Doom & Gloom, Reality Check, Delusion, Optimism, Proudness, sentiment, Hope, Memories, Pinch me & Keep the faith !!!!

[maximus1267]

I don't post much at all, I am just a reader these days. I used to post on our previous forums but due to one thing or another I don't anymore.

 

But Today I am posting this, don't really know why just need to get things off my chest.

 

I have supported this club since my Dad, Brother, Uncles started to take me in 1976 as a small lad. Stood at the top of the Chaddy I grew up a lifelong Latics fan. I witnessed frightening crowd disorder through the 70s & 80s as a child, youth then into my adulthood. Although never involved in any of this directly,  the banter and buzz of match days and the build up during the week at school and then later at work gripped me and latics became my life.

 

I have seen latics in Division 2 / Championship whichever suits, enjoyed life in the old Division 1 / Premier league,  league 1 / Division 3 and now sadly League 2 / Division 4, I have been to the real Wembley twice seen epic semi finals with Man Utd, other great cup runs, fantastic away days where we really did take away big numbers, great times beating Man City, Leeds & Everton to name a few.

Ive been lucky enough to enjoy all of this.

 

I remember as a young lad my Dad & Uncles who had supported Latics also all their lives would always come across to me in a in a negative way, all doom and gloom about the present but full of great stories of the 50s / 60s watching us. My dad was lucky enough to see us under Big Joe and winning Promotion to the promise land.

 

I have seen us have many different rivalries, my early days would be the likes of Blackburn, Burnley, Leeds, Man City, Bolton, PNE & Huddersfield.  Things changed after the Premier league and new rivalries over the years have been Tranmere, Stockport, Wigan, Blackpool, Bury, Barnsley, Rochdale. We will be adding some new ones next season, sadly.

 

I have had many heroes in a latics shirt, Vic Hallom, Kenny Clements, Rodger Wylde, the brilliant Simon Stainrod, Tommy Wright, David Eyers, Andy Liddle, Legends like Palmer, Ritchie, Barlow, there are many many more. All these people at some part of my life have filled me with joy, hope and tears.

 

I can no longer attend as many matches as I would like due to location and work, my Dad and Uncles are no longer here and I sometimes wonder what they would think of our club and the major decline in fortunes.

 

It saddens me to see where we are now, it saddens me to see on other clubs forums the sheer lack of acknowledgment of us in promotion discussions, talks of budgets and signings. Even now as new members of League 2 we are looked down at by the likes of Lincoln, Mansfield, Bury and Northampton. What has happened to my great family club that once had a great reputation, which was once well respected and liked by fans of many other clubs.

 

So long winded I know and a bit of a ramble but the title says it all for me, we will always have Doom & gloom, reality checks, delusion, visions of grandeur, despair and sadness But we will always have the memories of the pinch me seasons, great players and managers of the past, our proud history, but most of all we should all be proud to be Oldham fans, with that comes hope, expectations and that dream that we will be successful once again. If that means we have to start from the bottom then so be it.

For me, a great season in DIVISION 4 is better than 20 seasons stagnating in Division 3.

 

I dont know much about our new owner but I have faith in human nature that he has good intentions and a will to make the club more successful than it has been of late.

I know he cant feel the same way about our club as we do as we are all tied emotionally through our own stories and reasons for supporting the club. All I ask is for 100% commitment from the top through to the playing staff.

 

Lets all look forward and try to be positive, this relegation coupled with our new owner could be the start of exiting times.

 

For me, remembering the doom and gloom from my old dad & Uncles which were utter rubbish in all honesty because we went on to great things will always keep me thinking things can get better for us.

 

Oh and Jose Baxter,,,, get in ........ best player in the division by far next year.....

 

Good luck to all at OAFC, Owner, Trust, Staff, Management and Coaching staff and all present and future players.

 

So remember the good times, accept the reality of now but live with the hope and dreams of better times to come.

