Athelwulf

The Blades fans are bullish at the moment because they've had an upturn in results. And because the deadlines have been passed, they've convinced themselves that no-one wants to buy us.

After he'd been dismissed, I remember Francis saying on Monday Night Football that he wished Wednesday well, but thought that it would be difficult as there "wasn't as much money there as there was at other clubs". When Brearley wanted to merge Wednesday and United in 1996, he warned that if Wednesday weren't still in the PL in the new millennium, then they'd be in trouble.

Atkinson/Francis built a good side, but an ageing one. What would the likes of Hirst, Waddle, Walker etc have cost, as young players, in the mid- to late-1990s? Too much. If you look at Man Utd's squad in the 1980s, many of the players had been cherry-picked from other teams, not developed at Old Trafford. Even Man Utd realized by the 1990s that they had to develop their own talent, whereas we did nothing. With the PL, and Uncle Jack and Uncle John inflating the transfer market at Blackburn and Newcastle, there's no way that we could hack it without a rich owner and youth development.

It was downhill from then on. But this is because of the way we were run. Richards must have known that without a rich owner and without a youth policy we'd struggle, yet did nothing.

Yes, very true. The only thing we should be doing in our defensive third is getting the ball out of it as quickly as possible. Kick it, head it, Row Z it.

And he'll be in a bad mood too because he wasn't at the Lane.

Ashley knows football, which is worth a lot. We don't need another novice.

Go in at 21.00 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpgzYcHN5tg

Yes. If Mr. Bobbar outbids Mr. Croesus, Wiggy will privately encourage Croesus to match or better Bobbar's offer. This is the advantage of having a partial broker.

The thing with Channers isn't that he gambled, but rather how he gambled. We'd already been out of the big time for 15 years, and fans didn't have the patience to wait another ten years to get back. All Chansiri needed to do was to sit down with Gray and ask him what we'd need to get the team into the play-offs. Five to six quality players would have sufficed, to add to the solid Championship side he inherited. We never needed a squad of 34, all those strikers (but none with pace), all those midfielders (but no enforcer), and in spite of all the money spent, the spine of the team remained the same.

For me, you've got to get the keeper, CB and enforcer department right. Those four are the foundation of the team. As you say, Charles, Bernard and Cooper would be great in League 1, but it's the enforcer we need to finish the job. My choice would be Morsi, who's currently training with Wolves, his hometown club. He's always impressed me when he's played against us, and he knows how to tackle.

Apparently he thinks half of us are binmen nfor doubting his ability to buy the club, as per TalkSport just now.

Yes, let's make the most of the situation. Use the rest of the season to blood and develop players for League 1. And as MF Taz says, reduce pricing. If you're trying to bring people to the game with you, to boost crowds, then it makes the job a lot easier.

Yes, and the candle always burns brightest before it goes out.

It won't be easy to recruit new fans this season, but hopefully next it will be much easier. It'll involve a combination of lower prices and existing fans persuading friends, family and colleagues to come along, as well as those who've drifted away. We shifted Chansiri by working together, and our objective next season should be to get this club into the 30 000+ bracket. I know that the Trust are keen to increase attendances, because I wrote to them a few weeks ago about this very topic.

Can't disagree with any of that. If all goes well, next season should be a positive one under new ownership. Hopefully we'll be winning games regularly, so recruiting will be easier. I know 8 people who've packed up attending in recent years, and I've got them in my sights. There's no chance at the moment, but if we're doing well next season - and prices are lower - then there's a good chance of getting them back.

Fair enough, and good points made. Realistically it'll be next season when the recruitment drive will have to kick in. For what it's worth, the five I brought yesterday enjoyed the game, and they'll be back. Rawmarsh Mick brought additional nephews, for instance.

I agree with you, prices should be lower. Yesterday's game should have been cheaper in my opinion. But no owner will lower prices and then get the same crowds as before. Persuading people to return and enlisting new recruits won't be easy, but it will be a much easier task with lower prices. I know that the Trust is now working on boosting crowds, and hopefully they will liaise with whomsoever the new owner is. However, we'll have to do our bit too in persuading others to join us. We shifted Chansiri together so there's no reason to believe we can't boost crowds together.

Yes, get Bernard back too, and we've got the making of a good defence there.

We need to be doing better than 24-25K. Our objective has to be to attract crowds of 30K+, and if we want cheaper prices then that's what it'll have to be. Which is why it's incumbent upon fans to bring someone with them.

Imagine Biggsay and Anday ... Sport's about timing. Pompey were doing well until the red card and penalty. And it's obvious that Leicester's players aren't playing for the manager, as Blades players weren't for Selles. United were beaten play-off finalists last season, so there's nop way they should be where they are in the league. But if they don't do it automatically, then they're staying down. Surely Leicester will change manager after this debacle.

People do what they want to do, but we need to bear this in mind - and I'm not talking necessarily about today's game. We want lower prices, and in fairness today's game is quite expensive, but in general if we want cheaper prices then we're going to have to turn up in bigger numbers. And that basically means bringing someone with us. Friends, family, colleagues, people who've drifted away. I wrote to the Trust a few weeks ago, and they told me that they are going to attempt to boost crowds, and we'll need to give them a hand.

Which is why we need to turn out in force tomorrow. I was pleased to hear that Mick the Rawmarsh Owl is taking additional nephews tomorrow, and I've got 5 people going with me. Potential buyers could well be in the box tomorrow, so we want to impress them. Don't let's allow the derby defeat to scupper our chances, or Tufty and Dem Blades will have won twice over.

To me, this bloke looks like Povlsen.