Opposition fans back from the game - 24/25 page 225 onwards

[Whore Jackie]

Only realised recently just how far from Salford the Peninsula Stadium actually is. Old Trafford and the Etihad are practically the same distance away, whereas I'd assumed they'd just be over the water from OT.

[From Despair To Where?]

Arguably Oldham have been that third club because geographically they've been the North East side of Manchester as opposed to United in the West and City in the south. Potentially Stockport to the South as well (not forgetting Bury and Rochdale).

Surely it's no coincidence that their slide down the leagues coincided with them getting relegated the year Sky's money entering the game.

I'm honestly not sure what scope there is for Salford to get an bigger than they are now.

[Dirk Gently]

I find it interesting that FC United did their climb up the league which basically falters the moment Salford come along.

It that causal, or just coincidence? I'd say that FCUM have just about reached the level that their size and funding model allows; the level where the next step up is a whole lot larger.

[Clyde1998]

I find it interesting that FC United did their climb up the league which basically falters the moment Salford come along.

It that causal, or just coincidence? I'd say that FCUM have just about reached the level that their size and funding model allows; the level where the next step up is a whole lot larger.

I don't know, but looking at their crowds and they've declined from their peak.

Their seventh tier seasonal crowds have been:

1. 2008-09 - 2,152 (6th)
2. 2009-10 - 1,954 (13th)
3. 2010-11 - 1,966 (4th)
4. 2011-12 - 1,947 (6th)
5. 2012-13 - 1,849 (3rd)
6. 2013-14 - 1,944 (2nd)
7. 2014-15 - 2,155 (1st)
8. 2019-20 - 1,668 (2nd)
9. 2020-21 - Covid affected (13th)
10. 2021-22 - 1,795 (9th)
11. 2022-23 - 1,731 (8th)
12. 2023-24 - 1,681 (14th)
13. 2024-25 - 1,667 (17th)
14. 2025-26 - 1,625 (3rd)

A club like Salford perhaps has greater potential, as FC United are effectively limited to nominal Man Utd supporters and FC United were formed within a very specific context, which is slowly becoming less and less relevant.

[Dirk Gently]

A club like Salford perhaps has greater potential, as FC United are effectively limited to nominal Man Utd supporters and FC United were formed within a very specific context, which is slowly becoming less and less relevant.

I'd say the potential of both is limited more by funding.

FCUM are trust-owned and member-funded, and won't go into debt (except maybe for capital purchases like the stadium).

Salford have rich benefactors (even though these have recently changed) so there's no-limit to their potential funding and potential league position - but they made a £5.4 million loss in the year ending June 2024 which suggest their league position is too high for their income levels.

So one club has a much higher potential for league success, while the other has a much higher potential for still being in existence in ten years time...

[PieEater]

Only realised recently just how far from Salford the Peninsula Stadium actually is. Old Trafford and the Etihad are practically the same distance away, whereas I'd assumed they'd just be over the water from OT.

I was going to do a game at Salford, thinking it would be walkable from either Salford Central or Salford Crescent. Wrong, it's a 30min-40min bus ride from Salford Central, a real pain to get to unless you drive.

[Sutekh]

Very depressing in the land of the tangerines…

https://avftt.co.uk/index.php?threads/b ... 473/page-1

[Snowflake Royal]

Very depressing in the land of the tangerines…

https://avftt.co.uk/index.php?threads/b ... 473/page-1

Ouch. Good to see they have the same mix of eejits as we do.

[BarryWhiteRFC]

Very depressing in the land of the tangerines…

https://avftt.co.uk/index.php?threads/b ... 473/page-1

Whilst they are all doom and gloom, they were not very complimentary of us. Called a long ball team, average, dire amongst other things. The odd nice comment. Here's a sample;

Something we agree on. Never a pen. Brave goalkeeping.

Quality of football is 3rd tier, not worse than previous seasons. Reading are reasonable opposition and have some pace as we found out when we conceded.

