League Two 22/23

[Fedora Dale]

First thing they'll take off you is the ground if you hit serious admin problems. Asset strippers can sell the ground under their ownership. Council/community owned then it can't be touched. Higher up you can see the advantages but at these levels it's better to have that safety net.

Dale repaid the mortgage on their ground yesterday. No longer having interest to pay frees up some money for player wages...

 

[AdamStag]

private owners buying the ground from the council is a VERY bad move if that’s what’s happening.

Sounds like a wolf in sheeps clothing to me.

 

[Ninety Per Cent]

First thing they'll take off you is the ground if you hit serious admin problems. Asset strippers can sell the ground under their ownership. Council/community owned then it can't be touched. Higher up you can see the advantages but at these levels it's better to have that safety net.

Which is what we’re going through now, a few of us flagged it up over a year ago but having a coffee club in the stand and someone getting a club blazer and tie was more important.

 

[Railway Blue]

Ah yes, separate captains for offence, midfield and dee-fence I seem to recall.

Yes that was mad Terry. His father Gerald was even madder.

Heard a few years back he'd bought a radio station for a song and managed to sell it for 19 million dollars.

If you read his wiki page beware he wrote it himself .

 

[BlackCountrySaddler]

private owners buying the ground from the council is a VERY bad move if that’s what’s happening.

Sounds like a wolf in sheeps clothing to me.

Our ground is currently owned by our previous owner, Jeff Bonser.

He charged the club £500,000 a year to use it, this obviously continued when he sold the club to Pomlett.

All our new owner wants to do is reunite the ground with the club.

 

[Conker]

Our ground is currently owned by our previous owner, Jeff Bonser.

He charged the club £500,000 a year to use it, this obviously continued when he sold the club to Pomlett.

All our new owner wants to do is reunite the ground with the club.

Similar thing happened to us with Keith Haslam until JR brought the stadium off him.

 

[Salvador]

My first log in for months after I heard the site had stopped constantly breaking and throwing up spam ads.
Good to see league two is looking nice and Northern for next season with some good local away trips. This summer certainly has more stability for Dale. As mentioned above, our ground is now owned outright. No debt. Manager in place for a pre-season and (hopefully) no more hostile takeover shenanigans distracting us. I'm hoping for a much better season. I doubt the overall quality of the league will be as poor as last season so won't get carried away. But I'm really keen to see what our recruitment looks like when the window opens up properly.

 

[Trapdoor]

Definitely more Northern this year, particularly compared to L1.

Behold, League 2:

....and for comparison, League 1:

 

[chipmunx]

Definitely more Northern this year, particularly compared to L1.

Behold, League 2:

View attachment 17306

....and for comparison, League 1:

View attachment 17307

i bet you're glad you went up now you've seen that

 

[AdamStag]

Of course it being more northern is a good thing, don’t want pansies turning up on your turf every weekend do you?

 

[leedsvaliant]

Feel at the minute we’re using the bigger budget on quantity rather than (top end) quality and I’m far from convinced we’re building a squad that anyone else would be jealous of or one that’s bagging auto’s/PO’s as minimum aim.
We’ve renewed a number of bench warmers to go along with plenty of deadwood that’s still under contract and still with four youth players getting pro deals (according to City Vent pod) to come. The three main players we’re still hanging on for in O’Connor, Watt and Vernham are all better than those brought in so far, can add Pereira too. Of the new signings, obviously Walker aside, it’s all built on potential I get that, but these aren’t players as a rule who anyone is missing, Swindon’s 8th choice centre mid, someone who came off the bench now and again for FGR, a Southampton goalie who’s played one season of league football a couple of years ago? I get the Colin Doyle move, as someone who loves the club, as someone who can play and coach, but he was never stand out the last time and if it wasn’t for his wife pining to come back I don’t think he’d be remembered as good as some are making out. Harratt another ‘potential’ player but one who only started five games for Vale. Harratt being a case in point...he isn't a big name but he's had half a season in proper men's football now and has bags of potential. In my opinion that's better than being lumbered with a 'name ' who the manager feels obliged to play but is actually to the detriment of the team.

I can’t see past the massive gaps still to fill into a squad that’s bloated already, I fully appreciate the Hughes effect and how well we played under him since he came in, I get that marquee signings and loans are still to come. I feel like we need to shift quite a few though to balance things out, we’ve had a lightning start recruitment wise and I think I’ve been spoilt by that and keep forgetting how it’s still early days, but so far, I think we’ve only done ‘alright’ this window, it could work and be genius, or we find out why many of these new lads couldn’t regularly start for their former teams.

In this league, I think you needed a new recruitment model. Previously you've just bought in has beens as the fans will have heard of them and then thrown them together in the vain hope they work. It seems to me that Hughes has identified areas where the squad is weak and is recruiting those with potential. Harratt being a case in point. He's played half a season in men's football and has bags of potential. Better than being lumbered with a 'name' that is well past their best but the manager feels obliged to play because of the money they are on.
If you look at us last season, the manager identified the system and then used his recruitment team and in depth stats to find them. Garrity was derided by Oldham fans but our management team had done their homework, looked at his stats and also his personal attributes and attitude and decided he fitted the system. He scored 12 goals from midfield. Wilson was about the only real 'name' that we went for and he was surplus to requirements at Salford because again they'd just bunged him into a team and hoped for the best. I'm sure Hughes won't be targeting mid table and some of these players you're bringing in even now may turn out to be key.

 

[RiftHouseLad]

Us, Carlisle and Barra are Northern Clubs
The rest are Southern Softies.

