A fans open letter to Marcus Evans...

[Charnwood]

http://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/today ... cial_icons

.... for me this probably sums up the feelings of many fans of our football club.

[Rodenbach Ex-pat]

Strange that there is no "comments" window available in the EADT article. Are they afraid that too many supporters will agree with the writer?

http://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/today ... cial_icons

.... for me this probably sums up the feelings of many fans of our football club.

http://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/today ... cial_icons

.... for me this probably sums up the feelings of many fans of our football club.

[phily bon bon]

Sad but as you rightly say Hallam it does reflect a growing majority og our fanbase. I can see the sense in being prudent with big marques signings ,with the attitude to follow and maybe even upsetting the balance of the dressing room ,like that pr*ck Matteo Sereni did.

I could´nt see us last season making a serious push for the play offfs but we nearly got in and thats largley Down to our manager that does view results higher than entertainment, and rightly so.

I have no magic wand or groundbreaking insight as to the right answer,I just hope Evans is´nt just using us as a tax break for his empire, and that he does have a serious realistic Desire to get us going forward and up the League to the bright lights of the prem.

[supershred]

The letter is well written and honest However money does not buy success. Case in point Leicester! Climbed through the leagues and absolutely stormed the premiership spending a fraction of their competition. Yes they gradually picked up better and better player on route but their core was a bunch of relative unknowns. The money we received from our dealings in the market over the past few years has ALL been reinvested. If it hadn't we wouldn't be running up a debt each year. We need to keep selling to maintain that debt to reasonable levels. Now, of course that level is ultimately decided by Marcus. Perhaps he could work outside the FFP regulations like many others do, spend lots and rack up a much larger debt but would it help?

I believe we have ample strikers at the club at the moment. I agree some are injury prone (but Murph was becoming that way too) and others are out of form, but lets give them the opportunity to flourish. We can reassess in January. The new signings have been excellent. The wide men for sure and Best may well turn out to be a little gem. I suspect we will consolidate our more passing orientated game over the next few games and I expect the goals to start flowing from the front men as well as from Grant Ward! That being the case I would be looking for a new right back in January to firm up the defence. No disrespect to Chambers though who is a great captain and has been developing an understanding with Ward over recent games, but I think he is just a bit slow for that position if we want to push on.

It would be nice however, for ME to clarify the club vision and strategy as requested in the letter, as I think we all need to understand his motives a bit better.

[Bluemike]

To be honest it may be a well written letter but I believe it to be a total load of nonsense and just a little bit stupid. He goes on about having a replacement for Murphy in place when we sold him, there just wasn't the time given the speed in which that deal came about, I have not read one single post by any Town fan anywhere saying that we were wrong to snap their hands off for 3 Million for a 33 year old so I can just imagine the flack that would have been thrown the clubs way had we not sold DM.

In any case none of us know what was going on the background anyway do we, we were oblivious to Grant ward & Conor Grant until they happened just as we were to the recent signings of Williams & Lawrence so nobody can say we weren't looking at a replacement that just didn't happen.

He bemoans the fact that we were promised the money would be reinvested and because we didn't pay a significant fee for anyone he assumes we have spent nothing, let me tell you the wages of players like Williams & Lawrence will be a fair old wedge of cash given that they are from prem teams, this bloody money still has to be found and yet he just dismissess it and mentions a revolt LOL. Mick has already stated he will be looking to sign a striker in January and the guy asks that very question, maybe he should go and read the bloody articles coming out of the club before penning such drivel, although I doubt he would believe a word of it anyway because it wouldn't suit his stance, he doesn't mention the fact we had a significant offer of what I believe to be close to 1.5 Million turned down for washington, I suppose we should have gone back with 2 Million or 2.5 Million ????

The best bit is that he then goes on to basically say we have to pay inflated prices for players because that "is the market" Well SOD OFF pal, this club was close to the wall once before and it has taken over 8 years of Evans being here to steady the losses, how ridiculous is it to mention the spending that Aston Villa have done when they have mega millions in parachute money to p*ss away. On top of that we are apparently going backwards despite signing the type of players most Town fans have been craving. We are lucky to have MM as boss by all accounts despite ME appointing him, the whole article in my opinion is rubbish, quite how some think it is a well written piece is beyond me, it is cobblers from start to finish. The final line is that "WE FANS" will stamp our feet and find someone else to own the club instead, someone with desire and ambition. Well Mr Holland, here is your chance, put your money where your mouth is and find the minimum 6 million a season just to keep us afloat, oh of course you can't can you, you would rather dictate how others should spend theirs. Utter bullcrap.

