Quote Originally Posted by AucklandRover View Post
The hard part for me is the prospect of competing with several teams, packed with PL players and PL money. However generous Venky's are, I doubt our funds will match those at the disposal of some of our competitors.
I'll be honest (and open to criticism!) here: I'd almost prefer a year of consolidation, with most of the current players given a chance to show what they can do. Apart from keeping some of the present loanees (and our own best talent), I would only be looking at signing two "class" players.
That year might also see some of the U-23s making a breakthrough.
I suppose what I mean is, I hope we are not going to start from scratch again - as we did last August - with a whole new raft of players to integrate.
One thing I am very confident about, now, is that Mowbray will be looking for signings with the right character, as well as the right ability.

I think a club in our position can look to what Sheffield United and Millwall have done this season. Millwall got promoted with 24 less points than us last season, spent hardly anything and will finish around the play offs. Same with Sheff Utd.
Millwall have gone for players like Marshall (who we had at Rovers) and Tim Cahill who had been playing in the MLS for 5 seasons. They haven't spent any money.
The lad who will finish top scorer for Sheff Utd, Leon Clarke was from Bury, and was a nothing, lower league failed striker who nobody (outside of Bury) had heard of. Who scored hardly any goals.

We have a basis of a very strong side. Frankly everyone has spend the season worrying about what sides like Walsall will do to us, even when be blew them away, they still have doubts. So I will side step everyone 'worries and concerns' as I can see we are already just as good as half the Champ with what we have now. We just need to strengthen in a few area's. While I don't think we can just go up and compete with the mega rich sides like WBA who will be coming down with a bank full of money, I can see that we will be competing with Leeds, Bristol City, BOTH Sheff Clubs, Reading, QPR etc etc etc .....no way can we sit here and start ****ting ourselves. None of those sides are any better than us.
Why should we? We come up full of confidence. Organised, hungry motivated, class in certain area's. We score goals.

I just think it will always boil down to peoples outlook. If you spent the season predicting us to not beat sides like Walsall, then in no way are you going to get behind the team. By the sounds of it, through message boards, next season will be a very depressing time.
Anyone attending games on a regular basis is brimming with confidence and cant wait to get up, and show people what our great young side can do.

TM has already identified 4/5 players. and 2/3 loan players. This was mentioned a few weeks ago.
We had a category of players we wanted to get (had we stopped down) and a category of players we wanted if we went up. Obviously now we are up, we can start to go for them. Nobody is giving credit ton the fact this exact same situation happened 12 months ago. TM knew exactly who he wanted, he was given the go ahead, and went to get them. The same will happen now. Mainly because he has promotion to strengthen his case.

We are a lot more organised than anyone gives us credit for.