News you already know update
- Good Evening
- We’ve been working hard and hope it’ll pay off
- Andy Flowers is on board after his chastening Ashes winter
- Erm….
- That’s it, with regard to this one
- Look, stop nagging OK?
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Sad, Rob ….. Haigh is damned if he does talk to Radio Leeds, and damned if he doesn’t. After the machinations of the previous owner, it’s nice to at least hear something about our club on our local radio station – personally, I’m sick of Radio Leeds’ ‘Uddersfield specials. Maybe you’d have preferred it if he’d come on and promised the Earth? New players, and a guarantee of promotion at the end of the season ….. then the inevitable sacking of McDermott when it didn’t happen.
After some of the crazy antics of football club Boards recently, I find it refreshing to hear someone giving realistic expectations. Few of us are privy to what goes on within the club, but I suspect that the new owners discovered that Bates had left the place in an even worse state than was apparent from the outside. “Rome wasn’t built in a day” and all that stuff ….. but if it had been left to the average football club Board (or its fans) it would probably never have been built at all ….
As for the “I’d love to say more, but can’t” comments ….. well, I thought he did as much as he could to explain why that was. If you don’t believe those reasons, that’s your choice …..
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It was the big build-up that got me irritated. Plenty of coy hints have been dropped these past few days about developments possibly before the Barnsley game. In the event, Haigh – who is not totally innocent of dropping a few hints – put in a trainee politician performance, with the buzz phrase/soundbite being “Look what we’ve already done”. So I thought I’d do a “Private Eye” type job on an interview that was bigged up beforehand, but turned out to be simply so much smoke. Sorry if you hated it – can’t please all the people all the time. Thanks for being civil about it – THAT makes a refreshing change!
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Agree completely.
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I didn’t hear the interview, but here’s my overview of the situation. Since the take over the immediate positives were:
the removal of bates, and his cohorts including the slimy harvey.
the recruiting of mcdermott, and,
a degree of greater transparancy.
Unless you are actually within the club, you’re never going to know what the true financial picture was and is now. But we don’t appear to be lurching from one crisis to another.
The team generally appears to be improving although we remain lacking in depth and quality and pace.
You have to get out of your head that expensive signings for £4-5million pounds and realise things are being done on a realistic budget. We don’t want to be in administration again.
It was refreshing to keep hold of mccormack where previously we have let howson,, snodgrass, johnson, gradel and becchio go without any real reinvestment in the playing staff..
Still on the playing side mcdermott has brought in good signings. Smith is raw but 7 goals this season is not a bad start, Wootton has done ok and murphy appears to be finding his feet. Additionally, Zaluikis looks to be a real find, Pearce has improved dramatically although Lees is still prone to amistake a game and lacks confidence on the ball. Peltier has been steady and is prepared to play RB or CB. This may help Byram in the long run, rushing him back may have resulted in further injury. And Mowatt is a real find, someone with a nice touch and pass.
I’m sure mcdermott would have liked 2 or 3 more signings, but thanks to warnock ( who i initially thought was a good appointment) we are saddled with a lot of average professionals no doubt on good wages namely Norris, Brown, Green, Drury and others, that we can’t get rid of. I also think its time for white to go – he doesn’t seem to have improved over the last 2-3 years and hasn’t managed to nail down a place either as LB or LW/LWB. One or two others may be on the way such as Thompson, particularly if we can bring on 1 or 2 more from the youth set up.
Time will tell, but perhaps we need to be a patient – Not a commodity in huge surplus with football fans of any colour.
I like the fact that generally the first you here of mcdermotts signings is when they happen. Now going against my comments above i’d love to see gradel back at leeds (i’m sure he would have other suitors) but will he fit with the new budget. I also like McCarthy the reading keeper but again i think he would generate interest from the PL.
Overall i hope people will give Haigh a bit of leeway ( we’ve had worse) and allow Mac to get on with it. I think in 12 months the team will have changed significantly for the better.
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Cracking response. Please come back and contribute more!
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I don’t usually bother to add comments to articles. But others have made the point about Haigh being vague and politician-like. But he’s the face of a commercial concern, and unless you’re the owner,shareholder or an employee you have little or no entitlement to the actual buisness plan or timeframes.
Yes as a fan its my club, your club and our club. If however you want a say in that you either put your money up. As a fan, you have the choice to buy a ticket or not. The problem here is that owners and managers come and go, but the passion of the fan is a life sentance.
