Beggers Banquet

[Scottish Mag 3]

http://www.true-faith.co.uk/html/tbawe.htm

 

When Glenn Roeder was appointed as manager of Newcastle United, there was no question, he had performed a minor miracle in arresting the slide after the incompetence of the Graeme Souness era and that he goet us to seventh was testimony to his ability to organise and motivate a team that looked finished under the previous idiot of a manager.

 

However, there was a gnawing fear Roeder had been appointed because Shepherd could not get the man lots of us really wanted - Martin O'Neill, despite the usual loud mouthed rhetoric from Shepherd that there was a queue of world class managers sitting around the pool table in The Strawberry waiting for a call to get them skipping up to SJP we appointed a man to the manager's job, whose previous record in management does not bear close examination. In truth Roeder has traded on his long association with the club as a previous captain and decent club servant. He also seems to exude an honesty and integrity a lot of us have taken to after the bluff hard-man phoniness of Souness.

 

However, some of us feared he was weak, that he would bend to Shepherd's will too easily and that he was so thrilled to have a job he could only have dreamed about 6 months earlier that he would be a puppet manager, a Yes Man. Some of us feared his record and charisma would not provide sufficient pull for the club in signing the new players the club so desperately needed (and needs). We also suspected Roeder might have accepted there was little money for new players and indeed it was because of that, no world class manager (becoming quite a local _expression these days) would touch the job with a barge pole and that we were left with no option but to appoint a decent man who had done a decent job.

 

Some of those fears can be pulled apart quite easily. Roeder said at the end of last season, he needed six new players. We rubbed our chins and nodded in agreement. We signed Duff and Martins over the summer and generally speaking they are signings that have gone down well, though I'll admit to regarding Martins as a huge Luque-like risk at £10M. I'm desperate to have my fears allayed. On Sunday, Roeder expressed disappointment with the commitment of certain players at Villa and we knew Luque and babayaro were amongst them. We also knew the club is desperate to sign an experienced centre-half. When the club "stood aside" (don't laugh) and allowed Sol Campbell to sign for Portsmouth we though there was something better in the offing. The name Robert Huth became repeatedly mentioned and we smiled. Jonathan Woodgate of Real Madrid fame who we know a wee bit about was looking for a move back to the Premiership to get his career back on track after two seasons of injuries. We quite fancied that but we "stood aside" and allowed Boro to sign the Teesside lad. Well, he does get injured a lot we told ourselves. The Huth showed up at Boro clearly committed to sign for them and us with a finger up our arse. It didn't go through but we weren't anywhere near poll position.

 

Thomas Graveson clocked up a few air miles but despite being nailed on all summer for a return to England at NUFC, decides the McTavish League is more to his taste and joins Celtic.

 

Much to the chagrin of at least two members of the tf scribbling circle, Milner is given permission to go to Villa to talk over a move. Its later blocked. This kid's head must be done in and I feel for him. He is a promising young player who always gives 100% - a proper player. All he needs is a proper club.

 

In the end we have brought in reserves from the red and blue side of Manchester - Rossi who we here is promising but only here to get a tune up for Ferguson. The indignity of how far we have fallen is illustrated by Roeder giving it "thank you, thank you, thank you" to Sir Alex for their fifth choice striker who, if he is any good, will be back in a red shirt come January. This isn't doing our self respect any good and it makes Shepherd's continual and embarassing claims NUFC is one of the cream of Europe's clubs, simply ridiculous. We are being played for a 2 bob whore. Sibierski from Man City reserves is a joke signing. This is an indefensible piece of business. If we fill our squad with players who can't get a game for teams below us in the league, we are on the road to ruin.

 

And we have the curious figure of Olly Bernard returning to the club, a player who the local press have continually told us would never play for us again and we know who a certain journo takes his cue from. Some of you are pleased with Bernard's return. I wonder. I wonder why he hasn't been signed up by another Premiership club in the two years he has been away from NUFC. I wonder why Rangers released him. I wonder why Bolton didn't sign him up. I wonder what has changed he is now back on the B&W pay-rolle after his agent dicked the club around with ridiculous wage demands. Actually, I don't wonder about that last point. I wonder what kind of player has came back to NUFC after drifting for so long.

 

This is not what we expected. Roeder has a woefully thin squad. Even when all players are fit there are huge gaps in it - across the back line and in attack. It is not fit for a club of Newcastle United's support and expectations.

