Our Relationship With Gary Johnson?

[mozo]

Have the fans finally bonded with Gary en masse? Does he understand us now?

I ask because a few on here still don't appear to trust him.

When he took over, morale was pitifully low amongst fans and players alike. People wanted Lansdown's head and worse still, we got off on the wrong foot with Johnson following the record run of defeats and the controversy surrounding Marcus Stewart and Steve Phillips.

Then his son signed, prompting a never-ending witch-hunt from particularly cynical grumblers.

Yessir once revealed that Gary used to read this forum until he got frustrated with all the negative tosh and who can blame him.

Gary has often had to cajole fans to rouse an atmosphere down the Gate, and I wonder if he is surprised by our lack of passion.

A promotion party helped, and last season, for me, was all about the Palace play-off win, when the atmosphere was electric, and togetherness was awesome.

Now, people are getting frustrated again, as if expecting that a reality check will show us up to be the under-acheiving, sleeping giant losers, like in our nightmares (and our past).

I hope Johnson can see that our vastly unsuccessful period of two and a half decades plays a major part in this insecure mentality. I also hope that feels appreciated.

Finally, nothing would make me happier than to see Lee Johnson play every game this season, and lead us to glory.

Always Believe.

[keynsham bcfc]

mozo good points

think our supporters should look back what our club was like when he joined , we were in a state of decline.

thats been turned around and today in a stronger position.

please trust in gj hes sais all along his work in getting players in , is not done in newspapers.

[Danny P]

There is no doubt in my mind the signings will come and i have complete confidence in GJ and SL to do the right thing by the club. Everyone is dying to see big transfers and some are getting nervous but we will be ok and we will ALWAYS BELIEVE!

[bcfc-andybuchs]

Fans are always going to have mixed views on managers and players. But I believe everyone surely now backs GJ after the past two amazing seasons. The rules he sticks to about transfers is fustrating whilst waiting, but rewarding when they happen. GJ is the man to take BCFC all the way.

[keynsham bcfc]

danny

i think your so right , we al wanted signings straight away but at the end of the day , look at most of the transfers that have gone through most are players making side ways moves . we as a club want players who will progress and make our club stronger for the future.

[mozo]

danny

i think your so right , we al wanted signings straight away but at the end of the day , look at most of the transfers that have gone through most are players making side ways moves . we as a club want players who will progress and make our club stronger for the future.

I'm wondering who is more frustrated, the average fan for the transfer saga/secrecy, or Gary for our lack of faith/patience.

[bristolcitysweden]

Have the fans finally bonded with Gary en masse? Does he understand us now?

I ask because a few on here still don't appear to trust him.

When he took over, morale was pitifully low amongst fans and players alike. People wanted Lansdown's head and worse still, we got off on the wrong foot with Johnson following the record run of defeats and the controversy surrounding Marcus Stewart and Steve Phillips.

Then his son signed, prompting a never-ending witch-hunt from particularly cynical grumblers.

Yessir once revealed that Gary used to read this forum until he got frustrated with all the negative tosh and who can blame him.

Gary has often had to cajole fans to rouse an atmosphere down the Gate, and I wonder if he is surprised by our lack of passion.

A promotion party helped, and last season, for me, was all about the Palace play-off win, when the atmosphere was electric, and togetherness was awesome.

Now, people are getting frustrated again, as if expecting that a reality check will show us up to be the under-acheiving, sleeping giant losers, like in our nightmares (and our past).

I hope Johnson can see that our vastly unsuccessful period of two and a half decades plays a major part in this insecure mentality. I also hope that feels appreciated.

Finally, nothing would make me happier than to see Lee Johnson play every game this season, and lead us to glory.

Always Believe.

This Forum is not a Free Church parish. For the good sake of the club it shall remain a pain in the ass. If you don't like it - don't read it.

[Mr Mosquito]

Have the fans finally bonded with Gary en masse? Does he understand us now?

I've spoken with Gary Johnson on just the one occasion after our pre-season friendly game against Gloucester City a few seasons back. I explained to him that I want to see this club playing top flight football once again - fair play to Gary Johnson as he almost achieved the task set in just 2 seasons. I saw greatness in Gary Johnson's eyes and I know he'll achieve - I believe that he'll get us back to the promised land sooner rather than later.

[Danny P]

What people have to remember is that you can make all the signings in the world but they have to be the right ones be they 'clubs for the bag' or 'square pegs for square holes'. You only have to look at Leicester to see what too many signings does to a team. We have what a lot of sides in CCC would love to have TEAM SPIRIT and thats all down to GJ

['Orns]

I had a really bad feeling that GJ was going to walk this summer.

