Newport County

[CrackityJones]

Crackin game. Gotta fancy them in the final.

[mx47]

UTFC!!!

[mx47]

UTFC!!! Up and ready to go!!!

[quetzal]

Don’t get a lot of mentions on apostle. The new guy is getting results

[CrackityJones]

Rowberry is doing a good job so far. Another young Welsh manager to keep an eye on.

[jimexotic]

Looks like they've done enough now to stay up. Given the squad depletion in the summer I think survival was pretty much all they could have hoped for. I wouldn't mind seeing Eli King going there next season, I don't think he's going to make it at Cardiff. It's hard to predict what the future holds with a budget that doesn't really allow for forward planning. If only they could have some wealthy visionary's invest eh?

[fiveattheback]

Mar 15, 2023 18:54:37 GMT jimexotic said:

Looks like they've done enough now to stay up. Given the squad depletion in the summer I think survival was pretty much all they could have hoped for. I wouldn't mind seeing Eli King going there next season, I don't think he's going to make it at Cardiff. It's hard to predict what the future holds with a budget that doesn't really allow for forward planning. If only they could have some wealthy visionary's invest eh?

Been there done that haven't they?

On King I think he may be nearer the first team than some think, he wasn't in the u21s yesterday and tonight we've seen Isaak Davies come from nowhere into Cardiff's starting XI.  The thing that goes against King is that Cardiff maddeningly signed 4 midfielders this summer on top of the 4 already in the first team squad

[surge]

City lost Bacuna, Vaulks and Pack over the summer and replaced them with Rhinomhota, Adams and Sawyers. Adams missing all year so really it's case of losing three, signing two.

Joe Ralls signed new contract and Wintle, who had been signed season before, continued in first team. I do take your overall point that it would be maddening for young CM to see three players leave and see three players enter, seemingly leaving you no closer to first team. 

I don't know what happened to cut time at County short, but I agree that he's not as far away from getting first team minutes as some might think.

[jimexotic]

A win tomorrow could see Newport up to 11th, it's been a great turnaround of late, hopefully they can push on next season, Newport and Wrexham pushing for the play offs or promotion places would be brilliant.

[erasedcitizen]

[paj]

That doesn’t sound good. It’s not as if the Dragons/WRU are flush with cash either. Could an eviction be on the cards?

[jimexotic]

Fake News

61k is the actual debt and Rodney Parade has already been sorted for next season.

[aberbeeg]

Strange kinda club Cewnty. Average crowds of 3-5 k. Rarely troubled the tops of tables. Did well to get back into the league but most people would say their ceiling would always be around about where they are give or take. Had a few good cup runs the last few years and some noticeable scalps but it never really materialises into bigger long term crowds. Never do anything of note for the national set up. Not even had a ground of their own since the old Somerton Park.

It must be such are hard club to even keep afloat.

[garynysmon]

They almost got into League One a few times so that's a bit unfair.

That said, its a tough area in terms of catchment area when you have Bristol on one side and Cardiff on the other. You can't really see them going any higher without a rich benefactor coming in.

Just a run of the mill English lower league club really, no shame in that in a way.

They'd baulk at the idea, but they could benefit a lot from playing in the Welsh system and benefitting from European money. League two income wouldn't represent the kind of financial drop that Cardiff/Swansea would see from jumping over.

I'm pretty certain that TNS make substantially more in prize money over a season than Newport do. Throw in Newport's naturally higher crowds and you have a solid European club there.

[fiveattheback]

Jun 14, 2023 16:48:39 GMT garynysmon said:

They almost got into League One a few times so that's a bit unfair.

That said, its a tough area in terms of catchment area when you have Bristol on one side and Cardiff on the other. You can't really see them going any higher without a rich benefactor coming in.

Just a run of the mill English lower league club really, no shame in that in a way.

