A couple of weeks back we weren't playing that great but we were eeking out results. I decided not to post in case I "bokked" our good run, but now things have settled down a bit here are my thoughts. They aren't in ascending order of importance or anything, it's just how they're coming to me on my phone.
Mikey T.
I thought the pre game tribute to this wonderful man was a credit to the club yesterday. Around five or six years back when I morphed into a bandwagon jumping Wimbledon supporter, I first met Mikey on an away trip to (I think) Rotherham. He was introduced to me by big Craig, who'd told me about his encyclopedic knowledge of the club. I tested him out with MY first time seeing Wimbledon, in the early 70's when they played Scarborough away in the FA Trophy. That was in the same season they'd ran Don Revie's Leeds team to a replay, Mikey knew the date, the score & the goalscorer. Incredible really, we discussed the goal itself (Scarborough fluked it 1-0 after being totally battered), as well as the weather on the day. The only thing I knew which he didn't was the attendance. It was 8,105, I only remember that because I went with my Grandad, my Dad (now both passed) and my brother. My Grandad upon hearing the attendance said to me "If we hadn't gone son it'd have been 8,101". I don't know why that stuck with me, but it did. Anyway in that pub on the way to Rotherham Mikey endulged me, made time for me and we discussed the day in detail. It's because of people like him that my interest in Wimbledon became the passion it is today. I used to love his commentaries with their various obscure references which had me in stitches. His passing was my saddest day as a Wimbledon supporter, like many others I'll never forget him.
The Vote.
It's been interesting hearing the views of the Wimbledon fans who come into the Alex on this one. They are varied, with almost everyone being a "Vote Yes". There ARE some who are unsure though, I should think that the most common phrases I've heard from them is that people "Can't believe the money on offer is so much", that the deal might be "Too good to be true" and asking "What's the catch?".
Now here I've got to be totally honest. I aren't a forensic accountant nor am I a due diligence expert. I've never claimed to be Einstein (I pull pints for a living) and even if I COULD understand the ins and outs of it all (I can't obviously) I'd get bored out of my arse reading it. Someone told me the other day that according to their research, the billionaire AI bloke seems "a bit dodgy", but I reckon everyone from Elon Musk to Richard Branson has a skeleton or two in their cupboards if you dig deep enough, come to that so does everyone really. We all bung our money into banks that invest in God knows what God knows where, but we're all happy to take the interest payments at the end of the year. We've all paid two quid for a T shirt from Primark without worrying too much about how much the bugger who stitched it together is getting paid, so none of us are perfect.
The biggest BUT for me though is that the fella who's been doing all of that digging on behalf of the club just happens to be a mate of mine. Graham Price (Pricey to everyone who knows him) does this stuff for a living & he has dedicated the last eighteen months to finding the right deal for the club. He's as sharp as a tack, doesn't suffer fools and isn't a bullshitter. HE says it's the right deal for the club, and that'll do for me. I've voted YES, I would have voted yes twice if we were in some banana republic situation and the rules weren't so strict. Please please please vote yes too, we are on the verge of exciting times. It LITERALLY takes five seconds of your life.
The team.
Obviously we've ran into a bit of a sticky patch. The thing that surprises me most is that people are surprised. I mean, you lose two out of three of your first choice centre halves and you start conceding more goals? Whod've thunk that? You have to play a right footed striker at left wing back and you lack a bit of fluency? Amazing. You miss your best goalscorer all season & you don't score many goals? Wow.
Look, we are in the trenches right now & we're digging, it's tough. The good thing is that by hook or by crook (or even by luck on the odd occasion) we've gathered some points which means we aren't (yet) in the dooh-dah. My hunch is that unless we get some players back soon we will be before long, but if and when that happens it's OK, we've been there before and providing we do things properly, we CAN survive this season. Just a couple of things though as fans......
Ryan Johnson-I've read that his "legs have gone". I must have missed those performances in the past where he was sprinting around with Virgil Van Dyke like acceleration. Ryan was NEVER the quickest, he's not in the team for his pace. Our captain is having to play centre half in a three alongside two "non" centre halves. It ain't easy, cut the fella some slack FFS. My prediction is that when Ogs is fit, Ryan will suddenly find his legs again. In the meantime, give the fella a break.
Aron Sasu-Until his spell up top and his missed chance yesterday, I thought he was again close to being our best player. My advice to the kid is twofold. One, close your ears. There are now some folks more concerned with being "right all along" than they are seeing you thrive. Two, you cut inside & hit it with your right twice yesterday, do it more. Get it, shift it, hit it. It should be your stock move.
One last thing....
Terry Skiverton.
It's increasingly become obvious that Terry hadn't actually twisted his ankle. There have been lots of conspiracy theories around, but it's desperate news to hear about his illness. Skivvers is another fine man who always makes time to talk to people, even when we're pissed, talking bollocks and he's just trying to relax. If anyone can beat it he can, he's as tough as fuck. All the best Terry ❤️
