Time for RM to show he means it - actions speak louder than words !

[CC51DAS]

In his countless blogs, which do as much to confuse as clarify, we have been reassured by our beloved Chairman that the club has a bright future.

This month could well be pivotal to the club's future. Cast your minds back a few short years and many of us were urging Uncle Ron to not let a certain centre forward leave - arguing that to invest and strenghten the squad would generate more revenue than returning to League 1. Barnsley, who were worse than us that year, invested and survived. They are now established at Championship level.

RM chose a different course and now bemoans the loss of revenue as a key reason for our problems.

It is all very well to focus on long term objectives, (the prime beneficiary from which will be Uncle Ron himself as many have alluded to on here) but if in the short term, RM continues to stall on investing in the playing staff, history could soon repeat itself, only this time our League 1 status is at risk.

So now is a good time to start delivering on the promises.

 

[TheSouthendUnitedRunner]

We did invest in our Championship campaign, the likes of Peter Clarke, Michael Ricketts, Simon Francis, Richie Foran, Matt Harrold and Stevie Hammell didn't come cheap and we are still feeling the effects of living beyond our means back then trying to survive.

I believe the Club does have a very bright future, but everything seems to be on hold until this new stadium is up and running. Once the first brick is laid, I'm expecting to see the purse strings released a little bit for Tilson to dip into it with the aim of the first game at the new stadium being a Championship match.

For what its worth, I think we will spend some money during this month. It may not be an awful lot, the likes of "nominal" and "undisclosed" may come into it if we bring the likes of Billy Jones from Crewe and Perkins from Col Ewe.

 

[McNasty]

BoyWonder2 I admire your optimism but, as privy to certain information, I will wait and see if any money is available. I think we are in a worse situation than we have been for a long time, getting money from the Trust is one example.

I have never felt this pessimistic about the club.

 

[The Big Shrimp]

BoyWonder2 I admire your optimism but, as privy to certain information, I will wait and see if any money is available. I think we are in a worse situation than we have been for a long time, getting money from the Trust is one example.

I have never felt this pessimistic about the club.

I think you're right Ken. RM has fooled a lot of people & as we speak, he is probably preparing his next waffling blog!

 

[the_goat]

I think you're right Ken. RM has fooled a lot of people & as we speak, he is probably preparing his next waffling blog!

Very clearly, please state how RM has fooled a lot of people?

Not getting this cynicism.

 

[cockles is back]

Very clearly, please state how RM has fooled a lot of people?

Not getting this cynicism.

why dont you tell us why you belive him?? then you will be able to work out on how he has fooled you...

 

[turkishm]

I would be amazed if Martin gave ST any money to spend in Jan. Imo Macca to go Moussa moved into the middle Betsy played left wing, then prehaps one loan just enough to keep us up.

 

[TTS]

Is it just me , or everytime you pick up a paper it seems that another club has been threatened with a winding up order, due to monies owed to the tax man - is Ron to blame for all these clubs as well.

Is it just me, or everytime you pick up a paper it seems established high street stores and banks are going belly up or laying off staff due to high debts - is Ron to blame for this as well.

Is it just me, or everytime yopu pick up a paper it explains that the Bank of England are looking to implement a further easing process - is ron to blame for this as well.

PEOPLE WE ARE IN THE MIDST OF ONE OF THE HARDEST RECESSIONS OF MANY YEARS. WE DO NOT HAVE THE ATTENDENCES TO SURVIVE TO THE EXPECTATIONS PEOPLE EXPECT.

This Barny thing is a joke, if he wants to leave he will , or should Ron/Tilly offer him 10k a week to stay ?? Wow, that would be great for the club wouldnt it !!

Why do people think we should be rolling in money and before any one mentions Freddy, Man Utd game, Chelsea blah blah, for every Freddy, there is a Peter Clarke (this is not a dig at Clarrke, but with signing fee, wages etc, Clarke cost us around £750,000 and we got NOTHING for him), for every Man Utd game, there is an MK Dons game, where the attendence prob does not raise enough for the wage bill that week (notwithstanding the wage bill is per week, whereas Clubs do not play EVERY week to generate these multi millions that people speak of!).