The amount of times he sounded pissed off with us last season was amazing. Suppose he hasn't followed us through thick and thin and didn't really get that we couldn't believe what we were seeing out on the pitch.

The bloke has transformed our club, not on his own of course, and I hope he knows just how much we think of him.

This club was in a mess when he came, but he saw through the crap, sorted it and look at us now! Still can't believe it - so GJ, if you do still read the forum - thank you! Keep it going, and we're all behind you!

[Godzilla]

I have no doubt that many fans still want to be proved right.

That'll mean failure.

[Danny P]

I have no doubt that many fans still want to be proved right.

That'll mean failure.

Sometimes i think you might just be right mate!

[Mr Mosquito]

I have no doubt that many fans still want to be proved right.

That'll mean failure.

You're wrong as we all want success and top flight football once more. Gary Johnson is the man to bring top flight football back to Ashton Gate. I'm Bristolian and I want this club playing top flight football - no way would I wish any Bristol City FC manager failure in any form.

[mozo]

This Forum is not a Free Church parish. For the good sake of the club it shall remain a pain in the ass. If you don't like it - don't read it.

Gary Johnson didn't like it, so he now doesn't read it, we already established that.

Do you have any comment on the broader question I posed???

[bristolcitysweden]

Gary Johnson didn't like it, so he now doesn't read it, we already established that.

Do you have any comment on the broader question I posed???

You forgot "all the negative tosh"

Sing hallelujah

[Mr Mosquito]

Gary Johnson didn't like it, so he now doesn't read it, we already established that.

Do you have any comment on the broader question I posed???

Gary Johnson should, perhaps, immerse himself in the broader aspects of Bristol City FC and English society in general and read my postings on the Ziderheads forum as per link below....

http://www.ziderheads.co.uk/ch/index.php?showforum=10

...that'll make a refreshing change from the overly moderated and 'politically correct' postings on this forum.

[SimplyRed]

I just think a lot of people on here get too doey-eyed about the manager.

Maybe I'm getting too cynical in my old age, but it's all just too sickly sweet for me.

Yes, he's done a great job so far and he's deservedly flavour of the month (season?), but let's get all the gushing love into perspective:

He's a bloke doing a public job, he's human and he'll make mistakes - but he's paid handsomely for it, and if he was offered something better at a Premier league club, you can bet he won't be as loyal as you lot and he'll be off - and who can blame him?

In that sense, in my opinion, he is fair game for anyone who feels that he, or the club, has done something deserving of criticism.

Players come and go, managers come and go, directors come and go. BCFC is the only constant and it's there that any love and faith should be placed.

[cider head]

http://www.ziderheads.co.uk/ch/index.php?showforum=10

...that'll make a refreshing change from the overly moderated and 'politically correct' postings on this forum.

I don't know what you mean RG

[Mr Mosquito]

I don't know what you mean RG

I think you do know what I mean. The various Ziderheads message boards are fast becoming the bastion of true topical debate on all issues BCFC related.

[WTFiGO!?!]

Have the fans finally bonded with Gary en masse?

Think the complexities of the fans run too deep to define our relationship quantitavly with any accuracy. 'No' would have to be my answer though.

To quote yourself from some moons ago now: ''We're English, we can't even agree on whos turn it is to make the tea!''

[mozo]

You forgot "all the negative tosh"

Sing hallelujah

If you don't like it, don't read it. Yessir put it this way: 'the players do read it and so does gj or he did until in frustration at some of the posts has decided not to bother'

I also found this from Yessir last summer when people were losing patience. Quite fitting...

'I thought after all the moaning re lack of signings etc I'd put the record straight, there isn't one player that has been written about on here that either GJ, KM or PJ have not seen, talked about, spoken to thier agents, spoke to thier clubs or just not fancied. We do them an injustice to think they haven't got thier fingers on the pulse in regards to players, how much they will cost and how much wages they demand. You'd be amazed at some of the names and offers our club has made, unfortunately when you are dealing with top players they have more options and not everyone wants to come to BCFC. You should all know gj by now that if he has the slightest of doubts about a players motive for coming here he will move on swiftly to the next target and at the last count there are at least 10 to 15 names being talked too or spoken about, with weeks to go to the deadline you can be assurred that who ever Gj brings in will be of championship and beyond quality (in his eyes) and will come here for the right reasons not to see us as a stepping stone to something else.'

