You have to fear for the future of the club

Against the euphoria (quite rightly) of staying in the Prem for another year it would be myopic to believe that we are now an established Prem club.

Aging squad; depleted squad; no major funds to spend on the multiple positions needed; a manager that may well depart sooner rather than later.

I remember posting that we needed new ownership but the difficulties in finding a new owner is confronting.

Small ground; lack of a huge local population (and therefore lack of future potential fan-based increase).

I offered the thought that amalgamation with nearby football clubs might be the only practical answer to potential fan increase but was shouted down with comments such as "This is Burnley-we don't want foreign ownership", "We don't want amalgamation".

And all that's fine but where to from here?

Is going down an inevitability?

If so, SD will be gone soon.

I would be very interested in your views on how the club could advance this seemingly impossible dilema.

My God.How long have you been a supporter?

All the above "problems" have been with us for years.We are a small town Club,that cannot change.We have a small ground because we cannot attract more people to attend and apart from the fact that we do not want "foreign" owners who basically are not fans we are not an attractive proposition for anyone wanting to make money.

Football goes in cycles and inevitably at some time in the future we will struggle.However,our current Manager could see all that when he joined so he decided to do something about it resulting in the development of our Academy with its magnificent facilities.That is the future and with a little bit of wheeling and dealing with our limited funds we can maintain our place in this League.SD will go at some stage and one hopes that our Board will have a plan in place when it happens.

You could always join the herds who support Man City,Man U,Liverpool etc but it is a hell of a lot more fun supporting Burnley and enjoying all the battles and having a moan on this board.

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Originally Posted by barrie_burn

My God.How long have you been a supporter?

All the above "problems" have been with us for years.We are a small town Club,that cannot change.We have a small ground because we cannot attract more people to attend and apart from the fact that we do not want "foreign" owners who basically are not fans we are not an attractive proposition for anyone wanting to make money.

Football goes in cycles and inevitably at some time in the future we will struggle.However,our current Manager could see all that when he joined so he decided to do something about it resulting in the development of our Academy with its magnificent facilities.That is the future and with a little bit of wheeling and dealing with our limited funds we can maintain our place in this League.SD will go at some stage and one hopes that our Board will have a plan in place when it happens.

You could always join the herds who support Man City,Man U,Liverpool etc but it is a hell of a lot more fun supporting Burnley and enjoying all the battles and having a moan on this board.

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I think that's a little unfair, barrie.

The comments are to solicit appropriate responses not to bag the messenger.

I've supported Burnley for longer than you I would imagine but also recognize that a local butcher is no longer the savior of the club in these modern times.

A lot of past posts and responses by others are critical of the Prem and don't care if we slide away to the lower reaches of the league, still intact and paying homage to the "small town" philosophy.

And that's fine.

Its at least a view.

I just don't subscribe to "'it will be all right just believe in the current set up".

And the reason I don't is that adopting a "just in time" philosophy fails the minute the people in charge leave, die or just run out of steam.

This post is to hear how fans want us to progress.

This really is the billion dollar question blueheeler and you are so right to have raised it. The fit and proper person test has been proved to be a joke as have the FFP rules. Many of us are deeply torn because we are rightly proud of what our town and club have achieved “all by themselves” and we don’t need to put two stars on our shirts to tell anyone we have two league titles. If you are a Burnley fan you know our history. Many clubs have sold their souls cheaply for outside money and while some have prospered others have bitterly regretted it. Can outside investment be beneficial for Burnley? Yes of course it could and therein lies the dilemma we face now. Burnley are a very attractive proposition for as long as we remain in the Premier League but would not be half as attractive should we slip back down into the Championship. When clubs hold trophies aloft who questions the owners?

I remember a conversation I had with Dave Baldwin about 5 years ago, Dave was "on the ball" in many of his activities and had a vision he shared with Mike Garlick.

First off was to get Premier League Academy status. (Done.)

His aim back then was to get one player from the youth set-up into the first team. (Done).

He aspired to getting Jay Rod back to Turf Moor (Done) and bitterly regretted the way we allowed Trippier to leave without a sell -on.

Dave told me Garlick realised the importance of Dyche, but even back then said, "no man can be bigger than the club" and we had to be prepared to carry on without Dyche. I had the impression back then that Michael Duff was being honed as a potential successor to SD if the time ever came?

The vision back then was to get Barnfield fully functional (Done), find our own talent or pick up the likes of Mee, Trippier, McNeil, develop them, play them and flog them when the time came.

Garlick wants to keep the club in "local" ownership, but is not obstinate in not allowing outside investment, as long as it is in the best interests of Burnley Football Club.

The long term aim back then regarding the Premier League was to get a run and become an established EPL football team. (Half Done?)

Please recall this conversation was five years ago. Sounds like a plan to me. ;D

And all that's fine but where to from here?
Is going down an inevitability?
If so, SD will be gone soon. I would be very interested in your views on how the club could advance this seemingly impossible dilema.


