Further to the thread about Apathy or Anticipation I have a lot of sympathy with a number of the views both about the game in general and Pompey in particular. It's a difficult thing to put into words but the late Bobby Robson gave it a good shot when he said.
...what is a club in any case? Not the buildings or the directors or the people who are paid to represent it. It’s not the television contracts, get-out clauses, marketing departments or executive boxes. It’s the noise, the passion, the feeling of belonging, the pride in your city. It’s a small boy clambering up stadium steps for the very first time, gripping his father’s hand, gawping at that hallowed stretch of turf beneath him and, without being able to do a thing about it, falling in love.
Sounds about right to me.
Too many players have lost sight of that.
(19-01-2022, 08:57 AM)stayinupforever Wrote: [ -> ]Too many players have lost sight of that.
Not just players . Managers - Chairmen - Directors , in fact modern day football in general in my opinion
In Bobby Robson´s days the whole scene was of watching another world.
Now with Wall to wall TV, i-Follow, Social media, 200 page programmes, Interviews with manager, Forums , Premier league, Pundits, Rule changes and much more......there is no mystique anymore. Just saying loike
(19-01-2022, 09:29 AM)Isaac Hunt Wrote: [ -> ]In Bobby Robson´s days the whole scene was of watching another world.
Now with Wall to wall TV, i-Follow, Social media, 200 page programmes, Interviews with manager, Forums , Premier league, Pundits, Rule changes and much more......there is no mystique anymore. Just saying loike
Life seemed so much better b/4 social media IMO
Right on BLUE/ Foxley and Isaac, I used to live for the new edition of - Charles Buchan's Football Monthly - when all of the above modern idiom was interplanetary !
(19-01-2022, 12:14 AM)blueandwight Wrote: [ -> ]Further to the thread about Apathy or Anticipation I have a lot of sympathy with a number of the views both about the game in general and Pompey in particular. It's a difficult thing to put into words but the late Bobby Robson gave it a good shot when he said.
...what is a club in any case? Not the buildings or the directors or the people who are paid to represent it. It’s not the television contracts, get-out clauses, marketing departments or executive boxes. It’s the noise, the passion, the feeling of belonging, the pride in your city. It’s a small boy clambering up stadium steps for the very first time, gripping his father’s hand, gawping at that hallowed stretch of turf beneath him and, without being able to do a thing about it, falling in love.
Sounds about right to me.
I still remember that moment when I was hooked
(19-01-2022, 09:58 AM)firqdays Wrote: [ -> ]Right on BLUE/ Foxley and Isaac, I used to live for the new edition of - Charles Buchan's Football Monthly - when all of the above modern idiom was interplanetary !
And of all the years I got the CBFM I am sure it only ever had a Pompey players photo once......another months wait.
The best way to get photos of opposition players was to buy the evening standard on the way to the ground. Great fun trying to get the players to sign their photo as they came out the Frogmore Road entrance.
Mind you there was always Turf Moor fag packets and Bubble gum packets .....I always seemed to get loads of spares of Roy Bentley and Johnny Aston
From my memory, its a small boy too small to look over the wall at the bottom of the South Stand, fighting with other the kids over bits of brick and timber to stand on in order to get a worm's eye view of lots of legs moving about.
First ever game as a young boy. Came up the back of the North Stand,with my father,and got my first glimpse of that turf under floodlights and that was me hooked. Had spent most of the previous two years living in Liverpool, due to my fathers work, and was taken every week during the season to either Anfield or Goodison by my grandfather and other relatives but the hook never went in. Why Pompey was different I do not know, maybe it was my age! And fifty years on if I get a tad irate with what we are being served up now, it’s only because I know what our club should be about and know that this ain’t what Pompey is about.
We can all get all misty-eyed about the club's past and say what we are seeing now does not come up to scratch, but we also need to remember that it is less than 9 years since the club was saved in the high court and essentialy from the next day we were a new start-up club, with no players and no money. A start-up club lucky enough to keep its history by not having to reform, and lucky enough to be able to start in the fourth level rather than several levels lower like most start up clubs.
