Richard Balls

[Ulf Ottosson 0]

Richard Balls is the evening press number Norwich City correspond so why oh why are soarticles weak. The last two are the particularly awful -

Galling Norwich aren''t in top six

You what he''s probably been to every game this season yet he can''t believe why aren''t in the top six. HELLO - the whole team is inconsistent from front to back. Off the top of my head i''d say Etuhu, Shackell, Huckerby, Croft,  Safri, Doherty, Hughes are all woefully inconsistent. We are capable of beating anyone on our day and losing to anyone one - we the championship answer to middlesbrough - Richard the table doesn''t lie we are where we deserve to be.

Could the Earnshaw money have been spent better

Well I applaud Richard sentiments but pity it''s 16 months too late!! This point should have been made at the time.Not 14 months latter

[Tim Allman 1]

Perhaps you should read Richard Balls articles from sixteen months ago then, if you think he''s made his point far too late.

He has been a constant critic over the last couple of years, and his articles as well as those of Steve Gedge, and this year, Adam Aitken, re always a better read than other Archant football journalists.

I thought the Earnshaw article was an interesting piece and made some valid points. Earnshaw has been an excellent goalscorer for Norwich, but he''s scored several goals feeding off scraps, just like Ashton the previous season. With a better service and a more creative midfield would we have needed a scorer such as Earshaw. Who knows?  You could argue either way.

The Top Six article was a decent summary of where we might have been, but given the shambles that Grant inherited it was a case of what we could have achieved.

If we didn''t have Richard Balls, Steve Gedge and Adam Aitken the sports section would be a much worse read.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Editor of Milk 0]

And which subjects would you have chosen to write about over the last fortnight Ulf? I don''t really have an opinion on either of Richard Balls'' last 2 articles but it must be difficult to write about something new each week.

[DumbleDelia is Magic 0]

You won''t have to worry about it for much longer.  Apparently Richard is leaving Archant

[Pete Raven 276]

Richard does indeed leave Archant today, but his weekly column in the Evening News will continue.

[mbncfc 1]

[quote user="Web Team - Pete"]Richard does indeed leave Archant today, but his weekly column in the Evening News will continue.[/quote]

Out of curiosity, what is he going to do?...

[Mello Yello 2,278]

[quote user="Web Team - Pete"]Richard does indeed leave Archant today, but his weekly column in the Evening News will continue.[/quote]

Is it a "mutual movin'' on?" Or, have the Neil and Co Finance Club, (NCFC) complained to norty, norty Archant, about his hurtful an'' ''negative rants'' concerning our "wunnerful ickle  we''re all in it togetherfullkissyness, superb corporate entertainment - with occasionally, football club?"......

an'' the boy jus'' had to go?

Just conspiracy curious........... ;~)

[Pete Raven 276]

No conspiracies, he''s simply moving on to the press office at Norwich City Council.

[Freeza 0]

I''m glad Richard will be continuing his weekly column as it is invariably an essential read at the weekend for all City fans.

Editor of Milk - It is indeed very difficult to find something new to talk about every week, especially as Norwich haven''t had a game for 2 weeks! Just writing my humble Blog (Freeze Frame) for this website can be tough, finding an original subject and keeping it interesting for the REAL fans. Richard is always very good at this and is a big inspiration for me when I sit down to write Freeze Frame.

[August 64 0]

[quote user="Web Team - Pete"]No conspiracies, he''s simply moving on to the press office at Norwich City Council.[/quote]

Cue Balls to City headline!

 

 

[Karl Pilkington 0]

[quote user="Web Team - Pete"]No conspiracies, he''s simply moving on to the press office at Norwich City Council.[/quote]

 

Damn. My money was on him joining Waggys ''tinterweb revolution.

[Syteanric 1]

[quote user="Web Team - Pete"]No conspiracies, he''s simply moving on to the press office at Norwich City Council.[/quote]

good! all ready to deal with my complaint i have then about my rent!

jas :)

[DumbleDelia is Magic 0]

[quote user="Web Team - Pete"]Richard does indeed leave Archant today, but his weekly column in the Evening News will continue.[/quote]

Aah I didn''t realise he was keeping his column.  Thanks for that Pete.  Good to hear; Richard talks a lot sense

[ca 1]

Glad hes continueing with his weekly column, its a must read in this household.