Think I am watching a different game. We’ve had the better chances and had more control of the play. I think we’ve been the better team. They’ve had one decent chance and scored

They create absolutely nothing bar on our mistakes. Reading used to always play a decent brand of football and have exciting players outside of Wing the rest of them are ** awful. Long ball merchants

He did what a keeper is paid too .
Nothing dangerous about it.
Comanding his area, something we are not used to seeing at Bloomfield.

Should be equal. We have had as many chances as them, been more adventurous. They’ve hoofed the ball the entire half.

We are just shitter than another shit team...

How on earth have we conceded 3 to this pile of shit

Absolutely mullered by mid table Reading at home. Brilliant.

Deserve to be relegated if this is the best we can do again poor opponents

First away win for Reading. Gifted to them on a plate.

I could have played in goal for Reading and I'm useless.

Reading are a poor side, so to be losing 0-3 to them is very disappointing. For large parts of the game we actually dominated, but had nothing in the final third. Could have been a different result if our full backs had taken their chances.

Absolutely mullered by a team who this morning were only 3 points above us and hadn’t won away this season.

Their left winger was the best player on the pitch. He led Ihiekwe a merry dance and found his own players with his crosses....now there's a novelty. --> response to this: Free transfer from a German team. Best player on the park by a country mile.

Embarrassing. Was weird from the start though, so flat in the stands, not like the atmosphere was poor, it was non existent. Like a sort of silent football purgatory. Sitting there getting outsang by about 300 READING fans. READING fans taking the piss out of us. 11 players on the pitch absolutely shitting themselves, like they were the North Korea national team facing 30 years in a prison camp for making a mistake, or taking a risk.

[Orion1871]

Very depressing in the land of the tangerines…

https://avftt.co.uk/index.php?threads/b ... 473/page-1

Whilst they are all doom and gloom, they were not very complimentary of us. Called a long ball team, average, dire amongst other things. The odd nice comment. Here's a sample;

Something we agree on. Never a pen. Brave goalkeeping.

Quality of football is 3rd tier, not worse than previous seasons. Reading are reasonable opposition and have some pace as we found out when we conceded.

Think I am watching a different game. We’ve had the better chances and had more control of the play. I think we’ve been the better team. They’ve had one decent chance and scored

They create absolutely nothing bar on our mistakes. Reading used to always play a decent brand of football and have exciting players outside of Wing the rest of them are ** awful. Long ball merchants

He did what a keeper is paid too .
Nothing dangerous about it.
Comanding his area, something we are not used to seeing at Bloomfield.

Should be equal. We have had as many chances as them, been more adventurous. They’ve hoofed the ball the entire half.

We are just shitter than another shit team...

How on earth have we conceded 3 to this pile of shit

Absolutely mullered by mid table Reading at home. Brilliant.

Deserve to be relegated if this is the best we can do again poor opponents

First away win for Reading. Gifted to them on a plate.

I could have played in goal for Reading and I'm useless.

Reading are a poor side, so to be losing 0-3 to them is very disappointing. For large parts of the game we actually dominated, but had nothing in the final third. Could have been a different result if our full backs had taken their chances.

Absolutely mullered by a team who this morning were only 3 points above us and hadn’t won away this season.

Their left winger was the best player on the pitch. He led Ihiekwe a merry dance and found his own players with his crosses....now there's a novelty. --> response to this: Free transfer from a German team. Best player on the park by a country mile.

Embarrassing. Was weird from the start though, so flat in the stands, not like the atmosphere was poor, it was non existent. Like a sort of silent football purgatory. Sitting there getting outsang by about 300 READING fans. READING fans taking the piss out of us. 11 players on the pitch absolutely shitting themselves, like they were the North Korea national team facing 30 years in a prison camp for making a mistake, or taking a risk.

And back when we were playing that decent brand of football you know fans of these other clubs were calling us tinpot, saying we were crap, asking "how could we lose to Reading?", and giving us no credit for beating them.

