more a year. It's his strategy and decision making that is my biggest issue with him. |  | | |
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| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 20:03 - Jun 10 with 916 views | Keaneish |
| I don't expect this thread to make a jot of difference on 12:51 - Jun 10 by clive_baker |
I think everyone should do how they see fit. Everyone's circumstances are different.
If I lived next door maybe I would feel different, but you're talking the best part of a £100 expense per game for me when you factor in travel, which I do c. 25 times a season home & away. Couple that with the fact it takes up a lot of my Saturdays, and with a little one now it doesn't have the appeal it did. The apathy that the mismanagement has helped to create is a factor, but not the only one. |
I felt that apathy several years ago and abstained from games; I just didn’t see any sense or value in propping up a failing system irrespective of my allegiances. In truth, I find blind faith an outdated concept, which has been exploited far too long and is largely the reason football is in such a mess.
I’m on the fence about re-newing. Change was forced last time by falling attendances and it would likely do so again this time around. However, the club is far more precarious than it was two or three years ago. Heart and head as per. I was bored of League One by December. Another full season at least is hardly doing much to enthuse and like you say, the time back has actually been really valuable.
Fair play for taking a stance rather than rolling up for a pint, natter and a post-game TWTD moan. |  |
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