Hollowhead - The Manager We Should Have Had All Along ?

[The Red Planet]

On a day when lowly Blackpool, managed by Holloway have beaten Liverpool (at Anfield - FFS) and at a time when we are deep in the mire and questioning both our Chairman and Manager's abilities this (I admit, dangerous) thought came into my head whilst watching the sports news just now.

This Bristolian probably should have been managing our team all along.

I have been posting on here for a few years and I have never had any serious flak up to now but I fully expect it after this (and YES I have seen THAT video).

Forget all the history, on the basis of - can he deliver results ? . Sorry, but the evidence is building.

NOT that it is ever to going to happen. Too late now.

By the way, did you see the old showman on Michael McIntyre's Roadshow last night ?

Opportunity missed I think.

[daisybcfc]

Behave lad. He's only ever done well at one club. Lots of managers have, but he is a moron. He's relgated decent teams and even been suspended by QPR because he was more interested with other teams than his own. I'd prefer my Nan managing us than him.

[Old Dazzler]

On a day when lowly Blackpool, managed by Holloway have beaten Liverpool (at Anfield - FFS) and at a time when we are deep in the mire and questioning both our Chairman and Manager's abilities this (I admit, dangerous) thought came into my head whilst watching the sports news just now.

This Bristolian probably should have been managing our team all along.

I have been posting on here for a few years and I have never had any serious flak up to now but I fully expect it after this (and YES I have seen THAT video).

Forget all the history, on the basis of - can he deliver results ? . Sorry, but the evidence is building.

NOT that it is ever to going to happen. Too late now.

By the way, did you see the old showman on Michael McIntyre's Roadshow last night ?

Opportunity missed I think.

I have no objection to any managing the club who can bring us succes, whether it be Warnock, Pulis or Holloway, but the problem is whoever would have thought that Pulis would have done such a good job with Stoke (2nd time round).

Like Pulis, Holloway's record before Blackpool was patchy, some success with QPR but a disaster at Leicester. And when he went to Blackpool we weren't looking for a manager as GJ was pretty much set after 2 season in the championship, the first one being particularly good.

Its the un-predicability of managerial appointments that make it such a minefield

- remember Coppell?

[FanaticRed]

hindsight's a wonderful thing my friend. lets look to the future and what might be rather than what could of been.

[Davros]

I have a lot of time for the guy but there is a certain amount of history with him and this club that would make him a poor choice.

[Guest naughty eskimo]

He said he would never ever manage ''the sh*t''. Which is fair enough because i would rather have Timmy Mallet. Both have similar managerial skills but Timmy's got more dignity.

[Guest Mr Mosquito]

On a day when lowly Blackpool, managed by Holloway have beaten Liverpool (at Anfield - FFS) and at a time when we are deep in the mire and questioning both our Chairman and Manager's abilities this (I admit, dangerous) thought came into my head whilst watching the sports news just now.

This Bristolian probably should have been managing our team all along.

I have been posting on here for a few years and I have never had any serious flak up to now but I fully expect it after this (and YES I have seen THAT video).

Forget all the history, on the basis of - can he deliver results ? . Sorry, but the evidence is building.

NOT that it is ever to going to happen. Too late now.

By the way, did you see the old showman on Michael McIntyre's Roadshow last night ?

Opportunity missed I think.

Even more controversially, with hindsight we should have made a move for Neil Warnock and not Steve Cop-out.

[The Red Planet]

He said he would never ever manage ''the sh*t''. Which is fair enough because i would rather have Timmy Mallet. Both have similar managerial skills but Timmy's got more dignity.

Eskimo

After what he has said about our club over the years, I am not suggesting I like the guy. But I do admire him for what he has achieved.

I suppose what I am thinking is, I wish he had been a Red and then went on to manage us.

Whatever you think about him, he is a great football motivator and very passionate. Just what we actually need right now.

As has been said above, Hindsight is a great thing.

