jonnyowl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Hartlepool 0-5 Sheffield Wed = another flash in the pan? You cant put it down to two results, Irvine is not great by any means but we are doing ok. tbh I'd put it down to poor opposition. The bottom half of this league are very poor and there is a big difference between the top 8 and the bottom 8. Our problem has been against the top 8 and if those results don't improve we wont go up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sniper1 Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Sheffield Wednesday 6-2 Bristol Rovers = confidence Exeter City 5-1 Sheffield Wednesday = Embarrassment and a realisation that Bristol Rovers was just a flash in the pan! So what you are saying then is Alan Irvine should lose is job because of 45 mins of football? Hartlepool away MK Dons away Bristol Rovers home Bristol City away I too would like results like these every game, surely you must realise that we are not a good enough side to do this week in week out. Sunderland lost to Notts County, Premier League V League One, should Steve Bruce be sacked for that one result. Teams play Wednesday and they want it, they really f'kin want it, sometimes they want it more than we do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anglers owl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Seeing alan Irvine in the dressing room on Football focus with Chris Waddle told all I needed to know about the man. He visibly shrunk in the presence of such greatness. It all seemed just so wrong. I saw that as well but is that to do with his management skills or his personality, he wasnt known for being negative at Preston nor were Everton when he was there. Could it be that he recognised that we were week at the back and did not have the funds or chance to change it until now, maybe he tried to add caution as a consequence. His transfer dealings have been generally good on a limited budget (pre MM) and positively inspiring since.Jocks are generally dour as a race so you cant hold that against him and if people think back to Jack Charlton he was depressing and also made loads of decisions the fans did not agree with ( dropping Mark Smith) being the main one I remember. I for one will hold judgement on the man until his tenure is over, but feel more confident than ever now we have MM that if he is not cutting it fhe wont be allowed to take us into decline like previous managers have......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Triplej2 Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Is there really any point replying to you? i find it a waste of battery on my laptop?!? anyway here goes - Is there any point in moaning about Irvine when its not going to change anything? - NO Do we owe it to Mandaric to give Irvine a chance by backing the team and the players he's bringing in with MM's money? - YES Do i want Irvine to leave? - YES Have i come to terms with the fact i'm not a board member and can't do anything about it? - YES You want Irvine to leave, I want Irvine to leave. i think it's too late for us, I'm not happy, I air my views on this football forum. The End. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Triplej2 Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 tbh I'd put it down to poor opposition. The bottom half of this league are very poor and there is a big difference between the top 8 and the bottom 8. Our problem has been against the top 8 and if those results don't improve we wont go up! Head. Nail. On. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnyowl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Of his 11 signings- only two are questionable. That is a really good strike rate as far as I'm concerned. Second, I'm not of the opinion that the hoofball we play is actually his preferred standard of football. It's down to midfielders going missing ( Potter, O'Connor) at the same time that we gave defenders who are too scared / unable to pass a ball (Purse, Beevers, Spurr). Third- apart from Exeter, all our defeats have been close, but some of our wins have been by large margins. I fully believe that a few more signings will make all the difference. Like I said earlier- it's not that I'm an Irvine Lover- it's just that I don't think he is as bad as some people make out. In fact the only thing I agree with most people in is that sometimes his team selection has been questionable ( Spurr over Jones, Potter over anyone, not giving Heffernan a chance). You also have to understand that at the beginning of the season I wasn't convinced that we had a top two squad, so in my own opinion we are only slightly below where I expected us to be. Agree with most of that apart from a couple of points. Firstly I did think and still do believe we have a squad capable of finishing in the top 2. Secondly if hoofball is his preferred style of play then it shows two things. One we aren't very good at it and secondly playing hoofball is not getting the best out of this squad. This season when we have got it down and played and used the wings to get crosses in we have torn teams apart! if AI can't see it then his coaching badges are about as good as my swimming badges from 15 years ago are at coaching football! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devon_owl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 tbh I'd put it down to poor opposition. The bottom half of this league are very poor and there is a big difference between the top 8 and the bottom 8. Our problem has been against the top 8 and if those results don't improve we wont go up! You do realise Hartlepool are 10th and are one point from us? I would say Exeter was a flash in a pan result, we have underachieved, no question about it and we haven't really put together a serious run, which i believe we can. Its an open league and we have one of the best squads, I'm optimistic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eckington owl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 I air my views on this football forum. The End. I have no problem with that, its the mocking of other peoples posts what there's no need for. People are bout to have different views, Just accept it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dunellaowl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 He is our manager and there is **** all we can do about it apart from getting behind the lads every week and being proud to be an owl! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weshallovercome Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Long-term Owlstalk users will remember this cycle well. A minority recognise that Laws, Yorath, Irvine et al are clearly a huge mistake. Minority get abuse. Majority, week by week realise the same, and slowly admit it. Abuse trickles to a whimper. Said manager is relieved of duties, with all accepting it should have come sooner. It's not rocket science, but in the meantime try not to fall out. Apologists feel free to keep apologising for some of the worst football in our lifetimes as Owls, eg Exeter. Enlightened ones, just bide your time knowing a poo manager is a poo manager. In the meantime, if he turns out to be a genuine badged wonder, we all win and are happy campers. Is that a complicated way of saying we're right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnyowl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Hartlepool 0-5 Sheffield Wed = another flash in the pan? You cant put it down to two results, Irvine is not great by any means but we are doing ok. Ok? Ok you say! ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eighteen67 Posted January 12, 2011 Author Share Posted January 12, 2011 tbh I'd put it down to poor opposition. The bottom half of this league are very poor and there is a big difference between the top 8 and the bottom 8. Our problem has been against the top 8 and if those results don't improve we wont go up! Bang on! The thing that worries me is, Oldham and Southampton were shockingly poor at Hillsborough an we managed 1 point from both games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnyowl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 You do realise Hartlepool are 10th and are one point from us? I would say Exeter was a flash in a pan result, we have underachieved, no question about it and we haven't really put together a serious run, which i believe we can. Its an open league and we have one of the best squads, I'm optimistic Then why are we 7th! And why when we play any of our Playoff/ Promotion rivals do we get beat?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Batman Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 I don't think Irvine has got supporters has he? It's more like people who hate him and blame him for all our perceived failings and those who don't. I look at the bigger picture. He inherited a team in woeful form, a team with no confidence, poor mentality, no team spirit and what ever else you can think of to describe it. They were an absolute shambles at times last season. If you look at things in black & white Irvine failed in his brief to keep us up, but it is far more complex than that. The team was always fragile and we had a couple of poor seasons under Laws as well as a couple of good ones. Finishing 12th in 08/09 was a great achievement but the loss of Watson, McAllister being dropped (for whatever reason) the issue with Wood etc, issues off the pitch too, things fell apart. The team proved to be not good enough, under 2 different Managers (+ McAuley briefly) with different playing styles. In the summer 8 players were released and we had to rebuild with no transfer fees and limited wages due to high earners still on the books and the tax issues/transfer embargo's scuppering our plans. To be honest I thought we'd be strong enough to challenge for automatic straight away when we signed the likes of Morrison & Mellor. But I knew little of League 1 and went along with the general feeling that it was a poor division and the players that came down with us would be strong enough. As the season progressed it soon became clear our best performers were the new signings and the players still letting us down and showing they aren't good enough (even in L1) were the same ones that got us relegated. Coincidence? I don't think so, and that's one of the reasons I don't take the blinkered view it's all Irvine's fault we're not in the top 2. In spells we've played some decent football. Irvine's style seems to be to attack quickly down the wings and get plenty of crosses in, when it comes off we look dangerous. The best recent examples being the against the 2 Bristols. We looked like scoring with every attack against Rovers and in the 2nd half against City. Great to watch. I think the signings allowed the back 4 to push up and it made a massive difference. I'm obviously as disappointed as everyone else with some of the performances this season but I don't lay the blame squarely at Irvine's feet. We had (until a week ago!) a small squad with only really our forward line that had options, cover and competition for places. The Exeter result was a real low point but these results happen. Look at the season we finished 12th in the Championship, we got beat 4 – 0 by Plymouth who went on to finish 4th from bottom. As for those wanting rid of Irvine being “enlightened”, I guess they'll be “enlightened” when they deem the next Manager a failure and the one after that and the one after that... It's madness, just look in the Non SWFC football section on here. Plenty can see the stupidity of it when talking about other clubs. Things are heading in the right direction now, Milan has got to undo 10 + years of mismanagement on and off the pitch, have a little patience it wont happen over night. That's not a lack of ambition either, just reality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devon_owl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 (edited) Ok? Ok you say! ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, half way we are 7th with half a season left, I want us to go up and anything less than promotion is failure and Irvine should go if he doesn't get it but we are 7th with half a season. Yes thats right 24 games, lots of football to be played with new signings so yes we are doing ok Ok? Ok i say? ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!] Edited January 12, 2011 by devon_owl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Farrell Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Is that a complicated way of saying we're right? It's a complicated way of saying at this point in time nobody can prove they are right or wrong. Facts are, managers don't last very long on the whole at any club. We have an amazing guy in charge in MM. He accepts nothing less than success. Most importantly, we all want a successful club and team. So when you look at it, we can't lose. We either get success with Father Ted or with someone else. It's happy days, and a far cry from getting sued, Karen , Cashly et al. I'm touching myself. Seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sniper1 Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Then why are we 7th! And why when we play any of our Playoff/ Promotion rivals do we get beat?? This is spot on. Id say we have 5/6 of the best players in the league, not the best squad. We need to now improve our first team, its already started and nowhere near finished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Triplej2 Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 I have no problem with that, its the mocking of other peoples posts what there's no need for. People are bout to have different views, Just accept it. I won't accept an unneccessary relegation, terrible pre-season, 9 defeats, a couple of spankings, being Ole'd by Bournemouth, outclassed by Bury, Carlisle, Plymouth (with 10 men), Chezzy and at times Northampton. I won't accept 13 months of abject pain, embarrassment, dullness, boredom, darren flipping Potter's immunity from being dropped, watching video's of flipping Southport, coaching badge comments and general county standard rumblewittery. (Ok, I appreciate I'm a touch obsessed ) ......but i mean it all!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnyowl Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Yes, half way we are 7th with half a season left, I want us to go up and anything less than promotion is failure and Irvine should go if he doesn't get it but we are 7th with half a season. Yes thats right 24 games, lots of football to be played with new signings so yes we are doing ok Ok? Ok i say? ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!] Well I'd say we are doing the bear minimum! Why can't we have a manager that can get a team to perform above expectations for once! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Last_Great_Hope Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Secondly if hoofball is his preferred style of play then it shows two things. One we aren't very good at it and secondly playing hoofball is not getting the best out of this squad. This season when we have got it down and played and used the wings to get crosses in we have torn teams apart! if AI can't see it then his coaching badges are about as good as my swimming badges from 15 years ago are at coaching football! Part of my point is I don't think it is! If we do get 4 more players in we will be in a position to judge his style of play. I'm sit very close to the dugout - Irvine dies his nut in when it's constant hoofball from defence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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