The League One Relegation Thread 15/16

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

Saw this on Mad which completely describes our situation to a tee. Not a view I penned but I wholeheartedly agree with whoever wrote it and pretty much all of our posters on here would do too.

Renegade DS posted: Most definitely a laughing stock. We're celebrating a goalless draw away to Burton for heaven's sake. We're going into every game hoping we only concede two, rather than the usual three. We're being told by the manager that we're not 'real fans' because we don't think the sun shines out of his backside. Davis is here because we got promoted and won the JPT - well I can't accept that, since the JPT was in 2012 and we're pushing 2016 now. A lot of these 'not real fans' are complaining because not only are we languishing rock bottom of the league for the third consecutive season, but they haven't seen SD's team win a game at home in over 7 months. They're complaining because last season the team stayed up thanks to a random goal in the last five minutes in a game that didn't even involve us. They're complaining because we're now seen as underdogs in matches featuring Burton, Gillingham, Walsall, Fleetwood and Shrewsbury. They're complaining because they spent nearly £300 of their money to be criticised by the manager and treated like idiots because we're not thankful.

I'm NOT thankful that Crewe are still in existence and haven't gone out of the league. Of course, I'm glad that the club still exists, but I'm certainly not about to let my level of ambition for this club be diminished to 'at least we still exist'. The current predicament leaves us with a squad full of confidence-depleted youngsters - who in their right mind is going to come window shopping by watching a team of players who can't pass, have no creativity, and are stifled by a club and subsection of fans that sit there thinking all is rosy just because we're not bankrupt? We aren't going to sell players that are being played in incorrect positions, in a losing side, and certainly not when they're being overlooked due to nonsensical loanees from bigger and better clubs that have no intention of letting us keep their players anyway.

To even suggest that Crewe are anything to be admired in it's current predicament is ridiculous.

(Unfortunately as the excellent view of the poster pointed out, we still have fans like this)

Timmy58 posted in response to saying we should back Davis: How refreshing to hear someone actually supporting the club through thick and rather a lot of thin, these days. Sacking managers, sacking boards (can we actually do that) slagging players off doesn't help. I understand the frustrations and indeed feel frustrated myself when we lose week in week out. But I have faith that all concerned are doing all that can be done to turn the situation round and Whilst I think our manager has got things wrong at times, I don't think he is getting much wrong at the moment. When we are losing we can all pick a better team but we only see the players on match days. I will be there on Saturday God willing and hope to see us turn in a performance that almost earned us the draw we deserved against Gillingham. Doubtless I will abused again for boring people with a posting that isn't calling for a public flogging but I don't really give a flying one.

(Oh dear)

What more will it take for that "subsection of fans" to wake up and want Davis gone? To think Davis isn't "getting much wrong at the moment" is also laughable. To want Davis out in the latter posters eyes means that you don't support the club either. I find that wholehearted arrogance to hold such a view because those fans have paid so much money last three years to back this failing football club and have been slagged off by the delusional egotist in charge because they're merely dissenting against him and don't think he's the club legend he seems to think he is. You don't have to back your manager to support this football club through thick and thin. That's why fans like Timmy58 deserve to see this football club fail in my honest opinion.

 

[mozzavale]

Was such a shame given I thought the one the week before was excellent given it called for Davis to be sacked and demanded change. At first I thought it was Peter Morse under a pseudonym before I then realised the bloke who wrote it actually existed. I've noticed a trend that most of these Davis In fans either don't really go to away games or they're exiles far away from Gresty Road, they may have a season ticket and do a few of the local aways, but they don't travel up and down the country like the locals who go. I know a lot of fans who go away each week, I used to do so myself before I realised I got no value for my money watching us play negative shite each week, and I would say 99% of those fans want Steve Davis axed because the football has somehow managed to get worse than last season.

But nope, board's fault for not giving the club money, board's fault for not backing Steve Davis, nothing is ever Sir Steve Davis' fault, he took us to Wembley in 2012 and 2013 you know so he'll turn it around soon. It's the Crewe way, we don't want to be one of those clubs who have a merry-go-round of managers so we'd rather fail with someone already in the club. Be careful what you wish for, we could be Northampton or Wrexham or *insert club in turmoil here*.

Funny how the narrow-minded sods fail to realise and discredit that clubs smaller than us like Burton Albion are huge strides ahead of us on and off the field because they do pretty much everything a "model football club which we are (apparently) blessed with" should be doing instead of crying out for money to fund loan signings so Sir Steve can loan his way to safety again.

