an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment:
I leave you, the reader, to decide whether we as a club (supporters included) lack it (as has been suggested) when the above is taken in the full, and indeed whether we should actually have it and if so, at what level, something which always seems to be taken for granted and is rarely debated.
Obtuse, I hear you think, but then it has been that kind of week!
On a serious note, I do find it quite informative that I am automatically lumped in with JgFc when the question is specifically posed to encapsulate the gist of comments by Sherpa and MarkX as well as JgFc elsewhere on this forum.
Especially as I have probably had more conversations with Sherpa and certainly MarkX than JgFc about the club in the last 12 months.
Then again, the trite is always easier than self examination...
Looks like can of worms opening time. I don't deal with the trite. Ambition, as far as Welling is concerned, is a difficult concept. We have a family who have taken a Sunday parks kick-about side into the top realm of non-league football and kept them there for 14 years on a sensible budget which meant the club continued to exist.
We have also had some very good cup runs along the way. The last two years under Ade's stewardship have been magnificent for a club that has to look after the pennies as well as strive for success. If we had made the Conference National this year, could we survive at that level with poor crowds (our attendances this season have not been proportinate to our success on the field)? And I think we would need a great increase in revenue to sustain a challenge and be successful.
The problem is that fans realise the club will not progress further without the necessary money - and the Hobbins family presumably need the club to make a living. As to the former, will the family welcome an injection of more dosh and new faces on the board (assuming anybody would be interested)? And as to the latter, this at least ensures that we have a club to support.
It is difficult. Next season, we shall probably have the likes of neighbours Dartford, Bromley, Grays et al splashing the cash and getting the players we probably want. But we have always been at a disadvantage in that respect and still unearthed gems like Andy Townsend, Tony Agana, David Smith, Steve Finnan and now Danny Kedwell. We have never been in a position to keep players of that calibre because they, too, have ambition.
This is the crunch - do we spend money we don't have and go bust? Or do we become moribund because there is no money to get the players we need to go up - so that staying put or going down are the only options? Like I said, it is difficult - but we should recognise the enormous debt we owe the Hobbins brothers for bringing the club thus far against all the odds and keeping it going sensibly so that we did not become another bankruptcy casualty.
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Oh, a mighty god is the god of gold, His empire never decays; In every age, in every clime, The hearts of men he sways.
The first priority of any organisation is survival
Too many non-league teams get infected with ambitions beyond their means and then when things go wrong, well for an excellent example of what can happen, albeit at a higher level, just look at Leeds. 5 years ago, one of the senior clubs in the country; today they were relegated to the third tier of the of the pyramid.
As far as i am aware there are no Russian energy moguls or Icelandic biscuit barons trying to buy their way into PVR, therefore we have to cut our cloth accordingly; ergo we pay and play within our means and at least there will be a Welling United next season.
Ambition doesn't equal input of money. That just equals someone wanting to blow their hard earned on their ego usually. Can't think who it was who said it (might have been Barry Hearn) but 'The only way to become a millionaire out of football is to start of a billionaire'.
As the definition say it is the desire for attainment AND THE WILLINGNESS TO STRIVE TO ACHIEVE IT.
And if the original post was too subtle it was aimed at making everyone think about where they would like Welling United to be and whether that was a hope or an ambition.
And if you have sat and decided it is an AMBITION rather than a hope what are YOU prepared to do about it.
That applies to Barrie, the family, the players, the WSU and also the 500 odd punters that turn up through the gate (even it is only an away gate!).
Know what your own expectation is, know what you are prepared to do to achieve that. Hopefully enough of us can get a consensus around the same goals to achieve them, whether they be higher or lower than your own individual aims.
You can have all the ambition you want. And the desire to strive for it .But while that is to be admired, it cannot be brought to fruition without the wherewithal to achieve and sustain that ambition.
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Oh, a mighty god is the god of gold, His empire never decays; In every age, in every clime, The hearts of men he sways.
In which case is your ambition realistic. Which brings us back to your point of staying in business.
What gets me is that there appears to be a digital switch between do bugger all and risk the future of the club or ride along on some monied persons coattails.
Can anyone please give me an explanation why it is impossible to set our ambition to match what is capable of being sustainably worked for, rather than taking the option, as seems the popular theme, of selling the family silver or freeloading on someone's ego?
Or is the truth closer to the fact that we are all at a level of input we are comfortable with and don't want the additional hassle? In which case there is no shame in saying so and at least we all know where we stand?
For a club of our size and limited resources all I want is for the club to improve on the previous season with a half decent cup run along the way. We've done that this year although it has been a disappointment to miss out on the play offs.
I think people have to remember that progress, albeit slow, has been made. In 2003 we finished 15th in the Southern Premier. The following year we finished 9th to qualify for the Conference South. 2005 we were 16th, 2006 we were 9th and 2007 we were 8th. When you look at Canvey, Hornchurch and Fisher I'll take slow progress anyday.
If we continue to improve, play some good football and get more people through the gate then a realistic long term ambition of the club should be to consolidate a position in the Conference National league and then strive towards the play offs. I think this is achievable. I can only help the club achieve this by continuing to turn up each home game and occasionally help or attend functions.
So many times you hear chairman in the lower end of the football league saying how they're going to put their club on the map and reach the premiership. Could be classed as an ambition but more often than not it's a pipe dream - an unrealistic hope or fantasy.
Good post Gary, good progress HAS been made in the past couple of seasons - it's not so long ago we were struggling to avoid relegation in the Doc Martens! cheers, Sed