And Keep the Faith !!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cmr]

 

[Flemboy]

Good read that Maximus and  I share your memories.Looks like your away games will be Carlisle and Morecombe .

I'm sure we will bounce back and bring back the good times and feelings of a promotion season

[TheBigDog]

Certainly wins the prize for longest title...

 

Nice read.

[sjk2008]

1 hour ago, maximus1267 said:

I don't post much at all, I am just a reader these days. I used to post on our previous forums but due to one thing or another I don't anymore.

 

But Today I am posting this, don't really know why just need to get things off my chest.

 

I have supported this club since my Dad, Brother, Uncles started to take me in 1976 as a small lad. Stood at the top of the Chaddy I grew up a lifelong Latics fan. I witnessed frightening crowd disorder through the 70s & 80s as a child, youth then into my adulthood. Although never involved in any of this directly,  the banter and buzz of match days and the build up during the week at school and then later at work gripped me and latics became my life.

 

I have seen latics in Division 2 / Championship whichever suits, enjoyed life in the old Division 1 / Premier league,  league 1 / Division 3 and now sadly League 2 / Division 4, I have been to the real Wembley twice seen epic semi finals with Man Utd, other great cup runs, fantastic away days where we really did take away big numbers, great times beating Man City, Leeds & Everton to name a few.

Ive been lucky enough to enjoy all of this.

 

I remember as a young lad my Dad & Uncles who had supported Latics also all their lives would always come across to me in a in a negative way, all doom and gloom about the present but full of great stories of the 50s / 60s watching us. My dad was lucky enough to see us under Big Joe and winning Promotion to the promise land.

 

I have seen us have many different rivalries, my early days would be the likes of Blackburn, Burnley, Leeds, Man City, Bolton, PNE & Huddersfield.  Things changed after the Premier league and new rivalries over the years have been Tranmere, Stockport, Wigan, Blackpool, Bury, Barnsley, Rochdale. We will be adding some new ones next season, sadly.

 

I have had many heroes in a latics shirt, Vic Hallom, Kenny Clements, Rodger Wylde, the brilliant Simon Stainrod, Tommy Wright, David Eyers, Andy Liddle, Legends like Palmer, Ritchie, Barlow, there are many many more. All these people at some part of my life have filled me with joy, hope and tears.

 

I can no longer attend as many matches as I would like due to location and work, my Dad and Uncles are no longer here and I sometimes wonder what they would think of our club and the major decline in fortunes.

 

It saddens me to see where we are now, it saddens me to see on other clubs forums the sheer lack of acknowledgment of us in promotion discussions, talks of budgets and signings. Even now as new members of League 2 we are looked down at by the likes of Lincoln, Mansfield, Bury and Northampton. What has happened to my great family club that once had a great reputation, which was once well respected and liked by fans of many other clubs.

 

So long winded I know and a bit of a ramble but the title says it all for me, we will always have Doom & gloom, reality checks, delusion, visions of grandeur, despair and sadness But we will always have the memories of the pinch me seasons, great players and managers of the past, our proud history, but most of all we should all be proud to be Oldham fans, with that comes hope, expectations and that dream that we will be successful once again. If that means we have to start from the bottom then so be it.

For me, a great season in DIVISION 4 is better than 20 seasons stagnating in Division 3.

 

I dont know much about our new owner but I have faith in human nature that he has good intentions and a will to make the club more successful than it has been of late.

I know he cant feel the same way about our club as we do as we are all tied emotionally through our own stories and reasons for supporting the club. All I ask is for 100% commitment from the top through to the playing staff.

 

Lets all look forward and try to be positive, this relegation coupled with our new owner could be the start of exiting times.

 

For me, remembering the doom and gloom from my old dad & Uncles which were utter rubbish in all honesty because we went on to great things will always keep me thinking things can get better for us.

 

Oh and Jose Baxter,,,, get in ........ best player in the division by far next year.....

 

Good luck to all at OAFC, Owner, Trust, Staff, Management and Coaching staff and all present and future players.