[stealthpapes]

Only realised recently just how far from Salford the Peninsula Stadium actually is. Old Trafford and the Etihad are practically the same distance away, whereas I'd assumed they'd just be over the water from OT.

I was going to do a game at Salford, thinking it would be walkable from either Salford Central or Salford Crescent. Wrong, it's a 30min-40min bus ride from Salford Central, a real pain to get to unless you drive.

yeah, its up past Salford Sports Village where Salford Victoria used to play.

You could catch the metro if only to walk past local highlight, the hair dresser Glynis Barber.

[stealthpapes]

I find it interesting that FC United did their climb up the league which basically falters the moment Salford come along.

It that causal, or just coincidence? I'd say that FCUM have just about reached the level that their size and funding model allows; the level where the next step up is a whole lot larger.

Not sure. Give me a testable hypothesis and then we can play.

The coincidence is that FCUM hit their peak of mid-table in National League North between 2015 and 2018, not really looked like getting promoted back again. But they've definitely fallen back from a higher level.

Salford City were taken over by former Manchester United players in 2014 and overtook them sometime in 2016-2018, with (again) former Manchester United players involved at running club and also playing for the club (for example, one top scorer in this period is ex-United youth).

It's more that I think there's clearly potential for a Championship/League 1 club in the area. It seems to my eye there's four-ish similarly sized teams (Salford, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, would once have said Bury, FCUM at their peak)

Depends on how you count Bolton?

[stealthpapes]

Arguably Oldham have been that third club because geographically they've been the North East side of Manchester as opposed to United in the West and City in the south. Potentially Stockport to the South as well (not forgetting Bury and Rochdale).

Surely it's no coincidence that their slide down the leagues coincided with them getting relegated the year Sky's money entering the game.

I'm honestly not sure what scope there is for Salford to get an bigger than they are now.

Oldham were always on the small side.

league performance here

Fourth tier in 1970.

What Oldham‘s peak corresponds to is Joe Royle, then they were hit by all the nonsense/fallout of ITV digital.

[From Despair To Where?]

Arguably Oldham have been that third club because geographically they've been the North East side of Manchester as opposed to United in the West and City in the south. Potentially Stockport to the South as well (not forgetting Bury and Rochdale).

Surely it's no coincidence that their slide down the leagues coincided with them getting relegated the year Sky's money entering the game.

I'm honestly not sure what scope there is for Salford to get an bigger than they are now.

Oldham were always on the small side.

league performance here

Fourth tier in 1970.

What Oldham‘s peak corresponds to is Joe Royle, then they were hit by all the nonsense/fallout of ITV digital.

I'm not saying Oldham were a big club but barring the 19th Century, Oldham have always traditionally been a bigger club than Rochdale, Stockport or Bury so I think it's fair to say they can rightfully claim to have been the third club in Greater Manchester.

Admittedly, Bury were arguably of a similar statute until the early 70s but Stockport spent only 4 seasons outside the bottom division from 1945 until Danny Bergara turned up in 1989 and Rochdale only spent 6 seasons outside Div 3N or 4th division between 1921 and 2005.

[South Coast Royal]

Arguably Oldham have been that third club because geographically they've been the North East side of Manchester as opposed to United in the West and City in the south. Potentially Stockport to the South as well (not forgetting Bury and Rochdale).

Surely it's no coincidence that their slide down the leagues coincided with them getting relegated the year Sky's money entering the game.

I'm honestly not sure what scope there is for Salford to get an bigger than they are now.

Oldham were always on the small side.

league performance here

Fourth tier in 1970.

What Oldham‘s peak corresponds to is Joe Royle, then they were hit by all the nonsense/fallout of ITV digital.

I'm not saying Oldham were a big club but barring the 19th Century, Oldham have always traditionally been a bigger club than Rochdale, Stockport or Bury so I think it's fair to say they can rightfully claim to have been the third club in Greater Manchester.

