nPower Football League Thread 2010/2011

[Lineker]

It is considered local by the fans - believe it or not!

Local or not its still a rivalry.

[Starvinho]

The towns are like 100 miles apart! It's like saying United and Birmingham are local rivals. Bloody Southerners

[Starvinho]

This just appeared on the BBC Sport news tracker;

"Old Trafford to host League One and Two play-off finals in May 2011"

This season's npower League 1 and npower League 2 Play-Off Finals will be played at Manchester United's Old Trafford stadium on May 28 (npower League 2) and 29 (npower League 1), the first time that The Football League's end of season promotion finals have been played in the North West.

The npower Championship Play-Off Final will be played at Wembley Stadium in its traditional Bank Holiday Monday slot. All three matches are scheduled to kick-off at 3pm.

Football League Chairman Greg Clarke said: "We are thrilled to have the opportunity to play these exciting winner-takes-all occasions at one of the great stadiums in world football.

"We are equally pleased that we are able to take the npower Football League Play-Offs to the North West, an area that has been at the heart of professional football since its very origins."

Manchester United Chief Executive David Gill added: "We are delighted Old Trafford has been chosen to stage these two finals. The Play-Offs have built a reputation as some of the most high profile and entertaining matches in the football calendar. To have the opportunity to host these matches underlines Old Trafford's status as the leading club stadium in the country."

npower marketing director, Kevin Peake, said: "Old Trafford - one of the world's most famous football grounds - will be a fantastic venue for the npower League 1 and npower League 2 Play-Off Finals."

Ticket allocations for clubs reaching the npower League 1 and npower League 2 finals at Old Trafford will be in line with those provided at Wembley Stadium with around 65,000 tickets available to fans.

The decision to stage the npower League 1 and npower League 2 Play-Off Finals in Manchester follows a mutually agreed settlement between The Football League and the Football Association that enables Wembley Stadium to stage the UEFA Champions League Final on the evening of May 28 and the npower Championship Play-Off Final two days later.

Edited January 21, 2011 by Jordan

[Colly]

Read as: Sod you lower English Leagues, miles more shiny money from the Champions League.

Probably cynical, but if it stays the same next year I wouldn't be too surprised.

[Lineker]

Bournemouth to go up automatically anyway

[britneyspearsisgod]

I don't see this as a bad thing. It's still a large stadium fans will like to go to and they'll still get a pay day from it, so I see no problem. Something different is no bad thing.

[Lineker]

Liam Feeney, you fucking beaut.

[Lineker]

Leyton Orient could be interested in moving into the Olympic hockey stadium following the 2012 Games, club chairman Barry Hearn has told the BBC.

West Ham and Tottenham are battling for the right to move into the main Olympic Stadium, which is only two miles from the O's Brisbane Road home.

"I don't know if it's available. At the moment the hockey stadium's designated as a temporary facility," said Hearn.

"It's a possibility if everyone pulls together. Let's talk about it."

The hockey stadium will be a 16,000-seater facility within the Olympic Park.

The Olympic Legacy Company was due to make a decision on Friday as to whether Spurs or West Ham should be the preferred bidder for the main £500m stadium but it has delayed its verdict to allow more time to consider the relative cases.

West Ham would retain the athletics track and keep the stadium as a multi-sport venue but Spurs would rip out the track, turn it into a football-only venue and spend money on doing up the Crystal Palace athletics stadium instead.

Hearn feels the plight of his club, which is closer to the Olympic Stadium site than either of the Premier League clubs looking to move in, has been totally overlooked.

"We're the forgotten tribe of east London and we're not going to lie down as we're steamrollered by one of the Premiership giants," he commented.

"I'm going to look at the whole legal process of judicial review because I think putting us out of business or endangering our business falls into that remit.

"I'll look at legalities within the rules of the Premier League and Football League which clearly state no club will be allowed to move closer to another club which is prejudicial to another club's survival - this is definitely that.

"What happens to us? You've got a wonderful three week spectacular called the Olympics. We love it but we've been here than 135 years and that's a lot longer than three weeks."

He ruled out any possibility of his club groundsharing the Olympic Stadium when he stated: "Our average gate is 4,500 so it would look ridiculous." Hearn also commented that there was no way he would move the club to a ground with an athletics track around the pitch.

A statement from Orient's board of directors said a bigger club moving in to their territory would place "a huge question mark over our long-term viability at Brisbane Road".

?