[0ridgemanddMMyyyy0Falseen-USTrue 0]

I''m also pleased he is continuing, pulls no punches and says what many of us are thinking.

[jetstream 0]

"says what many of us are thinking"

Hmmm...some might think that it''s because he spends a lot of time reading the various City forums - many''s the time he appears to have ''paraphrased'' threads from here or on the official site!

Don''t get me wrong, I like his column and I''m all for a bit of balance in the Archant coverage.

[gazzathegreat 0]

Mello, you continue to delight, and yes, from what I have heard (from the inside of the mighty Archant) he has been sidelined as the spin doctors are not too happy with his rantings.......amongst other things....shame as I have always enjoyed his writing, whether personally agreeing with it or not..

It''s a shame the club cannot stand to have a dissenting voice in the local press (whether each one of us agrees with Richard Balls or not), he is still representing what some of us think.  The club spends money as it sees fit on Press Officers itself (and do we the fans and shareholders get  a say in what they do or say?).  It''s time the club spent all their time on what''s going on on the pitch, rather than someone''s own opinion....come to that, what do the club think of this, or other message boards.... seems we can pay our money in....and then we are forgotten till next year....

Neil Doncaster and co, please note, we are fans of the club and team, we can and do make up our own minds and most of us can see both sides of an argument... Just leave the writers in the paper to do their job, which is to write columns, including stuff you might not like....and you can then make more time to come up with ways to finance rebuilding the team you left to rot in the previous two close seasons...

 

[Faded Jaded Semi Plastic SOB 1,017]

Do you remember the local reporter that got banned by Wroxham FC becuase they did not like what he put in his match reports about them? I think he resorted to reporting on their games balanced at the top of a ladder which was leant up against one of the garden walls that overlooked the Wroxham pitch. Lets hope that it never gets to that stage with Mr Balls as he would need a really long ladder now the hotel has been built!!. On a serious note, whilst I do not always agree with what Mr Balls says I think it is important that we have a reporter that produces articles that covers the issues that matter to the fans.

[Rossi 0]

[quote user="gazzathegreat"]

Mello, you continue to delight, and yes, from what I have heard (from the inside of the mighty Archant) he has been sidelined as the spin doctors are not too happy with his rantings.......amongst other things....

[/quote]

And what makes things even worse is the alleged pandering over former archant journalist(s) who done the complete opposite of what ballsy has. For those that have stopped at certain service stations on the way home from away games, I''m sure you know what I mean. Very cosy. Transport required....no problem........Need a seat sir.....no problem. All alleged of course.

NCFC press office appears to be turing into a propaganda driven war office. If you are not with us you must be against us mentality as swept across everything in the past few years. Wouldnt surprise me if they populated this board.

[canary cherub 1]

[quote user="gazzathegreat"]

Mello, you continue to delight, and yes, from what I have heard (from the inside of the mighty Archant) he has been sidelined as the spin doctors are not too happy with his rantings.......amongst other things....shame as I have always enjoyed his writing, whether personally agreeing with it or not..

It''s a shame the club cannot stand to have a dissenting voice in the local press (whether each one of us agrees with Richard Balls or not), he is still representing what some of us think.  The club spends money as it sees fit on Press Officers itself (and do we the fans and shareholders get  a say in what they do or say?).  It''s time the club spent all their time on what''s going on on the pitch, rather than someone''s own opinion....come to that, what do the club think of this, or other message boards.... seems we can pay our money in....and then we are forgotten till next year....

Neil Doncaster and co, please note, we are fans of the club and team, we can and do make up our own minds and most of us can see both sides of an argument... Just leave the writers in the paper to do their job, which is to write columns, including stuff you might not like....and you can then make more time to come up with ways to finance rebuilding the team you left to rot in the previous two close seasons...

 

[/quote]

And now, a dissenting voice about Richard Balls . . .

