IslandExile

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/56972/speech-once-more-unto-the-breach-dear-friends-once-more

Once more unto the breach dear friends…
If Percy is correct, it looks like the Administrators have made a pragmatic decision to accept the EFL’s vindictive agenda so we can draw a line, come out of Administration and know where we stand. It’s probably for the best. So my top 3 hopes now going forward:
1. WR stays as manager. He’s shown he’s the right calibre to re-launch us. He can now plan for League 1.
2. We’ve got to keep the nucleus of young players together; there are more to come eg Cashin. Blend them now to be a very strong League 1 side. Keep Shinnie if we can. We can hit League 1 “running” & storm back.
3. Get Kirchner in as owner. We need young, bold leadership with popular appeal not figures in the shadows with camel coats and sovereign rings.
Let’s stick together as fans facing up with a united front. Keep our dignity, not lose our heads. It’s darkest before dawn. 
 
What are your top 3 hopes going forward from here?:
 

Derby County continues to exist. Thats it. 

A bigger…. Oh, football? Just having a club to support, a fresh start (whatever division) and something to look forward to.

Great to see those old newspaper articles, just reinforces old memories. I have every copy of the 'Green Un' for 68/69, they are well stored up in the loft!  I must get them out sometime!
As Brailsford says, whilst this thread relates to 71/72 what happened in the 60's in many ways provided the building blocks for what was to follow. After the gradual but pernicious slide into the obscurity of the 3rd Tier that followed the FA Cup win it was evident that the Club needed a strong hand on the tiller to turn it's fortunes around! 
Fortunately, it only took two years for us to get out of the old 3rd Division North and then some stability (both football wise and from a financial point of view) followed. With Harry Storer as Manager and Sam Longson in the Chair they were, in many ways, the ideal characters to achieve this stability but, as the 60's leapt into life, there was a feeling that we were still underachieving and that DCFC had more to offer. When Tim took up the baton from Storer the fans hoped that a more positive future lay ahead. Looking back, Tim did begin to revamp the club but there remained a feeling that he lacked the dynamism needed to really get the ball rolling. There is no doubt that there was pent up frustration amongst the fans that we needed a stronger character than Tim to achieve this even though it's fair to say that he raised the quality on the pitch with imports such as Durban and Hector as well as with the development of home grown players like Webster. When Sam wielded the axe most fans felt that the decision to dispense with Tim was the correct one even though he was well liked and 'one of us'. Who would Longson go for we asked, I don't think Cloughies name was bandied about and it was certainly a surprise appointment. For that decision we have to thank Jimmy Armfield, the former superb England Full Back, who urged Sam to go for BC.
What still amazes me is the excitement that that decision caused amongst Rams fans and, indeed, the wider Derby community! Brian Clough, why Brian Clough we asked?? But as soon as he walked through the door there was a whiff of excitement, as if that pent up frustration was suddenly being released! Talk about going through the club like a dose of salts there seemed to be a new story to read about every day in the DET! What followed over the next few years still seems more like a figment of someone's imagination than reality but history shows that actually it did happen!  
This thread is about the success of 71/72 but it's beyond dispute that the previous decade was the catalyst for that success! A decade that saw unbelievable change in every aspect of life, a decade that begat an unbelievable change in the story of a founder member of the Football League and in the lives of it's supporters and the community that it represented! Unforgettable, unbelievable, but whichever way you look at it bloody wonderful! 

So will I mate
Someone should design a banner saying efl we might be down but will shall be back.

The majority of matches on a Saturday afternoon with 3.00 pm kick-off's.
As someone has already mentioned, football is football, and if it's played by Derby County, and you support them, then you'll follow them in whatever division they will be playing in.
You might not think some of those clubs are "big clubs", but there's Sunderland, Sheffield Wednesaday & Ipswich, who were, not too long agao on par with us in the Championship and higher. And the "smaller clubs" will surprise us as they up their game and try to rough you up if you don't have some muscle and stand up to them.
At times it won't be pretty but if we've had an injection of money for new players, then we'll see some good games, and besides. we'll be going to grounds and see other teams that we've never played against before.
Their fans will give us some stick but we can take it and give it back - Come on you Rams!!

Back in the day, I'd've agreed with that philosophy. But, nowadays, teams including ours "rest" players, playing youngsters "for experience", in cup competitions and the like.
Given that a 21 point deduction would effectively condemn us to relegation (with this squad, no goalscorer etc), my suggestion would only be an extension of the play-youngsters-in-the-cup idea. 
And, unlike those cup sides, as I said before, I'd balance the number of youngsters with more experienced heads who could mentor them on the pitch.
As for questioning tactics if we did follow my suggestion, I'd say look at the other threads....a lot of folks are proposing the very same thing.

If the points deduction are as suggested, it might well take the fight from some players. We have to balance preparing for next season whilst still remaining competitive. I can't see what we as a club would gain from continuing a Davies and Jagielka partnership each week. A mix of youth and experience, but give each youth a few games run before swapping out.
Allowing the youngsters a less pressured environment to get use to the pace and physicality is an ideal opportunity.
Far rather see them learn(hopefully) than see Lawrence make the usual wrong choice!

Age is certainly not affecting your memory is it ? Great work on pulling it all out again ! 
 

