Pepsi wrote: ↑Wed Jul 26, 2023 8:19 pm
Richie the point is ... if we dont have players under contract we will never sell any let alone make a profit on any. Sheps is most likely one of our best assets .... his contract is running out so we are not in a position to ask for a big fee. Likewise, with all respect to the setup, players and coaches, we dont seem to have the level of player in our youth system that is attracting bigger clubs attention to an extent of us being in a position to ask for a (big) fee. If we have the players they are not being marketed in the correct manner, something certainly doesnt add up.
Sometimes in business you have to invest to get a return. The owners seem to be working within a very tight budget and you would have to question their reasons for owning the club. Looking at last seasons accounts you would have to ask yourself if we are a nice to have and a nice little tax asset for their company. Where AC fits into that ... I am not sure, however it seems SS are calling the shots. Add to that their very open advertising for investment, as an investor I would ask myself what do these lads want from me? Are they serious about the business or is it a case of ... they want to stay involved and I pump in the money to do what they are not willing or able to do? I suspect, this is part of the reason that we still have no investor.
Nail on the head for me. Shep should be signed on a 18month contract with option to add another year. At worst you've got a very solid keeper tied down for at least another season and at best you've increased his sale price when someone in England (i think inevitably) comes knockin seeking his services. He'd be the perfect profile for many clubs in League 1. To let his contract lapse lacks intent and ambition in my opinion, assuming that he's not asking for a massive increase on his current wage but we'll never know that I suppose
From what I can gather there's not too many beyond Senan Mullen and maybe Anthony Moyo at academy level that look like they're gonna make a good crack at League of Ireland level, but then it'll always be a case of unknowns because youth players never seen to get much minutes which is the opposite to most other teams, Pats, Rovers, Bohs, Shels all giving young lads minutes weekly. That probably comes down to our attitude towards academy which I think to be fair to the Yanks the at least tried to put some shape on it. Historically it has been left to rot and has basically just been a tick the box for licensing. You've also the issue of half the academy being young lads who haven't cut it in dublin coming down for their last rool of the dice at 17s or 19s level, so there's no clear pathway or ethos. Need to be sourcing players relatively locally and we've a good catchment. Drogheda are gonna end up with investment and they will have a state of the art academy and apparently are fairly advanced in their plans for this. It'll leave us firmly in the shadows
Lastly on the investor front i think its notable that its all gone quiet. What are you pitching realistically, a first team squad thats overachieving imo and might make europe next year, a youth structure that strikes me as just being there for the sake of it, and facilities that make most others in the league look state of the art. If you've a couple of hundred thousand to throw at that i have 6 magic beans for sale
