Doug on CWR (4 Viewers)

[chiefdave]

read the negativity on here, and then listened to the interview - miles apart from each other - drama queens, go to sleep until August

I really don't understand peoples need to try and find something negative all the time.

As an example we've had a history in recent years of players going out with long term injuries, there's been multiple comments on here suggesting we need to look at the medical side of things. King comes out and says we're doing just that and people aren't happy

 

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[Deleted member 9744]

I didn't read that as negative but more just managing expectations. We don't have an owner that is going to endlessly fund those losses - the goal is to build the club's revenue to bring it closer to sustainability and also to get that ridiculous Premiership promotion $$$.

I am not sure we can ask for a lot more as long as we keep improving and investing in the team. I don't read his message as "we're not going to deepen the squad" clearly we are going to do that - but we're also not likely to go and spend more than we have earned in transfer fees to do that.

Yes but it's a question of how you increase the depth of the squad. Just sticking to expensive long term prospects isn't going to cut it. You need depth which includes more experienced players who are used to the rigours of the Championship and to utilise the loan market.

And we need to stop dishing out four year contracts to players like Collins, which is really wasteful.

 

[djr8369]

I really don't understand peoples need to try and find something negative all the time.

As an example we've had a history in recent years of players going out with long term injuries, there's been multiple comments on here suggesting we need to look at the medical side of things. King comes out and says we're doing just that and people aren't happy

Robins has been saying for ages it’s an area that needs improvement too.

 

[HuckerbyDublinWhelan]

Our squad has been far too thin since we came back to the Championship.

It has, but I think that’s because we’ve had a good 11 mainly backed up by our league one squad. We seem to be looking at trimming them now so if we get the 7 players I think we need as a minimum, we’ll have a much healthier squad size and quality

 

[Sick Boy]

Id rather listen to Robins about squad depth than King.

 

[Hobo]

Moore has gone already

Even those out of contract this summer have contracts until end of June, so nobody has gone yet.

 

[Skybluedownunder]

Yes but it's a question of how you increase the depth if the squad. Just sticking to expensive long term prospects isn't going to cut it. You need depth which includes more experienced players who are used to the rigours of the Championship and to utilise the loan market.

And we need to stop dishing out four year contracts to players like Collins, which is really wasteful.

I’d rather 3+1 year contracts in our favour than flat out 4 year ones


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[Deleted member 9744]

I really don't understand peoples need to try and find something negative all the time.

As an example we've had a history in recent years of players going out with long term injuries, there's been multiple comments on here suggesting we need to look at the medical side of things. King comes out and says we're doing just that and people aren't happy

I don’t think anyone would say it's not a good idea to improve the medical team. However, I don't think a state of the art medical team will be saying it's a great idea to keep playing players when they have played too many matches because there is insufficient depth to the squad. In fact they are likely to say the opposite.

 

[Mucca Mad Boys]

Robins said that in January and nothing was done about it. Our end to the season proved Robins right and it is concerning if we haven’t learned from that. Anyone can make a mistake but the problem is if you don't learn from it.

Still spent £7m and the club believed EMC was coming in Jan.

There’s such a thing as FFP clubs have to adhere to so the club can’t just spend whatever it wants even if Doug King was an oil tycoon. We’ve committed all the transfer money from Hamer and Vik hence we’re dependent on both their sell-on clauses and a possible Sheaf sale to manoeuvre in the transfer market.

There has to be an emphasis on sustainability because I’d rather avoid a ‘Pom and bust’ scenario at our club.

 

[shmmeee]

If I were Robins I’d point out that we’re consistently at the bottom of this list:

 

[Hobo]

I think too many have tried to put their own slant on what King said. He is right when he says it is pointless having too big a squad. You need the squad to all be competitive and involved.

Yes there will be injuries and you cannot legislate where they will come or what positions they will affect? Bad luck can make you look short in an area when you aren't really. It is about striking the right balance.

I am glad we are looking at the fitness of players and how we can keep them fit and also the detail in how we recruit. It is about time the club became more professional in this area; as under SISU things had seen us fall behind improved industry standards.

I would like to see the squad a bit larger than it has been, but I still advocate quality over quantity. For instance if we can find someone of Kelly's quality but can give us more than 16 games a season, that would be an improvement straight away. We need to avoid signing players like Dabo who we just had to nurse through each season.

The Recruitment and Fitness departments are key members of our team, who can influence how strong our squad is. It is not all about player numbers.

 

[clint van damme]

If I were Robins I’d point out that we’re consistently at the bottom of this list:

View attachment 35666

What list is it?

 

[shmmeee]

What list is it?

Number of players used in a season. We’ve always been either the lowest or second lowest afaik.

 

[clint van damme]

I think too many have tried to put their own slant on what King said. He is right when he says it is pointless having too big a squad. You need the squad to all be competitive and involved.

Yes there will be injuries and you cannot legislate where they will come or what positions they will affect? Bad luck can make you look short in an area when you aren't really. It is about striking the right balance.

