Wilder Out?
Re: Wilder Out?
I like the sound of PNE parting company with Graham Westley (and hopefully their chairman, Peter Ridsdale), but the thought of him coming to Oxford fills me with dread. (I notice that his assistant, though, is John Dreyer)
Bring back the black away shirt!
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Myles Francis
- Mid-life Crisis
- Posts: 927
- Joined: Thu May 11, 2006 3:17 pm
Re: Wilder Out?
Too little, too late, IMHO. Wilder has had a number of near-misses already where a sudden improvement for a short period has bought him some more time. The objective for this season was automatic promotion, with the play-offs being the revised target to take into account injuries etc. We failed to make the play-offs last season despite investment in the squad over and above what had already been agreed. We're overspending on budget again, and failing to progress, again."joepoolman" wrote:I think that if we go on a good run between now and the end of the season and finish close to the play-offs, then given the freakish nature of our injury problems this season, and how far he's taken us in his time here, he deserves the job until Christmas time,
Re: Wilder Out?
Sadly we are unable to put together consistently good runs, without then throwing in a four to six match run of points dropped. A fortnight ago, things were looking brighter, but now it is back to mid-table mediocrity.
I feel that a new manager :
- could inspire the players towards a last third of the season charge
- assess the out of contract players (although it sounds like Ian Lenagan has already decided the fate of several of the high paid and injury prone players)
- get some sort of optimism back in the fans, perhaps lifting crowds, especially with season ticket renewals being before the end of the season in recent years.
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Read this from the Bristol Post - my bold
THERE are many ways to analyse the change in fortunes that manager John Ward has instigated at Bristol Rovers since succeeding Mark McGhee a little under two months ago.
There have been five wins in eight games an unbeaten away record one defeat in eight games and a five-match unbeaten run. We've also witnessed the biggest crowd for a league game at the Memorial Stadium for the best part of three years. How about a vastly-improved goals for and goals against column? Or the best run of form over an eight-game period for a number of seasons. Who could have predicted on December 15 that Rovers would be second only to leaders Port Vale in the form table over the following eight games?
The most telling statistic – the best one to highlight the impact Ward has made – is, however, this: Ward has, in eight games as manager, collected just one fewer point than the 18 the team managed to amass in the 22 league games under the guidance of McGhee between the start of the season and his departure.
It is a hot streak of form that has seen Ward transform a rag-tag band of footballers that were on the road towards losing their Football League status to one that now has their fate firmly in their own hands.
A 2-0 win at Oxford United on Saturday courtesy of goals from Lee Brown and Eliot Richards, no shortage of hard work and a slice of luck along the way saw Rovers carve out a five-point cushion between themselves and the relegation zone. That this has all been achieved in less than two months can be described as nothing short of truly remarkable.
So what has changed? The arrival of six new players to toughen up the spine of a side that had been found wanting earlier in the campaign is the obvious answer. Other than that, however, Ward just seems to adhere to the rule that football is essentially a simple game, so why not keep things simple? Minimal change in decisions over team selection – decisions that even the layman can understand – have served to inject a continuity on which a solid foundation seems to have been built.
Gone is the tinkering, the playing players out of position, the altering of formations and tactics focused solely on stopping the opposition, which seemed to serve as such a source of confusion in the early part of the campaign. The manager also appears to appreciate the limitations of the League Two player and asks no more of anybody than to do the jobs they are capable of and to run, chase and work as hard as any supporter would if they were offered the opportunity to wear the blue and white quartered shirt on a Saturday afternoon.
"We haven't really worked on forward play at all in training yet," Ward said last week. "We've only really focused on getting a good shape and improving the discipline in our defensive play."
The success at the Kassam Stadium was again mostly attributable to an increasing desire to defend the goal first and foremost.
Yes, Brown will earn plaudits for the ice-cool way in which he slotted away a retaken penalty in the 55th minute to give Rovers the lead after the first effort was ruled out for encroachment. Richards, too, will get the credit he deserves for coming off the bench to clinically despatch the second goal when going through one-on-one with Oxford goalkeeper Luke McCormick.
"These boys don't stop until the final whistle," Ward said after watching a goal scored with virtually the last kick of the game for a third successive match.
That late strike sent the 1,900 Rovers supporters off with slightly wider smiles – even if the increasing incidence of late goals is doing little to increase Ward's popularity within the confines of the press box!
The two goals Rovers did score, however, may well have been immaterial had Mildenhall not pulled off a 37th minute save to athletically repel a close-range effort from Oxford striker James Constable before Tom Parkes launched into a goal-denying block to prevent Alfie Potter the opportunity to open the scoring just before half-time.
Luck was also in Rovers corner at times how Constable missed a second-half sitter to score what would have been an equaliser from all of six yards is anybody's guess, while Harry Worley's header in the 89th minute that went inches wide of the post left Oxford manager Chris Wilder curled over in disbelief on the edge of his technical area. Others played their part, too – even if there is not enough space here to highlight the achievements of every individual within the context of another impressive collective display.
Only the hardest task-master would begrudge the players the break Ward is set to offer them this week to recover from the physical demands of the last ten days or so.
