Quote Originally Posted by Young_Nudger View Post
Yes those are the players I was thinking about.
You can add Molby to that list - and I?m sure some on here can think of a few others.

And yes - more than surprised about the appointment of Conor.
But as I?ve said on Facebook BBS - I think there?s been a change of approach by the club that has resulted in the appointment of Conor.
That?s right - the Barnsley Way maybe going through an overhaul.

Indications by the club and from those with links to the club were suggesting a foreign coach.
A coach that played in the style the club wants to see - but Flatman and especially Sormaz has seen the hard work and emphasis to detail that Conor has shown - plus importantly - and I?m guessing here but IMO the club has also seen an opportunity to mould a HC into something that they want.

Conor comes with no previous experience - a clean sheet that the club can work on.
He doesn?t come with the baggage of using different playing styles like previous HCs.

An opportunity exists at the end of the season to try a different approach when there?s nothing to play for.
Hence the experiment with a different formation such as the flat back 4.
IMO - this experiment has been sanctioned by Sormaz to investigate different ways of doing things.
What we probably have now is a Sormaz / Hourihane partnership.
That is a much tighter link than what Sormaz had with Clarke..
I think you're right that the end of the season is the time to experiment and it's a great time for Conor to find out more about the players and the team.
You are also correct, in my opinion, that it's a good opportunity for the club to mould Conor as a coach, just as much as it's an opportunity for Conor to stamp his ideas and authority on the football side of things as well as influencing transfer decisions. After all, we need the playing side and the management to work as one if we want to be successful.
Regarding the retained list, I won't comment because I've only seen one game all season. But what I will say is, Conor has given a good opportunity to the players to prove themselves in the last 10 games so any players who aren't retained have only themselves to blame or maybe didn't want to be here in the first place.