That word cropped up on the New York Times Connections game yesterday. I didn’t know what it was then and I’ve forgotten in the meantime what it turned out to be.
The reality of the situation is that the Couhigs have left us in a much better place than when they originally bought us. They appear to have sold us to people who will take the club further forward, if early indications are a sign of things to come. So I think we should be thanking the Couhigs . Clearly Rob Couhig is a businessman and sees an opportunity with Reading and has forgotten he’s an old man and it’s physically and mentally demanding flying to and fro from the States!!!!
Yes agreed - Rob is a businessman and didn’t hide the fact that his exit strategy was to sell up (at a profit), leaving us with someone he trusted.
Rob obviously made a profit and I put that down to good fiscal management and a big slice of luck regarding the timing of the play-off win against Oxford and the resulting Championship payout.
Rob obviously saw that there were limitations at WWFC and saw an opportunity at Reading during the time he was in discussions over Bearwood. His exit from WWFC and then immediate involvement with Reading seemed somewhat underhand but that’s business.
Good luck to Rob but I still hope we thrash them in the league.
It seems to me that Rob and Sir John Madejski are similar in their outlook. A period of stability is what Reading FC needs now and hopefully that is what we will get. Any "fan" who wants the new owner(s) to spend, spend, spend (mostly the younger ones who became fans during our Premier League excursions), can go and watch that team up the road in the University city, Birmingham or even Wrexham as far as I am concerned. even if it takes a thousand or so off our gate, we will be better off without them.
Sustainably you can only do it with a combination of a successful academy and incredible luck with player trading. You obviously need an initial injection of substantial funds to set up premises and the right coaches etc. Rob didn't have the necessary funds, our new owner it seems has.
Let’s be clear. Rob Couhig has not sold the club to the guy he trusts the most, he has sold it to the guy who gave him the money he wanted for it. I’ve no idea whether Lomtadze will do right for the club in the short or long term. Couhig’s legacy for me, in a fan point of view, depends on what happens next at WWFC.
I strongly disagree. It would be totally unreasonable to blame Rob for what happens next. I doubt very much that there were a queue of people interested in buying Wycombe that Rob could select from.
Rob saved the club from possible oblivion and steadied the ship and overall did exactly what he said with his sales pitch when he bought us. He has sold us to a billionaire (they don't grow on trees) who it is believed was funding during the latter stages of Rob's tenure. The new owner has already acquired a training centre for us and set out his plans for the future. If it goes pear shaped 5 years down the road it will NOT be Rob's fault.
Spot on. Rob did a great job in his 5 years at Wycombe and could walk away with his head held high. He may have sold to the highest bidder or possibly the only bidder, either way he can’t be held accountable for what happens in the next 5 years and beyond.
I'm probably slightly naive but I believe him when he said he wanted to make sure the next custodian of the club was a rightun (if that phrase exists!).
There are obviously many other questions related to what he said when leaving, then turning up down the road..but Time will tell on those when his full involvement becomes clear.
Just to remind as well, Rob Couhig strengthened the power of one individual at the club beyond 75%, making it increasingly difficult for the trust to hold the main shareholder to account in future. That also shouldn’t be forgotten.
We just couldn’t keep up, my 30 quid a year and monthly prize draw contribution is apparently not big shakes in the highfalutin world of football finance.
Everything so far from Lomtadze and Rice is at face value entirely positive and sensible - the things they have said seem reasonable, the goals are ambitious but just about achievable, the signings we have made strong but not unaffordable. However, it all feels just a little bit less ‘Wycombe’. It might be different when we start playing games again but at the moment it all feels a touch hollow. I can’t shake the feeling that we no longer support a small community club swimming against the tide, but instead the vehicle for billionaire investment that happens also to play a bit of football. Which I’m sure means we’ll win more games, but I don’t know if it will be as much fun.
A fairly faceless guy based out of Kazakhstan is a little less Wycombe than the bloke from a Louisiana with the big promises that often didn't quite happen but football probably needs to go back to owners who chip in and work behind the scenes rather than the host of melts that line up for 5 minutes of fame on Talksport.
I'm far more interested in the stuff that Dan Rice *didn't* talk about at the trust forum - particularly how the club aim to be at the forefront of the AI analytics revolution. There's no reason why he would - it's got to be a lot more commercially sensitive than the length of players' contracts - but I'll be fascinated to see if we can glean any information as the season progresses. I wonder if it will be used in informing which players to bring in on loan, for example, or if it's simply too early to use practically.
Comments
With the cries of “yeah, I’m a Royal” from the away stand.
Up the Read
They call themselves "the Ding" these days
Ironically, because it sounds like a cash register?
Generally speaking no I'm not that concerned by what they do after they leave WWFC.
I didn't say it wasn't interesting or that it wasn't strange for RC to be involved with any take-over at Reading given his comments when he left WWFC.
But am I now bothered by the comments RC made while at WWFC?
Not in the slightest. I didn't see them as anything more than "badge kissing" anyway.
However, judging by the likes received for the comment made by @eric_plant it does seem that others are now bothered by some historical comments.
I just don't get it - RC is history, life moves on.
That word cropped up on the New York Times Connections game yesterday. I didn’t know what it was then and I’ve forgotten in the meantime what it turned out to be.
The reality of the situation is that the Couhigs have left us in a much better place than when they originally bought us. They appear to have sold us to people who will take the club further forward, if early indications are a sign of things to come. So I think we should be thanking the Couhigs . Clearly Rob Couhig is a businessman and sees an opportunity with Reading and has forgotten he’s an old man and it’s physically and mentally demanding flying to and fro from the States!!!!
If there are holes in the Car Lease Edifice roof, it is going to be the world’s longest game of soggy biscuit, could last decades.