 

So remember the good times, accept the reality of now but live with the hope and dreams of better times to come.

And Keep the Faith !!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Would much rather have you around here than the multiple ever-so-obsessively pessimistic bores that currently frequent this board.

[latics22]

My emotions are on a yo yo, from petrol to Baxter to no pay. Wish we could hav some clarity from somewhere...

[Smiler13]

35 minutes ago, latics22 said:

My emotions are on a yo yo, from petrol to Baxter to no pay. Wish we could hav some clarity from somewhere...

WHY do you need clarity. The players are not even back training yet. In four weeks time then you should be getting more clarity. Keep the faith and don't believe stupid rumors

[maximus1267]

53 minutes ago, Flemboy said:

Good read that Maximus and  I share your memories.Looks like your away games will be Carlisle and Morecombe .

I'm sure we will bounce back and bring back the good times and feelings of a promotion season

Thanks Flemboy,

Yep Carlisle my local game, by the way they are another club who should and could do better !!

And Morecombe yes, cant wait, just hope i'm off work !!

 

Lets hope so, hopefully time to start some fond memories for our younger fans who missed out on the 80s & 90s

 

 

[maximus1267]

45 minutes ago, latics22 said:

My emotions are on a yo yo, from petrol to Baxter to no pay. Wish we could hav some clarity from somewhere...

 

Rough with the smooth...........

Just relax, enjoy the summer, maybe not the world cup but while i'm on a high maybe the new England set up will give us some smiles too..

 

Put faith in the new owner to want the same as us...... and don't waste energy stressing over things out of our control .

 

Remember........Keep the faith  !!!

[lookersstandandy]

1 hour ago, Smiler13 said:

WHY do you need clarity....... don't believe stupid rumors

 

....to avoid ending up like Leyton Orient..... by not just burying your head in the sand.

 

We (via our Trust) need to be asking Mr Lemsagam what his plan is.... while encouraging him to run the Ltd company properly.... unlike the gentleman that preceded him.

[maximus1267]

36 minutes ago, lookersstandandy said:

 

....to avoid ending up like Leyton Orient..... by not just burying your head in the sand.

 

We (via our Trust) need to be asking Mr Lemsagam what his plan is.... while encouraging him to run the Ltd company properly.... unlike the gentleman that preceded him.

 

We would all like to know what his plans are, how much money he is putting into it, will our budget be enough for us to compete at the top of league 2.

 

In all honesty we will only hear what they want us to, we are fans, we are fickle, we get carried away too quickly and we also get all doom and gloomy too quickly so the powers that be will be aware of this, we make mountains out of mole hills, we the fans also would expected us to walk the league if he tells us we have a top 3 budget.

 

I want us to be successful but I cant do nothing to influence that, other than enjoy the summer and support the club and get behind them come August.

 

We will find out soon enough if AL has played us all and the Football league. I will put faith in him and hope for a good season.

 

I understand some fans need to know and want reassured, that's natural, I am just of the opinion, what will be, will be.....

[al_bro]

If our crowds average the same as last season (big if because of lower away followings), we would have a mid table budget. Some other clubs though get more income away from match days than we do. None of them have to stump up around 250k to cover Premiership pensions like we do. It therefore falls on the owner to put his hand in his pocket to give us a decent budget. Lets hope he is willing to do that.  

[maximus1267]

3 minutes ago, al_bro said:

If our crowds average the same as last season (big if because of lower away followings), we would have a mid table budget. Some other clubs though get more income away from match days than we do. None of them have to stump up around 250k to cover Premiership pensions like we do. It therefore falls on the owner to put his hand in his pocket to give us a decent budget. Lets hope he is willing to do that.  

 

I am sure that if we have a good go, all out for promotion then the average crowds would increase. There are fans out there who would return and new ones would be attracted.

 

 

5/6000+ home fans could be achieved at this level if enticed by exiting, attacking and winning football.

 

Will AL pump money in, only he and those around him knows the answer to that, he may tell us he may not.

