Howaythelads

Keegan didn't abandon the club, he was forced out by Ashley. Had this argument before, he walked out on us. Not for the first time either. Well, all your current effort means is you've failed to learn anything from this previous argument you had assuming someone of intelligence tried to get the obvious into your heed. Fact is, any manager worthy of the name is not going to be happy without control over which players come in and which players go out. The club is in my blood but I'd walk away if I was working under those conditions. Only a spineless tw*t wouldn't and only a moron would expect someone to work under those conditions. Cheers

Keegan didn't abandon the club, he was forced out by Ashley.

Not a clue, really. Sometimes I think the time it's taking is a bad sign, sometimes a good sign. It should be simple. You appoint a manager, give him what he wants that the club can afford and you let him run it the way he wants to run it. You give him total control over the playing, coaching and medical side of things, who goes and who comes in. That's why you appoint a manager imo. These things shouldn't even be up for discussion. Completely agree with all of that. My point was just that if he does indeed agree to stay, surely it will have to mean he trusts and believes Ashley? Yes. I agree with that.

Not a clue, really. Sometimes I think the time it's taking is a bad sign, sometimes a good sign. It should be simple. You appoint a manager, give him what he wants that the club can afford and you let him run it the way he wants to run it. You give him total control over the playing, coaching and medical side of things, who goes and who comes in. That's why you appoint a manager imo. These things shouldn't even be up for discussion. I agree with this from Mowen...

This is exactly what people were saying when they claimed any new owner or Board would automatically be better than the previous one. It was said many times that it would make no sense for anyone to take over the club and not invest in improving the team. After all, if a new owner didn't invest in the team how would that person get any return on their investment? So, ambition to challenge at the top by investing in the team was taken for granted by many people. Having assumed this was automatic they then said that we'd do great because any new owner/Board simply had to be more competent than the shower of plebs previously running the club. The club would definitely march onward and upward. Well it hasn't worked out that way and that's because Ashley is incompetent when it comes to football. There's no reason to believe Ashley is going to do the right thing this time, in fact it'll be a major surprise if he does do the right thing, though to be honest, I'm concerned about how the "right thing" is defined. As supporters we see the right thing as appointing a decent manager and backing him, but I'm not convinced this is how Ashley sees things. In my opinion, the "right thing" to him was to keep the club for a few years and he'd make a killing on his investment simply by the normal economic growth in the country. I don't think he even considered relegation as a possibility, he is so dumb about football, so he thought we'd always be in the PL. Well he's been hit by the slump in the economy and by his own shit decisions that led to relegation. He had the chance to do something with a good manager when he appointed Keegan but he blew it by not backing him, the scenario above would explain why. Why should it be assumed he's going to back Shearer now? Its not assumed anything HTL, what I am saying is "in my opinion" appointing Shearer and backing him is the only real option. But I can't see Shearer signing if he isn't going to be financially backed, and be the bloke who makes the decisions. And if Ashley cannot sign Shearer is any other decent manager going to consider the job as they will have seen what has gone on before and presume that if they take the job it is going to be more of the same. Though I quoted your post it was a general point that came to mind as I read your post. It's not about your post in particular. Sorry. Edit: I agree with what you're saying above.

This is exactly what people were saying when they claimed any new owner or Board would automatically be better than the previous one. It was said many times that it would make no sense for anyone to take over the club and not invest in improving the team. After all, if a new owner didn't invest in the team how would that person get any return on their investment? So, ambition to challenge at the top by investing in the team was taken for granted by many people. Having assumed this was automatic they then said that we'd do great because any new owner/Board simply had to be more competent than the shower of plebs previously running the club. The club would definitely march onward and upward. Well it hasn't worked out that way and that's because Ashley is incompetent when it comes to football. There's no reason to believe Ashley is going to do the right thing this time, in fact it'll be a major surprise if he does do the right thing, though to be honest, I'm concerned about how the "right thing" is defined. As supporters we see the right thing as appointing a decent manager and backing him, but I'm not convinced this is how Ashley sees things. In my opinion, the "right thing" to him was to keep the club for a few years and he'd make a killing on his investment simply by the normal economic growth in the country. I don't think he even considered relegation as a possibility, he is so dumb about football, so he thought we'd always be in the PL. Well he's been hit by the slump in the economy and by his own shit decisions that led to relegation. He had the chance to do something with a good manager when he appointed Keegan but he blew it by not backing him, the scenario above would explain why. Why should it be assumed he's going to back Shearer now?