[cider head]

I think you do know what I mean. The various Ziderheads message boards are fast becoming the bastion of true topical debate on all issues BCFC related.

well i know scoot has a mass debate on there all the time

As for GJ he is doing the biz and i'm more thinking to what our new stadium will look like than who we

are or not signing as i'm sure he knows what he is doing so i need not worry...

[mozo]

In that sense, in my opinion, he is fair game for anyone who feels that he, or the club, has done something deserving of criticism.

Except that the critics are constantly being proved wrong, certainly in terms of Stewart, Phillips, Bridges, ability to take us up, nepotism, activity in transfer market last summer, activity in transfer market in January etc etc...let's see if he proves he can sign quality strikers this season.

So you think that Clough was just another manager to Forest fans? You'd be wrong if you did. And Johnson could well be our equivalent to Clough/Busby/Ferguson.

[Redminster]

I just think a lot of people on here get too doey-eyed about the manager.

Maybe I'm getting too cynical in my old age, but it's all just too sickly sweet for me.

Yes, he's done a great job so far and he's deservedly flavour of the month (season?), but let's get all the gushing love into perspective:

He's a bloke doing a public job, he's human and he'll make mistakes - but he's paid handsomely for it, and if he was offered something better at a Premier league club, you can bet he won't be as loyal as you lot and he'll be off - and who can blame him?

In that sense, in my opinion, he is fair game for anyone who feels that he, or the club, has done something deserving of criticism.

Players come and go, managers come and go, directors come and go. BCFC is the only constant and it's there that any love and faith should be placed.

So reading between the lines, you're waiting for him to fail or to leave the club. Either way a negative result for Gary Johnson and Bristol City football club. He may leave eventually but what's the use in counting down the days until that happens? We should be fully behind Gary in the interim as he has proved himself enough already.

As far as I'm concerned why not enjoy the good times? We have had enough bad times haven't we?

It's a very British and dare I say it, even more a Bristolian trait of wanting to be proved right in failure. Why don't we all want to be proved right in success rather than failure?

I couldn't care less if it's dough-ey eyed. I'm 27 years old and think GJ is the best thing that's happened to our football club in that time. I don't think he's therefore immune to criticism when he makes mistakes but the very discussion as to whether people should be cynical about Gary Johnson is academic.

For goodness sake we just finished 4th in the second tier of English football and I for one think we have a bloody good chance of repeating it.

[SimplyRed]

Except that the critics are constantly being proved wrong, certainly in terms of Stewart, Phillips, Bridges, ability to take us up, nepotism, activity in transfer market last summer, activity in transfer market in January etc etc...let's see if he proves he can sign quality strikers this season.

Whether or not they have been proved wrong doesn't mean it was wrong to raise the concerns in the first place, or that nobody has a right to raise them - hindsight is a wonderful thing.

So you think that Clough was just another manager to Forest fans? You'd be wrong if you did. And Johnson could well be our equivalent to Clough/Busby/Ferguson.

Of course I don't - and I'm happy for Johnson to be one of our heroes, just as I was for Atyeo to be my personal hero.

But that doesn't mean they should be free of any scrutiny or criticism, or be blindly followed without question - which is what a lot on here advocate.

[SimplyRed]

So reading between the lines, you're waiting for him to fail or to leave the club. Either way a negative result for Gary Johnson and Bristol City football club. He may leave eventually but what's the use in counting down the days until that happens? We should be fully behind Gary in the interim as he has proved himself enough already.

This is a typical response. Because I'm not gushing Johnson's praises, I want him to fail? To reiterate - he's a great manager and has done wonders for the club, but I reserve the right to take issue with things I preceive to be incorrect or lacking - and I don't want to have his babies!

As far as I'm concerned why not enjoy the good times? We have had enough bad times haven't we?

I am enjoying it, believe me - I'm just not having an orgasm every time Gary Johnson's name is mentioned.

It's a very British and dare I say it, even more a Bristolian trait of wanting to be proved right in failure. Why don't we all want to be proved right in success rather than failure?

See my previous response.

I couldn't care less if it's dough-ey eyed. I'm 27 years old and think GJ is the best thing that's happened to our football club in that time. I don't think he's therefore immune to criticism when he makes mistakes but the very discussion as to whether people should be cynical about Gary Johnson is academic.

I respect your opinion, but how about respecting mine and accepting that I'm not in love with the bloke and can have a contrary opinion on occasion?

For goodness sake we just finished 4th in the second tier of English football and I for one think we have a bloody good chance of repeating it.

I'm fully aware of where we finished last season and am as happy as the next person that we have done so well. However, unless we make some significant signings, I don't agree that we have a good chance of repeating it. The developments in the next 2-3 weeks will be very significant to the success of our season.