[supershred]

LOL don't sit on the fence Mike! I was a bit more, umm, diplomatic! I certainly didn't agree with the content of the letter but to me the underlying message is that there is concern/uncertainty surrounding the direction/vision of the club . NOt from me but from others so some clarity would be welcomed.

[Bluemike]

Really good post before Shred by the way. I am not quite sure what ME can say, from day one his intention was to get us to the Prem and as far as I am aware nothing has changed, you dont get to 6th and then 7th by luck, we clearly are trying our best with what we have to get to the prem, spending the millions some crave year on year will guarantee nothing, in fact it is my belief that it will make us weaker, we have a real close knit squad here who all work for the manager, bringing in some big time charlies on high wakges has failed in the past and would do so again.

When you look at the fees being paid in the Championship now it really isn't possible for us to get anywhere near that, 600K for grant ward when he is probably worth Millions going by some of the rubbish signed for big bucks on Wednesday. I am 100% happy in the way we run this club now, lots of fans aren't happy and don't like it but they need to cast their minds back a few years and where we were.
I think for anyone to spend 6 or 7 Million a year just to keep a business trading shows ambition and belief in what they are doing, it matters not that they are a Multi Millionaire, it still shows desire to succeed.

[marko69]

It's the typical "open letter"....., start of by being understanding, let people know that you've stood by for years, then launch into the stamping feet, "am no fkn happy" thing. You can find the blueprint for this sh*t anywhere. So not sure at all about it being "well written".

This may sound like "bullcrap" Mike, but I have a theory and it involves the massive industry that is online gambling. Your Betfairs, Bet365s, paddypowers etc etc. There is waaaaay too much cash involved these days. Tens of millions going on each week. The days of the team that's "supposed to win" is just gone. Believe it or not, I sat for several minutes pondering after shitty Burton Albion defeated mega millions Derby the other week. I mean, how can that happen? Tin hats on for this conspiracy theory, but I just can't get my head around some of the results these days......, and it happens every weekend.

Think I'll write an open letter to Mevans and ask if he's taking bribes...... Start with that coupon bursting Stevenage game.

[Bluemike]

Marko, that opens up a whole new can of worms which is probably best left closed LOL.

[herforder]

Bit late to this, but I noticed the 'open letter' was given a lot of column inches in the EADT.

Opinions on the content are inevitably polarised - no change there! But the thought occurred that, given the local media's reluctance to be in any way over critical of ME, getting this list of individual grievances - misguided or not- into print, is good way of airing issues that are discussed privately in media circles but never published. Not wanting to bite the PR hand that feeds it, but acknowledging by proxy what they think are views held by a body of disillusioned supporters, regarding ME's ownership and operating methods.

Too far fetched - probably!

[Bluemike]

The thing that really irks me is that the press love to print this type of thing, not once have I ever seen a leter published praising or thanking ME for what he does, some will no doubt say that's because there isn't any LOL but in all seriousness it wouldn't sell papers or raise a story would it.

[hallamblue]

Would be interesteing to see what they did if a fan, DID write in a praise the Club. Gone on Mike , do it and see if they print it !

[Bluemike]

Would be interesteing to see what they did if a fan, DID write in a praise the Club. Gone on Mike , do it and see if they print it !

When I return from Spain maybe Hallam, but will I be wasting my time and effort ? I suspect so.

[herforder]

Sadly, good news stories seldom generate the same media impact. The timing of this so called open letter is also, for me, a tad suspicious - given other potentially unsavoury events involving ME's organisation. Possibly linking things that are purely coincidental - but as with most media activities, beware of accepting them at face value!

Perhaps they should offer ME the opportunity to be interviewed and respond - or perhaps they have, and he frankly couldn't be ars*d! After all, that's what he pays Ian Milne to do. In any event, it's now very much yesterday's old news; and, in all honesty, the content was nothing that's not been aired on various forms ad nauseum!

Bottom line is, if your that unhappy and disillusioned, go and support synchronised basket weaving! Things really could be much worse - whether you either like or loathe ME.

[number 9]

What's wrong with synchronized basket weaving, then?

[Tangfastic]

I don't think the EADT is neccasarily anti-MICK. Publishing this is getting the feelings out of fans without upsetting relations between club and press... like some have already stated.

This is just an ongoing non-story. Until we either are playing well and getting consistent results OR nose-diving towards the bottom of the table, then we'll see very praiseworthy articles or a hatchet job.
We're just trundling along until something happens ie Great / very poor results, Mick gets poached, Evans goes on the run.... whatever.

Can't see that the last few days of the transfer window were either a disaster or a great success. Murphy was not replaced, so if that was the barometer, then that's a failure. If we're forced to change style.... so be it, could work out well. Inclined to agree with Rossi.... this is Plan B, not part of Micks master plan.... he would be much more comfortable having that top drawer target man like Murphy. Varney/ Best are not that ( they were talking to League 1 clubs before we got them in the door).