[Red Robin]

He said he would never ever manage ''the sh*t''. Which is fair enough because i would rather have Timmy Mallet. Both have similar managerial skills but Timmy's got more dignity.

tell you something i know,olly may have said that in the heat of the moment,but i can tell you he would manage the club.what a result today,he is doing a cracking job at pool on a very tight budget.

[Rob k]

I don't like hollowhead one bit and I don't buy into all this he's a character business either, at the end of the day he's managing with absolutly no pressure on him as he has done from day one at Blackpool. He would get crucified here where the pressure to succeed would be on him from day 1.

[numbeast]

Holloway getting Blackpool to the Premier League is like having a100-1 winner in the Grand National,they race at that price every year but now and then they get lucky and win. Danny Wilson got the Tykes promoted to the Prem but couldn't get us out of League 1. After Tony Pulis I personally don't want anyone connected with the Gas in any way, shape or form even cleaning our U14's boots.

[The Red Planet]

I don't like hollowhead one bit and I don't buy into all this he's a character business either, at the end of the day he's managing with absolutly no pressure on him as he has done from day one at Blackpool. He would get crucified here where the pressure to succeed would be on him from day 1.

Read my words. I have not said I like the man and there is always pressure as a manager at any club.

Having started it, I admit this thread may be a bit pointless as it is all about what might have been.

BUT in the end, Football is all about results and (give him credit please) Hollowhead (so far) is doing well in the Prem with Pool.

SO, for all the old history, I say well done and I hope that Blackpool stay up (although there is no way they are are a long term Prem club) . Just wish it was us.

[Mr Popodopolous]

Well, hindsight and history are two key factors of course.

Still, looking at the facts objectively:

1) Hard to say how he did at Rovers really. He got the old heave ho if memory serves, but he did in previous years get them quite high up League One one seaosn, quite low the following one. Mixed bag?

2) He did a pretty handy job at QPR all in all. Inherited a side heading down to League One and yes took them down but on a relatively tight budget got them back up and then re-established them as a Championship side- got suspended due to other clubs though.

3) Plymouth- struggling side, rebuilt the side and probably didn't have a massive budget. He left them in and around the top 5, after he left the side broke up and they gradually got worse and went down.

4) Leicester- total failure, had his biggest budget of the 5 sides he has managed- enough said.

5) Blackpool- total success thusfar, had a budget and context that suggested they would be struggling to stay in the Championship never mind going up to the PL so a total success thusfar no doubt about it.

Have to say Leicester apart, his track record isn't the worst.

[Pezo]

Eskimo

After what he has said about our club over the years, I am not suggesting I like the guy. But I do admire him for what he has achieved.

I suppose what I am thinking is, I wish he had been a Red and then went on to manage us.

Whatever you think about him, he is a great football motivator and very passionate. Just what we actually need right now.

As has been said above, Hindsight is a great thing.

No one had these kind words for this "great football motivator" when he took Leicester down.

[WellRedPhil]

Ignoring for one moment that fact that this is IAN HOLLOWAY, and this appointment could clearly never work, when exactly should we have appointed him? He wouldn't have come to us this summer (if ever) because he'd just taken Blackpool to the PL. Likewise he wouldn't have joined us following Johnson's departure, as they had a real shot at promotion. The previous summer, only a minority were calling for Johnson to be moved on, and clearly at no other point in Johnson's reign was it neccessary to bring someone else in. So are you saying we should have appointed him instead of Johnson? Because thatis clearly absurd.

Should he then, in your mind, have taken over instead of Tinnion, which means we'd probably have never had Johnson, or even way back in 2001 instead of Danny Wilson? It's just, I don't see a suitable point where we even could've appointed Holloway in the past ten years. Add to this, the fact that he is Gas through and through, is hated by many City fans, and has never exactly set the world alight until his very impressive spell with Blackpool and I just think this is a quite ridiculous post.

[Nogbad the Bad]

Eskimo

I suppose what I am thinking is, I wish he had been a Red and then went on to manage us.

He was/is a Blue, he DID go on to manage them and was eventually hounded out of the job, and the ground, by their fans.

I'm very glad he was never a Red, the majority of the time he is an embarrassment to Bristol.

