How many other managers would have poked up with last three transfer windows and relative lack of control over transfers ?

Could not agree more. And this is the reason we are not in a position to cherry pick a replacement for Roy.

Mate of mine is an Ipswich fan and was saying this time last year they couldn’t wait for Mick Mcarthy to be replaced!!!

They got their wish and just look at the position they now find themselves in.

Like many I am an ambitious fan but Roy is steady and as frustrating as his tactics/decisions can be in my opinion he has not done to bad.

I agree with you to an extent. I am concerned about who is available to replace Hodgson and the lack of money that has been made available.

I would say that Roy, Pardew (at Newcastle and Palace), and Big Mick all made the same mistake with transfers.

They are all pretty average managers with a limited shelf life. They all had good starts but didn't challenge the board for extra transfer money. Not getting in new talent is certainly a contributory factor in things become stale.

Big Sam and Pulis may have both left after not getting what they want, but I would like to see the manager be a bit firmer with the board to get new players in.

Hodgson has been our worst manager in the transfer market since we were promoted. He has not signed a single player that's become a first team regular.

I don't think Roy will kick up a fuss either as he knows if threatens to resign like Pulis or BFS then it's most likely that he'll be shown the door.

If Roy, Pardew, or McCarthy had kicked up a fuss when they had Palace/Newcastle/Ipswich playing well then their future career options would probably look brighter too.

A pair of slags who served their purpose. Know a Boro fan reckons their fans hate Pulis.

Disagree, had we kept both I am sure that we wouldn’t be where we are now..... higher. Of course could be wrong but that’s my opinion.

it's all about mindset.

8th is a better reward in terms of prize money.

8th is a better platform to build on in terms of finishing 14th

8th position each year could attract a certain type of player, than say 14th which is almost flirting with relegation.

looking up is far better than treading water.

The mindset at palace should be to get to 40 points at record speed each year, wether it's after 31 games, 30 games, that should always be the goal. It would show progress from escaping the relegation zone, it would also show progress in climbing up the table - but the beauty in that goal is it doesn't purposely state 'we don't want a relegation scrap' or 'we are in a relegation and need to look up' it also doesn't say 'we want a top 8 or 6 finish' it just states we want to do better each season, which is the ultimate goal for any club.

Parish, however doesn't have the funds to sustain the club in the prem - it gets better each year, the prem, stakes are higher each year and the small blinds, big blinds are the base line that parish can't keep up with. Any major investor will want to play the hand they are dealt with, which is probably why the americans want out as parish is holding their chips.... damn poker advert next to me has influenced by metaphors.