Problem Child

A cynic might point out that the total amount matched the Beardsley fee. And a pendant might point out that PB had been sold the summer before and it was in fact the £2.2m we got from flogging Gazza to Spurs that funded this spending spree.

No. £138m is the cost of the club which Ashley lent to SJ Holdings when he purchased the club. £107m is the net debt position in 2008, 4 months after Ashley took control giving a gross debt of £245m in 2008. This increases because the company continued to make losses in 2008 so that gross debt of SJ Holdings and the club became £282m in 2009. The money owed to Ashley by SJ Holdings fell from £138m in 2008 to £132m in 2009 because Ashley paid himself £6m back. This is the main idiotic thing i can see as far as i can tell. Precisely. He paid himself back part of the purchase price out of the club’s coffers, which implies he sees the loan to SJP Holdings as a loan to the club. I can’t belief anyone is falling for this holding company nonsense, even the FA have seen through that one.

In the space of two years we went from owing the banks £77m to owing Mike Ashley £282m. Whichever way it’s spun it’s a damming indictment of the way the club has been run. If Shepherd and Hall hadn’t sold up the banks would have forced the club to take steps to put the business on a sound financial footing. Unfortunately Ashley appeared on the scene and fiscal prudence went out the window and throwing money around came in. I know people will go on about the wage to turnover ratio, but the cost of improving this a little bit has cost the club the thick end of £200m. It’s an absurdly expensive way of making a small amount of progress on the operating front.

Respect due to the lads trying to organise a protest but chances are it will end up being a farce. Simply not enough clarity, hence the lack of support from the NUFC agenda setters. And what odds the usual gates shut at half time policy being changed today so anyone who does boycott the first half can’t get in? It has to be said and I hate to say it, but we really are fucking useless at getting ourselves organised. Both Liverpool and ManU managed to put together protests that got their message across. We look forever doomed to make ourselves look like morons. Ashley must be pissing himself.

Alreet I'm getting by, in a waiting to see if Cameron fucks the local economy kind of way.... and thoroughly sickened by what’s happening to the club. I’m going tomorrow as the ticket is paid for but doubt I’ll last the full ninety minutes. After that who knows, but I won’t be going to many (if any) homes games until FMA slings his hook. The way I see it the club is being run into the ground and SJP is going to end up half empty anyway and we might as well get it over. Toughing it out for the next five years while Ashley extracts his pound of flesh makes no sense at all. It’s not like this is going to be the last gut wrenchingly repulsive thing he does. Better to make a stand and stay away, than be complicit in the erosion of the club’s soul. Hope you are in good fettle.

Is the correct answer No it isn’t. Pardew is the physical embodiment of Ashley’s contempt for the supporters. Giving him a chance is akin to giving Mr Ashley a chance and only a mug would do that.

Nice sig... oaa. ???? Since I've done these MB's, (2006 when I got a computer!), I've always went under the moniker, Howmanheyman, there was a lad called One Arm Aloft on one the boards but I aint him, mate. No, but I am.

Nice sig... oaa.

I’ve been boycotting merchandise since before the FCB arrived on the scene. Bought myself out of the three year deal the season before last and have been boycotting cup games since KK was shoved out the door. Away games only from now on. It’s about self respect, or not having any if you financially back a man who is destroying something you love.

exactly Yeah, i can't see the issue with Pardew himself. Ashley and lambiarse have gone to him (anytime within the last few months possibly) and have said do you fancy a massive managerial job at a great club on a big contract because we're going to sack Hughton sooner or later. Whether Pardew felt sorry for Hughton or was apathetic either way he wasn't goign to stop him being sacked, so why wouldn't he take the job. If people on here were out of work and some MD of a big company comes along and says do you want a job, the current guy is out soon, you really not going to take it? That's a completely seperate thing to the fact he isn't good enough and i don't want him as manager here and that if people want to spend the whole Liverpool match protesting i'd completely understand it. But Pardew's here now, i'm not going to slate him, though i'll happilly have a right go at ashley till the day he fucks off, or even better dies. There no reason at all to believe Pardew can do a better job than Hughton. Yet he has to be bringing something extra to the table and it can’t just be being a good boy because Hughton was no bother at all. So what is it he’s offering that Hughton (or any other new manager) isn’t to make him the number one candidate for the job?

