Ashley’s confused about football – Do tell!

Posted on October 14th, 2013 | 140 Comments |

Mike Ashley.
Ashley: A bit of a clown when it comes to football?
In an interview for Sky TV, Alan Pardew expresses the depths of Mike Ashley’s confusion about football and erroneously claims the club has no debt.

Normally, I avoid the Daily Mail unless I have fires to light but this particular interview, originally for Sky TV, caught my eye.

In the interview, Pardew says:

“Mike is a strong character who has been a success in his whole business life and is a genius in that world – but when you come to football, the logic doesn’t quite fit.

“He loves football but he sometimes can’t understand how it works and it confuses and upsets him, and when he is upset, he does things that aren’t brilliant for the football club.

“That’s just Mike and he has funded the club, made sure we have no debt – other than to himself – and supported me, but unless we get a billionaire from deepest Russia we are probably not going to be able to compete with the likes of Man United, Man City and Chelsea, which is what our fans want.

“We were after flair players and when you get into that market as a Premier League club, you have your league and divisions like the Bundesliga chasing them because they are a rare commodity, so it is difficult to get them over the line.

“Loic Remy has been a great signing and given us what we didn’t have last year which is a striker who can play, build the game and finish, while he has a nice manner, is comfortable with our group and has the confidence to play for Newcastle, too.

“But Mike has put in about £200million of his own money and I don’t think he wants to put any more of his own money in.”

There are a few points I picked out of that lot. First of all, it’s hardly a secret that the world of football confuses Ashley is it? Some of the decisions he has made over the years bear testament to that.

Another point I picked up on is where Pardew says the club has no debt. If you look back to Worky’s analysis from April you’ll see the club does have debts to the tune of £129.34m. Pardew qualifies that above by saying that the debt is to Mike Ashley. Yes, but it’s still debt. Mike Ashley and Newcastle United are separate entities and if Ashley was ever to move on, the club would need to repay that debt. So the no debt statement is a load of tosh.

Another thing is that even if Ashley wiped the debt tomorrow, he will have put around £260 million in total into club which would be worth around the same with no debt. He bought a business for around what it was worth to use it as a publicity tool for his more important business which is worth over £4 billion. As for Pardew saying “unless we get a billionaire from deepest Russia we are probably not going to be able to compete with the likes of Man United, Man City and Chelsea,” well, with a personal fortune of around £3 billion now, Ashley is actually a multi billionaire himself and the fourth richest owner in the Premier League, just like the oligarchs of “deepest Russia” Pardew spoke of. At least some of this has been due to him using Newcastle United as a free publicity tool for Sports Direct too, whose share price has increased from around 146p when he assumed 100% control of the Newcastle United in July 2007, to around 686p at the time of writing. It’s hard to understand why Pardew keeps harping on about this like a broken record.

Finally, I note that Pardew stopped short of saying he doesn’t understand football though!

Pardew’s ‘Goals on Sunday’ interview.

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NUFCBlog Author: Hugh de Payen I'm a baby-boomer of the punk rock persuasion, currently exiled in Somerset for crimes committed in a previous life where locals keep trying to poison me with something called 'scrumpy'. Hates sprouts, coat-hangers, Cilla Black, ornaments, Steven Seagull movies and 50 Cent (he's not worth 10). Hugh de Payen has written 634 articles on this blog.

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140 Responses

  1. Yeah, life is sh!t for Mike Ashley. The funniest thing Pardew ever said was that Ashley saved the club when we got relegated when, in fact, he was doing everything he could to sell it.

  2. So Newcastle United is basically his loss leader in the big Sports Direct shop. One that is netting him £billions, a little bit of investment wouldn’t hurt his finances.

    Still I would think most people (certainly the ones on this blog)realise this, which is why we get a little irate (understatement?)with him.

    Incidentally from the previous thread, and I think most of us got it, Joe Stokoe = Bob Stokoe which is why Darth is asking, tongue in cheek who he is!

  3. Grumpy Old-Toon says:
    October 14, 2013 at 7:39 pm

    “Incidentally from the previous thread, and I think most of us got it, Joe Stokoe = Bob Stokoe which is why Darth is asking, tongue in cheek who he is!”

    Grumpy, I seem to recall that both Joe Harvey and Bob Stokoe cropped up in the discussion a while back, and Professor Chucklebutty conflated the two into “Joe Stokoe.”

  6. GS says:
    October 14, 2013 at 7:57 pm

    “Worky @3: you have to give him a break. He is getting on ye knaa.”

    GS, I know perfectly well that Chuck knows the difference between Joe Harvey and Bob Stokoe, and if he is “getting on” he actually saw them play, which I didn’t. Though as I’ve already mentioned, I was privileged enough to meet Stokoe and see him around Joker Park I was a bairn. My mate’s dad was a Sunderland director. He let us play with the FA Cup in 1973!

    Howay Darth, give it a rest now. ;-)

  7. Yeah actually they were similar in build, both skinny, especially Harvey though he was almost at his sell by date when he captained the club, apparently Seymour had been on the lookout for a replacement and he found him during the cup game against Portsmouth.
    Jimmy Scoular, who made Tiote look gentle in comparison.
    A Scotch International who besides being an enforcer, was both a good midfield general, excellent passer and need I say could put his foot in.

    GS
    Is this all you have to do, get off on insulting people,
    I was right you are in fact just a jerk with nothing of interest to say, plus your attempts at humor reflect that you actually don’t have a sense of humor.

    Poor old Darth is still smarting over something, takes his shot’s whenever he can.
    But just another bore who has yet to add anything of interest, much like GS.

  9. Nice breakdown. I keep seeing references to AP criticizing his owner-look as I may, I can’t find that, rather I find more confusing doublespeak and carrying water for Ashley. Quelle surprise.

    As for the “deepest Russia” comment-given that our owner is a multi-billionaire, I took it as a cultural bias thing. Par for the course for Alan “I meant rape figuratively” Pardew.

  10. Ah, come on lads-calm down! worky has enough to do writing interesting football-related blog about this shower without having to play schoolmaster to a bunch of middle-aged (or older?) men…

  11. chunk says:
    October 14, 2013 at 8:46 pm

    “Yeah actually they were similar in build, blah”.

    Once again, you ‘gooled’ all of that, you old fraud.

  12. workyticket says:
    October 14, 2013 at 8:45 pm

    “he actually saw them play, which I didn’t”.

    If you believe that, worky, you’ll believe anything.