They'd baulk at the idea, but they could benefit a lot from playing in the Welsh system and benefitting from European money. League two income wouldn't represent the kind of financial drop that Cardiff/Swansea would see from jumping over.

Isn't that partly how the current iteration of County reached the EFL?

I agree the characterisation is unfair, two playoff finals isn't it?  That game against Morecambe was a disgrace, cheated out of it

[aberbeeg]

My assessment was based on the last 30/40 odd years not the last 5

[surge]

Think it's unfair to say their ceiling is where they are now. I don't see them being higher than midtable in League One at any point but there is still some growth possible for them.

[allezlesrouges]

Jun 14, 2023 16:48:39 GMT garynysmon said:

They almost got into League One a few times so that's a bit unfair.

That said, its a tough area in terms of catchment area when you have Bristol on one side and Cardiff on the other. You can't really see them going any higher without a rich benefactor coming in.

Just a run of the mill English lower league club really, no shame in that in a way.

They'd baulk at the idea, but they could benefit a lot from playing in the Welsh system and benefitting from European money. League two income wouldn't represent the kind of financial drop that Cardiff/Swansea would see from jumping over.

I'm pretty certain that TNS make substantially more in prize money over a season than Newport do. Throw in Newport's naturally higher crowds and you have a solid European club there.

I actually agree. They've technically been a bigger club than Wrexham for a while now, but Wrexham's promotion means they have now been leapfrogged as the 3rd biggest club in Wales. Unlike Wrexham they don't have the scalability, nor the catchment area to really grow. Cardiff, Swansea & the Bristol clubs hoover up the support. So I'd agree mid League One is probably the limit

I can't see their fans ever wanting the switch whilst they are in the top 4 leagues in England. However, maybe relegation would make the switch more appealing. As you say with their crowds they'd easily be the top club in the league, and you could see them getting in Europe as soon as they moved over

Surely most fans would think European football beats Conference slogs

[raptor]

Hi, first time here for ages.

I'm a County fan, we would've been in the brown stuff ages ago if it wasn't for the cup runs.

But no matter how sticky the brown stuff gets you wont find 10 County fans who would want to join the Welsh Football pyramid.

I'm not going back over why, it's been done to death.

Good luck to Wrexham this year.

[jimexotic]

Even with the garish sponsor, the new shirt is an absolute beauty

[quetzal]

Jul 16, 2023 9:45:59 GMT raptor said:

Hi, first time here for ages.

I'm a County fan, we would've been in the brown stuff ages ago if it wasn't for the cup runs.

But no matter how sticky the brown stuff gets you wont find 10 County fans who would want to join the Welsh Football pyramid.

I'm not going back over why, it's been done to death.

Good luck to Wrexham this year.

Wow it’s a long time since you were on here. Hope you’re doing well

[erasedcitizen]

Jul 16, 2023 9:45:59 GMT raptor said:

Hi, first time here for ages.

I'm a County fan, we would've been in the brown stuff ages ago if it wasn't for the cup runs.

But no matter how sticky the brown stuff gets you wont find 10 County fans who would want to join the Welsh Football pyramid.

I'm not going back over why, it's been done to death.

Good luck to Wrexham this year.

People said about us joining the Welsh system when we were in the brown stuff. The possibilities to clubs are far greater in the English system than they are in the Welsh, that's the harsh reality. In the English system, a few good seasons could see your club at the same level as some of the world's most elite clubs. Just look at Luton.

I'd love the Welsh system to be more competitive than the lower English football league but it's just nowhere close and that's the very top level a club in that system can aspire to (also Europe but being realistic, the main tournament is still a long way off achievable). If the 5 clubs in the English system sacked off the English system there'd maybe be some possibility of development but there's no chance of that either.

[allezlesrouges]

Jul 16, 2023 17:32:43 GMT erasedcitizen said:

Jul 16, 2023 9:45:59 GMT raptor said:

Hi, first time here for ages.

I'm a County fan, we would've been in the brown stuff ages ago if it wasn't for the cup runs.