 

[Trapdoor]

Us, Carlisle and Barra are Northern Clubs
The rest are Southern Softies.

I think you'll actually find that "The North" is anywhere beyond Bristol and the Thames.

 

[LS Bantam]

In this league, I think you needed a new recruitment model. Previously you've just bought in has beens as the fans will have heard of them and then thrown them together in the vain hope they work. It seems to me that Hughes has identified areas where the squad is weak and is recruiting those with potential. Harratt being a case in point. He's played half a season in men's football and has bags of potential. Better than being lumbered with a 'name' that is well past their best but the manager feels obliged to play because of the money they are on.
If you look at us last season, the manager identified the system and then used his recruitment team and in depth stats to find them. Garrity was derided by Oldham fans but our management team had done their homework, looked at his stats and also his personal attributes and attitude and decided he fitted the system. He scored 12 goals from midfield. Wilson was about the only real 'name' that we went for and he was surplus to requirements at Salford because again they'd just bunged him into a team and hoped for the best. I'm sure Hughes won't be targeting mid table and some of these players you're bringing in even now may turn out to be key.

All spot on and hopefully it works out as well as it has with you guys. On Harratt, it was interesting to hear Ryan Sparks (CEO) say the deal had been worked on for 6-8 weeks prior to him signing and we’ve been in touch with him throughout - a level of planning unheard of in these parts.

 

[DearneValleyRover]

Us, Carlisle and Barra are Northern Clubs
The rest are Southern Softies.

Nah you lot are Scottish

 

[chipmunx]

Nah you lot are Scottish

carlisle are....

 

[AdamStag]

carlisle are....

Least you local game is carlisle,

Had we gone up we could have got wednesday or derby, but get the booby prize of revisiting the 80s with a trip to dodgy doncaster.

That said it’s good for a win like last season.

 

[northstandexile]

It’s good that us and Crewe are vying for the 12th most Northern club in the Division.

I seemed to remember when we were in the Conference one season the 12th most northern club was someone like Stevenage.

 

[Conker]

Least you local game is carlisle,

Had we gone up we could have got wednesday or derby, but get the booby prize of revisiting the 80s with a trip to dodgy doncaster.

That said it’s good for a win like last season.

All donny birds be out in full force again

 

[AdamStag]

All donny birds be out in full force again

Ha, it was like a cross between crime watch and those off dating in the dark

 

[Huntsman94]

This just throws me back to the National League days where Wrexham and Chester aside, it seemed we had to travel to Australia and back for an away game! From memory you had:

Woking, Maidenhead, Maidstone, Aldershot, Boreham Wood, Sutton, Bromley, Torquay, Dagenham, Leyton Orient, Ebbsfleet, Eastleigh, Dover…

Thank god petrol was cheaper!

 

[chipmunx]

This just throws me back to the National League days where Wrexham and Chester aside, it seemed we had to travel to Australia and back for an away game! From memory you had:

Woking, Maidenhead, Maidstone, Aldershot, Boreham Wood, Sutton, Bromley, Torquay, Dagenham, Leyton Orient, Ebbsfleet, Eastleigh, Dover…

Thank god petrol was cheaper!

thank fuck we are both in EFL 2 now... it's much better when we can argue about whether anyone south of Crewe (for example) are Southerners or not due to a nice healthy number of Northern clubs.

 

[Monkey Tennis]

This just throws me back to the National League days where Wrexham and Chester aside, it seemed we had to travel to Australia and back for an away game! From memory you had:

Woking, Maidenhead, Maidstone, Aldershot, Boreham Wood, Sutton, Bromley, Torquay, Dagenham, Leyton Orient, Ebbsfleet, Eastleigh, Dover…

Thank god petrol was cheaper!

Probably the most ridiculous for us was Lowestoft in the Conference North! It's not much below Birmingham on a map, but a bloody long journey for most of the teams in that division.

 

[chipmunx]

Probably the most ridiculous for us was Lowestoft in the Conference North! It's not much below Birmingham on a map, but a bloody long journey for most of the teams in that division.

I did Kings Lynn away when they were conf North... but Lowestoft is like another hour further away.

 

[AdamStag]

Do they get some form of compensation?

 

[RiftHouseLad]

I think you'll actually find that "The North" is anywhere beyond Bristol and the Thames.

And any direction leaving Exeter you will find Civilization. lol

 

[RiftHouseLad]

Nah you lot are Scottish

We are NOW, HartlePaul.

 

[RiftHouseLad]

Least you local game is carlisle,

Had we gone up we could have got wednesday or derby, but get the booby prize of revisiting the 80s with a trip to dodgy doncaster.

That said it’s good for a win like last season.

Donny is class, Always used to be our halfway house on away days.

 

[Salvador]

Probably the most ridiculous for us was Lowestoft in the Conference North! It's not much below Birmingham on a map, but a bloody long journey for most of the teams in that division.

I suppose there'll always be outliers like that if an imbalance of north/south teams are promoted or relegated through the pyramid. Are Gloucester and Oxford still NLN? They're not exactly oop north!
I've seen suggestions that 6th tier would be better splitting east/west as well or instead (like NPL and below) given travel difficulties are worse in that direction than say using the M6/M1.

 

[RiftHouseLad]

This just throws me back to the National League days where Wrexham and Chester aside, it seemed we had to travel to Australia and back for an away game! From memory you had:

Woking, Maidenhead, Maidstone, Aldershot, Boreham Wood, Sutton, Bromley, Torquay, Dagenham, Leyton Orient, Ebbsfleet, Eastleigh, Dover…

Thank god petrol was cheaper!

Good for geography