  13. “It’s hard to understand why Pardew keeps harping on about this like a broken record”

    Pardwho does nothing else Hugh. His whole career has been a broken record, stuttering from one crisis to another yet learning very little along the way.

    I seriously doubt whether anyone in football really bothers to listen to him at all. SAF used to talk to him and give him advice – which Pardwho thought was wonderful – but then you gotta realise he shook £3m out of the grey haired numpty for Obertan :(

  14. tunyc says:
    October 14, 2013 at 8:48 pm

    “As for the “deepest Russia” comment-given that our owner is a multi-billionaire, I took it as a cultural bias thing. Par for the course for Alan “I meant rape figuratively” Pardew.”

    I’ve mentioned this before but people seemed to miss the delicious irony in Pardew’s comment. The player Essien “raped” was Ched Evans, eventually became the only player ever to be actually convicted of rape over here!

    I remember the BBC at the time claiming they thought he said “raked” rather than “raped.”

  15. tunyc says:
    October 14, 2013 at 8:50 pm

    “Ah, come on lads-calm down! worky has enough to do writing interesting football-related blog about this shower without having to play schoolmaster to a bunch of middle-aged (or older?) men…”

    tunyc, neither Hugh nor myself should be doing anything right now. We’re just trying to run a ‘skeleton service’ but we’re both completely knacked.

  16. workyticket says:
    October 14, 2013 at 9:01 pm

    “I remember the BBC at the time claiming they thought he said “raked” rather than “raped.””

    Yeah, remember that too…but I’d politely point out to the BBC that I have my very own functioning ears, thank you very much!

    As for being knacked: all I can say is I appreciate what y’all do. Thanks for giving me a place to argue with similarly-disturbed middle-aged (and older) men!

  17. Old is only a state of mind, there are those in their twenties who may not be chronologically older than others in their forties or fifties, but who ‘s attitudes are those of an older person.
    It’s about the how, what, where and why, one lives their life.
    And relative with age, one learns to appreciate life all the more, at least those who make life pleasurable, by taking advantage of it.

  18. Dark broon

    Why is it you doubt I ever saw the early and mid fifties Newcastle sides, after all forty five thousand plus per fortnight saw them play at St. James’ Park.
    And how could I google the fact both players Walker and Harvey were both skinny, with Harvey having wavy hair and Stokoe having straight hair and both Bobby Mitchell and Alf McMichael also having wavy hair, whereas Charlie Crowe had sandy hair.
    Is that all available on Google ?

  20. Worky: it your blog. I didn’t insult him, I was only talking about mackems and he got upset.

    Must be from previous conversations but I will leave it there because it/he gets very boring and repeats himself.

  22. chuck says:
    October 14, 2013 at 9:59 pm

    “Old is only a state of mind, there are those in their twenties who may not be chronologically older than others in their forties or fifties, but who ‘s attitudes are those of an older person.”

    Nowadays it’s gone full circle, Chuck. You had the “generation gap” back in the old days, where the old fogeys would tell the young pups that they were too rebellious, that their music was too loud, that they were too left wing, they were all on drugs blah blah…

    Now I’m an old fogey, I have to go around telling the youngsters that they aren’t rebellious enough, that their music isn’t loud enough (god it’s so bland and shite now!), that they are too right wing, that they are pathetic spineless conformists who never question anything. Too many of them are just blinded and brainwashed by consumerism.

  23. Make life pleasurable, Chuck? You wouldn’t know pleasure if it was Raquel Welch from 1969 giving you a blow job.

    Worky, I agree with you about the music. It has been Simon Cowelled and Taylor Swifted.

    Even the so-called edgy stuff is sanitized. Snoop had his own reality show.

  25. GS says:
    October 14, 2013 at 11:27 pm

    “You wouldn’t know pleasure if it was Raquel Welch from 1969 giving you a blow job.”

    Was that your sexual fantasy when you were young then, GS? :lol:

  26. I visited the NE for the first time in over 20 years recently and whilst I was there I took a nostalgic walk through the local park of my youth in Dunston.

    I remember having a kick about there as a young lad with some friends and someone said there’s Wor Jacky playing over there and b*gger me if it wasn’t true. He was playing some sort of charity thing, it was a horrible wet day and hardly any one was watching.

    It was quite a few years after he’d quit football as a pro. All of the players looked like typical Sunday league players of the time. Actually thinking about it, it could have been a Sunday league thing as it wasn’t unknown for ex pro’s to turn out for pub teams at the time.

  28. Work @ 22#
    I know exactly what you mean, especially concerning your last paragraph, which was the point I was attempting to make.
    Where did it all go wrong?
    1984 is now becoming “Brave New World” without soma.

  29. GS

    Why are you so angry and insulting to others, you obviously have a problem that you cant handle, thinking you are so clever by saying, oops sorry! as if anyone care’s.
    It may be forgivable if at least you had a sense of humor.
    Sober up and try and act like in a decent manner, or just fugh off.

  30. In regard to the video @ 24#

    Pardew is actually dumber than I thought, by not being aware of how this interview would be portrayed by the media.

    I’m sure he must now regret his not so subtle put down of Ashley and his lack of understanding of football, even after six years involvement.

    I am also sure Ashley is not pleased to be described as a slow learner, certainly as a self made Billionaire, and by a 50+ idiot who has yet to understand the difference between “we was” and “we were”.

    Hopefully the message has been received by Ashley and he does the right thing, first start looking for the knowledgeable people who can rectify the present situation, a GM, a DOF and the necessary manager and coaches.

    Yes Ashley may be challenged as far as football is concerned, but that can be remedied by hiring those who do.

  31. Have to leave it there Chuckles. You think I have no sense of humour and I think you are boring and repeat yourself. If we carry on like this we will ruin Worky’s blog. So, I will stop. REALLY, THIS TIME I WILL.

  33. ya could probally fit what fatboy knows about football on the back of a stamp, and still have some room on it

  34. in fact i would not be surprised if peeps on here knew more about football than what fatboy dos lol

  35. <<<<<<< sees collos injuryed for the liverpool game,probally a blessing in disguise for us.collo aint got the pace to handle the racist, and he made collo look a right mug at anfield last season

  36. I reckon Pardew thinks he is now some kind of “Teflon Don”, Watching him in that interview.
    All the bravado and thinking he knows the club inside out, Has the hallmarks of a man, Who thinks he is here for a long time.