Admittedly, Bury were arguably of a similar statute until the early 70s but Stockport spent only 4 seasons outside the bottom division from 1945 until Danny Bergara turned up in 1989 and Rochdale only spent 6 seasons outside Div 3N or 4th division between 1921 and 2005.

I remember Oldham playing in the top league when Andy Ritchie, Andy Goram, Gunnar Halle, John Sheridan etc were playing for them so, despite where they find themselves now, they are surely the "biggest" of the clubs in the Manchester area and they are getting good crowds for the National League.

[stealthpapes]

Oldham were always on the small side.

league performance here

Fourth tier in 1970.

What Oldham‘s peak corresponds to is Joe Royle, then they were hit by all the nonsense/fallout of ITV digital.

I'm not saying Oldham were a big club but barring the 19th Century, Oldham have always traditionally been a bigger club than Rochdale, Stockport or Bury so I think it's fair to say they can rightfully claim to have been the third club in Greater Manchester.

Admittedly, Bury were arguably of a similar statute until the early 70s but Stockport spent only 4 seasons outside the bottom division from 1945 until Danny Bergara turned up in 1989 and Rochdale only spent 6 seasons outside Div 3N or 4th division between 1921 and 2005.

I remember Oldham playing in the top league when Andy Ritchie, Andy Goram, Gunnar Halle, John Sheridan etc were playing for them so, despite where they find themselves now, they are surely the "biggest" of the clubs in the Manchester area and they are getting good crowds for the National League.

again, it all corresponds almost exactly to "When Jo Royle was in charge".

[From Despair To Where?]

I'm not saying Oldham were a big club but barring the 19th Century, Oldham have always traditionally been a bigger club than Rochdale, Stockport or Bury so I think it's fair to say they can rightfully claim to have been the third club in Greater Manchester.

Admittedly, Bury were arguably of a similar statute until the early 70s but Stockport spent only 4 seasons outside the bottom division from 1945 until Danny Bergara turned up in 1989 and Rochdale only spent 6 seasons outside Div 3N or 4th division between 1921 and 2005.

I remember Oldham playing in the top league when Andy Ritchie, Andy Goram, Gunnar Halle, John Sheridan etc were playing for them so, despite where they find themselves now, they are surely the "biggest" of the clubs in the Manchester area and they are getting good crowds for the National League.

again, it all corresponds almost exactly to "When Jo Royle was in charge".

Again, my original point re Oldham was that they were traditionally the third biggest side in Greater Manchester going back 80 years, regardless of what they achieved under Royle.

Also @SCR, Oldham are not in the National League.


Anyway, ref Salford, apparently they were in talks to buy the Salford Red Devils grounds a few years ago (theirs is the one by the M60 near the Trafford Centre). I think the plan was for Salford City and Sale Sharks to buy the stadium and effectively evict the Red Devils. Sale already play there.

I could see them ground sharing if Salford ever got to the Championship as it's double the capacity.

[South Coast Royal]

I remember Oldham playing in the top league when Andy Ritchie, Andy Goram, Gunnar Halle, John Sheridan etc were playing for them so, despite where they find themselves now, they are surely the "biggest" of the clubs in the Manchester area and they are getting good crowds for the National League.

again, it all corresponds almost exactly to "When Jo Royle was in charge".

Again, my original point re Oldham was that they were traditionally the third biggest side in Greater Manchester going back 80 years, regardless of what they achieved under Royle.

Also @SCR, Oldham are not in the National League.


Anyway, ref Salford, apparently they were in talks to buy the Salford Red Devils grounds a few years ago (theirs is the one by the M60 near the Trafford Centre). I think the plan was for Salford City and Sale Sharks to buy the stadium and effectively evict the Red Devils. Sale already play there.

I could see them ground sharing if Salford ever got to the Championship as it's double the capacity.

I'm a year out of date with the events at Oldham-apologies.