Mentally, however, the players must remain focused.
Progress has been made down the road towards survival. The job, however, is not quite done yet.
I feel that a new manager :
- could inspire the players towards a last third of the season charge
- assess the out of contract players (although it sounds like Ian Lenagan has already decided the fate of several of the high paid and injury prone players)
- get some sort of optimism back in the fans, perhaps lifting crowds, especially with season ticket renewals being before the end of the season in recent years.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Read this from the Bristol Post - my bold
THERE are many ways to analyse the change in fortunes that manager John Ward has instigated at Bristol Rovers since succeeding Mark McGhee a little under two months ago.
There have been five wins in eight games an unbeaten away record one defeat in eight games and a five-match unbeaten run. We've also witnessed the biggest crowd for a league game at the Memorial Stadium for the best part of three years. How about a vastly-improved goals for and goals against column? Or the best run of form over an eight-game period for a number of seasons. Who could have predicted on December 15 that Rovers would be second only to leaders Port Vale in the form table over the following eight games?
The most telling statistic – the best one to highlight the impact Ward has made – is, however, this: Ward has, in eight games as manager, collected just one fewer point than the 18 the team managed to amass in the 22 league games under the guidance of McGhee between the start of the season and his departure.
It is a hot streak of form that has seen Ward transform a rag-tag band of footballers that were on the road towards losing their Football League status to one that now has their fate firmly in their own hands.
A 2-0 win at Oxford United on Saturday courtesy of goals from Lee Brown and Eliot Richards, no shortage of hard work and a slice of luck along the way saw Rovers carve out a five-point cushion between themselves and the relegation zone. That this has all been achieved in less than two months can be described as nothing short of truly remarkable.
So what has changed? The arrival of six new players to toughen up the spine of a side that had been found wanting earlier in the campaign is the obvious answer. Other than that, however, Ward just seems to adhere to the rule that football is essentially a simple game, so why not keep things simple? Minimal change in decisions over team selection – decisions that even the layman can understand – have served to inject a continuity on which a solid foundation seems to have been built.
Gone is the tinkering, the playing players out of position, the altering of formations and tactics focused solely on stopping the opposition, which seemed to serve as such a source of confusion in the early part of the campaign. The manager also appears to appreciate the limitations of the League Two player and asks no more of anybody than to do the jobs they are capable of and to run, chase and work as hard as any supporter would if they were offered the opportunity to wear the blue and white quartered shirt on a Saturday afternoon.
"We haven't really worked on forward play at all in training yet," Ward said last week. "We've only really focused on getting a good shape and improving the discipline in our defensive play."
The success at the Kassam Stadium was again mostly attributable to an increasing desire to defend the goal first and foremost.
Yes, Brown will earn plaudits for the ice-cool way in which he slotted away a retaken penalty in the 55th minute to give Rovers the lead after the first effort was ruled out for encroachment. Richards, too, will get the credit he deserves for coming off the bench to clinically despatch the second goal when going through one-on-one with Oxford goalkeeper Luke McCormick.
"These boys don't stop until the final whistle," Ward said after watching a goal scored with virtually the last kick of the game for a third successive match.
That late strike sent the 1,900 Rovers supporters off with slightly wider smiles – even if the increasing incidence of late goals is doing little to increase Ward's popularity within the confines of the press box!
The two goals Rovers did score, however, may well have been immaterial had Mildenhall not pulled off a 37th minute save to athletically repel a close-range effort from Oxford striker James Constable before Tom Parkes launched into a goal-denying block to prevent Alfie Potter the opportunity to open the scoring just before half-time.
Luck was also in Rovers corner at times how Constable missed a second-half sitter to score what would have been an equaliser from all of six yards is anybody's guess, while Harry Worley's header in the 89th minute that went inches wide of the post left Oxford manager Chris Wilder curled over in disbelief on the edge of his technical area. Others played their part, too – even if there is not enough space here to highlight the achievements of every individual within the context of another impressive collective display.
Only the hardest task-master would begrudge the players the break Ward is set to offer them this week to recover from the physical demands of the last ten days or so.
Mentally, however, the players must remain focused.
Progress has been made down the road towards survival. The job, however, is not quite done yet.
Re: Wilder Out?
How often has that been said on here? Time and again Hansen and Co on MOTD point out Premier players now dealing with formation changes/playing out of position so why should we expect League 2 players to be able to do so?"slappy" wrote: Other than that, however, Ward just seems to adhere to the rule that football is essentially a simple game, so why not keep things simple? Minimal change in decisions over team selection – decisions that even the layman can understand – have served to inject a continuity on which a solid foundation seems to have been built.
Gone is the tinkering, the playing players out of position, the altering of formations and tactics focused solely on stopping the opposition, which seemed to serve as such a source of confusion in the early part of the campaign. The manager also appears to appreciate the limitations of the League Two player and asks no more of anybody than to do the jobs they are capable of and to run, chase and work as hard as any supporter would if they were offered the opportunity to wear the blue and white quartered shirt on a Saturday afternoon.
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Kernow Yellow
- Grumpy old git
- Posts: 3076
- Joined: Thu May 11, 2006 5:16 pm
Re: Wilder Out?
