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Pompey's Prospects


Tony F
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Seem to be being "bigged up" by the BBC football website - extract below:

 

League Two 2013-14 season: Club-by-club preview

Portsmouth begin the League Two season as favourites for promotion, having been a Premier League side as recently as 2010.

Pompey, who were relegated last season, start their campaign at home to Oxford United.

Northampton Town will also be hoping to challenge for automatic promotion, looking to overcome the heartache of last season's play-off final defeat by Bradford City.

Chesterfield, who just missed out on the top seven, Fleetwood (13th) and Bristol Rovers (14th) are also expected to compete for a place in League One.

Last season Torquay, AFC Wimbledon, Plymouth and Dagenham and Redbridge all narrowly avoided relegation - but how will they fare this time?

 

Portsmouth

Manager: Guy Whittingham Last season: 24th (League One)

Best summer signing: Joe Devera

One to watch: Jed Wallace

 

BBC Radio Solent's Andrew Moon: "After a traumatic season, which included the club's longest-ever winless streak and inevitable relegation, Portsmouth look ready for a new start.

"The club, now owned by the Supporters Trust, have sold more than 10,000 season tickets already, the most since their Premier League days.

"Boss Guy Whittingham has added a number of new faces with plenty of League Two experience - and has managed to keep hold of experienced strike pair David Connolly and Patrick Agyemang, who should provide goals if they can stay fit. Young midfielder Jed Wallace, who excelled at the end of last season, is a serious prospect.

"Expectation around the city is high with many fans optimistic of a swift return to League One, although simply starting a season without any major off-field concerns feels like a success for Pompey."

 

Is this realistic or just a case of "wow - used to be a Prem club so they GOTTA be promotion favourites"?

 

Discuss......

Edited by Tony F
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'Nuff said?

 

Looks like some are prepared to discuss..... interesting comment on Whittingham.

 

The BBC highlighted the Skates' season ticket sales.

Question:are they a factor in gaining promotion because:

 

a. The team will play better in front of a large crowd

b. The opposition will be intimidated by a large pikey crowd

c. Ticket sales bring in revenue denied to clubs with smaller following.

 

None of the above?

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Looks like some are prepared to discuss..... interesting comment on Whittingham.

 

The BBC highlighted the Skates' season ticket sales.

Question:are they a factor in gaining promotion because:

 

a. The team will play better in front of a large crowd

b. The opposition will be intimidated by a large pikey crowd

c. Ticket sales bring in revenue denied to clubs with smaller following.

 

None of the above?

 

As any poster on the Pompey Takeover Saga marathon thread knows, Pompey have no money as the discounted season ticket sales are already spent on creditors.

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I could have sworn we have a thread on everything skate related ??

 

Nope - that thread is called "Pompey Takeover Saga". Its about the takeover saga of Pompey.

 

The latest iteration of the takeover saga is complete. Who knows, there may never be another takeover saga. As such, therefore, that thread could be conceived to be dormant - for now, at least.

 

This thread is about Pompey's footballing prospects for this, their first season in the mighty League 2, having come under new ownership on conclusion of the takeover saga referred to above. It is of interest as they are our oldest (and boldest) local rivals and we bask in their recent travails.

 

As the OP, I trust this clarifcation is of assistance and I thank the contributors so far.

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with all due respect to my learned friend, and not wishing to tread on the toes of the multitudes more pedantic than myself, I believe the takeover is only technically complete when the full terms of the takeover deal are met and all of those charges are safely removed.

That day is about four years away. :)

 

In the meantime, though casually labelled as a takeover thread on day one, the aforementioned beast broke it's humble shackles like a green-tinted Lou Ferrigno, and went crazily off-topic many moons back.

 

It has evolved over several years and is now an unofficial news portal and discussion area for ALL things blue and few.

 

But back to the original question, I suspect brink-of-playoffs obscurity, which will be sold to the easily-led as a fantastic season.

I also expect to see overspending, mismanagement, a lack of transparency, delusion, and of course, blame being put elsewhere when something bad and blatantly predictable occurs.

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Looks like some are prepared to discuss..... interesting comment on Whittingham.

 

The BBC highlighted the Skates' season ticket sales.

Question:are they a factor in gaining promotion because:

 

a. The team will play better in front of a large crowd

b. The opposition will be intimidated by a large pikey crowd

c. Ticket sales bring in revenue denied to clubs with smaller following.

 

None of the above?

 

a. The team didn't play very well in front of the large crowds the last time they had them - in Premier League and Championship. I guess the crowd don't really have that much influence on the team ;)

b. The opposition being intimidated by a large pikey crowd is another portsmyth perpetuated by nobhead neil. It isn't true, nor is the myth that the ref can't handle such a big game in such a big atmosphere.

c. The discounted ticket sales will bring a little revenue but any increase they see will need to be spent on falling down park, hence the policy they have had where they have signed lots of free agents this summer. I seem to recall we once had a similar policy, how did that work out for us ;)

 

Which just leaves the fact that they still have a tried and tested terrible manager ;)

 

I won't go so far as to say they will be relegated. My prediction is a failure in the play offs - they won't get to the final.

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It's a pretty rubbishy league down the bottom, and they have the safety net of the parachute payments boosting their hypothetical spending power, even if they're actually all tied up in paying existing football creditors. That will be attractive to some journeymen, as will the crowds at that level, at least for the first few weeks til the novelty wears off.

 

As far as the players they've actually got, I have no idea whether any of them will be any good, but I do know the two strikers I've actually heard of are very, very injury-prone. I think they'll probably finish in the top 8, but where in the top 8 I'm not sure. They don't have anything like as much money as people think they have, and have still got a lot of outstanding debt for a "Debt Free" club which may stop them investing in the team (for once)...

 

Quite hopeful they might get into the next round of the League Cup and draw us, so we can put our reserves out against them and stuff them. :)

 

They're only favourites due to the "big name" effect and the fact they have five times as many deluded suckers likely to bet on them as most other teams in that league (as you can see by the pledges they got).

Edited by The9
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Big opening day crowd. High expectations, only heightened further by an opening day win. Then Connolly and Agyemangs inevitable injuries and Wallace's suspensions. Draws, defeats, acrimony, no money. Mid table by Christmas, then no-one cares anymore. Have a nice season suckers.

Edited by Kingsbridge Saint
I can spell, unlike most Skates
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The bookies no longer have them favourites to win the league, or odds-on for promotion.

 

That didn't take long.

 

They have the money of the deluded islanders already, all at ridiculously short odds, now they're after the cash of the gullible by lengthening the odds.

 

I bet you can't get 66/1 on them going down any more now either. ;)

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Why are you guys so interested in them?

 

For me, because they're in the same division as my home town club, the mighty and all-conquering Newport County AFC, who have not lost a Football League match for over 25 years. :)

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Do we need two Pompey threads?

 

OK - I admit it - I started this thread as a vanity project to try and get it up to 1800 pages of contributions and thereby "bump" the takeover saga thread that has broken all records. I felt that maybe - just maybe - we should now put that thread to bed until the next takeover saga iteration.

 

I felt it was something I could contribute to mankind.

 

But it looks like I was wrong.

 

I need to find the Saintsweb Webley and go and do the honourable thing. Any idea who's got it?

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