My understanding is that the £3m profit from 2020-21 covers the loss in 2021-22 but that in order to cover our losses of up to £3m for 2022-23 we've had player/manager sales of £1.5M and the Couhigs will put the rest in once the trust sign over another 15%.
That's not exactly running a club sustainably.
On another note, we've had a very unfortunate season, these players started the season with us and for one reason or another have largely been unavailable during Blooms short tenure (obviously I realise some have left the club!):
Mawson, Tafazolli, Thomson, Gape, McCleary, Vokes, Obita, Kaikai, Horgan, Mehmeti, Al Hamadi, Mellor
I think he's done remarkably well considering. Our bench the last 8 weeks has regularly had development squad players on it.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing but I would have loved to have still had Kaikai and Al Hamadi here of those above who didn't retire / sign elsewhere.
I'd actually like to see TJ play up top, Hanlan on the left and Wheeler on the right. Freeman just behind. Appreciate that would mean only long balls to Wheeler or into the channels. A number of smaller players have made a success of playing centrally on their own with the right tactics.
Hello @Cyclops. Long time no see. (That seems a suitably inappropriate greeting!)
Not sure how often you visit the Gasroom these days but it’s good to hear from you, if only to know that you’re still in the land of the living. You probably know that I don’t get to Adams Park these days, other than for Covid jabs.
What was the question? Oh, yes, I remember. It’s remarkable that you should have raised that point. I’d actually typed “Any idea to whom I refer?” But it struck me as sort of pompous old school (pompous, moi ?) “Whom” always does. But it’s an age thing. My Wimbledon mate uses it occasionally in emails (of all places).
Anyway, my populist tendencies came to the fore and I changed it to the perfectly correct version which you and no doubt hundreds of others will by now have read.
Seriously, though, I hope you are keeping well and still enjoying life. Send me a DM if you’re so inclined. And no quips about reclining armchairs.
I like the lad and he runs his socks off for the team but I don’t think TJ is league one material. Sorry if that view differs from most on here but it is my view and hopefully he will prove me wrong.
The gasroom went a little bit over the top on him recently, but he's certainly got it all to prove.
Like with Kashket, you'd feel his best position is in a front 2, with a big target man. Not sure we'll play that way much, but we'll see.
If McCleary and Vokes can't be afforded next year, there's a huge void to fill in the attack and it's probably the most critical area to strengthen, as this season feels a little like that one that petered out with Hayes and Thompson as a 2 up front, the season before we brought Bayo in.
Against Ipswich we surely need as much experience as possible. I really hope we don’t have Campbell and TJ start. Maybe a 532 with Freeman starting with Josh and Wing in the middle with Wheeler and Hanlan up top
When RC came in, it was with all the American bluster that 'he wanted to prove it was possible to run a football club sustainably', accounts like this don't show much proof in that particular pudding
I like De Barr he reminds me of Samuel...puts himself about, keeps defenders busy and takes a kicking but is not going to get 10 L1 goals a season in my lifetime. In a fine Gasroom tradition I would love to be proved wrong.
If you want my theory on this (I fully accept you don't, btw, but I'm going to give it to you anyway...)
Rob Couhig saw the table on Jan 1 2021 and accepted relegation. Accordingly he decided not to open his chequebook but only allowed Gareth to sign players on loan (despite the gaffer making it clear publicly he wanted to bring one or two players in on a permanent and sniffing round Wimbledon's Joe Piggott). In fact, Rob probably decided around about then to sack Gareth because the style of football he played was not winning over the hoardes of international viewers he'd set his business model on. Hence the public letter he sent before the Huddersfield away match, lambasting the style of play. It looked like he was gearing up for a sacking.
BUT THEN... The fanbase took Gareth's side and there was no groundswell of support for his defenestration. What's more, Gareth turned it round, playing attractive football and winning almost enough points to keep it up.
At the close season, Rob realised that @aloysius had been right after all - if Rob had taken the gamble and opened the checkbook (that one's for you @Wendoverman) Wycombe would almost certainly had stayed up and the reward would be untold riches. And so he determined to put his trust in Gareth and gamble then, in the close season, signing The Player Sam Vokes and a lot of other expensive talent.
The gamble would've paid off, if it hadn't been for those pesky kids from Sunderland. Not the end of the world, last season's budget was covered by the parachute payments after relegation. The problem was, most of those players were signed to a two year contract.
Now the failed gamble is really coming home to roost, with prospect of a promotion this season to pay for it fast diminishing. We saw the consequence of that this Jan - Rob once again deciding not to gamble on a promotion (probably quite wisely, I'm with him this time), instead cutting costs however he could.
