The next step

[Poultice]

So what if we went up, came straight back down and stayed in L1 for ten years before going up again? Would we be refused promotion on the grounds that SJP should have been sorted seven years previously?

No, cumulative, every year you are at that level counts, so when you come to your fourth year you either have to have made the changes or I believe if you can show evidence that you intend to move to a ground which doesn't infringe within a reasonable period.

The Dale is as always way off the pace, the game is to move on, the ultimate goal has to be the Prem taking any progress that comes along in the mean time, one year in the Champ would be good, any more a bonus, and Ant is right, we ain't far short.

 

[zyderman]

We need
1 x goalkeeper
2 x cb to replace Taylor & Edwards
1 x rb as I think tullys inability to cross limits us
1 x attacking midfielder

Duffy & curo next year is important too.

We could push for top 6 but realistically another season like this one would be great.

 

[CITYFANINCALNE]

The biggest problem is the state of half our ground,in my opinion.
The OG & away end aren't good enough.Maybe one day we will actually get told officially what's happening re.the redevelopment of these areas.
I think/hope that it is possible to take 1 more step (championship football) given the progress made so far with the trust model,coupled with competent management.

 

[grecIAN Harris]

But will they though? This season you could look at the results at home to Huddersfield, Yeovil and Hartlepool as genuine f*ck-ups by all concerned, and on another day it's not entirely ridiculous to imagine us winning those three games. Given that, we'd be nine points better off, which, I think, would be enough to secure a play-off spot.

So is it so beyond imagination that this current squad and set up could have taken us to the Championship? Of course, once we were there, who knows what would happen in terms of money coming in - TV rights, sponsorhips etc - without needing to relinquish Trust control of the club.

Getting there isn't the problem I envisige. With a bit of luck, fair wind and a couple of minor improvements in personnel, we can get there. It's staying there long enough to build on the achievement I doubt without some kind kind of influx into the coffers. It won't come from The Trust without a substancial increase in membership. The increase in membership won't happen unless the team can maintain a substancial spell in The Championship and it won't come from outside because of the current apathy to such input from within the current Trust membership.

 

[richard_portland]

The biggest problem is the state of half our ground,in my opinion.
The OG & away end aren't good enough.Maybe one day we will actually get told officially what's happening re.the redevelopment of these areas.
I think/hope that it is possible to take 1 more step (championship football) given the progress made so far with the trust model,coupled with competent management.

andy cole said he was hopeful an announcement on the groud development could be made by end of april. now we are just into may this hasn't happenned. wonder if any news is imminent or if not when is the club/trust now hopeful an announcement could be made?

 

[Antony Moxey]

The state of the ground shouldn't be an issue, unless we either deliberately lose to avoid promotion or deliberately get relegated if we do get promoted.

There is a period of grace of three years to bring your ground up to standard as has already been mentioned, so what has it's current state got to do with holding us back, unless we deliberately don't go up to avoid having to have it done?

 

[CITYFANINCALNE]

Simply that the away end seriously limits numbers & income .
The OG is decrepit & also too small.
Not an immediate barrier to promotion but surely a barrier to further progress.

 

[Antony Moxey]

Simply that the away end seriously limits numbers & income .

But does it? We can comfortably accommodate well over 1000 away fans, yet only four times was that number reached this season. Of course there are some massive clubs in the Championship, but will they all be bringing 1000+ to SJP? And if so, how many more?

Plus there's the cost v return. How much would it cost to make the away end double the capacity, or three times it? Weigh that against how many times it would need to be filled to recoup the cost of the development and it might well be just as worthwhile to bolt some seats in and leave it at that.

 

[Poultice]

Simply that the away end seriously limits numbers & income .
The OG is decrepit & also too small.

So how many times have we sold our away allocation in recent years ?

The OG is old and tatty but Shirley not decrepit and is ceratinly not too small, we couldn't even sell out the ground for the Gargs.

 

[Chui]

Scunthorpe also had a season in the Champ in 2007-08, so they have to have an all-seater ground next time they go up. Unlike most clubs, I don't think even the club are keen to get rid of their terrace.

Regarding the next step, obviously we have to cope without our most creative player in Harley whilst Cureton is another year older (and while he's going strong now, that won't last forever). I'd agree though that defence is the biggest problem. The player we seem to miss the most is Tully - the sight of Miles Weston shredding Duffy in the JPT game at the Park was embarrassing - so we could really do with another right-back/right-wing back, preferably with a bit of pace. Another centre-back would also be useful.

In goal, we need to decide whether to stick with Krysiak or look for a new no.1. Krysiak shows promise, but you could see the players felt comfortable using Hamer as a sweeper. That hasn't happened with Krysiak yet but maybe it will.