superkillieaway Posted March 29, 2023 Share Posted March 29, 2023 54 minutes ago, berwick-the-unbeatable said: I'm nowhere near the level of critical as most seem to be about the whole Open Goal Broomhill project but I'm 15 minutes into this podcast and struck by how wide of the mark they appear to have got the response. Whine about not having enough FT staff as though they're plentiful for clubs at this level, whine about part-time clubs not bowing to demands to play Friday night games after a day's graft just to boost their gates, whine about the league not being 'accommodating', whine about the weather, whine about pay, take no accountability, all while Broadfoot sits there deluding himself about his mates shafting him while also admitting he's been shafted. Bit bizarre really. I do think the exposure will lead to some decent moves for some of the boys at Broomhill, probably rightfully so. But to claim the club itself will be left in some kind of glorious position and that the reasons behind the failure had nowt to do with them is nothing short of bollocks. It can't be 'shit happens and things dont work out' in one sentence, 'I can't work in this structure' in another. The whole arguement about the structure of the club and that they didn’t have enough people to help is nuts. They were all very well aware of broomhill not having a stadium etc before they invested. If they weren’t then it’s completely on them. They kept going on about how the performances on the pitch weren’t an issue and the football philosophy etc etc but that’s complete bollocks. They have had a shite season. Ferry even mentioned previous Broomhill teams under swift finishing 4th with a worse set up. They are trying to wash their hands of any blame. I don’t mind Ferry and I think this has been a step to far from him but the other eejits tonguing his arse is very grating. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Central Belt Caley Posted March 29, 2023 Share Posted March 29, 2023 The comments about how most of the players didn’t have many offers last season seemed a bit low from Ferry. I get it but almost like he’s using that as an excuse for them not doing so well. His point about still being upset about a defeat 3/4 days later is very telling too. I’ve never played at a decent level so maybe anyone who has can comment, but surely that’s a key skill of being a manager and player is to move on? Bad result on the Saturday, quick chat about it at the next training session and focus on the next game. I actually like Broadfoot and feel he conducts himself well. Late 30s and still playing every game he can 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drs Posted March 29, 2023 Share Posted March 29, 2023 33 minutes ago, Central Belt Caley said: His point about still being upset about a defeat 3/4 days later is very telling too. I’ve never played at a decent level so maybe anyone who has can comment, but surely that’s a key skill of being a manager and player is to move on? Reading this at the moment - When Footballers Were Skint: A Journey in Search of the Soul of Football: Amazon.co.uk: Jon Henderson: 9781785904660: Books The author interviews players, who were in their 80s and 90s at the time of interview, who played in the EFL before the abolition of the maximum wage in 1961 and at one point he notes how bizarre it is that these guys who haven't played the game for almost 60 years can still remember vividly something like losing 2-0 to Fulham in a meaningless end of season game. It does seem to be something that sticks in the mind for a lot of players. ...as for those nasty clubs not allowing BSC to play on a Friday night What an absolute clownshow. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JagsCG Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, Central Belt Caley said: The comments about how most of the players didn’t have many offers last season seemed a bit low from Ferry. I get it but almost like he’s using that as an excuse for them not doing so well. I don’t think he was using that as an excuse for league position, more using it as an example of Broomhill giving them exposure that they wouldn’t get at other clubs (which there is probably merit to that argument). What is bizarre however is that it’s somewhat contradictory from what Ferry was saying when he signed many of those players (maybe not the ones he mentioned specifically in fairness), but either way they were previously open about the fact players dropped down levels and turned down playing higher because of their ‘belief in the project’. In their mention of the weather and the league/rival clubs being un-accommodating as factors in a dwindling crowd, the glaring omission could’ve been that the novelty had wore off a bit (particularly if they stopped doing so well). Naturally, they didn’t want Saturday matches because Broomhill was supposed to be podcast fans ‘2nd team’ and they’d presumably prioritise following their 1st. Is it really that odd that some clubs didn’t want to move their games to a Friday Night to suit Open Goal? (I presume that’s his gripe). The points made by Si regarding the difficulty of being a manager and hosting an upbeat podcast were pretty honest, I’d have assumed that they would have preempted that being a potential issue