Transfer News 2022/23 Season Incoming Transfers and a few other things

[Paul Cannell]

Looking on the bright side; the start of October's a good time to recruit a young manager with modern ideas who wants to work with the board to build an organisation that can establish OUFC as a Champeenship club. Let's hope the board can avoid getting another wrong'un.

 

[Swaby39]

Yep ,what a mistake this was, ive spent over £1k this season on season tickets/shirts ,I thought we were going to be ambitious this window and plug all the holes in last seasons squad that failed. The opposite has happened though and we have more holes in the squad than last season.

Didn’t your all-knowing source tell you this would happen? I think he owes you £1,000

 

[ECYellow]

Think it's fine to use a little bit of perspective. Ambition is great, (and Bournemouth's was probably aided by being bankrolled by a Russian billionaire), but some of the reactions on here are not dissimilar to Bill Paxton's character in Aliens.

Are you underwhelmed Brock?

 

[Snoopsnoop]

Entitled? Entitled???

I never had the pleasure of watching us in the top flight, nor do I expect to in my lifetime.
I did, however, get to enjoy multiple seasons in the 2nd tier throughout the 90's - and I don't think it is unreasonable to hope for this again.

There is a significant portion of our support (judging by this place) that are more than content to never play at that level again. I'm not saying they don't want it - but they are distinctly content where they are. Being reserved is ok in real life, football should allow us to dream, to wish for more. It doesn't mean you can't appreciate what KR has achieved or that 'things could be worse' - but it recognises that life is short and progress is our aim.

Of course it's not KR's fault that we've not played in the 2nd tier for 23 years (nearly a quarter of a century) - but after 4.5 years if he is not best placed to get us there then surely we move on?

This isn't entitlement - it's ambition. Entitled are Wigan fans thinking they should be top flight because Dave Whelan got them punching above their weight or Reading fans thinking their natural place is in the 2nd tier because they've overspent for years.

I am simply wanting OUFC to play in the 2nd tier - a level far from beyond us and hardly delusions of grandeur.

For the record, the following clubs (all smaller than us IMHO) have played tier 2 football (or in some cases top flight) since we last did in 1999:

Tranmere
Stockport
Crewe
Grimsby
Walsall
Port Vale
Gillingham
Wimbledon
Rotherham
Wigan
Southend
Scunthorpe
Colchester
Blackpool
Doncaster Rovers
Peterborough
Yeovil
Bournemouth
Brentford
MK Dons
Burton Albion
Wycombe

And that doesn't even touch on clubs of a similar size (Reading, Plymouth, Luton, Swansea etc). In fact, I can't think of a bigger club than us that has gone as long without playing in the 2nd tier (there's probably one or two of a similar size (Bristol Rovers for example) who have gone a bit longer - but no-one undeniably bigger).

As identified by other posters - this could be the best chance we have of not only getting to that level but establishing ourselves there. We need to move - and move quick - the clock is ticking. Off the pitch - and on it.

Instead of stubbornly sticking with whatever recruitment plan OUFC currently has, might be worth hiring someone from anyone of those clubs listed for a season or 2 to get insight into the operations at the time they were a Championship club? Or at least researching it. Not every club gets promoted with 30,000 home attendance providing war chests galore.

 

[The mighty Aldo]

Having had time to think about this I will try and defend KR, although ultimately he has failed this window

Please don’t shoot me down but feel free to comment

At the end of the season we finished eighth and failed
We lost Mc Nally,Sykes,Whyte,Kane,Holland and Williams so basically half the team.

KR goes to the Board and says we didn’t go up with these players we need better players, the Board agree and as we have been told money is not a problem

We go after Cadden and Hardie and no doubt other quality players who those in the know will tell us about. Some of these maybe loans
As the window progresses it becomes clear that getting these better players isn’t possible for whatever reason and I doubt we will ever know the full story

Meanwhile we get in players who are good squad players like Brown, Joseph, Bate and Bodin
We get Findlay and Brannagan stays ,Murphy is a good signing we all agreed

What I can’t defend is Baldock(5/10 games max)Jones( injury prone)Winshutt ( past his best) and Henry(lost whatever pace he had)

So in essence we have a starting eleven worse than last year because the players we went after said no ,we then waited in the window to see what we could get but as other clubs have found out this window has not been easy if you didn’t do your business early.

It has been a gamble that has failed, but what I want to know is if the money is there why have many players turned us down?
Its too easy to say KR is the problem because lots of players will come here and want to stay, look no further than Brannagan.

 

[Jaboysmith]

That’s easy for you to say

What

 

[OX14]

Didn’t your all-knowing source tell you this would happen? I think he owes you £1,000

My source is someone in the academy hence how I knew Cam was staying and traveling back down from Blackpool to sign a new contract. I'm not going to name him for obvious reasons but even he is surprised by the lack of transfers this window and has started to doubt the ambition of this club currently.

