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Chris Gray on NUFC under Ashley


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I will say one definitive thing. Anyone who generally feels positive about what Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias have done since coming to Newcastle United, is by definition an arsehole.

This is the kind of knuckle-dragging rhetoric we've come to expect from the Shepherd-ites.

Shut the fuck up you economic refugee.

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I will say one definitive thing. Anyone who generally feels positive about what Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias have done since coming to Newcastle United, is by definition an arsehole.

This is the kind of knuckle-dragging rhetoric we've come to expect from the Shepherd-ites.

Shut the fuck up you economic refugee.

See what I mean?

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I will say one definitive thing. Anyone who generally feels positive about what Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias have done since coming to Newcastle United, is by definition an arsehole.

This is the kind of knuckle-dragging rhetoric we've come to expect from the Shepherd-ites.

Shut the fuck up you economic refugee.

 

:lol:

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  • 10 months later...

Just in case anyone's still reading this thread - which I doubt - is there nobody out there who thinks I may have been at least partly right? Obviously the point of blogs is to be provocative and controversial and I got plenty of flak for what I said - fair enough. (And in fact I didn't even put the blog on here - it was imported from the Chronicle by someone else). But surely we can all see now that Ashley's strategy is spot on, Pardew's the right man (the best for years) and the club is moving in the right direction. Or is Ashley still hated by all and sundry? I haven't been on here for a year or so - last time I was I got fried - but it always seemed to me to be the most negative blog on the internet. I'm not saying I told you so, because it could still all go horribly wrong (who can rule out Ashley selling Coloccini, Krul, both Dembas, Ben Arfa and Cabaye for about £100 million, Pardew resigning as a result and Joe Kinnear being wheeled in again? Don't laugh. It could still happen.) But come on, give me some credit - most people thought I was mad ...

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First of all there's quite a few on here and elsewhere that thought we were on the right track long before this article.

 

Secondly if you didn't hang around and take the flak, it's not really on coming back now and looking for plaudits.

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Just in case anyone's still reading this thread - which I doubt - is there nobody out there who thinks I may have been at least partly right? Obviously the point of blogs is to be provocative and controversial and I got plenty of flak for what I said - fair enough. (And in fact I didn't even put the blog on here - it was imported from the Chronicle by someone else). But surely we can all see now that Ashley's strategy is spot on, Pardew's the right man (the best for years) and the club is moving in the right direction. Or is Ashley still hated by all and sundry? I haven't been on here for a year or so - last time I was I got fried - but it always seemed to me to be the most negative blog on the internet. I'm not saying I told you so, because it could still all go horribly wrong (who can rule out Ashley selling Coloccini, Krul, both Dembas, Ben Arfa and Cabaye for about £100 million, Pardew resigning as a result and Joe Kinnear being wheeled in again? Don't laugh. It could still happen.) But come on, give me some credit - most people thought I was mad ...

Strong opinion, some interesting thoughts about dependency in the north east and throwing money away but nothing that matches the analytical insight on this forum which you seem to think is just a load of negative naysayers. If you read this place carefully, you'll have seen (imo) the best analysis of NUFC on the Internet. Me, Mancy, HF, Toonpack, LM, Alex, Parky, 2j, ewerk, stevie, even young uns like AH and Brock etc have provided challenge and counter-challenge to every way of thinking about how to run a football club (and plenty others not mentioned there). There have been plenty on here who supported the vision of Ashley once that vision became clear, plenty also provided firm criticism of an owner who has little time for the sentiment of the fans and runs the club like a corporation. He's done incredibly well and those of us who supported the strategy, as it became clear, can pat ourselves on the back. Plenty of work to be done yet and I bet my salary that opportunities will be missed further down the line to strengthen the club. You put the club in the champions league, is that the end game or do you try to push on? What ambition is appropriate at that point? We don't have to worry about that just yet but it's a question that will get posed if we succeed. The balance is right this year, let's hope it continues with the same level of success. It's what we all want.

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Fair enough - I haven't read all the bloggers. I just said it seemed to me to be fairly negative. Sorry if I misrepresented you. Reading my piece again, obviously it's way over the top in some ways but at least it got a reaction. I question your comment about "the sentiment of the fans" - if you're suggesting that's your view. Ashley might be about to deliver the best season for about 10 years - with hopefully more to come - what's the issue with sentiments? I'm quite happy. I suppose you mean things like the Sports Direct Arena etc - who on earth cares about that? It's St James Park as far as we're all concerned and always will be. In my time, the old Leazes End went and after about 50 years was re-built; the Popular side disappeared and we got the New East Stand; the old press box and paddocks went the same way and even the open-topped Gallowgate end was re-built. You could say it's not the same ground we (my generation of supporters. that is) went to in the early 1970s - not a brick of it remains. But it is the same. The Leazes End is still the Leazes End, the Gallowgate the Gallowgate and so on. It's still St James Park. What are the other issues with sentiments? Falling out with Keegan? Good thing. Not appointing Shearer. Very good thing. Sacking Hughton? Regrettable but a good thing. The only sentiment I'm bothered about is how I'll feel when we get into the Champions League, or the Europa League. And who cares if he runs the club like a corporation? You might argue that that's the only way to do it nowadays, sadly. Anyway, I'd be interested in your views!

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Nah mate, I promised HF I'd knock the told you so bollocks on the head anyway.

 

:lol:

 

You should revel in your outlook over the last 2 years tbh. If it was me I'd be digging up old posts left right and centre.