    That bit about blokes going shopping with their wives in replica kits, Is pathetic!
    As though that is somehow unique within Britain, I’ve been all over this country, And you will see blokes shopping in replica kits, In every town and city.

    So he is more or less saying Ashley is a petulant childish individual, Who makes massive mistakes, During his tantrums.
    Brilliant, That’s all we need, But i think most of us have Ashley pegged as that sort of bloke anyway!

    I am surprised Ashley has let him get away with saying stuff like that about him.
    Ashley must either be mellowing, Or Pardew has him over a barrel, Because Keegan got hauled over the coals, For similar utterances.

    I sick of hearing the “Ashley Is Skint” mantra, As the article states, Fourth richest owner in the Prem, And he cannot compete with the likes of Stoke City and West Brom, Never mind the “Top Four”.
    Sounds like Mckeag and co, All over again, They constantly pleaded poverty!

  37. looks like the trenchs are geting dug here, got a blooming scumberland surporter moveing in next door :( looks like wars just been declared :)

  39. joe hawkins says:
    October 15, 2013 at 10:12 am

    “That bit about blokes going shopping with their wives in replica kits, Is pathetic!
    As though that is somehow unique within Britain, I’ve been all over this country, And you will see blokes shopping in replica kits, In every town and city.”

    Joe, he was saying the full kit, with shorts and socks and all that on an everyday basis. Do you see that?

  40. @ workyticket
    only really see that when the teams running out on the pitch for the next game lmao

  41. TOONARMYELITE says:
    October 15, 2013 at 10:33 am

    “looks like the trenchs are geting dug here, got a blooming scumberland surporter moveing in next door :( looks like wars just been declared :)”

    You’ll need some barbed wire and a watch tower, Toon. How do you know, were they wearing red and white?

  42. Worky, He talking bollox there, I have never seen that, Unless the said bloke, Has been playing football before hand, And has met up with their spouse.
    I have seen kids with the full kit on, With their mothers shopping.
    You might see a bloke on a summer’s day with the top and the shorts on, With no socks and his trainers on.
    I have also seen this in places like Bristol, Liverpool, Leeds, Bradford etc.

    The way Pardew is going on, You would think they were walking about with football boots on, And a ball under their arm!

  43. TOONARMYELITE says:
    October 15, 2013 at 10:48 am

    “@ workyticket
    only really see that when the teams running out on the pitch for the next game lmao”

    Toon / Joe, the only time I’ve seen a full kit off a football pitch is when bairns are actually kicking a football around on the street or in a park. That’s the same up there or down here in deepest Arsenal country.

  45. Think Pards might have been exaggerating a bit – to be fair I don’t think I’ve been anywhere else and seen so many people in club tops on a non match day (maybe Liverpool) – I can’t ever recall shorts, socks etc

    Anyway I thought the interview was okay, he seemed fairly honest and he’s not the first to mention the goldfish bowl effect, if he doesn’t like it he can always hand in his resignation and bugger off back to anonymous London

  46. Best England result we can hope for tonight is a Sturridge / Gerrard double injury – come on Poland!

  47. joe hawkins says:
    October 15, 2013 at 10:12 am

    “Sounds like Mckeag and co, All over again, They constantly pleaded poverty!”

    McKeag was a local solicitor, Ashley is a multi billionaire.

  48. stevep says:
    October 15, 2013 at 12:59 pm

    “Think Pards might have been exaggerating a bit – to be fair I don’t think I’ve been anywhere else and seen so many people in club tops on a non match day (maybe Liverpool) – I can’t ever recall shorts, socks etc”

    I do see alot of Arsenal tops on a Saturday down here in North London.

    What is strange though (and I know I keep saying this), is that alot of Toon fans do undoubtedly buy the shirts, yet the club seems to make bugger all from them since Ashley and Sports Direct took over the merchandising.

    As I’ve already stated in another piece, Newcastle United’s commercial revenue (which includes shirt sales) is pathetic and only around half what it should be.

  50. The only thing I would concede to Pardew, In the interview, Is he is right about the hysteria, That surrounds the club.
    It can be detrimental at times, With some of the radgies who support the club.
    Some of the support we have, Leaves us constantly either two games from relegation, Or two games away from winning the league.
    Although i do feel it is typical Pardew, Looking for an out, To have another excuse ready, For when he fails again!

    If he was getting sacked tomorrow, He would turn on the fans, He claims to love so much so much.
    That would one of the first things he would cite, They are too demanding up there.
    That’s why i call him fake, Because he also claimed to love the West Ham fans, But was caught slagging them off in private!

  51. chuck @ 28: nah, there’s soma. You need a hookup in the city?

    GS @ 32: Really? A f**king swan terrorizing people?

  53. tunyc says:
    October 15, 2013 at 3:06 pm

    “chuck @ 28: nah, there’s soma. You need a hookup in the city?”

    tunyc, if you can get any of the Indian stuff that makes you immortal, I would certainly be interested.

  54. GS says:
    October 15, 2013 at 4:13 pm

    “This is a strange one from a very quizzical looking reporter:”

    GS, don’t take any notice of the shite in the Metro, especially about NUFC.

  55. You never know, I doubt Fergie would have been interested, But Moyes might see something in him.

  56. In a world where Darren Bent cost 18 million and Stewart Downing cost 18 million and Joe Allen cost 14 million. Why wouldn’t we spend the reported 6 million on Remy?

    If I was Ashley, I would probably spend the 6 million just to keep Shola out of the team.

    Sammy, on the other hand, looks like a decent player to me. If he puts a bit of weight on he could be the one Englishman we have in our team – or is he now Nigerian like Shola?

  57. I see where Yanga-M’biwa is now the designated goat.
    Personally I don’t think he has played that bad, but being Colocinni has reached sainthood, no one dares to criticize his efforts.
    A little equal blame please !

    Was reading on another blog, the suggestion, we play Santon on the wing (it was suggested LW) and Dummett at LB.
    No argument with that as we are aware he can play there.
    However I would prefer to see him (Santon) on the RW as he has the opportunity to either take the ball to the line and cross, or cut inside, whereas on the left we including every PL defender knows beforehand where he’s heading.

    Woulda Coulda Shoulda.
    Had we signed Douglas, a free agent during the summer, it would have strengthened a present weakness, with Taylor a bit injury prone and the other two’s game certainly not reflecting that they are doing the job.
    Actually thought Yanga-M’Biwa played decently at LB, so why not play him there and recall Taylor in the middle.
    Give Santon a shot at RW, where he can also cover for Debuchy’s runs. with Y.M’B. covering for our modern version of Robert (no defending) on the left.
    That’s because we have no real wingers, as such.

