How much difference can a manager make?

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Originally Posted by Elite_Pie

I was hoping for eleven names, but obviously I'm not going to get it. I realise we have a lot of poor players who appear week in week out, but are the other options any better? I thought Kellett was probably our best midfielder today, and he was barely average. Incredibly, we have managed to assemble a big squad without one decent central midfielder.

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I wish I could I could give 11 names, but all seem as bad each other. But the one thing I do believe is that starting the same midfield every bloody week, with the same result, then a different selection should be made. Why not try Husin & Crawford, or Patching and Davis in the centre? Lets try a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3, anything apart from this same s***E.What is the worst that can happen? Lose? We do that anyway. The only solution is to employ 11 more players and then try and get rid when contracts run out as no other team is stupid enough to employ any player on our pay roll (apart from Stead)

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Originally Posted by Disturbed

Why not try Husin?

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We have. It was an abject failure.

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Originally Posted by Elite_Pie

We have. It was an abject failure.

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So have Hewitt, Vaughan and Jones, but they seem to play most games. So how about Davis and Crawford as a centre pairing in a 4-4-2 formation?

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Originally Posted by Disturbed

So have Hewitt, Vaughan and Jones, but they seem to play most games. So how about Davis and Crawford as a centre pairing in a 4-4-2 formation?

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Davies will be banned and Crawford is unproven. It's like those who say "play the youth team, they can't be any worse". The reality is that they could and would be worse. We have no automatic choices in central midfield, which given our squad size is disgraceful.

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Originally Posted by Elite_Pie

Davies will be banned and Crawford is unproven. It's like those who say "play the youth team, they can't be any worse". The reality is that they could and would be worse. We have no automatic choices in central midfield, which given our squad size is disgraceful.

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I agree, but playing the same players (and I use that term very loosely) every week, the same problems every week, the same bitching on here every week, then why not try something else? To say unproven when we are playing like we are, then why not try something different? Every manager can see how Notts are going to line up and play, and they counter act that from the first second, we are then lost and have no idea what to do. So giving these unproven players a chance, then wouldn't that throw the opposition off guard for 10 mins? Worth a try isn't it? Or are these straws getting too small now?

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Originally Posted by Disturbed

I agree, but playing the same players (and I use that term very loosely) every week, the same problems every week, the same bitching on here every week, then why not try something else? To say unproven when we are playing like we are, then why not try something different? Every manager can see how Notts are going to line up and play, and they counter act that from the first second, we are then lost and have no idea what to do. So giving these unproven players a chance, then wouldn't that throw the opposition off guard for 10 mins? Worth a try isn't it? Or are these straws getting too small now?

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I understand what you're saying and days like today makes it hard to disagree with, but is it just change for change's sake? I wish I knew the answer, because we seem to be heading for non-league at an accelerating rate.

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Originally Posted by Elite_Pie

I understand what you're saying and days like today makes it hard to disagree with, but is it just change for change's sake? I wish I knew the answer, because we seem to be heading for non-league at an accelerating rate.

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And that is why I would like to see a change, as the first half of the season has been just a great footballing experience. We need something drastic to escape, but that will not happen when we do the same thing every game, with the same team selection.

To quote a sketch on Blackadder
Blackadder: It's the same plan that we used last time and the seven**** times before that.
Melchett: Exactly! And that is what is so brilliant about it! It will catch the watchful Hun totally off guard! Doing precisely what we've done eigh**** times before is exactly the last thing they'll expect us to do this time! There is, however, one small problem.
Blackadder: That everyone always gets slaughtered in the first ten seconds.

Now, this sums Notts up very well indeed, but the 10 seconds for getting slaughtered, should be changed to 90 mins

Interesting listening to Ardley post match, basically saying he has to pick from what’s there, which indicated he knew where the problem position / players lay. Interestingly all 4 managers this season have picked very similar line ups ( I may be mistaken but have all picked Hewitt at right back too?) so they must see something we don’t. Have to agree with Elite picking youngsters would be a disaster and would be a major step backwards .

The interesting thing for me is if the rumours are to be believed there are clubs in a higher league sniffing around our players, Tootle has 3 League 1 clubs looking at him apparently which means some clubs see qualities in some of the players we have to play in a higher league. What baffles me is the defensive frailties, you would have thought at least one of the four managers ( and more obviously the technical director) would have at least been able to identify the issues and at least try to plug it. Mark Stallard said on the radio after the match said he wouldn’t bring anyone up front as we are well covered and the supply line and back four need to be addressed which I think is fair comment.

I personally think Ardley will turn it around whether it’s this season or next. One things for sure he needs to be given time.

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Originally Posted by i961pie

If we give him a chance and time and with the January transfer window approaching then yes he can.
If we can win our home games just to get away from the bottom two would be massive and how important is the boxing day game now?

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Nolan had chance and time AND the January transfer window but in his inexperience he blew it. I'm not knocking Ardley here, after all he does have about six years more experience of managing a football club, but if HE blows it then we might just as well have stuck with Nolan, we'll find out soon enough, hindsight is a wonderful way of predicting the present.

I've just seen Ardley's post Macclesfield interview and he looks just as bewildered as Nolan and Kewell did, what to do? What to do? Perhaps (hindsight again) the experience of Edwards, Smith and Ameobi might have helped but who can Neal turn to, Cox? An unknown to we Notts fans but who knows what (if any) plan B they might have if THIS January goes tits up. Never has a transfer window been as important in the history of Notts County as this next one is. Sh!t or bust, as we philosophers say.