by happytorq » 16 Jan 2024, 14:44
MaxLL wrote: 16 Jan 2024, 11:35
Why do you think failure to make the playoffs would be a disaster? In my opinion, it would just be another bad season. And a reason to think about making changes. They'll happen one day.
The pre-season expectation was that we would get immediately promoted back to the National League - several factors made this assumption feasible; first, for 90% of our history we have been a league club, so being only a single level below that should not be a pipe dream. Second, we kept most of the players that were (for the last 7 or 8 weeks of the season) one of the best teams in that division. Yes, we were crap for 2/3 of the season and the table doesn't lie, but when most of those players stayed I think we ere legitimtely optimistic. Third - the attitude of the ownership and management has always been (outwardly, at least) highly suggestive of a similar expectation.
Unlike the last time we were in this division, there is another 'big club', comparatively speaking - that means one of us was always going to be in the playoffs. Even so, not being one of the best 7 teams in a mostly part-time division featuring clubs at their highest ever level? Yes, that would be a disaster.
If we had said pre-season "look, we're starting again with a new vision, manager, and squad, so please give us time" I'd hope that most of us would have been understanding in the event on inconsistent results/performances. Alas, this season has been a continuation of the decline ever since that fateful day in Bristol; a horrific, oft-unexplained injury list, a revolving door of useless loanees, glaring weaknesses in the squad, and more. It's the manner of the failures to date that have been damning more than anything.
We are between a rock and a hard place; if we do somehow get ourselves promoted I fear we'll be in the same boat as last season once again; a poor squad struggling to avoid relegation.
If we stay in this division it's not a massive leap to assume the owner will 'have to make the difficult decision to turn the club part-time' and I don't think there's a way back from that.
[quote=MaxLL post_id=277634 time=1705404956 user_id=24983]
Why do you think failure to make the playoffs would be a disaster? In my opinion, it would just be another bad season. And a reason to think about making changes. They'll happen one day.
[/quote]
The pre-season expectation was that we would get immediately promoted back to the National League - several factors made this assumption feasible; first, for 90% of our history we have been a league club, so being only a single level below that should not be a pipe dream. Second, we kept most of the players that were (for the last 7 or 8 weeks of the season) one of the best teams in that division. Yes, we were crap for 2/3 of the season and the table doesn't lie, but when most of those players stayed I think we ere legitimtely optimistic. Third - the attitude of the ownership and management has always been (outwardly, at least) highly suggestive of a similar expectation.
Unlike the last time we were in this division, there is another 'big club', comparatively speaking - that means one of us was always going to be in the playoffs. Even so, not being one of the best 7 teams in a mostly part-time division featuring clubs at their highest ever level? Yes, that would be a disaster.
If we had said pre-season "look, we're starting again with a new vision, manager, and squad, so please give us time" I'd hope that most of us would have been understanding in the event on inconsistent results/performances. Alas, this season has been a continuation of the decline ever since that fateful day in Bristol; a horrific, oft-unexplained injury list, a revolving door of useless loanees, glaring weaknesses in the squad, and more. It's the manner of the failures to date that have been damning more than anything.
We are between a rock and a hard place; if we do somehow get ourselves promoted I fear we'll be in the same boat as last season once again; a poor squad struggling to avoid relegation.
If we stay in this division it's not a massive leap to assume the owner will 'have to make the difficult decision to turn the club part-time' and I don't think there's a way back from that.