Old Codger

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/57011205 For those who are of a certain age 🙂

I bet you say that to all the ... people (OC being PC to avoid the QC)

on second thoughts I will respectfully decline your extremely kind offer then 🙂

wonder if there is a Bishop of Auckland...

so basically we can just expect them to get a fine rather than the mass orchidectomy that popular opinion favours.

or parachute payments allowing you to pay Prem wages in the Championship 🙂

I'd settle for a cultured defender like Varga or Poggy as long as they stayed fit enough to "assert" themselves for most of the season

Isn't it amazing how a serious political discussion can be rerouted into double entendres within five posts... my work here is done .. back to the home planet of Transylvania (special theatrical reference for Snowy)

Probably.... they were successful here 🙂

Except they weren't.. they had a poor run in but were still relegated because no action was taken against a club breaking the rules by fielding an illegally registered player who scored vital goals for them. I get that some people don't like NW and that he is often economical with the truth, but can you imagine that sometimes he may just have a point.

Bit like West Ham getting away with fielding Tevez while Sheff U went down under Warnock.. but certain clubs seem to get off lighter than others .. the way of the world

Darn.. that means an automatic 300 post deduction and SD singing "Sister Josephine" in Danish every night in your dreams...

Of course not but a thin squad to begin with didn't help and having to replace aging crocks with new blood also factors in, are we expecting too much too soon or just not able to face reality. Might have been different if money was coming in, but it isn't and if anything will make it worse, it is people deciding they've had enough. who knows, this time next year we could be celebrating (one way or the other). The standard lecture to prospective Boro supporters always included the line, "This club will break your heart" and whilst we have been lucky in one way to see success for a while, it is

Given that Howe would cost the equivalent of six Championship players, then his team would like double that, so we would be faced with a choice of a decent management team that would have no cash for players or the possibility of a decent foundation for whoever comes in when money starts to flow again. As the priority is likely to be ensuring survival, then we have the choice of gritting our teeth and supporting our team or turning our backs and walking away. Being beyond hope, I can't do the latter, so like every other time, I will wait it out because things can only get better.. hopefully

I see your thinking, but the lack of a recognised leader leads to anarchy (in the UK) so there does need to be someone out there that can motivate his team mates in some fashion... do you think we are anywhere near the total DS wants or do I need to find something else to inflate post numbers?

I think any group of people needs a leader to coordinate them to a degree, otherwise we see aimless milling around and people trying to do their own thing... it isn't the be all and end all, but we tend do do better with strong personalities in the team. On Wiki there is a list of Notable Players for the Boro and I think it could be said that we enjoyed our most successful spells in Riverside years under good captains beginning with Robson, Pearson and Ince. The best teams have two or three leaders/alphas and they mightn't be the best players but the right guy can make a difference

Only reason I can think it was tried was that NW thought it might alter his "It's all about me" attitude and when it didn't there was no real alternative with Hall injured and none of the other senior lads being very vocal

Today looked like one of those games where an organised team were playing 11 strangers dragged in from the car park half an hour before kick off.. no-one was terrible but nobody seemed to know how to up their game. Might just be me, but does anyone else think we haven't had a leader on the pitch very often this season, just to chew people out a bit when they need it

He definitely has skills and seems a decent guy... looks lightweight for want of a better word, seems to be brushed off too easily.. but have enjoyed watching him, so good luck to the lad (except against us)

Either .. but now we have to hope Stoke can beat Sunderland next week as Palace held out 😞

Generally been on top against Palace but caught with sucker punch and 1-0 down at HT

Whilst accepting "Barbie Girl" is a parody, I have to agree that AR is right about admitting to singing it... though I would have had more respect for SD if he had chosen "My Ding-a-ling" 🙂

Didn't get shown up... have to say best team won. Always looked to have that extra second or two.

Just a reminder that final starts in 20 mins.... up on You Tube

See we are in lower half of Fan Engagement Index... good ratings for Governance and Transparency... let down by low score for Dialogue... wonder if that has improved under Warnock with his Zoom stuff and Yusuf getting to interview team members?