UHT Vana Nava Hua Hin City FC 2015

[Big Boy]

I hope so, but not much of a break though.

[Davy B]

Blame the Thai Football League, Big Boy. These are the idiots that came up with the ridiculous Champions League debacle that basically prolonged the season by 2 months. Hopefully the new powers at HHCFC will be voicing their opinions about it - remember money talks!! Surely it would be easier to promote the Division winners and be done with it. Obviously had we been promoted some of the travelling to the away games would only be attempted by the die hard supporters but even Big Boy would cringe at the thought of a 2 night stay in Ayuttaya, Chiang Mai or Trat. No doubt we will have to anticipate doing this next year when we have an all-conquering team on the park!! Please keep us updated with the new fixture list and the comings and goings at HHCFC!!

[Big Boy]

I actually enjoyed the Champions League. Should we get there next season, I will be more organised, and do my own thing - I will not be dumped at a border market at 6am again and be told pick up is at 11am. Mind you, I think Prachinburi is about the most boring area in Thailand. Maybe the border market was the most exciting thing there

Mind you, I'm still not convinced we'll stay in the same league next season. With Prachuab gone, the Southern section is very light (unless new teams are promoted). There could be some daunting journies ahead:

Division_2_Tables.png (13.53 KiB) Viewed 513 times

Chiang Mai wouldn't be so bad, if you made a mini break out of it. Udon Thani and Phichit (Sukothai) were enjoyable weekends.

IMHO Udon Thani will be favourites for the title next season - they have a fantastic set up. I hope Hua Hin are successful in their bid the buy success, but I'm not a great fan of that method, and we've seen it fail so many times in the UK. The team are already in pre-season training, but if we're to believe what we're told, we're still 6 first team players short.

[Davy B]

I agree some of the places would be quite interesting to visit but getting someone to look after our dogs is not an option. I wouldn`t wish them on anyone so the away games unless they are close by are a no, no. I do understand the excitement of playing different teams to the league programme but we would be playing different teams had we been promoted. I cannot get my head around this Division set -up though. If the Thai Football League have the authority to move teams into different divisions within the League then surely reorganising and restructuring the whole set up is not beyond them either. Our division was the only one that had this Champions League and 4 teams getting promoted from our League into the 1st Division is just crazy. It would also mean 4 teams are relegated, so which division do they get put in? It seems to do away with the fact that we WON our Division yet we didn`t get promoted. We actually deserve to get promoted because over all the League games we got more points than anyone else - just!! I feel the same about the UEFA Champions League. It is purely a money making venture - pure and simple. How can a team that finishes 4th in the Premiership possibly play in a CHAMPIONS League because they haven`t actually won anything. It is not the same here in Thailand and most teams would be out of pocket with all these overnight travel expenses to play in front of a couple of hundred supporters and not forgetting having to pay large fines because other teams cannot control THEIR supporters!!

[Big Boy]

I'm not disagreeing with most of what you say Davy. However, I can understand the need for the regional leagues. Many teams in our division have neither the funding, the following nor the facilities to be able to play at a higher level.

I was actually shocked to see the crowds at BCC Tero and Prachinburi. OK, BCC Tero are the feeder club for BEC Tero. If these guys had to travel nationally, they would soon be bankrupt. Thailand is not a small country like our home countries. Even Hua Hin with their generous sponsorship had to limit the people that travelled to Phichit and Udon Thani to the bare minimum.

Reorganisation to a national set up would send a lot of Thai teams to the wall, and we'd be deprived of a lot football opportunities in this country. Even a move to 4 regional leagues instead of 6 could put a lot of strain on the coffers of many clubs. After my earlier post, I looked up the location of many Southern section teams - they'd be better off playing in the Malaysian league, and would probably double Hua Hin's miles next season, and most games would involve overnight stays.

