Ilford FC

[big guy]

what a good idea sack the management , players will go then where will we be no management no players erm not rocket science is it for f*** sack we drew one game and now the season is over lets now build on the mistakes of saturday i wasnt there so i cant say we were good or bad could have been a lot worse could have had a result loke potters bar.

[Out_Of_Towner]

Just picking up on a couple of points though...

 

Give us the crowds of AFC Wimbledon, Telford, Halifax or Chester, and the revenue generated would get us promoted. Guaranteed. It's a nonsense to compare them to us just because we are 'fans owned'.

 

I don't think you'll find too many people arguing that even with the move to the new ground, we will only be able to sustain, financially, Ryman Prem standard with our current level of support.

 

HOWEVER, to say that it's 'time for our B o D to resign and hand the club over to a local Investor...' What local investor? Is there a queue outside the door? Maybe Lazarou should have another go? I'm sure if a genuine candidate showed an interest, it would be put to the members.

 

Also, "Being a part owner /member wont give us the promotions that is required for a club of our size." Club of our size? What size is that? You could rightly argue that our level of support is in the top two or three in the current division (certainly not our budget), but in the Ryman Prem? We're not Enfield FC circa 1986 and even if we were, football has changed.

 

I'm not sure that weeks before a move into a new ground that so many people have worked so hard for is the right time to be calling for a coup to be brutally honest. But each to their own.

 

It's amazing what two dropped points at Ilford can do to you.

Well that didnt take long did it , The same old head in the sand attitude (yawn) year in year out with certain members . It just never changes does it . If the club advertises for a Business Investor then surely one would take up the challenge . Lee Harding I used as an example and look where Braintree are now ! MORE TO THE POINT GUESS WHERE WE STILL ARE ? (yawn again) . Dropping points to seasonal strugglers like Ilford is just not acceptable in my book and I can assure you they'll be greater challenges than them in the coming months ahead . Time to wake up people I can see another wasted and frustrated season ahead . WE NEED INVESTMENT AND ITS NEEDED NOW , Not when the Inner circle are pushing zimmer frames around !

[littlehampton]

Absolutely stunned by the very outspoken comments of Papa Lazarou, who seems to want to use yesterdays draw at Ilford, as an excuse to try and cause mischief, by criticising everyone from our manager to our elected board members. Why, and what is his agenda?

 

This guy hasn't got a clue as to what it takes to run a non-league club at our level, and the response posted by Scoreline will certainly strike a chord with most dedicated Town supporters.

 

Our board members have done extremely well to secure us a new stadium, and we greatly admire the efforts of all our loyal supporters who have worked their socks off throughout the close season, to bring our new ground/home up to scratch.

 

Perhaps Papa Lazarou would like to tell everyone exactly what he has contributed to the club!!

[big guy]

guys why not go out and find some one to invest in our club instead of moaning on here that the board isnt doing anything you get investors you get money coming into the club you manage the team you find the players who want money to play.

[big guy]

even better how many moaners are actual members if not why dont you pay up become a member and then YOU can elect a board of YOUR own then you can have a moan at them as on a previouse post wots going to happen if we loose tuesday will the club no longer exist ???????

[Papa Lazarou]

Just picking up on a couple of points though...

 

Give us the crowds of AFC Wimbledon, Telford, Halifax or Chester, and the revenue generated would get us promoted. Guaranteed. It's a nonsense to compare them to us just because we are 'fans owned'.

 

I don't think you'll find too many people arguing that even with the move to the new ground, we will only be able to sustain, financially, Ryman Prem standard with our current level of support.

 

HOWEVER, to say that it's 'time for our B o D to resign and hand the club over to a local Investor...' What local investor? Is there a queue outside the door? Maybe Lazarou should have another go? I'm sure if a genuine candidate showed an interest, it would be put to the members.

 

Also, "Being a part owner /member wont give us the promotions that is required for a club of our size." Club of our size? What size is that? You could rightly argue that our level of support is in the top two or three in the current division (certainly not our budget), but in the Ryman Prem? We're not Enfield FC circa 1986 and even if we were, football has changed.

 

I'm not sure that weeks before a move into a new ground that so many people have worked so hard for is the right time to be calling for a coup to be brutally honest. But each to their own.

