The End is Nigh - Preston (H) 12 Mar @ 15:00

[Prufrock]

Jay clearly off on the summer, which I guess is no surprise. Got a lot of time for him but no way we can carry those wages a league down. Depressingly we'll probably end up still paying him something not to play for us.

[bobo the clown]

My earlier comment was intended to suggest that, desperate as this is, if we'd performed efficiently in the past 4 or 5 games we'd be looking to escape.

But we aren't. .... & paying Liverpool more money to play Spearing (who SHOULD be able to be a first choice but often isn't) would be crackers. So even I feel that you're being a bit extreme Tony D.

But these guys aren't like the Arabs who took over Citeh. They will tide us over before they get more cash in .... or sell us on for a profit ... or we revisit our crisis.

[Burnden Paddock]

Oh yes, almost forgot to mentiuon that I was at the game today and it was fecking shit.
feck Gary Madine up his stupid arse the lazy gutles soft-arsed prick. Clough was dire, Wilson played the 2nd half like he was new to the game and Rachubka is actually worse than Amos. Who is shit.
feck the lot of them.

Did you stop off at another offy on the way home?

Madine was indeed fecking awful. There's no fight in the lad, unless he's had 10 pints and there's a defenceless student stood in front of him. He's a charlatan who runs around trying to make it look as though he puts some effort in, but he can't even do that properly.

Clough had his moments, but looks as though he is trying too hard to score a wonder goal with every attack. As for Rachubka, he's the archetypal journeyman footballer. There's a reason why he's usually second choice at the clubs he plays for. Trotter's goal was indeed a thing of beauty. One of those where you know as soon as the ball leaves his foot that it's going in.

[Bijou Bob]

Talk on GMR was suggesting we won't see Spearing again this season. The club won't pay or can't pay the contracted sum. In effect then, we won't see him in a white shirt again. The lad can bugger off to the Carribean early this year.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Lennon is too stubborn to walk.

I don't think the club can afford to sack him even with the club in new hands.

"Lennon was announced as the new manager of Bolton Wanderers on 12 October 2014, signing a four-year contract."

We're in for some dark days waiting for that contract to run down.

That quote's from Wiki, right? It has a citation from the BBC, but the linked page doesn't mention contract length, and the contemporary Guardian, Telegraph and Daily Record pieces all reported a three-year deal.

Given contracts tend to go to season end I fear it's uncertainty at how to describe a 3 and 3/4 year contract.

Nah, not in October. You'd call it three because you've basically got the majority of one season plus two seasons more. In December you might start calling it a two-and-a-half-year contract.

He'll have a year left on his contract after this season, and I hope we can afford to get rid of him, either through a penalty/release clause in the event of relegation, or by saving money we don't really need to spend on Jay Spearing.

That said, the Spearing thing is odd. According to the usually reliable Soccerway, he has made 92 appearances for us in all comps - 79 starts, 13 subs. In the league, it's 78 starts and 10 subs. I get that 80 might be a cutoff point which triggers a payment, but that's just starts, so why wouldn't he be on the bench?

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

must be best of the season that crowd?

Yeah, we got 18,178 against Leeds (in the league), 18,048 against Blackburn. Couple of 12ks for shit teams with no travelling support. It's been a fairly consistent 12k home-support base, growing slightly (but not massively: maybe to 14/15k) for big games.

According to Marc Iles' MBM, the 18,423 included 4,432 travelling fans so that's 13,991 home fans. Are they still counting ST holds who don't turn up?

[LeverEnd]

LE - I'm getting ... post-match ... drinking ...

Yes oif course, and pre match drinking.
And now I'm completely shitted and stand by everything i ever said.
Ever.

[LeverEnd]

Travelled to the game with a Preston fan who lives near me in Leeds and who said he thought we looked shit scared whnever pressed and gave the ball away cheaply. Not a bad judge.

[Enoch]

LE - I'm getting ... post-match ... drinking ...

Yes oif course, and pre match drinking.
And now I'm completely shitted and stand by everything i ever said.
Ever.

Except the 30 years older and 6 stone heavier bit?

[LeverEnd]

LE - I'm getting ... post-match ... drinking ...

Yes oif course, and pre match drinking.
And now I'm completely shitted and stand by everything i ever said.
Ever.

Except the 30 years older and 6 stone heavier bit?

Nope.

[Enoch]

LE - I'm getting ... post-match ... drinking ...

