GlossopLatic

Yes and we weren't also discussing our football clubs on the Internet back then either I'm sure the Internet was seen as trendy rubbish too then eh?

How can you conclude something is wrong without understanding how it works?

Another thread where everyone says the stats bomb is wrong without understanding how it works or how we've used them.

I watched the Apprentice final last night saw the Latics result this morning and have skim read through this thread. We can have the biggest pity party in the world if you want and say how the players have shit the bed this season and how we've had 3 decades of dissapointment it's not going to change anything. So I'm just going to look forward to next season from here because as a fan their is nothing else I can do.

It's not the fans fault the players have shit the bed in the last month and a half of the season however I'm not sure it gives us the right to hurl abuse either. While I'm abit bemused at some of the opinions I hear at Boundary Park, which have left me asking what game are you watching I don't think BP has been massively toxic, it only really turned toxic to David Unsworth in his final few games. Apart from that I don't think it's been that bad from my observations. I don't think social media helps as it amplifies the noise quite alot too.

I know I know but sometimes you just really sound like him . He did actually say that season tickets weren't a big deal and even advocated scraping them all together. FWIW Someone once came on here and accused me of being Neil Joy (he lives around Glossop) we all laugh about that now it even resulted in me going on the podcast and effectively clearing my name.

That's exactly what Wiseowl used to say.

So there are 10 players out of contract let's also say that we get 4 players who are contracted out the door too. We won't sell them but enough to get them out on loan or go to another club where we don't fully pay up their contract but we have to give them something and it reduces the wage bill enough that we are allowed to bring in another player (4 out 1 in) Dallas Sachdev and Walker all go back then you have cleared enough space their easily to bring in an entirely new team. Aslong as we don't slash the wage bill which I don't think they will the Rothwells are going knowhere. Its going to be a busy summer but their is still no reason we can't start next season with a far better side than we have now.

Call me a cock eyed optimist but I'm getting one because I believe we can win promotion next year.

You wouldn't sign James Berry?

Think you are missing the point slightly those teams are probably up for it going to Chesterfield but Chesterfield have dealt with it we haven't that's the difference.

But it's a storm we weathered one part of getting promotion will be the ability to go away from home in deep winter to clubs who's away ends resemble bus stops not play well and grind out a win I don't mind that. What we've probably learned is that it's not the only way of winning you have to find wins in other scenarios such as being at home against smaller teams who get men behind the ball, or who see coming to Boundary Park as a big game and are massively up for it such as Fylde and Kidderminster, which is where we have really struggled.

I wouldn't say their is much hype or much waxing lyrical more a case people saying he's a player that has abit of potential.

I've gone for release all except Fondop. That should be enough wiggle room to improve the squad significantly. That's before we think about the contracted players. I have a horrible feeling that Mcgahey will get another year he shouldn't but its quite possible that Mellon likes him.

Probably because he's a work in progress. I'm just watching Bunch of Amateurs Marc Whites team talk was that you can beat Oldham by out working us. Theirs something in that we are low energy team and the team needs some youthful enthusiasm.

Could well be I'm not sure if it is then it's something to think about certainly if other brands as you put it are being used and are working for other club's.

Absolutely it needs the right personalities I'm not advocating signing players purely off stats, for stats and data to be effective they need to be interpretated properly anyway. Their is still very much room for scouting. Thomas Frank at Brentford said that while they use data analysis they still very much use scouting by the eyes as he put it to identify talent. As for can this work in the national league and the examples of ourselves and York being the only clubs using it suggest it doesn't. My arguement would be here is that aslong as you can collect the same amount of accurate data then their is no reason why it can't be a useful tool to help us find value for money signings. While only 2 clubs use it now its more likely than not that more and more clubs will use it going forwards as it becomes more accessible and more sophisticated. Its important to look at the future possibilities and not just the current results.

Interesting point this and one I think we can relate to the fact that we have an old side. Of yesterday's starting 11 only 1 is under 24 that is Sachdev who isn't even our player. I think we need to start looking at young hungry players who can add energy to the team. I've said above about the need to embrace change and I very much stand by that but if we can learn one lesson from the past is that signing young hungry players possibly with a point to prove is something that works for us.

Again I think you are assuming or as you put it hypothesising on what the problem is. FYI I'm guilty of coming to Conclusions without knowing all the information too so I'm not trying to come from a holier than thou position on this, it could well be that the stats bomb data analysis hasn't delivered what we hoped it would do. The point Im making here which is critical here is that we learn the right lessons from this and understand exactly why we haven't got value for money based on the actual full evidence rather than any hypothesis. Youve also got to look in which way the world is going. The one where you are suggesting the manager calls all the shots which the way the likes of Royle Ferguson and Clough no longer exists. Alot of the work is delegated out to people top clubs have an army of coaches data scientists fitness people recruitment people etc. The fact that all the successful clubs are doing this should leave a clue as to what we will need to do to be successful in the future. We can carry on doing what we've always done and praying that doing the same thing will lead to success when it hasn't done for 30 years or we can embrace change and understand that we need to look forwards rather than backwards. Having come to Oldham for the last 30 years I've watched a team and a town that has been left further and further behind and their seems to be a lack of appetite at times to change things and embrace the future it's time we did that.

We know the recruitment hasn't delivered the bang for its buck that we'd hope that's what we know to be definite But how can you conclude that it's the data anslysis/stats bomb that's wrong if you admit that you don't even know how it works. Who is to say it's not poor scouting, bad recommendations from agents, bad judging from team management?

You appear to be assuming that the stats bomb is the problem without actually knowing how it works or even if we've used it, or used it properly to recruit players.

Don't write next season off just yet I think we will have more wriggle room than some think. Just because a number of these players are under contract doesn't mean they will be here next season. I think several will be moved on or actually want to move on in some cases. We won't shift all of them but we might not need to shift all of them. Some of them just need the right players around then and the right team structure to play in and they will thrive.

Thar doesn't make the likes of Willoughby Tollit and Reid the answer. I saw moments from Tollit and Reid the former I think that's just what he is he's capable of moments of magic but they are too infrequent and he gives you nothing without the ball to make up for it. Reid seems more interested in being a social media star than a footballer. Willoughby has shown nothing to warrant us giving him any game time all 3 will have been told to look for new clubs hopefully for our sake and theirs they find them this summer.

Just on the subject of James Norwood his best form and the period where we put in our best results has come when he has played upfront firstly with Stones but also Fondop 2 physically strong forwards but who will also run in behind and in the channels. Andrew Dallas has pedigree but I don't think him and Norwood work together as a combination. If Kitching is more a left back then get a left mid or left winger who can play infront of him is required and someone who will compliment him. If Nathan Sheron is going to be in the team as a ball winner then he needs people who he can give the ball too. We need to make sure we sign players who will compliment each other and can link the team together properly. We look like jigsaw pieces from about 6 different jigsaws it's not fitting together.

My problem with sacking the manager apart from the fact that we've got to get away from this cycle of churning through managers every 6-12 months. Is that it would be letting the players who've shit the bed the last 2 months off the hook. As I've said above I'm not going to abuse them. I'll leave the frothing at the mouth to other people now. But for some of them now their careers in full time professional football could and should well be coming to an end. It's a big summer ahead of us alot of important decisions need to be made. But despite the last 2 months I'm actually optimistic we'll start next season in a better place.