I saw this post on the 'Optimistic QPR Supporters Page' on Facebook by a fan named John Reid. I don't know if he's a poster on our forum, I doubt that he is but it's a good read regardless ... When I first started watching QPR regularly in 1964/1965 (my first game was Chesterfield 1-2 defeat in 1961) Rangers were a competent Third tier outfit (that season was the last time Brentford got the double over us) Our gates were between 3,500 and 5,000, with 11,000 for our big game with Brentford. Even in our magic season of 1966/67 our first game against Shrewsbury attracted only 6,343, our superb run in the League and League Cup did push some of our gates up above 20,000. We were a small club suddenly achieving miracles, for the first time we were buying class players like Marsh, Langley and Les Allen and keeping hold of them. We also had one of the best youth policies in the Country, that had produced the Springett goalkeeping brothers, the loyal and excellent leader Mike Keen, Sibley, Hunt, Hazell the Morgan twins and coming through Francis( future England captain), Clement, Gillard England players. Indeed the nucleus of our promotion team and runners up squads were home produced or buying cheaply and developing players, or buying seasoned professionals like Langley, McClintock, Les Allen. As far as size of the club we were probably 50th or so in the 92 in crowd levels. In 1965 if someone had said to me that we would regularly play and beat Chelsea, finish as top London side and win the League Cup, be runners up in the League, FA Cup and play in Europe, and spend 23 years in the top division, I would have considered them a suitable case for treatment. Our largest average gate at Loftus Road was around 21,000 in 1975/76. You can look at that marvellous year two ways, yes we had a great team (better than Leicester last season) and we deserved to win it, but to put our rise from 1966 to 1976 in perspective it was the equivalent of Southend achieving the same feat today. I am proud to be a Rangers fan, fans of other clubs admire what we have achieved. Look at the wealth of players we have had the joy to watch over the last 50 years. Yes we are going through bad times at the moment, yes we blew £millions on greedy players not fit to wear our shirt. But I would argue that for a club that is still probably in the lower 40's of the 92 for average crowds (Portsmouth, Bradford, Sheffield United in lower divisions get bigger gates) we are in a position in the League that reflects that. In the top 2 divisions Only, Burton, Brentford and Rotherham and Bournemouth in Premier get lower gates than the R's. There are 11 ex champions Of England in the Championship, 2 ex European Champions, it is the hardest second tier in the World and probably in the top 10 Leagues in the world for quality, and fifth in the world for attendances. We have spent 23 years in the top division, next season will only be Brighton's 5th! We need to rebuild the structure of our club, build a proper youth academy, bring in and develop hungry young players discarded by Premier League Clubs Be proud of what we have achieved, we are the Rangers and we are the best....You R's.
A good read. However, I don't go along with the idea that size of club or attendance should govern expectations of success.
It is a good read and he makes many good points. I've been a fan quite a bit longer than he has (old age ain't nothing to brag about though) and I quite honestly have never known such dire goings-on with the club over the past few years. As 'Optimistic' said, millions spent on players who turned-out to be bogus professionals, possessed of no loyalty to anyone but themselves, and, in other words damn near useless. In business, one must look at management when things go badly wrong. In the case of the club, the top people have made far too many errors in selection of managers (e.g. Mark Hughes was an utter disaster for QPR, and he was supposed to be the cat's meow?), ultimate selection of new players, one could go on and on. The club badly needs a thorough clean-out, top to bottom. How that can be achieved I do not know, but something has to be done, but quick!
Surely the clean-out has begun to take place over the last couple of seasons under Ferdinand? Overpaid, under-performing players have been moved on and replaced with lesser names on more sensible contracts. At the same time, the focus on youth has begun to be restored, with youth team players gaining opportunities to become first-team regulars. There is a lot of damage to be undone, but it seems to me we are finally moving in the right direction in terms of getting the 'right sort' of players in the squad.
Your are quite right, Stroller, afraid that I've been so fed-up lately what little judgement I have is totally clouded, obviously. The academy system is great, just as long as we can hold-on to the youngsters for a fair and just period of time? I often wonder if it is greedy parents who sometimes screw-up the academy process? Regardless, the club must continue with it, it is the only sensible way for future development.
The problem, of course, is that now we have a 'sustainable' squad in terms of money spent on transfers and wages, people complain that 'all but 5 or 6 are not good enough' and should be discarded.
I agree that we should never limit our expectations, but I do think the size of a club is important in long term, sustained success. I'd be amazed (and envious) if more than one or two of Bournemouth, Watford, Burnley, Swansea (I think Boro are already gone) are still in the PL in 3 or 4 seasons. But being 'big' is no guarantee of success either, as Portsmouth, Villa, Massive etc etc can confirm.
I think that's a great point Stroller. This is a unique industry where underperformers cannot be sacked on bad performance, or even bad behaviour in representing themselves or the business that employs them. So to go through this clean-out is not a quick, or simple, process. However we have seen the shift begin and I'm sure that it will continue through the coming seasons ahead. But it ain't a quick fix - and as we know with our club, it is never a straight and smooth road! There are more tough decisions to be made at the end of the season, that's for certain.
In many ways the OP is highlighting that for many years we punched above our weight just as Bournemouth, Swans, Leicester, Hull etc are doing now. What Stan said above is quite likely about teams returning to their natural level and then starting again.....that's basically where we are now and will be for another 5 years or so until the youth academy starts to produce players capable of playing 1st team football on a regular basis and often moving them on to other sides at a profit..... I still live in hope of seeing the R's in the top flight and even another European adventure, hopefully before I fall off the mortal coil.......
I'll be honest and say that despite wanting the club to have a decent youth system again I don't think it provides a route to the top flight of English football anymore. These days it's about investment but, more importantly, the way in which the investment is used. Brighton, Leicester and Bournemouth are all excellent examples of where significant funds have been made available but where the money has been used to build slowly and sensibly over several years. They are now able to sustain a reasonable level of success with far less funds than was pissed up the wall by QPR. The irony is that, with hindsight, Briatori and Ecclestone now seem to have been doing the right thing with the infamous 'plan'. Just a shame that their only goal was to build the club to the stage where their could take some sucker new owner to the cleaners. The reckless enthusiasm of that new owner has been denigrated by many but I'm not one of them as I firmly believe most fans would have behaved similarly if they had the money to spend. The point of all this is that sensible long-term investment is still the key that can turn small clubs into giants and even turn a profit along the way as the late, great Jim Gregory knew only too well. So, come on Tony and co, give the dream one more try now that you have experience on your side. By all means have a focus on youth but build that new stadium and training ground and invest in the kind of players around which we can build a squad for long-term success.
Good post, and I agree with the ambition you articulate that we need now. In order to attract the right sort of players, we need to shake off the image of a giant, naive piggy bank and promise players a bright future with good facilities to play and train in a culture of hard work with the aim of excellence.
A stirring piece for all true Rs fans. But sadly those days are gone for good. It's too late to reverse what has happened in the football world over the last 15 -20 years. Take away Sky, television, the internet, freedom of contract, freedom to spend what you like on players wages and the loading of all profit into as few hands as possible and you begin to have a chance of reversing the commercialisation of the game which has all but wiped out the possibility of a third tier side ever getting to the top of the game by simply playing football. It's the American dream. All aspire to be rollling in it and to own a piece of the action. Money has corrupted everything. Hand on heart can any of us say we have really enjoyed the last 4 years? For me, even the Play off final win over Derby was more of an embarrassment than a pleasure and something I could take pride in. I'm afraid we're all in cloud cuckoo land if we think that we can ever attract and, more importantly retain,talented young players who are willing to learn.
