I agree with the geography argument, it really does go against us both when attracting foreign players but of course money is the main thing, whether that be investment in transfers or wages. Blackburn, Chelsea and most recently Man City have proven that money = success. Even Stoke have invested heavily in the last 2 seasons and are reaping rewards with Europa League football. Hopefully, the mould that Arsenal seem to have started in England and Newcastle appear to have adopted will come up trumps in the football world when the FFP rules start.
It's people drinking Earl Grey & eating croissants that puts the top players off moving to the NE. Yes both sides get decent crowds but thats due to a lack of decent theme parks. If my idea for "Geordieland" ever comes to fruition it'll be the death of both clubs . . . . . and Beamish.
I suppose it is possible for quite a few clubs to threaten this, not just Sunderland and Newcastle. For instance if Bristol City got some Arab billionnaire who wanted to spend Citeh type money, then they would attract huge numbers in terms of supporters. If they managed to buy the PL title for 10 years in a row, got success on the continent then who knows. 100 years ago some of the biggest clubs now, weren't back then. Of course the advent of vast sums of money into the game means that the challenge of buying success is far harder to find the success that in turn buys your club a rich history of tradition. Man City are finding this right now. Its easy enough to get up there challenging but winning everything is a different ball game. Possible but its unlikely to be in any of our lifetimes!
I can see all of Newcastles French players wanting to move to Sunderland when word gets out about Cest and his croissant eating
to answer the question why?i would say badly run and when we weren't in the early years of john hall,keegan wasn't up to it (will probably get shot for that) but if hall put bobby robson in charge the day he took over i'm sure we'd have won something under him and who knows where we'd be now. ifs and buts
Don't know like, Bobby got to spend a pretty penny too and had the same amount of time as Keegan. Keegan got closer. Maybe it was a little easier at the time of the PL starting is the only reasoning I could think why Robson would have done better. I don't think Keegan wasn't up to it (if anything it was the players if you ask Sir Les and Rob Lee), and it was just we ran into one hell of a team, and in particular two all time great players, Cantona and Schmeichel.
Good post Cest. Despite all the sh*te our beloved clubs have been through over the years, deep down I think it strengthens our respective resolve and love for our teams. I'd love success for both clubs(yes...both clubs) and for us to be battling against each other for honours but not going about it the Chelsea or Citeh way. I realise that's a pipe dream at the present but I'll keep on hoping and supporting.
Here's a question. Would you be happy having fans from Edinburgh and Surrey 'supporting' one of our clubs having never been to Newcastle/Sunderland in their life? I know glory hunters are needed to create a 'global brand' but I remember all these Chelsea fans suddenly appearing in my town Blyth (not all that close to London) and more recently, Man City 'fans'. I know how pissed off I'd be but I'd hate to be loved only for our glories. Our clubs and our City/Large Town have such a rich history and it'd feel like throwing it all away if we turned into another plaything for a bored billionaire. How many Chelsea fans even recognise the name 'Pensioners'? Man City were proud of the fact most of their fans came from within their city, can they say that now? The FFP rules should see an end to the stupid ownership fad we're seeing, it's just a shame that now that sees the table almost freezeframe with Chelsea and Man City in the mix. I'd much rather see both our clubs start filling our stadiums again, earn money the honest way and bring through a mix of homegrown talent and astute signings. Anyone can win things the easy way these days, but where's the fun in that?
Kids are fickle, when I was growing up in Blyth my mates were Forrest fans because they were a success, most of them are still Forrest fans though, another mate supported leeds, went in the army, ws told he had to support his local club so changed to Newcastle, yet another mate is a Man U fan, his parents hated football, but he watched a game against Sunderland, Man U stuffed us 4-0 and he supported them ever since, and this was long before their success. Success breeds more fans, doesnt matter how you get the success, bet you it was the same with Newcastle in the 90`s bet you had kids in London with toon tops on.
There is no doubt in my mind that Newcastle United could become one of the biggest clubs in World football if we'd had the kind of investment that Manchester City are currently enjoying. If the club had listened to Sir Bobby Robson all those years ago and grabbed that young Portuguese manager named Jose... who can say really. Sunderland? ...no chance.
I guess it's the nature of the game but in the case of Blyth (and many other smaller towns), you have kids in Man Utd, Liverpool and Chelsea tops who will have nothing to do with Blyth Spartans. It's like their parents have become so detached thanks to Sky that they've forgotten football is about representing your area and having pride in that. As players become more fickle fans are joining them. It's a shame. Pre-takeover I would have rated Sunderland a bigger club that Man City and probably on a par with Chelsea...
But its always been like that though, i m 39 so 30 years ago it was all Forrest, as they were a success at the time, and that ws before Sky and the top 4 and Champions league. But on the other side of the coin, my cousin lives in Manchester, i stayed with him for a week a few years ago now, I had my Spartans top on, walking through Manchester, and about 10 lads acknowledged me and shook my hand as they had heard or Spartans, a couple even bought me a pint or 5 in a pub, and had a game of snooker with them. never seen them since though lol
I was there in August this year for a week with my daughter. They are not a patch on our beaches and the weather was warmer back home. This Arctic landscape, flat cap and whippet society is an urban myth perpetuated solely by the **** Southern biased media, scared that if the real beauty and tranquility of the North East where ever to get out it would ruin their little world. You can keep ANYWHERE in the UK, I'll keep my beautiful, tranquil, clean air scenic and vibrant NE of England ta very much.
On the note of location, I'd have thought with a bit of cash, Durham FC would be a very desirable club to play for (at an ameteur level). It's such a beautiful city and with investment could be a stable Blue Square side. I've always wondered why it's such a neglected club...