But no matter how sticky the brown stuff gets you wont find 10 County fans who would want to join the Welsh Football pyramid.

I'm not going back over why, it's been done to death.

Good luck to Wrexham this year.

People said about us joining the Welsh system when we were in the brown stuff. The possibilities to clubs are far greater in the English system than they are in the Welsh, that's the harsh reality. In the English system, a few good seasons could see your club at the same level as some of the world's most elite clubs. Just look at Luton.

I'd love the Welsh system to be more competitive than the lower English football league but it's just nowhere close and that's the very top level a club in that system can aspire to (also Europe but being realistic, the main tournament is still a long way off achievable). If the 5 clubs in the English system sacked off the English system there'd maybe be some possibility of development but there's no chance of that either.

What would you and raptor say about Merthyr though? In a very different position to both Wrecsam and Newport

It's easy to see Wrecsam/Newport go from non-league to League One/Champ in the right set of circumstances. Obviously that's better for Welsh football than them moving over

However, Merthyr in the 7th tier are a million miles away from League Two. Colwyn Bay were in the same tier in England but have taken the plunge to the Cymru leagues and are benefitting. Looks like they will be a real asset to the top flight too. Merthyr could have a similar impact as a well supported club within a unique populous area. Can't really see where they go from here in the English system but can see them in Europe if they move over

Obviously I'm not a fan and it's not up to me. But what do you guys think, should they be sticking it out or moving over?

[erasedcitizen]

Jul 17, 2023 15:08:41 GMT allezlesrouges said:

Jul 16, 2023 17:32:43 GMT erasedcitizen said:

People said about us joining the Welsh system when we were in the brown stuff. The possibilities to clubs are far greater in the English system than they are in the Welsh, that's the harsh reality. In the English system, a few good seasons could see your club at the same level as some of the world's most elite clubs. Just look at Luton.

I'd love the Welsh system to be more competitive than the lower English football league but it's just nowhere close and that's the very top level a club in that system can aspire to (also Europe but being realistic, the main tournament is still a long way off achievable). If the 5 clubs in the English system sacked off the English system there'd maybe be some possibility of development but there's no chance of that either.

What would you and raptor say about Merthyr though? In a very different position to both Wrecsam and Newport

It's easy to see Wrecsam/Newport go from non-league to League One/Champ in the right set of circumstances. Obviously that's better for Welsh football than them moving over

However, Merthyr in the 7th tier are a million miles away from League Two. Colwyn Bay were in the same tier in England but have taken the plunge to the Cymru leagues and are benefitting. Looks like they will be a real asset to the top flight too. Merthyr could have a similar impact as a well supported club within a unique populous area. Can't really see where they go from here in the English system but can see them in Europe if they move over

Obviously I'm not a fan and it's not up to me. But what do you guys think, should they be sticking it out or moving over?

I think Merthyr would benefit more from the move to the Welsh system. They've never played in the EFL and their current situation doesn't indicate that will change soon. The other 4 clubs, all of which now EFL, have far more potential and are better for Welsh football being where they are.

[iot]

Jul 16, 2023 17:32:43 GMT erasedcitizen said:

Jul 16, 2023 9:45:59 GMT raptor said:

Hi, first time here for ages.

I'm a County fan, we would've been in the brown stuff ages ago if it wasn't for the cup runs.

But no matter how sticky the brown stuff gets you wont find 10 County fans who would want to join the Welsh Football pyramid.

I'm not going back over why, it's been done to death.

Good luck to Wrexham this year.

People said about us joining the Welsh system when we were in the brown stuff. The possibilities to clubs are far greater in the English system than they are in the Welsh, that's the harsh reality. In the English system, a few good seasons could see your club at the same level as some of the world's most elite clubs. Just look at Luton.

