I think on the whole the mods, do a good job.
It's no doubt a thankless task, time consuming and frustrating.
Also some will be a lot better than others as is always the way in any walk of life or job
I would disagree with the perception that some mods have that you not moderate enough.
May I suggest that those who disappear for the other reason just pack up and walk out the door and don't bother letting you know.
Those whom are telling you this are probably telling you what they think what you want to hear. They also likely know you personally and no doubt you have the odd whine over a beer at the pub
Think it's important that you do try to be more neutral at times (i.e: just because you love Steven Taylor, doesn't mean you need to call remarks creepy, when national newspapers are reporting creepier stuff. We are not that holy or above them :)
But what you do is appreciated
What would be useful is to actually know whom is currently a mod or not. I can guess but it is only a guess. If i see a comment from 2nd best for example and he says something dumb, I'm none the wiser at the moment if he is modding or just being a normal forum guy again.
Napier with all due respect as you do post sensible stuff most of the time, dont overthink things too much, it's an Internet forum, about a football team and you really should not be tracking people down.
Please never call me at work Tegal