[Archived] Relegation+uefa Cup Won V Premiership Status

[Billinge End Blue]

Couldn’t decide where to post this so felt a new thread was in order…

With all the doom and gloom after last night’s result, which would most of us prefer: for Rovers to win the UEFA Cup in Glasgow then suffer relegation to the Championship in May or to get knocked out of the UEFA Cup in February and finish the season a creditable (?) 13th in the Premiership?

(to add an extra dimension, in the latter scenario, you can choose who beats us out of the likely/possible contenders!)

Me? Give me the silverware any day and let next season look after itself (I’m not particularly superstitious either)!

PS I know this is rather contrived but bear with it (of course we can win it and stay up)

[Bing]

The long-term future of us as being a Premiership club would be in danger if we were to be relegated again - we may not return for a while, but sod it - I'm sick of the Premiership and watching diving, cheating, mercenary mincers every week. I could live without it for a few years or longer - give me the UEFA Cup; I'd wager that I'd get more enjoyment and satisfaction from that than watching us meander along in this uncompetitive, unentertaining league for the next few years.

[Jordan]

Me and Mark were talking about this morning whilst we were waiting for our train home from Charlton.

I think should we go down (which I don't think for a minute that we will) we would not be able to get ourselves back in the premierleague as quicky as previous. This would ofcourse have a massive impact on the club with loss of TV money, supporters etc.

The UEFA cup is nice and when you enter the target should be to win the thing however I feel that premiership safty is still the priority.

Knowing rovers we will probably get to the final of the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup, Lose both of them and get relegated!

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

There can only be one sane answer to your question BEB.

'Get knocked out of the UEFA Cup in February and finish the season a creditable 13th in the Premiership'

Our squad is simply not big enough as is clear for all to see.We have our pride back in Europe and have done ourselves justice this time....we can hold our heads high.

The repercussions of relegation for Rovers would be horrible...I fear we wouldn't come back (if ever) to the top flight for a VERY long time.The Prem is our bread and butter without question,with no 'uncle Jack' to take the financial losses of relegation we could go from playing Man Utd to Macclesfield in next to no time.....a frightening prospect indeed given our current attendance problems.

Edited December 6, 2006 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[modes98]

Premiership Football is the be all and end all for a club like ours. Uefa cup is a nice distraction but at the end of the day who wants to play hull and plymouth? That doesn't even start to take account of the financial problems and player issues.

[Fife Rover]

Hmmmm... That could be an interesting scenario; winning the Eufa Cup and getting relegated. Would that mean we would still be able to partake in the Eufa Cup next season although we would be in the Championship by then?

But for me there can only be one answer to the original question. Prem survival at all costs: just imagine how you would feel if we had the Eufa Cup in the trophy room for a season, but had to put up with the Dingles playing in the Prem and probably "big club" as well!! AAAARRRRRRRGGHHHH. :ph34r:

Edited December 6, 2006 by Fife Rover

[AlanK]

I agree, Prem safety is paramount.

However, our most recent promotion year with Duff, Dunn, Jansen produced some of the best football seen at Ewood since the title winning team.

You do not have to be in the top league to appreciate and enjoy good football.

[Bing]

Uefa cup is a nice distraction but at the end of the day who wants to play hull and plymouth?

I wouldn't mind at all if it meant we could watch for sensible prices a team of hard-working local lads who loved playing for the club and for reasonable money with some decent football thrown in.

The UEFA Cup IS a nice distraction. A nice distraction from a league packed with meaningless fixtures and players whom I feel no affinity towards whatsoever.

[RoversFanUSA]

I have to agree,

Uefa is nice but to give up the money and status that comes with being a top flight club

cant really compare to the silverware that uefa offers. As id like to see it Rovers move to 8th and get knocked out in Febuary. I feel that we need to still back the rovers with all are hearts but we also need to make are selfs heard and to let board that we are unhappy with the way things are going thus far. Im not asking them to be in 1st but i am demanding that they not lose games like the emberasment of a game we played the other night.

[RevidgeBlue]

Only one answer to this: Premiership status (Guaranteed 30 m upwards next season)

Hypothetically though I would rather win the Cup and finish 17th than go out in Feb and finish 6th again. Not that that would be likely to happen.

Edited December 6, 2006 by RevidgeBlue

[Driftpeasant]

Can you imagine the sheer horror of the Dingles in the Prem with us in the Championship?

[Eddie]

I would never choose the UEFA cup over survival, but I would certainly take a 10th-15th place finish if we won the UEFA Cup.

[USABlue]

Premiership club has to be, even if ti is by the skin of our teeth. I would still like to see us get past the next round of the Eufa at least. We can do it.

Can you imagine the sheer horror of the Dingles in the Prem with us in the Championship?

I won't sleep tonight now you buggar. Trust me on this, you do not want that to happen even if it was for only one season we'd never hear the end of it.

Edited December 6, 2006 by USABlue

[Tris]

Only one answer to this: Premiership status (Guaranteed 30 m upwards next season)

What use is 30 million quid when every other PL team gets the same? We're still the poor relations because our non-TV revenue is the lowest in the division.

I'll take the drop with the UEFA Cup win thanks. A glorious pinnacle to 15 great years.

And a welcome return to proper league football, cheaper tickets, motivated crowds enjoying Saturday afternoons, local derbies which mean something, rebuild Nuttall Street, better pies - and we'd get another season in Europe to boot! We're not going to qualify any other way!!