anyway. Edited March 30, 2023 by JagsCG 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlansHotBath Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 8 hours ago, Central Belt Caley said: His point about still being upset about a defeat 3/4 days later is very telling too. I’ve never played at a decent level so maybe anyone who has can comment, but surely that’s a key skill of being a manager and player is to move on? Bad result on the Saturday, quick chat about it at the next training session and focus on the next game. It probably depends on how you process that disappointment. Being a sore loser can help if you can channel that frustration into improving yourself, someone like Klopp seems like a massive sore Loser but is evidently able to turn that into motivation and a learning experience to improve. If you are just bitter about it, or you are annoyed at your players and wont do anything to change it then I doubt it will help. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perthmo Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 Looking forward, Rossvale (the breakway version) need to find a new name / identity for next season. It might make sense for them to merge with Broomhill, continue to play at Petershill Park, and find themselves promoted to the Lowland League. It would certainly move Broomhill back to a location nearer their "roots". Mr Fraser could even justify changing their name to RFC Broomhill. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marten Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 10 hours ago, Central Belt Caley said: The comments about how most of the players didn’t have many offers last season seemed a bit low from Ferry. I get it but almost like he’s using that as an excuse for them not doing so well. His point about still being upset about a defeat 3/4 days later is very telling too. I’ve never played at a decent level so maybe anyone who has can comment, but surely that’s a key skill of being a manager and player is to move on? Bad result on the Saturday, quick chat about it at the next training session and focus on the next game. I actually like Broadfoot and feel he conducts himself well. Late 30s and still playing every game he can I used to play football, not a very high level at all admittedly, but the bit in bold was exactly how things were managed with us. And from what I know from others who play(ed) the game part-time (from high level to low), that's pretty much standard at every club. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 1 hour ago, perthmo said: Looking forward, Rossvale (the breakway version) need to find a new name / identity for next season. It might make sense for them to merge with Broomhill, continue to play at Petershill Park, and find themselves promoted to the Lowland League. It would certainly move Broomhill back to a location nearer their "roots". Mr Fraser could even justify changing their name to RFC Broomhill. Wheest donn't be giving them any ideas. If we just ignore them maybe they will just go away. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Francesc Fabregas Posted March 30, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted March 30, 2023 (edited) After the news of the dissolution between Open Goal and Broomhill FC last week, I watched some of the documentaries on YouTube (parts one and six) and listened to last night’s podcast in the car. I found the videos entertaining – Simon Ferry generally came across well and his passion for football was obvious, and they offered an interesting insight into the mechanics of operating a lower-league football team in Scotland, from signing players, to managing and coaching them, to attempting to build a fanbase in a difficult climate. I admired Ferry’s drive to succeed and I believe he went into this project with the best of intentions; it just didn’t go the way anyone associated with it would have hoped. It was also remarkable to learn that Ferry planned on permanently leaving Open Goal to replace Jim McInally at Peterhead last summer - losing Ferry altogether must have been unthinkable so it made some sense for the company to help him achieve his ambition by sponsoring a club and installing him as manager. I think Ferry has a lot to offer and can thrive without Open Goal; I'm not so sure Open Goal could have the same degree of success without Ferry. The podcast, meanwhile, was illuminating in some parts, not so in others. Ferry was entitled to walk away if he no longer enjoyed it, something he might have found difficult given Open Goal’s sponsorship, while various factors like kick-off times, a lack of volunteers, a mediocre budget and poor results would have dented his enthusiasm. It was interesting to listen to him describe how the role had completely consumed him and how defeats would affect him for days. If, say, Peter Murphy left Annan Athletic because he wasn’t having fun anymore, he’d be entitled to do so too, but Ferry’s exit was, rightly or wrongly, far more accented because of his profile. Some of the comments levelled at Ferry and his coaches were a little cruel – there was never one point I felt it was a vanity project, or that these young players had been “sold a dream”, or that massive wages were getting chucked around (and you’re not going