Time for reflection.

I have been a Vice President of Swansea City for many, many years and have been through many of the good times and the not so good, like most on here I have vented my anger and frustration in the heat of the moment. On reflection when I look back to where we were, and where we are now I need to take a sharp intake of breath when the realisation sets in.
I have attended many V.P. meetings where discussions generally follow those we see on this site, with differing ideas and points of view, resulting in open healthy debates. We are never going to agree on every issue relating to the club, even the board were split on many including the appointment of Garry Monk. The proposed investment which is definitely going to happen over the next few months will move the club on to another level so it's not all gloom and doom as some appear to believe.
We've come a long way in recent years, so even if this season does turn out to be a disappointing one the long term for the club is a secure one. Thirty years ago I was part of the commercial team selling tickets and organising events so that we could pay for amongst other things a new kit for the team. You'll probably still hear from me on here having a grumble or two but at the end of the day I still find it staggering and amazing at what we've done as a club.

 

It is amazing, but we must keep pushing forward. There's no treading water in this league. If you're not going forward you're going down.

 

Really good OP
We do need to be working to move forward. Having first visited the Vetch in 1959/60 I share (as a fan) the memory of the events you alluded to and relive my emotions to them on a regular basis. Even those with a shorter fan history may recall the joyful incredulity that accompanied our rise to Division 1 and the desolation of finding ourselves almost bankrupt and in Division 4 so soon afterwards. Some fans don't understand it when I say I gained more satisfaction when we won stylishly against Workington than I did when we won luckily against Southampton last week. So for me, SwanseaTown & City has always been more important than leagues or opponents.
However, I accept we live in a very different world and falling out of the Premier League would be hugely detrimental to Swansea's long term future. Our team isn't supported by large numbers and we live in a sparely populated region where low pay is the norm so dropping in to the Championship would, in my opinion, be start of another painful fall.
Swansea's rise is little short of miraculous but we are only as good as our next team / season & shouldn't lose site of the teams who have graced the Premier League only to slip down the divisions and not returned.
So while our 'heritage' is rich and our recent past inspiring, we need to make sure future generations don't think of the Swans as 'that team great granddad used to support'.

 

I think sometime that is our problem. The past is the past and never should it be forgotten, but surely we have to now look to the future and keep moving forward. I feel that sometimes we do have that small time mentality. We have a right to be where we are and long may that continue.

 

I have said this many many times..We have reached our limit as we dont have the money like the big clubs and its all about survival in the premiership now just like most of the other teams. None of our players are superstars and some should not even be playing premiership football but that's all we can afford. With us in the top half is like us being in the top 3 or 4 of the also rans so i think we have done exceptional this season so far...if you expect more then your expecting too much for a club that is one of the smallest to grace the top league...

 

Who expects more than what we are doing now, finishing top have would be a good achievement (even though we wont be there at the end), moving forward means signing better player as we will need to do to retain PL status, maybe once in a while challenging for a cup completion.

 

thats what im saying. we need better players and as yet we cant afford the type of player and the wages we would have to pay...We have reached our limit and are with all the rest that have reached theirs and everyone can beat each other on the day and as we are in the top half then we are doing just fine and better than most of the also rans and better than was expected...

 

I hope you voted against the appointment of Monk

 

why would i do that ???

 

What is the limit. Why cant swansea be competing in cups and growing the fanbase. You played (past tense) attractive football and you broke your cup duck. Why can't you do that again with the bigger budget you have and the new tv deal

 

We do compete just like every other club. you can see by the results in the FA cup how things are going for most of the premiership clubs...We lost against Blackburn at their place playing with 10 players and the same team beat stoke yesterday that put our game in perspective...you cant expect to win them all...

 

Because we're aiming to be 'solid' by the look of our recent transfers and we have a manager with limited ability and a fan base who aren't interested in playing in Europe (happy just to get a chance to watch the 'Big Teams' when they come to the Liberty). We also have commentators who can't see beyond the Roy of the Rovers facade presented by Garry Monk.

 

Am I the only one who finds the look-how-far we've-come' speeches a little tired now? It seems that we take solace in that sort of thing whenever we go on a bad run. Look this is our fourth season with the big boys and we deserve to be where we are but quite rightly the fans expect higher standards. That is how we make progress as a Club. Yes, so far we've done it brilliantly but I sense a major wobble.

No disrespect intended to the OP because I agree with the sentiment it's just a little stale. We're all rightly proud at how far we've come but that doesn't help us win the next game. Sorry.

 

My point is we have come a long way and are continuing to move forward albeit at a slower pace now, so why the knee jerk reaction to what is still a minor setback. In a few months we will have a massive cash injection into the club which again will move us on in the right direction. Yes it's true as a lifelong supporter I have endured far more bad times than good times over this period, so this probably allows me to be a little more philosophical in these matters. As you may have noticed from my previous posts I have been as critical as anyone else on is site, it's all about opinions and I acknowledge that but sometimes you need to reflect on how far you've come, take it on board to help you move forward again.

 

How far do you expect us to go?

 

Im perfectly fine with this being our limit as a club our size can only really hope for a top half finish and the cups. But I don't want us reaching it by playing drab, boring football, which is what we are being served up this season. I would rather finish mid table playing a fast paced, entertaining brand of football than challenge for Europe playing gunk.

 

There are no limits you silly billies.. You can get a time where you have the perfect manager and perfect players..

 

I sincerely thought swansea would win the europa league and it was very unfortunate valencia didn't beat sevilla in the final. they were far the better team.

 

We beat man Utd away in our first game of the season ..I thought ay up we gonna win the title..

 

How far can we go? I'm realistic enough to know our place but if you think small you'll be small. It's that mentality that annoys Jenkins and I understand why. Look at Southampton who have had some great results this season. Who'd have thought we'd have won a cup? But we did it, and beat some top teams along the way. Will we ever win the title? Probably not but that's what we should be aiming for. Speaking personally 'look how far we've come' is sentimental and unhelpful in achieving that, and it's something that people always come out with when we're playing badly. Sorry but it's no consolation to me.