Rationalising this stuff and trying to unbatter your head just means you end up doing their job for them. That way lies apathy. I mean I can see the arguments for supporting Pardew - by most accounts, he acquitted himself well today, and we ARE stuck with him, but it's so easy to let that acceptance of him become acceptance of the situation. Having said that, I don't go anymore and I don't envy anyone the decision of how to vent their anger at the weekend. On the point of not going anymore btw, I stopped going cos I felt Ashley was taking the piss and I wasn't prepared to hand over £600 per year to him. At times this season I've missed it and was entertaining the idea of seeing if they did some sort of half season ticket thing. Hughton had restored some pride, we hadn't heard from Ashley for a while and I'd sort of forgotten what it was like to be pissed off with him. Then the last week happened and it was like "THAT'S the feeling. Now I remember what it feels like to have the piss taken out of you by this fucking arsehole." So basically what I'm trying to say is don't forget and just lapse back into being apathetic about the situation. These twats have taken the piss out of Hughton, the players and the fans and they did it expecting a short term reaction followed by long term apathy. Disappoint them. He acquitted himself well in a controlled environment where the people asking the question won’t push too hard in case they get banned. Or in other words, in was set piece PR exercise. Our loyalty has always been a double edged sword. It underpins our huge potential but has also been a safety net for incompetent owners down the years. If the supporters will turn up to watch eleven carthorses why bother investing in thoroughbreds? The problem now is Ashley is a different league to the likes McKeag and Westwood and is exploiting our loyalty in the same way he exploits Asia’s employment laws.

This is what Ashley is relying on. Give it a few weeks and the stupid Geordies will be happily handing over their cash again.

Move on to what, you don’t seriously think this is the end of Ashley’s crazy schemes do you? Even as I type he’s probably sat in a casino with llambias dreaming up the new ways to cheapen the club / annoy the supporters.

Five and a half years is how long it will take Mr Ashley to screw every last penny out of Newcastle United before flogging the carcass to NUST for quid.

I don't know what else I can do? Nothing he owns (including the club) has had a penny out of me for the last 2 years already. I feel like washing my hands completely but know I'll not be able to. He's ripping the heart out of the club for me - quite literally. He's got his ST money from me and nothing else. Last year he didn't get that, just went with a fellow posters ST or bought a ticket match by match, next year he won't even get the match by match money. I've had enough of the pair of cunts. They'll get NOTHING from me other than they've already got. It’s the only way. I'm no bairn, and it's not even anger anymore, (well, ok, it is), but he's got to go and the only way to get him sweating his portly little features is to squeeze the cunt where it ultimately hurts. What a price to pay, though. It's not the first time I've stayed away over a principle and the first time was far more of a sacrifice but it's still something that I don't want to do but will. It’s clearly in the best interests of NUFC for Ashley to fuck off and the quickest way to reach that outcome is, as you say, is to hit him where it hurts. It’s a big sacrifice to stop going but the means justifies the ends and anyone who really cares about NUFC has to do what needs to be done. I wouldn't get stroppy with anyone who kept going, we've all got our limits. Mines been stretched to breaking point and it's just snapped. Goodnight and goodbye. I might not be so reasonable There’s always away games and I think this is the beginning of the end for the FCB. Lets’ just get this shite over with and get back to being a proper football club. The days when we would debate formations and team selection seem a distant memory.

That's a spoof, yes?