 

Shepherd is the one man we hold completely responsible for the club's decline. He has appointed one bad choice after another and when it came to the end of Robson's reign he botched it up badly when other clubs - Liverpool and Chelsea were taking more well considered action on making changes at the top. The root of our problems goes back to Shepherd's grotesque mismanagement of the club at the end of the Robson era. This led to the appalling appointment of Souness who Shepherd backed with barrow-loads of our cash in some abysmal signings - Luque, Boumsong, Faye and Babayaro. Its too easy to blame Souness. Shepherd appointed him and Shepherd gave him the cheque book. Souness did everything we suspected he would; fell out with players, whinged about injuries and resources, bought piss poor players and preened for the media. The man is an oaf but not as big a one as the man who appointed him.

 

We now have Roeder who is labouring against circumstances working alongside a man who has let us all down. If there is no money there then why buy Duff for £5M when we have a more urgent need at centre-half and we have a good young lad, N'Zogbia coming through. We believe we have paid too much for Martins but once again, we are making imprudent signings, paying over the odds and basically fucking up big time.

 

Shepherd's follies have been bailed out by the tsunami of cash WE put into the club. Those days seem to be at an end.

 

God knows what is happening behind the scenes with potential takeovers. The Halls want out but Shepherd wants to keep his snout in the B&W trough.

 

Our club is desperate for a new direction, for new investment (and not just from the poor saps who file through the turnstiles) but more now than ever for leadership, strategy and intelligence. We are not getting that at the moment and truth be told we haven't been getting it for along, long while.

 

The response from supporters to this latest farce at our club has been massive, unprecedented as Everybody's Talkin' clearly demonstrates. There is a desperate yearning for change at our club. Shepherd isn't the man to deliver. He has had ten years and an obscene amnount of money from us to get it right and he has failed, failed, failed and failed again. He has personally benefitted from our largesse and I just wonder what we are getting for our money.

 

Don't expect to see Shepherd's credentials and record being scrutinised by the local media - in my opinion most are shit scared to get a word out of place for fear of being cut out of the media loop and happy to rub along with the whole farce. Managers will be blamed, players will be blamed but the buck stops at the Chairman's office.

 

Some of us have feared for a few seasons now that Newcastle United FC is in decline. We haven't been fooled by the ludicrous Hollywood signings - trophy players for the club with no trophies and the closure of the transfer window with nowhere near the amount of business done we needed confirms us a declining force in the game.

 

The Halls want to go with their pockets stuffed with takeover money. Shepherd has to go because our club cannot cope with his Chairmanship.

 

SHEPHERD OUT!

[Gemmill 34185]

Would be good if the ball was set rolling and he went like. If nothing else it might alert possible takeover bids that the bloke is teetering.

[Craig 6289]

Whilst I've never been an advocate of the so-called "Sack The Board" campaigns, I can't help but agree with them whole-heartedly.

 

We've given Shepherd chance after chance after chance after chance to prove he can actually pull his finger out and properly manage the football club. He's failed every time.

 

Sir John Hall wants to retire and take his pennies with him - fair play, what he did for this club we will forever be in his debt for but sadly the muppet he left in charge is undoing all the good work.

 

If someone is genuinely interested in buying this club the please Mr Shepherd, fuck off and let them have it.

[snakehips 0]

True Faith is just reflecting the general sentiment of the majority of supporters I feel: the natives are indeed restless.

 

The coming weeks are on a knife-edge; if we don't perform well, or get some serious injuries to key players (God forbid), or a combination of the two, things could get pretty 'tasty' at SJP.

[Asprilla 96]

Great article...I'm sure it won't go unnoticed

[Dr Gloom 19739]

leazesmag will be seething at this

[Lazarus 0]

the onlything that could save freddies bacon the signing of several defenders during the january window.

 

but as has been said, i dont think weve got the money to do that.

[Craig 6289]

the onlything that could save freddies bacon the signing of several defenders during the january window.

 

but as has been said, i dont think weve got the money to do that.

191565[/snapback]

 

How many more times are we going to say something like that after another fuck up by the fact tosser?

[highpants 0]

http://www.true-faith.co.uk/html/tbawe.htm

 

When Glenn Roeder was appointed as manager of Newcastle United, there was no question, he had performed a minor miracle in arresting the slide after the incompetence of the Graeme Souness era and that he goet us to seventh was testimony to his ability to organise and motivate a team that looked finished under the previous idiot of a manager.

 

However, there was a gnawing fear Roeder had been appointed because Shepherd could not get the man lots of us really wanted - Martin O'Neill, despite the usual loud mouthed rhetoric from Shepherd that there was a queue of world class managers sitting around the pool table in The Strawberry waiting for a call to get them skipping up to SJP we appointed a man to the manager's job, whose previous record in management does not bear close examination. In truth Roeder has traded on his long association with the club as a previous captain and decent club servant. He also seems to exude an honesty and integrity a lot of us have taken to after the bluff hard-man phoniness of Souness.