to be one of the division’s big spenders if you’re playing David Wilson, a person who cannot save shots or catch crosses, in goal) – and the podcast provided them with the opportunity to dispel some of the rumours that have circled the club since last May. There was, however, a lack of serious self-reflection and introspection. I don’t think they discussed why Open Goal Broomhill were so far off the league leaders, or whether or not Ferry’s principles were appropriate for the division – it’s fair to say this is shaping up to be one of the club’s poorest campaigns since they joined the Lowland League in 2014. Everyone going into the season should have been aware to the challenges they were likely to face across the board and there seemed to be a real underestimation as to what it takes to succeed on and off the pitch. There’s a lot of finger pointing, but not a lot of looking inward. Let’s be honest, unless Open Goal Broomhill were winning every week and challenging for the title, interest was always going to drop off. Fans of the Open Goal podcast might have been happy to head along to Broadwood on a Friday night to watch Ferry and a bunch of players they’d never heard of competing to a poor standard against another bunch of players they’d never heard of so long as it ended with three points, but that’s much less palatable when they’re losing most weeks. After beating Buckie Thistle in the second round of the Scottish Cup in October, the team won just four matches and interest took a serious dip. I watched the highlights of their 2-1 defeat to Tranent Juniors earlier in the month and the crowd must have been around the 150-mark, a far cry from the 1,500 who watched them defeat Brora Rangers in the Scottish Cup first round. It’s one thing having tens of thousands of subscribers to your YouTube channel and selling out the Hydro for a one-off special occasion, but it’s far harder to translate that into a regular audience for mid-card Lowland League football. I think Open Goal might have been taken aback by waning attendances and an overall lack of enthusiasm from their fans. I’ve no doubt Open Goal will continue successfully and maintain a large audience for its podcasts, YouTube videos and live shows. Last week's outcome is humiliating and it might curtail the way their panel discuss players and managers but that hurt and embarrassment will wear off in time. The future of Broomhill, however, is less clear. There are a lot of questions still to answer – who’ll be managing the club next season? What will the squad look like? Where will they be playing? – but I’d be very surprised if anyone who watched Ferry’s team on a frequent basis returns once he's gone. The whole venture was built around a cult of personality and was never likely to sustain after he departed, for whatever reason. Broomhill’s General Manager, George Fraser, used last week's statement to point out that their followers on social media increased after Open Goal’s involvement, but I cannot see that translating into paying customers going forward - there might be more eyes on his team this season than in recent years but, ultimately, what does that matter if no-one's coming along and putting their hands in their pockets? Furthermore, good people have departed Broomhill over the past 10 months, including Michael Park, their social media manager, and Mozza, their Twitch partner and commentator, and it’s unclear that anyone with the same fervour to promote the club will come onboard in their place. It feels as though Broomhill have reached an existential crisis. As they approach their 10th campaign, they’ll going into it with their fourth change of name, their fourth change of badge, and their fourth change of colours. They seem like an empty vessel, a shell, something exists for the sake of existing. They might have started out with good intentions under the guise of BSC Glasgow but what now? What’s the point of this team? What are they for? Who do they represent? I don’t know, and I don’t think Fraser or anyone else associated with the club knows either. Edited March 30, 2023 by Francesc Fabregas 23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 As a resident of the town I wonder how much of it is apathy in Cumbernauld for anything not Blue or Green? That's three clubs tried over thirty years and not of them have been able to attract decent attendances. For reference Clyde were a baw hair away from the Premier League with the lowest crowds in the 1st division. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marten Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 54 minutes ago, Autistisches Nilpferd said: As a resident of the town I wonder how much of it is apathy in Cumbernauld for anything not Blue or Green? That's three clubs tried over thirty years and not of them have been able to attract decent attendances. For reference Clyde were a baw hair away from the Premier League with the lowest crowds in the 1st division. Also, let's not forget that Cumbernauld United have been around for ages. Fans of non-league football in Cumbernauld often already go there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broken Algorithms Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 I like Ferry but I think there's been a bit of naivety on