  58. If the above doesn’t work, we can change things around, being we have some quality in depth.
    And just the right (at present overconfident) manager to explain how it’s done.

    How does one both insult fans and owner, plus players in one swell foop of an interview and think it’s just fine.
    What planet is this guy on, perhaps he connected for some of tunyc’s soma.

  60. worky @ 53: I’ll keep my eyes open. I take it you don’t want any of that stuff that makes you into a flesh-eating zombie type, eh?

    chuck @ 58: the stuff I get makes you less likely to insult or fight with someone, which is good given my temperament.

  61. tunyc

    Is there an insinuation there ?
    Either I should be lighting up more or lightening up a bit.

  62. Guess everyone is watching the Engerland game, don’t fancy it, but we are through already.
    Hey Hey USA !
    That should raise some hackles !

  65. chuck says:
    October 15, 2013 at 9:15 pm

    “Hey Hey USA !
    That should raise some hackles !”

    Sounding like a flag waving ‘krout’ there, chuckles.

    I guess leopards really can’t change there spots.

  66. Darth, you can take it from here if you want. I am done talking to him. He makes no f#cking sense.

  67. I give up as well, GS. The wrangling and constant argument just gets on everyone else’s nerves anyway.

    Let the blasted tr0ll strut around as he likes. Who cares. Everyone else seems to ignore the pr|ck anyway.

  69. Good game for England. Poland were poor, it has to be said. Lewandowski in particular was crap.

    Their old talisman Jan Tomaszewski predicted 2 – 0 to us and he was spot on – I heard him speak on 5 Live this afternoon and he sounded like a really decent bloke, particularly as he’s a politician of some description now apparently.

    Nice one “Stevie Gee” and well done Sturridge – but I hope that’s knackered them for the next game.

  71. Joe @ 68 #
    Neither am I, wrote a recent bit about it, don’t care about either the European championship or the world cup or FA cup or for that matter the Olympics.

    Dark Broon and GS.
    It’s ok for anyone to take a shot at me, after all,
    all do on this blog is argue with others, right.

    Perhaps you should check back, you may find I write about football and other things in fact more than most.

    Whereas it’s people like yourself who do the insulting and attempt to blame me by not taking any shit from people like you or GS.

    I really don’t recall you ever printing anything of real interest, for the most part, you specialize in sarcasm and negativity, sez a lot about what kind of people you are.

    Well that’s it from me, my last word as far as “both of you” are concerned.
    Ciao stronzi.

  73. Worky: I always try to give people the benefit of the doubt, it is difficult sometimes when somebody insults you and then accuses you of insulting THEM.

    I am usually not aggressive on here except to one person.

    He thinks it is his blog. You might want to set him straight on that :)

  76. chuff says:
    October 5, 2013 at 11:34 pm

    Dark Broon and GS.

    “Blah”

    Upchuck – you’re nothing but a loathsome, egotistical FRAUD who can’t string two words together without sounding like an extra from ‘deliverance’.

    You post HERE because no one else will tolerate you closer to home.

    Auf wiedersehn schwachkopf

  77. Howay lads!, What has Chuck done that is so wrong?
    I thought that was the whole point of these blogs, To give opinions and views.
    Surely you can get past differences of opinions, Without insulting each other!

    CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG? LOL

  79. Children children please this is a blog set up to put forward opinions and ideas for discussion and to that end works really well.
    I can not understand why it is thought by some that anger and name calling has any part in that? To me this only proves you have lost the argument.
    As for Chuck I have as yet never found anything in his opinions mildly upsetting.
    Purhaps our Newcastle roots started around the same time giving us the same set of values.
    Finally I think Worky does a great job in bringing us what has to be the best blog around so lets keep it that way.

  80. Worky, As long as they don’t start pinching each other’s milk lol.
    I don’t know why people take it personally, To be honest, And i cannot see what Chuck said, That was that bad!
    He was just taking the mick, With a bit of ribbing, And more or less said so, In his next sentence.

    It must be part of an ongoing dispute between Darthbroon, GS, And Chuck.
    It’s all daft really, Because it shouldn’t be personal, We all lose our head from time to time, But it’s normally all forgotten about quickly.
    There’s no need for feuds and vendetta’s though!

  81. joe hawkins says:
    October 16, 2013 at 12:18 pm

    “Worky, As long as they don’t start pinching each other’s milk lol.”

    Thatcher the milk snatcher pinched all that from the bairns, Joe.

  83. Worky
    Whats happened to the blog? The format seems to have altered. I don’t think I have changed anything.

    As for Chuck I remember saying some time ago that I don’t see why people get so riled with him. As Joe says I don’t see any problem with his posts although he does go on a bit at times. Normally makes perfectly good sense however and like him I have a passion for sea food so yes as tunyc says a peaceful discussion on it is ok with me.

  84. Grumpy Old-Toon says:
    October 16, 2013 at 2:42 pm

    “Worky
    Whats happened to the blog? The format seems to have altered. I don’t think I have changed anything.”

    Grumpy, I don’t know what you mean, unless, perhaps, you have switched to the mobile version of the site by accident? What does it look like at your end now? Does it seem thinner and far more basic?

  85. @ workyticket
    Whats with these dudes fighting each other with there handbags all the time.Steady there fellas kept the debate to football please.

  86. Soh ! Saturday it’s Liverpool eh!
    What do ya think ?

    The choices are.
    We could beat them, unlikely I think.
    They could beat us, probably.
    Or the other alternative, we draw.

    Look as long as we show some determination and give them a game, that doesn’t embarrass us, any of the above will do.

    What will the results be of each of the alternatives above.

    If we win, expect a shit eating grin from Pardew lasting for the next month, plus the reinforced delusion that he is the new great one and possibly a further stay of execution.

    A draw, same shit but not quite so overbearing.

    A loss, well though he has used multiple excuses over time, i’m sure his locker is filled with plenty more.

    I have reached the conclusion, that unless relegation threatens, Ashley will go with the status quo, which in turn is our only hope of getting rid of Pardew.

    On the other hand, I dread to think of who might replace him, though it’s a great opportunity for Ashley to gain a bit of respect and provide some hope for the fans, something at this point in time, he could use.

