Thanks for the recommendation. I enjoyed it.
They seemed like nice smart kids, and I particularly enjoyed the young woman, Dana's, contribution.
Some interesting divergencies from the perspectives of this blog.
The host was more impressed by stats than we older heads tend to be and the trio were less interested in or informed about institutional/organisational issues than we are.
The differences were really down to the different age profiles of the two fora, but I came away with a great deal of respect for their knowledge and commitment.
It confirmed my view that our blog, for all of its great qualities, could be further enhanced by the inclusion of younger voices.
@ofb I guess I was alluding to some of what your source is suggesting in my earlier post about what SG wants from the club.
Would he be happy with a well run, financially sound, second tier club? I suspect, deep down, that he might settle for that. Is the opinion that he’ll keep on shoring up the finances forever?
With Huddersfield game in hand and Coventry 3 games in hand, if both teams pick up points, the Boro are rock bottom of the league !
22
Middlesbrough
10 2 4 4 -2 10
23
Huddersfield
9 2 1 6 -4 7
24
Coventry
7 0 3 4 -6 3
No offence taken
Obviously we all hear rumours but what was quite perturbing regarding this one of lack of ambition it came from a source who has provided accurate information in the past which quite surprised me to say the least!
So i have passed it on in good faith and understand that there will be scepticism and rebuttal regarding the validity of yet another half baked rumour.
The trouble is something doesn’t seem quite right with the Boro at the moment though
Totally agree OFB. Definitely something going on. Bernie Slaven alluded to this a few weeks ago. But it's not the first time. Over the seasons there always rumours about what's happening behind the scenes. One of my gripes is that there always seems to a situation of job's for the boys. A friend of mine who wrote a marvellous book about MFC over the years,which eventually was old out. He was also a contributer to the Boro programme every home match and told me lots of stories about what was going on at the club. So much so that he was unhappy with certain people, he didn't carry on with writing in the programme after many years.
I have always regarded your hints from behind the scenes as solid information, what you say makes perfect sense to me. We are playing the game of football, but not as the generality know it. Both me and others have been saying from shortly after the first match of the season, that this team is malfunctioning in a big way. The errors that are down to the manager are repeated ad nauseam, all we need to do is study the main faults. First, jones is a very good fullback, but we need him as a winger, so play someone else at fullback. Oh, and put the ball in front of him. He is fast and can score. Second, we will do anything but find a good keeper, last season we persisted with an eccentric for a full season, this season we are into loanee territory, not a good idea. Anyone who we think is at least a fixture will surely be on the bench next match. It makes me uneasy when the players who fill you with confidence during the match are got rid of, Bamba anyone. Enough, there's plenty more, we are broken, and every team, Big or small, rich or poor, carefully consider the facts in a rational and fair manner, then fire the manager. Because you know it makes sense
Relax. We will finnish in the top six with 65 points. 🤐
Up the Boro!
Relax. We will finnish in the top six with 65 points. 🤐
Up the Boro!
phew! That's a relief. I was worried there for a while. 👀
A shout out for Our Friends in the North, currently being repeated on Wednesday evenings on BBC4.
The repeat has been a long time coming- 26 years- but for me it's still the best thing I've seen on television this year.
If anything it is even more powerful and relevant now than it was when first broadcast, because the time lapse has added an extra dimension.
Written in the 1990s, it was a retrospective look at the political and social issues of the 60s and 70s, particularly relating to Labour politics, lobbying, the North-South divide, housing and the building of tower blocks, and corruption in local government and the police (specifically the Met).
In other words it pinpoints some of the biggest political and societal issues that remain with us to this day, and in a way that the currently cowed BBC and other broadcasters are conspicuously failing to do. And it is implicitly demonstrating the massive political failures of the past 50 years which has allowed them to remain so deeply rooted.
All of this with writing and acting of a quality that we just do not see in TV productions today.
The series is 3 episodes in, but earlier parts are available on Catch Up or BBC i-player.
Apologies if this is the wrong thread, but I couldn't locate our Culture forum.
Thanks Len for reminding us of this iconic series. I shall look forward to catching up on our return to Spain. 😎
That would be some achievement if Boro make the play-offs with 65 points maybe they bought their supercomputer from Lidl to work that out. In fact, it's only ever happened once that a club has made the play-offs with less than 70 points and that was Leicester back in 2012-13 with 68 - the lowest points made to make the play-offs and then win them to get promoted was Blackpool in 2009-10 with 70.