 

I hope he does or has people in place to invest with him, who knows. All i know is I want to see some positivity at the club again for the fans and for the town.

 

Onwards and upwards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[al_bro]

15 minutes ago, maximus1267 said:

 

I am sure that if we have a good go, all out for promotion then the average crowds would increase. There are fans out there who would return and new ones would be attracted.

 

 

5/6000+ home fans could be achieved at this level if enticed by exiting, attacking and winning football.

 

Will AL pump money in, only he and those around him knows the answer to that, he may tell us he may not.

 

I hope he does or has people in place to invest with him, who knows. All i know is I want to see some positivity at the club again for the fans and for the town.

 

Onwards and upwards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well said.

[latics22]

It’s frustrating the day after we sign Baxter stuff about unpaid wages comes out. A bit of clarity would be nice, if it’s true it’s true. It’s the not knowing that causes the panic 

[BP1960]

13 minutes ago, latics22 said:

It’s frustrating the day after we sign Baxter stuff about unpaid wages comes out. A bit of clarity would be nice, if it’s true it’s true. It’s the not knowing that causes the panic 

 

AL needs to make it clear if its fake news or not.

It's the silence from the previous regime that was a major problem at this club.

 

[maximus1267]

14 minutes ago, BP1960 said:

 

AL needs to make it clear if its fake news or not.

It's the silence from the previous regime that was a major problem at this club.

 

 

At the end of the day we are like employees to an employer, I am just a number at work, its taken me a long time to come to terms with this, I am only told what I am wanted to know , nothing else....... if I push for information I may find my employer is less willing and communicates even less........... so I play the game....

I suppose as fans we are similar,,, we are just the fans, we pay to support our club, we are told certain things and certain things are kept in house, fans at times get angry and vent towards players, managers, chairmen, this never really ends well in the end......

 

I think we need to stop listening to certain rumors, accusations and gossip. They just promote a negativity which doesn't help. Ignore them and wait a few weeks, give the club chance to sort itself out because I'm sure like any business everything doesn't run swimmingly well 24/7.

 

We are a league 2 club now and we need to rebuild and the club does need to communicate better, yes but lets not put too much pressure on AL just yet.

This will be his first pre-season, lets see what he and the management team come up with, frustrating yes because we all want to know now,,,,

We have a right as paying fans to be communicated with I know this, but as I stated earlier, I feel as an employee at work I have a right to know certain things, I'm afraid life just doesn't work like that.

We will know when they decide we need to know, and what we need to be told i'm afraid.

 

So I will wait for any news of budgets, signings, lack of fuel for mowers and whether Jose has signed or not with excitement and anticipation. Until then I will enjoy summer as I said, drink some beers, go on Holiday and then look forward to being named league 2 champions at Prenton Park with the very last kick of the season.

 

Thats what I'm dreaming of next season, that's why I am an Oldham fan and not a Man City fan, its the excitement of dreaming big but knowing we could also achieve nothing.

 

 

 

[Buckshawlatic]

10 minutes ago, maximus1267 said:

 

At the end of the day we are like employees to an employer, I am just a number at work, its taken me a long time to come to terms with this, I am only told what I am wanted to know , nothing else....... if I push for information I may find my employer is less willing and communicates even less........... so I play the game....

I suppose as fans we are similar,,, we are just the fans, we pay to support our club, we are told certain things and certain things are kept in house, fans at times get angry and vent towards players, managers, chairmen, this never really ends well in the end......

 

I think we need to stop listening to certain rumors, accusations and gossip. They just promote a negativity which doesn't help. Ignore them and wait a few weeks, give the club chance to sort itself out because I'm sure like any business everything doesn't run swimmingly well 24/7.

 

We are a league 2 club now and we need to rebuild and the club does need to communicate better, yes but lets not put too much pressure on AL just yet.

This will be his first pre-season, lets see what he and the management team come up with, frustrating yes because we all want to know now,,,,

We have a right as paying fans to be communicated with I know this, but as I stated earlier, I feel as an employee at work I have a right to know certain things, I'm afraid life just doesn't work like that.