  87. @ chuck
    <<<<<<<<<<<<< expects us to lose that game v the bindippers liverpool is a team in form,but is hopeing for a point,what i do expect is for us to give scumberland a good spanking the week after.:)

  89. Grumpy Old-Toon says:
    October 16, 2013 at 7:22 pm

    “Worky, yes.”

    Thought so, Grumpy.

    Go right down to the very bottom of your mobile page and click on the “switch to desktop site” (or whatever it says) and it should return to normal.

  90. Damn it, England qualified for Brasil. I was hoping that Pardew would have been chosen to replace Roy. He is certainly qualified – English and hasn’t had a ridiculous book that makes him look like a moron serialized in The Daily Mail.

    TAE – you have argued with Chuckles a few times so get down from your high horse.

  91. Worky: sometimes your site will only go to the mobile version even when I am on a PC. It seems random and only occurs infrequently.

  92. On Signings and sales.

    Possible we could get two decent young wingers, in Ince and Zaha (on loan)though there will no doubt be competition for Ince.

    Wigers unfortunately are in short supply and both have good pace and skills, plus goal scoring ability.

    Plus we have to make an attempt to sign Remy, who has shown he has pace , technique and can make his own opportunities.

    Richardson, forget about it too expensive and unacceptable wages, though undoubtedly talented.

    Gomis, he’s a free agent, come summer which could be his most important attraction, being his price has dropped from over 10m quid to zero.

    Problem is how do you keep three international strikers happy, could one be on his way, or are they worried Remy might go elsewhere.

    A rumor I don’t pay much attention to is, Tiote to M.U. for around six mill.
    Sure he’s good at breaking up attacks, if you can afford a sweeper in the lineup and the threat of getting hit keeps players heads up, but that’s it.
    Perhaps we should try him out in defense.

    I have a feeling that Cabaye may go also, depending on his season, players in that role, midfield playmakers, who can also put their foot in, are uncommon and therefore in demand.

    I see Pardew has yet to tout HBA, but expect it any day now, hoping they can get a good price for him, by spouting “we don’t want to loose him”, which really means, unless you can come across with the right amount.

    Guys like Gosling, Williamson and Obertan, should go, as they are just not good enough.

    I don’t see Marveaux getting many starts and I don’t know why, hopefully he will stay.

    I believe Yanga-M’Biwa will come good and shouldn’t be scapegoated for a porous defense, there are three other guys who bear equal blame.

    Where we need help is in the back four, certainly for a physical central defender, we have four decent FB’s in Dummett, Haidara (two to fill in and for the future)Debuchy and Santon (who can play on either side)
    Plus time to recall Ferguson, a good winger who can also play FB.

    That’s about it, as far as the side is concerned.

  95. Just browsing through some of Pardews comments.

    Guess he forgot about cloth caps and whippets, though seeing there are no more miners (thanks Maggie) guess they don’t have coursing anymore.
    When one looks at the city of Newcastle (before the city planners half destroyed it) one sees an architecture that reflects both taste and wealth.
    Generated by an abundance of coal, which in turn created steel mills and Shipbuilding, plus armaments.
    An industrial area that created enormous wealth.
    Unfortunately smokestack industries went out of favor, in which case people like Maggie Thatcher decided that service industries were the way to go.
    That is without much thought, the mines were closed, as were the steel mills (by McGregor the yank)leaving only a tank manufacturing facility as the only heavy industrial plant on Scotswood road.
    A place where when the whistle blew at five pm. thousands of workers in greasy raincoats with bicycle clips around their ankles jumped on bikes with their ex army bait bags around their shoulders, while others boarded lines of waiting busses (trolley busses and motor)on their way home from that job for life.
    The same familiar sight took place in Wallsend and across the river, men pouring out of the gates, either heading home for tea or gannin in for a pint, to the many pubs in both locations.
    No doubt the talk was about how we’ll do agains’t whatever side was due at St. James that weekend.
    And don’t forget, it included a half day Saturday, where they worked till noon.
    Making it tough to get hyem, eat a bite o scran, change, get a couple of pints doon and gan teh the game like.
    But then there was a night in the miners institute or the local working mens club, where federation ale was served, as well as Newcastle broon and scotch, at under
    a bob a pint.
    Bit different the day like!

  96. Well I’m truly shocked.

    BBC’s “Watchdog” has just accused Sports Direct of lying to it’s customers and deliberately deceiving them into spending more than they intended on it’s website.

    When Watchdog contacted them they were “unapologetic.”

  97. chuck says:
    October 16, 2013 at 8:25 pm

    “Just browsing through some of Pardews comments.”

    So have I Chuck, or in my case, listening.

    If you listen to the comments as he said them in the whole interview (not just the long chunk I posted above), firstly, they have been fairly heavily sub edited, paraphrased, toned down or whatever, and the more I think about them, his comments about the fans are really f***ing offensive and patronising.

    Over the whole interview, he builds up a picture of fans as a group of small town football obsessives who regularly go shopping in a full club kit, are too simple minded and “lost” to understand that Mike has put over £200 million into the club, and damage the club by constantly overreacting and making the manager’s job more difficult.

    Do we really expect the club to be “up there with Man United and Man City?” And does he really think we are such half-wits that we don’t realise that Ashley is now worth around £3 billion just like the billionaires from “darkest Russia” he spoke of?

    chuck says:
    October 16, 2013 at 8:25 pm

    “McGregor the yank)leaving only a tank manufacturing facility as the only heavy industrial plant on Scotswood road.”

    Incidentally, One of the descendents of the Armstrongs who owned the Armstrong factory, Alexander Armstrong is now a very famous comedian and game show presenter over here.

  98. Worky @97: one lad did try to punch a horse though :) I am not even sure if he swung at the horse, I think he was just out of his brain drunk.

  99. Worky

    Yes I believe it was Vickers-Armstrong, of course Vickers specialized in armaments, the Vickers machine gun being possibly the most well known.
    And both names being native to the area possibly both border reiver families.
    Though the name Armstrong was given by a Scotish King, the original name being Fairbairn, another border name.

  100. Worky

    I guess we were only privy to part of Pardews rant.
    But would you hire this guy, for any job that required a brain.
    Every time his moth opens, his foot automatically moves to-wards it.
    His ego is such, he constantly blames others, possibly without realizing it, such as the recent put downs not only of the fans, but any old fool knows better than to personally insult his Boss in front of the media.
    What on earth was he thinking ?

