what rating would you give the owners out of 10 so far??

Hard to judge really, they clearly came in to a mess and seem to have done well on the financial side to cut costs. Fan engagement has been massively improved, they are very open which is a positive for me.
On the pitch has been a bit of a mixed bag, starter better than I thought but steadily got worse. Recruitment looks a bit of a shambles and there doesn’t appear to be much of a coherent long term strategy.
It does worry me that they seem to be increasingly making short term decisions, I guess that’s to limit their exposure should we fail again.
They seem decent enough blokes and are clearly into football I think they enjoy owning the club and genuinely want us to do well, the lies/miscommunication around the parachute payments did leave a bit of a black mark for me but prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt.
Probably give them 6/7
 


8 - we could have been where Bolton are otherwise. Assuming the takeover happens we could finally have the chance to build what we all think we deserve. I'm not happy with Ross but he did OK last year taking over from a shambles but seems incapable for pushing on. For some fans their opinion of the owners would have been swayed by the signing of Scott Sinclair. Long term they have been brilliant and if we aren't top 2 in October/November they may well bring in a new manager to finish the job and back him in January.
 
6. Last season was as bad as it could get, finishing 5th was a disgrace. The trust they have placed in the recruitmant team seems unwarranted. It was essential we replaced Maja, the signing of Grigg has totally fucked us. In hindsight, he was so bad last season, we can have done without him. I'd much rather see Watmore or Kimpioka given a chance.

I don't think Ross will turn us around. We looked poor last season and nothing looks as though it's changed in pre season. Yet again we're struggling to create opportunities and score goals. I fear this will continue for as long as we're relying on Grigg and Wyke who seem to need an open goal to score.

I can't believe how slow and unexciting the transfer window has been. I was sure we'd bring in some quality attacking additions.
Is it fair to consider the signing of Grigg a negative though and hold it against them? At the time nobody was complaining
 
5 for me, giving it Billy big bollocks about outspending everyone else, better off than championship sides, Donald is a very astute business man who has used our fan base, facilities, history to promote our club to people who already know what at a great club it is, he has ensured that we compete with Peterborough, Burton, Wimbledon etc nothing more, the feelgood factor of the beginning of last season has well and truly gone, no gambles taken, a weaker squad produced to improve on 5th, and now less vocal with his side kick because he cannot back up his bullshit patter given to supporters!
 
It’s their job to get it right, I think most people were shocked by the size of the fee if not the player. They don’t seem to have a clue how to use him.
On paper he was the exact signing to make to guarantee promotion. The owners don’t decide how to use him, Jack isn’t getting the best out of him with the way we set up.
 
5.

They’ve achieved nothing and have a recruitment team that hasn’t got a clue what it’s doing.
Is there even a recruitment team or is it just Hill and Cotons “contacts”?

Outside of the footballing side - fan engagement, finances etc - they’ve been brilliant. I really like Donald as a person and hope he’s still front and centre after the takeover.

The footballing side has been dreadful however. They’ve given jobs to their mates and the setup is archaic. This is Sunderland A.F.C. not Eastleigh. You cant base your recruitment policy around who Richard hill has in his phone. Paul Reid does not have the cv of someone who should be running one of the 24 category one academies. There is no long term plan whatsoever, just we are a league one team now so let’s buy league one players.

6 for me. Appreciate the work they put in off the pitch but they’ve got loads to correct on the footballing side
 
Is there even a recruitment team or is it just Hill and Cotons “contacts”?

Outside of the footballing side - fan engagement, finances etc - they’ve been brilliant. I really like Donald as a person and hope he’s still front and centre after the takeover.

The footballing side has been dreadful however. They’ve given jobs to their mates and the setup is archaic. This is Sunderland A.F.C. not Eastleigh. You cant base your recruitment policy around who Richard hill has in his phone. Paul Reid does not have the cv of someone who should be running one of the 24 category one academies. There is no long term plan whatsoever, just we are a league one team now so let’s buy league one players.

6 for me. Appreciate the work they put in off the pitch but they’ve got loads to correct on the footballing side

The problem I’ve got with this fan engagement stuff is that nothing ever matches with reality.

Before the Heerenveen game, Donald said “we have plenty of money” “financially we’re in a fantastic position” “we’ll back Ross all the way.”

Then we find out the club hasn’t got a pot to piss in.

He need to either stop talking shit to appease the fans or just stop talking full stop.
 
The problem I’ve got with this fan engagement stuff is that nothing ever matches with reality.

Before the Heerenveen game, Donald said “we have plenty of money” “financially we’re in a fantastic position” “we’ll back Ross all the way.”

Then we find out the club hasn’t got a pot to piss in.

He need to either stop talking shit to appease the fans or just stop talking full stop.
I’m not arsed about that stuff to be honest. I’ve learned not to take what he says too literally after the comments around the budget last year and won’t have a go at him for being too positive in those situations. They have listened to a lot of fan feedback, they communicate with RAWA, they’ve made Safc feel like Safc again imo. What he says on the podcast is often him getting carried away and I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.
 
4/10. They’ve taken the cost base down but that was the easy bit. Their abject lack of football vision and poor appointments mean we’ve wasted this opportunity for a reset to zero. We’ve got a bloated squad with not enough talent and few saleable assets. I’m not sure they possess the talent to get us out of league one on their own steam - which by their own measurement is complete failure. For them to need the input of the 25th richest man in the world to get Safc promoted out of league one is a complete embarrassment for them.
 
On paper he was the exact signing to make to guarantee promotion. The owners don’t decide how to use him, Jack isn’t getting the best out of him with the way we set up.
I’m not sure how those two statements can both be correct. We would have had to change the way we played half way through the season to get the best of him.
 
Got the club back on an even keel but ultimately it’s promotion that counts more than anything so it’s a 5 from me
 
On paper he was the exact signing to make to guarantee promotion. The owners don’t decide how to use him, Jack isn’t getting the best out of him with the way we set up.
Nah. Our problem then - as it is now - was a lack of creativity. Grigg was never gonna solve that. And smashing the league one transfer record by over £1m was just stupid.
 
I’m not sure how those two statements can both be correct. We would have had to change the way we played half way through the season to get the best of him.
You play to a players strengths. Griggs’ record speaks for itself at this level. We don’t create chances. Not sure how the owners are responsible for that.
 
You play to a players strengths. Griggs’ record speaks for itself at this level. We don’t create chances. Not sure how the owners are responsible for that.
Which players strengths do you play to? We also signed Wyke and McGeady is our best player who have very different strengths.
It’s the owners job to put a structure in place that delivers a coherent strategy both on and off the pitch.
 
3. Don't like greaseball Methven and StewRat opens yap and lets the wind blow, making him look smalltime. :) Shouldn't ever hunted a novice from Scotland. Stripped back staff to Eastleigh levels; non scouts; procurement.

Snaffled the parachutes.

It's good that we've seen-off interest in McLaughlin
+ McGeady stays.
 

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