03 Oct 2025 15:05:53
Off the pass time of bickering with Albion fans and baring in mind we still think the West Midlands is a hotbed of football couldn't help noticing the only game in the region is at Walsall, a Saturday afternoon in the height of the season and all the stadiums standing empty, makes you wonder what's happened to our game.

1.) 03 Oct 2025
03 Oct 2025 18:07:52
TV Ron fella, that's what's happened to our game! It's catch 22 cause we all like being able to catch those away games on Sky but like ya say it definitely comes at a price, along with the price of stupid kick off times and more mid week matches! ?

2.) 04 Oct 2025
04 Oct 2025 08:23:27
It's called progress Ron, or Capitalism to be more accurate. 3.00pm on a Saturday was like a call to prayer with only Cup replays (remember them) drifting into the midweek.

Catch the report shortly after the game in the 'Pink' or wait for MOTD or Soccer Sunday if ITV covered it. Then read up on other reports in the back pages of the Sunday papers with your position and size of the write up down to your clubs status, so that's not changed.

3.) 04 Oct 2025
04 Oct 2025 11:53:29
Interesting philosophical discussion.
Is it progress?
Footballers used to earn less than the local bank manager now they earn double what the bank manager earns a year every week!
Top level English football was seen by well under 400k people a week. Now more than that will watch it in Seoul!
The teams were largely made of local players or at least players from these Isles and the first 11 remained relatively stable for years.
Now the squads have hardly any players born in the UK and rotate faster than the "Magic Roundabout"
A well run club such as say Ipswich or Derby could compete at the very top level now, (other than the fluke that was Leicester ), many fans won't have seen anyone outside of the big 5 - sorry Spurs - win the league in their lifetime!
So many changes.
However in reality it is the fans - via their Sky subscriptions - who brought this about. So yes Capitalism but also democracy.
Is it good? Is it what you want?
Are there unintended (/intended?) consequences?
Is football dying and being replaced by business?
Sadly I fear you can say the same for all sport in this country.
Take out the 8% of kids educated privately and kids brought in from overseas and most of the top level and even the national teams in other sports collapse.
Perhaps Jeff is right and esports is the way forward!

4.) 04 Oct 2025
04 Oct 2025 20:33:52
I think the 3pm on a Saturday kick-off came about when employment laws changed in 1850 and workers had to be let go by 2pm on a Saturday (or something like that). The idea being that it would give the masses something to do, and the match would be over while it was still just about light in the winter (given there were no floodlights, half time breaks were shorter, and injury time was a mere glint in the referee's eyes). But when you look at it, games used to be played at all sorts of odd times and on strange days, including Christmas Day. I don't think the 3pm on a Saturday thing is especially important historically. But as we've all got so used to it, I get why there is an idealistic desire to keep it free from TV footage simply to ensure fans aren't tempted to stay at home and watch it instead of turning up at the ground.

5.) 05 Oct 2025
05 Oct 2025 12:25:46
I remember the 80s and 90s when every team from every nation were restricted to only 3 'foreigners' in a team. Man Utd at the time had 2 choose only 3 from Schmeichel, Irwin, Kanchelskis, Keane and Cantona. Liverpool.

The scouting industry was pivotal in those days whereas now, whoever has the most money gets to cherry pick who they want.