  101. chuck says:
    October 16, 2013 at 9:30 pm

    “Worky

    Yes I believe it was Vickers-Armstrong”

    Aye Chuck. Originally it was just Armstrong’s, then Armstrong-Vickers, then just Vickers.

    Have you ever seen the house built by Lord Armstrong in Rothbury called Cragside? It’s an amazing house in an amazing location and a technical tour de force of the time. For one thing it was powered by the world’s first hydroelectric power station. For two things that powered the world’s first installation of incandescent lightbulbs (coutesy of Joseph Swan).

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cragside

  102. GS says:
    October 16, 2013 at 9:23 pm

    “I am not even sure if he swung at the horse, I think he was just out of his brain drunk.”

    GS, he was trying to stand his ground, then realised that the bizzie and the horse were just going to ride right over him so then he did take a swing at the horse.

  103. chuck says:
    October 16, 2013 at 9:38 pm

    “but any old fool knows better than to personally insult his Boss in front of the media.
    What on earth was he thinking ?”

    I don’t know, nothing is as it seems at Newcastle United anymore. It could be a ruse to fool the fans for all we know. I’ve turned into a paranoid conspiracy theorist with this lot because they just tell so many lies and are always trying to deceive in some way.

  104. GS says:
    October 16, 2013 at 8:10 pm

    “Darth: Remy came on as a sub last night so it looks like he is OK for Saturday”.

    Well, I hope someone’s giving him a lift to the game, GS. I wouldn’t mind so much but it’s never a Ford Fiesta or a Skoda Fabia is it?

  105. @ GS says at 90
    TAE – you have argued with Chuckles a few times so get down from your high horse.

    just cause you argue with some1 with a different opion dos not justify constantly insulting the dude bud

  107. TAE: If you read I didn’t really insult him. I remember him calling you a moron and saying you should stay off this site. It was a couple of months ago so I am not going to look back and find it for you.

    But enough is enough, I will not get involved with him anymore.

  108. Worky

    I have been to Rothbury a few times, the battlefield “Flodden Field” is somewhere close if I remember right.
    I suppose the Scots called it sodden field, as the reason they lost the battle was due to boggy ground, where their attacking line of spearmen became bogged down
    And yes, though I have never visited Cragside, I’m well aware of it and how radical ideas associated with it were when first built.
    I believe there’s a documentary film describing it.
    On the other hand it’s quite a picturesque village as are many in the County, too bad only a select landowning group control who gets to live in those villages.
    Part of the Greenbelt thing, which in some cases works, but was designed as a means of preserving the old country squire types.

  109. Both Armstrong and Scotswood Roads, are a long way from Alnwick and Rothbury and i’m not talking about linear distance.

  110. Worky,
    Yes I immediately thought of some kind of ruse, which would vindicate some of Ashley’s unpopular decisions.
    But on seeing him on the video, convinced me it was all Pardew’s ideas.
    One can only wonder.

  111. Caught the Movie Captain Phillips, this evening, mainly out of curiosity as I happen to know some of those involved.
    Better than I expected, presented the Somali’s as human beings, born in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  112. chuck says:
    October 17, 2013 at 3:47 am

    “Worky

    I have been to Rothbury a few times, the battlefield “Flodden Field” is somewhere close if I remember right.”

    They’re both north of Newcastle out in the middle of nowhere.

    chuck says:
    October 17, 2013 at 3:52 am

    “Both Armstrong and Scotswood Roads, are a long way from Alnwick and Rothbury and i’m not talking about linear distance.”

    My brother knows Armstrong Road well, he used to have a bingo there. First time he went there many years ago he took his nice Rover 2000 and they broke into it and ripped all the stereo out. He got to know all the local villains up there eventually though.

  114. chuck says:
    October 17, 2013 at 4:11 am

    “Better than I expected, presented the Somali’s as human beings, born in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

    There are quite a few of ’em around Hornsey near where I am in North London, along with Ethiopians and a few other East Africans. I had a Somali mate with an Internet Cafe in Hornsey. I used to do quite a bit of work in there a while back and I was sitting there working away and there was this big Yank gadgie sitting next to me who looked quite smart and vaguely familiar somehow, not the kind of person you’d expect to see in an Internet cafe in Hornsey, and not the kind of person you’d like to tackle down a dark alley either! It was the the famous boxer, Tim Witherspoon and he was a regular in there when he was over giving boxing talks. I had a couple of good chats with him and he was telling me about all the other great boxers he knew etc. That’s one the reasons I live in London, you never know who you’re going to meet!

    My Somali mate used to tell me all about Mogadishu as well. I don’t think I’ll be planning a holiday there any time soon, it’s sounds even rougher than Benwell!

    chuck says:
    October 17, 2013 at 3:47 am

    “On the other hand it’s quite a picturesque village as are many in the County, too bad only a select landowning group control who gets to live in those villages.
    Part of the Greenbelt thing, which in some cases works, but was designed as a means of preserving the old country squire types.”

    Chuck, it isn’t Victorian times here any more! As I’ve mentioned already, Cragside is owned by the National Trust now, which was set up largely to preserve the fine buildings left after social changes with the demise of the landed gentry. Stately homes were all getting demolished because the aristocrats couldn’t look after them any more. The Greenbelt thing is to preserve the countryside and prevent awful urban sprawls.

  115. Nutmag says:
    October 17, 2013 at 10:14 am

    “Don’t the Armstongs still own Bamburgh Castle?”

    I think they do, Nutmag. Alot of it is newer than you’d think because Lord Armstrong restored it from a ruin as well as building Cragside. Cragside belongs to the National Trust now though.

    That Alexander Armstrong’s quite funny if you’ve ever watched him on the telly?

  116. My sister used to work at Vickers Armstrongs as a comptometer operator, which I think was the pre-cursor to modern(ish) programming.

    From my school you could look across the Tyne and see the sprawl of their factories running all the way up to Scotswood bridge.

  117. Grumpy Old-Toon says:
    October 17, 2013 at 1:37 pm

    “My sister used to work at Vickers Armstrongs as a comptometer operator, which I think was the pre-cursor to modern(ish) programming.”

    Aye, I remember that from when I was studying Computing, Grumpy. They were like old fashioned mechanical calculators. It was the war and cracking Fritz’s codes which really drove the development of computing as we know it today with people like Alan Turing and Tommy Flowers at Bletchley Park.

    What happened to Alan Turing was absolutely awful. He saved Britain and millions of allied lives, inventing the computer as we know it today in the process. His reward was to be arrested for being a homosexual and offered a choice between inprisonment or chemical castration. He ended up taking his own life with cyanide in 1954.

