Realistic Expectations

[TheWarehouse]

The Hemmings Family would like their money back if possible, who in their right mind would pay £50m+ for a business that is losing £15m a year with no real way of cutting those losses?
We have one of the smallest budgets in the division due to parachute payments and some of the smaller gates, why should we be finishing higher than the money bags clubs in the division? Isn’t being in with a chance of the playoffs with 2 games to go actually a success in real terms?
Why are there question marks over the manager given that he hasn’t had much financial backing and people on this board pretty much slag off all our players should he be getting plaudits for how well he’s done compared to the big clubs who will end the season below us?
Why should Peter Ridsdale stand down, is there any irrefutable evidence that he has done anything wrong, other than back managers opinions on players contracts, or has ever acted in a way that is wilfully against the best interests of the club.

Having watch the club all over the country for the last 53 years I would love to see us in the Top Flight, but with the exception of the period when Derek was chairman we haven’t even been close in all that time, I’d much rather see us finish the season in the top half of the division than be Blackpool or Wigan.

 

[neon cortex]

Good post that.

 

[Mighty Whites]

Excellent post, could not agree more.

 

[buckshawwhite]

Good post.... Only bit I'd take issue with is Ridsdale. Whether he has done anything wilfully against the best interests of the club isnt really a question. I still think we need someone younger & more dynamic in his position, who can think beyond his " if you get 2 out of 5 signings right youre on a winner" ambition

 

[Thracia]

Brentford, Brighton, Luton, Millwall all answer the empty question "why should we be finishing higher?"

And finishing 13th - still highly likely with a game to go - is not top half, but it's where we've finished for 3 years straight now. Some fans might start to find that boring and unambitious.

As does the manager, who is all over the media saying as much, in terms, which is why there are "question marks over the manager".

In fact, you'd have to be living under a rock not to address that fact in a standard boiler-plate end-of-year PNE complacency post like this.

Meanwhile the carefully-couched legalese defence of Ridsdale ("irrefutable proof" is required) is immediately brought into question by stunts like Whatsappgate, which we're all still waiting for a Club Update about.

 

[Mr Meeseeks]

The Hemmings Family would like their money back if possible, who in their right mind would pay £50m+ for a business that is losing £15m a year with no real way of cutting those losses?
We have one of the smallest budgets in the division due to parachute payments and some of the smaller gates, why should we be finishing higher than the money bags clubs in the division? Isn’t being in with a chance of the playoffs with 2 games to go actually a success in real terms?
Why are there question marks over the manager given that he hasn’t had much financial backing and people on this board pretty much slag off all our players should he be getting plaudits for how well he’s done compared to the big clubs who will end the season below us?
Why should Peter Ridsdale stand down, is there any irrefutable evidence that he has done anything wrong, other than back managers opinions on players contracts, or has ever acted in a way that is wilfully against the best interests of the club.

Having watch the club all over the country for the last 53 years I would love to see us in the Top Flight, but with the exception of the period when Derek was chairman we haven’t even been close in all that time, I’d much rather see us finish the season in the top half of the division than be Blackpool or Wigan.

1. Nobody, this is the issue. They need to accept the reality and sell the club for a reasonable fee just to be done of it.

2. What moneybags? Burnley? Weren't long ago we were on par with them but they had something called ambition and now they're one of the so called moneybags. Luton, Coventry and Millwall are similar size clubs with similar budgets, they are outperforming us. I could mention Brentford and Brighton too but it's been done to death.

3. Not sure, for me he's done well with the tools available to him. Some people just don't like his personality and others can't get over the dross on offer at home for most the season. I understand both to be fair.

4. Peter Ridsdale has ruined Leeds United, Cardiff City and Plymouth Argyle in the past. Since he left the clubs they have moved forwards. He is a dictator who has too much involvement in the day to day running of the club on and off the pitch. On top of that he acts like a petulant child across social media and where this forum is concerned. He has to go, it's as simple as that.

 

[Libertine]

I thought that Peter Ridsdale was in charge of the day to day running of the club, if that is the case surely he's tasked with making the club self sufficient. Ben Pearson and Ben Davies leaving for next to nowt was probably a sackable offence for me.

 

[Damp Squib]

The Hemmings Family would like their money back if possible, who in their right mind would pay £50m+ for a business that is losing £15m a year with no real way of cutting those losses?
We have one of the smallest budgets in the division due to parachute payments and some of the smaller gates, why should we be finishing higher than the money bags clubs in the division? Isn’t being in with a chance of the playoffs with 2 games to go actually a success in real terms?

The family are cutting their losses; out of contract players not being renewed, stadium infrastructure not being maintained, using the club to build houses. As for crowd attendances, I'm not sure what your point is here. We have a greater home attendance than QPR, Blackburn, Millwall, Reading, Blackpool, Wigan, Rotherham and Luton. Of these, only QPR and Blackburn have billionaire owners like us.

