Do The Owners Ambitions Match The Supporters'?

[matt_magpie]

Whatever you think of Hardy, it's amazing that a team with Hemmings, Dennis and Enzio managed to get relegated from League 2.

Well Enzio didn’t do a lot in the NL and I don’t think he’s done that much at Sutton, we bought him off one good season, Dennis hasn’t done a lot since and tbf his goal scoring is a bit sporadic at best over his career, only Hemmings has played at a decent level since, same with the rest of the squad, not many of them played at a decent level after Notts.

[Elite_Pie]

Well Enzio didn’t do a lot in the NL and I don’t think he’s done that much at Sutton.

Enzio made 49 appearances for Sutton, a team that missed the playoffs by a single point.

Ignore that, and he didn't do much.

[kill_the_drum]

You don’t buy a football club to have no ambition or aspirations of taking it up the leagues, regardless of what motivates you.
What we’re really talking about when we say ambition is to go and buy players that a sustainable business can’t afford. We basically want them to bankroll the club the same as AH and RT tried to do.

The problem is with that is you’ll never get to a point where you’re not being bankrolled. If we’d have won promotion with either the previous two owners, I doubt we’d be in a better position than we are now, arguably worse. They would have just stretched the wage budget further to try and compete until the money ran out.

Whilst the owners have stated they want a quick return to the EFL, their approach is a slow burner. I love that they’re trying to set a footballing philosophy that runs throughout the club. It builds a foundation where the goalposts aren’t moving every 5 minutes. I also feel there’s no ego where they are concerned so decisions are likely to be made with the head, not the heart.

[laddo]

Good question but I'd suggest it's hard to match the ambitions of the supporters. Our ambitions are inflated compared to the people paying the bills, sinking huge money into the football club like most owners do, year in year out.

I'm not talking a season ticket and some pies and pints at half time each season. I'm talking seven figures! When you are paying hundreds and not hundreds of thousands every year then it is easy to criticise and ask them to up their game. Our responsibility is nominal by comparison.

The pandemic saved supporters money, whereas it cost the owners considerable sums.

Something I don't believe is considered enough by fans.

There is absolutely no reason why someone sinking huge amounts into a money pit that is English football would be happy with parity and stagnating at their current level. That would be complete madness IMO.

[Jampie]

Ambitions? Yes.

Patience? No.

As in, everyone wants us to climb the leagues all the way to the top of the Premier league. Of course that's our ambition and that of the owners.

But while many/most fans of the club want us to 100% guarantee getting promoted to League Two in the next season, the owners recognise that:

a) It's actually not possible to do that, and
b) The closer you get to 100% chance of promotion the more expensive it gets, and therefore the less sustainable it is.

I suspect they're aiming for a 20-30% chance of promotion per year, and our performance this season, rating maybe a 10% chance (let's discuss it?) fell slightly short of expectations.

But understand this... even just a 10% chance each year will get you promoted eventually, with you likely to be promoted by the end of your seventh season.

With a 20% chance each season you're over 50% at four years, and a 30% chance is awesome, you should be done by 2-3 seasons.

So depending on what the costs of achieving these chances (or roughly these chances) I would want to settle in the 20-30% range, personally, _unless_ there were seasons with no big spenders in the league, in which case getting a 50% that season might not be too overpriced for us.

So the owners are looking at promotion as a multi-year thing, that could happen next season, or three seasons from now, not something that MUST HAPPEN THIS SEASON. And they'll adopt exactly the same strategy in League Two. If we're regularly making the playoffs, they probably won't be going crazy with expenditure.

Meanwhile to offset the costs, they are looking to get relatively younger players in who are undervalued, train them up and sell them on. And surprisingly, also doing this with Coaches

So while the lack of short term gains might frustrate the hell out of fans (with good reason!) it gives me a LOT of confidence in the club's future. Because it constitutes a long term strategy that:

a) _Will_ succeed, and
b) Carries virtually no risk of the club folding

Whereas previous management have repeatedly brought the club to the brink of bankruptcy by betting on short term gains.

[Elite_Pie]

As in, everyone wants us to climb the leagues all the way to the top of the Premier league.

I must be the odd one out then, because the Premier League isn't on my wishlist. My hopes and expectations aren't that high, I just want us to become a Football League club again. That's all I'm asking.

[uysapie]

I must be the odd one out then, because the Premier League isn't on my wishlist. My hopes and expectations aren't that high, I just want us to become a Football League club again. That's all I'm asking.

Agree and the sooner the better. Depends on who we get as a manager and the tactics.

[Hoppie]

Ambitions? Yes.

Patience? No.

As in, everyone wants us to climb the leagues all the way to the top of the Premier league. Of course that's our ambition and that of the owners.

But while many/most fans of the club want us to 100% guarantee getting promoted to League Two in the next season, the owners recognise that:

a) It's actually not possible to do that, and
b) The closer you get to 100% chance of promotion the more expensive it gets, and therefore the less sustainable it is.

I suspect they're aiming for a 20-30% chance of promotion per year, and our performance this season, rating maybe a 10% chance (let's discuss it?) fell slightly short of expectations.

But understand this... even just a 10% chance each year will get you promoted eventually, with you likely to be promoted by the end of your seventh season.

With a 20% chance each season you're over 50% at four years, and a 30% chance is awesome, you should be done by 2-3 seasons.

So depending on what the costs of achieving these chances (or roughly these chances) I would want to settle in the 20-30% range, personally, _unless_ there were seasons with no big spenders in the league, in which case getting a 50% that season might not be too overpriced for us.

So the owners are looking at promotion as a multi-year thing, that could happen next season, or three seasons from now, not something that MUST HAPPEN THIS SEASON. And they'll adopt exactly the same strategy in League Two. If we're regularly making the playoffs, they probably won't be going crazy with expenditure.

Meanwhile to offset the costs, they are looking to get relatively younger players in who are undervalued, train them up and sell them on. And surprisingly, also doing this with Coaches

So while the lack of short term gains might frustrate the hell out of fans (with good reason!) it gives me a LOT of confidence in the club's future. Because it constitutes a long term strategy that:

a) _Will_ succeed, and
b) Carries virtually no risk of the club folding

Whereas previous management have repeatedly brought the club to the brink of bankruptcy by betting on short term gains.

Bingo.

However with this in mind I am surprised they didn’t want to retain IB as each change represents a risk (albeit also an opportunity).

I suppose we will be able to analyse this come Xmas!

[Jampie]

Bingo.

However with this in mind I am surprised they didn’t want to retain IB as each change represents a risk (albeit also an opportunity).

I suppose we will be able to analyse this come Xmas!

Yeah losing him is a big hit to the organisation, but they would have had little choice but to let him go. Keeping him here would not be acting in his best interests which is unethical at best.

His (brief) career here, on the other hand, just changed this place from a club where managers' careers take a nosedive (or die), to one where you can jump up two leagues. That should help them recruit the next one.

[durhampie]

They let him go because he had failed to take us to the next level. At least it saved them from having to sack him..