Happy Face

http://www.themag.co.uk/2015/09/not-such-a-crowd-house-at-st-james-park-as-mike-ashleys-problems-increase/#sthash.GFU8EYsp.dpuf

Following the passing stats for retaining possession above, here's how they compare at winning possession.

Tiote was almost doing the work of both Anita AND Colback on his own just last year... and still people were hammering him then for being less of a player than he had been in his first 2 seasons.

Cheers

This months regular mutterings on Ashley from me... http://www.themag.co.uk/2015/08/mike-ashley-cant-have-any-more-skeletons-in-his-cupboard/

http://www.themag.co.uk/2015/07/a-corner-turned-or-history-repeating-newcastle-united-transfer-spending/ His companies have taken plenty out of the club In the way of free sponsorship. That's mentioned

http://www.themag.co.uk/2015/07/a-corner-turned-or-history-repeating-newcastle-united-transfer-spending/

True in itself I suppose, but a microanalysis of his actions doesn't paint the proper picture. How does his net spend on transfers look as an overlay to company profit over the same duration?

He's broke even on transfers now.

Aye. If you want to shape a narrative you give all your staff talking points and ensure Charnley, McClaren, Marshall (Lee), Marshall (Anthony), Moncur and all the players are clear on those talking points before interviews. Get everyone on the same page and make sure they hit certain notes and repeat stock phrases that define club ambitions whenever they speak on the record. You don't make a deal with one paper and tell them what to print. Ban the rest of the press and refuse to answer questions from fans then crow about communication.

I submitted 4 questions. 3 via the site and 1 via an email to Brian Parkin off here. Only the one I mailed to Brian got asked, so that worries me from the start about how genuinely tranaparent the process of submitting questions is. Brian tells me he was able to ask the question I submitted verbatim... However, when it's been reproduced in the minutes this is what's presented... So the club are given evidence of how fans are feeling misled and betrayed... so they mislead again and just say "we don't". Of the other 3 questions, I only expected lip service on 2 of them 1. Why can we not know the nature of the Puma deal, given Puma have no objection to announcing delas with Arsenal and that? 2. Why do we not see value of buying in January given the success of January purchases past? Like many of the questions they get, these are designed to make a point rather than push for change. My other question was about ticket policy though. The fact we're one of only 2 clubs without a transparent set of categories from the start of the season. That we have season tickets costing more than singles and should there not be an exhaustive review and published policies to ensure ST holders get a deal in line with daytrippers. Nowt. Disappointing that they won't really engage on any issue outside that which they're looking to shape themselves.

It's not like they didn't have any recently departed scapegoats they could have pinned it all on, just to say something.

Nope, tickets cancelled in winter/summer still unavailable and being offered to the previous owners for renewal.

It seems that summer cancellations aren't on sale yet, so it could be a whole lot worse. Can anyone that cancelled in January confirm if their old seat is currently on sale publicly? https://drive.google.com/open?id=0ByKcu35MQu-pfmVHQkFjQ2t1ZjFSREt3eWJZOGtQSEVfR3N6V3AtWmJsX0QtM2N1QXA1TG8

How many season tickets holders do we normally have though? Surely there's normally about 20% spare anyway. Yeah, I don't agree with much of how my numbers have been used today. My main reason to do was to have a line in the sand figure for NEXT year when we can make better, more informed comparisons. An 81% full East Stand before single tickets go on sale is not a paricularly strong show of dissent. A 40% empty Leazes is a reasonably strong one though. The club did crow about selling 30,000 season tickets in the championship and growing that number with 10 year deals the first year back and a fifth place finish the second.

Club won't announce previous seasons. they won't comment on this season hence why I have to count to 26000 on 2 hands. Once I add in the 4 corners I expect it'll be over 30,000. The lower tiers are obviously among the most densely populated too. That massive family enclosure encourages many, but you're still a mile away and numbers will be worse up there.

my numbers don't include any corners yet. Half the Milburn and the middle of the Leazes aren't available on the plan either.

http://www.themag.co.uk/assets/Newcastle-United-Unsold-Season-Tickets-2015-2016-470x120.png

Bobby snubbed us while at Barcelona, one of the top clubs in world football. McClaren snubbed us while at Championship club Derby, maybe it's unfair as he did have an association with the club before managing them. Aye, but McClaren was probably on a better basic wage at Derby than he is at NUFC

Not sure why? 2 managers that stayed with their current clubs when approached by NUFC, no-one gave a shit about the previous snub when Robson did eventually come. I've no problem if someone is happy Robson came despite a snub cos he's great and Peaved McClaren came despite a snub because he's shit. But the snubs aren't the issue, it's the quality of managerr and they're stirring shit going on about "turning us down"

No. He'd been shifted upstairs. He'd been shifted upstairs by January 1997 when Keegan quit? Stand corrected, was the end of that season. Still have no issue with McClaren honouring a contract though. Not that I believe NUFC had any intention of paying compensation if he'd show a willingness to walk out.

No. He'd been shifted upstairs.

When did this happen, for a start? When did he get credit for it, supposing pretending it did? "Robson honoured his contract with Barcelona" http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/7126171.Sir_John_praise_for_Bobby/ but McClaren "turned us down"

Why does Bobby Rosbson get credit for turning us down when he wasn't even in a managerial role elsewhere, but McClaren gets hammered for committing to his current club when connected to us?

Pretty impressive. Only failed to score in 15 from 83 games. Pardew failed to score in 15 of his last 34