The Crewe Way is the greatest and most laughable myth ever created. It's funny how everyone bleats about the Crewe Way when our rivals have survived two administrations in a decade and are higher than us in the league, with a higher budget, no huge player sales for years and only marginally higher gates. The Crewe Way is now having one shot on target per game and hoof and hope for a 0-0. Surely a sensible football fan would want to protest and demand answers from the board as to how this dramatic regression is even possible? But no, it's the Crewe Way, you buy into it because we're a special sustainable football club that's regressing into non-league obscurity and if we don't like it then we can fuck off to Vale Park in the eyes of our "real fans".

I can understand your frustration towards your own fans. It's irritating as f**k when they adopt this self styled view of their club as such a cut above all others. Like Valefan16 says, on the odd occasion we do beat you, the usual "insult" thrown our way on here or social media is how much better they feel to support a club that plays in such a way. You've just lost, you're a football fan, you're gutted, admit it. Of course it wasn't always the case, before Gradi Crewe were just like any other lower league club. You evolved under Gradi and established a style and model that got you into the Championship. Rudge adopted a different style for us, but saw similar results. Times have changed now, for both approaches. Our fans simply wouldn't accept being treated like scum by the board. The vast majority came out in force and demanded change. It came in a way that was extremely worrying for all concerned at the time, and as regrettable as it was, it was the best thing we've ever done as a set of passionate fans. I see a few Crewe fans with a similar passion for their club, unhappy with how things are going. On the whole though, there just doesn't seem the same level of passion amongst your supporters, so it doesn't look like things will change for you any time soon. So long as their misplaced arrogant views persist, you'll slowly fall down the leagues without so much as a whimper from the fans.

 

[Wootball]

Saw this on Mad which completely describes our situation to a tee. Not a view I penned but I wholeheartedly agree with whoever wrote it and pretty much all of our posters on here would do too.

Renegade DS posted: Most definitely a laughing stock. We're celebrating a goalless draw away to Burton for heaven's sake. We're going into every game hoping we only concede two, rather than the usual three. We're being told by the manager that we're not 'real fans' because we don't think the sun shines out of his backside. Davis is here because we got promoted and won the JPT - well I can't accept that, since the JPT was in 2012 and we're pushing 2016 now. A lot of these 'not real fans' are complaining because not only are we languishing rock bottom of the league for the third consecutive season, but they haven't seen SD's team win a game at home in over 7 months. They're complaining because last season the team stayed up thanks to a random goal in the last five minutes in a game that didn't even involve us. They're complaining because we're now seen as underdogs in matches featuring Burton, Gillingham, Walsall, Fleetwood and Shrewsbury. They're complaining because they spent nearly £300 of their money to be criticised by the manager and treated like idiots because we're not thankful.

I'm NOT thankful that Crewe are still in existence and haven't gone out of the league. Of course, I'm glad that the club still exists, but I'm certainly not about to let my level of ambition for this club be diminished to 'at least we still exist'. The current predicament leaves us with a squad full of confidence-depleted youngsters - who in their right mind is going to come window shopping by watching a team of players who can't pass, have no creativity, and are stifled by a club and subsection of fans that sit there thinking all is rosy just because we're not bankrupt? We aren't going to sell players that are being played in incorrect positions, in a losing side, and certainly not when they're being overlooked due to nonsensical loanees from bigger and better clubs that have no intention of letting us keep their players anyway.

To even suggest that Crewe are anything to be admired in it's current predicament is ridiculous.

(Unfortunately as the excellent view of the poster pointed out, we still have fans like this)

Timmy58 posted in response to saying we should back Davis: How refreshing to hear someone actually supporting the club through thick and rather a lot of thin, these days. Sacking managers, sacking boards (can we actually do that) slagging players off doesn't help. I understand the frustrations and indeed feel frustrated myself when we lose week in week out. But I have faith that all concerned are doing all that can be done to turn the situation round and Whilst I think our manager has got things wrong at times, I don't think he is getting much wrong at the moment. When we are losing we can all pick a better team but we only see the players on match days. I will be there on Saturday God willing and hope to see us turn in a performance that almost earned us the draw we deserved against Gillingham. Doubtless I will abused again for boring people with a posting that isn't calling for a public flogging but I don't really give a flying one.

(Oh dear)

What more will it take for that "subsection of fans" to wake up and want Davis gone? To think Davis isn't "getting much wrong at the moment" is also laughable. To want Davis out in the latter posters eyes means that you don't support the club either. I find that wholehearted arrogance to hold such a view because those fans have paid so much money last three years to back this failing football club and have been slagged off by the delusional egotist in charge because they're merely dissenting against him and don't think he's the club legend he seems to think he is. You don't have to back your manager to support this football club through thick and thin. That's why fans like Timmy58 deserve to see this football club fail in my honest opinion.

