Full
steam ahead Stan
Since the New Year I note that Stan has come in for a
bit of stick and some people seem to imagine that we would do better with a new manager.
Even if there was a good reason for getting rid of Stan, and so far I haven't read or
heard one, the first thing to consider is, who would you put in his place?
John Ward is the most popular name; I have even read a
suggestion that Adrian Heath ought to be brought back. People seem to have forgotten some
of the dreary football played under both these two and I particularly remember a tame
capitulation at York, and home defeats to relegated teams. Sure we tanked Brentford 3-0
when they were in the top slot, but a couple of weeks later we folded against Luton 2-0
under the pressure of actually succeeding, and then went on to a 5-0 whacking at Wycombe.
People can't be serious can they?
Who else is there about then? "Harry"
Bassett? Spare us please. Anyone else any good? I don't think so. Among the candidates for
the QPR job were Steve Bruce and Steve Coppell. No thanks very much.
Myself, I cannot honestly see what all the fuss is
about, when the major problem stems from the loss of Lee Briscoe. The loss in form has
resulted from Stan's contortions to replace Lee, who had been quietly turning in some good
performances in his position. Its must be obvious that Branch has had to move back having
been one of our most effective forwards, and that Stan is looking for another forward to
replace Cooke, but failed to land one permanently. It's public knowledge now that Stan has
tabled bids for Adebola, Aloisi and Asaba.
Whilst I think that releasing Cooke was premature, its
almost indisputable that these three are better players than Andy. Furthermore the club
had to either offer Cooke a contract or cash in, or else risk the player leaving on a
free. Thankfully the chairman shows no sign of hitting the panic button; he hasn't even
bothered to make a statement and why should he even have to?
I read of a survey of Clarets fans saying that 80%
wanted Ternent out. I wonder what the result would have been of a poll taken after the 5-0
and 6-0 whackings administered by Gillingham and Man City a couple of seasons ago? 100%
for sacking Stan, I would imagine. Equally, a survey taken after the 2-1 win at Scunthorpe
would have produced the opposite result. The 80% (of what figure I wonder ) who want Stan
out merely proves that there are a number of folk around who have short memories, show no
sense of judgement and subscribe to the magic wand theory of management. Their knowledge
of football could be safely transferred to the back of a fag packet.
Theory of
relativity
I don't know if any of you follow the fortunes of other
clubs, but some of you might have noticed that Rovers whacked Derby 5-2 recently and that
Birmingham took Ipswich to the cleaners recently after eliminating Spurs and Newcastle
from the Worthy Cup. Palace also banged Liverpool and knocked out Sunderland, and to prove
that wasn't a fluke went to the Stadium of Light and got a draw in the FA Cup. Most
notably, Tranny are propping up the Division whilst merrily eliminating Prem clubs like
Everton and Southampton from the FA Cup.
Along the same lines, note the progression of Ipswich
and Charlton in the Premiership and that of Sunderland as well, a Nationwide club only two
seasons ago. Recently I made a trip up to the Stadium of Light to watch Ipswich take on
the Mackems in the FA Cup, being one of the few chances that I would have to watch Town,
as the home games are all sell outs. Prior to watching this I strongly fancied them to
beat Birmingham. Considering this was second place v fifth, frankly the standard of
football wasn't that breathtaking. Basically it was a bit like athletics with a ball. Lots
of running, crashing challenges in midfield with the occasional burst of skill, but on the
whole workmanlike and well-organised would be the best way to describe the encounter.
In short, not a great deal unlike the style of football
played by the Clarets. After the viewing, I can see why an attack-orientated team might
beat Ipswich, as the Tractor boys don't have players like Adebola or Lazarides.
Equally sides like Birmingham, Bolton and Rovers will
IMHO hold their own in the top flight and on their day I thought Forest were a good side.
Their problem was that their days are often very different. Add in Fulham who I haven't
seen yet, except briefly on tele and Watford and I reckon all these could easily change
places with any of the bottom six of the Premiership, some might even rise higher,
unfortunately its looking increasingly like Blackburn might be one of them. However
echoing some of the comments from the previous mags contributors, maybe it would be better
all round if this fixture was out of the way for a while.
The point is that Burnley are not doing badly in a
league that has got some good sides in it. A lot of teams are now settling down as the
season gets under way and the lower clubs are beginning to perform. Up to now we have held
our own, and on occasions competed with the best. Recently we have hit a rocky patch.
Unfortunately some of our supporters have absolutely disgraced themselves with their
reaction and have actually put the club in some danger. Just when the team and the manager
need our support, some idiots have resorted to kicking them when they are down. Some of
the justification for their behaviour such as booing a "decision" beggars
belief. Let's get it right, if you do this you are booing Stan, because you think you know
better than him, and Jeppo or Mullin because you don't rate them.
Meanwhile, back
on planet Earth, Barry has a club to run
The Aloisi transfer saga brings home the kind of
circles we are moving in. The club is looking to make big investments in players via
transfer fees and wages. Its not easy signing decent players, as the Prem clubs can nearly
all field two sides these days. The people running the club need to look at the future
with confidence, in the belief that they can be guaranteed of our support in the short and
long term. The dangers of failure having gambled so extravagantly will be disastrous.
Whilst I am not advocating complete blind faith in the manager or players, they all make
mistakes; there are times when we need to see beyond immediate results and have faith in
them.
So far none of the players released by Stan have come
back to haunt him, and more importantly nobody is haunting him in the current first team
squad. We have a good bunch of players and IMHO they are ALL capable of playing in this
division. OK, there may be some variation in their degree of effectiveness, but overall
the results don't lie. Furthermore, on numerous occasions Stan has shown that he can see
something we can't; Graham Branch perhaps is the most obvious example, and lately Nick the
Greek. Personally, I would have dropped him forever after Nottingham, and I once described
Branch as a non-league player.
We have waited a long time to see a management team as
good as the one we have occupying the Boardroom chairs and the manager's seat at the same
time. Our job is to go along and support the team. Under previous regimes there was a void
that needed filling. With Stan, Barry et al, the holes have been plugged, they are paid to
manage and they are obviously know what they are doing. People need to relax a bit more,
sit back and enjoy the plumbing.
Igor Wowk
March 2001
