Just writing to say how gutted I was about the Toon's loss yesterday. I'm an exiled Geordie studying at University in Swansea. The two games I've made the long treck home to see have both been disasters. Charlton (what a joke performance) then yesterday. I don't seem to have any luck when it comes to watching the Toon. Having said that maybe I'm lucky I've missed all the other drab, dreary displays.

I'm an eternal optomist, but watching, reading, or just hearing about Newcastle United at the moment is pretty bloody depressing!!!

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

Answers

It could be worse. Atleast there's no more injuries this week. And with the exciting news that we'll be getting £100 million worth of new players (including Rivaldo) I think we should all start saving for our new season ticket, and new shirts.

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

Just out of interest what is the deal with this money? 100 million. That's a lot of cash. God i hope it's true. But we've learnt before that we can't buy success. I'd still love it though!

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

My opinion, it,s a bloody lie designed to get people saving for their season tickets and new shirts ( see Rik's posting).

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

I don't believe the money thing for a minute. It's all just crap.

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

Before anyone get's too excited - and understandably everyone so far seems not surprisingly underwhelmed by the reappearance of the missing landlord of SJP, Lord Lucan - I believe the £100 million figure was to be over the next two seasons, and includes the players wages. <>I think the wage bill is already around £20 million pa, so if we assume this could increase to say £25 million by signing two decent players, it looks to me as though we're talking about spending perhaps £25 million in each of the next two seasons.

Given the present state of the playing squad that might just about be enough to keep us in the PL - assuming, of course, we are still there at the end of this season.

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

Ahhhh nooooo, I just paid a deposit on a new shirt with Rivaldo printed on the back. Facy being deceived by such a decent blerk.

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

I never said DH was deceiving us Rik - I was simply explaining what I believe he meant. Just like Jonno has tried to explain on another thread that DH didn't actually say he was after Rivaldo, which is how many papers have mischievously interpreted it - but players of the quality of Rivaldo. There is a difference.

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

Anyone know when the first £25m 'interest free loan' from ntl due for repayment?

-- Anonymous, March 18, 2001

We were talking about the ntl money on Saturday - anyone know what it's been spent on??

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Earmarked for the training complex/youth academy if they ever get built?

That money is effectively a loan so the club may decide they do not want to take it?

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

i hope so. i remember Tynedale Man [where are yer?] saying at the time that he thought it was an outrageous offer for exclusive TV rights - being sold down the river for a small bag of silver....

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

As I understand it if we take the loan then it shall be repaid in Shares. If they give us £25 million that's an awful lot of shares at the current price and that would be a hell of a big chunk of the shareholding. The board may not wish for ntl to have that much say in things.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

....gulp!

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

They get repiad in shares at current market value = a good deal for us - unless of course they go ballistic and then we'll be happy anyway.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Sorry to clarify a bit - the loan was in the number of shares at issue value (£1.40 ish I seem to remember) - so we only need to buy them at the market rate 30P to pay them back.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

I think the NTL £25m has been handed over in full or the final tranche (why did anyone need to invent such a word? - snob value I guess) of £10m is imminent.

The loan is repayable in shares to be sold at a huge price compared to today's value. I think it's of the order of 110p - more than 3 times the current share price.

One word of warning and something for the doom-mongers to feed on - if the Toon is relegated during the next 3(?) seasons the loan would become repayable - a disaster scenario. Fortunately, that will not happen.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Gutted?

Complain? You wanna complain - look at these shoes I've only had 'em 3 weeks and they're worn right through - and my back hurts - and I'm sick and tired of this office and I can't remember the last time we had a fine day...

(Monty Python)

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

count yourself lucky to have an office.....

;))

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Actually I SAY office - it's more of a hole in the ground with a sheet of tarpaulin over the top.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

by, you're lucky to a bit of tarpaulin. we had to make do with carboard from old cereal boxes......

etc etc etc....

;-))

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Just to cheer you all up, after the match the bus left without me, I must have be the only one to stay till the end. So I got the metro back, to the claps, a bar which was screening the mackem game and the red & white shirts were there to greet me, so I left and settled to watch the recording of comic relief which turned out to be 8 hours of blank screen.

If I wasn't so hard I would've cried.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001