DISTANCES BY ROAD

Orient-Stratford: 2.1 miles

Orient-West Ham: 4.2 miles

Upton Park-Stratford: 2.4 miles

Spurs-Stratford: 7.1 miles

Orient, whose home was originally built in 1937, are worried the prospect of a larger stadium nearby which allowed for cheaper Premier League tickets would rob them of casual fans.

West Ham have indicated cheaper tickets will be made available to schools in an effort to fill a 60,000-capacity venue should they move in and for this reason Hearn said from the O's point of view, Tottenham getting the stadium was the lesser of two evils.

Orient pointed to Premier League and Football League rules which state that consent shall only be given for clubs to move if it "would not adversely affect clubs having their registered grounds in the immediate vicinity of the proposed location".

The statement from Orient's board read: "The club has appealed to the Premier League and the Football League, both of whom would be in breach of their own regulations if they were to sanction a move for either West Ham United or Tottenham Hotspur, but the silence is deafening.

"Brisbane Road sits one long goal-kick from the Olympic Park, there is no question that it is within the 'immediate vicinity'.

"Surely their boards will recognise this at their respective meetings when the application to move ground comes in from either West Ham United or Tottenham Hotspur?

"All parties must endeavour to find a solution which will satisfy all parties and whilst we are sure there will always be a Leyton Orient we can't take it for granted, sit back and be steamrollered out of existence. At this time, our voice must be heard."

The battle to take over at the Olympic Stadium has been fiercely fought.

In October, West Ham co-chairman David Sullivan reportedly said a Tottenham move would prompt "real problems that could easily lead to civil unrest".

But Hearn accused Sullivan of hypocrisy.

"If [sullivan] is worried about Tottenham then he can only begin to have sleepless nights about the aggravation I'm going to give him if he moves on my doorstep," Hearn told the Evening Standard.

"This is total hypocrisy on his part. This is a case of Tescos moving next to the little sweet shop on the corner. It means a death knell for Leyton Orient, London's second-oldest club."

Leyton Orient were founded in 1881, two years after Fulham.

[Emperor DC]

Not posted in here for a while. Things have got better for my beloved Bournemouth since.

We did lose Eddie Howe and our two top strikers, but we keep on going strong which is good to see.

The Colchester/Rochdale games were weird. I went to both, and even got on TV at the Colchester game! I was one of the guys interviewed before the match.

Off to the Plymouth match tomorrow and hoping for another win. Good chance with Brighton and the Scummers not playing.

UTCIAD.

[Lineker]

Robbie Savage to retire at the end of the season - good riddance.

[Adam]

Great news, hopefully this means full time punditry for him on the BBC. Always liked Robbie Savage.

[Starvinho]

Both Sheff Wednesday and Brentford have sacked their managers today.

Sheffield Wednesday have parted company with manager Alan Irvine with the side lying 12th in League One.

Chairman Milan Mandaric held crisis talks on Wednesday following the club's 5-3 defeat at Peterborough.

Assistant manager Rob Kelly and coach Billy Barr will be in temporary charge until a replacement is found.

Brentford have sacked manager Andy Scott and assistant Terry Bullivant.

It is understood that veteran Bees striker Nicky Forster has been put in temporary charge.

Brentford have not won a league game since 1 January and currently sit two points off the League One drop zone in 19th place.

[Lineker]

Both are good managers, they'll be fine and in new jobs soon enough.

[Lineker]

…as for Wednesday though - they've just appointed Gary Megson as their new manager.

[Adam]

Well, he got West Brom into the Premier League twice. Might be able to do the job of getting Wednesday out of League 1. He can't be any less effective than the last couple of managers there.

[Starvinho]

Megson was shite at Bolton though, I know alot of my mates who are Bolton fans wanted him out! He looks like he'd probably suit League 1 better though and then maybe Championship. I have got a soft spot for Wednesday so I hope he does well for them.

[britneyspearsisgod]

Megson style matches lower league football, but he struggled to get players in the Premier League with small clubs and subsequently found difficulties in playing well. Getting Wednesday up the table and getting them into the Championship should be an achievable task for him.

[Lineker]

Just got back from the City Ground. That was a thoroughly unenjoyable experience.

[Adam]

Just got back from The Den. That was a thoroughly unenjoyable experience.

Edited February 5, 2011 by AdamDRFC

[EddieG]

Just got back from The Den. That was a thoroughly unenjoyable experience.

I'll be at the Keepmoat next week, my brother got a free ticket from his school and my ticket is coming in discounted.

First time for me in a stadium with less than 33k