Which division do we belong in ?

[Romared]

In terms of size , achievements, attendances etc ,?

[Young_Nudger]

In terms of size , achievements, attendances etc ,?

Good question.
And one I put to Patrick Cryne and also Khaled during Q&A sessions.
I’ve also mentioned this a few times on message boards.
How big is Barnsley Football Club ?

In my time of watching the Super Tykes we have always been of similar size to the Lancashire clubs - Bolton, Burnley and Blackburn.
But those clubs have a better history than Barnsley - they have had more success - and as such they have a better understanding of how big the fan base is as they have spent seasons in the top flight.

Barnsley never has.

We don’t know what the attendances would be if we spent a few seasons in the top flight.
Barnsley has had one session in that division - the ground was less ready for that division than what it is now - but we filled it even though we were anchored to the bottom of that league.

There is some talk of building a new West Stand and Khaled has asked Barnsley Council how many supporters we would expect if we got into the Premier.
I would guess the home end needs to accommodate at least 20k.

But no one knows.

BTW - as a result of Barnsley not having that period of sustained success we have a high proportion of football supporters in Barnsley that support other local teams - Leeds and the Sheffield clubs.
All too evident when you go to Cortonwood.
And often seen in the town centre itself.

[SBRed48]

Historically we have spent more seasons in the second tier than nearly any other club.

Our most succesful era, year after year, was at the height of coal production from 1908 to 1914.

We got to the top tier just before money ruined the competition in the game from the early 2000's

Now we are a third tier outfit in most respects---on a par with Ipswich, Charlton, Bolton etc

[Shadrack the Red]

It is all hypothetical , our history suggests that we are the most established second tier team within the whole 92 teams , therefore the answer to the ops question is " the championship " , how ever I firmly believe you play & deserve to play in what ever league you currently ply your trade in , for example , when we drop then we deserve to be in division 1 , should the miracle happen & we avoid the drop then we are deservedly a championship outfit next season, I do not believe this arrogance of big club , history , attendances etc which some fans seem to think should decide where in the league status you belong, I believe you are where you are because of your performances on the pitch & you have no divine right to anything .

[Young_Nudger]

It is all hypothetical , our history suggests that we are the most established second tier team within the whole 92 teams , therefore the answer to the ops question is " the championship " , how ever I firmly believe you play & deserve to play in what ever league you currently ply your trade in , for example , when we drop then we deserve to be in division 1 , should the miracle happen & we avoid the drop then we are deservedly a championship outfit next season, I do not believe this arrogance of big club , history , attendances etc which some fans seem to think should decide where in the league status you belong, I believe you are where you are because of your performances on the pitch & you have no divine right to anything .

If we are the most established club in the 2nd Tier - then how come every club currently in that league other than Peterborough has a better more successful history than Barnsley?

Barnsley has been starved of success.
It’s not a massive town with regards to population but it’s a massive town when it comes to football fans living in it.

The mindset at Barnsley has always been to think small.
Think small - be small.

When in reality no one actually knows the potential of the club.
If these owners occasional put their hands in their pockets and supported the club as proper owners should do then they may just get a big surprise.’

[GRASS SOD]

Lg 1 WITH PMG RUNNING THE SHOW

[Romared]

It is all hypothetical , our history suggests that we are the most established second tier team within the whole 92 teams , therefore the answer to the ops question is " the championship " , how ever I firmly believe you play & deserve to play in what ever league you currently ply your trade in , for example , when we drop then we deserve to be in division 1 , should the miracle happen & we avoid the drop then we are deservedly a championship outfit next season, I do not believe this arrogance of big club , history , attendances etc which some fans seem to think should decide where in the league status you belong, I believe you are where you are because of your performances on the pitch & you have no divine right to anything .

I do think History , Size , Fanbase does matter Shads, i get yourpoint about the arrogance though , Thats why we lose players/managers , we simply dont have large enough crowds , we arent expected to challenge for Honours , very little history , we are destined to be a mid table Championship side at best , sadly i think without bigger attendances and paying the going rate we wont attract quality players here , in fact most i think would prefer S6 over us , Division One is probably where we belong , Lack of Ambition and money is the problem IMO,

[Olias1]

Statistically speaking we are a championship side having been in that division more than any other team, as previously mentioned.

However the mindset at the club is league one.

This could in sone way account for the continuously yo-yo between the two.

[EthelRed]

Our league position in our seasons competing in the championship since relegation from the Premier League read:


13 4 16 23 20 18 20 18 17 21 21 23 14 22 21 5

If you extract last season freak season the stats from recent years suggest we arent competitive in the championship. We did OK post relegation from the Premier but from thereon its pretty poor. So if you want to watch competitive football league one is the place for modern day BFC.

If youre not bothered if we win or loose then we could continue with the annual struggle. Nothing will change until there is ambition for sporting success within the ownership.

[Young_Nudger]

History is massively important to a football club.
And Barnsley have no history to call owt that enables the club to attract support.

Only have to look at clubs like Sheffield Wednesday - still getting decent crowds watching absolute garbage with the club going nowhere under a mountain of debt.
But talk to their fans and they will tell you that they are a Premier club and it’s just a matter of time before they are back there.
All beliefs based on their history.

Sad thing is - when PMG arrived I naturally thought they would provide the financial backing to enable Barnsley to achieve a period of success.
Disappointment is an understatement.