The Dart(s) Board

Tony H wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 9:01 am Let’s keep our comments accurate folks. Air our views about onfield performance, that is of paramount concern. Other stuff about off-field affairs in my humble opinion are way off the mark!

As for defeat to lower level teams in this season’s cup competitions Bracknell Town operate at the same level as we do (though we still should have beaten them).

Of course it is the responsibility of the Board to address matters on the pitch and, as I said after last Tuesdays game, October would be crucial to that decision. Yesterdays debacle may have to accelerate the process.

Tony H wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 10:26 am Not sure why people call this a tinpot league, but hey-ho! We have got to earn the right to promotion back to the NLS, we have no given right to it.

Lars Resort wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:40 am It's hardly a tin pot league. The top 5 or 6 are putting money into the clubs which we are not keeping up with.
But we have a team that finished 3rd last season and were 90 minutes from promotion.
When most of that squad put pen to paper in the summer that told me they wanted to carry on with the same intention and do the job properly.
We were all ecstatic with that and had high hopes.
So, the manager for me is not the problem. To some extent nor are the players. Having said that Denzelle is not the same player I and others were raving about back in April. He in my opinion, is a shadow of himself who has not had a good game so far.
Questionably Henly hasn't had a great start, the back four is not a settled area and when Tennet came in, after two games, suddenly doesn't seem to be the answer.
Discipline has gone out of the window, Callum isn't putting the goals away and Carruthers isn't exactly making the impact when he starts or comes on.
Too many things are mis-firing all at once, not to mention injuries, or budget.
Will Ade be given time to sort it?
But to call it a tin pot league is a mistake, for me we will be lucky to make the top six this season but relegation material is not going to be a matter.

DartfordHero wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:54 am

Lars Resort wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:40 am It's hardly a tin pot league. The top 5 or 6 are putting money into the clubs which we are not keeping up with.
But we have a team that finished 3rd last season and were 90 minutes from promotion.
When most of that squad put pen to paper in the summer that told me they wanted to carry on with the same intention and do the job properly.
We were all ecstatic with that and had high hopes.
So, the manager for me is not the problem. To some extent nor are the players. Having said that Denzelle is not the same player I and others were raving about back in April. He in my opinion, is a shadow of himself who has not had a good game so far.
Questionably Henly hasn't had a great start, the back four is not a settled area and when Tennet came in, after two games, suddenly doesn't seem to be the answer.
Discipline has gone out of the window, Callum isn't putting the goals away and Carruthers isn't exactly making the impact when he starts or comes on.
Too many things are mis-firing all at once, not to mention injuries, or budget.
Will Ade be given time to sort it?
But to call it a tin pot league is a mistake, for me we will be lucky to make the top six this season but relegation material is not going to be a matter.

This is absolutely a tinpot league and if our club was actually managed properly we would never be in here. This is the problem that some supporters and I assume the board have is that they are just happy to keep going with the decline because its not big enough to be concerned about. Well I would think for most of us, seeing us now stuck in this tinpot league, losing cup games against lower teams and just overall having a poor and unfit squad is a real concern and something that is quickly making us an embarrassment. There is no game we play at the moment where I consider us favourites or think we will win because the players just dont have the right attitude or willingness to actually try at times. The squad is filled with injuries and then put on top of that suspensions we were already down to the bare bones. Seemingly we arent getting anyone coming in on loan, is that because Ady has no contacts or we've dropped so far down the leagues that no league teams see it as a benefit to loan players out to us now. I think we are sleepwalking at board level right into another relegation and even if we dont and we finish midtable, that is shocking in itself

Tony H wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 12:09 pm

DartfordHero wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:54 am

Lars Resort wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:40 am It's hardly a tin pot league. The top 5 or 6 are putting money into the clubs which we are not keeping up with.
But we have a team that finished 3rd last season and were 90 minutes from promotion.
When most of that squad put pen to paper in the summer that told me they wanted to carry on with the same intention and do the job properly.
We were all ecstatic with that and had high hopes.
So, the manager for me is not the problem. To some extent nor are the players. Having said that Denzelle is not the same player I and others were raving about back in April. He in my opinion, is a shadow of himself who has not had a good game so far.
Questionably Henly hasn't had a great start, the back four is not a settled area and when Tennet came in, after two games, suddenly doesn't seem to be the answer.
Discipline has gone out of the window, Callum isn't putting the goals away and Carruthers isn't exactly making the impact when he starts or comes on.
Too many things are mis-firing all at once, not to mention injuries, or budget.
Will Ade be given time to sort it?
But to call it a tin pot league is a mistake, for me we will be lucky to make the top six this season but relegation material is not going to be a matter.

