Any news on whether our squad is still stricken with illness? Both us and Mansfield go into tomorrow in very poor form. Very dificult to predict what might happen.

Didn’t Beere get sent back from a loan because he went on social media and said the loan club’s reason given for him not playing, injured I think, was rubbish?

6MDM- tend to agree - heard about it when I listened to the same old Wombles podcast like 7-10 days ago or so and they said would be up by time that episode went out (if I remember correctly )

On the subject of World Cup tickets I am a “Top Capper” in the England travel club. This means I would get any tickets I need at the cheapest rate. However I will not be parting with £3219 for a final ticket. I was happy to pay around 1.5k to 2k for Quarters semi and final. However at what they are asking for they can poke it. I will just apply for the Round of 16 where we will probably meet Mexico in the Azteca and twin it with a week in Cancun

Not that I think it is a good idea anyway as publishing some article on the DT website about an article that appeared in the opposition's matchday programme is futile, but the moment to do so has passed given the game was two weeks ago. It will just make us look like we are self-absorbed and holier than thou. If the club have an issue then raise it direct with Huddersfield and be adult about it. I'm sure it would be more effective than grandstanding on a website that increasingly more and more people have no interest in.

Patience Timmy. I've been having an ongoing correspondence with James Lonhurst about making sure the Volunteer Code of Conduct is visible on the Dons Trust website. I may be naive but I believe James wants it there but despite him asking more than once it is still not there.

Did the Dons Trust ever publish that rebuttal of the Huddersfield programme article? I'm sure Angus said it would be on Dons Trust website but cant see it

A4E - for the less popular nations they'll be relatively easy to get hold of I'd imagine. But you just know Brandon Cryptobro who runs Crapto Currency LLP will want to be seen at Brazil v Scotland...

Although as an addendum to my moral below, just checked for the Brooklyn Nets for around the same time and they're doing resale tickets for $27

REPD - also, there will be holders of corporate tickets which they got given for free selling them to make a few easy quid…

Afternoon all. I reckon if you go to the World Cup you'll be able to get into most games a lot cheaper if you wait a day or two beforehand as they find they can't shift tickets. Although let's face it - plenty will buy them at full whack.

Trouble is Bush it’s a bit like trying to predict the future and not knowing if and when anything will change. Could be 50 years or more before any significant change.

I wonder what barmy army fans are paying for Ashes tickets - anyone know?

DD - I agree… I’ve never followed England abroad, but I’d be furious if I was a regular travelling fan - the frustrating thing is that a lot of seats will be empty anyway because so many are given/sold as “corporate” for people who don’t even bother to turn up… 🙄🤦🏻‍♂️

Completely disgusted by those WC Final prices. Doesn't affect me as I don't attend international fixtures and have no intention of visiting the USA for the foreseeable future. But that is a total slap in the face towards supporters who loyally follow their national team.

Trigger - following up on point yesterday about very few L1 clubs getting into severe financial difficulties in last 20-25 years. That's true, but i think probably more has changed in the last 5 years than did in the 20 years previous. Average spending on players has doubled in the last 5 years. I think now 9 of the 24 L1 teams are foreign owned, the majority US. There are also lots of clubs that have been looking for investment for a while (whether minority or majority) and seemingly not finding many takers. You could make a hypothesis that lots of rich foreign investors buy lower level EFL clubs in the hope of "doing a Wrexham". Then finding that doesn't happen and you need to lose several millions pounds a year just to stand still. Then at some point you might want to stop that and struggle to find someone else to take it on. That happening at the same time the regulator comes in may offer some hope. I certainly can't see the Premier League bubble bursting any time soon but I think it could be a different matter at L1/2 when the rewards/glamour are so much smaller. There was an excellent discussion around some of this stuff (broadening out from observations about L2 getting much older) on NTT20. Would highly recommend a listen: [Link]

🚨New episode available now🚨 Lee Finch and Ollie Lewis 🔵Exeter and the Flu 🟡Cope - has he failed this season? 🔵Busy Christmas period. 🟡Mansfield preview. Like, share and listen. By the fans. For the fans. [Link]

Driza - of Australian origin, I believe.

The bone debate, the monica refers to a brand of waterproof coat which was my overcoat of choice during non league.

Exactly that Nick. With the global reach of football there is no route to universal spending caps which is immune from legal challenge or unethical misconduct. I admire those who seek to make it a fairer game but as we’ve seen even in that small pond* the calibre and trust is low. What hope when the bar is so low it’s below pitch level?

To have an effective salary cap (as you do in most North American sports) you really need two things (1) a sport that is only really played in one country, or where that country is so dominant that its league can set the rules for the rest of the world (2) specific exemption for the relevant sport from rules ensuring competition and preventing collusion. Neither of those apply to football in the UK or have any prospect of doing so.

$6M man - totally agree with what you say below - the idea of sustainability rules (essentially limiting the losses which a club is able to incur, even if those are funded by the owners) is a reasonable one but it is never going to work, as there are always enough owners/ potential owners who don't want to follow the rules (because they want on-field success over everything else) and it is very easy indeed to get around any set of accounts-based rules and restrictions, quite apart from the fact that any rules which actually did work would be unlikely to sustain legal challenge.

Amen to that.

Maybe I'm wrong but I thought the whole premise behind this sustainability malarky was to stop clubs getting themselves into a mess by overstretching themselves in pursuit of promotion and all the riches they think will come their way, falling short, the owner's pockets being empty and they are lumbered with excessive player salaries and other outgoings they can't afford. Yes, it happens all the time, most of the time a club will then eventually get bought by somebody else and the cycle repeats itself. My challenge is it is thought having sustainability rules is a good idea, then actually make them about sustainability, otherwise don't bother.

Yes you can’t punish us if, as well engaged, well informed and respected owners, we are willing to put money into the club to keep things sustainable.