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Would relegation be such a bad thing?

edited December 2006 in General Charlton
Taking out the obvious issues regarding loss of revenue etc for a moment, would relegation be such a bad thing?

Lets be honest, it doesn't look as though the team we have are either good enough, or have the heart to keep us up, so even if we do manage to avoid relegation this season, with the board having spent a decent chunk of next years budget, who is to say that it wouldn't be exactly the same next season ala West Brom?

Would it not be better to accept the inevitable and just get it over and done with, giving the club the opportunity to do what Birmingham have and get rid of their high earners and have a decent pot to invest in the better CCC and older prem player?

That will give us an opportunity to rebuild the team with "Charlton" type players rather than just waste more money on expensive mercenaries who would probably lead us back in the CCC anyway if this years transfer's attitudes are anything to go by?

Thoughts?
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Comments

  • I agree with you, but I'm afraid that if we relegate, we will not do a "Birmingham", but join clubs like Southampton, Coventry and Leicester. Clubs which have been relegated and never managed to get back and a re just grey mouse CCC clubs.
  • Southampton, Coventry and Leicester all had stadium debt hanging over them, that was there problems, we're closer to Birmingham to be honest.

    Out Bent x2, Romm, JFH etc and keep the likes of Andy Reid who I think would happily stay, and start again
  • its how we approach it, as a club and as fans.

    It could easily become a positive in my eyes, the first team squad needs major, major restructuring and its near impossible to do that in the cut-throatness of the premiership. We would also know later in this season whether Les Reed would be the right man to lead us next year or not, a decision could be made early and a new man could be given the full summer.

    A lot will be determined by our level of debts, what the mortgages of the north and west stand are like for the next two years. We really don't have many saleable assets. Bent is the most, but when you strip out the percentage due to Ipswich, plus the cut Darren would get for not asking for a transfer, then financially it does not look good.
  • The likes of Murray, Whitehand and a few others still have pretty deep pockets to soften the blow
  • Team for next year based on who i think will stay

    Myhre
    Sankofa Diawarra Fortune Traore
    Sam Faye Reid Thomas
    Lisbie Walker

    Hmmm think we'll need some strikers there but the back 9 is easily good enough to get us back up. Would we need to get Diawarra/Traore off the wage bill?
  • Problem is we couldnt offload the average players who earn a lot.. the only savings would come from selling some of the so called stars...

    I think we could let Young go which would give us some cash for wages.
  • The real problem with relegation is that season ticket sales would crash. We would lose all the "premiership" supporters and those who would rather pick and choose their games. If we got off to a bad start, I fear that attendances could be in the low teens within weeks.

    It was different first time we got relegated because the mood was still bouyant, and the ground was smaller, so the majority feared that they would not be able to go on a match by match basis.
  • I agree that financially we could be in deep do-do, but what Im asking is would there be an advantage of getting the inevitable out of the way, allowing us to clear out expensive drains on the budget, albeit at a reduced amount due to the buying teams knowing we have to balance our books, rather than staying up with a team that in all likelihood will struggle again next season?
  • i disagree actually. of course we would lose the prem football fans but that is not a bad thing in my book, and i think they are overstated in number.

    like it or not, the majority of our crowd now are families there to watch football in a decent friendly environment, i can't see that changing too much. plus a bit of freed up room with give people greater opportunity to sit in the area and with friends that they want. The Valley crowd will of got used to us hardly ever winning by then, a greater chance of winning, an improved atmosphere, and i think would see crowds remain in the 17-24k bracket.
  • Dan - We will just have to wait and see. The generally consensus from my lot (what's left of them with S/T's) is that we will most probably drop the season tickets next season. We will then go to a few less home games but go to a few more away games.

    But who knows it's all very early for all this. I am still smarting from what I had to watch on Saturday. As you know I was still very positive right up to a couple of weeks ago...........
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  • We'll still be there. I'm just grateful to have been privileged to see a few seasons top class football at The Valley.

    My worries about relegation are mainly financial. Loss of the Sky money obviously but also will the likes of Murray, Whitehand etc retain an investment in a non Premiership club?

    Could we get stitched up like we did when Gliksten left?
  • no chance, the individuals concerned care too much, they are in it for Charlton, not the prem stuff.
  • [cite]Posted By: CharltonDan[/cite]Taking out the obvious issues regarding loss of revenue etc for a moment, would relegation be such a bad thing?