Yes oif course, and pre match drinking.
And now I'm completely shitted and stand by everything i ever said.
Ever.

Except the 30 years older and 6 stone heavier bit?

Nope.

Bijou Bob's lot might see that as projection.

[jonnycooper]

My earlier comment was intended to suggest that, desperate as this is, if we'd performed efficiently in the past 4 or 5 games we'd be looking to escape.

But we aren't. .... & paying Liverpool more money to play Spearing (who SHOULD be able to be a first choice but often isn't) would be crackers. So even I feel that you're being a bit extreme Tony D.

But these guys aren't like the Arabs who took over Citeh. They will tide us over before they get more cash in .... or sell us on for a profit ... or we revisit our crisis.

I thought we signed Spearing outright?

[bobo the clown]

My earlier comment was intended to suggest that, desperate as this is, if we'd performed efficiently in the past 4 or 5 games we'd be looking to escape.

But we aren't. .... & paying Liverpool more money to play Spearing (who SHOULD be able to be a first choice but often isn't) would be crackers. So even I feel that you're being a bit extreme Tony D.

But these guys aren't like the Arabs who took over Citeh. They will tide us over before they get more cash in .... or sell us on for a profit ... or we revisit our crisis.

I thought we signed Spearing outright?

We did .... but most bigger deals are done on the drip. Downpaynenr, arrangements for future payments, success clauses (if only), sell-on %'ages etc.

Cue DSB to explain the details of a typical deal.

[clapton is god]

Travelled to the game with a Preston fan who lives near me in Leeds and who said he thought we looked shit scared whnever pressed and gave the ball away cheaply. Not a bad judge.

Spot on. As soon as we scored I thought to myself, "there's only one winner now!"

Has anyone mentioned the half time draw yet? It was the best bit of the whole afternoon. About a dozen old school players from the 70's, including Allardyce who applauded every part of the crowd and was very pally with Deano who was also on the pitch. That must be the first time he's been back to the club (other than as Newcastle manager) so his first opportunity to say thanks for all the fish, but lots around me were quick to put two and two together.

[bobo the clown]

^^ I guess it was the first time Garty and ED weren't able to blackball him ??

I hardly see him back in any capacity, though he does seem to know money men. Or maybe he was having a perk at Clough and Holding !

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

The old heroes were there for the benefit for Paul Jones, for some reason. Hope all is well.

As Bobes says, yer modern transfer can have lots of structured payments - monthly, or conditional depending on appearances, goals, international caps, promotions, trophies etc. Usually happens when the buyers aren't extravagant and/or the sellers aren't sure how good their man is. It seems reasonable to me, but I'm always surprised when the structure has big avoidable stepping stones like this - if it's true it's £100k on the 80th appearance, or whatever, rather than say £1.25k per appearance which would garner the same amount.

[TonyDomingos]

The old heroes were there for the benefit for Paul Jones, for some reason. Hope all is well.

As Bobes says, yer modern transfer can have lots of structured payments - monthly, or conditional depending on appearances, goals, international caps, promotions, trophies etc. Usually happens when the buyers aren't extravagant and/or the sellers aren't sure how good their man is. It seems reasonable to me, but I'm always surprised when the structure has big avoidable stepping stones like this - if it's true it's £100k on the 80th appearance, or whatever, rather than say £1.25k per appearance which would garner the same amount.

Knowing our luck, if we'd gone for that approach, Spearing would have sustained a career-ending injury in his 79th game.

[Burnden Paddock]

The old heroes were there for the benefit for Paul Jones, for some reason. Hope all is well.

As Bobes says, yer modern transfer can have lots of structured payments - monthly, or conditional depending on appearances, goals, international caps, promotions, trophies etc. Usually happens when the buyers aren't extravagant and/or the sellers aren't sure how good their man is. It seems reasonable to me, but I'm always surprised when the structure has big avoidable stepping stones like this - if it's true it's £100k on the 80th appearance, or whatever, rather than say £1.25k per appearance which would garner the same amount.

I heard last night, I think from a pissed LE that the clause is triggered if Spearing plays more than 50% of the games in any one season. Has he played in almost half this season? Doesn't feel like it from the number of times we've slagged Lennon for dropping him.

[Little Green Man]

He's played in 22 league games so the next appearance would trigger it.

[bobo the clown]

You'd wonder if we couldn't go cap in hand to the Scouser to maybe vary the clause. But thinking about doing that makes me feel a bit queasy.