  118. Me fatha was one of the squad who sheeted the whole roof of the factory, Before it opened.

  120. workyticket says:
    October 17, 2013 at 10:36 am

    “I think [the Armstrongs ] do [still own Bamburgh Castle], Nutmag. Alot of it is newer than you’d think because Lord Armstrong restored it from a ruin as well as building Cragside.”

    He didn’t ‘restore’ it so much as he ‘added’ to the Norman tower (which was about the only substantial structure standing at the time he bought it). It’s sometimes referred to as “Armstrong’s folly”, apparently. Still well worth a visit – looks great at the back end of the year when it’s fully illuminated from the early evening.

    I had a memorable meal at the Lord Crewe Arms (about ten years ago, mind), just up the road from the castle. Stayed there overnight. Room was OK. I’d stay there again.

    I must take a look at Cragside next time I’m in the area.

  121. Darth/Worky
    Have painted it twice but this was from sketches I did in the late seventies.Better get up there to do some catch up sketches.Hope he’s stopped his home improvements could cost me a fortune lol

  122. Nutmag says:
    October 17, 2013 at 6:19 pm

    “Hope he’s stopped his home improvements could cost me a fortune lol”.

    On that note, Nutmag, there’s a flaming cafeteria in Durham Cathedral nowadays. I’m sure some people believe that Cuthbert nd Aiden used to have their morning tea and toast in there. They should go the whole hog and put a licensedbar in – mead cocktails. Mmmmmmmm!

    A ‘Bede Slammer’ anyone?

  123. DarthBroon says:
    October 17, 2013 at 6:03 pm

    “He didn’t ‘restore’ it so much as he ‘added’ to the Norman tower (which was about the only substantial structure standing at the time he bought it).”

    Aye, I’m sure you’re right Darth. I’m no expert, I just remember that most of it is actually Victorian rather than from the middle ages.

    I know more about Cragside because it is so remarkable in several ways, firstly the architecture and the Pre-Raphaelite art and interiors, then there’s the incredibly innovative features, ie the first hydro-electric power coupled to the electric lighting. I think it was the first major installaion of electric lighting after Joseph Swan’s house in Low Fell. I remember that I was gutted when Mawson, Swan and Morgan’s closed down. That was tragic. Not as tragic as when they got rid of the old Eldon Square, but I wasn’t old enough to appreciate what a f***ing disgrace that was at the time though.

  124. Did a guided tour of Bamburgh Castle many years ago, could hardly understand the guide, who had this amazing old Northumberland accent, difficult to describe , other than his pronunciation’s were what appeared to be similar to Nordic.
    But that’s not unusual, as within a twenty five mile radius of Newcastle, you are likely to come across as many different accents as miles travelled.
    Each area or village having it’s own distinct pronunciation, at least that was true over fifty years ago.
    I assume with the advent of tv and travel, that’s no longer the case, as I have never spent more than a week there at any time since.
    Plus I see by some of the comments on this blog, many of you have absorbed a number of American expressions, such as ball park figure, stepping up to the plate, etc.
    Too much American tv I guess.
    On the other hand i’m sure they still mackem and tackem, twelve miles doon the coast, like!

  125. workyticket says:
    October 17, 2013 at 6:45 pm

    “I just remember that most of it is actually Victorian rather than from the middle ages.”

    Aye, worky, I’m pretty sure the cinema multiplex and the all-you-can-eat Oriental buffet weren’t there in Oswald’s time ;-)

  126. I was fortunate to have travelled around the country surrounding Newcastle as a early teen, belonging to a cycling club (I built my own bike from parts, no not junk, but that’s another story)
    And got to see many places within a thirty odd mile radius of The Hancock Museum, where we met each Sunday.
    Going southwest to the Durham moors, stopping for tea at the market towns such as Hexham.
    Up the Great North Road, to places like Bambrough and Rothbury, through the North Tyne area to Wark, Wall and Bellingham.
    Of course there were hundreds like ourselves and it was a wonderful experience, unfortunately almost impossible to re-enact due to to-days volume of traffic.

  127. There’s loads about Cragside Hall on youtube. Even forgetting about its obvious historical significance for a moment, it looks absolutely fantastic.

    Even the few images on Wikipedia are pretty striking.

  128. OK Worky/Hugh
    We are into nostalgia, time for a new blog guy’s.

    Unless of course everyone appears to be enjoying what’s going down.

    Sometimes it becomes more interesting than the usual stuff, I mean how much is there about NUFC that hasn’t already been thoroughly examined and discussed.

    So take a break and allow the discussion to follow whatever direction it decides upon.

    As the pre match assessment will be due soon enough.

  129. chuck says:
    October 17, 2013 at 7:46 pm

    “OK Worky/Hugh
    We are into nostalgia, time for a new blog guy’s.”

    Chuck, I’m throwing in the odd comment but it’s not really the best time for either of us at the moment for various reasons which I won’t go into.

    Actually, I would like to see someone like yourself write a blog about Newcastle United in the 1950s or something like that. I think Nutmag’s probably old enough as well. I’ve always wanted to do one about Colin Veitch, though he’s before everyone’s time!

    I will have at least one out before the next game, and the usual match ones as well.

  130. Chuck@124
    Your right about the accents when I moved to Newcastle to do my apprenticeship people laughed at the way I talked and that was just over 20 miles. Rothbury would be Rathbarry and very guttural.Still slip back into it talking to old friends and relatives.Still use that long and well used word “Hadawayanshite” quiet a lot though.

  131. Nutmeg

    Well it’s it’s a historical fact that Northumberland and other areas of the NE were settled by those same Viking invaders who first came as tourists to the area in the eighth century, taking back a few trinkets and a few locals home with them, in order to provide them with work, of course.
    And if asked where they were heading, as they were returning to their longboats, would have answered, wa gannin hyem.
    A nation of Immigrants, some invited others uninvited, though throughout all of that history, a fairly recent genetic study discovered that the dominant
    or most common gene found in those offshore islands, was that of the Celts, who knew ?
    A similar study was undertaken in Iceland, with the same result, much more suprising.
    On accents, ever met a Crawcrool native and listened to how he pronounces it or Ryton on Tyne, very guttural.

  132. chuck says:
    October 17, 2013 at 10:51 pm

    “And if asked where they were heading, as they were returning to their longboats, would have answered, wa gannin hyem.”

