I seem to have lost my Fulhamish mojo. I have been concentrating on the negative too much, reading blogs that just fuel the negativity and stoke the worst of emotions, fear. Fear of being relegated, the shame, the embarrassment! Well, I've gone past that phase now. I for one am not at all worried about being relegated. There is still a lot to be thankful for. Since 2001 there have been some amazing afternoons and evenings of football at the Cottage, totally eclipsing anything I thought my lovely club would be able to achieve. Although mathematically we are not down yet, it is safe to say that the performances over the season have been dreadful and we deserve to to down. The change needed wasn't going to happen in 11 games, the rot had set in way before that. But I'm not going to be critical. It doesn't achieve anything apart from it got me very frustrated with the goings on at the club and on the pitch. You know what, that's life. It isn't the end of the world, is it? Yes, we will get some stick from some quarters, we'll be laughed at and jeered but nothing now will stop me from looking forward to the next games of this current season. I will look forward not back and think of all the promising younger players that we have in the U21's and U18's. Players that aren't ready for battle in the Premier League but will be able to serve a mini apprenticeship in the Championship with us and grow as a team and players. Being relegated would enable the club to take a look at where it's been and where it wants to go. It will enable everyone to take a deep breath and plan the next 10 years, it will enable the fans and employees to buy in to that vision. We are financially secure, we don't have the worries of a debt burden and we have the infrastructure to build new foundations without the stress of losing quite a sizeable chunk of TV revenue. Yes, it will mean some players leave. But lets be frank, the list will be long and the cull painful to some. But there is the nucleus of experience that will be kept on and this will allow the younger less experienced to thrive and learn. We won't be the club with the long list of loanees we will have a squad of players from seniors to juniors that totally buy in to where we will be going as a club. There will of course be the haters that every club has, the people that shout abuse at the management and players. I'm far too sanguin to get involved with that anyway plus I don't get that tribal macho bullshit anyway. We can get back to winning ways and the Cottage will once again be a place of positivity, humour and a wonderful walk through Bishops Park win or lose!
Well said, Craving. If, when the Premier League was formed, you'd have told me that 2014 would see us relegated from it after 10+ years and a European final, I'd have taken that in a heartbeat. We may be (almost certainly) down, but we're still in a far better position than we were in the early 90s, and with genuine reasons to be positive for the future. As I've said before, we support Fulham, not Premier League football. Next season isn't a black hole, it's just another new season, with all the possibilities that every new season brings, good and bad.
On the upside I expect tickets to be cheaper, there may be less sell outs so therefore easier to get hold of, there will be more games and we might even win some of these now and again and we may even have the excitement of a promotion season to look forward to or maybe even a trip to Wembley if we get to the play offs (how good would that be). We could organise a not606 boarders charabanc trip to Bournemouth to see the Captain (even better if this match is in August/September April or May) and even all have a biscuit whilst we are down there. Yes, to quote Ian Dury - Reasons To Be Cheerful, Part 3.
Broadly agree with OP, although I do think we need to be critical at times in order to (hopefully) prevent the same mistake being made again. Going down does allow us to reduce wage outgoings on deadwood and players on the wane and start afresh. I think the most important thing is for us to clear up the managerial position at the end of the season. Is Magath staying - if so, extend his contract, give him 3 years. If he's going get him out early and bring someone in who has a vision. We need to know what we want to be in 3-5 years and not bumble through making reactive decisions. I think Magath has a great record, but I don't know he is the one to lead us in the future. I'd like someone who knows the club a bit better, who understands the academy and the players who can come through and imposes a system that is adopted by all of our teams so that players stepping up aren't being asked to do something completely different to what they are used to. I don't want us to go down, certainly, but the gloom of it has lifted now that it is inevitable. I'd much rather watch a team that cares and plays with spirit, with some youngsters developing over the season, than watch old-timers get progressively worse and less interested. More games for less money and the start of what could be a glorious new era. Who knows, in 5 years time we might be looking at a team of academy stalwarts built around Grimmer, Burn, Tankovic and Dembele. I've got a feeling we'll lose Moussa if we go down though
Yes, I agree with that last point. If we go down then I think those premier league clubs who have been hovering will swoop in and carry off our most talented youngsters, which would be a bugger and very disappointing as we would never really have got to see them play.