 

Like Chris Gray has done here. I'd love to be held accountable and learn from any patent bollocks I spouted back then. Just not keen on "you were on team negative, you were wrong"....cos team negative is basically every man and his dog with views ranging from perfectly reasonable to cloud cuckoo land..

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Fair enough - I haven't read all the bloggers. I just said it seemed to me to be fairly negative. Sorry if I misrepresented you. Reading my piece again, obviously it's way over the top in some ways but at least it got a reaction. I question your comment about "the sentiment of the fans" - if you're suggesting that's your view. Ashley might be about to deliver the best season for about 10 years - with hopefully more to come - what's the issue with sentiments? I'm quite happy. I suppose you mean things like the Sports Direct Arena etc - who on earth cares about that? It's St James Park as far as we're all concerned and always will be. In my time, the old Leazes End went and after about 50 years was re-built; the Popular side disappeared and we got the New East Stand; the old press box and paddocks went the same way and even the open-topped Gallowgate end was re-built. You could say it's not the same ground we (my generation of supporters. that is) went to in the early 1970s - not a brick of it remains. But it is the same. The Leazes End is still the Leazes End, the Gallowgate the Gallowgate and so on. It's still St James Park. What are the other issues with sentiments? Falling out with Keegan? Good thing. Not appointing Shearer. Very good thing. Sacking Hughton? Regrettable but a good thing. The only sentiment I'm bothered about is how I'll feel when we get into the Champions League, or the Europa League. And who cares if he runs the club like a corporation? You might argue that that's the only way to do it nowadays, sadly. Anyway, I'd be interested in your views!

His decision-making ignores the feelings of the fans, this can be a very good thing and is in some ways is the reason behind the recent success. Sacking Hughton and selling Carroll didnt look right or feel right at the time but have proven correct and are the two most important decisions he has taken. Pardew is critical to our success and the money from Carroll's sale has given us more flexibility and strength in attracting players.

 

However, the point about sentiment is just a point about the fact that he has pissed off loads of fans. Thats unarguable in itself. The sort of things i am referring to are moving fans from L7 because they chanted about him being a FCB, plastering the stadium in cheap tacky branding, re-naming the stadium, appointing JFK, relegating the club etc. I'm not going to get into a debate about the stadium name as it is an impermanent issue and thus concerns about 'lost history' are empty statements. However, you can run a football club like a business and take care not to offend your reason for existence, i.e. the fans, for issues that drive little or no commercial gain. There is certainly no evidence that SD branding or re-naming has brought any money into the club. At best, we can infer that the benefit of not paying interest on our debt can be conceived of as compensation for the branding.

 

I dont know why i am putting this post together really, it should be obvious that this is Ashley's style of running the club. Shrewd, hard-nosed, successful wanker tbh.

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His decision-making ignores the feelings of the fans, this can be a very good thing and is in some ways is the reason behind the recent success. Sacking Hughton and selling Carroll didnt look right or feel right at the time but have proven correct and are the two most important decisions he has taken. Pardew is critical to our success and the money from Carroll's sale has given us more flexibility and strength in attracting players.

 

However, the point about sentiment is just a point about the fact that he has pissed off loads of fans. Thats unarguable in itself. The sort of things i am referring to are moving fans from L7 because they chanted about him being a FCB, plastering the stadium in cheap tacky branding, re-naming the stadium, appointing JFK, relegating the club etc. I'm not going to get into a debate about the stadium name as it is an impermanent issue and thus concerns about 'lost history' are empty statements. However, you can run a football club like a business and take care not to offend your reason for existence, i.e. the fans, for issues that drive little or no commercial gain. There is certainly no evidence that SD branding or re-naming has brought any money into the club. At best, we can infer that the benefit of not paying interest on our debt can be conceived of as compensation for the branding.

 

I dont know why i am putting this post together really, it should be obvious that this is Ashley's style of running the club. Shrewd, hard-nosed, successful wanker tbh.

 

While I agree with the majority of your post, I felt that the level 7 lot were split up because they wouldn't sit down rather than then singing songs again him.

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Fair enough - I haven't read all the bloggers. I just said it seemed to me to be fairly negative. Sorry if I misrepresented you. Reading my piece again, obviously it's way over the top in some ways but at least it got a reaction. I question your comment about "the sentiment of the fans" - if you're suggesting that's your view. Ashley might be about to deliver the best season for about 10 years - with hopefully more to come - what's the issue with sentiments? I'm quite happy. I suppose you mean things like the Sports Direct Arena etc - who on earth cares about that? It's St James Park as far as we're all concerned and always will be. In my time, the old Leazes End went and after about 50 years was re-built; the Popular side disappeared and we got the New East Stand; the old press box and paddocks went the same way and even the open-topped Gallowgate end was re-built. You could say it's not the same ground we (my generation of supporters. that is) went to in the early 1970s - not a brick of it remains. But it is the same. The Leazes End is still the Leazes End, the Gallowgate the Gallowgate and so on. It's still St James Park. What are the other issues with sentiments? Falling out with Keegan? Good thing. Not appointing Shearer. Very good thing. Sacking Hughton? Regrettable but a good thing. The only sentiment I'm bothered about is how I'll feel when we get into the Champions League, or the Europa League. And who cares if he runs the club like a corporation? You might argue that that's the only way to do it nowadays, sadly. Anyway, I'd be interested in your views!

 

 

Ashley isnt paying a penny for the err "re branding" of a football ground thats had the same name since Victorian times. It may mean fuck all to you old son but whats the fuckin point of doing it in return for nothing? Llambias greetin on about "maximising revenues" etc but misses that one off the list. Apart from that its been a great season :D

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