Did you know that in order to correctly dispose of mothballs you should take them to a household hazardous waste recycling centre? I thought I would research it on Bob Dorrian’s behalf because I’m wondering if over the coming weeks he might have to dispose of a few himself.
Listening to Danny on Radio Lincolnshire he talked about ‘improved training facilities’ when asked about a potential new deal for him and Nicky. As ambitious young managers they want to get as much from their players as possible, and a purpose built facility somewhere would be just the job. If only we knew where there was one.
I was highly critical of Championship 2010 or whatever it was called, but the training facility does still exist in some form. There has been a school built on one of the pitches and part of the actual building is now used by a nursery. There is still a pitch or two left over, but there would be a cost implication of getting it fit for purpose. There is a possibility it could function in its current state, although perhaps not as a standalone site.
I think we all know by now that the new contracts for the managers has become a priority subject. With a rebuffed approach from Notts County recently being made public it’s clear the club want to retain the services of two men who have helped the club make epic strides in 2016. When your goose starts laying golden eggs and asking for a bigger pen, you invest in a bigger pen to keep that precious metal coming out of the rear.
So what are the other options? I’ve been informed that the club is always looking for a new facility, but then I don’t suppose that is particularly exclusive news. I would imagine ever since the meticulous pair from Braintree landed it has been on the agenda. Having been on the training day probably the only slight negative I can think of was the need for a couple of cross-town car journeys between different sessions. I’m sure this discussion has been had at board level well before the last forty eight hours.
The problem with Lincolnshire and the land around Lincoln lays in the dominant local industry. Most of the land that could (in theory) house a purpose built training facility is designated as agricultural, and as we’ve seen development in Lincoln tend to go up into the air rather than out into the fields. We’d need more than a friend in the planning department to change much of it to use as a training facility.
Besides although we have sound financial grounding at the moment the club still have to be thrifty and watch the pennies. A successful business is one that always calculates and plans for the tougher times, and we’ve seen first hand what can happen when income suddenly dries up. Relegation cost us hard, and as a business we now need to make sure that current success is coupled with financial stability. I have 100% faith in Clive, Bob and the board ensuring long term financial viability as well as short term investment on the field.
However, the desires of our two bright young things will hold sway with those running the club. The last six months have been a whirlwind, and the key component of that has been Danny and Nicky. You only have to look at Braintree this season for an indication of what could happen if we didn’t fight to retain them. They’re ambitious and I believe they want to achieve that ambition with Lincoln City. They do know what it takes to be successful, and if they say they need better training facilities then I’m happy to take their word for it!
So will the mothballs be coming out of a facility that, if it could have been kept open, would now perhaps be a significant component of a fresh impetus? It wasn’t a great call to aim for the Championship by 2010 without getting it right on the pitch, but now the latter is in place, does a seeming white elephant from the past hold the key to sustained success in the future?
Why do I always seem to write blogs that ask questions, not answer them?