Could I just point out that, while he has been given a new contract, I doubt if it's for very much more money as we don't have it. We're paying £1000 a day for our ground alone as it got sold a few years back (supposedly to keep us out of admin - but there's another story ). What I think he will have got out of it is assurances over player sales so that he can keep his team together.

Oh, and to the person who had a go about him playing squash while keeping you (and us, and Charlton - but who cares about them!), that was our Chairman's idea of a joke . Did none of you see him on SSN?

Sky presenter asked how close EH was to leaving? EM said "Well he was on the train but I dragged him off"

Sky presenter said "Really?!!!"

He has a slightly warped sense of humour )

As an outsider, for what it's worth, I think you could do worse than take your Dougie on. It's very similar to the situation we had with Eddie 2 years ago and it's worked out pretty well for us. He may not have managerial experience, nor did Eddie, but he knows your club inside out and that gives him a huge advantage.

Do the players all like Dougie as much as the fans seem to? That could be key....

I rather thought I had answered you but in case I missed something, if you want to clearly pose the question again, I'd be happy to have a go at answering it.

Meanwhile, our board has had over a week now to demonstrate it was in control. The question is not about Eddie Howe specifically. Eddie Howe is neither here nor there and I don't care why he did or didn't take the job. The question is did they protect the interests of a club in the relegation zone who were about to enter a critical transfer window by making sure they had a manager lined up to take the job before they fired their existing one. I'm sorry, but the evidence says that the answer is "clearly not."

Furthermore, Parrish's statement in which I believe he said something to the effect that he had started to wonder if Burley had been the wrong decision in the weeks before he finally departed merely adds insult to injury as not only were we unprepared with a successor when we did let him go, but it turns out we had known for some time that a change or manager was at least a possibility.

I have nothing against the board personally and, indeed, I thank them for saving the club. I am not on a vicarious mission to damn anyone. But this situation is a mess and I'm sorry but it makes our board look extremely incompetent in my book. I have yet to see any compelling evidence to persuade me to change this view. This is reality; I am simply judging by the facts as we know them.

Well in my opinion clearly they did and the fact that Dougie Freedman is now our manager suggests that you are wrong.

Get out of that one, Syd.