    A rather big obvious issue especially this year.
  • Yes! The club have debits of £55 million pounds and the largest wage bill ever, we will have no squad next season having to release practically every one on a large salary and selling our only playing asset. Relegation to div 1 will be a serious risk I think.
  • £55 million!!! Where did you get that figure from?
  • £55m??
  • On a personal level, I can handle it. I lose some bragging rights and we lose some players that I like - D Bent and I think Diawara would go among others. I already lost the slightly smug feeling being a Charlton fan (in more recent times) afforded a few years back. It is my club and I hang on to its coat-tails whens it is successful and try to help it back on its feet when it is down.

    The championship means more Saturday 3pm kick-offs, better away fans, not having absolutely everything justified by money, more mistakes and laughs, more to aim for and less back-stabbing by the media. Don't be fooled that the premiership is the be all and end all of football - I don't eat at the Ivy, but I have a perfectly good time with my friends at my local curry house. Okay, a rubbish metaphor, but I hope you get what I mean! I like being a Charlton fan.
  • [cite]Posted By: somerton[/cite]Yes! The club have debits of £55 million pounds .

    No, they don't and not anything like it either.
  • Sco - Feel the same way! Going to football is less about the standard of football and more about having a laugh with like minded people in the boozer and ground, before during and after the game.

    However there is no getting away from the fact that football is big business these days and relegation means we move from having a share of the biggest market in the world to one significantly reduced in terms of sponsorship, gate and TV receipts etc
  • Nice post Sco - feel pretty much the same myself.

    Relegation doesn't worry me too much on a personal level, I've not enjoyed matchdays for some time in the Premiership so it can't get much worse - I just hope that the club can come out of it without too much financial damage.

    And I like your metaphor!
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  • [cite]Posted By: Henry Irving[/cite]
    [cite]Posted By: somerton[/cite]Yes! The club have debits of £55 million pounds .

    No, they don't and not anything like it either.

    What odds this figure being in a newspaper over the next few days, with the journo claiming it comes from an "inside source"...........
  • So What do you think the debitis at the our club. We ahve spent £23 million on the new stand and in the last two years 20 million on players, and have had a large wage bill for the last 12-18 months.
  • Sco - great post, I personally don't go to football anymore for the actual 'football', haven't done for a while, I go for the social side with my mates (incidently all of us would renew if we go down and I'm confident we'd all take in more away games as well than we currently do)

    I am resigned in the office to us going down, almost to the point where I will pay out my bets fairly soon.....
  • Somerton - so in that time the club haven't had any income at all have they? Sky money, season ticket money, merchandise etc etc. Our debts are nowhere near 55m, i'd guess they're nearer to about 15m but Henry Irving might be able to give a truer figure?
  • I can't lay my hands on the last set of accounts as I'm not at home so if someone can you'll have last summer's figure.

    As you say Chris we have had some income for the last few years, about £20m+ from Sky plus gate reciepts, A £5m share issue, sponsorships and all that money from our League cup runs. OK forget the last one.
  • Looking at the half year results online, the club had £12m debts due within one year plus £8m due after more than one year. Presumably the summer speding would add to that, but I don't know when the Sky money comes in etc.

    Either way, more like £20m than £55m.
  • if we go down - that's it - no more Charlton games on TV over here :-(

    however if i was still in SE London, i wouldn't be that bothered - i would much rather be watching a season unfold with the possibility of play-offs / promotion / championship than a season spent eeking out points in a bid just to avoid survival

    the Premiership is by & large boring - i mean this season has a bit of spice to it for us, but whats our ultimate goal? mid table obscurity??
  • True Oakster but what are we aspiring to with play-offs / promotion / championship other than midtable obscurity?
  • fact is unless you have huge backing you arent gonna stay in the prem too long, look at boro, they struggle and blow huge resources. Unless we are prepared to do that we might as well plow it into the stadium and creating/finding young talent, rather than wasting on mediocre journeymen 2nd rate internationals.. sorry am I labouring this point too much?
  • why plough it into the stadium Razil? what we have is more than adequate & with attendances likely to continue dropping, especially away attendances - expansion is a folly

    we struggle to fill it now & would probbaly need to start bussing in fans from France if we wanted to push beyond 24k Charlton supporters

    i would like to see more resources spent on bringing in talent from across the globe with a proper scouting network , not half baked "schools of excellence" in the middle of nowhere - something we have by & large miserably failed to do
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