In his Saturday column last season, imo Richard Balls was partly responsible for turning the (legitimate) WO protest into a hate campaign.  On more than one occasion (eg. the "Worthy has a four-year contract" fiasco) imo he used false information to stir up hatred on the morning of a match (perhaps that was why his column was moved from Saturday to Thursday?).

He has absolutely no credibility in my eyes.  "Voice of the Fans"?  "Voice of the Bitter and Twisted" more like. 

 

 

[Cluck 0]

Most of what I read in the press is obviously pre-approved "spin" to keep the club sweet and the journalist concerned in his job. Any "leaks" are deliberate...and all "official" statements made are aimed to show the club/Board in a good light. Pure pulp to keep the punters reading and buying their papers. Personally I reckon the EDP is the best local newspaper I''ve ever encountered...but when it comes to NCFC they have to beware...so maybe it''s a tad harsh to give Archant too much stick.

Fact is....this forum reveals more cans of worms than any nervous sports reporter ever could....so in their way,  Archant are still getting the contentious stuff out there into the public domain just the same....but not where it could hurt them the most.

As much as I hate being pleasant to anyone....I truly think the EDP does it''s best to be honest with stories....but has it''s hands tied as to how far they dare go. Shame....but that''s political correctness for you again....(attention all of you namby pamby modern Uni types) and it''s only going to get worse.

Just you mark my words!             [N]

[mbncfc 1]

[quote user="Cluck "]

Most of what I read in the press is obviously pre-approved "spin" to keep the club sweet and the journalist concerned in his job. Any "leaks" are deliberate...and all "official" statements made are aimed to show the club/Board in a good light. Pure pulp to keep the punters reading and buying their papers. Personally I reckon the EDP is the best local newspaper I''ve ever encountered...but when it comes to NCFC they have to beware...so maybe it''s a tad harsh to give Archant too much stick.

Fact is....this forum reveals more cans of worms than any nervous sports reporter ever could....so in their way,  Archant are still getting the contentious stuff out there into the public domain just the same....but not where it could hurt them the most.

As much as I hate being pleasant to anyone....I truly think the EDP does it''s best to be honest with stories....but has it''s hands tied as to how far they dare go. Shame....but that''s political correctness for you again....(attention all of you namby pamby modern Uni types) and it''s only going to get worse.

Just you mark my words!             [N]

[/quote]

Agreed Cluck, the EDP is one of, if not the best local paper in the country.

It would be silly and ridiculously naive to assume anything other than all leaks and official statements from the football club are weighted to make it sound good. That logic goes for all companies, political parties, in fact almost every public organisation or institution going.

The sports journalists have a duty to report these statements as news of course. I am not currently aware of the inner workings specifically at Archant Towers either. But I am sure that, while they need to have a relationship with their news source, they also fulfil their duty to inform the public of worthwhile stories regardless of the club''s interest in these.

They would be pretty cr@p journalists if they didn''t, and some of the conspiracy theories seem a little imaginative...

[7rew 0]

Cluck, come the PC revolution, I''m sure you will be "promptly aided on your energetic journey to the well-staffed, luxurious and safe residential and busy commercial/industrial areas, set in a beautiful and stimulating natural environment, for those that are correctnessally challenged, yet still valued members of a viberant and peaceful society".Translated:"dragged kicking and screaming to the internment camp (run by lots of maniacs, with the luxury of running water for one hour on tuesdays), and forced labour camps in the middle of nowhere, surronded by miles and miles of tundra/rainforset, for people we don''t like, wish didn''t exist (and soon won''t)."hows that for political correctness?Note - I don''t want this to happen, as it would mean you weren''t subjected to a Delia run board anymore, which is far worse for you (apparently).

[ricardo 7,339]

[quote user="7rew"]Cluck, come the PC revolution, I''m sure you will be "promptly aided on your energetic journey to the well-staffed, luxurious and safe residential and busy commercial/industrial areas, set in a beautiful and stimulating natural environment, for those that are correctnessally challenged, yet still valued members of a viberant and peaceful society".

Translated:
"dragged kicking and screaming to the internment camp (run by lots of maniacs, with the luxury of running water for one hour on tuesdays), and forced labour camps in the middle of nowhere, surronded by miles and miles of tundra/rainforset, for people we don''t like, wish didn''t exist (and soon won''t)."

hows that for political correctness?