If he remains chairman this summer, expect us to be playing a development squad as our first team next season. I suspect however that this gambler will cut his losses, having seen that the cards are stacked against him and realising he's already out of chips.
I think we did sign 'the player' in the Champo season - two of them, in fact. The issue is that both Uche and Taffs were injured for basically the first half of the season. We have them all season and we stay up!
Many of the financial problems at WWFC, and most other EFL clubs, could have been solved if the Salary Cap proposals on the table in 2020 had been adopted - a total of £2.5m for L1, and £1.5m for L2. But the PFA challenged it, and it was dropped.
This would have prevented the 'bigger' clubs splashing out on a high wage bill that the smaller clubs couldn't afford, and creating an unlevel playing field.
The salary cap kind of works in the Rugby Premiership, £5m this season, rising to £6.4m next. Anyone caught cheating gets a massive points deduction, resulting in automatic relegation, as happened to Saracens. On a much bigger scale, they have a similar system in the NFL, where all 32 teams have to publish in the public domain, the salaries of every player in their squad.
Bringing back a cap might see a return to the bad old days of players getting secret payments. They might turn up to a game a find a cheque has been slipped into one of their boots.
@Kim_il_Swan - That's essentially what Saracens did, but in a more sophisticated way. They bought houses for players to live in rent-free, and set up Limited Companies for players to channel 'investments'.
But given the draconian penalties, any football club trying to cheat in the way you suggest, would be taking a massive risk.
Comments
We'll all be getting them again when someone breaks the internet...
Who's Joe Sixpack when he's at home @Malone?
@micra, old chap, should it not be "...any idea to whom I'm referring?"
My understanding is that the £3m profit from 2020-21 covers the loss in 2021-22 but that in order to cover our losses of up to £3m for 2022-23 we've had player/manager sales of £1.5M and the Couhigs will put the rest in once the trust sign over another 15%.
That's not exactly running a club sustainably.
On another note, we've had a very unfortunate season, these players started the season with us and for one reason or another have largely been unavailable during Blooms short tenure (obviously I realise some have left the club!):
Mawson, Tafazolli, Thomson, Gape, McCleary, Vokes, Obita, Kaikai, Horgan, Mehmeti, Al Hamadi, Mellor
I think he's done remarkably well considering. Our bench the last 8 weeks has regularly had development squad players on it.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing but I would have loved to have still had Kaikai and Al Hamadi here of those above who didn't retire / sign elsewhere.
I'd actually like to see TJ play up top, Hanlan on the left and Wheeler on the right. Freeman just behind. Appreciate that would mean only long balls to Wheeler or into the channels. A number of smaller players have made a success of playing centrally on their own with the right tactics.
Hello @Cyclops. Long time no see. (That seems a suitably inappropriate greeting!)
Not sure how often you visit the Gasroom these days but it’s good to hear from you, if only to know that you’re still in the land of the living. You probably know that I don’t get to Adams Park these days, other than for Covid jabs.
What was the question? Oh, yes, I remember. It’s remarkable that you should have raised that point. I’d actually typed “Any idea to whom I refer?” But it struck me as sort of pompous old school (pompous, moi ?) “Whom” always does. But it’s an age thing. My Wimbledon mate uses it occasionally in emails (of all places).
Anyway, my populist tendencies came to the fore and I changed it to the perfectly correct version which you and no doubt hundreds of others will by now have read.
Seriously, though, I hope you are keeping well and still enjoying life. Send me a DM if you’re so inclined. And no quips about reclining armchairs.
Agree with the last line. Hanlan up top and De Barr in an odd sort of Number 10 role isn't either player's best position.
Hanlan left, De Barr an absolute nuisance in the centre, and much closer to goal when he does his clever runs, turns and flicks.
I like the lad and he runs his socks off for the team but I don’t think TJ is league one material. Sorry if that view differs from most on here but it is my view and hopefully he will prove me wrong.
The gasroom went a little bit over the top on him recently, but he's certainly got it all to prove.
Like with Kashket, you'd feel his best position is in a front 2, with a big target man. Not sure we'll play that way much, but we'll see.
If McCleary and Vokes can't be afforded next year, there's a huge void to fill in the attack and it's probably the most critical area to strengthen, as this season feels a little like that one that petered out with Hayes and Thompson as a 2 up front, the season before we brought Bayo in.
You, @Malone, are like greased lightning.
Thank goodness he's not like ball lightning!
