Where should we be as a club

[TTS]

Poole was bought from the Collymore war chest ... Fry was fully supported by Jobson to rebuild the blues once Collymore left, but we all have to admit, that the team built by Fry, from the Collymore sale was amazing to watch.

Marsh, remains one of the best signings we have made, loved watching him, but that support, from Jobson was from a very different "bank account" than the Poole etc signings were made from.

Its a fine line for smaller clubs, which is why its difficult for us to tie the better players in, you cant afford to offer Championship wages, hoping you will be in that league, if you then miss out and remain in League 1.

Other past seasons people have moaned how we have lost players at the end of the contracts, but for me, thinking running a football club is like playing Championship Manager. We have a budget, like any small business' have and how small business' do you see struggling on the high street. Roots Hall now makes us live a day to day budget I would guess, whereas, FF could and hopefully would generate additional income, meaning you can plan with a longer time frame in mind.

 

[Firestorm]

Poole was bought from the Collymore war chest ... Fry was fully supported by Jobson to rebuild the blues once Collymore left, but we all have to admit, that the team built by Fry, from the Collymore sale was amazing to watch.

Marsh, remains one of the best signings we have made, loved watching him, but that support, from Jobson was from a very different "bank account" than the Poole etc signings were made from.

Its a fine line for smaller clubs, which is why its difficult for us to tie the better players in, you cant afford to offer Championship wages, hoping you will be in that league, if you then miss out and remain in League 1.

Other past seasons people have moaned how we have lost players at the end of the contracts, but for me, thinking running a football club is like playing Championship Manager. We have a budget, like any small business' have and how small business' do you see struggling on the high street. Roots Hall now makes us live a day to day budget I would guess, whereas, FF could and hopefully would generate additional income, meaning you can plan with a longer time frame in mind.

Yeah, Without the Colly money Vic would have been sunk a lot earlier, we were told it was used to help with the South Stand, buy the Access sports ground as well as give Barry Fry the resources to improve his CV and get a better job (although that was one hell of a team he built and then ritually dismantled)

 

[superblue24]

If things stay as they are, we are about on par with where we should be.

However, we have potential to be a Norwich, Ipswich, Blackpool, Portsmouth (the latter in their better days!) and several others in my opinion. We have district population of 180,000 which means that if all was well and we were doing well in the CH that we have the local population resources to pull crowds of 20K plus. History has shown us that our time in the Championship has seen bumper sell out crowds and the League Cup game against Man Utd.....Ticketline gridlock! This is the same for every club. If we were in the Premier League and Spammers were in League 2, who would be getting the higher crowds? (assuming stadium sizes were equal)

The FF stadium is key to a new era at SUFC and will give us CH stability in the long term. Any success we enjoy at the moment is relative and relevant to the club we are now. FF will give us a new club identity and will be the first step to taking our seats alongside a number of teams you wouldn't currently think of us in the same sentence as.

The diggers have been promised since early 2000.... Perhaps they are driving here from Australia via the Moon.

 

[AndyT]

...as well as give Barry Fry the resources to improve his CV and get a better job (although that was one hell of a team he built and then ritually dismantled)

The 3-1 win at Derby County that season still ranks as one of the best three performances I've ever seen from a Southend United team.

 

[Rob1920]

sorry any supporterthat believes we are just a league one club that flirts with promotion etc ,obviously are happy with medicrity. we are and should be a top 10 at minimum championship club that flirts with the playoffs and occassionally gets into the playoffs and maybe then we can flirt with times in the premiershite,you may not like the premiershite as it is now ,but not to want our club to maybe play in it someday is so negative,myself theres nothing more i could wish for than to see the club i love even if it was only for a season or two to play their with the elite .

We have and may once in a generation flirt with the top 10 in the Championship but there's nothing in our history that suggests thats where we should be. Teams like Bradford and Luton could legitimately make that claim based on their history, and could rightly say they are currently punching below their weight. For us that level would be hugely punching upwards. You look at that league right now, every team from the top down to 17th are all considerably 'bigger' clubs than us, all have been in the prem, or old Div 1 at some point. Most have won major trophies. In fact other than Brentford, Barnsley & Burton you could apply the above to every team in the division. The best we can hope for with our current infrastructure is to cling on at the bottom end if we get there, and that would be an acheivement. If and when we finally get a modern stadium and all that goes with it, and if the potential for average gates around the 12k to 14k mark is realised, we might just over time be able to consider our natural position to be a Championship club, much like a Reading or a Wigan have managed to do. Both clubs who were once like us (or lower in Wigan's case). But don't forget the investment it took from very wealthy sugar-daddies to get both those clubs to where they are. We don't have that luxury, and thats no dig at Ron who in my opinion has done his best and kept us afloat when no one else would touch us with a barge-pole. However he's not in that financial league. Hence when you add it all up, we're about where we should be right now, although of course we should be aiming as high as possible. If you aim to stand still you'll go backwards.