We will know when they decide we need to know, and what we need to be told i'm afraid.

 

So I will wait for any news of budgets, signings, lack of fuel for mowers and whether Jose has signed or not with excitement and anticipation. Until then I will enjoy summer as I said, drink some beers, go on Holiday and then look forward to being named league 2 champions at Prenton Park with the very last kick of the season.

 

Thats what I'm dreaming of next season, that's why I am an Oldham fan and not a Man City fan, its the excitement of dreaming big but knowing we could also achieve nothing.

 

 

 

 

A... fucking...men 

Edited June 1, 2018 by Buckshawlatic

[mcfluff1985]

15 minutes ago, maximus1267 said:

 

At the end of the day we are like employees to an employer, I am just a number at work, its taken me a long time to come to terms with this, I am only told what I am wanted to know , nothing else....... if I push for information I may find my employer is less willing and communicates even less........... so I play the game....

I suppose as fans we are similar,,, we are just the fans, we pay to support our club, we are told certain things and certain things are kept in house, fans at times get angry and vent towards players, managers, chairmen, this never really ends well in the end......

 

I think we need to stop listening to certain rumors, accusations and gossip. They just promote a negativity which doesn't help. Ignore them and wait a few weeks, give the club chance to sort itself out because I'm sure like any business everything doesn't run swimmingly well 24/7.

 

We are a league 2 club now and we need to rebuild and the club does need to communicate better, yes but lets not put too much pressure on AL just yet.

This will be his first pre-season, lets see what he and the management team come up with, frustrating yes because we all want to know now,,,,

We have a right as paying fans to be communicated with I know this, but as I stated earlier, I feel as an employee at work I have a right to know certain things, I'm afraid life just doesn't work like that.

We will know when they decide we need to know, and what we need to be told i'm afraid.

 

So I will wait for any news of budgets, signings, lack of fuel for mowers and whether Jose has signed or not with excitement and anticipation. Until then I will enjoy summer as I said, drink some beers, go on Holiday and then look forward to being named league 2 champions at Prenton Park with the very last kick of the season.

 

Thats what I'm dreaming of next season, that's why I am an Oldham fan and not a Man City fan, its the excitement of dreaming big but knowing we could also achieve nothing.

 

 

 

I'm waiting for the first person to call you a mole planted by the club ???

 

Good post

[Ryan]

The press are reporting we aren’t paying wages when we should be as cash rich as Latics ever are having recently received season ticket money. Where is burying our heads in the sand going to get us?

 

I didn’t believe most of the rumours over the past few weeks but now it’s gotten to the National press it’s time to investigate. Look where the fingers in ears Becchetti apologists got Leyton Orient (yes I do realise making direct comparisons with him and Abdallah at this point is sensationalist but you get my point). Why is it negative to be concerned about the future of my football club? Mike Keegan’s tweets after Northampton were hardly a ringing endorsement of the new regime either.

 

I hope it’s all bullshit, but until we find that out as fact, the Trust has a duty to ask questions...

 

I have nothing more to say on the matter so I’ll stop boring you all ?

 

 

[maximus1267]

15 minutes ago, Ryan said:

The press are reporting we aren’t paying wages when we should be as cash rich as Latics ever are having recently received season ticket money. Where is burying our heads in the sand going to get us?

 

I didn’t believe most of the rumours over the past few weeks but now it’s gotten to the National press it’s time to investigate. Look where the fingers in ears Becchetti apologists got Leyton Orient (yes I do realise making direct comparisons with him and Abdallah at this point is sensationalist but you get my point). Why is it negative to be concerned about the future of my football club? Mike Keegan’s tweets after Northampton were hardly a ringing endorsement of the new regime either.

 

I hope it’s all bullshit, but until we find that out as fact, the Trust has a duty to ask questions...

 

I have nothing more to say on the matter so I’ll stop boring you all ?