I'm still haunted by the 2005-06 season, when we changed manager late in the day, thinking we were building for a successful future as part of a brave new dawn. And look what happened. As a club we're still (barely) recovering from those crazy couple of months.
Having said that, I have now come to the conclusion that Wilder's contract should not be renewed at the end of the season. I have some sympathy for the guy - we've had a hell of a lot of injuries, we're playing decent enough football and the team are clearly still playing for him, and have a sense of togetherness. But for three years now we have shown ourselves to be incapable of scoring enough goals. Which is why we're not winning enough football matches. This has not been adequately addressed, and I have no confidence that CW knows how to address it.
But our short term goal has to be to pick up the points we need to stop worrying about what's going on below us in the table, which is even tighter than it was the year we went down. We're still well short of that target, and one point from every four games will not be nearly enough. This slump has to stop as a matter of urgency.
Having said that, I have now come to the conclusion that Wilder's contract should not be renewed at the end of the season. I have some sympathy for the guy - we've had a hell of a lot of injuries, we're playing decent enough football and the team are clearly still playing for him, and have a sense of togetherness. But for three years now we have shown ourselves to be incapable of scoring enough goals. Which is why we're not winning enough football matches. This has not been adequately addressed, and I have no confidence that CW knows how to address it.
But our short term goal has to be to pick up the points we need to stop worrying about what's going on below us in the table, which is even tighter than it was the year we went down. We're still well short of that target, and one point from every four games will not be nearly enough. This slump has to stop as a matter of urgency.
Re: Wilder Out?
Surely, this is the final straw? Lenegan should act now
Re: Wilder Out?
At this point in 05/06, we were only 4 points worse off than we are now. *alarm bells*
Re: Wilder Out?
Nah!"theox" wrote:At this point in 05/06, we were only 4 points worse off than we are now. *alarm bells*
Famous last words I know, but...
...SURELY there are two worse teams than we, and others who are equally out of form and spiralling..?
By contrast I am aware of upwardly mobile teams below us, but I cannot believe any of Aldershot, Barnet, Wimbledon and Plymouth are going to outperform us in the next two months by a clear three games.
Agreed - the current state of play does not cover us in glory, but I won't be booking my ticket to Luton next year quite yet...
Re: Wilder Out?
Why is it that opposition teams can play - and win - on our pitch, but we can't?
Why is it that injuries happen to our team, but not others? Who's ultimately responsible for a) signing these players (who it's alleged haven't been put through thorough medicals), b) their fitness and conditioning and c) the training sessions which appear responsible in part for the injuries we have?
Why - after all this time - do we still not have a settled formation?
Why are our forwards clearly so short on confidence?
Why do players who are picked up on a whim it seems, constantly preferred to players who are tied to long term contracts?
Why have out two youth-teamers been discarded after promising performances?
Wilder.
Why are we still debating this?
Why is it that injuries happen to our team, but not others? Who's ultimately responsible for a) signing these players (who it's alleged haven't been put through thorough medicals), b) their fitness and conditioning and c) the training sessions which appear responsible in part for the injuries we have?
Why - after all this time - do we still not have a settled formation?
Why are our forwards clearly so short on confidence?
Why do players who are picked up on a whim it seems, constantly preferred to players who are tied to long term contracts?
Why have out two youth-teamers been discarded after promising performances?
Wilder.
Why are we still debating this?
Re: Wilder Out?
I am actually glad that Tyrone Marsh is out on loan at the moment, as it means he is getting some game time at a club where things are going well. Similarly I'm also glad Crocombe is on the bench rather than having had to play in these last three games as I would imagine being a youngster in the dressing room at the moment would be soul destroying.
With Richards out as well now, then I dont think there is a fit senior player left outside the 18 named last night, which means more loanees (at a cost) or what should normally happen, ie. promoting some of the youth team onto the bench, but unusually (for me) I would likewise prefer them not to be around the squad with morale at a such a low ebb....
Confidence has gone amongst the players, and unless the board believe CW can restore that, then it may be time for some gardening leave, and a caretaker to take us through to the summer, although that then begs the question whether those most likely to take that role (eg Lewis) are far enough removed from the current situation that they would be able to do it either?
MAybe I'm wrong and the goal in the last few minutes indicates the squad are still firing and behind the manager, or is it that after 80 minutes of trying to do his bidding, they gave up and started doing it themselves instead?
With Richards out as well now, then I dont think there is a fit senior player left outside the 18 named last night, which means more loanees (at a cost) or what should normally happen, ie. promoting some of the youth team onto the bench, but unusually (for me) I would likewise prefer them not to be around the squad with morale at a such a low ebb....
Confidence has gone amongst the players, and unless the board believe CW can restore that, then it may be time for some gardening leave, and a caretaker to take us through to the summer, although that then begs the question whether those most likely to take that role (eg Lewis) are far enough removed from the current situation that they would be able to do it either?
MAybe I'm wrong and the goal in the last few minutes indicates the squad are still firing and behind the manager, or is it that after 80 minutes of trying to do his bidding, they gave up and started doing it themselves instead?