Yes I am frustated as the next fan, but also, lets be realistic. Lets also let Ron know if we ;
a/ do want to hear from the chairman of the Club, ie his blogs.
b/ do not want to hear from the chairman of the club !!

if a/ stop Discussing about the contents of the blog, if b/ stop Discussing that we are hearing nothing from the Club, cant have it both way people !!

Do people thing we have a god given right to stay go up this season, or to survive - mine is the latter and I do believe we shall do this.

Do I think we have a rosey future , yes I do - granted if the ground goes forward yes, but that does not mean that you gamble the present on the future 'hope' of a rosey future !! I hope to do well in my working life, but that does not mean that I buy a house and a car I cant afford now does it !!

No I am not ron, no I am not ron's love child, and yes I worry for the future of Southend, but I worry about the future of football in general. The sport that being funded by either billionaires or proceeds from Sky, not from every day Club generated revenue - this is a sad time for all clubs, we are no different !!

 

[palexander]

Good post TTS.

I've not really commented on SZ much the past few weeks as all I feel at the moment is apathy and I am struggling to get the passion to care much beyond the results.

Tilson is doing the best he can with what he has and it doesnt look like thats going to change any time soon - so whats the use of ranting and raving? We'll lose a couple, draw 1 and win 1 - repeat till the end of the season and prob finish 15-18th. If we make it into the 2010/2011 season, then its an achievement.

There is no 'action' for Ron to take. Barnard will be sold if the right offer comes along, same with Macca and Tilson would be lucky to see 1% of that revenue - again, what can you do? We need the money behind the club, that much is blatantly obvious - so whatever comes in is certainly not going to be spent out in any amount.

My big disappointment for this season is given the situation we are in, we havent pushed through many youngsters - even to fill the bench.

 

[Ricky Otto]

My big disappointment for this season is given the situation we are in, we havent pushed through many youngsters - even to fill the bench.

haven't we shipped out the best of our youngsters to Liverpool, Everton and Derby in the last 18 months?

 

[palexander]

haven't we shipped out the best of our youngsters to Liverpool, Everton and Derby in the last 18 months?

Obviously they are the 'cream' - but havent we got any between the level of being wanted by a premiership club and having promise for league 1 level??...

 

[EastStandBlue]

why dont you tell us why you belive him?? then you will be able to work out on how he has fooled you...

As yet, he's given me no real reason to doubt him.

When he arrived at the club, he said his end goal was to see us financially stable in a new stadium. He saved us from almost certain financial doom initially and now we're the closest we've ever been to a new home that is now essential to survive.

Ok, so we've hit the skids recently, but who hasn't? I don't think it's any coincidence that since us and Accrington were handed winding up petitions by the HMRC, Portsmouth have been served one too and press speculation is that Cardiff are about to be lobbied as well. It's a horrible time for a football club in a recession, and it's hit everybody hard... None more so than us, as we were slap bang in the middle of a costly relocation delayed by the Planning Review and government intervention.

RM then said not to worry, the tax bill would be paid and we'll still have a club next year. Certain people on here, and in the press, ran away with the story. What happened? The tax bill has been paid.

As for not spending money, if you look at the accounts it's clear to see in black and white that we're in no position to spend an awful lot of money. While we're in limbo regarding Fossett's Farm, we won't be spending money. End of discussion. If some of you people want a chairman that's going to spend money that we don't have then you're welcome to him... Go and find him, just don't bring him here.

The better the devil you know and all that...

Obviously they are the 'cream' - but havent we got any between the level of being wanted by a premiership club and having promise for league 1 level??...

It's worth noting that, I think, you can't play for a professional club until you're over 16 and plunging youngsters into a senior environment can be counter productive. The only reason Orenuga made such an appearance was to drive his price up before he went to Everton. We released a lot of the deadwood last season and the youth team play on Saturday mornings anyway, so those involved won't be able to feature. The only person I was confused not to feature on the bench was Calver, but because he came back before his loan spell at Stortsford (?) expired, it may have something to do with that.

 

[Ricky Otto]

Obviously they are the 'cream' - but havent we got any between the level of being wanted by a premiership club and having promise for league 1 level??...