[downendcity]

I've spoken with Gary Johnson on just the one occasion after our pre-season friendly game against Gloucester City a few seasons back. I explained to him that I want to see this club playing top flight football once again - fair play to Gary Johnson as he almost achieved the task set in just 2 seasons. I saw greatness in Gary Johnson's eyes and I know he'll achieve - I believe that he'll get us back to the promised land sooner rather than later.

This could be the biggest sign yet.The last person to lead his people to the promised land came out of Egypt!! Mind you, it did take them 40 years to get there.

[phantom]

Don't believe fans have problems with GJ, but can fully understand why he gets fed up with the moronic postings of some on here.

The Nick Carle thread is a classic example of a forum going mad and the almost obsessive "player rumours" and "so and so" is going to sign today topics are a tad repetitive

[sunningdalered]

I just think a lot of people on here get too doey-eyed about the manager.

Maybe I'm getting too cynical in my old age, but it's all just too sickly sweet for me.

Yes, he's done a great job so far and he's deservedly flavour of the month (season?), but let's get all the gushing love into perspective:

He's a bloke doing a public job, he's human and he'll make mistakes - but he's paid handsomely for it, and if he was offered something better at a Premier league club, you can bet he won't be as loyal as you lot and he'll be off - and who can blame him?

In that sense, in my opinion, he is fair game for anyone who feels that he, or the club, has done something deserving of criticism.

Players come and go, managers come and go, directors come and go. BCFC is the only constant and it's there that any love and faith should be placed.

IMO you're bang on with these comments. I don't see any particular negativity or 'desire to fail' in what you've said.

If GJ has the talent and desire to push himself to the absolute max, and he perceives that he cannot achieve all that he aspires to with BCFC, we are likely to be a stepping-stone for him to whatever level of management his talent allows him to ascend (there's always a bit of 'right time, right place' about things of course). Why do people have a problem recognising this? He may have no aspirations beyond AG - and will want to roll with the ups and downs at City for the rest of his career - not sure this would be healthy for him or us.

GJ is pushing this team, and club, forward at a rate of knots. Most of the players that he brought in last season performed, and we did better than we could reasonably have expected. Tough challenge this season - which I hope (and believe) GJ can deal with. For all of this, I thank him sincerely - and I am glad that the way GJ wants to play the game is the sort of football I want to watch. But.......IMO, nothing wrong with questioning anything and everything that GJ does, as the custodian of our team.

The idea that fans should not debate in a debating forum, just in case it upsets the manager who might log in once in a blue moon, is ludicrous - and I don't believe that GJ is that much of a delicate flower that he would be mortally wounded by anything that he read on here. As long as we pay our money, get our arses down to AG (and away obviously), and be balanced in our support of the team (which means get behind them as long as they are giving 100% regardless of results) let the debating continue....

[chinapig]

I sometimes wonder about the standards and expectations we football (not just City) supporters have. We don't expect perfection in other parts of our lives but nothing less will do in football. We are not perfect at our jobs (at least I'm not, you may be ) but if we achieved the performance Gary has I imagine our employers/shareholders/customers would be pretty pleased.

Yet there seems to be a groundswell (minority or not I don't know) that he is good but somehow not quite good enough. This kind of "Yes, but..." mentality seems to be common in football and in our culture in general. I long since stopped listening to 606 for instance since it consists of a stream of Premier League fans pontificating that Ferguson/Wenger/Benitez/whoever has "lost the plot" and is "tactically naive" (everybody's favourite phrase though I doubt anybody who uses it could explain what it means).

The first time I heard Gary interviewed I thought this is a guy who actually seems to know what he is talking about. Following Danny Wilson's endless unpunctuated sentences that didn't seem to actually mean anything that was a pleasant change and he seems to have lived up to that impression. While I occasionally disagree with things he does (expert that I am) like playing Enoch as a target man when he seemed scared of his own shadow, I find it impossible to disagree on any major issue. Of all the Managers we have had in my forty-odd years of following City he is one of the few I could have that much respect for, alongside the likes of Alan Dicks and Joe Jordan - one of whom took us to the promised land and the other who would have had we not lost him I believe. Though I admire Managers like Steve Coppell and Simon Grayson I cannot see any manager in our league who is more likely than Gary to do the same. An added bonus is the fact that he doesn't rant like some of his peers but remains dignified and professional, though articulate and humourous. I've therefore come to the conclusion that there is just an outside possibility that he knows more about football than I do and he can probably get by without my advice.