Hello Northenders We've all seen and heard quite a few PNE fans stating that we are only in L1 for a season, going straight back up at the first attempt etc. It scares the living daylight out of me hearing that talk TBH!! After the turbulent season that we've just had, it seems to be one hell of a bold claim to me and some of them need a little bit of a reality check. Next season we are going to be without the likes of Jones, SSL, Lonners and maybe a few more. The wage bill HAS to be reduced, whether we like it or not, as we can't sustain paying thousands of pounds per week to players at League One level (we couldn't sustain it in the Championship, so no chance in the division below) I can't honestly see TH pouring money into the club until he knows we are back on an upward curve, and even then there's no guarantee of us being bankrolled to greater heights. We are going to have a squad that consists mainly of youngsters and older heads, loanees and maybe one or two journeymen trying to get their careers back on track. I think it will probably be a decent L1 squad but enough to go straight back up at the first attempt? We'll have to see, but youngsters need time to settle and we just can't go burning them out by playing them every game, no matter how good they are. Add to that, there are some big clubs in L1 that now have the knowledge and experience of playing in there week in, week out, and it may take a few games to find our feet in a division that could be a culture shock for one or two of our players (and supporters too!!) My hopes are to finish top ten next season, challenging for promotion the season after but definitely need to be back in the Championship after 3 years, or all the good work over the last 15 years in getting local people to follow North End on a regular basis could be could be lost. Might sound a bit gloom and doom but I don't mean to be. I'm just a realist and you only need to look at the likes of Leeds and Sheffield Weds to show that League One isn't a cakewalk. There will be a lot of clubs desperate to beat us, not because we are a big club (we aren't!) but because we've had quite a few successful seasons in the second tier. Let's get the club back on a solid footing and then get climbing back up the Football League as a stronger force with some stability
Think of it another way lilywhite all those players you mention didn't do us any good we still got relegated,think positive PB is going to replace them with something better the slate is clean. Being honest the only one I will miss is Billy Jones.
That's a valid point newroader SSL was never the same player when he came back from 'Boro, even when he was fit and maybe Lonners needed to move on. As I said though, the squad will be dismantled and we need to take that into account next season. We'll be back one day, stronger for the experience
Top 6 for me, although our budget will be cut again it will still probably be bigger than most in the league, also if we start to get results gates should grow, but I'm optimistic
Each division requires a different type of player for a club to be successful, and Div 1 is no different in that respect. John McGrath came to PNE when the club had just escaped going out of the football league. "This once proud club was on its knees and after ending the 1985ââ¬â86 season in 91st position (in the Football League) they needed some new blood and new ideas. McGrath was just the man for the job". "With the newly laid plastic pitch already installed McGrath assembled a squad of free transfer old pros, lower league journeymen and young cast-offs to fire the team to promotion in his first season. He was seen as a hero" The point I am making is that in all probability several of this seasons championship squad could not hack it in the lower divisions for various reasons. On the other hand there are players about who do the business in the lower leagues but are not equipped to play at a higher level. Brown will hopefully be aware of this and build a new squad accordingly. In a way I think that Brown will be doing similar as to what John McGrath did all those years ago. Brown is in a better position than McGrath was as he already has some players who have struggled in the championship but may well cope extremely well in the lower division. The young players coming through have obviously got real potential, but they have yet to prove themselves playing in the first team on a regular basis. They have done extremely well in the last two games of the season plus Mayor and Barton who missed the last game. The one thing that most young players suffer from most is inconsistency, so supporters shouldn't expect a top performance week in week out. I have a confident feel about how Northend will perform next season and although it will certainly be a test for Brown assembling a winning team, I expect him to succeed and PNE end the season either close to or in a playoff spot. Who knows, this is the unknown for manager and players and you never know PNE could go all the way at the first attempt. How much TH is prepared to help (or not) is anyone's guess. I remain positive and confident.
a very good argument put across there TFP, and totally agree with your point about the youngsters. How heavily we will have to rely on them we just don't know until summer dealings are done and dusted. If we were to achieve what yourself and maclad hope for then I'd be absolutely delighted However, I always set my sights low in everything I do as I've been married twice and I've learned not to expect too much