Craving, a much needed post indeed !!! Looking forward, one thing still remains irrespective of where we play football, we will follow the team wherever and against whoever. Life will be tricky in the championship but as mentioned give a good platform to rebuild for the future. I think we will manage to keep hold of a lot of our youngsters as they will have opportunities to play. As much as McGath says he will stay and manage us for another year, I cannot see it happening. If we get relegated Kit Symons should be offered the job and he can continue to work with the talent he knows inside out. Thank you for some positive thoughts, the future looks bright ....... Ish !!!!
I couldn't agree more. I feel positive the youngsters will stay, we have no need to sell. Now this is all very Fulhamish.
Unfortunately this is not a first for me. On the previous occasion we had nine years in the top before going down - that was in season 1967/68. And it’s all depressingly similar. Bad luck, poor judgement and panic sealed our fate. At the start of that season we had a manger who carried no confidence among the fans, much like this year with Jol. He was Vic Buckingham. By the end of January 1968 we were at the bottom and 3 points adrift. That was when the Club threw out Buckingham and, no disrespect to Bobby Robson who replaced him, threw in the towel. By the end of February everybody was convinced that we would be relegated. We were, with 27 pts (then 42 games were played and it was 2 pts for a win) and 6 points adrift. Only six games were won at the Cottage that season, the worst to date, and in all games 91 goals conceded. Inevitably ’old hands’ were off-loaded to save on wages. Youngsters were also sold. In what must be the worst deal by the Club ever, Alan Clarke went to Leicester for what on the face of it was a huge sum - £150,000 (about £6m in today’s money although that doesn’t allow for the inflation factor for young English players in the Premiership). What the Club actual got was £50,000 and Frank Large. I think we were still in shock at the start of the new season and the team of mainly youngsters, under manager Bobby Robson struggled to come to terms with the lower division. More panic and Robson was fired in November and Johnny Haynes took over temporarily as player/manger until Bill Dodgin came in just before Christmas. We went straight down to what was then Division 3. The slump started with a manager in Buckingham who was self centred and had no interest in Fulham and a suspect Chairman in Eric Miller who had a different definition of the word ‘development’ than certainly the fans did. A young, untried manger in Bobby Robson was dumped out of nothing more than panic. And the next 30 years were definitely Fulhamish. Call me a curmudgeon if you will, but I remain convinced that the mess we got into then was as unnecessary as the one we are in now. Oh, I believe in the quality of the youth we have at the moment, it’s the Club I currently have difficulty believing in.
I remember this but only just - I was 7 in 1968. What I hadn't realised was the similarities between then and now. They are actually pretty striking.
C58. I feel it my mission to get your mojo back mate. The historical similarities are quite telling I admit. There's a lot more to be positive about though. We have an owner who's not backward in coming forward in saying he is committed to Fulham. Back then I am not sure how the club was sorted financially and I know nothing of the youth set up back then. It must be quite different now though in terms of the youth set up and we have no debt to speak of. We may lose some gate receipts as the tourist will go to Chelsea, or will they? It would be a great day out still to see Fulham and a lot cheaper than our neighbours. Ali Mac got this year completely wrong, there's no excuse and he may even pay the ultimate price. I am sure that as an employee with a new boss it must have been quite difficult as his relationship with Mo was rock solid, as far as I could see. If I'm honest I always thought that this year would be tricky, so many changes off the field was always going to be challenging. However, we do have a manager with a pedigree of success in football. Although not in the EPL. This is not a problem for me. there have been a number of foreign managers in the EPL who had no experience beforehand of English football. Mourinho, the Southampton guy who I can't pronounce, AVB (not a great example) and there must have been others that I can't think of. I think FM has the character to steady the ship next year and build.
The youth set up was different back then Craving, but there was no shortage of talent. Malcolm MacDonald (although he was another ludicrous transfer when after only 10 games we let Alec Stock, then of Luton, snap him up for £15,000), Jimmy Conway, Mike Pentecoste, Les Barrett, Steve Earle..I could go on. Admittedly finances were not good (ergo Eric Miller) and not helped by attendance halving when we dropped out of the top division. Despite my groans Craving, the magic spell of Fulham didn't disappear then, as it won't now. I was jolly glad about that all those years ago since arguably, the football during the 70s albeit not in the top flight, was among the most enjoyable seen at the Cottage (with a wee bit of Wembley thrown in). And like then I'm sure there's plenty of fun ahead, even if we have to through some pain to get there.