 

[Uncle Leo]

Most have won major trophies. In fact other than Brentford, Barnsley & Burton you could apply the above to every team in the division. .

Don't forget Barnsley's 1912 FA Cup win!

 

[RobM]

Brentford's problem is probably the competition around them.

 

[Rob1920]

Don't forget Barnsley's 1912 FA Cup win!

I've also got a feeling Brentford had a season or two in the old Div1 many years ago?

 

[Uncle Leo]

I've also got a feeling Brentford had a season or two in the old Div1 many years ago?

Yes, finishing as high as fifth at one point in the mid-30s.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brentford_F.C.#/media/File:Brentford_FC_League_Performance.svg

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

It’s a natural thing for you to want the best for your club, Chairman, Manager, superstar who is worth millions, and our only chance there is the youths, who we are bringing through well.

You are deluding yourself if you think we are bringing the youths through well.

They are getting blocked at the u23s and not progressing.

Our opponents Saturday played three players who had come through their youth team; we had none.

It always amazes me the type of money we dished out at that time, i mean 400,000 for Gary Poole. i would be interested to know what our highest transfer fee we have paid for a player since the year 2000.

Peter Clarke £400,000

 

[GrumpyBlue]

Yes, finishing as high as fifth at one point in the mid-30s.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brentford_F.C.#/media/File:Brentford_FC_League_Performance.svg

Yes my late father-in-law saw them in Div 1 between the wars - hence my wife is a Bees supporter

 

[TTS]

You are deluding yourself if you think we are bringing the youths through well.

They are getting blocked at the u23s and not progressing.

Our opponents Saturday played three players who had come through their youth team; we had none.




Peter Clarke £400,000

Personally, I find this incorrect. You've chosen 1 game as comparison. Over the last couple of years, we've seen a few come through BUT also we've lost a lot of youngsters to much bigger clubs. So actually, our youth set up is actually reaping its own rewards, just more financially rather than the playing side. The squad this year has a good mix, with Elvis and Dru signing 4 year deals already this season and Harry K coming along nicely. Also, we have some young strikers that are starting to make people notice them. Maybe better to consider the bigger picture, rather than choose 1 game ( oh, a game we won, so the number of youngsters the opponents had for me is irrelevant, the 3 points was the more pertinent number )

 

[jaffa1]

Just about keeping our heads above water while keeping the local populace entertained.

I got chatting to Jonathan Hunt at a do in the Summer he said "you have to remember that Southend are seen as a stepping-stone club".....sobering words.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Personally, I find this incorrect. You've chosen 1 game as comparison. Over the last couple of years, we've seen a few come through BUT also we've lost a lot of youngsters to much bigger clubs. So actually, our youth set up is actually reaping its own rewards, just more financially rather than the playing side. The squad this year has a good mix, with Elvis and Dru signing 4 year deals already this season and Harry K coming along nicely. Also, we have some young strikers that are starting to make people notice them. Maybe better to consider the bigger picture, rather than choose 1 game ( oh, a game we won, so the number of youngsters the opponents had for me is irrelevant, the 3 points was the more pertinent number )

We can look over the league season to date if you'd rather:

Matches played (sub appearances)

Dru Yearwood 4(1)
Elvis Bwomono 4 (0)
Jack Bridge 0 (1)
Dan Matsuzaka 0 (0)
Ted Smith 0 (0)
Nico Cotton 0 (0)
Sonny Coutts 0 (0)
Nathan Bishop 0 (0)
Joe Bedford 0 (0)
Renei Batlowka 0 (0)
Harry Phillips 0 (0)
Norman Wabo 0 (0)

8 starts and 2 sub appearances in 16 matches

Then put this into the context of the injury crisis everyone was complaining about.

Then look at last season:

Ted Smith 19 (0)
Jack Bridge 1 (3)
Jason Williams 0 (7)
Elvis Bwomono 0 (0)
Dan Matsuzaka 0 (0)
Jordan Williams 0 (0)
Josh Bexon (0)
Nathan Bishop 0 (0)
Nico Cotton 0 (0)

20 starts and 10 sub appearances in 46 matches.

Mooney, Noble and King made 25 appearances last year between them so it's not as if not we were being picky.

That is not doing a good job of bringing youth players through.