Here's a chart showing sixth-place points totals...
I accidentally spotted the repeat when looking for something non-Queen related to watch - I've recorded them as I seem to recall when it was first shown I started watching the series but ended up missing the last few episodes. Look forward to seeing it all!
That would be some achievement if Boro make the play-offs with 65 points maybe they bought their supercomputer from Lidl to work that out. In fact, it's only ever happened once that a club has made the play-offs with less than 70 points and that was Leicester back in 2012-13 with 68 - the lowest points made to make the play-offs and then win them to get promoted was Blackpool in 2009-10 with 70.
Here's a chart showing sixth-place points totals...
What can I say more than I hope the computer knows. But of course it is as good as the info and programme in it.
Anyway, this could be very equal season and the difference between playoffs and relagation a record low.
The super computer didn't trust Rotherham United, though. So it would be interesting to hear why it rated us so much above our last opponents. Rotherham has had a good start, anyway.
Up the Boro!
Len
All the blog is a culture forum !
Thanks for the tip we always wanted to watch it and we lived and worked overseas when it was originally screened so Mrs OFB and I will catch up.
OFB
I found it strange that, even though the gazette reported the appointment of Chris Jones as head of scouting, there has been no mention of it on the MFC website.
Come on BORO.
From Bernie Slaven today. What Rioch achieved at Middlesbrough was a miracle , after relegation ,bankruptcy + liquidation to take a group of local lads who cost nothing 3rd 2nd to 1st in consecutive seasons . Incredible achievement.
It may be worth saying that the first episode of OFITN may come across as somewhat dated. Stay with it and you will have no such qualms by the end of episode 3.
Just to add to Selwynoz’s podcast recommendation, there’s also a new one from the BBC which features Maddo and Dana from The Boro Breakdown:
Sorry to say this, particularly to you who has much the same views on the Management (or lack of same) as myself , but to suggest that we need a further block of time and or matches to decide anything regarding league position, quality of football, future prospects, I could go on but the truth is we are in Manager firing territory right now, this very week. Time waits for no man, and this particular man has used up any Brownie points he ever collected.
My biggest criticism about the current team is the lack of chances given to the young players coming through from our academy.
Yes, we have recruited some young players that we can develop and possibly sell on profit later in their careers. Players like Hoppe, Forss and Boyd-Munce. We have signed very few over 30 year olds. This is good for the club long term.
But if we look the squad list at Boro ( https://www.mfc.co.uk/teams), there is practically no academy players. Yes, Finch was on the bench in the first or second match, but where are all the new academy players since Fry? I do not count Jones as one because he was purchased from Tooting & Mitcham.
I know we have loaned a couple of young goalkeepers as well as Coburn. But where are the up-coming young defenders and midfielders? Where are the Gibsons and Malleys of our team? I don't expect to see them on the bench soon or even starting a game occationally.
We have invested a lot in the academy - I love that - but somehow I feel the management doesn't promote them highly enough. We talk about not having cover in depth. If we have gaps in the roster, I would like to see the young players more.
Like in the days with Mogga or McClaren for example. Where are the up-coming Downings, Barnabys or Morrisons? We were told there are a lot of talent and exciting players coming through a few years back - Maddo at BBC said that, for example. But we don't see them in the first team now.
Please give the young lads a chance at the first team level. Especially now that we have some gaps in the team and not so much cover in depth. Up the Boro!
@jarkko Well said Jarkko. I think a few on this blog believe that Wilder is not overly interested in developing younger players through first team opportunities or which there are more now now with the increased size of the bench numbers.
However, CW wants promotion, that is what he was brought in for we believe. He has been given money to spend. Or should I say the Recruitement Team has been allocated resources in terms of funds.
It always appears to me that the Clubs with less money are the ones that develop their younger players more quickly. They have no choice.
CW is under immense pressure now and will stick with the older players. As I said previously, it disappointed me that he used Mowatt on the bench against Rotherham, when he could have given Boyd-Munce a chance. Let’s be honest Mowatt has been a big disappointment. Also interestingly, Swansea appear to be persevering with Wood.
@jarkko I agree that Wilder seems to have no interest in developing younger players.