Yes agreed - Rob is a businessman and didn’t hide the fact that his exit strategy was to sell up (at a profit), leaving us with someone he trusted.
Rob obviously made a profit and I put that down to good fiscal management and a big slice of luck regarding the timing of the play-off win against Oxford and the resulting Championship payout.
Rob obviously saw that there were limitations at WWFC and saw an opportunity at Reading during the time he was in discussions over Bearwood. His exit from WWFC and then immediate involvement with Reading seemed somewhat underhand but that’s business.
Good luck to Rob but I still hope we thrash them in the league.
Well , if Dan is to be believed then the limitation was Robs ability to finance our climb up the league ladder.
Frankly I don’t know how we’ll do it either but I’m very interested to see us try.
As for Rob I wish him well, he is one of the seemingly small minority of club owners that sell up and are still liked by the fans he’s leaving behind.
It seems to me that Rob and Sir John Madejski are similar in their outlook. A period of stability is what Reading FC needs now and hopefully that is what we will get. Any "fan" who wants the new owner(s) to spend, spend, spend (mostly the younger ones who became fans during our Premier League excursions), can go and watch that team up the road in the University city, Birmingham or even Wrexham as far as I am concerned. even if it takes a thousand or so off our gate, we will be better off without them.
Sustainably you can only do it with a combination of a successful academy and incredible luck with player trading. You obviously need an initial injection of substantial funds to set up premises and the right coaches etc. Rob didn't have the necessary funds, our new owner it seems has.
Let’s be clear. Rob Couhig has not sold the club to the guy he trusts the most, he has sold it to the guy who gave him the money he wanted for it. I’ve no idea whether Lomtadze will do right for the club in the short or long term. Couhig’s legacy for me, in a fan point of view, depends on what happens next at WWFC.
I strongly disagree. It would be totally unreasonable to blame Rob for what happens next. I doubt very much that there were a queue of people interested in buying Wycombe that Rob could select from.
Rob saved the club from possible oblivion and steadied the ship and overall did exactly what he said with his sales pitch when he bought us. He has sold us to a billionaire (they don't grow on trees) who it is believed was funding during the latter stages of Rob's tenure. The new owner has already acquired a training centre for us and set out his plans for the future. If it goes pear shaped 5 years down the road it will NOT be Rob's fault.
Spot on. Rob did a great job in his 5 years at Wycombe and could walk away with his head held high. He may have sold to the highest bidder or possibly the only bidder, either way he can’t be held accountable for what happens in the next 5 years and beyond.
Yep, Rob's legacy is already written.
I'm probably slightly naive but I believe him when he said he wanted to make sure the next custodian of the club was a rightun (if that phrase exists!).
There are obviously many other questions related to what he said when leaving, then turning up down the road..but Time will tell on those when his full involvement becomes clear.
Excellent post @mooneyman
Just to remind as well, Rob Couhig strengthened the power of one individual at the club beyond 75%, making it increasingly difficult for the trust to hold the main shareholder to account in future. That also shouldn’t be forgotten.
We just couldn’t keep up, my 30 quid a year and monthly prize draw contribution is apparently not big shakes in the highfalutin world of football finance.
Sill no win BTW
You sell over 50% that's it, Cheerio Folks, Goodbye.
The Couhigs advances were spurned erroneously by famous footballers who infamously couldn't meet payroll.
Hence cap in hand back to the Couhigs, who saved the club 3 weeks before Covid.
They made no secret of their exit plan to flip it which is what they did.
The new owners influence can be seen in performance pre and post January transfer window which I thought was the best ever.
Same manager, different budget, different results.
Mr Lomtadze et al seem to be surrounding themselves with talent and focussing on building the club from the bottom up.
There will be a marked difference in presentation, to quote Elvis, A little less conversation and a little more action.
You seem remarkably positive @NiceCarrots. It's nice to see 😊
Maybe this is for a different thread.
Everything so far from Lomtadze and Rice is at face value entirely positive and sensible - the things they have said seem reasonable, the goals are ambitious but just about achievable, the signings we have made strong but not unaffordable. However, it all feels just a little bit less ‘Wycombe’. It might be different when we start playing games again but at the moment it all feels a touch hollow. I can’t shake the feeling that we no longer support a small community club swimming against the tide, but instead the vehicle for billionaire investment that happens also to play a bit of football. Which I’m sure means we’ll win more games, but I don’t know if it will be as much fun.
A fairly faceless guy based out of Kazakhstan is a little less Wycombe than the bloke from a Louisiana with the big promises that often didn't quite happen but football probably needs to go back to owners who chip in and work behind the scenes rather than the host of melts that line up for 5 minutes of fame on Talksport.
I'm far more interested in the stuff that Dan Rice *didn't* talk about at the trust forum - particularly how the club aim to be at the forefront of the AI analytics revolution. There's no reason why he would - it's got to be a lot more commercially sensitive than the length of players' contracts - but I'll be fascinated to see if we can glean any information as the season progresses. I wonder if it will be used in informing which players to bring in on loan, for example, or if it's simply too early to use practically.
It wasn't much fun watching the first third of last season!
Probably too early, especially given the recent questions about the reliability of AI, the unauthorised use of data sets to train AI etc.
I take your point but I think that the club I love is still there in fans the Trust and the Foundation.
I will still will be catching up with the same people at the start of next season and will still have the same mix of optimism and trepidation .
Im excited by the prospect of the academy and the players that will come through it.
And I’m not adverse to winning a few more games.
Part of the software behind the new system has leaked....
10 PLAY Kone
20 GOTO 10
It's already been used to bring in Dan Harvie the new left back from MK.
I wouldn't trust that - I bet we typed in 'Artificial Intelligence best players' and the AI automatically went to MK for 'artificial'.