I am glad we are looking at the fitness of players and how we can keep them fit and also the detail in how we recruit. It is about time the club became more professional in this area; as under SISU things had seen us fall behind improved industry standards.

I would like to see the squad a bit larger than it has been, but I still advocate quality over quantity. For instance if we can find someone of Kelly's quality but can give us more than 16 games a season, that would be an improvement straight away. We need to avoid signing players like Dabo who we just had to nurse through each season.

The Recruitment and Fitness departments are key members of our team, who can influence how strong our squad is. It is not all about player numbers.

We have been operating with a paper thin squad for years.
I'm not sure why people are arguing against a bigger squad, (I appreciate that's not exactly what you're doing), but I'd rather worry about having too many players than not enough.

And Dabo isn't a good example, I think there's a strong case that playing him when he was injured is part of the reason he ended up a total crock.

 

[PUSB-We_are_going_up]

If I were Robins I’d point out that we’re consistently at the bottom of this list:

View attachment 35666

Look at the teams at the bottom though not really teams that done badly is it the higher the list the worse the teams performs,
Basic sport psychology the bigger a group social loafing less effort team performs worse

 

[Grendel]

Number of players used in a season. We’ve always been either the lowest or second lowest afaik.

It doesn’t really prove much when the most used is the worst team and Leicester have one more than us

 

[ccfcricoh]

Quality > Quantity

 

[shmmeee]

It doesn’t really prove much when the most used is the worst team and Leicester have one more than us

It proves we work with one of the smallest squads and that you need 25 capable players. If you want to give robins Leicesters wage bill but say he can only use one more player (which includes Hamer, Andrews, Howley) I’m sure he’d snap your hand off.

 

[Gman1987]

What's incredibly boring is the seemingly desperate need for negativity when, in my opinion, there's no reason to be anything but positive and incredibly optimistic about next season and the general direction the club is headed.

Things will never be perfect and it is impossible to keep everyone 100% happy all of the time, but we have an owner with a clear desire to go up and its clear that we feel like a proper club rather than a basket case like we have been most of my lifetime.

Is he perfect? No. But neither are any of us.

Spot on. When I was stood at Northampton away January 2017, that was the time for feeling despondant when the mood literally was like a mutiny. I missed games last season owing to work commitments, but I take it on the chin - fixtures may be moved. If all people want to complain about is the kit not being out yet then feels like progress to me.

 

[Saddlebrains]

Think his comments on squad size lend credence to what I've been told and said on here that he doesnt like loans,(Sometimes you end up with players who dont play) .

I'm not trying to catastrophise here but if he doesnt add the depth Robins needs, wants and deserves, and supplement that with 1 or 2 quality loans that we all know are needed to get out of this league, Robins will rapidly lose patience

 

[shmmeee]

Surely he says “this is the wage budget” and robins cracks on? If he wants 80 players on a L2 wage or 10 on a PL wage that’s up to him.

 

[chiefdave]

Robins will rapidly lose patience

Mid May and we've already got our first 24/25 season 'Robins is going to walk'

Could be a long summer

 

[TomRad85]

Think his comments on squad size lend credence to what I've been told and said on here that he doesnt like loans,(Sometimes you end up with players who dont play) .

I'm not trying to catastrophise here but if he doesnt add the depth Robins needs, wants and deserves, and supplement that with 1 or 2 quality loans that we all know are needed to get out of this league, Robins will rapidly lose patience

Tbh the players with linked with suggest we're going about improving the squad. Hitting the high end free market (for us the likes of Browne, McCallum and Willock) is very smart and will put us in a good place.

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[long way home]

Sounds like Robins and Doug are signing off the same hymn sheet. The squad numbers, Robins had said the same towards the end of the season, we have to have the right balance. They also avoid talk about potential signings Robins just says im not telling you and Doug pivots away by going in another direction.

That has to be a big positive and good go hear. Im sure they don't agree on all but i can imagine neither sit in silence. Both have a role to play and both want the club to move forward, its just a matter of waiting to see the next step taken.

 

[Yorkshire SB]

We have been operating with a paper thin squad for years.
I'm not sure why people are arguing against a bigger squad, (I appreciate that's not exactly what you're doing), but I'd rather worry about having too many players than not enough.

And Dabo isn't a good example, I think there's a strong case that playing him when he was injured is part of the reason he ended up a total crock.

Is that not the downfall of lots of championship clubs though? Bloated squads full of players they can’t get rid of. Stoke, Cardiff, etc.

Bristol City used to be the same and they’ve trimmed right back after the past couple of seasons.

I’m not saying having a small squad is right per se, but there’s definitely advantages. We’ve done fairly well with a low budget, which surely isn’t possible if we have a bigger squad.

 

[clint van damme]

Is that not the downfall of lots of championship clubs though? Bloated squads full of players they can’t get rid of. Stoke, Cardiff, etc.

Bristol City used to be the same and they’ve trimmed right back after the past couple of seasons.

I’m not saying having a small squad is right per se, but there’s definitely advantages. We’ve done fairly well with a low budget, which surely isn’t possible if we have a bigger squad.