Funny Cottager, since the weekend, I have been thinking something similar - i.e. the similarity to our relegation in 67/8. I was a teenager at the time and that season was my first season of going reguarly - I probably went to 2/3rds of the home games. The similarity i have been thinking about was that, in both occasions, we has a side you would have thought would not be relegated. The side back then had George Cohen - until he was injured in November - Johnny Haynes, Allan Clarke as well as a good number of solid players - including my beloved Fred! But somehow it all fell away. This season we had - on paper- a good solid middle table side, but here we are almost certainly relegated. Perhaps it is all in the background. The change of owner has not been good - but mainly for the club coasting in cost saving mode for about 18 months. All I hope is that we don't plunge further and that we can bounce back on the strength of the youngsters coming through. I went a good deal the season after we were relegated to the old divison 2 - not only were we dire, but most of the others were as well. things only got better with the arrival of Bobby Moore,George Best etc - and I did get to go to Wembley!! However, i think things are different now - football chairmen were either amaeter dabblers with a big cheque book or wheeler dealers like Miller back then - now football is a massive international business and our chair can't afford for us to be out the Premier for too long. My hope is that Felix is given a chance to hone a team from the youngsters and bring us back stronger.
Forgot to say - I thought that Allan Clarke went for £100,000 and Frank Large - making a total transfer package of £100,000 and half a crown! - a little pre-decimal joke there for our older readers!!
Lets hope that Felix can get the club to shine and be promotion material next season if we are in the championship. But having said that, if the results dont come we cannot hang on like the Jol situation and then becomes to late
Nope. It was 2 shillings and 6 pence. Called a half crown because a full crown was worth 5 shillings (although crowns as coins had disappeared before Victorian times). In new decimal money a half crown became 12.5 pence because each shilling (12 old pence) was converted to 5 new pence (so 2 x 5p = 10p) and the remaining 6 old pence (being half the value of a shilling) became 2.5 pence. Thrupence ha'penny or 3.5 old pence would not have a direct conversion but would have been rounded to convert to 1.5 new pence. Confusing? You bet. Especially for those people who were about 70 years old at the time, like my grandparents. There used to be big card converters on the walls in shops showing you the old and new prices. Just getting used to the new look of the coins was a trial for some.
Isn't there something charmingly Fulhamish that in the midst of a relegation crisis we are discussing the finer points of decimalisation! I recall some shops and pubs were reluctant to change, so they carried on charging in "old money" so everything was shillings or shillings and six pence (2.5p for younger readers!) The most notable one I came across was the Kings Head in Islington which became a famous venue in punk days. Everybody thought it was quaint and quirky - until they realised that it had been an excuse to put the prices up as well!! Returning reluctantly to football - Frank Large was overpriced at 12.5p - he was the most immobile footballer I ever saw - the corner flag got round the pitch quicker than him. He was rivaled by a panic buy in our relegation season - Budgie Byrne - a footballer famed as being the first from the old Division 4 to play for England, but sadly past his prime - and about 4 stone heavier - when he came to us. I recall seeing him make his debut at the Cottage vs Aston Villa - the Villa defence soon worked out that all they had to do was step up half a dozen paces when Fulham attacked and Budgie would be caught offside as he puffed his way back towards the half way line. He also wore what I recall as one of the tightest shirts I have ever seen on a footballer - we probably didn't have one to fit his ample frame!!
That's what I'm talking about boys - Mojo is returning. In the depths of our despair, our realisation that our time in the Prem is coming to a rather damp squib of an end we are indeed regaling ourselves of the good ol' days! I appreciate the clarification of the old money. My dad used to have a bag full of old half shilling coins in the 70's that were exactly like 5p coins. I used to raid the bag when he wasn't looking and go and buy a screwball from the ice cream man for 15p! Sorry dad!
Strange what you remember. There was a general lamenting at the passing of the six pence coin which for some reason was really popular and the three penny piece which had a very pleasing shape - it was 12 sided, all of which were slightly rounded so it didn't feel angular like the 50p does today. Anyway, glad your mojo is returning, at least we didn't all have to go on an Austin Powers style escapade to get it back.
