Rudge: 'A Tough Season Ahead'
Last updated : 08 August 2002 By Rob Stanway
"The excitement has been a bit subdued."
Below are the comments John Rudge made to BBC Sport for the Stoke City section, an alltogether excellent article regarding Stoke's season in Division One can be found on the BBC Sport Web-Site - Click here to be taken to that article.
"It's great to be back in the First Division."
"As a football person, you always strive for success, and for us, that was promotion last season.
"But it's been a difficult summer for just about everyone and what's gone on does mean that we have to look at things very hard and cut our cloth accordingly."
"We are thought of as being among the bigger clubs, and our supporters have high expectations," said Rudge.
"But I think even they realise that this season will be a very tough one."
"I'm thinking we could compete with the likes of Rotherham, Walsall, Grimsby, Brighton and Reading.
"If we can hold our own against them, we could go on from there."
"In reality, we hope to be better off financially than last season in Division Two, with bigger crowds and more corporate hospitality. "We came into Division One at the end of last season expecting around £2.8m from television money. We will get nowhere near that.
"You always plan to do well, but this will be a season where realisation sets in for a lot of people."
"There's never a bad time to be promoted to the Premiership.
"The likes of Birmingham and West Bromwich Albion will have increased their income overnight, even if they have had to bring in a few players."
"I fancy Ipswich and Wolves to be strong contenders to win the league.
"Wolves were strong last season and only just missed out. Ipswich have managed to keep hold of most of their players so far and they've got a talented squad.
"Otherwise, it's a very open division.
"Nobody has got any money to spend and very few players have moved.
"Portsmouth could be in the top six. Harry Redknapp has changed quite a few things round and they've spent some money.
"Unless there's somebody prepared to put money in - like Portsmouth have - it's difficult for clubs to generate money.
"We have only brought one player in during the close season, Chris Greenacre on a Bosman transfer.
"We haven't got the biggest squad in the world and we need our best 11 players to be fit and out there playing to stand a chance of competing."
