Divine right to promotion?

[Somerset Ex-TTB]

Nobody has the divine right to be in any division, even the Premier, but based on our income, size of crowds, wage budget we should be pushing for promotion to League One and this season has been an abysmal failure. (Even with Wembley)

Despite the 21st best (or worst) home form in the division, our attendances are 9th highest, and higher than 12 clubs in League One.

According to RM, we have a wage structure that is indicative of a top end League Two club, and play-offs at worst should have been achievable this season.

Sturrock failed miserably I am afraid, despite his success in the previous two seasons.

Will be interesting to see what sort of budget Brown gets due to JPT income this year and possibly commencement of the new stadium in the summer :whistling:

 

[Kevin Hogg]

If our attendances are 9th highest..eight other club supporters would feel they should finish above us.
Again..where do we get this intense feeling we are a big club in this division? Based on attendances we are 9th biggest!

 

[Southend Pier]

Has Beverley Hill Cop blue re-surfaced?

Please please don't under-estimate your friendly and harmless Colonel.

 

[Southend Pier]

 

[Gt Yarmouth Shrimper]

On the contrary, colonel, it's because I think you are too closely involved - if you are going to carry on with this obvious campaign, then I think people have a right to know where you are coming from and something about your reasons for it. All the hinting at inside information you post above just makes it more important that you come clean, how else csan we judge if we are being given genuine information, or fed more spin and ********, of which there has been far too much from both sides.

And to put this into perspective, it would be equally wrong (and I suspect most on this board would deeply disapprove) if someone from Ron Martin's camp, perhaps an employee of Martin Dawn, joined this board with the express purpose of supporting everything Ron-like, without disclosing his links and reasons.

Good post ACU

 

[Up the Shrimpers]

Currently, we are nowhere near Bradford City in terms of size and support.

We may have been in early 70's but not close now.

Thing is Kev if it was not for the cheap season ticket deals, Bradfords crowds would be nearer the 6,000 mark. Infact they have hardly had any increase in crowd size even though they have had good recent form.

 

[RochdaleShrimper]

I was born in 1990, and have really started following SUFC from 97/98 season.

In the 15 seasons I've been watching we've spent 1 season in the Championship, 5 seasons in League 1 and 9 seasons in League 2.

Based on my time being an SUFC supporter, I would say we have absolutely no divine right to be in League 1.

This pretty much sums it up for me. I don't really think of us as a big club in League 2 or any other League. I think we have the potential to be a much bigger club than we are but I can't say that gives us a divine right to promotion, i don't think our name exactly strikes fear into other clubs in this League. It is frustrating watching other clubs that we had the better of in terms of league position last term progress while we go backwards. Based on the team's performance this season and the way the club is run throughout I worry that we might be settling in to this League for a few years yet!

 

[Richard_Cadette]

Interesting how almost every post by the colonel turns into an anti-Ron tirade. While I appreciate the colonel's right to his opinion, and frankly I too would love to see Ron replaced if there was a realistic alternative, he clearly has an agenda and it is getting a little tedious now. This is a Forum for discussing all things Southend, but the colonel has in my opinion joined to conduct a one-issue campaign. In other words he is a sockpuppet.

This is how Hitler started you know! :) :)

I've missed crossing swords with you ACU - In fact, it must be my age, as these days, we seem to continually share common ground.... Either I'm coming down to your level, or you're coming up to mine! :) :)

 

[mrsblue]

Luton have crowds of 6000 every home game yet will again be playing non league next season ,SUFC are where they are on merit,Sadly.

 

[leeblue]

Since the tilly era there has been a feeling from some that we are 'bigger than league 2' I amongst many on here know that this is not really the case. I am sure some statto could tell me how many but we have spent the vast majority of our seasons in the basement division. I would love to see us in the division above and stable in league one.....but we just don't have the base to build upon. Good yoofs need to be coming into the first team, players need paying on time, right manager, right players. I am up for ambition but real solid foundations have to be in place to realise it.

 

[Richard_Cadette]

Since the tilly era there has been a feeling from some that we are 'bigger than league 2' I amongst many on here know that this is not really the case. I am sure some statto could tell me how many but we have spent the vast majority of our seasons in the basement division. I would love to see us in the division above and stable in league one.....but we just don't have the base to build upon. Good yoofs need to be coming into the first team, players need paying on time, right manager, right players. I am up for ambition but real solid foundations have to be in place to realise it.