With Mick I trust he'll do a sound professional job with what he's got to the end. Outside this club, his stock is still pretty high ( " working wonders on a shoe-string " comments) so I wouldn't be surprised if he's biding his time for a better offer when the managerial merry-go- round starts in October.
This open letter will achieve bugger all. It's not nonsense, but it's hardly ground-breaking. Just a seemingly endless Groundhog Day situation where we're probably too good to get sucked into a relegation battle , but not good enough to realistically challenge at the top.

Anyway, look forward to seeing new recruits, but do wonder how they'll fit in and if they really are what Mick really wants. You could pick endless midfield permutations , but we're just relying on Pitman to have that career purple patch, because can't see Pitman, Sears , Best banging them in.

[Bluemike]

LOL, that did make me chuckle, synchronized basket weaving Can we still have a prediction league ??

Good post though Herforder, if you don't like it that much do one, that is always my stance on it.

[herforder]

What's wrong with synchronized basket weaving, then?

Very honourable activity for those involved - a friend of mine's a brown belt in it!

[marko69]

".....Evans goes on the run."

Nice, Tang.

[marko69]

What's wrong with synchronized basket weaving, then?

What we have at Easter Road is synchronised basket cases......, they always come in twos, and they always seem to be within earshot of me.

[Bluemike]

Ipswich Town managing director Ian Milne insists the club made ‘market value’ bids on transfer deadline day.

After selling striker Daryl Murphy to Newcastle United for £3m last weekend, the Blues brought in three players ahead of Wednesday’s 11pm cut-off point – a free transfer (Leon Best) and two season-long loans (Jonny Williams and Tom Lawrence).

They failed with several other attempts to strengthen the squad further though, with seven-figure offers for front men Marley Watkins (Barnsley) and Conor Washington (QPR) rejected.

“All the bids we made were market value,” said Milne. “They were sensible offers based on consultation between (manager) Mick (McCarthy), (owner) Marcus (Evans) and (director of football) Dave Bowman. They weren’t silly, derisory offers just so we could say ‘look, we wanted to spend’.

“When we eventually decide to walk away from a deal, it isn’t because Marcus says ‘I am not going to do this’, it’s because Mick and Dave Bowman say ‘no, stop now, he’s not worth that’.

“They are the experts and they know the value of players far better than Marcus and myself.

“We are all of the opinion that if you over-pay regarding wages then that can’t help the morale in the rest of the squad. You get a disparity.”

It’s been calculated that Championship clubs had a gross spend of £215m this summer – more than twice the previous record for the division – with much of that driven by the investment of recently-relegated clubs Newcastle, Aston Villa and Norwich.

Wolves, Derby, Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds have splashed the cash too.

“I think some of the clubs in this division have paid over the odds,” said Milne.

“The clubs that have just come down with huge parachute payments can afford to say ‘we want this guy, whatever the price’. That’s not how we work here though.

“Don’t forget, Marcus got caught up in that at the beginning and paid some silly figures for players. That didn’t work out for us.”

He continued: “One player has just left and three have come in. Our average wage bill is not going down, it’s going up. We are paying £7-8k a week to players on average. That’s the market value in this division. We are well up there with that. And over the course of a one or two-year deal, that’s where the real cost is.”

With McCarthy having said he will look to make more additions when the January transfer window opens, Milne said: “That’s very much the case. I’ve spoken to Marcus about that already. This is not a full stop to our transfer business for the rest of the season, it’s ‘to be continued’.”

For those that think ME is a waste of space etc and MM is god I think it is important to read the highlighted piece.

[marko69]

Holy Shyte. Just had to google "Dave Bowman" there. Make sure it wasn't the carrot headed ex Jambo bstd (and Loon) Davd Bowman. Different Dave Bowman though.

[Bluemike]

Holy Shyte. Just had to google "Dave Bowman" there. Make sure it wasn't the carrot headed ex Jambo bstd (and Loon) Davd Bowman. Different Dave Bowman though.

Im sure the other Dave Bowman you refer to had a spell at Forfar and was actually sent off FIVE times in one match or something ridiculous like that.

[marko69]

Yes he played for the loonies at one point. Can't remember that sending off thing though, lol. Decent enough player and hard as nails. I remember wee Mickey Weir winding him up and trying to get him sent off before an Edinburgh derby match had even kicked off!

[Bluemike]

FORFAR veteran Dave Bowman is threatening to quit the game after being banned for a record 17 matches by the SFA.

The ex-Dundee United midfielder is set to appeal against the longest suspension in Scottish football history, but if unsuccessful, he may retire.