[Mr Popodopolous]

Having read the thread, I think people are letting their partisan loyalties get in the way of acknowledgement of his fairly solid Championship track record- Leicester apart.

All things are relative and he has seldom had a big budget. Ironically, only time he did he took Leicester down, maybe he is better suited to lower budget clubs.

To put it another way:

Rovers- mixed bag

QPR- turned round stagnating/ailing side

Plymouth- punched above weight

Leicester- bombed in major way

Blackpool- Opposite to Leicester

[LongwellRed]

I've no problem with Ian Holloway whatsoever. He is a gas head and therefore in his younger days said some stupid things against the City like we all do/did about the sags. He has had to put up with some sickening abuse about his children from so say City fans in the past too. Ian Holloway grew up/matured just like most of us eventually do and I haven't heard any bad comments from him about City in recent years (unless I missed something). Pantomine barracking fine I understand that, and I'm sure he does to. Whether you like or loathe him he seems to be an honest and hardworking guy. Good luck to him. I'll await the abuse..

[Guest redcliff red]

So he beat a rubbish Liverpool side, whats the big deal?

Blackpool were crap last season. How else do you explain us taking 4 points off them?

Ian Holloway can rot in the cesspool otherwise known as north Bristol.

[Guest Mr Mosquito]

On a day when lowly Blackpool, managed by Holloway have beaten Liverpool (at Anfield - FFS) and at a time when we are deep in the mire and questioning both our Chairman and Manager's abilities this (I admit, dangerous) thought came into my head whilst watching the sports news just now.

This Bristolian probably should have been managing our team all along.

Liverpool is a club in turmoil. The rest of the lowly Premier League clubs will now smell blood and play out of their skins to beat Liverpool. Liverpool could well be relegated as a result. It's too late now but I believe we should have nipped in to take Neil Warnock from Crystal Palace at the end of last season. Even with the weakened side we currently field we'd surely have more than just one point from 5 home games with Neil Warnock at the helm. Neil Warnock would be ranting like a lunatic to urge our players on to glory and not just standing there with a clipboard and resigned to defeat as Keith Millen is.

[LongwellRed]

Liverpool is a club in turmoil. The rest of the lowly Premier League clubs will now smell blood and play out of their skins to beat Liverpool. Liverpool could well be relegated as a result. It's too late now but I believe we should have nipped in to take Neil Warnock from Crystal Palace at the end of last season. Even with the weakened side we currently field we'd surely have more than just one point from 5 home games with Neil Warnock at the helm. Neil Warnock would be ranting like a lunatic to urge our players on to glory and not just standing there with a clipboard and resigned to defeat as Keith Millen is.

not sure about Liverpool being relegated but totally agree about Warnock.

[Guest Mr Mosquito]

not sure about Liverpool being relegated but totally agree about Warnock.

Love or hate Neil Warnock, he's a real character and an entertainer. I really look forward to us playing a Neil Warnock side because it's always top quality entertainment. Never a dull moment with Neil Warnock and I wonder what lunacy he'll bring to Ashton Gate with his current QPR side.

[LongwellRed]

Love or hate Neil Warnock, he's a real character and an entertainer. I really look forward to us playing a Neil Warnock side because it's always top quality entertainment. Never a dull moment with Neil Warnock and I wonder what lunacy he'll bring to Ashton Gate with his current QPR side.

exactly the kind of character hated at AG but if ever joined us would be an instant hero

[Guest Mr Mosquito]

exactly the kind of character hated at AG but if ever joined us would be an instant hero

If we had Neil Warnock as manager then I'm sure teams would dread the thought of playing at Ashton Gate. The ranting of Neil Warnock backed up by the Bristolian Red Army baying for the defeat of the opposition. Teams would leave Ashton Gate battered and bruised with nil points - just the way it should be.

[CiderPunk]

So he beat a rubbish Liverpool side, whats the big deal?

Blackpool were crap last season. How else do you explain us taking 4 points off them?

Ian Holloway can rot in the cesspool otherwise known as north Bristol.