I'd love the Welsh system to be more competitive than the lower English football league but it's just nowhere close and that's the very top level a club in that system can aspire to (also Europe but being realistic, the main tournament is still a long way off achievable). If the 5 clubs in the English system sacked off the English system there'd maybe be some possibility of development but there's no chance of that either.

Reading that comment makes me feel quite uncomfortable, even if there is a fair bit of truth in it. I just find talk of the endless possibilities within the English system coupled with the rubbishing of the Welsh system quite disheartening - as if we should be incredibly grateful to the English for playing in their league while scoffing at our own.

I will be shouted down for this I'm sure, but Newport as a club appear to have a very limited ceiling. They've been in League 2 for a decade, and are really struggling to be sustainable at that level. Without the FA Cup runs they may have gone down already, which again isn't a sustainable model. It suggests to me that there isn't enough interest locally, I'm pretty sure they don't sell out their very small ground often at all. So League 2 seems to be the best they can hope for realistically. Sure they could get Hollywood investors in or become a Luton, but there's probably far less than a 100-1 chance of that happening.

I have no right to say this because I'm not a Newport fan, but I'd much prefer to see them play in the Welsh pyramid. 

[jimbo82]

Jul 17, 2023 15:26:48 GMT erasedcitizen said:

I think Merthyr would benefit more from the move to the Welsh system. They've never played in the EFL and their current situation doesn't indicate that will change soon. The other 4 clubs, all of which now EFL, have far more potential and are better for Welsh football being where they are.

Although technically correct that the current Merthyr Town have never played in the EFL, the original Merthyr Town were in the Third Division from 1920-1930

But I do agree they are a million miles away from that at the moment.

[mrpicton79]

Jun 15, 2023 0:48:23 GMT allezlesrouges said:

Jun 14, 2023 16:48:39 GMT garynysmon said:

They almost got into League One a few times so that's a bit unfair.

That said, its a tough area in terms of catchment area when you have Bristol on one side and Cardiff on the other. You can't really see them going any higher without a rich benefactor coming in.

Just a run of the mill English lower league club really, no shame in that in a way.

They'd baulk at the idea, but they could benefit a lot from playing in the Welsh system and benefitting from European money. League two income wouldn't represent the kind of financial drop that Cardiff/Swansea would see from jumping over.

I'm pretty certain that TNS make substantially more in prize money over a season than Newport do. Throw in Newport's naturally higher crowds and you have a solid European club there.

I actually agree. They've technically been a bigger club than Wrexham for a while now, but Wrexham's promotion means they have now been leapfrogged as the 3rd biggest club in Wales. Unlike Wrexham they don't have the scalability, nor the catchment area to really grow. Cardiff, Swansea & the Bristol clubs hoover up the support. So I'd agree mid League One is probably the limit

I can't see their fans ever wanting the switch whilst they are in the top 4 leagues in England. However, maybe relegation would make the switch more appealing. As you say with their crowds they'd easily be the top club in the league, and you could see them getting in Europe as soon as they moved over

Surely most fans would think European football beats Conference slogs

Chicken and the egg. You could say they only get the crowds they do because of the more illustrious opposition they play week in week out in the English league. Safe assumption those crowds dwindle to a few hundred if they're playing Connah's Quay Nomads and Haverfordwest County every week.

As for "European football", let's be brutally honest here... for the CP sides it's realistically a couple of games a season against teams from Macedonia or Iceland etc before going back to the domestic grind.

I'm not denigrating the league there but we have to be realistic about the contrast in the rewards of playing in the respective pyramids.

[zingo]

Jul 17, 2023 19:46:25 GMT jimbo82 said:

Jul 17, 2023 15:26:48 GMT erasedcitizen said:

I think Merthyr would benefit more from the move to the Welsh system. They've never played in the EFL and their current situation doesn't indicate that will change soon. The other 4 clubs, all of which now EFL, have far more potential and are better for Welsh football being where they are.