I imagine the administrators have conceded knowing that there is a buyer (probably Kirchner, possibly Appleby & Co) who is keen to push through a deal with our financial / league position finally established.
If it’s true, the rebuild starts now. Rooney should have full license to recruit for League 1 and to set up a system designed to win games and not just mitigate damages.
Give the fans football to be excited about, even if our fate is set.

I'm certainly going to try and get to as many games as I can from Canada next season wherever we are playing..

Back in the day, I'd've agreed with that philosophy. But, nowadays, teams including ours "rest" players, playing youngsters "for experience", in cup competitions and the like.
Given that a 21 point deduction would effectively condemn us to relegation (with this squad, no goalscorer etc), my suggestion would only be an extension of the play-youngsters-in-the-cup idea. 
And, unlike those cup sides, as I said before, I'd balance the number of youngsters with more experienced heads who could mentor them on the pitch.
As for questioning tactics if we did follow my suggestion, I'd say look at the other threads....a lot of folks are proposing the very same thing.

The point I was going to make, blood some of the youngsters along with some experienced players ?

Let’s just get all the points penalties now and start next season fresh with a new owner in League One.
People saying -21 points is the worst case scenario. it isn’t at all. We’re already going down with -12 points. Worst case scenario is relegation and then for the financial irregularity / punishment points deduction to happen in League One.
Starting next season in League One with zero points, a new owner and no hanging points deduction is among the best case scenarios.
 

I'm sure the wrist slashes are out in force tonight but it's been obvious for a while now.... We need a total reset.
First and foremost - let's stay in business. Number one priority - get a new owner and as soon as possible.
Points deductions.... The squad is so poor, we'd struggle to avoid relegation even without a points deduction. That could be offset slightly by Bielik's return and acquisitions of forwards in January but, by then, it may be too late anyway.
So let's accept whatever points deductions the EFL want to throw at us, on condition that they're imposed this season. Then it's over and done with.
Assuming then that we're going down, let's start building for next season in League One.
That means blooding the youngsters that will still be with the club. Not playing each one in every game, not leaving out all the old pros. But giving each young'un experience alongside a mentor. For example Cashin playing with either Davies or Jagielka.
Assuming Bird, Knight and Bielik will go, playing Watson alongside Shinnie and Morrison. That kind of thing.
Rooney has been really dignified throughout these nightmare months but the jury is still out for him tactics wise. After the last couple of games, there are question marks against his motivational ability too. I wonder what Curtis was referring to regards the training sessions.
But anyhow, Rooney is the magnet for investors and deserves "a go" with a clean slate.
So let's put the bad stuff behind us, and start building this club up again. Even if it means losing the current crop of good young players and starting in League One.
One thing for sure, the support is fantastic. The fans deserve a club going forward, not sinking further into the mire. Let's get the crap out of the way. Move on up. COYR ?

Gutted hardly seems strong enough. I have had good and bad days with the rams but this is the worst.
Moving on let's hope there is some changes within the EFL so no club ever had to go through what we have gone through. It is beyond stupid  that this has gone on so long, the EFL must put a timeframe on proceedings. Equally stupid us that the EFL want a copy of every clubs accounts but don't look at them. To me we changed the method of amortization in whatever year that was. The EFL didn't object (because they had not looked at them) so we used the same way wears 2,3 and even 4. Then the EFL bothered to look at them and have deducted points for each year. In other words the auditors tried it on, and the EFL suckered them into doing the same thing again and again. The EFL need to change their internal rules so when they make a rule that anything has to be done they do something with it rather than just tick a box to say they have it. Promoted clubs that break the rules must be punished if they are religated from the premiership one year or 20 years later and by punished I mean points deduction not a few percentage of the money they were paid for being in the premiership (thinking of QPR here). Football fans are the ones that ultimately suffer and the EFL could not care less.

Bump.
Given the Percy news.... I'd say, if confirmed, we start giving experience to the young players who will be here next year.
Let's hope Kirchner keeps his word that relegation would not affect his bid because he's looking at the longer term. As I said in another thread, let's hope he realises just how long that might be...

If this does prove to be correct it could help us..
We can build a league 1 squad in January, sell those that won't fancy it or will be priced out of our revised budgets..we can land in League 1 running..it doesn't often work that way with teams relegated on the last day and having to react and plan in 6 weeks..

Ah, ok, apologies. Clearly I misunderstood.
You mean they shouldn't have appealed the 12 points for Administration. Yeah, but the are a couple of posts that may explain that:
- one said that the cost of the appeal was funded by a potential buyer of the club 
- someone else says the extra points deduction may be less than the 9 points Percy states in return for dropping the appeal
 

Exactly, they won’t have taken the decision lightly.  It may finally put it to bed with no appeals, etc that may have affected a sale, or at least means a new owner has a clean slate.  It’ll also mean that we can start to plan for next season with certainty.  Assuming it’s true of course!!

Yes you were!

Won’t agree with you re Maxwell or the Amigos. One robbed a pension fund and the others were crooks. Mel hasn’t been great but let’s be real 
 

I meant the administration team starting the argument over the 12 point deduction.

We don't know that. Legal advice may have been that there is no chance of winning the argument.

Wasn't starting any argument.... Answering a previous point criticising the administrators.... Should that comment remain unchallenged?