Looking at the recent announcement for the new head of recruitment I notice Wilder is the one being interviewed about it. In the Gazette he says
"There are changes that are going to be made there, and changes that are going to be made in certain other parts of the football club too. It’s my job to recommend that, knowing what ‘really good’ looks like. If we can make those changes, which I’m sure we will do, then it’ll make us better going forward."
What is interesting to me is that, if you didn't know better, you would think that Wilder is in charge of all parts of the football club. Scott is virtually invisible.
My read on this is that Scott is using Wilder in part like a human shield. (Less optimistically, there is a power struggle behind the scenes.) Wilder does have vast experience at many levels and it makes perfect sense to get as much of that experience as possible. What I suspect is that if we don't get to the play-offs this season, there'll be a "mutual" agreement that Wilder leaves and a new head coach is brought in who has much less authority than Wilder has claimed. Presumably also one with a track record in developing young players.
In reality I suspect this is a fluid and somewhat unpredictable time. Results are massively worse than expected and have been on the slide for most of this calendar year. We have struggled to recruit a head of football, Tav's sale hit us hard and was badly handled. Everyone at the club has under-performed to some extent or other. I strongly suspect that there are different power bases in the club and it's not infeasible that Scott might get hung out to dry at some point.
Boro’s recruitment gets worse and worse, also the release of some players but it almost on par with what is happening at Yorkshire CCC. The appointment of Lord Kamlesh Patel on a salary of £200,000 may be small fry compared to football, but his actions of sacking so many of Yorkshire’s background staff due to alleged racism since overturned on appeal has accounted for at least £2M in compensation payments. The fact is that racism can work both ways especially regarding the Azeem Rafiq v Gary Ballance confrontation where the two former friends were as bad as each other in the insults thrown around.
However it’s the financial mismanagement that’s almost bringing Yorkshire to its knees. Unlike Boro they have been forced to bring youngsters into the side which might pay off in the long term but has also meant the discarding of the likes of Koehler-Cadmore, Tattersall and Waite finding better financial terms elsewhere. The seam attack has been badly hit by injuries, but where is the logic in recruiting a poor replacement for Steve Patterson who although 39 years old should surely have earned a one year contract for next year?
Yesterday Ben Mike on his debut conceded 86 runs in 12 overs which included 6 no-balls and never looked like taking a wicket whilst Patterson took 4 for 52 at less than 3 an over and 5 for 46 against Essex in the previous match whilst bringing his career of 7 times out of 8 encounters gaining the wicket of Sir Alaister Cook who holds England’s Test record of 33 centuries.
Furthermore this year none of Yorkshire’s recruitment of past overseas Test match players has cut the mustard either. Perhaps we should revert to the old policy of only choosing players within the bounds of the broad acres which has served Yorkshire so well in the past!
Sorry, I meant to write the above blog on the Yorkshire cricket site.
Wilder has admitted there are problems behind the scenes particularly the recruitment team and is happy to welcome a new scout who has worked with Scott at other clubs. Jobs for the boys again perhaps. If this doesn't work out I sense another big clear out which seems to happen a lot with Boro in the last few seasons.
I'm betting that they set up the recruitment team without finding and hiring a very Good scout to head it. I can see it now, spending hours earnestly talking about players they know nothing about and have never seen. Every player signed should have been watched by your club head scout, who of course should have a long history of watching and judging Young players. He, in the present climate, will save you millions. You should not use your Manager to evaluate players, that is not his job, he should be a brilliant coach, but very rarely is anything of the kind, we for instance have not had a manager who would recognise a good player if his life depended on it. It cannot be reasonable behaviour to hire a striker on a five year contract, find that he is awful, and let him do five seasons attempting to be something that he will never be. Think of the cost to us in missed oportunities to sign a Good striker, think of the points dropped, think of your crowd, think of your finances.
I don’t think it’s reasonable to say that hiring someone you value based on previous experience is a “job for the boys”. It’s fair to say that if you don’t value him and just want to help him out with a job but surely there is no suggestion of that.
Many posters are concerned that the club is not joined up at the moment. Should we not be happy then that the club has filled a key position with someone known, valued and trusted to be “on the same page”?
On this summer’s recruitment, whilst I think there’s been too much and one or two that weren’t needed, I still think many of players brought in have made sense. I’m pleased also that we haven’t paid a fee for anyone over the age of 25.
I see a club in a rush - too much of a rush - to get onto the right path but I don’t see a club on the wrong path.
Patience.
