Did Bolton Bottle It On Purpose?

Natasha Whittam wrote:

Hipster_Nebula wrote:haha.

i can hear the barrel being scraped.

Just an interesting theory. So many clubs get close to the play-offs/promotion but it all goes tits up at the last minute. I was just wondering if the fear of being ditched makes the players less inclined to give 100%.

None of you are professional footballers so how would you know.

But I'll ask the question again: if your boss gave you a target that would gain a big bonus, but came with a likely chance of redundancy....what would you do?

Once again Natasha's point is well taken. It may be a conscious or unconscious decision on the part of the players, but it is a very good question indeed. Whether you agree or disagree with the hypothesis, Natasha is not wrong asking it.

observer wrote:
Once again Natasha's point is well taken. It may be a conscious or unconscious decision on the part of the players, but it is a very good question indeed. Whether you agree or disagree with the hypothesis, Natasha is not wrong asking it.

It's a ridiculous question which has no basis. There is absolutely zero chance the players sabotaged their own promotion charge.

I'll ask the question a third time: if your boss gave you a target that would gain a big bonus, but came with a likely chance of redundancy....what would you do?

Natasha Whittam wrote:I'll ask the question a third time: if your boss gave you a target that would gain a big bonus, but came with a likely chance of redundancy....what would you do?

There's no chance any of them will be made redundant, if any were to leave they'd find a new million pound contract.

But none of them would think they'd be shipped out if we got promotion, even Pratley will have been full of confidence going into the prem.

Stupid theory.

Natasha has a point - I think a few of you are so happy to shoot down anything she says that you don't bother to think about it. Getting a promotion bonus and then being told that you have no future at the club but "Scunthorpe is interested...?" is not that attractive to an overpaid ponce, I believe. These are largely the same players who were shite in the Prem last season and continued to be shite in the Championship in the Coyle period. Douglas set a precedent by first dropping then getting shut of Super Kev. Who then is untouchable? Douglas has a stated preference for malleable youth who fits his system. He likes the U18's he saw when he came here - so much so, that they largely became his U21's and a number of the former U21's were released. This is a summer of change and the players know it. She isn't suggesting that the Club as a whole bottled it on purpose, merely that players fearing for their places in the team may have. Let's discuss ideas in an adult, civilized manner and stop with the insults, shall we?

Thank you.

I have been reading this with great interest and i was going to give my views on it but the wife has just seen some fairies dancing at the bottom of our garden and i must go check it out first.

Keegan wrote:Natasha has a point - I think a few of you are so happy to shoot down anything she says that you don't bother to think about it. Getting a promotion bonus and then being told that you have no future at the club but "Scunthorpe is interested...?" is not that attractive to an overpaid ponce, I believe. These are largely the same players who were shite in the Prem last season and continued to be shite in the Championship in the Coyle period. Douglas set a precedent by first dropping then getting shut of Super Kev. Who then is untouchable? Douglas has a stated preference for malleable youth who fits his system. He likes the U18's he saw when he came here - so much so, that they largely became his U21's and a number of the former U21's were released. This is a summer of change and the players know it. She isn't suggesting that the Club as a whole bottled it on purpose, merely that players fearing for their places in the team may have. Let's discuss ideas in an adult, civilized manner and stop with the insults, shall we?

Thank you.

She really does run this forum!

If you want specific players my only guess would be Pratley and possibly Ream. The others Im sure would be confident of playing in the premier league.

So assuming that either did decide this would be a good idea, how exactly did they go about it?

If somebody can explain that to me I'd really appreciate it, because it's still a stupid theory in my opinion.

Even Pratley would want another crack at the prem, his confidence is highest it's ever been at Bolton so why wouldn't he believe he'd get given a go? Not to mention the promotion bonus. I don't believe he'd want us to fail just so he can get a few more games for us.

Why bother getting back to 2-2?

I suppose that was to make sure no one would clock that they were actually just throwing the game.

clever when you think about it.

at 0-2 questions would have been asked.

thankfully Nat is too clever for all that and has twigged it.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:Why bother getting back to 2-2?

I suppose that was to make sure no one would clock that they were actually just throwing the game.

clever when you think about it.

at 0-2 questions would have been asked.

thankfully Nat is too clever for all that and has twigged it.

At last someone gets it.

to be fair though nat you were beaten to the punch.

during our 8 game home winning streak with countless clean sheets ChipButty realised that Gartside was asking DF to lose on purpose.

/Nostradamus.

It was George Michael and some friends crashed their car through our fence so she was right after all.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:to be fair though nat you were beaten to the punch.

during our 8 game home winning streak with countless clean sheets ChipButty realised that Gartside was asking DF to lose on purpose.

/Nostradamus.

Is Chipbutty Nat's mole?

instead of winning all the games why didn't we just lose them all.

was that just to keep the fans on side?

bwfc1874 wrote:She really does run this forum!

If you want specific players my only guess would be Pratley and possibly Ream. The others Im sure would be confident of playing in the premier league.

Regarding Natasha's "running the forum", it just gets a little tiresome when every post/thread by Natasha gets flooded with insults. I'd do the same if that happened to you. Was every other player doing their best during the period when Blackpool went up 2-0? Just curious - do/have you played much football? Fifa/PES doesn't count.

there aren't any insults.

well, i suppose the idea is being rubbished but there isn't anything inflammatory.

unless im missing it.

Keegan wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:She really does run this forum!

If you want specific players my only guess would be Pratley and possibly Ream. The others Im sure would be confident of playing in the premier league.

Regarding Natasha's "running the forum", it just gets a little tiresome when every post/thread by Natasha gets flooded with insults. I'd do the same if that happened to you. Was every other player doing their best during the period when Blackpool went up 2-0? Just curious - do/have you played much football? Fifa/PES doesn't count.

A lot of people have said its a stupid theory (or words to that effect) but posters tend to be a little stronger when debating with Nat. Mainly because she throws out more insults than she takes.

I don't mind you stepping in by the way my comment wasn't serious.

Yes I used to play a lot of football, not so much past couple of years but I played for 3 teams at one point and there was never a time when a player 'bottled it' for his own reasons and if they had it would have been ridiculously obvious to the rest of us.

Knowing that I could get a large bonus at work but I could lose my job as a result wouldn't bother me. I would earn the bonus and then get my agent to get me a simliar (huge) wage elsewhere. Put my feet up,enjoy spending the bonus on a new car and brass, it's a no brainer for me.

No worries - I step in every now and then just for the practice: you guys are easy to moderate.
Good lads and lasses on the whole.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:there aren't any insults.

well, i suppose the idea is being rubbished but there isn't anything inflammatory.

unless im missing it.

she called me a bellend, does that count?

Lets look at the TV money figures which were published today. In the Premier League, Utd made the most with £61 million and QPR made the least with £40 million.

On that basis, what manager or football team would deliberately jeopardize their chances of joining that gravy train by bottling it ?

The Premier League is the Golden Goose and it's where all the pro's want to play. End of.