I think you sum up our dilemma fairly well Blue, although of course there are numerous bigger clubs than us who would love to have our dilemma.

We are certainly not an established PL club and we never will be, we are always going to be one season away from relegation, which I believe is inevitable probably sooner rather than later.

I don't think there's any way we can advance from our current situation, right now is probably as good as it can ever get for us. I don't think Mr Garlick or the Board have discovered any magic formula that ensures our success, what they have done is chance upon an exceptional manager in Sean Dyche, and when he departs we'll depart the PL soon afterwards, Academy status, new owners notwithstanding, they'll be like ear-rings on a pig, they'll make no difference.

In the short term I just hope Garlick can do enough to keep Sean happy for a while, we're an anomaly in the PL, our continued success and survival is predicated on Dyche staying in post. Once he goes all bets are off.

BT --shock, horror ---are you saying that Burnley Football Club had a business plan which they have tried very hard to achieve?
How unusual that is in these modern times when most people think that you can just add water and things instantly happen.

Whenever this topic comes up I have said that, in order to make further progress, more investment would be required, however, as barrie said, we are not the most attractive proposition for anyone wanting to make money and prospective investors will look at what has happened down the road at Blackburn, Bolton, Blackpool and Wigan. They have all been PL teams in recent times, however, they have fallen by the wayside and this will be a factor to be taken into consideration by anyone considering investment.

We are where we are because of the forward planning as BT outlined and we shall have to see what happens with the progress of the Academy because we have only been given the top status from the forthcoming season and the development always takes time. The board have acted sensibly in improving the whole infrastructure of the Club and Barnfield will be a big factor when we have to find a new manager. I can remember a few prospective candidates criticising the facilities at Gawthorpe before we gave Sean the job.

Nobody has a right to play at the top level, in spite of what Leeds fans say, you have to earn the right and try to maintain your position through hard work both on and off the field.

Sorry Blueheeler1 if I seemed harsh.We all have different views and I very much doubt that the Board take the slightest notice of what we all have to say anyway.I think BT summed it up well and I do think we have a plan to go forward with.

Just for the record I no longer live in the area but my first game at the Turf was circa 1954.

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Originally Posted by sinkov

And all that's fine but where to from here?
Is going down an inevitability?
If so, SD will be gone soon. I would be very interested in your views on how the club could advance this seemingly impossible dilema.


I think you sum up our dilemma fairly well Blue, although of course there are numerous bigger clubs than us who would love to have our dilemma.

We are certainly not an established PL club and we never will be, we are always going to be one season away from relegation, which I believe is inevitable probably sooner rather than later.

I don't think there's any way we can advance from our current situation, right now is probably as good as it can ever get for us. I don't think Mr Garlick or the Board have discovered any magic formula that ensures our success, what they have done is chance upon an exceptional manager in Sean Dyche, and when he departs we'll depart the PL soon afterwards, Academy status, new owners notwithstanding, they'll be like ear-rings on a pig, they'll make no difference.

In the short term I just hope Garlick can do enough to keep Sean happy for a while, we're an anomaly in the PL, our continued success and survival is predicated on Dyche staying in post. Once he goes all bets are off.

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With the notable exceptions of Liverpool, Everton, Arsenal and Tottenham, all of the teams currently playing in the EPL are just one season away from relegation sinkov.

United have been relegated, I distinctly City battering us (what's new?) in the now defunct Third Division. Have a look through the Football League sinkov, it's littered with teams who have had their day in the EPL sunshine.

Bradford City, Bolton, Blackburn. Blackpool etc. etc. We have no divine right to be in the EPL, but on current performance I would not bet on us being relegated any time soon - would you?

What happens when Dyche leaves us, is a question that will be answered in the fullness of time, but I simply cannot see him leaving his "project" just yet. :D

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Originally Posted by The Bedlington Terrier

With the notable exceptions of Liverpool, Everton, Arsenal and Tottenham, all of the teams currently playing in the EPL are just one season away from relegation sinkov.

United have been relegated, I distinctly City battering us (what's new?) in the now defunct Third Division. Have a look through the Football League sinkov, it's littered with teams who have had their day in the EPL sunshine.

Bradford City, Bolton, Blackburn. Blackpool etc. etc. We have no divine right to be in the EPL, but on current performance I would not bet on us being relegated any time soon - would you?

What happens when Dyche leaves us, is a question that will be answered in the fullness of time, but I simply cannot see him leaving his "project" just yet. :D

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I would add United, City and Chelsea to your list of established PL clubs BT, the other 13 are indeed just like us, one bad season away from relegation.

As for betting on us to be relegated soon, depends on how long we can hang onto Dyche for. I doubt we'll be relegated while he's here, but once he goes I reckon we have two seasons max left in the PL. And rest assured I'll be betting on it as well. >;)