I'm RenegadeDS on Mad.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

I'm RenegadeDS on Mad.

Thank you for attempting to inject sense into the vast majority of deluded individuals on there.

 

[valefan16]

I think you have to ask why your not a United or Liverpool fan and didn't take the easy way out and pot hunt. As a Vale fan I feel everything the club goes through good or bad and sure it's the same for the majority on here. We aren't in it for continued success and we chose to support a lower league club (all be it we we're in the second tier then!) I wouldn't change who I supported and Vale isn't even local or have any connection I just saw them on TV as a kid and that was it!

We will go through these peaks and troughs and the same fans who saw Crewe with Ashton and Hulse etc are now at a relative trough but remember it's what comes with the team we chose! Look at Bournemouth for example and how it can change from the pits of dispair to living the dream and Blackpool and Pompey for how quick it can change back again but it's why we support little old Crewe or Vale and our season tickets don't consist of a sky sports annual contract to watch United.

 

[hold'um Oldham]

Can we have a membership to this thread please. We will be here come may

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

I think you have to ask why your not a United or Liverpool fan and didn't take the easy way out and pot hunt. As a Vale fan I feel everything the club goes through good or bad and sure it's the same for the majority on here. We aren't in it for continued success and we chose to support a lower league club (all be it we we're in the second tier then!) I wouldn't change who I supported and Vale isn't even local or have any connection I just saw them on TV as a kid and that was it!

We will go through these peaks and troughs and the same fans who saw Crewe with Ashton and Hulse etc are now at a relative trough but remember it's what comes with the team we chose! Look at Bournemouth for example and how it can change from the pits of dispair to living the dream and Blackpool and Pompey for how quick it can change back again but it's why we support little old Crewe or Vale and our season tickets don't consist of a sky sports annual contract to watch United.

I had a good reason to support Liverpool (or the blueshite) being from a family of Scousers! But there's nothing like watching the team where you were born and I totally agree with this. If our board were transparent and we didn't abandon our ethos regarding our playing style a lot of the fans wouldn't moan.

But deserved victories like today, a rare sight at Crewe under Davis, are what we live for. A week without ranting but not getting carried away will occur now.

 

[TimeyWimey]

I think you have to ask why your not a United or Liverpool fan and didn't take the easy way out and pot hunt. As a Vale fan I feel everything the club goes through good or bad and sure it's the same for the majority on here. We aren't in it for continued success and we chose to support a lower league club (all be it we we're in the second tier then!) I wouldn't change who I supported and Vale isn't even local or have any connection I just saw them on TV as a kid and that was it!

We will go through these peaks and troughs and the same fans who saw Crewe with Ashton and Hulse etc are now at a relative trough but remember it's what comes with the team we chose! Look at Bournemouth for example and how it can change from the pits of dispair to living the dream and Blackpool and Pompey for how quick it can change back again but it's why we support little old Crewe or Vale and our season tickets don't consist of a sky sports annual contract to watch United.

You don't just accept the troughs though, regardless of who you are, just because we're meant to be occasionally shite. When there is action that could have been, or could be, taken to avoid a few years of dross then fans are right to kick off. I think every fan is reasonable enough to know the Championship days are over and any return, aside from serious investment, would be a bit of luck and very brief. There are however too many failings over the last couple of years to just accept cos "we are Crewe", although there are plenty of fans doing that.

Anyway, we've won today so Steve Davis is patting himself on the back on Radio Stoke for getting it right and some fans are beside themselves, wondering how on earth we aren't yet competing with Man City and Arsenal.

 

[Hooped Wizard]

Colchester will drop.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

Down down, deeper and down.

 

[Football Purist]

Atleast we can concentrate on the league now.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

6 wins in 36 games, 3 wins in 19 this season

 

[Hooped Wizard]

Lets be fair Eastleigh's manager will have a far bigger budget then yours.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

Lets be fair Eastleigh's manager will have a far bigger budget then yours.

So did Sheffield United and we played them off the park last week. To approach the game in the manner that we did this week was wholly unacceptable.

I genuinely think Eastleigh don't spend more than we spend, only two of their players today had played at a level higher than League Two, they were hungrier and wanted it more, we were pathetic and embarrassing, like our manager and his excuses.

 

[Hooped Wizard]

I really don't know what you expect with your squad. You have a league 2 budget and he's done well to keep you up following him getting you promoted in the first place.

Blame the owners.

