The PSB GROUP have issued the following statement.
At the end of a successful season a few thoughts from us as we review the 17/18 season and offer our opinion as fans on where we go from here as we look forward to what the future may hold.
First and foremost we would like to say a massive thank you to Mark Robins for doing an unbelievable job since returning in his second stint as manager and getting this club it’s first promotion in decades.
First and foremost we would like to say a massive thank you to Mark Robins for doing an unbelievable job since returning in his second stint as manager and getting this club it’s first promotion in decades.
We are over the moon that the club have secured both Mark Robins and Adi Viveash services on longer term deals, they have both been fantastic for the club and have made many of us fans proud to be Coventrians again.
Robins has had his critics particularly at the start of the season when keeping faith in Marc McNulty at a time when many thought he was going to turn out to be the latest CCFC flop.
It would have been easy to have given in to the pressure from those fans calling for McNulty to be dropped and to be replaced by our home town boy Jordan Pontecelli who was on fire for the development side.
Robins quite rightly stuck to his guns and managed both McNulty and Pontecelli perfectly. He kept the pressure off the young lad using him as a bit part performer and allowing him to find his feet and grow as a player whilst chipping in with a few goals here and there.
At the same time Marc McNulty started to repay Robins faith as the goals started flying in around the mid season stage and beyond.
Add to that Robins other signings like Tom Davies, Dom Hyam, Rod McDonald, Liam Kelly and Jack Grimmer who all look like absolute steels.
To sign all of them on a budget and the majority of them at a fairly young age is fantastic recruitment, then add the best captain we have had in years in Michael Doyle really has helped balance the squad perfectly.
Let’s not forget Robins lost what looked to be his biggest name signing in Tony Andreu along with the in form Jodi Jones relatively early on in the season but still managed to get this club promoted and in some style too via the play offs.
It finally looks like the days when our squad is made up with a mix of “has beens" and a load of untried "rookies" on loan is behind us.
This scattergun, short term mentality
has clearly not worked in the past. In Robins we have a manager with a clear vision and a plan to take the club forward.
It really is so refreshing to see players join us on deals that go beyond 1 season with the club. In our opinion this has a huge effect. There is now a clearly visible connection between players and fans.
The players now feel like our players and actually look like they'll do anything for this club. Something that couldn’t be said for some of the teams we’ve had in recent times.
The connection between the players and fans is the best it’s been in a very long time.
it’s therefore imperative that we now do all we can to keep it that way.
It's great that our young fans have new heroes to worship that are actual Coventry City players, instead of young kid on loan that belongs to someone else, and who have no real affinity for the Sky Blues and what this club means to the fans.
We now have to build on what we have achieved this season.
Hopefully we are now in a position to offer our key players improved contract extensions, adding to the squad, as we did this season, with players who complement and enhance what we've already got.
At the same time the club must resist any temptation to sell any of our star assets.
If we are to achieve back to back promotions it will be done by adding to and improving what we already have in place.
Surley we can offer the likes of McNulty and Bayliss clauses in their new improved contracts that allows them a "get out" should things not go so well?
Robins has had his critics particularly at the start of the season when keeping faith in Marc McNulty at a time when many thought he was going to turn out to be the latest CCFC flop.
It would have been easy to have given in to the pressure from those fans calling for McNulty to be dropped and to be replaced by our home town boy Jordan Pontecelli who was on fire for the development side.
Robins quite rightly stuck to his guns and managed both McNulty and Pontecelli perfectly. He kept the pressure off the young lad using him as a bit part performer and allowing him to find his feet and grow as a player whilst chipping in with a few goals here and there.
At the same time Marc McNulty started to repay Robins faith as the goals started flying in around the mid season stage and beyond.
Add to that Robins other signings like Tom Davies, Dom Hyam, Rod McDonald, Liam Kelly and Jack Grimmer who all look like absolute steels.
To sign all of them on a budget and the majority of them at a fairly young age is fantastic recruitment, then add the best captain we have had in years in Michael Doyle really has helped balance the squad perfectly.
Let’s not forget Robins lost what looked to be his biggest name signing in Tony Andreu along with the in form Jodi Jones relatively early on in the season but still managed to get this club promoted and in some style too via the play offs.
It finally looks like the days when our squad is made up with a mix of “has beens" and a load of untried "rookies" on loan is behind us.
This scattergun, short term mentality
has clearly not worked in the past. In Robins we have a manager with a clear vision and a plan to take the club forward.
