Haw! Haw! Haw !!!

[Southampton Gull]

I know exactly where you're coming from Enzo and agree with you for the most part BUT, their finances mean that without selling someone they certainly don't have a hope in hell of BUYING Mark Ellis.

Their away support is probably larger than ours, understandably so given the venues they are seeing for the first time in a long long time. They've enjoyed a remarkable ride for the last few years but IMHO it's coming to an end and reality is starting to bite. They aren't the attraction they were a little while ago and Mark Ellis will know that. If he has ambitions to play at a higher level which I'm sure he does, I can't see him looking at a return to Exeter as a real exciting prospect.

[Enzo]

I agree SG. I am not suggesting at all that City are in a position to sign ME. What I find slightly amusing is the irony of the way some of our fans portray us whilst slagging off other club's fans for being arrogant, smug and having delusions of grandeur. As I have said, finances apart, City are at least on par and in some terms a far more attractive prospect than us - fans, ground, quality of football, away following, prospects of league one football next year.

[Southampton Gull]

I didn't realise you were up for sale

I don't think we're any different to anyone else to be honest, we have people who can be smug, I know I am sometimes, I know we have those who are humble, I am sometimes and I know we have a few who are downright arseholes, not one of my faults am glad to say :~D

[ferrarilover]

I agree SG. I am not suggesting at all that City are in a position to sign ME. What I find slightly amusing is the irony of the way some of our fans portray us whilst slagging off other club's fans for being arrogant, smug and having delusions of grandeur. As I have said, finances apart, City are at least on par and in some terms a far more attractive prospect than us - fans, ground, quality of football, away following, prospects of league one football next year.

Fans - Unanswerable, we all have our monsters
Ground - Are you really, REALLY suggesting that pound for pound, their shit hole is even comparable to, clean, neat, tidy, matching Plainmoor? Really?
Quality of football - Have you seen some of the rubbish they've been churning out recently? They have scored fewer goals than anyone else in the Football League and it is common knowledge that the top few in L2 are better than the bottom half of L1. Can you really see Swindon or Cheltenham or even us at above average having any real trouble sticking 2 or 3 past them?
Away following - Assessed in the only fair way, as a percentage of average home support, we piss all over them.
L1 football - Is feck all fun if you're getting stuffed every week.

If someone who knew nothing about football was offered the statistics on paper, he'd pick the filth, but since none of us falls into that category, we all know that given the choice, especially long term, we are the better bet.

Matt.

[brucie]

i can't see us sticking three past anyone - we might beat them 1-0 though.

[popside_yidlad]

Why do people keep referring to stadium as reason not to leave. It wont enter his thinking if was training ground valid point but stadium not his issue. Financially he would be better off, and with a team that I believe will be rebuilt in the summer. They have lost some key players in the last season.

We should all get fully behind the lads and hope we can help them win every home game between now and end of season. Which would put us in strong position to keep key players like bobby, oastler, Ellis, lathrope

[Enzo]

Fans - Unanswerable, we all have our monsters
Ground - Are you really, REALLY suggesting that pound for pound, their sh*t hole is even comparable to, clean, neat, tidy, matching Plainmoor? Really?
Quality of football - Have you seen some of the rubbish they've been churning out recently? They have scored fewer goals than anyone else in the Football League and it is common knowledge that the top few in L2 are better than the bottom half of L1. Can you really see Swindon or Cheltenham or even us at above average having any real trouble sticking 2 or 3 past them?
Away following - Assessed in the only fair way, as a percentage of average home support, we piss all over them.
L1 football - Is feck all fun if you're getting stuffed every week.

If someone who knew nothing about football was offered the statistics on paper, he'd pick the filth, but since none of us falls into that category, we all know that given the choice, especially long term, we are the better bet.

Matt.

Fair enough FL. I have not seen anything of City this season, but should Martin Ling complete the miracle this season and get us up, the scenario currently facing City is what we would be up against. Would we be able to do any better? They are currently achieving something that we have not been able to do in my supporting lifetime (some 30 years) - ie get up and survive at League One level. They are currently doing something that only in our best case case scenario we could achieve. To mock them and point out some highly dubious factors which may make us appear a more favourable option to a player is slightly blinkered in my opinion. I'd trade places with them like a shot when it comes to prospects for League One football this year, fan base, training facilities, away support (whatever the percentage - quite simply they have more fans than us - forget your percentage, no player is going to be on the verge of signing for a club and then pull out as they only take 12 percent of their home following to an away game!). We have a great percentage of fans who travel, primarily because our home support is dreadful at present. I'd rather like Plainmoor to have two stands of the standard of the Big Bank and the Cow shed, although I agree the away end is probably the worst in the entire football league.

I agree, it is no fun to lose games week in week out, but that is the challenge of pitting yourself against higher opposition. When I think back to our season up under Leroy, sure there were some games that we were outclassed, but I have very fond memories of us competing at the likes of Sgeffield Wednesday and Bristol City. Had that awful day at Colchester not occurred, it would have been up there with the best season in my supporting lifetime even though we got dicked more often than we won.

Anyway, I digree from the main point of the thread and apologise - I doubt very much Mark Ellis will sign for Exeter.

[ferrarilover]

I take your point, Enzo, regarding their immediate prospects, but in the long term, they have got to be doomed, surely. They have even less money than we do, as evidenced by their going, cap-in-hand, to the supporters trust or some such, to cover the cost of a loanee. You've gotta ask, what do they do with the entrance fee from their 4.5k supporters at £20 each?
Once again, our long termism is going to pay dividends, you mark my words, before all too long, we'll be above them in the L1 table, in the black and very very happy. They and dozens of others like will be filing for bankruptcy or being wound up. The flood is coming, and there are surprisingly few of us aboard the Ark.

Matt.