Milo Posted August 10, 2004 Share Posted August 10, 2004 I've dusted off the toys that I threw out of my pram at the end of last season. After a self-enforced break, a summer spent biting my tongue, I can no longer resist the urge to get all opinionated and be slated for it. Two games into the season is no time for panic. There have been a few knee-jerk reactions to the matches and the 4-3-3 formation. If Rudyard Kipling were having a glass of cider with Tinman on the coach home, he might say: "If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too;" Personally, one point from six makes me worried, but it's not simply the formation that is making me struggle to remain positive. Ours is a club that has undergone a significant downsizing over the summer. The management structure has seen the departure of two respected coaches (see Matt Hill's interview in today's Evening Post) and a psychologist that have not been replaced. It makes me laugh when people say Tinnion is not a cheap option. I'm not saying he's not the right man for the job, but there should be no doubt that his appointment certainly shaves significant costs off the salary roll - making it a cheap option. We now have a management set-up worthy of a League 1 team. Also, we allow players who we have developed and nurtured to walk away from the club because we are only willing to pay what we consider to be League 1 wages. I can understand the board wanting to tighten the purse strings. I'm sure their director's loans are significant. When you run a loss making business you have two strategies to fix it. There's the 'speculate to accumulate' route (the route that the board had been forced to follow with the legacy of the 'old' division 1 debacle and high player salaries), or the 'cut all the costs' route. This latter route now appears to be the one we're on and it saddens and worries me. The outcome of this downsizing is a manager who will make countless mistakes as he learns the job (whether the mistakes will cost us promotion time will tell) and a weaker squad. Against this back-drop, Tinman, if you can get us promoted this season; Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son! 'If', by Rudyard Kipling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Old Red In Exile Posted August 10, 2004 Share Posted August 10, 2004 Didn't Kipling say something about 'Walking with Kings and keeping the common touch', isn't that very difficult for a player manager? The manager has the common touch, but must learn to walk with kings. First, he should hang up his boots, secondly drop his mate and thirdly buy an old fashioned centre forward in the Mick Hartford mould. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest city slicker 71 Posted August 10, 2004 Share Posted August 10, 2004 I take your point, and Unfortunate as it is for me to state it another poem by Kipling is beginning to shine through. Mother and Father say, Sister and Aunty agree, that all good people like us are we and everyone else is they, and while they live over the sea while we live over the way; would you believe they look upon us as only a sort of they. Prove them wrong Tinnion because that's what is emerging! Regards, City Slicker 71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby Posted August 11, 2004 Share Posted August 11, 2004 Milo would partially agree with your assessment - yes we have lost respected coaches, but we are now using other coaches at the club more fully. Yes we have lost key players (Brown, Peacock, Carey), but have added key players over the summer (orr, Heffernanm, Smith) and will get a full season out of players like Murray and Goodfellw, and can see a couple of academy players coming through quite strongly. I think we have as strong a team as last season, if not stronger but a less experienced and reduced back room staff. This could be damaging, or could act as a spur to success. As many stated last season, if we play players where they are most comfortable playing, in a system that suites them, drop them when not performing and play them when doing well, we can't go far wrong can we? It'll just be interesting to see how easy it is to deliver on that. The first two games have certainly provided some worries, but have also shown some real positives. I'm now looking forward to the trip to Bournemouth to see how we respond to problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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