Found this info out on another forum.

The league and the FA are slowy killing lower league football off. I agree some clubs dont help themselves in the way they are run eg Darlow but surely the league has to look at his structure. 400k to a league one or two club with low income from attendances will almost tie them over for the season but they prefer to give it to teams who are getting crowds of 15k+

To be honest I'm surprised we get anything. Can't think why the Premiershite aren't holding onto the money - they usually do. It's a £50k windfall that hopefully can be used for transfers.

and anybody tries to tell me the premier league is the pinnacle of football - and I'll tell them they are full of sh-it

so what is the pinnacle then?

I knew you'd stick up for the Premier League. Next you'll be telling me Chelsea were robbed...

Not the premiership, its wank

They are brainwashing certain types of people into believing that Stoke City vs. Blackburn is an enthralling battle between two powerful sides, when in fact it is two teams hanging on for dear life and fighting from the scraps off the top four


And when Andy Gray does his tictacs bit before the match, does he think that I don't KNOW a forward will make runs into the box

The bounder


FACT

Just my opinion. I suppose it can be argued that the premier league has the most skill and talent in this country but I think it lacks the passion and excitement of the other leagues. It seems to have more cynical fouls and play acting than other leagues and is purely motivated by excessive wages. For me at least it typifies the 'fat cat' culture that exists in many aspects of life today.

yeah i agree with that. you might see the most skill in the premier league with gerrard, lampard etc. but you see the most passion and "down to earth" football (not the best phrase but you see what im getting at) lower down the leagues, which is not fuelled by wealthy tycoons who buy whoever they fancy. the prem is boring i reckon, with the usual big four up there every year earning massive money. you cant beat lower league.

They should have stuck it into Leagues One and Two alone - Championship teams simply don't need it. The lack of parity between the leagues gets more disturbing by the year; talent is simply bought out, leaving us stranded for cash as 'real' prices are never paid. I wouldn't be surprised if there was only the Premiership, Championship and League One in ten years time, as others wouldn't have enough money to even be professional.

In my opinion you're being far too kind in every possible meaning of the word.

thank you MadJohn, the only one capable of giving an answer. There seems to be a lot of sheep running around shouting down the 'Premier League' without actually knowing fully why they do.

Eh? I see plenty of reasons given by those who don't think the Premier League is the pinnacle. Unlike those who think it is....

i never said it was the pinnacle, i asked what is the pinnacle, only one person stated what they thought the pinnacle was

so what do YOU think the pinnacle is?

personally? Amateur football. Where people play because they LOVE playing. No money, no politics, no arsehole fans wanting to fight, just pure unadulerated (but ultimately crap) football

don't be insulting our intelligence there sonny. We don't have to justify to you why we think it's a bag of shite - surely as a Hartlepool fan it should go without saying - Mad John shouldn't have to spell it out. Do you really think we didn't understand the reasons he gave? Do you want us all to write you an essay?
You STILL didn't answer my question I posed to you a while back...now don't plead dumb please as to what it was.....

i didn't mean to insult your intelligence so for that i humbly apologise, i guess i didn't phrase it correctly!.... sonny? do you wear a flat cap and smoke a pipe?

I didn't answer your question for 2 reasons. 1, it will never happenand 2, it will never happen

apologies for calling you sonny, but you went prodding people with a stick there, dismissing the opinions of the majority of the critics of the premier league. They shouldn't have to back up their point of view on this board in my opinion. It is a universally accepted viewpoint on here, and therefore people with the opposite view should have to explain themselves.
The disappearance of sportsmanship and greed overrides any football merits that particular league has (not that it has much merit anyway as a 4 team cartel).
As for the scenario that our opponents wouldn't disappear and the league format as we know it would go with it - why couldn't that happen? They are already on about prem 2 - I think it's a very real threat - and then my contempt for anyone who continued to support any of the "elite" football would reach even new heights.

i can be an arsehole on a morning (some would say im an arsehole full stop) so i agree i was out of order


i don't believe it will happen, but if it did and it affected Pools in a negative way then yes i would be of the same opinion as yourself.

If someone likes watching the premier league they don't have too explain themselves at all, it's up too them.

they can watch it for all I care, but don't forget whose pockets you are lining if you haven't got a dodgy box - the dodgy box will give you a clear conscience if you do watch it that you're not giving them a shilling.
Ironically I refuse to watch it anyway - the only footy I watch is the football league highlights and Conference/football league live matches. Usually it's the documentary channels for me.

I don't sit and watch it, it doesn't own me, i don't support anyone, but i watch it, i watch motd, footy focus, bit of setanta, any lives games on setanta i'll try and catch.

That's just my perogitive, i'm not lining anyones pocket by watching these games.

I do enjoy watching the championship and follow it with very keen interest, but the buggers put it on at half 9 on a sunday morning, i'm either hungover, at footy or watchin bloody dora.

Got a v plus box now so i'll miss nothing next year.