I'd say no to be honest. These prem youngsters drop down to get 1st team experience. We played our youngsters against Bowers in the Essex senior cup and we were beaten, convincingly by all accounts! I think the fact that Tilly doesn't name a full bench when these players are available speaks volumes!

 

[Mick]

It's worth noting that, I think, you can't play for a professional club until you're over 16 and plunging youngsters into a senior environment can be counter productive. The only reason Orenuga made such an appearance was to drive his price up before he went to Everton. We released a lot of the deadwood last season and the youth team play on Saturday mornings anyway, so those involved won't be able to feature. The only person I was confused not to feature on the bench was Calver, but because he came back before his loan spell at Stortsford (?) expired, it may have something to do with that.

Strange, I distinctly remember a Barnsley youngster making his debut at 15 years and 45 days.

I don't think you can actually be paid until you're 16, but you can certainly play.




PS Not suggesting we have any 15 year olds who are in line for a place .... mind you, not having to pay players could be handy.

 

[EastStandBlue]

Strange, I distinctly remember a Barnsley youngster making his debut at 15 years and 45 days.

I don't think you can actually be paid until you're 16, but you can certainly play.




PS Not suggesting we have any 15 year olds who are in line for a place .... mind you, not having to pay players could be handy.

Wasn't that in the FA Cup? The FA Cup has different rules...

 

[Mick]

Wasn't that in the FA Cup? The FA Cup has different rules...

No.




10 YOUNGEST FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS

1 Reuben Noble-Lazarus (Barnsley) 15 years 45 days
2 Ken Roberts (Wrexham) 15 years 158 days
3 Albert Geldard (Bradford PA) 15 years 158 days
4 Ronnie Dix (Bristol R) 15 years173 days
5 Derek Forster (Sunderland) 15 years 185 days
6 Alick Jeffrey (Doncaster R) 15 years 229 days
7 Moses Ashikodi (Millwall) 15 years 240 days
8 Tony Geidmintis (Workington) 15 years 247 days
9 Danis Salman (Brentford) 15 years 248 days
10 Paul Walker (Brentford) 15 years 248 days

 

[EastStandBlue]

No.




10 YOUNGEST FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS

1 Reuben Noble-Lazarus (Barnsley) 15 years 45 days
2 Ken Roberts (Wrexham) 15 years 158 days
3 Albert Geldard (Bradford PA) 15 years 158 days
4 Ronnie Dix (Bristol R) 15 years173 days
5 Derek Forster (Sunderland) 15 years 185 days
6 Alick Jeffrey (Doncaster R) 15 years 229 days
7 Moses Ashikodi (Millwall) 15 years 240 days
8 Tony Geidmintis (Workington) 15 years 247 days
9 Danis Salman (Brentford) 15 years 248 days
10 Paul Walker (Brentford) 15 years 248 days

I stand corrected.

Still, the fact remains that throwing youngsters into senior football at an early age can be counter productive... I've got no reason to question Duncan's judgement of player as, up to now, he's been pretty much spot on.

 

[Mick]

and now we're the closest we've ever been to a new home that is now essential to survive.

Not sure that's true either. Think we were closer when approval was finally granted. Things seem to be getting further away, not closer.

 

[Ricky Otto]

Strange, I distinctly remember a Barnsley youngster making his debut at 15 years and 45 days.

I don't think you can actually be paid until you're 16, but you can certainly play.




PS Not suggesting we have any 15 year olds who are in line for a place .... mind you, not having to pay players could be handy.

Yeah a player can't be contracted until he is 16 so its rare for clubs to play younger players as they can sign for anyone on their 16th birthday, best to keep any talent under wraps. I know these days in this situation clubs get a fee decided by tribunal but its rarely anywhere near the players value

 

[Mick]

I stand corrected.

Still, the fact remains that throwing youngsters into senior football at an early age can be counter productive... I've got no reason to question Duncan's judgement of player as, up to now, he's been pretty much spot on.

It depends on the individual in question and the environment they're thrown into; it didn't do Rooney much harm ... or Alick Jeffrey!

As for Duncan, it seems to me there has been a year on year decrease in the calibre of the youth team since they did so well in the FA Youth Cup a couple of years back.