Adam Marriott departs

[KneesBees99]

wouldn't be Barnet FC if there wasn't a ton of overreaction.

Marriott was an average NL striker who hit a purple patch. He is 30 and would most likely not have scored more than 10 next season.

It defies belief that anyone thinks our Managerial set up don't already bloody know we need striker or two. Its only mid-june for Christ sake.

Losing Marriott does not mean we are in decline. Wake up or shut up

Football fans are truly a fickle bunch. Players are praised to the rooftops when they are here, but suddenly become "average" and easily replaced when they leave.

He did well, but it’s not untrue is it. He wasn’t firing regularly until February.

[PBBee]

Absolute shambles we have lost him to Bromley - by all accounts he wanted to stay at Barnet months ago & no doubt we started with a nice low offer & then he found some form & we shot ourselves in the foot.

People saying he’s not a big loss didn’t watch us last season as we have no one else who knows where the goal is, even EMC etc need 10x the chances. The man was clinical & we really needed his goals in the bank next season.

[Tuesds]

It's as gutting that he's gone to Bromely as it is that he's left, believe that's everyone who made 40+ appearances last year bar ephron gone now?
It's a hard one to take, I agree with those who say we should've acted quicker but I also agree with those who say he wasn't looking like anything extraordinary in February-March time
But there are plenty of forwards who've scored plenty of goals in non league, it's just up to DB, TK and Co. To identify and bring in the right one

If we’re looking in non league for a south east-based striker who scored plenty of goals last season the stand-out candidate is… Mo Faal! 33 goals plus 13 assists.

More seriously, I don’t see many feasible and attractive prospects in the list of National League South top scorers. Barham, maybe, who hasn’t yet been announced as having signed a new deal at Maidstone.

[Norfolkbee]

I saw someone on here describe Bromley as a "bankrolled" club. My question is: does that mean Barnet is not? There were certainly times in the past when opposing fans claimed we were.

[Tuesds]

I saw someone on here describe Bromley as a "bankrolled" club. My question is: does that mean Barnet is not? There were certainly times in the past when opposing fans claimed we were.

People tend to refer to clubs as ‘bankrolled’ when their spending on players seems out of proportion relative to their attendances. Bromley’s average attendance was more than 25% bigger than ours this season. I don’t know whether or not they are bankrolled, but they wouldn’t need to be in order to be in a stronger position than us while they are pulling in so many more paying punters.

If we keep failing to improve our alarmingly low attendances, this sort of thing will keep happening.

[thebeekeeper]

I saw someone on here describe Bromley as a "bankrolled" club. My question is: does that mean Barnet is not? There were certainly times in the past when opposing fans claimed we were.

Bromley are clearly spending more than they did in the past (hence how they've progressed into the division's upper echelons), but I've never thought of them in the 'bankrolled' category, a la Wrexham, Solihull, former NL teams Fleetwood, Salford, FGR etc.

They seem like a club who are partly growing organically (increased crowds, and I noticed a few off the pitch facilities last time I was there) and presumably have an owner putting a few quid in (but not a crazy amount like the clubs above).

In a way, almost every National League club is in that bracket - it's very difficult to run a team and break even at this level (and I think when you try to, you end up in the table's lower reaches - like us, Aldershot etc).

[Norfolkbee]

I saw someone on here describe Bromley as a "bankrolled" club. My question is: does that mean Barnet is not? There were certainly times in the past when opposing fans claimed we were.

Bromley are clearly spending more than they did in the past (hence how they've progressed into the division's upper echelons), but I've never thought of them in the 'bankrolled' category, a la Wrexham, Solihull, former NL teams Fleetwood, Salford, FGR etc.

They seem like a club who are partly growing organically (increased crowds, and I noticed a few off the pitch facilities last time I was there) and presumably have an owner putting a few quid in (but not a crazy amount like the clubs above).

In a way, almost every National League club is in that bracket - it's very difficult to run a team and break even at this level (and I think when you try to, you end up in the table's lower reaches - like us, Aldershot etc).

