What the game showed me today....like I didn;t allready know

[durhampie]

We also need to weigh in the fact that no league sides came down this season, so in theory it was an “easier” league this time around and it will be even more competitive next season when we don’t have the parachute payment. An investment now (either in a new manager or new players) could pay off come June, provided the right choices are made (and there’s the tricky bit).

With nearly a third of the season gone, it seems clear based on those 5 defeats that we’re not championship-winning material, and will need to improve to finish second or third.

Four of our next five games are away - with Torquay the home game - so January is a tough-looking month (plus Stockport away in the FA Trophy). Last season we brought in Cal Roberts at this time of the year; can we do likewise this season?

Priority for me is a powerful box-to-box midfielder and to rethink the formation so we can dominate teams for 90 minutes instead of 45. Obviously, we also desperately need a fit Cal Roberts back.

We will be lucky to 6 points from the next 5 games...

[pjace]

We will be lucky to 6 points from the next 5 games...

4 are away Eastleigh ,Yeovil,Solihull and Weymouth with Torquay at home i'd be happy with 8 or 9

[i961pie]

Although we should be doing much better and I am not a big fan of Ardley and his tactics it would probably be a waste of money to sack him now and bring in a new man. The way things are going I can't see this season being completed, might as well let his contract run down and not renew it.

[magpie_mania]

That's what I have been saying for ages, if our owners decide that a change is required I hope that they do as our neighbours did ( both Forest & Stags imo) & approach a "better" candidate before they pull the trigger. If they, like our previous owners, go down the route of asking for applicants with no idea who might apply, holding interviews, making shortlists & then picking from a bad bunch I honestly fear the worst. I know that some on here would argue that we couldn't get any worse but I believe that we were struggling to get decent applicants when we were in the league (especially with our hire em & fire em reputation) & see no reason why things will be improved by our current status. COYP

The only way would be by approaching a manager already in post. I don't buy the 'managers won't apply because of our history of sacking managers / owners' argument - I reckon just about every manager out of work (obviously not the championship / Prem managers) and others in post will apply for every job going.

[ancientpie]

The only way would be by approaching a manager already in post. I don't buy the 'managers won't apply because of our history of sacking managers / owners' argument - I reckon just about every manager out of work (obviously not the championship / Prem managers) and others in post will apply for every job going.

So what's gone wrong with our last god knows how many appointments? is it a case of owners deliberately appointing "bad" managers or a case of the applicants not being of a high enough standard? why was Ardley appointed if he didn't have the best pedigree on offer? if every out of work manager has applied in the past they must have been queuing around the ground & our previous owners must have had a very warped sense of humour.

[magpie_mania]

Depends on the criteria set I suppose.

Wasn't Hardy's that the new manager must have experience of promotion from L2? That would rule out a lot of applicants, and NA fitted it, along with experience of management in L1.

I'm sure that no-one deliberately appointed a bad manager - not even when Fullarton was appointed. RT seemed to believe in trying managers that were 'left-field' - eg Short, Kiwomya, Fullarton, Moniz, but as a businessman I'm sure he did not deliberately do it to upset supporters.

Anyway, until it's clear (by league position this season alone) that we aren't going up, the conversation doesn't need to be had (imo of course).

[PedroTheFisherman66]

I wish we had been as well run and successful as Burton have been this last decade.
You always write with an absolute certainty that whoever replaces Ardley will be better. That's far from guaranteed, Ardley's CV would read a lot better than most of the candidates we would end up replacing him with.

Why do you automatically think there won't be a better candidate??
It must be Ardleys outstanding record since hes been with us.
Relegation and failed promotion attempt, failing to beat teams like mighty Harrogate and Barrow, and currently falling short to the mighty Torquays and Suttons of this world..
Yes Burton are a well run club but they are still a small fish in a big pond.xxx

[nw6pie]

Although we should be doing much better and I am not a big fan of Ardley and his tactics it would probably be a waste of money to sack him now and bring in a new man. The way things are going I can't see this season being completed, might as well let his contract run down and not renew it.