This is absolutely a tinpot league and if our club was actually managed properly we would never be in here. This is the problem that some supporters and I assume the board have is that they are just happy to keep going with the decline because its not big enough to be concerned about. Well I would think for most of us, seeing us now stuck in this tinpot league, losing cup games against lower teams and just overall having a poor and unfit squad is a real concern and something that is quickly making us an embarrassment. There is no game we play at the moment where I consider us favourites or think we will win because the players just dont have the right attitude or willingness to actually try at times. The squad is filled with injuries and then put on top of that suspensions we were already down to the bare bones. Seemingly we arent getting anyone coming in on loan, is that because Ady has no contacts or we've dropped so far down the leagues that no league teams see it as a benefit to loan players out to us now. I think we are sleepwalking at board level right into another relegation and even if we dont and we finish midtable, that is shocking in itself

My friend, I have to disagree with you. Please define “tinpot league”. I’m not saying we should be here, and I would say there are some tinpot clubs in the league, but this, at present, is our level and to improve we have to do something about it. I will repeat - we have no god-given right to be at a level above this. Stadiums don’t win promotions, players on the pitch do and, from what I’m seeing, we’re not good enough.

Lars - you are absolutely spot on. One or two players are going through the motions, one in particular that you named.

Let’s see what happens shall we. Saturdays game at Brentwood is crucial for me!

Tony H wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 12:09 pm

DartfordHero wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:54 am

Lars Resort wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 11:40 am It's hardly a tin pot league. The top 5 or 6 are putting money into the clubs which we are not keeping up with.
But we have a team that finished 3rd last season and were 90 minutes from promotion.
When most of that squad put pen to paper in the summer that told me they wanted to carry on with the same intention and do the job properly.
We were all ecstatic with that and had high hopes.
So, the manager for me is not the problem. To some extent nor are the players. Having said that Denzelle is not the same player I and others were raving about back in April. He in my opinion, is a shadow of himself who has not had a good game so far.
Questionably Henly hasn't had a great start, the back four is not a settled area and when Tennet came in, after two games, suddenly doesn't seem to be the answer.
Discipline has gone out of the window, Callum isn't putting the goals away and Carruthers isn't exactly making the impact when he starts or comes on.
Too many things are mis-firing all at once, not to mention injuries, or budget.
Will Ade be given time to sort it?
But to call it a tin pot league is a mistake, for me we will be lucky to make the top six this season but relegation material is not going to be a matter.

This is absolutely a tinpot league and if our club was actually managed properly we would never be in here. This is the problem that some supporters and I assume the board have is that they are just happy to keep going with the decline because its not big enough to be concerned about. Well I would think for most of us, seeing us now stuck in this tinpot league, losing cup games against lower teams and just overall having a poor and unfit squad is a real concern and something that is quickly making us an embarrassment. There is no game we play at the moment where I consider us favourites or think we will win because the players just dont have the right attitude or willingness to actually try at times. The squad is filled with injuries and then put on top of that suspensions we were already down to the bare bones. Seemingly we arent getting anyone coming in on loan, is that because Ady has no contacts or we've dropped so far down the leagues that no league teams see it as a benefit to loan players out to us now. I think we are sleepwalking at board level right into another relegation and even if we dont and we finish midtable, that is shocking in itself

My friend, I have to disagree with you. Please define “tinpot league”. I’m not saying we should be here, and I would say there are some tinpot clubs in the league, but this, at present, is our level and to improve we have to do something about it. I will repeat - we have no god-given right to be at a level above this. Stadiums don’t win promotions, players on the pitch do and, from what I’m seeing, we’re not good enough.

Lars - you are absolutely spot on. One or two players are going through the motions, one in particular that you named.

Let’s see what happens shall we. Saturdays game at Brentwood is crucial for me!

Tony H wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 3:41 pm “Tinpot” is a much overrused term imho, and I can be just as guilty as the rest (though I use it more to describe Clubs, not Leagues). Dartfordhero, I do get what you’re saying, believe me (though there was no need to be so aggressive towards me!)

Truth is, as hard as it may be to take, we are where we are for a reason. We are currently so far off the pace and nowhere near good enough to be considered promotion contenders. I AM NOT satisfied with that because I believe we have far more to offer as a club both on and off the pitch. Change needs to be made to adjust our fortunes or we could very well be confined to another season at this level.

DartfordHero wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 3:58 pm

Tony H wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 3:41 pm “Tinpot” is a much overrused term imho, and I can be just as guilty as the rest (though I use it more to describe Clubs, not Leagues). Dartfordhero, I do get what you’re saying, believe me (though there was no need to be so aggressive towards me!)

Truth is, as hard as it may be to take, we are where we are for a reason. We are currently so far off the pace and nowhere near good enough to be considered promotion contenders. I AM NOT satisfied with that because I believe we have far more to offer as a club both on and off the pitch. Change needs to be made to adjust our fortunes or we could very well be confined to another season at this level.

Yes we are in this league for a reason, that being the board not acting quickly enough to get rid of Dowse and give us a chance of staying in the league. It appears the lessons haven’t been learnt. Also to say I was being aggressive is laughable, please don’t let the truth of you seemingly being quite content to be this league hurt your feelings when others consider and want us to be better than that

Colspaz wrote: Sun Oct 05, 2025 4:17 pm See the women’s team won on penalties today to put them in the first round of the FA cup well deserved.