Quote:because having 13 of your first choice 19 out for several weeks and in some cases months or indeed the whole season isnt a reasonable reason for having a poor season?
i think if your were objective you would say it is.
what exactly does 'bucket loads of money' have to do with it?
you really need to let go of that. widnes have exaclty the same scope for spending on players as any other team in the league. SALARY CAP ringing any bells?
we are completely self sufficient, without the need for the chairman to put money in to cover operating costs, whether they be bills, wages or anything else. we have by far the biggest income from sponsorships in the championship, a huge merchandise turnover and the biggest attendances, therefore the most money coming in. steve O connor could walk away tomorrow and the club would be perfectly fine.
of course all his has been pointed out to you and many others a thousand times on these boards. but please just keep believing whatever gives you something to snipe about.
OK lets have a look at this. 13 out of 19 players out injured, firstly was this every year or just one? if it was just one year that meant the other 2 were a poor squad. If it was all three years then you need a whole new back room staff that can condition and treat injured players correctly.
Salary cap can be worked around using creative accounting, sponsorship, and second jobs, and yes it probably happens at a lot of clubs but the more money the chairman has the easier it is. If Steve O connor was to quit the club would he take stobarts sponsorship with him? how much sponsorship do stobarts pay is it relative to other sponsorship packages? or a whole lot bigger. I am not saying this is wrong but if you can't say that if Steve O connor left you would be fine. I would expect he has a lot of muscle gaining sponsorship. Just the crowd now then and you have a fantastic following some thing that cannot be taken away from you and long may it continue, even if you don't make the first round of super league acceptance and have to apply later with all the other clubs.