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Wales are currently ranked 50th out of 55 by UEFA for this season. Only the super powers of Faroe Isles, Gibraltar, Andorra, San Marino & Kosovo below them. If the Welsh League sides have a poor season in European competitions next season, there's the probabilty that they will fall below the Faroes & Gibraltar in the rankings (as the 2013/14 points are removed).
A sad reflection on Welsh Football below the teams in the English system
And our best team play in Oswestry too. I'd like to see us in the Welsh league
"Us" meaning Cardiff City
Now that is something that's never going to change, genuinely couldn't care less.
We should have a side participating in the Welsh league system, if not the club itself
Don't really see the point of Merthyr playing in the English system
Nor Colwyn BayQuote:
Originally Posted by City123
The unfortunate thing with the Welsh Premiership is that the biggest teams in Wales don't compete in it. Even if all bar Cardiff and Swansea joined it, the league would still be rather hollow. Relatively few in Wales take it seriously as a percentage of all football fans of Welsh teams in Wales.
If all Welsh teams took part in it, its profile would raise, but the standard would probably not get much above League 2. There would be interest for a short while in some derby games, but crowds would disappear and football would suffer in Wales as a result.
Since the formation of the regions in rugby, it's been realised that a Welsh-only league doesn't work.
Small country, difficult to support two sports if it was only at a national league level.
Thankfully, the Welsh league co-efficient is no reflection on club football in Wales overall.
I've suggested before that the Welsh Premiership should concentrate more on bringing through young Welsh talent, rather than bringing in old has-beens from England. It could be an effective feeder organisation for the rest of the Welsh clubs and somewhere to send players on loan etc. The fact that the Welsh clubs in the English pyramid still look more towards non-league than Welsh league says lots.
Would the club be better supported in the Welsh Premiership? I doubt it. There's your answer.Quote:
Originally Posted by City123
Ask the fans what they'd like. That's why they're in the English system.Quote:
Originally Posted by City123
They've gone bankrupt and almost went bankrupt again playing in the English system, its obviously not sustainable for themQuote:
Originally Posted by Eric the Half a Bee
A club like Merthyr would be fairly successful in the Welsh pyramid, is playing King's Lynn really a bigger game than playing Bangor?
I don't buy that, Cardiff and Swansea would retain enough support to significantly raise the profile and to be more than good enough to get fairly far in Europe (at least the the group stage of either competition), which means more profile, money from UEFA and investment for the rest of the league, honestly if the likes of BATE Borisov, Ostersunds and FC Midtjylland can do well in Europe, so can Cardiff and SwanseaQuote:
Originally Posted by Eric the Half a Bee
A decent trial run would be allowing the English league Welsh clubs to participate in the Welsh Cups and see how they do in Europe and the effect it would have, but I know it'll never happen
How can you say we’d do well? If we played in that league we would never sign the likes of Bamba or Hoilett so you can’t base our potential performance on the squad we have now. It would have to be on the squad we’d have if we could attract players wanting to play in a welsh league and I’d suggest we’d be shite
How do TNS attract the players they do despite being a tinpot club in Oswestry? They're a professional club with the chance of European football every season, its not 100% certain we'd do well, but I can't see us and Swansea completely failing if we played in the Welsh system, two fully professional clubs who would still attract decent numbers to gamesQuote:
Originally Posted by El Gwapo
Its purely hypothetical of course, and I can see why people don't think we'd succeed, just my opinion :thumbup:
Like who?Quote:
Originally Posted by City123
Steven Saunders, played for Motherwell & Scotland only 27. Jon Routledge, played for Wigan, , Hamilton and Stockport only 28. Ryan Brobbel, played for York and Hartlepool as well as N.Ireland U21s, only 25. Greg Darper, played for New Zealand, 28. Wes Fletcher, played for York and Motherwell, only 27. One of their players was bought by Blackpool for £38,000 in the summerQuote:
Originally Posted by lardy
Hardly Premier League players, but still good players with solid pedigree hitting their prime in the Welsh Premier League
I don't mean to sound disparaging to those players, but they're not the standard of Bamba/Hoilett, nor the standard to do what BATE Borisov and FC Mjetland (am I close to spelling that right?) have done in Europe.Quote:
Originally Posted by City123
If City joined the Welsh league there is simply no way that we'd ever be knocking on the door of the CL or EL groups.
Quote:
Originally Posted by City123
Im not convinced by your argument at all sorry. A few journeymen players for whom getting past the first prelim round against other minnows might be judged a success, for a club where not finishing top two domestically in front of poor crowds is deemed to be success. Not for me
My point is if BATE Borisov and Ostersunds can do it, then surely Cardiff City and Swansea City can? TNS wouldn't be able to, but clubs of our size couldQuote:
Originally Posted by lardy
I don't really see how we would suddenly plummet to the levels of Rhyl and Llanelli if we joined the Welsh league, hell we might even see one or two Welsh players actually play for the club, but again its purely hypothetical
I would support Cardiff no matter what league we were in. I enjoy watching my home town club and it is watching the team rather than the objective quality of football that I enjoy. I guess that is why we averaged around 7000 at home games the last time we were in tier 4 - most people are glory supporters. I loved watching Boland, Bowen, Brayson and Bonner, and seeing Earnie and Gabbs come through. I enjoyed that season more than the current one to be honest.
So,if we were in the Welsh Prem, running away with the title and making the Jacks jealous, I would enjoy it a damn sight more than a season of being outclassed in the EPL.