    Chuck, I’m no great expert but I think the special thing about Geordie is actually the reverse, ie greater preservation of old Anglo Saxon rather than the Norse of the Danish invaders. Anglo Saxon for “go” is (you guessed it) “gan” and home “ham” (with an a as in “bathe”).

    Although Lindisfarne was the first place to get clobbered by the Danes in a smash and grab raid, they never really took hold north of the Tees until Cnut. The big capital in the North was “Jorvik” or “York.”

    They didn’t want to mess with the Geordies like ’cause we’re so hard. :-)

    Funnily enough I’ve been getting into the Old English epic poem “Beowulf” recently after listening to Seamus Heaney reading his translation of it. If I said it was manly stuff that would be an understatement!

  133. My sister was up the NE same time as me about 2 weeks ago. First time in about 30 years on a coach tour from Devon. One of the days out was to the Toon and she said she was totally lost cos it had changed so much. She tried to find the old indoor market and eventually asked some old dear if it still existed. She was told “EEh knaa pet, its gone, but if ye gan where it was theres a gipsy in a caravan weel tell ya fortune” (sic)

    She also went to Hartlepool and apparently the streets were empty of people, so much so that her husband asked if any one actually lived there.

    Strange days?

  134. Worky, what are the strange comments on the side panel and why if they are on the blog don’t they appear in the regular comment section.

    Is there some kind of interblog crossover happening as they seem to be totally unrelated to anything else being said?

  136. Grumpy, they’re “sploggers” or spam blogs who have managed to get through the protective net we have. There seems to be quite a few getting through at the moment. We get literally thousands every day but most get caught up in the net. If blogs didn’t have protection against these things (and other things) they would just be unrunnable. I’ve now deleted the ones that got through the net so that’s why they’ve disappeared.

    http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/splog-spam-blog

    We also get attacks from the Chinese trying to bring the site down with DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks and other fun and games too. Hugh had to fight off the last attack from the Chinese invaders a few days ago when the site went offline for little bit.

  137. Nutmag, Chuck, getting back to the real Geordie shite, as you know, one of the most prominent characteristics of proper, old school Northumbrian is the uvular trill known in Northumbrian as the “Northumbrian Burr” which is dying now, sadly. Of course, I’m referral to the rolling ‘r’s which are guttural in nature.

    Chuck, I found this, which is a better version of what I meant earlier:

    “In the northeast of England, the Vikings never settled north of the Tees, nor did the Scots venture very far south of the Tweed, so that Northumbrian was left alone to continue its own development. The border skirmishes of the middle ages, and the neglect of the region by both Edinburgh and London, meant that the people were more or less left to their own devices, and in this situation the language survived many of the centralising tendencies that were taking the English spoken in the rest of the country towards the standard format we know today.”

    http://www.northumbriana.org.uk/langsoc/

    It also says that we Northumbrians “are a right stroppy lot,” and our peculiar dialect has come from that to an extent. What has happened to us today though? We are pathetic and spineless! Why aren’t we drawing our broadswords and driving out the current invader? :-)

  138. Surely the Newcastle accent and dialect owes as much to Durham (the Northern part of it, at least) as it does to Northumberland.

    Certainly, when you get down to my neck of the woods in Bishop Auckland/West Auckland, you’d notice the difference in the accent at least (if you were from the North East, that is) but we certainly share the bulk of the same words and speech patterns.

    We have a few more Nordic ‘borrow words’ down here from what I can see scouting around the MANY websites on North East culture and language.

  139. DarthBroon says:
    October 18, 2013 at 1:45 pm

    “Surely the Newcastle accent and dialect owes as much to Durham (the Northern part of it, at least) as it does to Northumberland.”

    Darth, of course, “Northumbria” and “Northhumberland” means north of the Humber, which is way down in what is now Yorkshire.

    Obviously again from what I was saying before, the original Northumbrian dialect existed before the Danes and went from the Humber way up to the Firth of Forth in Scotland. As I mentioned above though, after the Danes came the norhtern capital of the Danelaw was Jorvik (York) which is north of the Humber, but it only really got as far as the Tees just south of Bishop Auckland. As it also states in the passage I quoted, the Scots never strayed far south of Berwick either. So that’s the area which was more isolated and less influenced by Norse and Gaelic.

    More recently, we think of proper Northumbrian as coming from somewhere between Newcastle and Berwick, but I don’t really have a Masters or a PhD in this kind of thing so I’ll just say it’s all very complicated and blurry! I should be writng blogs instead of long, involved comments like this too!

  140. Worky

    Yes it’s difficult to actually credit the Geordie accent’s to any one group.
    Though Dutch is the closest language to English it’s claimed.
    Prior to the Romans, invasions had taken place for centuries, the latter ones being from a Celtic Western Europe.
    Possibly from places like Holland.
    Following the Roman departure, there were invasions mainly by Angles, jutes, Saxes, Friesians, basically the area stretching from Holland to Germany.
    Which who are subsequently described as Anglo-Saxons.
    It wasn’t until the late eighth century, until the next major invasion came, the Danish Vikings.
    Another somewhat successful invasion, that conquered most of Eastern England.
    Following that there was turmoil and shifting alliances, as the Norwegians conquered Dublin, the Shetlands and Orkneys, plus the Isle of Man.
    They Challenged the Danish settlements and for a time the great Norwegian/Irish kingdom and their allies took over what was then Northumbria.
    It was a continuing state of warfare, as I mentioned with shifting alliances, involving the Scottish kings, Anglo-Saxons, The Danelaw, The welsh and Norwegian/Irish.
    Which went on until 1066, when the last great Norwegian invasion was ended by the battle of Stamford Bridge and a few days later by the defeat of that victorious Anglo-Saxon/Danish army, by the Normans at Hastings.
    Who ironically enough were actually Norwegians who had settled in France.
    It’s a very interesting part of history, the expansion of the Norse, who ended up in such places as Constantinople, the Emperor hiring them as his personal guards (the varangian axemen) who navigated the great rivers from Russia.
    They, as Normans carved out kingdoms for themselves in such unlikely places as Sicily and Apulia and played a foremost role in the first crusade.
    But Worky was right to a degree, during these periods of war and turmoil, no one appeared that interested in taking over that remote part of the country, sort of like the expression,( England doesn’t want them, but Scotland wont have them, perhaps a unilateral declaration of independence is called for here.)
    Which of course resulted in a variety of dialects and accents, only differing through isolation.