I have a thing about web blogs, which often include outrageous claims of signing players for millions, or make unsubstantiated claims of arabic sheiks, russian oligarchs etc which are then just picked up by other bloggers, and lazy national paper journalists who can’t be bothered to really find out whats going on. The net effect is that spurrious (that doesn’t look right) stories become true.
I’m interested in peoples oppinions, i’ll agree or disagree or counter claim but i get sick of all the useless bloggers who simply right other peoples rubbish.
Thankyou for your comments about my original post and i may come back sometime. However, i will be away shortly for 3 weeks in Thailand. I may even go to the football club bar in pattaya to see if i can find all our sky televised matches on the TV. Kick-off times are sometimes a bone of contention with sky – but Thailand is 9 hours in front so think about those kick-off times!!
I did watch leeds- Arsenal in the FA Cup in my hotel room on a Russian channel last time.
In future i’ll try be more concise. – merry X-mas and happy ne year to you all. Lets have a WHITE CHRISTMAS!!!!!!
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Lol , I think when you said come back and contribute more you got more than you expected rob 🙂
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Happens all the time 😉
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Its a game of two halves !!
Looks like Leeds are close to signing jimmy kebe and Cameron Stewart !!?? That’s both wings covered so no gradel then !!!
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To quote John Helm “Is that confirmed….?” Not yet it seems – but Salem has smiled, so something is afoot!
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To be honest rob , and I know we both agree , gradel is a class act and I think he’s premiership bound , ( probably hull ) and I don’t blame him if that’s the case, we all know Leeds is a massive club but the championship has only so much to offer a player like max , as long as its not narrwich , because that would take the biscuit
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I suppose at the end of the day, we’ll get who we’ll get – and then we’ll be honour-bound to focus on those players, the ones with a Leeds United shirt on – and not anybody who’s ended up going anywhere else.
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Yeah you’re right rob ,, its that time of year again , in pensive mood
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“It was the big build-up that got me irritated.”
Fair point …. and sorry if I missed the thrust of your article. And even more sorry that I missed the obvious Eye reference …….
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If its any consolation Rob I didn’t even listen to the interview as I expected it to be just hot hair. David Haigh is a budding politician as you say and he knows what to say (and what not to say!) and when. Radio Leeds aren’t blameless of course with their usual build up. Like most fans I’ll judge David Haigh on what he does, not what he says; just as with Bates! Its so far so good and if he wants to give sound bites to Radio Leeds so be it!
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Hmmmm… I wonder if there was a big announcement to be made yet for whatever reason, circumstances changed meaning that Haigh could not disclose what was happening… seems silly to me that they would hint drop purely for a bit of publicity for an interview.
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This would not surprise me in the least.
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Agree with your politician in waiting comment all hot air and no substance.How about the east stand ready for prem football im popping in there Monday to see arsenal v Chelsea. Thanks Ken lovely east stand!
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Haigh is a money-man. And a wannabe politician [Tory. Not unrelated to prior point]. Fine. Let him take care of the money and let us treat his utterances as you would any other politician. I am far more interested in Brian McDermott. I think his press conferences are fascinating. I doubt if Leeds United has had such an impressive, clear thinking, focused and results-driven manager since Sgt Wilko. Add to that an absence of gnomic utterances, well rounded personality, people skills and a sense of humour and I think we have a man to take us places – hence the constant and unique singing of his name by those that know; the committed supporters attending games. Name me just one other team whose supporters regularly chant the name of their manager?? Let Haigh do his stuff behind the scenes – I’d rather not know about these people quite frankly – let’s concentrate on the detailed real stuff being enacted game in game out by Brian McDermott.
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I don’t like Haigh either, but he’s a competent manager and intends to be local, and appears to have got other local business people to come in with him. This is about the best we can expect.
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Dave great responses and passion felt …. Merits for your comments on players I agree with your statements ….. And it appears that their are a few on here who do watch an individual and what he can achieve …. I keep saying we don’t deserve the right to go up …. I’d rather see what the Don did build of experience bring youth and talent through and build a family a family of captains someone else raised . Also as stated spending beyond our means will not guarantee anything …. Give Brian time and our support we have some good news build off that …. If we had feck all we would be moaning more have some faith boys ….. The scum fell asleep again night Mary Ellen sir bobby sir Alex and my head is broken Brian robson ….. Even the mighty can loose three in row MOT
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