The break even bit is very interesting. If, and only, if, that is true, why is it so important to TK to do so when other owners are clearly happy to push the boat out? If this is the case, then TK certainly doesn't view the football club as a tax write-off.

[thebeekeeper]

I saw someone on here describe Bromley as a "bankrolled" club. My question is: does that mean Barnet is not? There were certainly times in the past when opposing fans claimed we were.

Bromley are clearly spending more than they did in the past (hence how they've progressed into the division's upper echelons), but I've never thought of them in the 'bankrolled' category, a la Wrexham, Solihull, former NL teams Fleetwood, Salford, FGR etc.

They seem like a club who are partly growing organically (increased crowds, and I noticed a few off the pitch facilities last time I was there) and presumably have an owner putting a few quid in (but not a crazy amount like the clubs above).

In a way, almost every National League club is in that bracket - it's very difficult to run a team and break even at this level (and I think when you try to, you end up in the table's lower reaches - like us, Aldershot etc).

The break even bit is very interesting. If, and only, if, that is true, why is it so important to TK to do so when other owners are clearly happy to push the boat out? If this is the case, then TK certainly doesn't view the football club as a tax write-off.

In fairness, I can't claim to know whether TK is running the club with the aim of breaking even. But it certainly appears that we've cut our budget significantly since the end of parachute payments / since the pandemic. So there has surely been a conscious decision to rein in spending to a degree.

As to why that's the case, I suppose it's a matter of speculation. It may just be a realisation that we can't match the spending power of the division's big teams - so what's the point at throwing more money at something if the odds of success are slim?

There's also the argument that Barnet FC is potentially just a burden for TK at this stage. Does he actually need the team to be successful? Ultimately, The Hive is the valuable asset, Barnet's fortunes are probably pretty inconsequential in a business sense.

Like I say, complete speculation - but I would love another Q&A at some point, so these questions about the club's direction of travel can be put to him.

[Norfolkbee]

Living in my part of the world, I'm only too aware of the background to the fluctuating fortunes of Norwich City over the past few years. Canary fans have been on at Delia and Michael, to bring in outside investment, but they have always been reluctant to do so while the club balances the books. Finally, after another crap season, they've backed down and agreed (probably reluctantly) to bring in a wealthy American investor.
I see parallels with this situation at Barnet. Like Delia and Michael at Norwich, TK still has his supporters at Barnet and there is unlikely to be any likelihood of him selling up - and why should he? However, if financing the FC in order to keep it competitive is beyond either his pocket (unlikely) or business plan, he should seek outside investment.
Bringing some new directors on board would not only bring in welcome new finance, but could also bring some fresh eyes and a bit of welcome enthusiasm for the football side of the operation.

[Beesting]

I really think its time the BFCSA have another interview with TK, I would like to know his stategy for the next few seasons and why revenue created from the hive has not been pumped into Barnet at all. The whole reason we were sold harrow was this reason.

[letchbee94]

We best have some good replacement lined up PLUS another striker to go with him.

[ninestein]

Still plenty of time to bring in attacking players.
The club would have looked ahead and had targets in case AM didn't sign. Pre-season still a few weeks away. No need to panic.

[Norfolkbee]

Still plenty of time to bring in attacking players.
The club would have looked ahead and had targets in case AM didn't sign. Pre-season still a few weeks away. No need to panic.

It's not a case of panic with me. It's more a case of "oh no, not again". It's the same every year, a neverending story of completely rebuilding the squad with an ever-decreasing budget. Surely, if you get a decent player, you move heaven and earth to keep them.

[moortownbee]

To be fair Bromley won over £100,000 in prize money for winning the Trophy. So will have have a few quid

[Sam_BFC]

100k should pay the salaries for a couple of fairly senior players for a year.

Barnet may be looking at far higher numbers if there are any sell ons fees forthcoming from Peterborough. Could be interesting.