In that context to have been challenging for promotion to the champtionship a mere 5 years later was a great achievement, and even though we missed out after being top at Christmas we have remained in the top half and in with a chance ever since. Frustrating, and perhaps more frustrating since the Eisners took over and the feeling that they could pump money into the football side, but they are doing what they said they would and are pumping desperately needed money into the infrastructure, leaving the football side essentially on the same footing that it was when under Trust ownership.
Under Trust ownership the top half of league one was regarded as about the most we could expect so maybe need to be more patient and wait for the infrastructure to be in place before we hanker after the Championship.
However, to eat what you kill requires the right tools and the money to buy them, and with no development side how can advance our own up and coming youth teams
Another difference from the old days... A reserve team and an A team (IIRC)
Was always a bit nervy waiting for the team announcement over the tannoy just before the start..and pencilling in the programme the changes.
And the groans when it was realized a particular favourite was not playing.
The issue with having a decent academy to fuel the EWYK is that we simply don't have a good academy and it will take a couple of years for any investment to take effect, so whilst I understand the want for using a "transition season" to blood through our yoof, none of them are ready to step up to the mark. Mnoga played a few games and looked so far out of depth defensively it was laughable. Bass isn't a yoof player any more and with all due respect Bazunu is just a better keeper. There isn't really anyone knocking on the door otherwise they'd be be in the squad making sub appearances in league games.
Unfortunately the youth side of our club is another aspect that had be ignored just like the stadium and training ground. It's only in the last year that we sealed the ownership of our own training ground FFS. I'm going to assume that there is movement in the background that we aren't privy to as yet and that we will see improvement over the next few years but the fact we didn't have much to work with in the first place. Even a lot of our players that have come through over the last 10 years were players that weren't good enough for the better youth team. The ones that are good enough won't come here when Scum, Chelsea and Brighton have world class facilities and coaches to work with.
If we are to go down the Brentford or Brighton method of developing our own players and then selling them on I can guaruntee we won't see this start for another couple of years. It just doens't happen in half a season. In the meantime we have to rely on other teams loaning us players and transfer fees. Hopefully in the next few years though we can look forward to seeing a few local lads in the starting line up.
Play up Pompey
Always been my dream to see a team full of local lads pulling on the royal (the current first team shirt ain’t the right shade of blue ffs) blue shirt.
Ps. Bring back riots.
EWWK doesn't seem to be working well for us so far. If I'm right, our senior squad has got smaller since the end of last season and there can't be many clubs that do not actually own a senior forward/striker, FFS! That is simply embarrassing. In EWWK terms, we're going to need a total massacre in the summer to build anything like a reasonable squad which could challenge for promotion next time round. That would surely mean getting a transfer fee in for Curtis. On the current business plan, with the rebuild that's needed, I struggle to be confident about imminent progress.
It does look like there's going to be another rebuild in the summer. You can already hear next season's "the squad needs time to gel" and "it's a transition season" excuses.
At least we're not going to hear "it's not Cowley's team!" much longer.
I think at least another 5 or 6 in the summer. We'll need replacements for Baz and Romeo and at least one striker plus I can see Harness, Jacobs and Curtis moving on.
(20-01-2022, 03:19 PM)bluetagagain Wrote: [ -> ]I think at least another 5 or 6 in the summer. We'll need replacements for Baz and Romeo and at least one striker plus I can see Harness, Jacobs and Curtis moving on.
It would be nice to think Romeo could be a possible signing, at least on another years loan.
We'll need a replacement for Williams, and yes any of the three you mentioned, any or all of whom could leave.
Mason Mount, a case in point. Kissing the Chelsea badge?!
Really, no matter how much they paid me, as a pompey boy, only our badge would get that treatment. I thought his actions were z bit false.