Next two weeks will show us what ambition this club has.

[NorthWestCorner]

Waiting until the summer is a recipe for disaster. Last minute recruitment, lack of preparation for the next season etc.

What we need is a long term strategy supporting the manager to develop a long term squad. TS has made the same error time and time again seeing every close season as a need for a wholesale change.

[howdydoo]

Waiting until the summer is a recipe for disaster. Last minute recruitment, lack of preparation for the next season etc.

What we need is a long term strategy supporting the manager to develop a long term squad. TS has made the same error time and time again seeing every close season as a need for a wholesale change.

Last minute recruitment is last minute recruitment. If the club wait until 31st August to bring in players for League 1, I'd agree with you.

The question I'd have for you, is what has been wrong with our recruitment after being relegated from the championship in recent seasons? We've always bounced back and been a top side in that league. Personally I think we've lost a lot of stability and next season could be tough.

Isn't the January window a notoriously difficult period to do transfer business? The few managers I've spoken to over the years say it is.

[NorthWestCorner]

Last minute recruitment is last minute recruitment. If the club wait until 31st August to bring in players for League 1, I'd agree with you.

The question I'd have for you, is what has been wrong with our recruitment after being relegated from the championship in recent seasons? We've always bounced back and been a top side in that league. Personally I think we've lost a lot of stability and next season could be tough.

Isn't the January window a notoriously difficult period to do transfer business? The few managers I've spoken to over the years say it is.

To answer your question - its been ok. Good enough to do well in division one but not good enough to build a foundation for Championship survival. I keep hearing its difficult to do that but its not impossible. We need a longer term strategy for that. Signing younger potential and developing it - we have had some success - Rathbone, Vicktor, Humphries but we have also failed particularly up front and in the full back departments. We could and should have done better.

[howdydoo]

To answer your question - its been ok. Good enough to do well in division one but not good enough to build a foundation for Championship survival. I keep hearing its difficult to do that but its not impossible. We need a longer term strategy for that. Signing younger potential and developing it - we have had some success - Rathbone, Vicktor, Humphries but we have also failed particularly up front and in the full back departments. We could and should have done better.

I don't wholly disagree.

Yet look down the road. They are 10's of millions in debt and have been less successful than us over the last 10 years.

Every decent young player in youth football has 20 scouts watching them every game. Of course you can have a bit of success but to have the notion we're missing out isn't true. We don't have the facilities or the cash to upgrade to a CAT 2 setup. If we did we'd still miss out to both Sheffield clubs, Leeds, Man City, Derby etc. Man City and Leeds compete hard for local lads and even the Sheffield Clubs suffer to compete with them for lads aged 10 and up.