2nd best again

[Slartibartfast]

Even if we had kept the same side it would have been no guarantee of an equally succesful season. People always seem to think that our results and league position are all about us and ignore the obvious fact that the other teams in the league might have some say in the matter.

Daggers deservedly won it at a canter with a good but not exceptional team and I think part of the reason for our success was the relative weakness of many of our rivals.

Oxford, York and Halifax seem to be struggling to match last seasons performances too while Burton, FGR, Cambridge and the Shots seem to have improved.

 

[hopeful]

im sorry if i dont agree with some of you guys,but i go to a football game to enjoy it,i would prefer this to be with my home town team ,whatever league we are in doesnt come into it.whats the point in going if you cant enjoy it,the football on show this season at home has been generally poor.

[eufckev]

Football on show at home this season has been generally poor? Won six out of nine league games. If we were 'poor' could be zero out nine games.

[KShep]

There's a difference between poor football and poor results. Arsenal played amazing football last season and just about finished fourth. Chelsea played what was widely regarded as ugly and poor football and they pushed Man Utd all the way.

[hopeful]

so who would you prefer to watch.

[eufckev]

Ebbsfleet United.

[hopeful]

nice one, but i think your ducking the question.

[Greg_Dyke]

[hopeful]

i wish you well, quack, quack.

[Hirsty]

Originally Posted By: hopeful

so who would you prefer to watch.

Appreciate what you are saying but, if there is a game on the telly between teams that I no allegiance to ( which narrows it down to all but two !), then you get a feel for which teams will provide a good game ( for the neutral !), but that doesn't always hold good.

When it comes to watching a team that you support/follow/have feelings for etc. as far as I am concerned then ideally you would want your team to play attractive football & win constantly but, alas, there are few teams that can do this.
So, knowing the limitations of said team(s), both financial & technical, give me a sh*tty 1-0 win and a few beers any day !!

I see, changing the subject slightly, that the was a "star" letter in the Distorter today in response to Kayne & Gally's letters citing, once again, the change of name as the correspondent's "grudge". Now, as I have said many times before, the freedom of the individual to comment on any subject is his/her right ( enjoy it while it lasts folks !). However,
this particular correspondent requesting that the board resign is, in my opinion, rather strange ! The word Dinosaur springs to mind. Would he rather we went back to playing part time in the Ryman/Southern in front of 200/300 fans ? or be ambitious & forward thinking ? I know which I favour.

Anyway...must dash now as I hate long posts....and my beer can is empty !!

Cheers all !

[Stu M]

Originally Posted By: hopeful

so who would you prefer to watch.

Chelsea if I supported Chelsea, Man United if I supported Man United.

[Harry J Allstars]

Well said Gary, finally.

 

Chelsea haven't lost at home in three and a half years but recently fired their manager and were said to be a crisis club. Imagine losing at home, it's given me nightmares.

 

[Slartibartfast]

I think we are probably all agreed that we would like to see the Fleet playing good attractive football and that we haven't seen too much of that this season but I am pretty sure that neither the players or the management set out with the intention of playing poor football, sometimes things just don't go to plan.

We also need to be realistic about our expectations both of the players and of the league position which we can achieve.

[jc]

Spot on as usual, Slarti.

 

Originally Posted By: Hirsty

I see, changing the subject slightly, that the was a "star" letter in the Distorter today in response to Kayne & Gally's letters citing, once again, the change of name as the correspondent's "grudge". Now, as I have said many times before, the freedom of the individual to comment on any subject is his/her right ( enjoy it while it lasts folks !). However,

this particular correspondent requesting that the board resign is, in my opinion, rather strange ! The word Dinosaur springs to mind. Would he rather we went back to playing part time in the Ryman/Southern in front of 200/300 fans ? or be ambitious & forward thinking ? I know which I favour.

 

Said letter was the source of much mirth when I read it yesterday - particularly the bizarre reference to the 'hundreds of Gravesend and Northfleet loyalists' alienated by the name change. Our average league attendance so far this season is down on last year, but not by that much, so if they are such 'loyalists', where were they last year?

 

I feel a letter in reply in the offing.

[Hempstead Gaz]

Originally Posted By: jc

Spot on as usual, Slarti.

ISaid letter was the source of much mirth when I read it yesterday - particularly the bizarre reference to the 'hundreds of Gravesend and Northfleet loyalists' alienated by the name change. Our average league attendance so far this season is down on last year, but not by that much, so if they are such 'loyalists', where were they last year?

I feel a letter in reply in the offing.

Our gates are down, at present, by 179 on last season's average.
That represents 15%.
You may call that not much, but I reckon others do, especially the board.
The powers that be at the club, along with those supporters who refuse to admit the falling gates as a problem, need to wake up and smell the coffee.
We are extremely lucky to have good sponsorship, long may it last. It needs to, for without it I suspect our full time status would need to be reviewed.
I am not being alarmist, simply realistic.

[jc]

Of course attendances are a concern - 'that much' was in reference to Mr Stubbs' risible implication in the Distorter that 'hundreds' of hitherto loyal Fleet supporters were staying away because of the name change.

[DA11]

IMO the name change is an excuse. Sure some people feel the identity of the club and its history has been ripped away but then we must respect their views and not mock them. There are fans on here that have been going for 30+ years that have embraced the name change. Which in my view is great. Younger fans don't have the history connection so it really makes no difference to them. My only concern is has the name change benefited the club. The sponsorship deal with eurostar and others is good but that money has cemented financial shortfalls and is not visible on the pitch. I still do not feel the club do enough locally. I said before that today would have been ideal to market the club in the town centre again. No match...so where's the problem. If they were to get a proper marketing manager who had marketing ideas then it could prove beneficial.

[Stu M]

Originally Posted By: DA11

My only concern is has the name change benefited the club.

But surely that's too short-term a view. The club have done this with the long-term in mind, the realisation that 'Ebbsfleet' as a place, a locality, whatever you want to call it, won't become established the minute the station opens but over the next 10 and 20 years. Whether it will or not is open to question, but I don't think we can expect to see any changes on the pitch in the six months since the name changed.

And the name change was never just about increasing the fanbase, it was more about the sponsorship and commercial opportunities. Gravesend as a town has had 60 years to embrace the club, by and large it hasn't, so can you blame those who pin the club's survival on other means of making money seeing as it isn't coming from the local supporters, other than us.

I don't know if a name change was the right way to go about it, but I sure as hell believe the club must find other sources of income because as we all know, we can't rely on gate money.

[DA11]

Stu, When I say has the name change benefited the club it wasn't directly aimed at attendances. A name change should have presented a wonderful marketing opportunity. This hasn't happened. We moan about Gillingham and Charlton encroaching on our area but we have no answer. Appreciate all this is for the future development aroung Ebbsfleet over the next ten years. What about now?????

[Stu M]

Originally Posted By: DA11

Stu, When I say has the name change benefited the club it wasn't directly aimed at attendances.

I was more getting at those who seem to think it was only about attendances - like the bloke who wrote Thursday's letter who said if the attendances haven't gone up in 18 months or whatever, the name should be changed back!

So, indeed, you didn't say that DA11!