At the moment, with Vokesy out I would be happy with whoever they stick up front if Hanlan goes back to a wider position.
Or greased balls.
Against Ipswich we surely need as much experience as possible. I really hope we don’t have Campbell and TJ start. Maybe a 532 with Freeman starting with Josh and Wing in the middle with Wheeler and Hanlan up top
When RC came in, it was with all the American bluster that 'he wanted to prove it was possible to run a football club sustainably', accounts like this don't show much proof in that particular pudding
You can probably file that with the "best footballing experience in the country".
Am I imagining that one of the very first things he said was that we'd have the best toilets in the country?
I'm pretty certain that's one area he's never even pretended to give a, ahem, crap about.
He definitely mentioned upgrading the toilets the very first time he spoke to Trust members, just not sure how hyperbolic his wording was.
I have to say that the new paper towel dispensers are an improvement.
I like De Barr he reminds me of Samuel...puts himself about, keeps defenders busy and takes a kicking but is not going to get 10 L1 goals a season in my lifetime. In a fine Gasroom tradition I would love to be proved wrong.
I think he could be more like Beavon. Doesn't look up to too much in front of goal, then everything just clicks
I just hope that before either leaves we get to see Vokes and Tjay up front together like an old Martin O'Neill little and large combo.
If you want my theory on this (I fully accept you don't, btw, but I'm going to give it to you anyway...)
Rob Couhig saw the table on Jan 1 2021 and accepted relegation. Accordingly he decided not to open his chequebook but only allowed Gareth to sign players on loan (despite the gaffer making it clear publicly he wanted to bring one or two players in on a permanent and sniffing round Wimbledon's Joe Piggott). In fact, Rob probably decided around about then to sack Gareth because the style of football he played was not winning over the hoardes of international viewers he'd set his business model on. Hence the public letter he sent before the Huddersfield away match, lambasting the style of play. It looked like he was gearing up for a sacking.
BUT THEN... The fanbase took Gareth's side and there was no groundswell of support for his defenestration. What's more, Gareth turned it round, playing attractive football and winning almost enough points to keep it up.
At the close season, Rob realised that @aloysius had been right after all - if Rob had taken the gamble and opened the checkbook (that one's for you @Wendoverman) Wycombe would almost certainly had stayed up and the reward would be untold riches. And so he determined to put his trust in Gareth and gamble then, in the close season, signing The Player Sam Vokes and a lot of other expensive talent.
The gamble would've paid off, if it hadn't been for those pesky kids from Sunderland. Not the end of the world, last season's budget was covered by the parachute payments after relegation. The problem was, most of those players were signed to a two year contract.
Now the failed gamble is really coming home to roost, with prospect of a promotion this season to pay for it fast diminishing. We saw the consequence of that this Jan - Rob once again deciding not to gamble on a promotion (probably quite wisely, I'm with him this time), instead cutting costs however he could.
If he remains chairman this summer, expect us to be playing a development squad as our first team next season. I suspect however that this gambler will cut his losses, having seen that the cards are stacked against him and realising he's already out of chips.
I think he is trying to hard , once he scores and starts to relax the goals will keep coming
We’ve been out of chips for some time, or should that be frys for our cross pond cousins?
I think we did sign 'the player' in the Champo season - two of them, in fact. The issue is that both Uche and Taffs were injured for basically the first half of the season. We have them all season and we stay up!
Many of the financial problems at WWFC, and most other EFL clubs, could have been solved if the Salary Cap proposals on the table in 2020 had been adopted - a total of £2.5m for L1, and £1.5m for L2. But the PFA challenged it, and it was dropped.
This would have prevented the 'bigger' clubs splashing out on a high wage bill that the smaller clubs couldn't afford, and creating an unlevel playing field.
The salary cap kind of works in the Rugby Premiership, £5m this season, rising to £6.4m next. Anyone caught cheating gets a massive points deduction, resulting in automatic relegation, as happened to Saracens. On a much bigger scale, they have a similar system in the NFL, where all 32 teams have to publish in the public domain, the salaries of every player in their squad.
Bringing back a cap might see a return to the bad old days of players getting secret payments. They might turn up to a game a find a cheque has been slipped into one of their boots.
Chequeboots.
blimey, bit of a stretch to say rugby's salary cap has worked when 15% of top level clubs went bust this season.
@Kim_il_Swan - That's essentially what Saracens did, but in a more sophisticated way. They bought houses for players to live in rent-free, and set up Limited Companies for players to channel 'investments'.
But given the draconian penalties, any football club trying to cheat in the way you suggest, would be taking a massive risk.