No offence, but you just made that all up didn't you? We have no idea what is happening, for all we know the club could be just working out the details of Shearer's deal/demands. This is a big decision, it's only been a couple of days, give them a chance FFS. No offence, but mind your neb. I'm saying what I think is happening going off past preformances by the GOONS in charge. Sorry but they DO have previous. I just believe in criticising people for things they've actually done, rather than stuff that exists only in my imagination. Yeah we have last season to go off as an example. KK pissed around with these c***s for 3 days before conceding he couldn't get through to them what makes you think this is any different? Well yeah, I'm not saying they didn't do things wrong before, so fair enough criticise them for that. There was claim and counter-claim with KK as well, we still don't know who was really at fault. All I'm saying is don't slag them off for f***ing things up with Shearer when nothing has happened yet. Edit - as for your second reply, feel free to slag them off as much as possible for us getting relegated, that would fall into the 'things that have actually happened' category. I just don't see why you have to find extra things to have a go at the club for, when in reality they might just as well announce Shearer as manager in the next few days. Never had a pot shot at the club, i'm having a go at the owner and his clems. It reads like you're having a go at the club. What are "clems" - is that a mackem expression ? I do believe i mentioned Ashley and his goons a couple of times and though it was clear who i was having a pop at. If you cant tell the difference between ashley and the club then maybe you need to question why your support of NUFC. As for clems, are you a man? If so you have two between your legs in a ball sack. Unless your going through the change, if so you need to change your user name to Benwell Lass. Don't worry about it, mate. Some don't want to hear criticism of the jokers who got the club into this mess so they're making stuff up, it's nowt but daft spin. As you say, it's obvious from your posts you're not slagging off the club, the suggestion you are is ridiculous. It's obvious who you're having a pop at and it's more than justified. Cheers

Lets analyse this apology of a statement a bit then. 1) "mistakes were made". Notice it's not "I made mistakes" or "we made mistakes", just that mistakes were made. No admission of blame there. Thank goodness he's noticed something's gone wrong though! 2) "during this and previous seasons". Still blaming the old board two years after they ceased to have any influence on matters. At least he's consistent. 3) Most importantly, what mistakes does he think were made? There's nothing in this statement to give a clue as to what he thinks the mistakes were. Everyone seems to assume he thinks the mistakes that were made are the same ones we think were made (and not all of us agree on what they were). Maybe he thinks the mistakes made were simply not making a bit of money on Owen last Summer and spending too much on Loloccini and Xisco, he could have just got a cheaper defender and given Ameobi a new contract earlier instead? Maybe it's just that he wishes he'd sold the club for the amounts he got offered off the various potential buyers last year? I don't see how you can start believing things are going to change for the better when you don't even know what he believes the mistakes made were. This apology is as bland and non-committal as it could be. Good PR, but nothing more. Absolutely nothing to pin any hopes on that the right lessons have been learned. So the old board have nothing to do with the problems we've got now? Very myopic view. Though true. Obviously.

True. But on occasion they are actually correct Mick Wadsworth springs to mind Who's been a disaster everywhere he's been after us. How often do you hear from PLAYERS that a bad coach can screw a good team ? Or that a good coach can revitaize a sagging squad ? The names you mention were all jobs for mates anyway. Our best times were when this didn't apply. Steve Clarke, during his brief time here, and that feller from Blackburn whose name I forget in the early Keegan years. Derek Fazackerley? Currently working at Huddersfield with Clarkie He'd be a good appointment.

Is being a job-for-the-boys club such a bad thing? AC Milan are one. Their entire managerial structure is made up of former players and ex-legends. It works as long as the boys are competent. The term "jobs for the boys" is usually only used when it is being applied to someone who is NOT competent at the job/role they have been given. When someone is competent they have not been employed on the basis of "jobs for the boys." Obviously.