 

[MiddleBartonYellow]

If you are not getting value for money, prices of season tickets and matchday tickets have gone up. If he shows yet again he can’t provide a balanced squad with the budget given to him, why should people renew a season ticket when year on year the price rises & things get tighter money wise for people. Good will shouldn’t be taken for granted and I think KR has done that with the fans and the board and taken advantage of it.

We’ve had worse times than this. Probably 60% of our history we’ve not had “value for money “.

 

[Marston Road yellow]

I don’t agree - one sign of a good manager is knowing when you’re trying to do too much to the detriment of you and your organisation. 10 years ago I didn’t recognise it and it nearly broke me but after some very difficult periods I raised this and am now in a much better place personally and corporately and much more effective at what I do as a result.

I’ve been in a position where the SMT were so inept that I had to take everything on and that nearly lost me my marriage.

There are 2 sides on this. I don’t believe that the owners are inept or stupid I actually think they are playing for time and that it would suit them to have a below par season so that they can re set fully as they see fit. .

 

[SteMerritt]

There is a significant portion of our support (judging by this place) that are more than content to never play at that level again. I'm not saying they don't want it - but they are distinctly content where they are.

Now I just don't believe that. Just because people aren't shouting on a football forum wanting the manager's head on a plate it doesn't mean they are happy with how things are going.

I want promotion and Championship football, I think we should be looking for that being our 'standard position'. I also believe we appear to be taking our eye off the ball in a few areas at the moment, presumably distracted by trying to get SB up and running, and it's as frustrating as hell.

 

[OX14]

We’ve had worse times than this. Probably 60% of our history we’ve not had “value for money “.

So just because we've had worse times means we just accept it for what it is and part with our cash?? Didn't fans storm the boardroom when Kassam was in charge? We still haven't had confirmation the guiness book of record for the longest football takeover has completed. These owners just because they've enquired about some land shouldn't get off the hook so lightly.

 

[Yellowken]

We're all pissed off, but let's leave out the personal attacks, yeah? Whether it's aimed at KR or those who dared to try and stay optimistic, the insults and toxicity are contributing to this forum fast becoming a horrible place to be.

Totally agree. Given some of the toxic comments made by some, I actually question if they support OUFC at all, and if they do, then they realish in us losing games!

Not my definition of being a fan.

 

[SteMerritt]

Didn't fans storm the boardroom when Kassam was in charge?

It's debatable that doing so actually improved things. Yes he ultimately sold the club, but we are still shackled tightly to him via an expensive agreement to play in an unfinished stadium which has held us back ever since. Boy do we need SB to become a reality. If that was progressing, then the current owners would have a lot more credit when the playing side is faltering. Hopefully some good news on that front in the next 4 months or so.

 

[bazzer9461]

Can we have a tantrum bus to compete with the @Scotchegg positive bus?

There isn’t one big enough

 

[WuTang]

And I’m sure the season we were top of the conference and blew it, you were saying the exact same thing, we’ll never get this chance again? Your self-entitlement as to what we are as a club is incredible

I went to every game that season FWIW, Lenagan wasn't the richest owner we've had but he was steady and kept us ticking over. He had the means to fund a promotion push from the conference and backed Jim in that first season. Unfortunately, despite a great start after 20 games our older players started burning out, we'd invested in older players dropping down the pyramid rather than the best players in that division.

I think everyone was bitterly disappointed that season, unless that makes them entitled?

We learned from our mistakes when Wilder joined and built a robust, athletic, fit team from the best players non-league had to offer and it took us up, Midson, Green and Beano were 3 top strikers available near every game that season. The club had promotion budgets and those seasons in between were some seriously dark days, there was no entitlement but a knowledge that the money was there to go up and it had to be spent wisely.

Same for this season, the money was there and it needed to be spent wisely. We have a board of billionaires who could fund us in the Championship and Premier League, and they are putting money where their mouth is. It's not entitled to want your club to do better, that's called football. You may be happy doing a Rochdale and sitting in League One for over 20 years in a row, but our owners want us to move forward into the leagues above and there's no "self entitlement" to want to jump on that now we have the opportunity.

You speak of self-entitlement like OUFC don't belong in those divisions, we have spent a great deal of our history there and only for a crooked landlord and a dodgy contract signed by Mr Merry we were strangled and dropped away. We now have owners wanting us to get back there and you're happy plodding along in League One and sticking your head in the sand? Count me out, I'm up for taking this club back to the big time, even just the 2nd tier will do for me, that's ambition.

 

[bazzer9461]

I don’t think Karl sets the prices for tickets and shirts. I never listen to his waffle but I’ll go along on Saturday, we’re due a good win.

And if we don’t? Meltdown

 

[Northernyellow]

Im

So just because we've had worse times means we just accept it for what it is and part with our cash?? Didn't fans storm the boardroom when Kassam was in charge? We still haven't had confirmation the guiness book of record for the longest football takeover has completed. These owners just because they've enquired about some land shouldn't get off the hook so lightly.