 

However, some of us feared he was weak, that he would bend to Shepherd's will too easily and that he was so thrilled to have a job he could only have dreamed about 6 months earlier that he would be a puppet manager, a Yes Man. Some of us feared his record and charisma would not provide sufficient pull for the club in signing the new players the club so desperately needed (and needs). We also suspected Roeder might have accepted there was little money for new players and indeed it was because of that, no world class manager (becoming quite a local _expression these days) would touch the job with a barge pole and that we were left with no option but to appoint a decent man who had done a decent job.

 

Some of those fears can be pulled apart quite easily. Roeder said at the end of last season, he needed six new players. We rubbed our chins and nodded in agreement. We signed Duff and Martins over the summer and generally speaking they are signings that have gone down well, though I'll admit to regarding Martins as a huge Luque-like risk at £10M. I'm desperate to have my fears allayed. On Sunday, Roeder expressed disappointment with the commitment of certain players at Villa and we knew Luque and babayaro were amongst them. We also knew the club is desperate to sign an experienced centre-half. When the club "stood aside" (don't laugh) and allowed Sol Campbell to sign for Portsmouth we though there was something better in the offing. The name Robert Huth became repeatedly mentioned and we smiled. Jonathan Woodgate of Real Madrid fame who we know a wee bit about was looking for a move back to the Premiership to get his career back on track after two seasons of injuries. We quite fancied that but we "stood aside" and allowed Boro to sign the Teesside lad. Well, he does get injured a lot we told ourselves. The Huth showed up at Boro clearly committed to sign for them and us with a finger up our arse. It didn't go through but we weren't anywhere near poll position.

 

Thomas Graveson clocked up a few air miles but despite being nailed on all summer for a return to England at NUFC, decides the McTavish League is more to his taste and joins Celtic.

 

Much to the chagrin of at least two members of the tf scribbling circle, Milner is given permission to go to Villa to talk over a move. Its later blocked. This kid's head must be done in and I feel for him. He is a promising young player who always gives 100% - a proper player. All he needs is a proper club.

 

In the end we have brought in reserves from the red and blue side of Manchester - Rossi who we here is promising but only here to get a tune up for Ferguson. The indignity of how far we have fallen is illustrated by Roeder giving it "thank you, thank you, thank you" to Sir Alex for their fifth choice striker who, if he is any good, will be back in a red shirt come January. This isn't doing our self respect any good and it makes Shepherd's continual and embarassing claims NUFC is one of the cream of Europe's clubs, simply ridiculous. We are being played for a 2 bob whore. Sibierski from Man City reserves is a joke signing. This is an indefensible piece of business. If we fill our squad with players who can't get a game for teams below us in the league, we are on the road to ruin.

 

And we have the curious figure of Olly Bernard returning to the club, a player who the local press have continually told us would never play for us again and we know who a certain journo takes his cue from. Some of you are pleased with Bernard's return. I wonder. I wonder why he hasn't been signed up by another Premiership club in the two years he has been away from NUFC. I wonder why Rangers released him. I wonder why Bolton didn't sign him up. I wonder what has changed he is now back on the B&W pay-rolle after his agent dicked the club around with ridiculous wage demands. Actually, I don't wonder about that last point. I wonder what kind of player has came back to NUFC after drifting for so long.

 

This is not what we expected. Roeder has a woefully thin squad. Even when all players are fit there are huge gaps in it - across the back line and in attack. It is not fit for a club of Newcastle United's support and expectations.

 

Shepherd is the one man we hold completely responsible for the club's decline. He has appointed one bad choice after another and when it came to the end of Robson's reign he botched it up badly when other clubs - Liverpool and Chelsea were taking more well considered action on making changes at the top. The root of our problems goes back to Shepherd's grotesque mismanagement of the club at the end of the Robson era. This led to the appalling appointment of Souness who Shepherd backed with barrow-loads of our cash in some abysmal signings - Luque, Boumsong, Faye and Babayaro. Its too easy to blame Souness. Shepherd appointed him and Shepherd gave him the cheque book. Souness did everything we suspected he would; fell out with players, whinged about injuries and resources, bought piss poor players and preened for the media. The man is an oaf but not as big a one as the man who appointed him.

 

We now have Roeder who is labouring against circumstances working alongside a man who has let us all down. If there is no money there then why buy Duff for £5M when we have a more urgent need at centre-half and we have a good young lad, N'Zogbia coming through. We believe we have paid too much for Martins but once again, we are making imprudent signings, paying over the odds and basically fucking up big time.