From an outsider looking in...I thought Keegan was a joke. He has never organized a defence, he's not right mentally and his style of management was still in the 2002 era. The only change he'd have made to your season is you would have gone down with more than 15 players on 50k a week. Perhaps you might have stayed up if he got just 1 more result but he was never the right person to take the club forward. Oh, and neither is Alan Shearer. Appoint a proper manager. Curbishley or Coppell. Who bought you your book of footballing clichés btw? The only one in this thread thread spouting more s**** has to be oldtype. Hmmm, ok, well we'll se next year what happens with Shearer. Although, if it helps you get over relegation telling yourself KEEGAN would have saved you, (when he didn't and he left you because he is a selfish out of touch mentalist), by all means...keep fantasizing about that. Meanwhile back in reality, everyone outside of Newcastle thinks Keegan is a joke. They can think what they like as they quite frankly bought the same book of footballing clichés such as yourself. You're confusing cliches for a repeated general public opinion.... How much is KING KEV trying to take from your club at the moment in compensation? I bet you a pint of Newcy brown or whatever that he takes more from you that what the club spend on transfers in this summer. Oh, and just noticed that you have a Keegan quote at the bottom of every post. How cliche! You're spouting drivel though. You're telling me he has never sorted a defence out even though we always used to have one of the best defensive records in the league during his first stint in charge. For a man who is a joke and knows nothing of tactics he changed the formation of the team completely last season to save us from relegation. He never went for a 4-3-3/4-5-1 variation we see. He actually went for a full on 4-3-3, something which I don't think I've seen used to such effect in the Premier League. He also rejuvinated Michael Owen, played him in a whole new position. Not bad like for someone who doesn't really know what he is doing. Obviously upto you but I suggest you ignore the moron. He's a supporter of another club, what he thinks is totally irrelevant.

I'm not going to argue either, but that post makes me think that you're probably (at best) a bit of a cunt. Agreed. People like him are best ignored. He's proven he knows nowt.

There's no similarity between Ridsdale and Ashley. So are we completely confident that there's going to be no fire sale and no administration facing the club in coming weeks? Oh right. Because the club is wrecked you think there is a similarity between Ridsdale and Ashley. Fine by me if that's how you want to see it.

There's no similarity between Ridsdale and Ashley.

Fact is Ashley is a cockney market trader who got lucky by spotting a market for cheap sports goods. He expanded his crappy little market stall into some shops at a time the overall economy was on the up and has done well from it. Good luck to the bloke, I've no problem with it. For him to think this fluke somehow translates to him being able to run a football club is as arrogant as it gets. He's tried to run a Premier League football club in the same way as his cut-price business and the result was predictable. The worst is yet to come.

Dave, It's obvious really. No direction or leadership within the club. Low on confidence through being exposed all the time. The team is crap. It starts at the front where we offer no threat to speak off, meaning the defenders are constantly up against it. I've gone through all of this before when we had a weak centre midfield with Dyer in there, making the CB's look poor but it's difficult for them when people get a free run at them time and time again. We offer no attacking threat. The opposition attack us at will. We have no midfield to speak of and no organisation or shape to speak of. I think Beye, Bassong, Coloccini, Enrique is a decent back four, better than we've had in the past, but the rest of the team is shite.

omg

He's not a bad player, tbh. Playing for a club that operates like a pub team has probably taken it's toll.

Me neither, but according to HTL there were 'people' who said it was impossible to have a worse board than the previous one. I may be wrong but I think the crux of this rests upon one throwaway remark by one poster. Oh, but we're all the same, aren't we, those that disagree with HTL. The only thing that makes me feel better about relegation is people like him sat on their fucking high horse having to go through it as well. 'Cheers'. Shite post. Nowt's changed there. You must be gutted, seeing as your team couldn't even win the scotch league. More gutted than you it'd seem, yeah. Carry on, you're making me feel better knowing your team's been relegated too. Hoho! I have to tell you that I don't give a shite what you think. Run off back to your igloo, or wherever it is you come from.

Wrong on that one, like.

If Ashley stays we'll go down again. It's a no-brainer that we'll be better off with a Fred led takeover. Only a moron of the highest order would want Ashley to be here much longer.

I should have said that. I'm out of this thread, nothing to be gained here. Yup, grabbing the first escape you can with your tail between your legs...

Me neither, but according to HTL there were 'people' who said it was impossible to have a worse board than the previous one. I may be wrong but I think the crux of this rests upon one throwaway remark by one poster. Oh, but we're all the same, aren't we, those that disagree with HTL. The only thing that makes me feel better about relegation is people like him sat on their fucking high horse having to go through it as well. 'Cheers'. Shite post. Nowt's changed there. You must be gutted, seeing as your team couldn't even win the scotch league.

Good post.

Unnecessarily personal mate, everyone is gutted about what happened. By the way, we were heading towards the bottom of the league even under Shepherd, and doing critical damage to our finances at the same time. How many people were crying out for another Albert Luque in the transfer window? Stop whinging. What was it you were doing in that first post then? (That's a rhetorical question BTW) Posting facts. My post wasn't personal at all, though I realise those who think Keegan is shite and can't admit it's been proven to be possible to have a worse Board than the previous one may think it was personal.