With the vaccine about to roll out, we are hopefully going to see a return to some kind of normality by the spring. Who knows what's going to happen between now and April, though, so the PPG league is probably going to be the one that matters at the end of the season.

Our inconsistency is not helping us there (to put it mildly), but if we can get Cal Roberts fit, Wes Thomas comes back - or, if his problems persist, is replaced - and if we finally replace Casper Sloth in midfield (it's time to send the Wolfe Man back - 20 minutes' league action is an admission from Ardley that he doesn't see him as a suitable replacement), maybe we can put a string of WWWWs together like we did last season. That, ultimately, is what put a gloss on a season that at a similar stage looked very similar to this one in terms of underperforming.

We definitely need to invest in a couple of players this month if possible, because on paper this was the "easiest" season to get out of the NL - no league sides relegated and we still had the cushion of the second parachute payment. It's only going to get harder next season.

Others may disagree, but I still don't think we're as strong as we were last season. As of now, which of our summer signings can be termed a success? Reeves should be Doyle's replacement, but Ardley would never drop the latter so we have two similar players who the manager shoehorns into the team by playing two holding midfielders. Sam and Chicksen are unproven, and while Ruben shows real promise, we still haven't given him 90 minutes or found the right role to get the best out of him.

That also highlights the fact that we haven't found a formation that the team consistently plays well in for 90 minutes. The best performances have come with a 4-2-3-1, but that only works if Wootton can hold the ball up and bring others around him into play - something the opposition are now wise to (given that many teams seem to go with a 3-5-2 in this league, they're never short of burly central defenders to mark him).

Tough month ahead, but for me we've got to be looking at 12 points (including beating Torquay) if we want to have any hope of at least making the second or third spot this season. For comparison's sake, we only took 7 points from the last 5 games - and 4 of those were at home. We also scored just twice (and conceded twice) in those 5 games.

[laddo]

Obviously I disagree with you.
I think after our previous experiences with managers we as fans realise there is a period of time for managers bedding in and improving squads and implementing their favoured tactics.
I have faith in the owners doing their homework and finding a suitable replacement.
In this league ,even with a poor manager (as proven already) we should not be in danger of being relegated.
As I have said before there are only 10 to 12 credible teams in this league , so we could bed a new manager in without troublin a relegation spot..

Hold on. Wait a minite. Stop!

Let me get this right you think NCM gives managers time, lets them bed in, sign players, and implement tactics and a plan??

I don't think there are enough lol , haha or available to respond to that statement appropriately.

Where have you been for the last 15+ years? Patience? That's the last thing NCM has.

That's made my New Year's Eve before a drop of alcohol has been had this evening.

Thanks Pedro

[PedroTheFisherman66]

Hold on. Wait a minite. Stop!

Let me get this right you think NCM gives managers time, lets them bed in, sign players, and implement tactics and a plan??

I don't think there are enough lol , haha or available to respond to that statement appropriately.

Where have you been for the last 15+ years? Patience? That's the last thing NCM has.

That's made my New Year's Eve before a drop of alcohol has been had this evening.

Thanks Pedro

Oh dear laddo!
Since when has NCM ever dictated who is selected as the manager for the club and never mind dictate its policies?
If you haven't noticed NCM Is a selection of fans,Good,bad,ugly ,witty, intelligent,ridiculous,muppets heroes villains,sometimes outrageous and outraged, and incisive and informative all voicing their opinions.
I'm not sure where you fit into these categories but I'm going to say muppet.
May I have the honour of now calling you Miss Piggy.?
So miss piggy
Why were you refering to 15 years.
Stop the press,hold the front page,I'm on about the here and now.
Out of interest,apart from Fullerton and possibly Nolan,which managers had a campaign for them to be sacked?
I believe every notts fan has learnt a lesson from the Hardy and Trew regimes with regards to their hire and fire them policies and is intelligent enough to realise managers need a limited amount of time introduce their style and stamp their authority on a team which includes assembling their own squad.
Obviously your last statement suggests different.
Happy new year miss piggy xxxxxx!