It really is so refreshing to see players join us on deals that go beyond 1 season with the club. In our opinion this has a huge effect. There is now a clearly visible connection between players and fans.
The players now feel like our players and actually look like they'll do anything for this club. Something that couldn’t be said for some of the teams we’ve had in recent times.
The connection between the players and fans is the best it’s been in a very long time.
it’s therefore imperative that we now do all we can to keep it that way.
It's great that our young fans have new heroes to worship that are actual Coventry City players, instead of young kid on loan that belongs to someone else, and who have no real affinity for the Sky Blues and what this club means to the fans.
We now have to build on what we have achieved this season.
Hopefully we are now in a position to offer our key players improved contract extensions, adding to the squad, as we did this season, with players who complement and enhance what we've already got.
At the same time the club must resist any temptation to sell any of our star assets.
If we are to achieve back to back promotions it will be done by adding to and improving what we already have in place.
Surley we can offer the likes of McNulty and Bayliss clauses in their new improved contracts that allows them a "get out" should things not go so well?
By that we mean, should we fail to gain promotion this season to the Championship then they can go next year if a team from a league above comes calling?
We think that’s fair on both the club and the players!
The players reputation will only rise again with another year at this club and just imagine how much their stock will have risen if they were influential in helping the team pull off back to back promotions with the club.
So our message is simple.
‘DO NOT SELL’
There is no rush, all of the players look happy to be at Coventry City.
Let’s learn from the James Maddison deal. Regardless of any sell on clause he was sold too soon and too cheap. That will be the case again if we let Tom Bayliss go this summer.
OUR STANCE MOVING FORWARD
We as a group at PSB have always said that we will support the club when we see the change and ambition we have asked for.
Therefore if the club changes for the better and does the things that we have been constantly crying out for them to do and we then still choose to not support it then that is clearly very hypocritical on our part.
This feels like a very new CCFC, our love is flooding back for this club. For the first time in ages we look to be heading in the right direction.
The players and management deserve our support. It is therefore our intention to all purchase new season tickets for the 2018/2019 season.
If the club repeat what they did last summer by adding to the existing squad with good players on long term deals and also resist selling our best players in looking to give promotion a "right good go" then we as fans will put our differences with the owners aside and all kick on together as one.
This summer really is make or break. Let’s see what it brings.
We pray that the club owners have learnt from their mistakes and don’t blow this golden opportunity to rebuild bridges with stay away fans.
The fans want to come back desperately but as we have always said this is a two way street.
If the club is run in a proper manner and we see a deminstration of the ambition needed to climb the leagues then we will back without any doubt.
In August we desperately want to be sat in our new seats with our first season tickets for what has seemed like decades.
That however will all come down to how SISU play it this summer.
Joy and Tim it’s over to you. Is it going to be same old same old or have we really turned that corner?
The players reputation will only rise again with another year at this club and just imagine how much their stock will have risen if they were influential in helping the team pull off back to back promotions with the club.
So our message is simple.
‘DO NOT SELL’
There is no rush, all of the players look happy to be at Coventry City.
Let’s learn from the James Maddison deal. Regardless of any sell on clause he was sold too soon and too cheap. That will be the case again if we let Tom Bayliss go this summer.
OUR STANCE MOVING FORWARD
We as a group at PSB have always said that we will support the club when we see the change and ambition we have asked for.
Therefore if the club changes for the better and does the things that we have been constantly crying out for them to do and we then still choose to not support it then that is clearly very hypocritical on our part.
This feels like a very new CCFC, our love is flooding back for this club. For the first time in ages we look to be heading in the right direction.
The players and management deserve our support. It is therefore our intention to all purchase new season tickets for the 2018/2019 season.
If the club repeat what they did last summer by adding to the existing squad with good players on long term deals and also resist selling our best players in looking to give promotion a "right good go" then we as fans will put our differences with the owners aside and all kick on together as one.
This summer really is make or break. Let’s see what it brings.
We pray that the club owners have learnt from their mistakes and don’t blow this golden opportunity to rebuild bridges with stay away fans.
The fans want to come back desperately but as we have always said this is a two way street.
If the club is run in a proper manner and we see a deminstration of the ambition needed to climb the leagues then we will back without any doubt.
In August we desperately want to be sat in our new seats with our first season tickets for what has seemed like decades.
That however will all come down to how SISU play it this summer.
Joy and Tim it’s over to you. Is it going to be same old same old or have we really turned that corner?
Regards
PSB GROUP