 

[TimeyWimey]

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

I really don't know what you expect with your squad. You have a league 2 budget and he's done well to keep you up following him getting you promoted in the first place.

Blame the owners.

A reasonable expectation to be competitive and look arsed in football matches? A League Two budget isn't stopping Burton, Walsall, Rochdale et al from competing at the right end of the table is it?

 

[JJ1532]

I really don't know what you expect with your squad. You have a league 2 budget and he's done well to keep you up following him getting you promoted in the first place.

Blame the owners.

Ah yes, the old "poor budget = can't compete" bollocks our management and some fans still peddle. Last week proved once and for all that budgets mean fuck all when it comes to winning football matches at this level. It's about how you set up, about how the players apply themselves on the day. About how the manager sets up the team, about he trains them, organises them, motivates them.

Our issues aren't budget related, at least not the big part anyway. A low budget means we'll probably never have the quality or consistency to achieve a top half/top 6 finish. We'll never have the squad size or depth to achieve anything other than mid table finishes. But after watching 16 games this season, this league is garbage, utter garbage. I mean, take our results against the current top 6! Drew to 3 of them, should have drawn with Gillingham, lost by 1 goal to Coventry and Wigan. We've gotten results against some of the "best" teams in the league.

And we aren't losing games because of budget. We are losing games because our clueless manager has, until now, persisted with a stupid 4-3-3 formation that doesn't suit any of the players. He has persisted with a PL esq "possession is key" philosophy which has stifled our creative forwards, which is total horse shit in League One. He has made garbage decisions in the transfer market, like choosing to sign inexperienced players instead of battle hardened pros. He's chosen to release better players because he didn't like them and replaced them with shite. His coaching methods are just wrong, his tactics are non-existant, his decisions are almost always incorrect. Steve Davis is the main issue. He isn't the only issue and a new manager would struggle to do much better on this budget I agree. But it's got to the stage now where we desperately need a new manager with new ideas who can give these players a lift. We need a league one manager that can make us(without turning us into a hoofball team that doesn't play the academy lads) an effective league one team. What we have is a league two manager who is hilariously out of his depth. He's the main reason we are struggling, he has to go.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

I'd like to add a few more points to JJs comments which sum up the state of the club perfectly.

Our manager called our best outfield player last season Anthony Grant "not value for money". Our highest-paid player has probably missed at least 30-40 games to injury over the last two seasons but is still on at least £75K a year. That to me isn't value for money irrespective of ability. That player also has no chance of playing at a higher level than League One. This player is Steve Davis' son. I'm not saying he's a bad player but let's be honest, the players who should be getting the highest paid wage at the club are the ones who will go for big money and not lower league CBs a league above their natural level.

We've all heard things about the club in the last few months. A player I firmly believe doesn't want to play for this football club is Ryan Colclough. According to his Dad, who isn't the brightest spark in the world I admit, Ryan was offered a contract last season by Steve who said he needed to speak to the board about giving him the wage rise Steve felt he deserved because of a lack of funds. Days later Harry got his bumper contract I mentioned earlier and Ryan ended up having a disagreement with Davis to which relations have obviously since soured. His dropping for the Burton and Blackpool games was allegedly down to a bust-up with Davis too which shows the ego of Steve Davis is conflicting with the best interests of the team.

A lot of ex-players and their families have publicly slated Steve Davis upon leaving the club. These include Steve Phillips, Kelvin Mellor and his family, Ajay Leitch-Smith's family and Billy Waters to name a few. All had different reasons for slating Davis but it shows you ever since the Cornwall incident Davis has never had the full squad all behind him and backing him. There's been a split for well over two years and it all started with the Cornwall incident, Grant and Inman's banishment. Molyneux brawling with Dugdale in training. Dugdale being sent to Tranmere on loan then permanently. Tootle sitting out nearly the entire season last year (you're a fool if you think he was genuinely injured). Billy Waters being frozen out of the first team after losing form and suddenly being released. Doesn't this epitomise how much of a failure his man-management is?

I also genuinely don't think it's just down to Steve Davis' incompetence, a lot of people, from the board, to Dario, to the media, to the underperforming coaches and players need to have a long look at themselves. To me this squad is riddled with talent (Colclough, Inman, Nugent, Ray when disciplined, Garratt, Jones, Saunders) steady but dependable players (Fox, Guthrie, Kingsley, Dalla Valle and Haber when the latter two are given service) players who are injured regularly (Harry Davis, Bingham, Atkinson) players whose confidence has utterly evaporated thanks to Davis (Baillie, Cooper, Wilson) and players who warrant shipping out tomorrow as they are far from good enough for this football club whether it's ability or value for money (Turton, King, tempted to extend that to Harry, Atkinson and Cooper too).