Why are there question marks over the manager given that he hasn’t had much financial backing and people on this board pretty much slag off all our players should he be getting plaudits for how well he’s done compared to the big clubs who will end the season below us?

We are going to end up mid table which, by definition, means there will be a pretty much even split of teams above and below us.

Why should Peter Ridsdale stand down, is there any irrefutable evidence that he has done anything wrong, other than back managers opinions on players contracts, or has ever acted in a way that is wilfully against the best interests of the club.

I can only remember 2-3 interviews during the entirety of Peter's time at the helm where he hasn't been patronising towards the fans. In fact, he's pretty much gone out of his way to limit or exclude the fans involvement.

Having watch the club all over the country for the last 53 years I would love to see us in the Top Flight, but with the exception of the period when Derek was chairman we haven’t even been close in all that time, I’d much rather see us finish the season in the top half of the division than be Blackpool or Wigan.

 

[Mr Meeseeks]

I thought that Peter Ridsdale was in charge of the day to day running of the club, if that is the case surely he's tasked with making the club self sufficient. Ben Pearson and Ben Davies leaving for next to nowt was probably a sackable offence for me.

Madness that people think the poor bloke is a victim of the Hemmings tightarsedness.

He's paid a handsome sum just to sit at Euxton, meddle with first team affairs and message fans threats on Whatsapp.

The Hemmings are guilty of their own sins but his day to day running of the club is shambolic. He's a lazy dinosaur who is so out of touch with the modern game/running of a club but has some sort of choke hold over the family.

 

[Warton PNE]

I wish I was in my 50's and 60's. It seems like a majority of fans from that generation are happy to simply tread water and watch the club dwindle down the divisions. I'm not - it's fucking tedious and boring.

I guess I should be happy we have a club. 'But what about Bolton and Bury!'. Well fucking one of those is about to fly past us if they win the play offs this year.

Oh, and the fact that you can't see Peter Ridsdale is a problem, give me fucking strength.

 

[Yoowell]

The Hemmings Family would like their money back if possible, who in their right mind would pay £50m+ for a business that is losing £15m a year with no real way of cutting those losses?
We have one of the smallest budgets in the division due to parachute payments and some of the smaller gates, why should we be finishing higher than the money bags clubs in the division? Isn’t being in with a chance of the playoffs with 2 games to go actually a success in real terms?
Why are there question marks over the manager given that he hasn’t had much financial backing and people on this board pretty much slag off all our players should he be getting plaudits for how well he’s done compared to the big clubs who will end the season below us?
Why should Peter Ridsdale stand down, is there any irrefutable evidence that he has done anything wrong, other than back managers opinions on players contracts, or has ever acted in a way that is wilfully against the best interests of the club.

Having watch the club all over the country for the last 53 years I would love to see us in the Top Flight, but with the exception of the period when Derek was chairman we haven’t even been close in all that time, I’d much rather see us finish the season in the top half of the division than be Blackpool or Wigan.

There’s so much I disagree with about this post I wouldn’t know where to start…sorry.

 

[Wabi Sabi]

If you finish mid table in the same division year after year after year, what is the point of that? Where is the fun in that?
Luton, as one example of many clubs, have been on a right ‘big one’ type rollercoaster ride this past decade or two. Their fans must be thinking “Wow, what a ride”.
There’s no thrills or spills at PNE though. Our car is on the kiddie’s ride aiming to gently trundle around in mid table safety for all eternity.

 

[milkyken]

It’s like being in a marriage you can’t be arsed getting out of.

I’d just like something to buy in to. A bit of vision. Try something new and different.

Let’s be honest we are probably peaking where we are now with some of the dullest football we’ve seen in many years.

Does anyone think it will be better next year? I don’t.

 

[Joanpne]

The Hemmings Family would like their money back if possible, who in their right mind would pay £50m+ for a business that is losing £15m a year with no real way of cutting those losses?
We have one of the smallest budgets in the division due to parachute payments and some of the smaller gates, why should we be finishing higher than the money bags clubs in the division? Isn’t being in with a chance of the playoffs with 2 games to go actually a success in real terms?
Why are there question marks over the manager given that he hasn’t had much financial backing and people on this board pretty much slag off all our players should he be getting plaudits for how well he’s done compared to the big clubs who will end the season below us?
Why should Peter Ridsdale stand down, is there any irrefutable evidence that he has done anything wrong, other than back managers opinions on players contracts, or has ever acted in a way that is wilfully against the best interests of the club.

Having watch the club all over the country for the last 53 years I would love to see us in the Top Flight, but with the exception of the period when Derek was chairman we haven’t even been close in all that time, I’d much rather see us finish the season in the top half of the division than be Blackpool or Wigan.