Although technically correct that the current Merthyr Town have never played in the EFL, the original Merthyr Town were in the Third Division from 1920-1930

But I do agree they are a million miles away from that at the moment.

Newports fans will never want to leave the english league, the supporters fought tooth and nail in the early 90s to stay, while the Faw (alun evans)tried
To make us join the league of wales,resulting in the faw banning us from playing in wales,some newport fans
Then went to european court of justice,
Then yook for to the hight court of london, and won the case,some of them fans have sadly passed away,but we will never forget there efforts in winning that court case and then steering us back after many years back to league 2, UTC

[gimli]

Jul 18, 2023 1:31:24 GMT mrpicton79 said:

Jun 15, 2023 0:48:23 GMT allezlesrouges said:

I actually agree. They've technically been a bigger club than Wrexham for a while now, but Wrexham's promotion means they have now been leapfrogged as the 3rd biggest club in Wales. Unlike Wrexham they don't have the scalability, nor the catchment area to really grow. Cardiff, Swansea & the Bristol clubs hoover up the support. So I'd agree mid League One is probably the limit

I can't see their fans ever wanting the switch whilst they are in the top 4 leagues in England. However, maybe relegation would make the switch more appealing. As you say with their crowds they'd easily be the top club in the league, and you could see them getting in Europe as soon as they moved over

Surely most fans would think European football beats Conference slogs

Chicken and the egg. You could say they only get the crowds they do because of the more illustrious opposition they play week in week out in the English league. Safe assumption those crowds dwindle to a few hundred if they're playing Connah's Quay Nomads and Haverfordwest County every week.

As for "European football", let's be brutally honest here... for the CP sides it's realistically a couple of games a season against teams from Macedonia or Iceland etc before going back to the domestic grind.

I'm not denigrating the league there but we have to be realistic about the contrast in the rewards of playing in the respective pyramids.

Opposition such as AFC Totton, Didcot Town, and Harrow Borough? So illustrious! C'mon, if they played in the Cymru Prem at least they'd have local derbies. Merthyr v Barry would be a massive game and much bigger than any game they play in the 7th tier of English football against no-mark English towns and villages they have no connection to or history with.

And regarding Europe, obviously at present the Welsh teams are struggling to make their mark, but that's mostly because of the current semi-professional state of the league. The reason people want Merthyr to join is to help improve the quality of the league, boost attendances, hopefully leading to more pro clubs and therefore better performances in Europe. And with the new Europa Conference League we have a good chance of qualifying for the group stage over the coming years. Let's put it this way, a team of Merthyr's size in the Cymru Prem has a much better chance of qualifying for the group stage of the Europa Conference than Merthyr have of reaching the EFL or even the National League in England.

[garynysmon]

Jul 18, 2023 1:31:24 GMT mrpicton79 said:

Chicken and the egg. You could say they only get the crowds they do because of the more illustrious opposition they play week in week out in the English league. Safe assumption those crowds dwindle to a few hundred if they're playing Connah's Quay Nomads and Haverfordwest County every week.

If Rangers and Celtic played in the English Premier League and you were advocating they switch to the SPL, people would say the same thing about facing St Mirren and Ross County in fairness. Yet they pretty much sell out, or close to it, for those games.

Wrexham were playing the likes of Dorking Wanderers etc last year. Did the crowds stay away? Its a typically Welsh thing to think everything we do and everything we have is automatically inferior to what's over the border.

The lack of any imagination as to what Welsh domestic football should be drives me bonkers. The league gets attendances in the hundreds rather than thousands exactly because its treated as an afterthought even within Welsh footballing circles.

Yet all people want to do is decide that because Airbus get crowds of 200, that's all we'll ever be capable of.

Its not a given that the Welsh top flight always has to be like this. More bigger clubs playing in it grows it profile, a bigger profile grows the clubs and the crowds follow.

There is no reason whatsoever that we couldn't have a proper professional top fight in Wales, you know, like any normal European country.