We have spent the majority of our time in the basement division, that is true, but equally, I'm not sure we're the same type of club we were maybe 25 years ago.

Our fan base has increased, after a decline in the 80's, and we know if we were back in the Championship, we'd probably be averaging around the 10,000 mark like we were a few seasons back. That's not to say we're a sleeping giant, or have a God given right to be punching at a higher level, but we certainly have the base to do it from.

If we had not conceded that ridiculous goal, direct from a corner, against Stanley last season, we'd probably be sitting comfortably in mid table League One right about now, maybe even pushing for the play-offs.

I would look at the amount of resources that the manager has been allowed to invest in the squad, and whilst we all know the consensus of opinion about RM, you would find it difficult to argue that over the last two seasons, PS has been allowed to bring in a very high turnover of players, and I would imagine, at not too small a cost. Our budget would surely stack up favourably in comparison to others in this league - The likes of Eastwood, Smith, Timlin cannot be on small salaries.

To that extent, we have under achieved this last season for sure - Last season, we were mightily unlucky - that points total would have got us up 8 out of the last 10 seasons, and this season, we'd have been close to the title!

But the original post is correct - No devine right at all, you got to earn it.

 

[mrsblue]

The way forward is def no loan players just a squad of contracted lads who each and every one of them hopefully will fight for renewed deals.

 

[silentshrimper]

In theory we should be a bigger club than Wigan, half the population of our town, more big teams to choose from around that area (just about), a rugby town, can't sell their allocation at Wembley....but they are rich, simples.

Would be very nice to have a run in league 1 though, we never stick around for long.

 

[A Century United]

This is how Hitler started you know! :) :)

I've missed crossing swords with you ACU - In fact, it must be my age, as these days, we seem to continually share common ground.... Either I'm coming down to your level, or you're coming up to mine! :) :)

Scary, isn't it? :smile:

I suspect I am indeed aspiring to your level - I am reminded of the saying "I used to have a broad mind and a narrow waist, but they seem to have traded places", especially when I glance down....

:'(

 

[Jam_Man]

In theory we should be a bigger club than Wigan, half the population of our town, more big teams to choose from around that area (just about), a rugby town, can't sell their allocation at Wembley....but they are rich, simples.

Would be very nice to have a run in league 1 though, we never stick around for long.

Wasnt that long ago Wigan were getting under 2,000 a game. We certainly have the potential to be bigger, but having a multi millionaire in charge certainly makes a difference.

 

[westie]

Southend United first entered the Football League in 1920 as a Division Three (League 1) team.
Despite what some fans think the Club has spent most of its time in the equivalent of League 1.
With 7 seasons in the Championship and only 16 seasons in League 2.

 

[Kevin Hogg]

Southend United first entered the Football League in 1920 as a Division Three (League 1) team.
Despite what some fans think the Club has spent most of its time in the equivalent of League 1.
With 7 seasons in the Championship and only 16 seasons in League 2.

??? Division Three was the bottom league but split into North & South for many years. You cannot possibly count it as League 1 - there was no league below it!!

 

[silentshrimper]

Wasnt that long ago Wigan were getting under 2,000 a game. We certainly have the potential to be bigger, but having a multi millionaire in charge certainly makes a difference.

Yeah I saw that, was looking into the rising attendances of clubs like Cardiff and Swansea...Cardiffs average attendance has really shot up.

 

[Csboy]

The way forward is def no loan players just a squad of contracted lads who each and every one of them hopefully will fight for renewed deals.

Good post we have relied far to much on loan players. I would be very interested to know how many loan players
Crewe have used in the last few years compared to Southend. loan players may give a short term boost but for long term they are very bad as we end up going through so many players in a season there is no settled team.
How nice would it be instead of bringing in loan players we actually give our youth team players a go.

 

[westie]

??? Division Three was the bottom league but split into North & South for many years. You cannot possibly count it as League 1 - there was no league below it!!

I was merely trying to show that Southend United historically are the equivalent of a League 1 Club.

If we look at the Club's history Post-War until the League split in 1958, the Blues finished in the top 10 of League Division Three (South) in 10 out of 12 seasons. That would make us a League 1 Club as the split took the top 12 clubs.

But even if we take it from the split in Season 1958/59. From those 54 seasons, the Blues have played 7 seasons in the Championship, 31 seasons in League 1 and just 16 seasons in League 2.