There's a middle ground between a bloated squad and a paper thin one.
I just find it strange that people are arguing against a bigger squad when it's not something we've had to worry about.
I think the squad been to thin has bit us on the arse in two of the last three seasons at least.

 

[shmmeee]

Is that not the downfall of lots of championship clubs though? Bloated squads full of players they can’t get rid of. Stoke, Cardiff, etc.

Bristol City used to be the same and they’ve trimmed right back after the past couple of seasons.

I’m not saying having a small squad is right per se, but there’s definitely advantages. We’ve done fairly well with a low budget, which surely isn’t possible if we have a bigger squad.

We’d have been fine this season with EMC in, an outfield player instead of Moore and the right quality instead of Wilson, Tavares, Godden, Kelly making up the numbers (and O’Hare going on strike).

But we’d probably need to spend more in wages than they free up

 

[usskyblue]

Just listened to the interview and there’s some strange fuckingtakes on here.

Doug said the recruitment team is on it and he’s getting a shitload of phone calls.

 

[biggymania]

I think a lot of folks believe that for everything to work the owner and the manager have to be in perfect agreement and alignment and if not, then it's all drama and arguments.

Robins and Doug may make statements publicly that appear to conflict or contradict which makes sense because ultimately the CEO is responsible for making sure the club is run correctly and isn't haemorrhaging money. Robins of course is mostly focused on his squad and assembling the best squad he can to achieve their objectives. They're not always going to perfectly align - in an ideal world, Robins would have a massive high quality squad full of the best loans and best permanent signings in the division. The reality is we can't afford it, so we have to thread the needle between what is ideal and what is actually possible.

I think it's been pointed out already that Doug is willing to take feedback publicly and change decisions - I believe the same is likely to be true internally. So when it comes to things like not doing enough business in January or not using the loan market enough, he'll be listening to Robins & the recruitment there - but he'll only agree if it fits within whatever budget they have. That may lead to Robins having to say no to the loan market because it reduces his budget for permanent deals.

 

[clint van damme]

I think a lot of folks believe that for everything to work the owner and the manager have to be in perfect agreement and alignment and if not, then it's all drama and arguments.

Robins and Doug may make statements publicly that appear to conflict or contradict which makes sense because ultimately the CEO is responsible for making sure the club is run correctly and isn't haemorrhaging money. Robins of course is mostly focused on his squad and assembling the best squad he can to achieve their objectives. They're not always going to perfectly align - in an ideal world, Robins would have a massive high quality squad full of the best loans and best permanent signings in the division. The reality is we can't afford it, so we have to thread the needle between what is ideal and what is actually possible.

I think it's been pointed out already that Doug is willing to take feedback publicly and change decisions - I believe the same is likely to be true internally. So when it comes to things like not doing enough business in January or not using the loan market enough, he'll be listening to Robins & the recruitment there - but he'll only agree if it fits within whatever budget they have. That may lead to Robins having to say no to the loan market because it reduces his budget for permanent deals.

If King doesn't want to operate with a squad size that's fit for purpose he shouldn't be making demands about cup runs and top 6 finishes.

 

[biggymania]

If King doesn't want to operate with a squad size that's fit for purpose he shouldn't be making demands about cup runs and top 6 finishes.

Well, I think this season he's learned an important lesson - that one most likely came at the expense of another. And you would argue that success in the playoffs is worth so much more.

I think if you listen to Robins' statements for the last few months you know what he will be telling Doug privately about the clear consequences of that desire. And if we consider how he listens to fan feedback, you can be sure he is listening to Robins' too.

He's not an idiot - he might be a little too pigheaded at times, but he seems to be learning and adjusting. That's the best you can ask for, really.

 

[skybluecam]

We’d have been fine this season with EMC in, an outfield player instead of Moore and the right quality instead of Wilson, Tavares, Godden, Kelly making up the numbers (and O’Hare going on strike).

But we’d probably need to spend more in wages than they free up

100%, Robins clearly didn't trust Tavares, Kelly or by the end Godden so they were just making up the numbers. But we will need to increase the wage bill.

 

[skybluecam]

He's not an idiot - he might be a little too pigheaded at times, but he seems to be learning and adjusting. That's the best you can ask for, really.

The interview impressed me tbh, struck the right balance between football and business.

 

[SBAndy]

Surely he says “this is the wage budget” and robins cracks on? If he wants 80 players on a L2 wage or 10 on a PL wage that’s up to him.

Only half the story though. Most players we may be interested in will command transfer fees. Just plucking this example out of nowhere, but if Robins decided he wanted a backup RB and wanted to spend £3m on him it’d be a fair challenge to say “is that a worthwhile use of resources?”.

 

[Mucca Mad Boys]

If King doesn't want to operate with a squad size that's fit for purpose he shouldn't be making demands about cup runs and top 6 finishes.

He never said anything of the sought that he doesn’t want to operate a squad big enough. He specifically said ‘no comment’ to the size because, presumably, that’s delegated to MR. He just spoke about the changes he made. If anything, I’d say he’s guilty of pumping up his own actions since he’s become owner and that’s if I’m being cynical.