Ristac, us going down into L1 & nearly going bust was the result of the Ridsdale era. The full impact of that just took time to filter through; a bit like the greek debt situation. They won't hit rock bottom for a good while yet. To take it into something closer to home, Rangers haven't hit rock bottom yet & neither have the teams in the PL who, like we used to, rely on Champions league footy just to survive. Where will Arsenal & Chelsea be if they miss out on a top 4 finish this season? Every likliehood that one of them won't make it. Watch this space for the fall out.
Afternoon Badger, yep, just 20 miles up the road, but cannot get out of work. If anyone fancies a night out on the tiles though, let me know !!!!
Will get back to yur on a few drinks after wards Elland need to check on me mates plans for aftergame...tho it wont be a long late session as need to get train home mate ..
We officially did go bust under Bates he never saved us? Any chairman could have done what he did took control of us, went into receivership and sold us to a dodgy offshore company pretending to have no connection... Can you really not see that Bates is milking the club dry? Surely you can see we have more coming in now and far less going out. Bates has made his investment back several times over, not because he is a good businessman, because he is as shady as **** and as dodgy as they come. Personally I don't think we have heard the last of who owned us who brought us and how Bates managed to keep control and get us back.
At the end of the day, it's clear that Leeds fans do not like Bates, it's just a fact. But we've got 14 games left, we're struggling enough at home as it is, I highly doubt the players particularly want to listen to 'Bates Out!' chants all game. We might as well get on with supporting the team - really think Warnock might be the man to get us up. Let's suspend the hostility, and only make it hostile for the opposing teams
The movements in the right direction could have been done by any man with a good business head. He's used this to his advantage to get a lot of fans on board and occasionally does things right to get the fans on board or at least make their love for Leeds overshadow their hate for him and get back behind the team. He's setting us back years with his stupid building projects. He's developing a stadium WE DONT OWN. How many times does this need saying before the penny drops? That should be enough. That rings so many alarm bells. Every decent decision and step forward that's made is made purely to keep the fans quiet. While ever we're not calling for his head he can go about his business at his leisure and stay in charge of our club. Do not forget the 7 years of lies.
Odds are we're not going up, so why waste time suspending hostilities towards a man who is holding us back, just to give a group of players who aren't good enough a little lift in the hope that they might perform a miracle and get us promoted? After Macca already said the Bates Out chants don't really bother them because they know it's not aimed at them. Keep the protests up until bates is gone. Those saying to forget about it are thinking short term. It's exactly what he wants, he wants the fans who aren't happy with him to forget about it just long enough for the unrest to die down, because it will take time to build momentum again.
tbh I've just had enough of the controversy. I almost wish I supported an ordinary club! (well not really, but i'm just totally sick of this )
The way to win isn't to give up. It's a dictatorship and if we give up he'll continue hiking up prices, charging more and giving less.
I suppose it's better than being a fan of a consistently mid table side! It just depresses me, since I started following football and understanding it, it's been champions league semi final, then disaster after disaster. Now I want to be positive, but you're right. I'd just like to believe Bates made the appointment out of ambition
Everyone keeps saying that anyone could have done what Bates did but the fact of the matter is that not just anyone did. It was Bates, it still needed to be done. Its like when a new invention comes out and someone says 'I coulda done that' but they didn't and there not better off because they didn't. I disagree with a hell of a lot of things Bates does. The difference is that I genuinely believe he wants the club going forward and he really does. He is a better runner of a club than I am so I respect a lot of the decisions he makes and he wants the same thing, he wants to make the club a success for many more years to come. Everyone is so tunnel visioned when it comes to Bates and no matter what he does its 'the wrong decision' or its 'a disguise so he can appease the fans while continuing his evil plan'
Funnily enough Josh bates has no intention of selling the ground back to himself, An offshore company owns it (bates is involved and the construction company who work on elland road own) ticket sales pay for the improvements and bates sells it years down the line when it's worth a fortune
I really don't think he is here for the short term (which sounds wierd given his age). I think he is intending on being here for a while and if that is the case then he has no real reason to do that. He'd buy it off himself (if he does indeed own it, my guesses are a mate of his owns it rather than himself) and this would seriously help his cause I believe. I dont see him as a crook, I see him as a clever businessman who knows the laws very well
So instead of saving the money to buy it, we spend the clubs money on increasing its value so when we eventually buy it back it will cost more... great logic.
