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Gaz Dean
Views: 807
Has announced his retirement from playing football. Says he hopes to stay at Brackley in some capacity.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 595
Impressive to play 830 games, with all but one of those seasons being at either Boro or Brackley!
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 577
Crossed my mind if we haven't approached him for one more season.
Edited by Lord of the Manor at 15:00:18 on 21st April 2026
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 590
In his statement he said he wanted to retire at the highest level possible and at the club he's been loyal to for the last ten years.
so think that will be that
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 457
What a team we had back in the day , until everything went pear shaped, and a decent stadium to play our football on , until that went worst than
pear shaped, still the nuns have somewhere to play ,thanks to the Boro !!!
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 475
Yes, a good young bunch of lads marshalled and supported by a few older, experienced players. Like the present team ,they moved through the leagues, via the play offs ,back to the summit of non league football. It was a pity that events off the field led to Wilkins departure taking the better players of the team with him. As for liberty way, what would that be worth to the club now ,as getting anything like those facilities, is going to cost a fortune.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 313
Only Moult and York went with Wilkin
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 321
Did you not consider Moult and York to be two of our better players then?
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 276
absolutely, but it was the following year we lost a good core en masse to Solihull
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 299
My point was that Wilkin leaving and taking some of our better players with him was the start of what was a torrid time for the club, both off and on the pitch.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 284
Made 21 appearances for Crewe since September last year.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 289
On the books at Crewe Alexandra, but hasnt played since Jan
---
Hope is not a plan.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 347
If you get the chance go and have a look at the state of the pitch.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 313
Whatever the state of the pitch , it is part of a stadium complex that already exists. When/ if we eventually move back to Nuneaton we start with an open space. What do you think that it will cost to develope a field into a ground that will serve our needs, even at our present status? The point I was making in my previous post was that losing a manager and even having to drop down three or four leagues is recoverable, as the last two seasons prove. Having to restart from scratch to build a new home for the club is entirely a different matter indeed.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 488
Might be nice for him to see a proper crowd again though.
Never say never.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 445
I am sure he performed in front of "proper crowds" whilst playing for Brackley. Is our average of 600 a proper crowd serving a town with a population of 86,000. I'm pretty sure that Brackley's crowds represent a higher percentage of their population of 16,000 than we do.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 447
There is absolutely no link between population and football match attendance.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 414
Sorry Greg but there is and there is some academic research to prove it. Food for thought though that Barwells support average is around half that of Boros when you consider the population of Barwell is around 10 times smaller than Nuneaton.
It s a subject worthy of PHD research as to the decline of Nuneaton Boros crowds since the 1960s. In 14 years of Alliance premier conf national football Boro /Town have played, the average attendance is only a tad over 1300. My own opinion as to Boros poor support is the nearness of Coventry city and even Villa and the improvement of transport links over the years to access these. These fans in Nuneaton can get there easily and I would never expect these fans to pack in and come and watch Boro even if Boro produced a decent National league side.
Clubs like Hereford and Boston still generate decent gates but these have no good sized league clubs nearby.
It’s a complex question though I will admit.
I’ve only looked at Boro gates from 1979 onwards so if anyone knows the averages prior to that it would be very interesting to see.
Very few traditional non league clubs have had a record attendance over 10 000 in their history but Boro have had several. There are many reasons as to the decline over the years and all of us will have opinions on that.
Edited by Armchair Observer at 13:49:27 on 22nd April 2026
Edited by Armchair Observer at 13:50:26 on 22nd April 2026
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 374
There must be many factors why attendence numbers are declining. When I started going down Manor park, mid sixties, we were getting 2/ 3 thousand for most league games. Obviously ,as records suggest ,cup games and local derbies ,attracted many thousands more. This was a time when there was full employment in the town, and many in industry worked saturday morning too. Many, including myself, would go home wash, change, grab something to eat, then make our way down to the cock and Bear or the Naggs for a pint, then on to the game. Not many owned their own cars in those days so getting to the likes of Cov, Leicester, Villa or West Brom meant a coach or train. By the mid seventies the average attendences were down to about 1600. Again, certainly under Geof Coleman ,some games would still attract twice that many. The football, late seventies was not such an attraction as hooliganism raised it's ugly head, and parents were loath to introduce their children to football games at that time. Also many of the better players at the Boro' like Lewis, Vincent, Sugrue,fleet and Phillips were released or transfered away. We just qualified, mid table, to gain entry to the newly formed Conference league but were soon
relegated back into the southern league. Under graham Carr, we rebuilt the team, won the league, and finished runners up in the conference. The crowds, however, did not return and apart from a couple of seasons under Brendon Phillips we have failed to attract barely a thousand. The last two seasons we have been top of the league, hence last seasons average of 600. What the average will be in a higher league depends on whether we are competing, or just maintaining a status quo.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 327
good post that S B.
a lot of truth in what you say.
thinking back i seem to remember that live tv was minimal
in the early 50s i think it was the cup final on tv and that was about your lot.
so as not to effect the smaller clubs div 3 downwards etc.
that philosophy has been binned yonks ago its now all about ££££££ greed greed greed
its only fair to say that entertainment was not what it is now.
you can watch what who and when you want
long gone have the days of the minimum wage testimonial games for club stalwarts etc etc
plus im sure many can remember threadbare pitches, grass on the 4 corners only
footballs that sent you dizzy when you headed them if wet.
not knocking progress but does it make for more excitement and thrills ???? VAR anyone.@
you dont now need to get out of the armchair to watch football worldwide 24/7
good ? or bad??? pass.
UTB. ;-)
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 291
Very true Joe. Like you say, it seems to be all about money these last few years. Players demand such high wages, that admission prices in the premiership have rocketed to over £70 per game.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 410
22100 v Rotherham
18600 v Swansea
think their the 2 biggest official ones based on memory.
which i accept is not a 100pc.
im sure someone will confirm or correct me.
To add early 1950s Watford 12000 ??? QPR fa cup 13000 +
League late 1950s Bath city 6200 Worcester 5800
even Bosten 4,500 midweek
all above no floodlights.
happy days ;-)
Edited by Joe at 15:09:37 on 22nd April 2026
Edited by Joe at 15:18:35 on 22nd April 2026
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 379
So how do you explain that Coventry United has attendances as low as 100 this season when you consider the population of Coventry, and Boston Town's average attendance is way below 200? IMarine are based in the Merseyside area, so why is their attendance so much lower than Liverpool and Everton?
I would say - without deeper study - that other factors are much more significant in attendance level than the population of the town or conurbation. At the other extreme, at one time Gresley's average home attendance was bigger than the population of Church Gresly, where the ground is located.
As an off the cuff statement, my gut feeling is that the lower down the pyramid you go, the less population is a factor in attendance.
Edited by Greg (NBFC) at 14:10:32 on 22nd April 2026
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 468
Perhaps not. However, disparaging remarks about crowds other teams attract is disrepectful and is never a reason a player would want to leave such a club. Suggesting we have big crowds should be looked at in perspective and not as something to gloat about.
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 442
Unless he is prepared to play for us on the cheap i doubt we could afford his likely wages ; even if he wanted to play for us
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Re: Gaz Dean
Views: 441
Not even up for discussion I am sure, he's very much stated he is calling it a day whilst he was at his highest level.
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