Good first post. But keep us Northerners out of it

[WellRedPhil]

So he beat a rubbish Liverpool side, whats the big deal?

Blackpool were crap last season. How else do you explain us taking 4 points off them?

Ian Holloway can rot in the cesspool otherwise known as north Bristol.

Lets not start lying.

[The Red Planet]

Well that got an interesting debate going.

Time to move on but a final thought (perhaps).

You will never see Holloway during a game standing like a statue with his arms crossed, if the team he is managing are three nil down at home.

[Old Dazzler]

Well that got an interesting debate going.

Time to move on but a final thought (perhaps).

You will never see Holloway during a game standing like a statue with his arms crossed, if the team he is managing are three nil down at home.

I don't really mind what the manager does on the touchline, as long as he produces results - KM's stance in the dugout hardly got a mention when he did well as caretaker last year. Its a bit like Steve McLaren being portrayed as the "Wally with the brolly" - if England hadn't lost against Croatia which would have resulted in us qualifying for Euro 2080 he might have been the "Great fella with the Umbrella"!

I would assume that all animated managers perform exactly the same on the touchline whether they are at the top or bottom of the table. Getting back to Holloway, I have no problem with any manager who can achieve success with this club, but I stick with the fact that a) there has never been a window of opportunity to bring him in and b) prior to Blackpool he would still be a high risk appointment for any team. + C) this seems to be a bit of a managers graveyard since the days of Bob Houghton and Roy Hodgson - plenty of managers that have come in with a decent reputation and failed to deliver (Dennis Smith, Jordan 2nd time round, Pulis, Danny Wlson and Coppell) or managers that have failed to deliver here and gone on to do outstandingly well (Hodgson and Pulis again!).

[The Red Planet]

I don't really mind what the manager does on the touchline, as long as he produces results - KM's stance in the dugout hardly got a mention when he did well as caretaker last year. Its a bit like Steve McLaren being portrayed as the "Wally with the brolly" - if England hadn't lost against Croatia which would have resulted in us qualifying for Euro 2080 he might have been the "Great fella with the Umbrella"!

I would assume that all animated managers perform exactly the same on the touchline whether they are at the top or bottom of the table. Getting back to Holloway, I have no problem with any manager who can achieve success with this club, but I stick with the fact that a) there has never been a window of opportunity to bring him in and b) prior to Blackpool he would still be a high risk appointment for any team. + C) this seems to be a bit of a managers graveyard since the days of Bob Houghton and Roy Hodgson - plenty of managers that have come in with a decent reputation and failed to deliver (Dennis Smith, Jordan 2nd time round, Pulis, Danny Wlson and Coppell) or managers that have failed to deliver here and gone on to do outstandingly well (Hodgson and Pulis again!).

Fair Comments Old Dazzler

When I wrote the OP I was (mistakenly) under the impression that Hollowhead was out of work when GJ was fired.

Anyway, what might have been is is gone. I still think that under different circumstances, Hollowhead could have been a great manager for us, but it will never happen.

[TobysDad]

I advocated at the time that Holloway or Warnock would have been excellent appointments. Despite what many see as baggage both are clearly capable - in my mind - in motivating a team that punches above it's weight.

Both might be disliked intensely by the CTID diehards, but who where would you prefer to be now? Beating Liverpool away and having a fantastic afternoon - remember FA cup victory anyone? - or riding along looking up at the real chance of Premier League next season ala Colin - or wondering whether your own manager will ever uncross his arms as we're staring at a defeat - oh, but we played great football, the ref was to blame, we deserved more.

I don't know the answer to the question but with SLs apparent wealth and commitment to the club, does anyone know how that compares to the backers of QPR? I ask as if the wealth and investment is the same I wonder whether the reason QPR are where they are and we're where we are is due to something more fundamental? The ability and skill of the manager?

Don't look back and hindsight and all that but we need to take something from our past to build for the future.

Did we do that with recent managerial appointments? I fear not. Appointing from within, someone who has coaching qualifications and "is a good bloke' doesn"t work.

Or put another way, the monkeys haven't evolved and we're in danger of forever walking around on all fours.