I'm not ITK, but if I were them, I would not complete the takeover until the stadium passes planning. At the moment, they hold all the leverage. If OCC refuse planning, they walk away and the club is then probably looking at an AFC Wimbledon scenario. And OCC won't want thst. But as soon as they complete the takeover, they're on the hook. And if planning is refused, what are they left with? A loss making L1 club with a core fanbase of 6-8,000. In a disgusting stadium with a greedy landlord and a lease with 3-4 years to go. Would you invest in that? I wouldn't.

 

[Bicester Yellow]

We’ve had worse times than this. Probably 60% of our history we’ve not had “value for money “.

Didn’t have a cost of living crisis then though did we? You may be able to just turn a blind eye and pay whatever they set as the price regardless of who we bring in. It’s about perception. Why, if after us flirting with the playoffs for 3 seasons we go backwards this season would some people want to renew a season ticket to see the same mistakes happen again when some are struggle to make ends meet as it is. Football is a leisure pound & shouldn’t be taken for granted, if the product and ambition isn’t being realised then a lot of people will vote with their feet until it seems like it has been addressed & that doesn’t make those people any less of a fan.

 

[Brahma]

Karl is finished here now, beginning of the end. That's my view. Said in May, he had a summer transfer window to recruit the problematic areas we needed. He's appeared to have made many mistakes since and poor judgment calls. He had such a good side last year, yet we're a million times different this time around.

The amount the Board have received in transfer fees has been wonderful in recent years. I am sure they have been disappointed with the change of direction in terms of recruiting. I am certain, the lack of incomings this week is directly related to the £20K per week + sat in the treatment rooms. TBH, I don't blame the Board one single bit for not wanting to throw more cash at crocks or players with history or of a certain age that have little return on their investment.

Tiger coming back is odd. The Anderson deal was done a while back IMO, so not sure why he needed to be here from a recruitment point of view. More likely back to check in on where the money has been pipped up the wall and report back to the rest of the money men.

Any money we do have left, which I doubt is much, should now be ring-fenced until Jan. I might add, we HAVE NEVER had a problem attracting loan players here, I doubt we had problems attracting them this time around, I guess the purse strings have been pulled tight and I don't blame our owners one single bit.

 

[StockholmOx]

So as the transfer window closes, I just wanted to throw my 2 cents into the ring, as someone who generally refrains from posting on speculative threads like this. I have my own reservations on certain aspects of the transfer window for sure, like every fan. But I have a generally positive view on the process, and on the management of the club, and have no interest in thinking I know better than them when it comes to recruitment, formation, tactics and the rest of it. Come the end of the season, if our general upward trajectory as a club appears to have reversed, only then I might change my mind, but until then what I see is progress with squad building (new Brannagan contract amongst others, quality permanent signings of generally Championship quality instead of loans, youth players starting to shine, young diamonds in the rough like McGinty recruited), progress with the stadium situation, progress with the training facilities, academy and women's set-up, progress with community engagement and certain marketing aspects (not all), and a group of wealthy, ambitious individuals at the helm who appear to be serious and competent with their ambition. Of course there are things I would like to see done differently, but I'm not an expert in the running of a football club and also understand not everything can ever be perfect. At the end of the day we're a small, community-focused club (as aspect that made me fall in love with OUFC in the first place I should say), and just to be talking about Top 30 and PL ambitions is nothing short of a dream - when much of my youth was spent watching us struggle to beat the likes of Altrincham and Hayes and Yeading in a 2/3rds empty stadium.

But what I have seen on social media, and on here, in the last few days has made me rather concerned about the way the club's hierarchy and staff view the fanbase in general. These extreme views of a small spattering of individuals are of course allowed, everyone should be allowed to have their say, however they carry a huge amount of weight and I do not think they in any way represent the views of the thousands of Oxford fans who do not post every few minutes, the vast majority of whom don't use this forum, Twitter, or other channels. And I really really hope the club know this and do not think that these views speak for all Oxford fans - they certainly don't represent mine. Particularly some of the comments regarding our own players, home-growns like Sam Long and Stevens and new signings that haven't even had a chance to show their worth like Wildschut and Jones, are bordering on repulsive. These are our players, in the case of Long and Stevens players that have come through our ranks and at times been absolute heroes in yellow and blue, and deserve to have their names chanted by the fans, not insults thrown at them by a couple of keyboard warriors. I may be wrong, but I don't think these views have anything to do with the fanbase in general, and are completely at odds with the views I hear from fellow fans I know or when I'm at matches.

Anyway sorry for the long post, I just thought I'd like to point that out, as I think others already have, and I really hope that the views of the dozen or so individuals posting 100 times a day on an internet forum and twitter don't become viewed as the benchmark for the opinion of the fanbase in general, either by other fans, or by those working at the club.