OK. So irony can be lost in writing, especially posting during apero time. In "Hope for us all", my main point was not about Hull - an interesting place, I have no doubt, and my apologies to its good citizens - but how does a club of our sort of size attract quality players? Back in the 50's in the days of maximum wage, Blackpool could attract players simply with the delights of the sea front allegedly. There are those who believe that the attractions of living in Hampshire might tip it for some players choosing between, say, Saints and Crystal Palace (or Hull). But even if this were to be true, it isn't going to make them choose us over Man City, is it? So, apart from being a stepping stone to other success, what are the immediate attractions of playing for Saints? If a young player playing in France, for example, can look and see that going to Saints was a good career move for Arsenal's Morgan Schneiderlin* , might he then consider a move to Saints. The problem is that we could become the Premier League equivalent of Crewe. However, is a future of nurturing stars for the top clubs such a terrible prospect? It can be argued that it's slightly demeaning and reminds us of our place. But there is also just a chance that the right combination of little known players on the up and our academy products might just get us to the next level. There appear to me few alternatives. Having summers when our best players are taken away for vast sums is a better alternative than not having the stars, isn't it? * No he hasn't gone yet. This is purely for illustration!
Producing and developing talent and being a shop window for players is also a kind of fame. Probably Southampton is better known on the continent after the last couple of seasons than ever before. Used properly...keeping some players and investing player profits back into other players could be successful in the long term...better than having a mix of ordinary players and a few stars which is the method tried by many clubs (including Southampton in its previous incarnation). Sorry Hull....it is your name....don't even know why it is funny, but it is. Has the same resonance as Luton (of Luton Airport fame).
I remember Laurie Mac used the delights of the area to tempt the likes of Keegan to sign. At a time when travel and communication were not as developed, looking across the New Forest and comparing it to a "big" city suburb surely swayed a few. These days players priorities may be a little different.
A ferrari with an apartment in the middle of the city. We need to use Ocean Village as a sales pitch.
Morning all. For the record folks the proper name of our city is Kingston Upon Hull. Hull being one of two rivers we have, the other being the river Humber and for more info the River Hull is the outlet for many rivers and streams from many miles inland. They flow into the River Hull which in turn flows into the River Humber then out into the North Sea.
This is what us outsiders can't understand about Hull fans' sensitivity about the change of name. Wouldn't you have been better off calling yourselves Kingston City or even Kingston Tigers?
Hi Chilco, this is a subject I refuse to be drawn into even on our own boards. The club has always been known as Hull City AFC nicknamed The Tigers. Our benefactor, and owner, wants to change all that with total disreguard to the histirical significance of the original name, the historical part means a lot to a lot of supporters. I do not go on a regular basis now in fact I'm more of an armchair supporter these days but was once a fanatic back in the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's. The argument will rage for a while yet but the owner is slowly changing things by stealth in fact the latest club badge is a total re-design erasing any reference to Hull City AFC and no consultation with supporters on the issue. Meanwhile Steve Bruce has stayed aloft from the dispute but for how long he will put up with the dispute is anyone's guess.
Any chance we could stop talking about Hull, or Kingston-upon-Hull or Tigers or City or any connection to the North East (lovely though it is!). Jeez, you know when you wish you'd never started something? Meanwhile, back at the question, how do Saints fans feel about being the Management and Player training school?
Not keen on being a management training school...we need stability and it would be nice to think that the manager is proud to be at Saints and wants to take us further every season. However, a player training school (as I've said before) may be an effective business plan as long as you keep some players and bring others through on a regular basis. Selling generates an income and, if we make players look so good we get silly money for them, we can bring in new players at half the price (as shown by the Tadic deal). We will never get the sponsorship deals or the massive gates of the top sides, but this could be the way forward for a decent side like us (slowly, slowly catchee monkey). It is all a question of balance....seasons as bad as this for losing players will be rarer if we are seen as a good side to be at.
I think you have a really good point. The main objective, if we are to achieve Champions League football at some point in the future, is to get there in a sustainable way. If that means bringing some players on for a couple of years, and selling them at a vast profit, whether they are bought in, or Academy graduates, I don't see a problem. The important thing is to make sure we keep a core group at all times, to which new graduates or transfers can be added without altering the dynamic of the squad or the style of play too much. As far as managers are concerned, it is a different proposition, as the manager sets the style of play in motion, so we need a bit more continuity there. Hopefully Ronald and Erwin have bought into the long-term project as sold by Katharina and Les Reed, so as long as they are here, so will he be.
The Premiership is a rigged game. During our back to back promotion seasons I remember thinking "why would you want to take part in a competition you have absolutely no chance of ever winning?" In fact on the way home from Upton Park on an ice cold February night, I fell into conversation about imminent promotion to the Premiership with some Saints fans on the tube. The consensus was that the Premiership was utterly rotten and corrupted by money, and that the journey there was likely to be infinitely more enjoyable than anything that might happen after our arrival. I still hold the view that those back to back promotions were and always will be my best years supporting Saints. Nothing will ever top Saints v Walsall in 2011 and Saints v Coventry in 2012. That was as good as it gets. One good season might have led us all to forget how much the Premiership stinks, and how much money corrupts the human soul. But you can't shut your mind to reality for too long before it insists on being heard.
i totally agree with this, I actually stopped going during Pompey's PL years, the PL has drawn some of the worst criminals into football and it's only going to change for the worse, if World football continues down the same path. All this began many years ago and it's a shame to think that anyone under 30 probably will never know what Saturday afternoons really used to be like.
I agree I will add Lincoln City at home to Brighton in 98 (L2) last game of the season and a win sent the Imps up to L1 (for 1 season. lol)
