[Archived] Newport

[AggyBlue]

The programme was also excellent - not a phrase I can recall writing for a long time. Several pages on Rovers, including an article of social media comments on the game, including contributions from our own Waggy76, Tomphil, Gav and AggyBlue. I suspect they don't know that as I think it was just someone browsing messageboards.

Good spot, I hadn't noticed.

Yet another new ground awaits in the next round.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

Is it right to accept what's currently on offer ?

No you're right, we can do better. I'm just saying we are now a mid-table Championship club in every respect. Squad, gates, revenue. Believe me I wish it wasn't the case, me and others warned until we were blue in the face how vital keeping Big Sam for 10 years if we could manage it and then after that a quick return to the Premiership was. In light of failing to achieve either of those crucial targets, this is where we were always going to end up.

So a mid-table Championship side might view Chris Brown as a bench warmer. But it wouldn't view him as absolute garbage and far beneath the club, Brown has played 10 seasons in the Championship so if we're an average Championship side then he clearly isn't way beneath us. I just think its time some fans got real. We can do better but we can't do much better, we've been losing £25m a season for the last 3 years and are a shadow of the club that could sign Rhodes for £8m. And Gestede was a wonder signing, its totally unrealistic to expect the likes of him every season.

[PeteJD13]

Live Lounge is brilliant - I live in Cardiff and it's always a sure bet! Glad you enjoyed the trip.

I used to live there Metro's for me latterly cosy club!

[CAPT KAYOS]

I had a rather enjoyable return tour to Newport after the disappointment of last Saturdays postponement.

Caught the 11:00am train and arrived in Cardiff just before 2pm. Had a few pints in the Centre before checking into our hotel at 3. No trains going back to where I live after the match so had to get accommodation and Cardiff is a much better option than staying in Newport.

Rolled into Newport before 4pm and visited the Weatherspoons, Cross Keys and Dodger pub before the game. Great hospitality again from the Newport fans apart the the Dodger but who knew it was a home fans pub only. Lucky to make it out alive wearing my Rovers scarf and should of really dodged the place thinking about the name in heinsight but after 10 pints a bar is a bar!

We got to Rodney Parade about 10 minutes before kick off and took our spots behind the goal in the open stand. I think we started alright, looked a penalty from where we were standing and after getting the early goal i was thinking we could run riot here. Feed the Brown and he will score were the chants and he looked proper pumped but then the sending off changed the first half. We sat off and resorted to long ball which clearly doesn't work. Everything pumped up to Lawrence was just coming back at us. Why don't we keep the ball on the deck and pass to feet I'll never know as we are @#/? in the air. When I train for my local side, if the ball goes over knee high the punishment is 10 press ups and a lap round the pitch. Perhaps Lambert should take note and introduce this into his training methods!

We made Newport look like Barcelona, the standing off and not making any tackles was ridiculous. They deserved their equaliser which looked a fine strike and we were lucky to go in 1-1 at halftime. Pint and a fag and back to the stand not knowing what to expect. This is the FA Cup away to lower league and they must of really fancied their chances after that first half showing.

We seemed to be much more physical and focused with a new formation and looked more in control even with just 10 men. Rhodes took his chance and sent us into raptures.

Lucky to get away with the win but with the character and organistion displayed in the second half deserved it. I do remember Newport missing a sitter near the end but thankfully the player must have a head like a Toblerone.

Back to the train station and 10 minutes later we were back in Cardiff and decided to celebrate our cup win. After a few bars on St Marys Street we headed to the live lounge where it was absolutely packed for a Monday. This band played around midnight-1am and were better than decent although the copious amount of alcohol by that point may of swayed my judgement.

Was then persuaded to go to the Fantasy lounge by the street rep as they had 4 Coronas for £8 I think. Apparently, I was explaining to the lap dancers how much I hate Burnley and that Jordan Rhodes can score when he wants. I think I made their night!

Woke up with a severe hangover, checked out the hotel and slept on the train all the way home.

Hopefully the win and fight showed in the second half will give the players a bit more confidence going to Charlton on Saturday. Looking forward to Oxford away in the next round too.

2 observations for people who went:

Who was that guy in blue who walked on the pitch when there was an injury to a Newport player in front of us. He was in casual clothes and just strolled onto the pitch, had a look and then just strolled off.

The stewards hair with the tiniest ponytail and shaven sides. The most ridiculous haircut I've ever seen and deserved the taunting for that alone!

Good tour!

Just Love posts like this Presty - brings back so much memories.

