kpinwp
1st team Player
Posts: 1,248
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Post by kpinwp on Apr 30, 2018 15:43:25 GMT
Never understood the angst some fans have over Eastleigh having money. If the guy and his colleagues wants to pour money into a venture what business is that of ours? Their money and as long as it is all above board and legal, so what? Donald has just continued what Dos started down there and in doing so built an excellent football facility (save for the pitch!). My only issues with EFC is said pitch, their younger fans (although, as we saw on Saturday, bigger crowds brings different types of people) and the fact we never bloody win there. What happens to them now will be interesting though as Donald leaves for his next football project - good luck to him with that. Conciliatory, sensible nicely written... markf - "are you sallycat in disguise?" Sallycat can also be quite stern. Dunno if that's more of a week or weekend thing, though... |
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jr
1st team skipper
Posts: 2,199
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Post by jr on Apr 30, 2018 15:46:20 GMT
I think it's an "upsetting the natural order" thing. People are much more accepting of a club that organically grows and improves, particularly so if they're punching above their weight from a financial perspective (see the great press Accrington Stanley have received this season in League Two), but when they see someone come in and throw a load of money around without a care in the world, it all just seems a bit artificial. You also have the knock-on effect of spending in the way that they have since they got promoted a few years back - with the money they're supposedly paying out in wages for bang average players, it's no wonder there are loads of clubs in trouble. Players and their agents see that Eastleigh (and others) are paying X amount, and it inflates the amount they demand from everyone else. Obviously the clubs can just say no, but then they're going to struggle to sign anybody. Understand your points but hardly the first to chuck a few bob at it. Stevenage in the 1990's did and perhaps more pertinently, AFC Fylde have a very rich owner. Don't see them getting the flack that Eastleigh do on here. Not sure the fella chucked money around without a care, after all, it wasn't just the playing budget but the way he has built up the stadium. As for players' demands that is up to the clubs what they want to pay and we certainly haven't struggled to sign quality players and we're nowhere near the top payers in the NL, apparently. 5 managers in 2 and a half years might suggest that he has! |
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markf
Top Performer
Posts: 3,326
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Post by markf on Apr 30, 2018 15:58:02 GMT
That's where he went wrong (Donald admitted he had made mistakes) and he couldn't find the right man. Martin Allen had a woeful record at Eastleigh but he has managed Barnet to the brink of safety from what looked like nailed on relegation. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
As I say not just been about on the field for him, has it?
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jr
1st team skipper
Posts: 2,199
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Post by jr on Apr 30, 2018 16:04:29 GMT
Clearly he's an astute businessman and not your Uncle Urchin or dare I say it, Glenn Tamplin! Certainly it's now a more impressive stadium with great facilities but a pig to get to if you're not driving. Whoever takes over will need to have deep pockets as they will need to fulfil those players who have their over inflated contracts that run into next season. They may be debt free at the moment but that could change very quickly.
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markf
Top Performer
Posts: 3,326
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Post by markf on Apr 30, 2018 16:08:06 GMT
Reading their forum, I think a fair few are out of contract.
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trev
1st team skipper
In Matt We Trust
Posts: 2,477 
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Post by trev on Apr 30, 2018 16:13:18 GMT
That's where he went wrong (Donald admitted he had made mistakes) and he couldn't find the right man. Martin Allen had a woeful record at Eastleigh but he has managed Barnet to the brink of safety from what looked like nailed on relegation. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. As I say not just been about on the field for him, has it? Exactly. That whole Martin Allen debacle was particularly farcical. In the 84 days he was in charge of the club (from 1 December 2016 to 22 February 2017) he got rid of 19 players, and brought in 13 new ones. Effectively, he replaced an entire squad with a totally new squad in less than three calendar months, slap bang in the middle of a season. On the one hand, that smacks of complete recklessness, but on the other hand, he was clearly given a mandate to do so by Stewart Donald, not to mention a blank cheque book. That doesn't sound like an astute businessman to me. I wish Sunderland all the luck in the world, they're going to need it. |
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markf
Top Performer
Posts: 3,326
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Post by markf on Apr 30, 2018 16:19:00 GMT
His ability as a businessman I suppose depends on how much money he has to spend. That spree may have been loose change!
One thing for sure is he will have left a good legacy with regards to the facilities available for the club for match days and of course hire.
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Post by sallycat on Apr 30, 2018 16:19:44 GMT
Certainly it's now a more impressive stadium with great facilities but a pig to get to if you're not driving. And a pig to park at if you are... |
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jr
1st team skipper
Posts: 2,199
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Post by jr on Apr 30, 2018 16:23:17 GMT
Certainly it's now a more impressive stadium with great facilities but a pig to get to if you're not driving. And a pig to park at if you are... And £5 too! |
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Post by surreyu on Apr 30, 2018 16:41:25 GMT
I find it interesting that he was talking about having to cut the budget at Eastleigh next year and has now purchased a club that are currently paying Jack Rodwell £70k a week despite not even knowing where he is. They'll be expected to have the League 1 title all but sewn up before Easter and be competitive in the Championship the season after or the natives will likely turn. They won't be happy plodding along like Eastleigh have done. I hope the consortium he is heading has a lot of people with deep pockets because they will need them
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Post by Amber Aleman on Apr 30, 2018 17:01:01 GMT
It's worth remembering that Eastleigh initially did very well under Donald's watch. They won the Conference South in 2014, and in their first season at the higher level finished 4th, losing to Grimsby in the play-offs. The following season they finished 7th and reached the third round of the FA Cup for the first time. Sacking Chris Todd just four games into last season may have been a mistake, as since then they've struggled to recapture their previous success.
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