his part for a few areas. I think predominantly their podcast has been so successful because it taps into the biggest market in Scottish football and gets their attention through relaxed interviews with lads who know what a dressing room is like. They've been really bold and tried to convert that into a club but realistically was it ever going to be wholly attractive to get that many folk who's big tie is watching the old firm? It's much the same with bringing in Paul Slane into the mix. They've run it as being Slaney coming back to fitness but it looks more like he's been brought in as a jobs for the boys and clicks. It might have been done with good intentions but I don't think anyone realistically thought he'd be back as anything other than a jester. Fair play to them for giving it a bash. The Broomhill board should be getting more flak as opposed to open goal. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigkillie Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 2 hours ago, Autistisches Nilpferd said: As a resident of the town I wonder how much of it is apathy in Cumbernauld for anything not Blue or Green? That's three clubs tried over thirty years and not of them have been able to attract decent attendances. For reference Clyde were a baw hair away from the Premier League with the lowest crowds in the 1st division. This was just a club that played in Cumbernauld, I wouldn't say they made any effort to be a Cumbernauld club. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 2 minutes ago, craigkillie said: This was just a club that played in Cumbernauld, I wouldn't say they made any effort to be a Cumbernauld club. They did at the start but made no efforts in the later years. Colts and Broomhill did absolutely nothing with local schools etc. Colts thought they would bring crowds in by rights of having Cumbernauld in their name 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigkillie Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 Sorry, I meant Open Goal rather than Clyde/Cumbernauld Colts. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burnieman Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 5 hours ago, Francesc Fabregas said: It feels as though Broomhill have reached an existential crisis. As they approach their 10th campaign, they’ll going into it with their fourth change of name, their fourth change of badge, and their fourth change of colours. They seem like an empty vessel, a shell, something exists for the sake of existing. They might have started out with good intentions under the guise of BSC Glasgow but what now? What’s the point of this team? What are they for? Who do they represent? I don’t know, and I don’t think Fraser or anyone else associated with the club knows either. There really is no point of the club. At what point do the SFA/LL actually draw a line in the sand with regards to moving home and changing name, do they allow this to continually happen season after season, maybe try Ayrshire next, or Fife. It really is a farce. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GNU_Linux Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 18 minutes ago, Burnieman said: There really is no point of the club. At what point do the SFA/LL actually draw a line in the sand with regards to moving home and changing name, do they allow this to continually happen season after season, maybe try Ayrshire next, or Fife. It really is a farce. There's a Broomhill in Aberdeen. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 @Burnieman has maybe accidentally and jokingly hit upon an interesting stat with saying about moving to Ayrshire or Fife. With the move from Alloa to Scumbernauld(not a typo it's what my kids and their mates called it growing up), have they not moved from an EOS catchment area to a WOS area? This may have already been covered but where in the hell would they go to if relegated? If they did move for arguments sake to Tayside what would the ramifications be for the pyramid and would/should it be allowed? Discuss. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongTimeLurker Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 Broomhill could provide a way for a club lower down the pyramid to reach the LL through a "merger". Darvel would be prime suspects for that scenario in a more money than sense sort of way. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
searchers1963 Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 23 hours ago, Central Belt Caley said: The comments about how most of the players didn’t have many offers last season seemed a bit low from Ferry. I get it but almost like he’s using that as an excuse for them not doing so well. His point about still being upset about a defeat 3/4 days later is very telling too. I’ve never played at a decent level so maybe anyone who has can comment, but surely that’s a key skill of being a manager and player is to move on? Bad result on the Saturday, quick chat about it at the next training session and focus on the next game. I actually like Broadfoot and feel he conducts himself well. Late 30s and still playing every game he can David Wilson I'm sure was offered a deal at stenny 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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