that the only 2 we got were savvy and tavvy? Tactical from a point of view that in a week or so's time any that missed the boat could available..or we have the powder dry till the summer when we hope to be a championship side! some of the teams in the top 10 and indeed bottom half a dozen have filled their boots / adjusted their staff and quite a few strikers have joined our division! we now face the rest of the season with a squad of 18/19 mkd / Swindon / 25+ sheff / pne / chstrfld / Donny / 30+ the rest all have over 21
Come what may SC has said we can manage with the squad we have. If we fail then he must shoulder the blame
SC has done a remarkable job. A squad of 25-30 needs paying for. 18-19 would be expected to cost less- I do believe that we got hold of the FFP issue well before a lot of other clubs did. we have let El Abd and Burns out for loans and Wynter has been sold. it does make me think though that SC is being told to operate on a very tight budget. If true, all the more credit to him.
It must be, the board must be pretty confident we will get promoted with what we have, and equally know we will need to strengthen to compete in the Championship so why full the squad with L1 players now. I still feel we neede a striker in with Smith leaving, maybe we will.
I'm frankly worried and I just hope this doesn't backfire on us again like in 2008 When Smith leaves where will that volume of vital goals come from ? Ok JET has scored a few recently, but will it last ? Agard is not prolific Our midfield don't score that many Flints early efforts have dwindled away to next to nothing Wilbs may not play every game and may get injured again We may still need an emergency loan I trust Cotts, but I feel this is hugely important call not to buy a striker.
We have Smith now until March, getting in another striker now will then be 4-5 strikers at the club depending on how far away is Wilbraham. Wait till middle of the month and get a loanee to see us past Smiths absence. If we bought in this window, players and agents are greedy gits and would of wanted championship wages given on our position. If we failed to get promoted then we will be stuck with that player on higher wages in league one. Get a loanee in mid to end Feb until season end and see us over the line then we can possibly decide new loanee v Smith for next season.
There is so much which goes on with the club which is never told to the fans. While this annoys me, financial matters are never discussed in any other business. What we don't know is how much the Rugby is tied up with the overall plan (here I hear that some players are on over £200pa). Having just lost for their first game and seemingly behind Worcester we can only hope that SL does not lose interest and sell the club. The problem is that it is his money and no matter how what opinions we have , we are only customers who have little influence on any decisions made
My biggest concern is not with our current squad but more with what would happen if we run in to personnel problems through injury or suspensions. What are our options for the rest of the season should we encounter problems, and would there be enough time to give any additions time to blend to the requirements? To me the playoffs should not even be on the table, and automatic promotion should be our only goal, and the lack of action yesterday makes me want to believe that SC has long term faith that the current players can achieve the goal. Matt Smith's departure will be a factor without a doubt, especially when you consider he has scored 5 out of our last 6 goals, and right now I can't see anyone filling that void. MK Dons will be a stern test that will show us what the future might bring and it won't get any easier.
Bristol Ruigby one assumes are a totally separate entity from BCFC. That is why there is a holding company, Bristol Sport, to run the admin like ticket sales, stadium maintenance and corporate hospitality to save each club having to bear all of these costs themselves. As for Bris losing their undefeated record, they still have to play Worcester away in the last match of the league season so can still finish above Worcester. However, it is almost irrelevant which club finishes top because of the utterly stupid four team knockout cup competition that decides which team gets promotion. A nine month season becomes condensed into an end of season lottery!
Good point that- Does make me wonder though if Bristol Sport is the main man and that Rugby and Football are just part of the whole corporate bit- On the Rugby front, I think that is why I have lost all patience with the game. How any team can win the league twice and on course for a 3rd cannot go up automatically is sheer farce and is for one reason only. Can you imagine if we won the league this year, just to have to play someone in the play offs?!!
Rugby aside, I've heard that once the stadium redevelopment is complete that SL will hand over the running of (at least) the football side to his son..... With the catastrophic error that was made when we were well on course for the Premiership in 2008 only for us to make two signings which ultimately cost us a place with the big boys by changing the way we'd played to bring us some success, is not a situation I ever want to see repeated ever again. I have complete faith in SC but we've all been here before and it cost us tens of millions. Whilst the financial rewards aren't as big on this occasion, we are currently perfectly placed to cement a place in the top two come May, and that's all I want to see, preferably with us finishing as Champions.
I must confess I don't understand the City finances or where our money goes. The stadium is not owned by the Football or Rugby Clubs so one assumes they have no direct incentive to increase attendances. So what is the money trail? Does the money gravitate to Bristol Sport who then decide how to divvy it out. It would be interesting to know percentage wise what goes where. I can only assume that Bristol Sport (SL) has the overarching control and decides what is spent where. As a fan I would be interested in understanding what goes where.
Perhaps the money from the rugby goes to the football club as part of a loophole to stay afloat with FFP.
Perhaps the money from the rugby goes to the football club as part of a loophole to stay afloat with FFP.
There are financial rules in place for both City and Bris Rugby which they must comply with or suffer financial penalties. I suspect that a very small percentage (possibly only 1 or 2%) of ticket and match day revenue goes to Bristol Sport to cover the admin costs like ticketing, stadium maintenance. The football and rugby clubs probably pay their own stewarding, police costs and probably get the lion's share of food and drink sales. Bristol Sport, when the stadium rebuild is complete, will then get all the revenue from non football/rugby activities. Conferences and any other use of the stadium not directly related to the two clubs. Steve Lansdown (Bristol Sport) is hardly doing all this rebuild and bringing Rugby to the stadium, to fleece the clubs. It is to make both, and especially City financially independent and stable, while also getting some return on his capital investment from non football/rugby sources.
As regards Financial fair Play In League One, this takes the form of a Salary Cost Management Protocol in which a maximum of 60% of a club's turnover may be spent on players' wages, with sanctions being applied in the form of transfer embargoes. It therefore begs the question what is the Club's turnover when nobody seems sure where the money is accounted. One must also ask if the FC is being penalised for reduced revenue because of the rebuild I think Bristol Sport should try and produce a Janet and John guide