 

 

 

If I was to believe everything I read in the press, we would in this last 12 months, had world war 3 over N Korea, world war 4 over the poisoning of Russian spies and god knows how many fly bys involving Russian bombers and warships.

 

Its not negative to be concerned over something you care about but sometimes there is zip all you can do.

 

Join the trust or approach the club in a professional manner if you are that concerned, other than that I have witnessed this many times and I have been the one wanting answers, I have wasted time and energy when I should have sat back and had a beer....

 

Good luck in your quest for answers

 

 

[kowenicki]

59 minutes ago, Ryan said:

The press are reporting we aren’t paying wages when we should be as cash rich as Latics ever are having recently received season ticket money. Where is burying our heads in the sand going to get us?

 

I didn’t believe most of the rumours over the past few weeks but now it’s gotten to the National press it’s time to investigate. Look where the fingers in ears Becchetti apologists got Leyton Orient (yes I do realise making direct comparisons with him and Abdallah at this point is sensationalist but you get my point). Why is it negative to be concerned about the future of my football club? Mike Keegan’s tweets after Northampton were hardly a ringing endorsement of the new regime either.

 

I hope it’s all bullshit, but until we find that out as fact, the Trust has a duty to ask questions...

 

I have nothing more to say on the matter so I’ll stop boring you all ?

 

 

 

Promise?   Thank god for that. 

[Andy b]

11 minutes ago, maximus1267 said:

 

If I was to believe everything I read in the press, we would in this last 12 months, had world war 3 over N Korea, world war 4 over the poisoning of Russian spies and god knows how many fly bys involving Russian bombers and warships.

 

Its not negative to be concerned over something you care about but sometimes there is zip all you can do.

 

Join the trust or approach the club in a professional manner if you are that concerned, other than that I have witnessed this many times and I have been the one wanting answers, I have wasted time and energy when I should have sat back and had a beer....

 

Good luck in your quest for answers

 

 

Join the trust and get involved, exactly.

 

The trust is absolutely vital to restoring a sense of pride in fans. It has the power to be a really positive vehicle for the club to engage fans and for the fans to feel engaged, involved and listened to and indeed for fans to outline to the club what it wants to see.

 

I would love to see nothing more than a trust which is influential and well funded, which fans back and which they trust to represent them. A trust which is able to take small projects off the clubs hands to make supporting oafc a more pleasurable experience - a fan bar, a lick of paint around BP, perhaps running a fanzine again. 

 

OAFC should be a cohesive community. It is far from that at the moment. 

 

All that will be forgotten with a good season but that is not sustainable. It would be a temporary high. 

 

Rochdale is a cohesive community. The club stays together when the fare on the pitch isn't great and it makes the good times all the more rewarding. It has a character, a charm and an identity. The clubs fans, players, staff and volunteers are proud to be part of Rochdale FC. 

 

We couldn't be further from that. We have seen that pulled to pieces under the previous ownership with the year on year erosion of everything good about OAFC covered up by the fact that our position in the league didn't actually fall under his control. He has dupped you.

 

There is far more to a football club than its league position. I care not that we have no money and that we are in League 2. I care deeply that OAFC has been ripped to pieces and no longer resembles the once proud and charming northern football club that it once was.

 

Everyone of you is still here and therefore gives a shit. It is your duty to try and do something about our situation. Join the

trust, get involved and make it the effective body which it has so much potential to be. Our new owner needs help as well as holding to account.

 

 

[BP1960]

3,000 at least pay toward the running of this club yet have often been kept in the dark in the past and treated like it's nothing to do with us. That's got to change.

Edited June 1, 2018 by BP1960

[Buckshawlatic]

2 minutes ago, BP1960 said:

3,000 at least pay toward the running of this club yet have often been kept in the dark in the past and treated like it's nothing to do with us. That's got to change.

 

Not being funny but where do you get 3000 fans pay  towards the day to day running?

Edited June 1, 2018 by Buckshawlatic