Barnsley
Relegation fodder …
Monday, June 20th, 2011 | BWFC Goals, BWFC News, BWFC People, Premier League | 3 Comments
Would you buy a second hand car off these boys?
Aspirations have changed at Bolton since the dark days of Gary Megson. The arrival of Owen Coyle followed by our impressive start to the season had the more optimistic of us counting air miles and dusting off our Bulgarian phrase-books. Even when European qualification had passed us by – embarrassingly so in the cup – a top half finish was still on the cards right up to the end of the season.
Never mind. Coyle’s inherited Megson’s bunch of cloggers. Once he’s had the summer to make serious changes, we’ll be back to chasing Europe again. Surely relegation battles are a thing of the past? Aren’t they?
Maybe not. Our form after Christmas was relegation-standard, and the end of the season – five defeats on the bounce – was abysmal. It wouldn’t be the first time poor form at the end of one season has carried over to the next. Add to that our tough start to the season and it wouldn’t be a great surprise to see us rock-bottom after the first seven games. We’ll have easier runs to follow, but everything looks that bit tougher if you’re sat at the bottom and confidence may have taken a bit of a battering. › Continue reading
Wanderers window shopping dispatch #3: Is that the sound of a barrel being scraped?
Sunday, January 25th, 2009 | BWFC News, Danny Shittu, Jlloyd Samuel, Ricardo Vaz Te, Ricky Sbragia, Sam Allardyce, Sebastien Puygrenier, Tamir Cohen | 1 Comment
Image via Wikipedia
The ins, the outs and the shaking it all abouts at Bolton Wanderers this January transfer window
Ins
The Guardian estimates that we have £5 million to spend, which is why Joey Barton (thank God), Jimmy Bullard (another person who thinks Phil Brown is a better bet than Gary Megson) and several others (see shaking it all abouts below) will not be donning the white shirt any time soon.
Instead, Megson will be searching the bargain basement bucket for the remainder of this season’s January transfer window, for example…
Swindon Town striker Ian Cox is wanted by Bolton and, er Barnsley and Huddersfield (to be fair Spurs and Fulham are also being linked). Other cheap options could be Grant Leadbitter (Sunderland), Szabolcs Huszt (Hannover) and Mark Davies (Wolves).
Why the Reebok was the best move Bolton Wanderers ever made
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 | BWFC People, Ivan Campo, Jay-Jay Okocha, Phil Gartside, Youri Djorkaeff | 1 Comment
Exhibit A: Oldham, Swindon, Barnsley…
Taking up the theme of yesterday’s post about attendances, Georgyw complains on The Bolton News forum that “it was a big mistake to build the Reebok out of town. He (Phil Gartside) must admit his error.”
Quite rightly, the responses take Georgyw to task, but I think it’s worth exploring this point further, particularly as the tenth anniversary of Bolton Wanderers’ move to the Reebok Stadium came and went last year without much song and dance made about just how important it was in shaping the club’s modern history.
If you want to know what Bolton Wanderers would be like in 2008 if we were still at Burnden Park, take a look at Oldham Athletic, Barnsley and Swindon Town, who all tasted the Premier League at one time or another but failed to upgrade their infrastructure to match their top flight status.
In contrast, look at Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Derby (OK they had a stinker last season but they’ll probably be back in the not too distant future), who like Bolton have all been in and out of the Premier League but have managed to avoid sinking without a trace after relegations.
And would Ivan Campo, Jay-Jay Okocha and Youri Djorkaeff et al have signed for Bolton if the first thing they had seen was the Normid Superstore? I think not.
Fireworks at The Reebok Stadium, courtesy of d.nuttall on flickr
It’s easy to criticise modern stadiums for being soulless, homogeneous mechano sets. Yes, they all come with corporate sponsorship and McDonald’s and KFC for neighbours. But it’s better than having a supermarket at one end of the ground, right?
The biggest problems we’ve had at the Reebok is the club’s futile attempts to create an atmosphere. You can have as many drummers, singing sections (not a great success against Stoke, according to this thread) and cheerleaders as you want (am I the only one who felt uncomfortable watching grown men drool over half-naked teenage girls?), but the fans just want exciting football and good results.
I never understood why they insisted on playing “I Feel Good” after the Wanderers scored. It’s the same with those ridiculously contrived celebrations they have at the Carling Cup Final. The one time you definitely don’t need encouraging to get behind your team is when they’ve just scored a goal or won a trophy. Playing “Rocking All Over The World” just ruins the moment.
This thread suggests things are getting better, and this blog indicates the club is doing pretty well in terms of offering value for money. But I still think fans would happily forego half-time entertainment for more entertainment during the game itself.
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