I am in general agreement with you Lenny - surely our best centre-half combination comes from two of Grandison, Jones and Goldson. I have missed all the Christmas games as I have been in Canada but, despite the good win at Oldham, we are in dire straits unless we can start picking up some home wins. I cannot remember us losing four home games on the trot before (possibly at the end of the season where we dropped into the conference). GT's statements over the last few days fully highlight (as if we needed it anyway) the absolute folly of our over-reliance on loan players. At this vital stage of the season when we need to put a run together we will probably lose Reach (generally one of our best loanees) while the jury is still out on Gayle and even Eaves who I only saw at the Walsall game but it looks as if he has gone backwards since last year.
GT's recent comments about his objective being only to stay in his job this time next year say it all about the current malaise at the club - there is clearly no long term strategy to develop the club and to consolidate in League 1. Instead we have a make it up as we go along strategy with very little idea of which players will be available from match to match and a constant procession of unfit or immature loanees. We are competing against other clubs with much more settled sides who are improving their understanding by constantly playing together while we seem to have two or three changes in personnel or position every game. Since we started the season with a squad short on both quality in certain areas and numbers I have feared the worst and, whatever happens between now and the end of the season, we desperately need a change of management in the summer.