 

It's amazing what two dropped points at Ilford can do to you.

 

Its not just the 2 points lost at Ilford - its the lack of ambition and settling for losing in the play offs again (at best) under Newing.

 

Why cant we get crowds like Chester and Telford? Chester and Telford are a shining example of how to run things properly - have any of our board ever gone down there to ask how they do it?

 

One promotion in 10 years tells its own story. Sure I will still go to the games (and Ilford away next season) but I am getting fed up of it as my rant shows.

 

We just seem to be sailing along and going with the flow.

 

And no disrespect to Romford but Enfield Town are a non league giant where as Romford struggle to compete with the greyhound racing.

[Scoreline]

And you think I've got a 'head in the sand attitude'?

 

"If the club advertises for a Business Investor then surely one would take up the challenge"

 

Really? Why?

 

For starters anyone who gets involved with a football club thinking they can make money is either a crook or and idiot. Secondly, it may has escaped your attention that the world is going through a pretty severe financial period which affects almost all businesses, having a knock-on effect on football clubs. In my line of work I deal with several and every single one has had a massive drop in sponsorship revenue in recent years. I admire your ambition that a fit-and-proper, financially solvent backer would just pop-up and lead us to the Football League, I honestly do.

 

Going on your previous examples: Lee Harding got involved with Long Melford (not in the Football League quite yet) and then Braintree because he moved to Haverhill. He has been very generous in sponsoring Town over a good few years but he is no longer local to us.

 

Graham Westley is not Chairman of Stevenage, Phil Wallace is. I'm led to believe Westley is a very shrewd businessman which is probably exactly why he isn't a Chairman of a Football Club...

 

And what if a knight in shining armour did appear? Took us up, gates increased (remember than even in EFC's Conference days we weren't attracting anything like the crowds the bigger BSBP clubs get now) and we became solely reliant on them to pay the bills? Obviously that's how a lot of club's operate but it doesn't work all the time does it? Ask a Rushden & Diamonds fan, and I dare say a few years from now, a Crawley fan.

 

Basically the view I'm putting across (and it's my personal view, I don't speak for anyone else) is this. I'd rather support a club that plays at a sustainable level and pays it's players and suppliers. If that is as a Trust-run club or with an Investor at the helm then whatever. But don't go thinking that a) There would be one knocking on our door and it would definitely springboard us up to the level of football you desire. It doesn't work like that.

 

Also, the day we kick off at QE, if you can't be proud as an ETFC member and fan of what we have achieved, from the base of nothing, in 10 years, then I'm sorry, maybe your head is in the clouds rather than the sand.

[Scoreline]

Papa Lazarou. Where to start...

 

Chester and Telford 'do it' by having their own grounds and attracting crowds in excess of 2,000 to their home games.

 

Where exactly do you think we should be? Why do you think that an ambition of the play-offs is not good enough? Do you honestly believe the club is able to give Steve a championship winning budget?

 

Like it or not we are NOT Enfield FC under Tommy Unwin. I grew up watching football at Southbury Road but we are still a long way from those days. Of course the new ground should give us a financial boost and I'd love to see where we'll be in another decade but I for one will enjoy finding out, even if it means a few more trips to Ilford.

 

And finally, Romford have far more claim to being a non-League giant than Enfield Town. They have a long, proud and successful history while we have only just started creating ours.

[Papa Lazarou]

I pay my money every week to watch us. Why should i have to do anything else? I'm not in the inner circle and nor do i want to be. I pay my money so I'm entitled to my opinion which as i stated was that Newing should go. Can't remember ever feeling this way at the start of a season but im not alone and will say how i feel regardless of what others want me to say.

[Scoreline]

Say what you like sir, of course you're entitled to your opinion, that's what football is all about. But posting it on a public forum you have to expect that sometimes people will challenge it.

[OldTowner]

Can we all just calm down.

As I posted at the front of this thread - the Ilford performance was Lackluster and sure all Town supporters would have hoped for a win as did Steve N when I spoke to him towards the end of a frustrating afternoon.

Talk of sacking people and getting rid of the Board is just trouble makers having a go ONE game into a new season.

If we have 6 bad games a no more that 6 points THEN start moaning.