[Davy B]

The regional divisions thing is fine, but the problems start when the smaller clubs get promoted and then encounter the much higher expenses of being in the higher division. Many, as you rightly say, will eventually cease to exist. Wimbledon for use of an example. No doubt there are teams in the 1st Division that should be in the Premier League. We can see in the Championship in the UK, the likes of Leeds and Birmingham, who are fairly well supported, struggle for many years to get out of it and there only real hope is a decent Cup run against top opposition to finance themselves. In the lower leagues, my birth team - Hartlepool, have had several escapes from extinction and re-election over the years and have only survived because of generous benefactors. My feelings are that the powers that be keep changing the goalposts and make it nearly impossible for us to take our rightful place in a higher division. We could win our Division for the next 10 years but faced with the lottery of the Champions League every year. We have some people with money to invest, tremendous sponsorship from local and international companies and in the future a new stadium along with tremendous supporters, whose numbers will hopefully dramatically increase once we are in our new home. It has heaps of potential and people will want to be on the back of the rollercoaster. I just feel that someone, somewhere will want to stick a spanner in the works!!

[Big Boy]

Hartlepool I used to pop over to watch them sometimes when I lived in Eaglescliffe. however, with Newcastle, Sunderland and Middlesbrough also on my doorstep, it wasn't that often. So you're used to crap football as well

My feelings are that the powers that be keep changing the goalposts and make it nearly impossible for us to take our rightful place in a higher division. We could win our Division for the next 10 years but faced with the lottery of the Champions League every year.

Yes, it's a bloody hard section to get out of, but 34% succeed each year. Most teams will succeed because they deserve it......................... and then there's Phichit

Maybe we just weren't ready for it last season. After all, it was only our 2nd time playing at that level. To win the division at only the 2nd attempt was an achievement in itself. Hopefully we've learnt some important lessons from this campaign. Phichit were crap, but their tactics totally nobbled Hua Hin and they probably stole our promotion place. Let's hope we don't fall for that kind of sucker punch/tactic again.

My biggest fear is that our Sugar Daddy's withdraw. The Green Army were serious contenders for the Premiership. England didn't get the World Cup and the Japanese sugar daddy walked, leaving us deep in the brown stuff, and very fortunate to remain in league football. These guys are talking about bringing in foreign players. They will demand much higher pay than Thais. If they walk, who will pay the already contracted massive wages? A sugar daddy is good while he spending his cash.

[Big Boy]

3 Brazilian players???

1 each - defence, midfield & forward

[pharvey]

3 Brazilian players???

1 each - defence, midfield & forward

What kind of money are these teams paying out BB - i.e. average wage bill etc.? From previous posts/reports it appears money is very tight for many of the teams....

Also what level would the "foreign" players be playing at in say the UK?

[Big Boy]

The Hua Hin wage was 18,000 Baht a month. It worries me that these new guys will be commanding stupid money, which can also cause discontent in the dressing room.

I often think Hua Hin play better football than Plymouth Argyle. Of course there are factors which make comparison difficult such as heat and the unknown quality of the opposition.

[Edit] The presumption is that the Brazilians will inject speed into the team.

[pharvey]

The Hua Hin wage was 18,000 Baht a month. It worries me that these new guys will be commanding stupid money, which can also cause discontent in the dressing room.

I often think Hua Hin play better football than Plymouth Argyle. Of course there are factors which make comparison difficult such as heat and the unknown quality of the opposition.

[Edit] The presumption is that the Brazilians will inject speed into the team.

18,000 per month?? For what exactly - seems incredibly low for just a player. Are you saying this is a standard wage for Thai players? What about the "foreigner players" or indeed the proposed manager?

Certainly agree with the danger of having foreigners in the squad being paid far higher salaries and causing discontent. In general, the foreign players are of what nationality - Asian or further afield (as in Brasil for example).

[Big Boy]

That was the stated wage 2 years ago for each of Hua Hin's players. Probably a little bit more now. I would guess it's the money that has attracted the manager, so I'd guess he's going to be receiving a lot.

What would a Brazilian player earn in his home country? Not very much I'd suppose - that's why the ones move to Europe.

[Big Boy]

Pre-season training

A few familiar faces, and a lot of new ones, including a white man. The only foreigner from last season is Shota. OK, we know about Owusu, Lampty has done a runner, but where is Stephens? He was arguably our best player last term.

[ste860]

do not believe they only get 18.000 baht a month ,my wifes son trained with them 2 years ago and the players (thai) were getting 20.000 then plus win bonus etc ,so with intercontinental behind them its got to have gone up
so a foreign player will definitely be on more ,

[Big Boy]

My information came from a magazine article 2 years ago - I think I referenced it on the previous thread. I will have a quick look to see if I can find it.