I don't know what else I can do? Nothing he owns (including the club) has had a penny out of me for the last 2 years already. I feel like washing my hands completely but know I'll not be able to. He's ripping the heart out of the club for me - quite literally. He's got his ST money from me and nothing else. Last year he didn't get that, just went with a fellow posters ST or bought a ticket match by match, next year he won't even get the match by match money. I've had enough of the pair of cunts. They'll get NOTHING from me other than they've already got. It’s the only way. I'm no bairn, and it's not even anger anymore, (well, ok, it is), but he's got to go and the only way to get him sweating his portly little features is to squeeze the cunt where it ultimately hurts. What a price to pay, though. It's not the first time I've stayed away over a principle and the first time was far more of a sacrifice but it's still something that I don't want to do but will. It’s clearly in the best interests of NUFC for Ashley to fuck off and the quickest way to reach that outcome is, as you say, is to hit him where it hurts. It’s a big sacrifice to stop going but the means justifies the ends and anyone who really cares about NUFC has to do what needs to be done.

I don't know what else I can do? Nothing he owns (including the club) has had a penny out of me for the last 2 years already. I feel like washing my hands completely but know I'll not be able to. He's ripping the heart out of the club for me - quite literally. He's got his ST money from me and nothing else. Last year he didn't get that, just went with a fellow posters ST or bought a ticket match by match, next year he won't even get the match by match money. I've had enough of the pair of cunts. They'll get NOTHING from me other than they've already got. It’s the only way.

Bugger the cold mate, I think the idea that should be pushed for everyone is a susatained boycott! Whether your outside the ground venting your anger at the same time or just at home is up to you, but an empty seat staring him in the face is the biggest fuck you we can give him. There is the drip-drip effect, once people commit to it and word of mouth spreads then others can follow, with the mentality of 'screw this, Im not going either'. We failed to do this after he stitched Keegan up, and we should have. We believed he was going to sell up but it was bollocks with him asking for a stupid price. We should have layed our cards down then and not went back till he went, and we must take this chance and do that now imo. Why would season ticket holders not go? That's like saying Ashley would be forced to sell Sports Direct if everyone stopped shopping there....but still ordered online. Because its a visual message to Ashley of whats to come, a very powerful visual message. But if ST holders want to go then that is understandable, if everyone without a season ticket boycotted I'd like to think the drop would be sizeable. Tim, I really respect your desire to make something happen. There’s far too many supporters out there going ‘there’s nothing we can do please shit on my face again’. That said, if there’s going to be a successful protest it will have to meet three criteria. 1) Everybody who is going to Liverpool game can be involved. 2) It is simple and easy to execute 3) The police won’t have any reason to get involved. There are still three full days before the Liverpool game. Time enough to come up with an idea that has a chance of making an impact and spread the word.

Bugger the cold mate, I think the idea that should be pushed for everyone is a susatained boycott! Whether your outside the ground venting your anger at the same time or just at home is up to you, but an empty seat staring him in the face is the biggest fuck you we can give him. There is the drip-drip effect, once people commit to it and word of mouth spreads then others can follow, with the mentality of 'screw this, Im not going either'. We failed to do this after he stitched Keegan up, and we should have. We believed he was going to sell up but it was bollocks with him asking for a stupid price. We should have layed our cards down then and not went back till he went, and we must take this chance and do that now imo. Entirely agree (apart from the bit about thinking he was going to sell up, he won’t sell until he’s had his pound of flesh) and if the ball can be made to roll via facebook it’s worth a shout. I just think a sit in sub zero temperatures will be too big an ask for many. As I’ve already said this is how it was after KK was dismissed. There are almost as many ideas about how to protest as there as people who want to protest. Good Luck

It worked for ShitDirect.

Is Graham Rix coming in as well? Hey, why not! Anyone else failed in the PL or in life generally we could put on the coaching staff? Pardew, Rix as assistant, perhaps Howard Wilkinson and Alain Perrin for a full set. Sell Carroll, bring in Marlon King.

Too cold for a sit in/out. Walking out after 60 minutes is a better idea but what we really need is an organisation that represents the supporters coming up with one idea we can all go with.... do we have one of those?