All this talk of a Great Team with history - I think some have their wires crossed or have a memory lapse !

Some Clubs that are 10 years old are still playing Park football and enjoy it - so be grateful.

 

Let's have a few positive comments and look forward to Tuesday v Tilbury - but, don't expect an easy game cos there wont be any this season.

[missunderstood]

Nice of Scoreline to say Romford has more of a claim to be called a non league giant than Enfield, although my own opinion is that past glories give no club the right to call themselves "giants". Really looking forward to visiting QE2 Stadium and I'm sure every single one of us poor old Romford supporters who still dream of a home to call our own will be as jealous as hell.

[MbrunoB]

I will be proud of what has been achieved when we play our opening game at the new stadium as that will be the main objective achieved of the reason we started our club.

 

For all the money and on field success that AFC Wimbledon have managed they have still NOT achieved the aim of a home in their home borough.

[littlehampton]

Papa Lazarou you need to remember that a club is a club and it doesn't run itself.

Our elected board members, inner circle, call them what you like, all make a significant contribution towards the running of the club, and they don't get paid for their time and efforts. Thanks to their efforts, and others, the new stadium is now a reality.

 

Still can't understand what your attitude problem is with Steve Newing. He is a popular, well connected manager, who is well liked and respected by players and supporters, and is well capable of getting us promotion.

 

If you have serious issues or reservations about our football, or the club in general, why don't you talk to Steve, or any of our board members, rather than go public and make vague statements online.

[thecoldend]

Papa Lazarou, as Mr Scoreline says you are entitled to your opinion but your comment of "Shocking performance. Newing has got to go. Worse team for 3 years by a long way" is in my opinion just a tiny little bit far fetched and silly. One game doesn't make a season and was it a shokcing performance??? Did we lose 4-0,5-0 or 6-0 or something without creating any chances??? On another day if the ball dropped right with a ltitle luck Town would of won by at least 3 goals!!

 

Cast your mind back two seasons ago when on the second game of the season Ilford came to Goldsdown Road and won 0-1... What happened at the end of that season?? We qualifed for the play offs and had a great night at W&F before going out to Concord Rangers which if Stuart's penalty decision would of been given who knows what would of happened?

 

Speaking of W&F...did they panic and sack David Norman after we beat them in the play-offs as he was no good!! Nope!! They built and learnt from it and guess what...they were promoted last year!!!

 

Another example is East Thurrock United...2008/09 they lost out on the league title in the final game by 1 point and were knocked out in the play offs.........2009/10 lost in the play-offs... did they panic and sack John Coventry?? Nope...they built and learnt from their experience...and I don't need to tell you who won the league last season!!

 

AFC Wimbledon, FC Halifax, AFC Telford and Chester get big crowds because they were formed on the back of three ex-football league clubs and a non-league club that always attracted good crowds... As Scoreline states even in the succesful period for Enfield FC the club used to get crowds of 800ish in the league!!

 

MBrunoB is quite right to say we will all be proud when the first game at the QE is played and that was the main objective for the club when it was founded...to return football to Enfield!!

[OldTowner]

Well, there we have it. Some good positive responses.

 

Not sure that "Papa Lazarou" will win many friends with any Enfield Club using such a name.

[Steph]

I actually thought that Ilford were a vast improvement on previous seasons and the result was reasonable. But there again I started supporting the old Enfield in 1959 when they were in the Athenian league without promotion and relegation. The played clubs like Redhill then and played them year after year. The old Enfield had won nothing since 1936 but I suppose we were more patient in those days.

 

The old Enfield achieved their success through good management and a progressive board. They were not overnight wonders but worked hard for that success. I feel sure that Enfield Town can and will emulate the old Enfield but it will not be with a rich investor or by sacking and changing managers willy nilly. Times will often be tough but that is when you know that a club will be successful as to when they get through those tough times but there will be good times as well and they are the ones to look forward to.

 

As for a rich patron. Wolves are second in the table and are one of the only two teams in the premier league to have made a profit last season. It is called sound business.

[Papa Lazarou]

Ok, I take it on board. Onwards and upwards, fresh start against Tilbury. Will see you there and hopefully will be able to catch a few moments with Steve.