Note - I don''t want this to happen, as it would mean you weren''t subjected to a Delia run board anymore, which is far worse for you (apparently).

[/quote]

Yep, I was right, on the Panic Thread

7rew, you''ve been rumbled. You are Clucks straight man

Stop feeding him these gems

[lucky green trainers 0]

i like reading Balls, he always writes something I find interesting.  gedge also.  if  every article was ''on  message''  i''d probably turn  away from the  EDP.Having an independent mind is part of the norfolk character.

[7rew 0]

I am not Cluck''s straight man........I''ve never met the kid.In no way is my impending 2 week not postingness anything to do with these groundless accusatiuons......I''m going on holiday. YAY!I''m just bored at the moment, and like a challenge.  In the panic thread I wasn''t trying anything to wind up cluck or smudger at all. Honest.

[nutty nigel 7,509]

[quote user="mystic megson"][quote user="gazzathegreat"]

Mello, you continue to delight, and yes, from what I have heard (from the inside of the mighty Archant) he has been sidelined as the spin doctors are not too happy with his rantings.......amongst other things....shame as I have always enjoyed his writing, whether personally agreeing with it or not..

It''s a shame the club cannot stand to have a dissenting voice in the local press (whether each one of us agrees with Richard Balls or not), he is still representing what some of us think.  The club spends money as it sees fit on Press Officers itself (and do we the fans and shareholders get  a say in what they do or say?).  It''s time the club spent all their time on what''s going on on the pitch, rather than someone''s own opinion....come to that, what do the club think of this, or other message boards.... seems we can pay our money in....and then we are forgotten till next year....

Neil Doncaster and co, please note, we are fans of the club and team, we can and do make up our own minds and most of us can see both sides of an argument... Just leave the writers in the paper to do their job, which is to write columns, including stuff you might not like....and you can then make more time to come up with ways to finance rebuilding the team you left to rot in the previous two close seasons...

 

[/quote]

And now, a dissenting voice about Richard Balls . . .

In his Saturday column last season, imo Richard Balls was partly responsible for turning the (legitimate) WO protest into a hate campaign.  On more than one occasion (eg. the "Worthy has a four-year contract" fiasco) imo he used false information to stir up hatred on the morning of a match (perhaps that was why his column was moved from Saturday to Thursday?).

He has absolutely no credibility in my eyes.  "Voice of the Fans"?  "Voice of the Bitter and Twisted" more like. 

 

 

[/quote]

Absolutely spot on MM! But its not Richard Balls who dictates what is written, neither is it the Board or the fans. Its results pure and simple that dictate the fans mood and what''s written by the columnists. Back in 2005 when Balls wrote those articles the results were not good enough. Many people believed team performances and our dreadful away record were bad enough to get the manager sacked. Change was called for by many columnists and many fans but the Board stood firm beside their man. So Worthy became a hate figure, stuff was made up about him in order to fuel that hate, the fans became divided but the manager stayed. (some stuff that was made up is still believed today!) Incredibly throughout that time there was no real dissent against the board, just a few calls to Delia "Let''s be sackin'' him" and the like.

Anyway, contrast this with what Balls wrote in 2004 and you will see where I am coming from:-

Nigel Worthington has shown himself to be one of the best managers around and at a relatively young age. He has made some superb signings (Gary Holt, Marc Edworthy, Darren Huckerby), demanded an ambition from the board to match his own, given talented youngsters a chance to shine (Ian Henderson, Ryan Jarvis and Jason Shackell), and created a healthy competition for places. His half-time sermons must be among the most successful anywhere in football and no one could have predicted the scale of the turnaround that he has achieved since taking over. He has, in the words of his predecessor, been ''fantastic''.

If results improve then the fans mood improves and the columns become complimentary. The divide between the club and its fans miraculously closes and Delias critics demand statues to be built in her honour. When results are poor there has to be blame and there have to be scapegoats. Worthington knew this and Grant knows it, though I suspect some of the players find it harder to live with.

 

[ricardo 7,339]

[quote user="7rew"]I am not Cluck''s straight man........I''ve never met the kid.

