I would have thought that the Cowley brothers would have been an excellent appointment for Portsmouth. Radio Solent had suggested in August that the resources were unlikely to be in place for a concerted promotion big and that expectations would be diminished this season. I am a bit surprised that the American owners have not invested quite as might have been expected. the recent results have been as anticipated but I think the first few matches saw Portsmouth accumulate more points than might have been anticipated. I was surprised that Jackett was not more of a success. I have enjoyed reading these comments.
Various reasons have been forwarded for the lack of goals, some more rational.than others. Firstly, it is taking time for the signings to.gel. Secondly, the lack of a prolific striker, although Marquis was quite good at Doncaster. Thirdly, the wrong personnel.are being used along with the táctics utilised. Whilst spending money might help, it might not as we have seen countless times teams "bombing" after a spending spree. Here I think the owners are right in being prudent, given PFC's many cases of financial trouble and administration. And finally, PFC have years of being a "failing" club in the sense that they have more often than not finished in the lower half, flirted with relegation.and been relegated since I started following them in 1963 in what ever división they have been in. At the moment League 1 is their level. It is important to.rid the club of this stigma by challenging for promotion in League 1 on a regular basis, doing well in the cup.competitions and at the same time improving the quality of players coming through the youth system, and who are signed from non-league and lower league sides. We need to be patient with the Cowleys. If Pompey somehow got promotion, I would see them struggling in the Championship. Therefore it is important to strengthen the playing side gradually, and modernise the stadium to increase revenue streams in order to build a side that can compete in the higher división.
Not long now till the 2 year anniversary of the last time the Skates had any relevance whatsoever outside of their island slum
I am disappointed in your phraseology as your sentence lacks detail and uses far too many colloquialisms such as "Skates" and "slum" which is not befitting of such a noble person as yourself.
Ides Thanks for your considered response. I felt that following the initial promotion campaign of Paul Cook, the club would have pushed on having acheived a degree of monentum. It has been interesting hearing the response of fans who were disatisfied with Kenny Jackett on Radio Solent and I suppose they have got their wish with his departure. This seemed odd insofar that had been unable to watch their team for about 18 month although I recognise that the grumblings predated the epidemic. As an outsider, League One always seems a lottery. Some large teams get relegated in to this tier and they do not always find it a league to get out of. I am not sure whether Portsmouth's "favourites" status really does work against them. It seems to me that they have been in positions where they should have acheived promotion but not managed to get things over the line. If I was a supporter, I would be worried about losing my better players after successive failed promotion bids but it will be interesting if the Cowley's can shape a decent sqaud that can acheive promotion in a season where most pundits are not expecting them to be in the push come May. My fear would be whether or not they actually go backwards.
Not a good start for Portsmouth this season. It will be interesting to see how long the supporters take to turn against the Cowleys. The promotion pack in that division are already breaking away.
I`m in a real quandary with our fishy friends. Clark Robertson is one of my son`s oldest friends, but not only is he now a skate, he`s their captain. I want success for Clark, but not their horse-punching, neanderthal followers. Son was going to Charlton this weekend to meet up with a few other pals from Aberdeen to see Clark play - but he`s injured, so not sure if they are going now. Son declined the offer of a ticket to the away end - he couldn`t bring himself to do it!
I baked a cake for the occasion.... In the words of the great Ronnie Barker, it will have "four candles"...
I am surprised that the Cowley borthers have not started as brightly as I would have expected. Not sure Portsmouth are good enough for promotion but the fans will be expecting a decent campaign that hasn't fizzled out by the end of October.