Blackpool and Wigan have both had successful periods in their pretty recent history, we have not and as you say we haven’t even been close apart from when Derek was chairman, and even then Billy Davies and Ricardo Fuller both pleading for 1-2 more players to make it, we got fed the same financial woes. Amazingly not long after one of those attempts, the club found lots for soft loans to keep us in the 2nd tier! How do aim to NEVER have any actual success and expect people to buy into it? It makes no sense. Mid table is neither achieving nor successful it’s a finishing place nothing more.

Why do you think it’s fine to be a continuous also ran? There is no sport in that, it’s just what adults tell a kid “it’s not the winning it’s the taking part”. Do you think Mr Hemmings Snr ever went to stables and asked if they had had “also rans” because he didn’t really want to go in to the winners enclosure but would rather keep finishing in the middle. If we get relegated, and the way we are going that is more a probability than a possibility, who is going to get back on board knowing we never aim for anything more than mid table in the league above and that is our absolute success or winners enclosure.

The buck stops with PR he has led us to this point, he was given the task of keeping the club stable but look, the ground is run down, the players are few and the Managers can’t wait to get out. That is why he should go, stop trying to defend the indefensible.

 

[Soup]

I’m sure they would like all their money back but they aren’t going to get it. The fee they accepted from the American, an approximation of which was posted on here, was considerably less than the figures you mention.

We do have one the smallest budgets in the division, something we are continually reminded of, and we don’t have parachute payments. Similar to Luton, Coventry and Millwall. All 3 of which are currently occupying a play off space with similar budgets to us. Brentford were also in a similar position to us.

Our first season back at this level in 2016/17 we finished 11th on 62 points. We’re currently 11th on 64 with a game to go. That season Brentford finished one place above us, Millwall had just been promoted to the Championship after winning the League One play offs, Coventry had just been relegated to League Two and Luton had been beaten by Blackpool in the League Two play off final.

We had a realistic chance of the playoffs after 41 games. It was certainly in our hands. With 2 to go we’d gotten into a position of relying on everyone else getting beat. Most fans, myself included, agreed that having them in with a chance with 5 games to go was a real achievement and credited Lowe for that but he does rub some fans up the wrong way. He talks. A lot. When the team win its ‘us’ when they get beat it’s ‘they haven’t done what I told them to do’. There’s been very little evidence of this ‘attacking brand’ he harps on about and his recent comments feel like he’s just protecting his brand. Ultimately though he’s gotten to the position most North End managers get to in the end, just quicker. He isn’t going to be given what he feels he needs to progress us. As is evident from the poll on the other thread, far more people back Lowe than the hierarchy.

Peter has been the one constant in the equation. It’s another mid-table championship finish under his watch. It’s another season without any real progression and we’re sleep walking into the biggest summer window in the clubs recent history. We have no fit contracted striker beyond an 18 year old who is on loan at Brig. We have no contracted left wing back. We’re still playing a midfielder at right wing back. The club captain along with one of the best players at the club are both approaching the last 12 months of their contracts.

If fans are grateful for a mid table finish and brief flirt with the playoffs each year then great, good for them. Some of us want the club to push on and progress and that hasn’t happened for a few seasons now. Nobody is expecting £10m on one player but the money that has been spent, has been spent poorly. How many times has a player chosen to sign for another club over us? It’s happened under different managers but it’s the same hierarchy. Swansea, another similarly sized club, have beaten us to a couple at least.

Why is it always ‘look at Wigan/Blackpool (both of which have been in the Premiership) that could be us, be grateful’ yet it’s considered churlish to have the view ‘Look at Luton/Coventry/Millwall/Brentford why can’t we go down that route’.

Edit: Sorry I’ve properly wittered on there and I even deleted the part about ‘Dereks success’. I did find it some what cathartic though 😂.

 

[Joanpne]

Oh and about getting money back, I’m the shareholders that Mr Hemmings bought out would like their money back too, but they aren’t getting that either. Percentage wise of their wealth they lost considerably more. So that wears very thin too. Sorry if the truth offends.

 

[Thracia]

We’re currently 11th on 64 with a game to go.

Good post, and I know we're all getting excited now - will we hang onto that coveted 11th spot or not? - but we haven't managed 64 points yet this season, we're still on 63 points. We got 64 points last season.

Can we match that total this time around? Can we repeat the achievement of a season so underwhelming it involved us sacking the manager halfway through? The tension and anticipation is palpable! So much "success in real terms"!

 

[Alpine White]

Biden. Trump. Charles III. Ridsdale.

All too old and should all retire.

 

[ernest]

Realism and supporting Preston North End are not exactly symbiotic.

 

[Joanpne]

Realism and supporting Preston North End are not exactly symbiotic.

If by being real you accept you are winning nothing nor even progressing to win anything, I don’t understand why we bother at all. Why don’t we just have a social club instead if it’s just about families and mates because the sport plays no part in that, it becomes just a meeting place.