Bowman was given a total of five red cards for abusive comments as he was sent off by referee Alan Gemmell against Stranraer last week.

And with his previous poor disciplinary record, it all added up to a 17-match ban for the 37-year-old.

If his appeal fails, he is expected to be out of action until February next year.

But Bowman said: "I'll try to appeal but if I'm not successful, I'll seriously think about quitting.

"I can't believe it. I am stunned by this ridiculous news."

Boss Neil Cooper said: "We are all shocked and we will certainly be meeting to discuss an appeal.

"Dave is not a dirty player. He did not injure anyone. This is for remarks he made."

[marko69]

Quote
But Bowman said: "I'll try to appeal but if I'm not successful, I'll seriously think about quitting."
End quote.

I was half expecting:
But Bowman said: "I'll try to appeal but if I'm not successful, I'll seriously think about kicking f*ck out of everyone in the room."

Neil Cooper quote: Dave is not a dirty player!

He was just in a 2 second time warp, Neil eh?

All joking aside, he was a very good player, took no sh*t.

[barmy billy]

Mr Holland has probably been an ITFC supporter for more years than a lot of contributors to this forum. His letter was in his mind clearly thought through and submitted to the EADT in the best of faith. It amazes me that is has received so much vitriol, attracting comments like sod off pal and cobblers from start to finish. The EADT is also criticised and it has been mentioned that it may be anti MM.

Perhaps if detractors were a bit more tactful in their responses a few more people might be attracted to commenting on this forum. It could do with some new input.

I think Charnwood summed it up at the very start by saying that Mr Holland's views probably sum up the feelings of many ITFC supporters. Good for Mr Holland I say.

[Bluemike]

Sorry Billy but if anyone wnats to go down the route of putting my club at risk again they can in fact SOD OFF with all their cobblers.

[Charnwood]

Given some of the vitriol written I thought it worth having a re-read of the original letter to see if the criticism of him is justified and in my opinion I don't think it is.

The first point about not having time to replace Murphy may not be strictly true as I'm guessing the first contact from Newcastle was probably made quite a few days before we fans knew anything about it. Also, we could have insisted on Adam Armstrong coming on loan as part of the deal. If we really wanted a replacement we could have paid the "going rate" for one of our targets because as Mr Holland rightly said the going rate becomes the market rate. Clearly we were happy to receive an inflated price for Murphy but not prepared to pay one, how bizarre unless of course we thought we didn't really need to replace him and could simply bank the money. Yes we can wait till January but the season will by then be half over, and will transfer fees be lower in January ?...I very much doubt it as demand by then may well be higher.

I'm not sure how much day to day involvement ME has with our football club or whether he simply delegates most of his responsibilities to others. Some Chairman are very actively involved and very public with their vision for their football club, unfortunately MR Evans isn't which doesn't help, neither does the occasional dodgy dealings of his businesses enterprises which can only serve as a distraction.

The more I think about it the more I think Mr Holland had every right to express his feelings and I'm sure there will be many other reasonable fans who think the same way.

As for Blumike implying that only those who can afford to buy the club have any right to criticise, well that really is bollocks.

[Bluemike]

Charny, I didnt imply only those that can afford to buy the club are the only one's that can criticise at all, I merely suggested Mr holland could stomp up the Millions if he feels so hard done by as to how the club is being run, of course you know as well as I do he can't do that.

I'm sorry but I didn't realise you were privvy to the discussions that took place when we sold Murphy to Newcastle as it appears to be certain that we didn't ask for this Armstrong kid, although in reality maybe we did only to be told that a deal had already been struck with Barnsley so we were in no position to insist on anything at all. The club did very good business in getting 3 Million rising to 4 if they go up and only a fool would have turned that down given that he is 34 at the end of the season. I still maintain none of us know what players we may or may not have been trying to sign but to say the going rate becomes the market rate is total nonsense and very short sighted and in fact is everything that is wrong with football these days. You and others may be happy to see obscene amounts of money being wasted on average players but I am so pleased we didn't do it, what is being said here is that we should have paid what 3+ million for Conor washington or Marley Watkins ? What utter nonsense that is.

I believe ME leaves the day to day running of the club to others but as MM has said numerous times they talk pretty much on a daily basis which I personally don't have a problem with.

You are right in that Mr Holland has every right to air his views just as I and ohters have every right to air ours and mine is that he is one of these attention seekers, he believes the club was being run correctly for years and despite our financial situation not really changing that much he now diagrees with it LOL, that makes no sense. No doubt many people do think the same way as Mr Holland, god knows we read enough about how we should be doing things differently, it doesn't mean those people are right at all. It is all about opinion, thankfully those that matter share mine.