 

Shepherd's follies have been bailed out by the tsunami of cash WE put into the club. Those days seem to be at an end.

 

God knows what is happening behind the scenes with potential takeovers. The Halls want out but Shepherd wants to keep his snout in the B&W trough.

 

Our club is desperate for a new direction, for new investment (and not just from the poor saps who file through the turnstiles) but more now than ever for leadership, strategy and intelligence. We are not getting that at the moment and truth be told we haven't been getting it for along, long while.

 

The response from supporters to this latest farce at our club has been massive, unprecedented as Everybody's Talkin' clearly demonstrates. There is a desperate yearning for change at our club. Shepherd isn't the man to deliver. He has had ten years and an obscene amnount of money from us to get it right and he has failed, failed, failed and failed again. He has personally benefitted from our largesse and I just wonder what we are getting for our money.

 

Don't expect to see Shepherd's credentials and record being scrutinised by the local media - in my opinion most are shit scared to get a word out of place for fear of being cut out of the media loop and happy to rub along with the whole farce. Managers will be blamed, players will be blamed but the buck stops at the Chairman's office.

 

Some of us have feared for a few seasons now that Newcastle United FC is in decline. We haven't been fooled by the ludicrous Hollywood signings - trophy players for the club with no trophies and the closure of the transfer window with nowhere near the amount of business done we needed confirms us a declining force in the game.

 

The Halls want to go with their pockets stuffed with takeover money. Shepherd has to go because our club cannot cope with his Chairmanship.

 

SHEPHERD OUT!

191396[/snapback]

I dont think anyone is complaining about the money spent in the last 18 month, its how its been spent or should i say wasted. When Souness went we all expected better because we knew we were starting to decline as a club, look what we got, freddys puppet who has spent the last 2 month bullshitting the fans and falsley raising expectations about signings. I cant beleive some people on here are pleased about taking a rivals youth player on loan, then praising them for letting us have him for four month, how fucking degrading is that, then to add insult to injury he signs a pillock who cant get is place from a team lower down than us. We know which areas we were weak on, defence and upfront, that still remains the same. We have brought in a striker with great potential, but he needs a strong target man up front with him, if Ameobi is injured Martins will be inefective. This club should look to the lower leagues in this country there is some great potential there, they would be no more a risk than a player from abroad. I take my hat off to West Ham, not for two Argies, but for bringing championship players on(Harewood,Zamora,Ashton, Gabbidon) there are plenty of others, Evertons best player came from the championship (Cahill) West Hams strike force will piss on ours and thats without the recent two. It would have been nice to take a chance on Nugent, but i knew that wouldnt happen, they would want too much money, some on this board think he could be bought for around 3-4 million, absolutley no chance Mc Sheffrey went to the Brums for 4.5 million, Nugent would more than likely cost in the 6-7 million bracket, West Ham paid 7.5 million for Ashton from the championship. The bottom line is that Roeder is NOT strong enough to manage this club, our decline will continue under him, those last two signings an absolute embarrassment.

[Ted Maul 0]

Great article that hits every nail on every head.

 

SACK THE BOARD!

[thenorthumbrian 0]

Shepherd thinks that because Newcastle have spent a lot of money over the past few years then that makes him a good chairman.It doesn't.

With 40-odd thousand season tickets and all the TV and commercial revenue it would be a disgrace if Newcastle didn't have a lot of money to spend.

The problem with Shepherd is that his judgement on the big decisions has been consistently wrong.

We let Bobby go at the wrong time and replaced him with Souness who was never the answer and we all knew that.

And now we are stuck with Roeder who doesn't have a strong enough personality to cope with being a premiership manager or with Shepherd.

I get the impression that if we hit a bad patch then Roeder will look like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

[Dr Gloom 19739]

Shepherd thinks that because Newcastle have spent a lot of money over the past few years then that makes him a good chairman.It doesn't.

With 40-odd thousand season tickets and all the TV and commercial revenue it would be a disgrace if Newcastle didn't have a lot of money to spend.

The problem with Shepherd is that his judgement on the big decisions has been consistently wrong.

We let Bobby go at the wrong time and replaced him with Souness who was never the answer and we all knew that.

And now we are stuck with Roeder who doesn't have a strong enough personality to cope with being a premiership manager or with Shepherd.

I get the impression that if we hit a bad patch then Roeder will look like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

191879[/snapback]

 

yup. he's ff's very own yes man/fall guy. i wouldn't be surprised if he gets the sack some time before christmas but most of us know that the real problem is shepherd.