In no way is my impending 2 week not postingness anything to do with these groundless accusatiuons......I''m going on holiday. YAY!

I''m just bored at the moment, and like a challenge.  In the panic thread I wasn''t trying anything to wind up cluck or smudger at all. Honest.
[/quote]

You seemed to be dangling the bait nicely and right on cue he rose to it

Well if you do want to wind him up just mention sheep

Have a nice Hol.

[tilly 0]

 Witnessed it with my own eyes Rossi old mate on at least 3 away trips this season. The relationship between club and a former Archant reporter in my eyes is unhealthy. He is getting a lift in a club car yet he is not employed by the club and is not on club business whilst getting carried all over the country for his own personal gain.The result is that it is breaching the terms of the vehicle insurance so he is not covered.

[lucky green trainers 0]

[quote user="nutty nigel"][quote user="mystic megson"][quote user="gazzathegreat"]

Mello, you continue to delight, and yes, from what I have heard (from the inside of the mighty Archant) he has been sidelined as the spin doctors are not too happy with his rantings.......amongst other things....shame as I have always enjoyed his writing, whether personally agreeing with it or not..

It''s a shame the club cannot stand to have a dissenting voice in the local press (whether each one of us agrees with Richard Balls or not), he is still representing what some of us think.  The club spends money as it sees fit on Press Officers itself (and do we the fans and shareholders get  a say in what they do or say?).  It''s time the club spent all their time on what''s going on on the pitch, rather than someone''s own opinion....come to that, what do the club think of this, or other message boards.... seems we can pay our money in....and then we are forgotten till next year....

Neil Doncaster and co, please note, we are fans of the club and team, we can and do make up our own minds and most of us can see both sides of an argument... Just leave the writers in the paper to do their job, which is to write columns, including stuff you might not like....and you can then make more time to come up with ways to finance rebuilding the team you left to rot in the previous two close seasons...

 

[/quote]

And now, a dissenting voice about Richard Balls . . .

In his Saturday column last season, imo Richard Balls was partly responsible for turning the (legitimate) WO protest into a hate campaign.  On more than one occasion (eg. the "Worthy has a four-year contract" fiasco) imo he used false information to stir up hatred on the morning of a match (perhaps that was why his column was moved from Saturday to Thursday?).

He has absolutely no credibility in my eyes.  "Voice of the Fans"?  "Voice of the Bitter and Twisted" more like. 

 

 

[/quote]

Absolutely spot on MM! But its not Richard Balls who dictates what is written, neither is it the Board or the fans. Its results pure and simple that dictate the fans mood and what''s written by the columnists. Back in 2005 when Balls wrote those articles the results were not good enough. Many people believed team performances and our dreadful away record were bad enough to get the manager sacked. Change was called for by many columnists and many fans but the Board stood firm beside their man. So Worthy became a hate figure, stuff was made up about him in order to fuel that hate, the fans became divided but the manager stayed. (some stuff that was made up is still believed today!) Incredibly throughout that time there was no real dissent against the board, just a few calls to Delia "Let''s be sackin'' him" and the like.

Anyway, contrast this with what Balls wrote in 2004 and you will see where I am coming from:-

Nigel Worthington has shown himself to be one of the best managers around and at a relatively young age. He has made some superb signings (Gary Holt, Marc Edworthy, Darren Huckerby), demanded an ambition from the board to match his own, given talented youngsters a chance to shine (Ian Henderson, Ryan Jarvis and Jason Shackell), and created a healthy competition for places. His half-time sermons must be among the most successful anywhere in football and no one could have predicted the scale of the turnaround that he has achieved since taking over. He has, in the words of his predecessor, been ''fantastic''.

If results improve then the fans mood improves and the columns become complimentary. The divide between the club and its fans miraculously closes and Delias critics demand statues to be built in her honour. When results are poor there has to be blame and there have to be scapegoats. Worthington knew this and Grant knows it, though I suspect some of the players find it harder to live with.

 

[/quote]so, is the moral of the story to resist being over generous in praise when all is well, and equally being cautious in criticism when it all goes pear-shaped?