Ever notice when we win Steve takes all the plaudits that his system was the reason we won and he made it tight for the opposition to get a way into the game yet when we lose Steve fails to take responsibility but offloads it onto his players? That's the sign of a weak manager who constantly thinks our regular defeats are not his problem and that the players have themselves to blame. I can't believe people still back him after today seriously, his post-match interview was nothing short of a bollockless disgrace. In a way, our win last week was actually the worst thing that could've happened to us because I believe two inept performances in front of the home crowd in a row would've seen GR be more hostile towards Davis and the players. Thing is last week we played so well, this week we were nothing short of a complacent disgrace.

These players are playing under complete fear. On the rare occasion they go a goal up we all get nervous because they genuinely don't know how to go 2-0 up in a game anymore. They don't express themselves like the Crewe of old once did, they play not to lose rather than to go for the convincing win. To me, that is the fault of the incompetent Steve Davis, and he must leave this club urgently before we sink to deeper depths. I genuinely think if the board give him a chance to manage us in League Two when they have the option of firing him for nothing at the end of the season, there will be a mass exodus of supporters next season, and that will have a huge impact on the future of our football club.

 

[dannyc5]

I really don't know what you expect with your squad. You have a league 2 budget and he's done well to keep you up following him getting you promoted in the first place.

Blame the owners.

Fuck off.

 

[SRNP]

Couldn't agree more with JJ and TNO's post.

Sent from my Vodafone Smart ultra 6 using Tapatalk

 

[TimeyWimey]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p036jtbd

Skip to 40:00. Be warned, it's horrific.

 

[JJ1532]

I know they aren't alone, but those 2 are the biggest pair of clueless fuckwits I've ever had the misfortune of listening to. McGarry is an abysmal commentator, feet firmly under the table at the club, wouldn't dare say anything to upset his chums Bowler, Dario and Davis. I mean, his post match questioning is hilariously bad. Questions like "So Steve, you've just watched your side lose 4-0, you must be very disappointed".

As for Blakeman, he hasn't got a clue. He believes only what he gets told by McGarry and Morse. He doesn't watch us every week, therefore his opinion is null and void. Wonder what he'd say if I rang up praise and grumble one Saturday afternoon and started slagging off the Vale, bet he'd soon pull me up on the fact I don't support or watch them. Well same applies to him.

Oh and that was clearly done before the game. Wonder if McGarry thinks Adam "Casper the Ghost" King is still slowly getting there? Idiot, he should have put out to pasture years ago.

 

[dannyc5]

King is as bad as I have seen. Cameron Park territory.

 

[TimeyWimey]

The whole of the pre-match talk was embarrassing, using the Sheff Utd win to forgive everything and practically try and boast to fans "we told you SD would get it right in the end". Praising players obviously out of their depth, telling us Davis is the best manager for the club, this fucking attitude Crewe is "a difficult club to manage", just to excuse every failing. You'd be forgiven for thinking it was a parody if you didn't know better.

 

[Football Purist]

The whole of the pre-match talk was embarrassing, using the Sheff Utd win to forgive everything and practically try and boast to fans "we told you SD would get it right in the end". Praising players obviously out of their depth, telling us Davis is the best manager for the club, this fucking attitude Crewe is "a difficult club to manage", just to excuse every failing. You'd be forgiven for thinking it was a parody if you didn't know better.

I like listening to McGarry-he's a bit of a buffoon but can be quite entertaining and ofcourse,he's an Alex fan but yes,he is too cosy with the club and because of that is unlikely to ask the more probing type of questions.

 

[TimeyWimey]

I think McGarry's a nob who does more harm to the club than good because of the perks he gets from the club. Any self respecting "fan" in his position would be asking questions regardless of the consequences.

He's also a fucking shite commentator who rarely puts together a coherent sentence.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

3 narrow wins all season by mid-November, only Crewe Alex would see this as anything but a failure.

So many freeloading gobshites at this club need to get in the fucking bin. Useless bastards riding the gravy train.

 

[TimeyWimey]

Yeah but who would do a better job than Davis? Yeah but who would do a better job than Davis? Yeah but who would do a better job than Davis? etc

Such a laugh the contrasting comments from Davis between this week and last week.

Patting himself on the back for changing things last week for the super duper incredible win against Sheff Utd that was setting us on our way to the play-offs. This week every single player is the root of evil and a disgrace to the shirt, no mention of his management.

 

[SF_]

Blackpool look like relegation fodder once again.

Shame...