The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard

Was chatting about this at work with a couple of other fans,

Where do you realistically think we could end up? or where would you like us to end up?

Personally i think if we go about things the right way, don't throw money at it and risk getting into financial difficulties, earn our way up the leagues i think we could establish ourselves in the Conference Premier in about 8 years.

I'm not in a hurry to get there and would be happy to establish ourselves in the Conference North / South for a while first as those leagues are tough to get out of too.

Would i like to see us back in the Football League? i'm not really bothered, i enjoy non league football and think that fan run clubs and clubs that work a lot with their fans have more spirit and passion around them, hence thinking that with our foundations we will continue to grow and attract more local support along the way.

Adrian wrote: ↑Mon Jul 01, 2019 10:06 pm i think we could establish ourselves in the Conference Premier in about 8 years.

I'm not in a hurry to get there and would be happy to establish ourselves in the Conference North / South for a while first as those leagues are tough to get out of too.

I'll have some of what you're smoking/drinking!

Dowlo wrote: ↑Tue Jul 02, 2019 7:22 am

Adrian wrote: ↑Mon Jul 01, 2019 10:06 pm i think we could establish ourselves in the Conference Premier in about 8 years.

I'm not in a hurry to get there and would be happy to establish ourselves in the Conference North / South for a while first as those leagues are tough to get out of too.

I'll have some of what you're smoking/drinking!

Based on what I saw last season I think promotion from this level is achievable in time, but that's about it unless something drastic was to happen and we were able to double our fan base. Step 1 is pie in the sky stuff.

BartonRaz wrote: ↑Tue Jul 02, 2019 9:02 am

Dowlo wrote: ↑Tue Jul 02, 2019 7:22 am

Adrian wrote: ↑Mon Jul 01, 2019 10:06 pm i think we could establish ourselves in the Conference Premier in about 8 years.

I'm not in a hurry to get there and would be happy to establish ourselves in the Conference North / South for a while first as those leagues are tough to get out of too.

I'll have some of what you're smoking/drinking!

Based on what I saw last season I think promotion from this level is achievable in time, but that's about it unless something drastic was to happen and we were able to double our fan base. Step 1 is pie in the sky stuff.

Totally agree, as a self sustainable Club we would probably need gates of at least 1500 to have any chance of doing anything at Step 1 other than loose a lot and get relegated. Step 2 in the next 5 years would be an unbelievable achievement. Though I guess by admitting that we can expect demands of long cup runs or every season would be I'm sure for some a disaster.

Dowlo wrote: ↑Tue Jul 02, 2019 7:22 am

Adrian wrote: ↑Mon Jul 01, 2019 10:06 pm i think we could establish ourselves in the Conference Premier in about 8 years.

I'm not in a hurry to get there and would be happy to establish ourselves in the Conference North / South for a while first as those leagues are tough to get out of too.

I'll have some of what you're smoking/drinking!

Must have his own Cannabis factory.

Step 1, Without major sponsorship deals with large figures of money or a major increase of the fan base and i mean massive increase then is not an option.

Step 2 , We could get promoted but the big BUT is do we have the resources to stay in the North or South without more major investment and would the fans put up with perpetual relegation battles every season just to stay at Step 2.

I don't think its in the clubs interest at the moment to get promoted, flirting with the playoffs is fine but scary if we ever win them and we are now in the scenario of our club being the team being leapfrogged by sugar daddy clubs each season with money to burn.

I think the current level is just fine but is our fan base happy with that, only time will tell.

I can’t see us progressing to Step 2 level and remaining at that level without significant financial investment such a massive commercial deal over and above what we can currently command coupled with a significant improvement on attendances and fans willing to contribute to our membership scheme and a windfall from an unexpected FA Cup run. I see us generally on a par with Brackley Town with the important exception that they have secured continued significant financial backing over the last 10-12 years from a wealthy backer namely Allan Leighton who appears to be happy to remain in the background and ‘not call the shots’ and leave the day to day running of their club to their CEO/committee.

As a fan run club that would be an ideal solution if that happened to us.

I agree with the comments that our current level is about right for a club of our size and catchment area. We have had quite a few extra costs in the past few seasons, so I think it's time to settle in to our new surroundings, see what sort of crowds we might generate as the people of Rushden get used to having a step 3 club in their town, which now has decent facilities.

I think the short term challenges are more to decide where we want to see the club making its home, after these several seasons of turmoil regarding location and facilities. Is it as we are now - i.e. Hayden Rd with the excellent new stand, is it as Hayden Rd with a rebuilt Main stand, or is it in the new out-of-town location. The latter two choices will have serious impact on the sort of budget we might find for the playing side of the club - and unless we can see a clear return on the investment we might need to be wary about making those steps.

Absolutely love the league that we are in now and looking the big picture we've done brilliant to get to where we are.

The question shouldn't be how far can we go, it should be how are we going to maximise our revenue? If we do that, we might be able to make a bit of a promotion push, but there are some big clubs in the conference north and a hell of a lot of travelling, it could cripple us. In a dream world we need our own facilities, with a big money generator on them. Hotel anyone? ;)

Couldn't give a sh*t about what league we're in as long as we keep the club up and running.

Let’s walk before we run eh? Step 3 consolidation is all I’m interested in - a flirt with the playoffs, a decent cup run occasionally to spark a bit of excitement - happy days!

Talk of Step 1 and 2 is pie in the sky frankly unless the people of Rushden get behind the club.

I’m really enjoying our time at Hayden Road and the work done to improve the ground is fantastic, it’s turning into a great little facility.

As a fan owned club with the following we have and the resources that offers us I think we’ve hit our ceiling frankly and I’m happy with that.

Massive marketing and advertising of the club is required locally, we need to get more paying punters through the gate, but we need to entertain them if they do come.

It’s a catch 22 - can’t risk investing heavily in players who can improve an already decent squad, but need the quality to deliver the entertainment that will bring people back.

So then Peaksy, we want entertainment, a promotion to Step 2 and a third round appearance in the FA Cup on the same budget as last year please - or you’re out

I’m with Jaff - I loved last season, I’m looking forward to this one - looking too far forward can make you less satisfied with what you’ve got - I remember us only having Thursday night U18s football not so long ago - i’ll take Step 3 any day of the week !!