Sadly, don't have the funds nor time like I used to have to do this anymore

[JHRover]

No you're right, we can do better. I'm just saying we are now a mid-table Championship club in every respect. Squad, gates, revenue. Believe me I wish it wasn't the case, me and others warned until we were blue in the face how vital keeping Big Sam for 10 years if we could manage it and then after that a quick return to the Premiership was. In light of failing to achieve either of those crucial targets, this is where we were always going to end up.

So a mid-table Championship side might view Chris Brown as a bench warmer. But it wouldn't view him as absolute garbage and far beneath the club, Brown has played 10 seasons in the Championship so if we're an average Championship side then he clearly isn't way beneath us. I just think its time some fans got real. We can do better but we can't do much better, we've been losing £25m a season for the last 3 years and are a shadow of the club that could sign Rhodes for £8m. And Gestede was a wonder signing, its totally unrealistic to expect the likes of him every season.

In terms of money paid out we are entirely dependent on what our owners want to do. If Venkys decide that they really want promotion and are prepared to spend money to get there then we can aim for top players and we should compete with other clubs for those players. Having low(ish) gates and low revenues didn't stop Bournemouth going up, Watford going up, Burnley going up. Just because 4-5 clubs get significantly better gates than ours, the other 18 clubs are all interchangeable depending on form/expectations.

If we continue with the attitude that because Blackburn is a poor area and we don't get huge gates then we're destined for a downward trajectory then we'll never get anywhere. Rather than accepting the financial situation and gates people like Alan Myers should be moving heaven and earth to get as many people as possible through the turnstiles and get as many local businesses as possible sponsoring the club.

Having said that despite the misery of the last few years our gates remain more than competitive in this league. The likes of Burnley, Birmingham, Middlesbrough have all had gates similar to ours before the bandwagon jumpers came flocking for the 'promotion push'.

Sheffield Wednesday have been a midtable/bottom half club, even a League One club, consistently for 15 years. They've just got a new owner and new manager, made some half decent signings and suddenly everyone is hailing them as a club reborn, destined for promotion, a sleeping giant awakened, bla bla bla, and the impression I get from some Rovers fans is that because of this we should hand over Jordan Rhodes to them and gratefully accept their money because this season they are above us. I use them as an example as they are the epitome of what has been a mediocre going nowhere club for more than a decade, yet all of a sudden people ignore all that and look at them as a level above us. They of course get bigger crowds than us, but not that much bigger to enable them to go to a different level of player to us. Gate receipts are of increasingly reducing importance to clubs in the top two leagues thanks to Sky Sports and rich owners.

The nature of the Championship is that a bottom third side at Christmas could easily become a promotion chasing side by the end of the season. We were two points off the play offs in early December and are now looking over our shoulders at the bottom 3. There is no 'rightful place' in this league. Those with the owners who put the most money in will stand a better chance. We've got owners who have the capacity to invest heavily in this club if they wish and Lambert's comments suggest to me he has been promised a very healthy kitty, which should mean we can match or better any other of the 15,000 gates Championship clubs around. Likewise season on season things change very quickly. Last season Brighton were marooned in the bottom 6 and this season they have been consistently in the top 6. I'm sure that last season their board and owners weren't shrugging their shoulders and accepting their rightful position at the wrong end of the table. They went out and got a good manager and have spent some money, not a great deal, and now are looked at as a club going places once again.

[Mattyblue]

Think we've had this discussion before JH, but there is quite a big difference with say Sheff Wed or Ipswich having average crowds of 18-20000 and us with 13000/14000.

Only 7k or so behind on paper, however their STs are about £600 (up to £800+ at Ipswich, with 'premium seats' over a grand!) with £30/40+ walk on prices, ours are £250 with £22/25. That's without comparing other commerical incomes- over a season quite a discrepancy.

[JHRover]

Think we've had this discussion before JH, but there is quite a big difference with say Sheff Wed or Ipswich having average crowds of 18-20000 and us with 13000/14000.

Only 7k or so behind on paper, however their STs are about £600 (up to £800+ at Ipswich, with 'premium seats' over a grand!) with £30/40+ walk on prices, ours are £250 with £22/25. That's without comparing other commerical incomes- over a season quite a discrepancy.

Yet as we've seen with Bournemouth and Watford it all becomes irrelevant if you have people running the club who are ambitious, wealthy and know what they are doing. It remains to be seen whether Venkys have turned that corner but if they have then there's no reason why their wealth cannot cover any shortfall as happens at many other clubs.