Where and when did it all start going awry for us?

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Could be pinned on many things but for me the rot started when Colin Harvey brought in 4 new players (too many at the time, most teams were bringing one or 2 new faces a season) Nevin, McCall and others I can't remember right now. Tidy players in their own right but not the right fit for the team we had.

Then Peter Johnson taking over. Liverpool fan and ex-Tranmere chairman was never going to be a good fit and I always had a sneaky feeling he was ripping us off - didn't we pay a fortune for the Tranmere goalie and full back? Didn't he want to change the Z cars music?
 

We have had many moments when we looked like turning a corner but have made some decisions that are baffling.

looking at the premier league era.

Giving Nigel Martyn directions to Leeds when he had turned up to sign in 96.
THAT was the first domino that ended up with all the promise built by Royle in 18 months, to all come crashing down. 18 months later we where relying on Chelsea beating Bolton to stay up with a well past it Kendall in charge. I don't think we have ever got to a position of strength held at the end of 96 since. We were on par with almost all of the top teams, and had competed to break the transfer record for Collymore 12 months earlier, signing the exceptional Kanchelskis instead. That period of boom / bust was inexplicable really. We have never came close to fully challenging the top places. Bar a 6 month flirtation from Martinez in 13/14 we have not look like challenging in the league in a quarter of a century.

That is scandalous for a club who have been a mainstay in the top division.
 

We have had many moments when we looked like turning a corner but have made some decisions that are baffling.

looking at the premier league era.

Giving Nigel Martyn directions to Leeds when he had turned up to sign in 96.
THAT was the first domino that ended up with all the promise built by Royle in 18 months, to all come crashing down. 18 months later we where relying on Chelsea beating Bolton to stay up with a well past it Kendall in charge. I don't think we have ever got to a position of strength held at the end of 96 since. We were on par with almost all of the top teams, and had competed to break the transfer record for Collymore 12 months earlier, signing the exceptional Kanchelskis instead. That period of boom / bust was inexplicable really. We have never came close to fully challenging the top places. Bar a 6 month flirtation from Martinez in 13/14 we have not look like challenging in the league in a quarter of a century.

That is scandalous for a club who have been a mainstay in the top division.

I agree, there have been many small mistakes and failures that have accumulated to our demise, and failing to sign Nigel Martyn was definitely one of them.

I wasn’t around in 1970, but my understanding is that paying for the reconstruction of the Main Stand curtailed our ability to perform in the transfer market, and contributed to the demise of one of our greatest sides.

In addition, the Main Stand is just a massive white elephant. Despite it costing a bomb at the time, we went cheap through failing to have a cantilever roof which led to the main stand having all of its ridiculously massive and plentiful obstructed views, which soon made it substandard in comparison to cantilevered stands. Not only that, but the old main stand looks boss. The lower terrace in particular looks a lot better than the happy friendly family enclosure. In retrospect, I think we should have left the previous Main Stand alone.

Similar stuff happened with the Park End. We did it on the cheap again. We got a grant from the league or somewhere and it only cost us about a million pound in the end. The lack of a second tier has proven costly. It should have had a second tier, along with some executive boxes.
 

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