[pick32]

Got to stay in the premiership for me, if we got relegatedwe would lose some good players and also i dont think our club could afford to be relegated as we are probably alread yin debt this season.

[Eddie]

And a welcome return to proper league football, cheaper tickets,

Cheaper tickets? I took a friend of mine who supports West Brom to the game last night and it was the cheapest game he's gone to all year. Prices haven't dropped at all for them since they have gone down, nor have they for Southampton, can't see why they would for us.

[Driftpeasant]

Premiership club has to be, even if ti is by the skin of our teeth. I would still like to see us get past the next round of the Eufa at least. We can do it.

I won't sleep tonight now you buggar. Trust me on this, you do not want that to happen even if it was for only one season we'd never hear the end of it.

We CANNOT go down if the Dingles go up. There is no greater horror on this planet.

If we go down and they go up it's enough to drive a man mad. I swear if that happens I will burn every piece of Lonsdale crap I own, pretend it's 1995, and start supporting Millwall.

[Darwen_Blue]

Well folks this is the paradox, which has been facing us since our UEFA cup travels kicked off back in Salzburg. The thought of been relegated and potentially our local rivals Burnley and Preston coming up as we descend into the Championship is to be honest the most horrifying thought I have had far a long time. Now if that was to happen lets be honest with our selves it will be one hell of miracle to bounce straight back and no doubt we will loose a significant number of our current squad. Speaking honestly we know that compared to other clubs in the premier league we are heavily under invested. The revenues received via ticket sales isn’t enough to keep the club going and to be honest it doesn’t look like those currently at the helm are willing to invest any more.

We see again this week in the news that more foreign investment will be heading to one of our league competitors and with these clubs now being cash rich to potentially compete financially with the likes of Man U, Chelsea etc. It will be increasingly hard for us to attract the right players to compete in the league, a fact that is clearly facing us now. NONDA!!!

One thing I have noticed is that the clubs that have been bought by foreign investors do seem to attract better attendances could this be a factor in there decision to purchase clubs in the premiership? Well I can only share my opinion on that. It seems to me that the playing field financially is tipping away from us even more so and if something isn’t done soon and we don’t (fingers crossed) go down. The only thing we will be playing for in seasons to come will be to stay in the league and not go BUST!!

[Tris]

Cheaper tickets? I took a friend of mine who supports West Brom to the game last night and it was the cheapest game he's gone to all year. Prices haven't dropped at all for them since they have gone down, nor have they for Southampton, can't see why they would for us.

Beacuse Eddie, we have a Chairman and a Chief Exec who have sussed how important it is to price the product according to what people can pay, and what it is perceived to be worth.

I can't believe you gave us the slip again. That's twice at Charlton (was Charlton last season your last live game?!) and once in Paris.

All you had to do was drop us a text or call into the Antigallican like you said you'd do last year - you could have partied the night away with luminaries such as Jordan, MarkBRFC, 14May1995, Preston Blue, John, LondonRover, nolan9 and many more.

Oh well, sure we'll see you at Reading or Arsenal.

[Exiled in Toronto]

What use is 30 million quid when every other PL team gets the same? We're still the poor relations because our non-TV revenue is the lowest in the division.

I'll take the drop with the UEFA Cup win thanks. A glorious pinnacle to 15 great years.

And a welcome return to proper league football, cheaper tickets, motivated crowds enjoying Saturday afternoons, local derbies which mean something, rebuild Nuttall Street, better pies - and we'd get another season in Europe to boot! We're not going to qualify any other way!!

Not often we agree, but I'm with you on this one. Another season finishing 13th will be forgotten come the end of August, whereas winning in Glasgow will be the pinnacle of our supporting lives

[Eddie]

Yes, this was my first game of the season and my last one was Charlton away last year in the league. I just can't see how we could afford to drop our prices any further without dropping down more than one division.

By the way Tris, I would have sent you a text, but I don't have your number, makes it a bit hard. As for going to the Antigallican, I had planned on it but I was running late to the game so didn't have time beforehand and afterwards I really wasn't in the mood.

Edited December 7, 2006 by Eddie

[AxesFirstTouch]

If people want to see us buying real Journeyman and having a strikeforce of Ade Akinbiyi and Robbie Blake then feel free to think relegation is the best option. You only have to look at the quality of Leeds' squad to realise this.

Although I do think the way we'll ever get to see Rovers6 fave players like Andy Taylor,Kane starting for Rovers is relegation.

[neekoy]

You do not have to be in the top league to appreciate and enjoy good football.

You do if you live outside the UK and only get to see Premier League. I couldn't handle not being able to watch Rovers again.

Premiership survival above all else. Of course I still think both Uefa and a top 6 finish is not out of the equation.

[LeChuck]

If people want to see us buying real Journeyman and having a strikeforce of Ade Akinbiyi and Robbie Blake then feel free to think relegation is the best option. You only have to look at the quality of Leeds' squad to realise this.

I'm trying to picture what team we could realistically put out after relegation, maybe something like...

Brown

Kane Zurab Henchoz McEveley

Gallagher Mokoena Bentley Peter

Jeffers Derbyshire

Not fantastic but you'd expect it to compete with at the top end of the Championship with Sparky in charge...

Relegation isn't a complete disaster if you can manage to return to the Premiership within two years. £7 millon parachute payments are made to relegated clubs for two seasons after they go down, that is still a massive advantage over the rest of the division. If we did go down and failed to return within two years, it would probably be a long time before we ever made it back.

[AxesFirstTouch]

I would say Bentley would be one of the first to want to leave!