Looking on the Bright side

Bexley Dan

Despite the 4 or 5 years of decline we've had to undergo, i can honestly say that its never seemed as bleak as it did back in the 80s when we were playing at Sellhurst, in front of ridiculous crowds, no home, everybody ion your local area walking about in other temas tops, Millwall at their highest point ever, Palace doing well. Somehow i still now see us as being better than them and see this as only temporary. Twenty five years ago years ago we felt like a special needs outfit for a time and as somebody who started going in the late 70's as a youngster, we'd always been something of a loveable joke of a club, in terminal decline since the glory days started to fade in the 50s / 60s. Now, however, despite the mess the 'team' are in and the financial problems, we have a first class stadium, we have recaptrured a lot of lost support and proven that we are a sustainable prem outfit so i don't worry. I know we'll be strong again soon and in a way, dipping our toe back in the mire, as we are doing now, will make us appreciate it so much more when we turn things around again. Nothing but respect for Richard Murray and the board for what they've done for the club but we are just treading water at the moment and i'm sure better times ain't that far away. Football can turn around quickly - Barcelona / Real madrid and Celtic / Rangers are always switching from chaos to dominance every 5 years and there aren't the obstacles and uncertainty in the way like we had twenty five years ago. It's just a case of when, not if we will be back where we belong.

Oggy Red

That's the spirit!

Good post, Dan.

Fanny Fanackapan

Welcome to the small but perfectly formed , ever growing band of cheerleaders, Dan.

Bexley Dan

Cheers Fanny. Not sure whether you're taking the piss and i'm sure it could be argued that there is an investor out there who may be able to take over if the current directors agreed to take a financial hit. That i guess is the question - should we expect the directors to take big losses in return for the kudos of having been supremos at the club or do we cut them a bit of slack and bide our time as a show of appreciation from taking us out of the hole we were once in. I think they deserve a bit of time although how do you gauge it? Mistakes have been made, no question but should they be expected to write off £30 million. Maybe? I'd say they should write some off but it would be a shame to lose all the expertise at boardroom level we have. We know their hearts are in the right place and they must have learnt a lot during the rollercoaster of the last 20 years. But that's all it is to me - a question of how long it's going to take for new investment to come in. There are people buying into other clubs and we're a much better and safer investment than most. Just a matter of time. Then we can start on the upward charge again which is where all the fun is. As they say though, it's better to travel than arrive. It's once you arrive that the problems start.

Oggy Red

Well, none of us really relish being in the Third Division. Last season, results and League position indicated we were the 4th best team out of 24 - and the top 3 were promoted.

We missed out by a win and a penalty kick, so we took it right to the wire - we get another chance this coming season.


So rather than worry about the level we're competing at and whether we'll ever regain our 'rightful place' in the Prem, lol - or even about any potential takeover or financial worries (that's the Board's prerogative), as fans we might just as well enjoy the journey.

One day, that journey will once again take us upwards ....... at this stage of the coming season, there's still every chance that day could be during May 2011.

Bexley Dan

Oggy - i agree that things will turn around eventually and the prem isn't the be all and end all. It could be argued that ' that's the boards prerogative' but if we really do end up with a squad that looks like getting relegated from div 1 (which is a possibility the way things are going although we need to see how the summer pans out) and the current owners simply slash costs to reduce their losses whilst 'treading water' until a buyer comes in then i think the fans will start accelerating that process because there comes a point when cutting people slack has to come to an end. Charlton fans are tolerant but if it looks like a drop into league 2 or worse then the worm may start to turn. If by mid September we are languishing near the bottom then i think the crisis / crunch point may happen and it won't take many weeks of a disenchanted stadium for that to get through. I hope it doesn't happen and i hope Parky puts together a side we can really get behind but if it's a joke of a side then i predict things being brought to a head.

Harveys Trainer

Whilst I agree that these aren't the worst of times my fear is that the world and football moves a lot quicker these days so we can get left a lot further behind a lot quicker.

Also we still appear to be on the downward slop, so until we see that upturn i don't think the chickens can accurately be counted.

The other question of course is where do we "belong".

Bexley Dan

In all honesty, we're probably an upper Championship club with the odd flirtation with the top flight. I think most would be happy with that but nothing's impossible and the fact that Chelsea are now looked on as probably the leading English side at the moment tells you anything is possible.

Fanny Fanackapan

Definitely not a p*ss taker, Dan.