 

[TTS]

We can look over the league season to date if you'd rather:

Matches played (sub appearances)

Dru Yearwood 4(1)
Elvis Bwomono 4 (0)
Jack Bridge 0 (1)
Dan Matsuzaka 0 (0)
Ted Smith 0 (0)
Nico Cotton 0 (0)
Sonny Coutts 0 (0)
Nathan Bishop 0 (0)
Joe Bedford 0 (0)
Renei Batlowka 0 (0)
Harry Phillips 0 (0)
Norman Wabo 0 (0)

8 starts and 2 sub appearances in 16 matches

Then put this into the context of the injury crisis everyone was complaining about.

Then look at last season:

Ted Smith 19 (0)
Jack Bridge 1 (3)
Jason Williams 0 (7)
Elvis Bwomono 0 (0)
Dan Matsuzaka 0 (0)
Jordan Williams 0 (0)
Josh Bexon (0)
Nathan Bishop 0 (0)
Nico Cotton 0 (0)

20 starts and 10 sub appearances in 46 matches.

Mooney, Noble and King made 25 appearances last year between them so it's not as if not we were being picky.

That is not doing a good job of bringing youth players through.

Smith Injured , but played a lot last season ... 19 games ! Oxley has been probably one of the best players this season
Bishop, see above
Dru - again, 4 year contract ( midfield playing well, - involved in the squad, getting pitch time, improving for it )
Elvis - again, 4 year contract ( JD playing well - but Elvis is involved with each squad )
Williams - awful player, nice lad, not good enough
Harry K - Injured, otherwise would still be playing
Bridge - my understanding was dreadful at Ricay last week, off to Bournemouth last season, something wrong here ( lets blame the Club / PB here though, easier )
Others, personally I reckon are getting closer.

So what do you want, 50% of the players to be youth, regardless of ability ?

Also, you totally swerved the point of youngsters that were taken by bigger Clubs !

You really are looking for any hook to look for negativity, because, we've won our last 2 league games and are actually better off this season, points wise, at the same stage as last season.

You must hate it when we win, you really must.

Also, explain why its important to say that Walsall had 3 youngsters, you don't get more points for fielding youngsters, they didn't beat us .. so I fail to see how that point is at all relevant.

I wonder how many Club bled youngsters Wigan have ? Is that important ?

 

[Firestorm]

Smith Injured , but played a lot last season ... 19 games ! Oxley has been probably one of the best players this season
Bishop, see above
Dru - again, 4 year contract ( midfield playing well, - involved in the squad, getting pitch time, improving for it )
Elvis - again, 4 year contract ( JD playing well - but Elvis is involved with each squad )
Williams - awful player, nice lad, not good enough
Harry K - Injured, otherwise would still be playing
Bridge - my understanding was dreadful at Ricay last week, off to Bournemouth last season, something wrong here ( lets blame the Club / PB here though, easier )
Others, personally I reckon are getting closer.

So what do you want, 50% of the players to be youth, regardless of ability ?

Also, you totally swerved the point of youngsters that were taken by bigger Clubs !

You really are looking for any hook to look for negativity, because, we've won our last 2 league games and are actually better off this season, points wise, at the same stage as last season.

You must hate it when we win, you really must.

Also, explain why its important to say that Walsall had 3 youngsters, you don't get more points for fielding youngsters, they didn't beat us .. so I fail to see how that point is at all relevant.

I wonder how many Club bled youngsters Wigan have ? Is that important ?

Harry Kyp is not a product of our youth set up, we signed him for the "new" Under 23 team last year after he was released by Watford . He has never had a youth contract with us

 

[TTS]

Harry Kyp is not a product of our youth set up, we signed him for the "new" Under 23 team last year after he was released by Watford . He has never had a youth contract with us

I apologise, however, should we then be precluded from bringing in these type of youngsters if they are better than our own, as some people on here live in a fantasy world were we should been promoting our equivalent of Scholes, Giggs, Neville, Beckham, Butt every season.

Personally, I class young players, as young players and improvement is still managed by the Club, players that fall into this category include Harry K ( I doth my cap sir ), Lenny, Bentley and also Payne... the term youngsters should cover all and not just Club bled ( hence my comment/query regarding Wigan )

 

[Firestorm]

I apologise, however, should we then be precluded from bringing in these type of youngsters if they are better than our own, as some people on here live in a fantasy world were we should been promoting our equivalent of Scholes, Giggs, Neville, Beckham, Butt every season.

Personally, I class young players, as young players and improvement is still managed by the Club, players that fall into this category include Harry K ( I doth my cap sir ), Lenny, Bentley and also Payne... the term youngsters should cover all and not just Club bled ( hence my comment/query regarding Wigan )

Ba as well

 

[TTS]

Ba as well

You just about made the minimum character requirement with that comment - well done

 

[MK Shrimper]

I got chatting to Jonathan Hunt at a do in the Summer he said "you have to remember that Southend are seen as a stepping-stone club".....sobering words.

But you can apply that logic to anyone who isn't a big Premier League or European club surely?