Quote: RLLDN "We understand things did not work in Twickenham for whatever reason, '"
Here is the problem I face when dealing with you lovely chaps in the optimism camp. I have no issue with your devotion and faith, but I do get riled when you make sweeping statements like this.
The rest of your post is fairly valid by the way, with Toshiba getting the shirts in exchange for the imaging units etc, although I am sure the likes of Peter Ozgood etc were household names whilst the Russian was in short pants.
Point is, the Twickenham era failed for a number of reasons, the biggest one being out of our control when the myopic RFL pulled the rug from under us...the rug being Ian Lenegan. If he'd have been allowed stay involved, the rest of the problems I am about to point out would either not have existed, or if they had, been far less of a problem than they became.
David Hughes and the RFL are not happy bedfellows. Hughes, rightly in my opinion, felt that the RFL should offer more support to him, as it is he who is essentially bankrolling THEIR expansion. That said, he does not always act with the games best interest at heart and neither does he have the business acumen as someone like Lenegan, so he will make mistakes. He is a salesman and a successful one at that, so taking advice isn't always his thing. As such.....he has employed successive CEO's who have run the business into the ground.
The residents of Twickenham were never told we had move in. Simply put, we did nothing in the way of "local" marketing, but instead made viral videos to be shown in walkabouts and handed out oyster card holders in Canary Wharf....then we offered free entry to a game in return for Facebook likes (giving us hundreds of fans in Castleford and Huddersfield) and also belatedly placed adverts with little editorial coverage in the local free sheets.
I could continue with the failings of the club at TW2, but you get the picture.....
Now, to your Brave New Dawn with hopes of attracting new fans and the potential investment they attract.
We've all heard it before......We've all seen it before and the only difference this time is that Gus has somehow managed to remove any onus of responsibility from himself, but instead, managed to get the RFL to pay the Landlord to do all the work for him. The results thus far are that the RFL seconded media guy has found the password to the website and facebook pages, but must have gone home for the weekend because it's been a tad quiet since we got murdered by the chemics and the local paper have given us some column inches.
The new landlord invests nothing, nil, nada in Barnet FC which he insists is self funding and demands that if regular fans want to save money, they subscribe to HIS way of doing things......resulting in less than spectacular sales to date.
Suddenly, blocks of 300+ seats at the Hive have become unavailable, which points to either making room for the selco banner, segregation from the 5 dozen or so salfordians, or a bulk giveaway......but I suspect that we could be looking at a very small crowd on Saturday, either way.
Nothing has changed at the club. The people charged with the important stuff are not qualified and not motivated. there is a reward available to them should they do their job, but no consequence to them if they don't.....so they won't try too hard and won't be bothered if it doesn't work......it is a recipe for failure.....failure which I am afraid to say, has become acceptable at the club.
As for on the pitch? Salford by 40!
good luck with the optimism and don't ever let b'stards like me get you down, but whatever you do, try not to look too surprised when it all turns to custard!
COYB!!!
