Setting aside the match itself, Saturday was a great occasion. To see 27,280 at a Cardiff league game, in the third tier, was very satisfying and exciting. The result was not as hoped, but that’s football. It was just great to see the place so full and for there to be a real buzz around the place.
That achievement can be directly attributed to Brian Barry-Murphy and his talented team, who have defied expectations and banished our worst fears by not only adapting, but thriving in League One. It is a financial imperative that they make a swift return to the Championship and the team have worn that pressure lightly, as they’ve pretty much led from the front. If Cardiff are to secure promotion, you also wonder if that level will be embraced with fresh enthusiasm by supporters, after years of taking it for granted and if that will in turn be reflected in attendances.
It’ss just as well that Cardiff are making an impact on the pitch because off it, they remain a club without any discernible hype, which is only magnified by what is taking place behind the scenes at Wrexham and Swansea.
It’s easy to have strong opinions on both courting American celebrity and the coverage it has generated, but that is the desired effect. Both are actively trying to raise their profiles, domestically and internationally because that will have a monetary effect, spiking their revenue and enabling growth. Snoop Dogg twirling a towel is ripe for ridicule, but he’s doing it in front of a full house.
Embed from Getty ImagesAt a fans forum (remember them?) at the start of the season, Swansea chief executive Tom Gorringe explained that investors: “Luka (Modric) and Snoop have brought a whole load of additional attention to the football club and that provides a huge amount of opportunity. I think we have done a really good job of maximising what we can do on a local basis but now the parameters have moved. It puts us in front of different companies, different brands, and allows us to tell an authentic story to people we wouldn’t have been able to get in front of before. We have already had discussions with brands about significant deals which would eclipse anything we have done in the past.”
The coverage of Wrexham may be exhausting, but it was created from scratch. Their narrative is now common knowledge the world over and it feels like there is a desperation within the game for them to complete the journey by making the Premier League. It feels like there is now a traction beam of inevitability pulling them towards their final destination.
It bears repeating that Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney invested an initial £2m to acquire Wrexham five years ago and the club has just been valued by Bloomberg as worth £350m. Everything from the TV show to the viral clips has been unrelentingly geared towards this goal and it has paid off like no one could possibly imagine.
Embed from Getty ImagesThere is extreme jealousy amongst football supporters regarding Wrexham because, as much as you mock, who wouldn’t want what they currently have. Momentum is everything in team sport and you want to be swept up in the excitement. Wrexham have been nakedly ambitious and that now includes designs on Harry Wilson, who was at Cardiff when Reynolds and McElhenney acquired the club, should they get promoted.
I guess the point of all of this is look at where Wrexham are now compared to then and where Cardiff are. I know its unkind and unfair to compare any club to Wrexham because what they’ve achieved is unique and unprecedented, but what progress have Cardiff made in the last five years? What plans did they put in place that they have since achieved and what is their vision for the future? It remains the age old question. They were treading water until their legs gave out and are now playing at their lowest level in 22 years.
When Cardiff have thrived in their recent history, it has been largely due to the force of their manager at the time. Malky Mackay’s promotion was powered by rebrand funds, Neil Warnock did what he does and fixed another broken bird while Barry-Murphy is inspiring with his vision and ingenuity. It never feels like it is the club doing the heavy lifting, it always instead feels like these talented figureheads are dragging the club along for the ride.
Embed from Getty ImagesCardiff had a taste of off-field excitement with Gareth Bale’s proposed takeover, which quickly fell flat, but it offered a brief taste of what felt like the ideal scenario. A potential new direction and fresh ideas, fronted by a popular figurehead from the area. The comedown was partly the missed opportunity and also the return to the opposite of what was on offer.
This is not an exercise in me kicking the club while its down, this is me wanting the club to be good enough to hold on to the manager they currently have. If Cardiff can’t grow with Barry-Murphy, who has quickly become the club’s greatest asset, then he will instead outgrow them. It’s not just a case of signing the cheques, its moving with the times and changing your old ways, while cultivating and selling a vision.
The other significant change in Welsh football as Wrexham were beginning their ascent was Noel Mooney, a former team-mate of Barry-Murphy, taking charge of the Welsh FA. Once the epitome of a stuffy football federation, they have since transformed into a very modern, forward-thinking organisation. Mooney is both transparent and approachable on all matters under his control, while Welsh football thrives and looks to make the success of the last decade probable and sustainable going forward. He is also the one proposing that Cardiff expand their ground down the line to facilitate Wales, rather than the other way round.
Cardiff are surrounded by examples of innovation, ambition and excellence in Welsh football, while Barry-Murphy has defied the odd to capture the imagination of what was a disgruntled fanbase. It’s now time for the club to respond in kind and at least attempt to emulate their contemporaries. If they finally did, I suspect they would find that Cardiff is and always has been a club without a ceiling.