Our Manager

[Tony_Munky_Canary]

I really don't believe I am seeing things like this. 4 points from first 3 games or fans will be baying for a sacking. You are prepared to give him to the end of August - not even Wolves or Blackburn worked to those sort of timescales!! Unless we are floundering near the bottom no preliminary assessment can be made until the end of the year and no full assessment can be made until the end of the season. The Board won't be looking at anything shorter than that thank God.

I certainly agree with this! I loved the way JR said he wouldn't sack him after the first two home games and would give him all the way until the end of the month - which is only 11 days and two games more!! He's got to be given longer than that, and there is no way anyone should be getting on his back this soon, that would be ridiculous - though I have to admit I am feeling less and less optimistic about this season the more I think about it.

I can see all three of the relegated teams struggling to make the top six if I'm being completely honest.

 

[carrabuh]

NA has not got to be given anything, other than the push.

The longer this goes on the more years we will spend in this division. It is vital for a quick return.

The club has been making massive errors over the last 8 months and perhaps it is time for a change. I really don't want to believe McNally wanted Adams. If true, he has to go because it borders on the moronic.

 

[gruffnuts]

I've seen lots of sensible posts saying give him a crack, but if it doesnt work, then we bite the bullet and get rid. If it does come about, then it needs to be done early enough that it could be rectified. I cant see there being even a small chance of NA making it to Christmas if we aren't at least with the chasing playoff pack and nor should he be, not with this squad. To not learn from the mistakes of last season would be incredibly foolish. Another 9 or 10 games and we will know which was this is going. Lets hope he is a fast learner.

 

[carrabuh]

Giving Adam's a chance is just taking that chance away from someone else.

Leave it too long and to far adrift and our chances for a decent manager will be far less.

The rot has already set in.

 

[Northamptonncfc]

He looks a bit nervous and out of his depth on Sunday, tactically it just looked like a case of the diamond worked for Lambert so it will work for me. I'm not sure what the hell is happening behind scenes why constantly say to the press that Pilkington is unfit or has a slight niggle then the player states on social media that his been fit all summer, unprofessionalism from players aside can we really trust this guy?

Managerially we needed an arse kicker and a doer to do this job someone who can motivate a downtrodden team, we have no time to patiently wait for little experiments, it's a very reckless gamble from our idiotic board that he was considered for this job in the first place, if anything Adam's should of gone to a League Two club and got some experience behind him.

One game in but I'll put money down that we'll become a mid table championship club with this current set up.

 

[Swedish Dave]

He looks a bit nervous and out of his depth on Sunday, tactically it just looked like a case of the diamond worked for Lambert so it will work for me. I'm not sure what the hell is happening behind scenes why constantly say to the press that Pilkington is unfit or has a slight niggle then the player states on social media that his been fit all summer, unprofessionalism from players aside can we really trust this guy?

Managerially we needed an arse kicker and a doer to do this job someone who can motivate a downtrodden team, we have no time to patiently wait for little experiments, it's a very reckless gamble from our idiotic board that he was considered for this job in the first place, if anything Adam's should of gone to a League Two club and got some experience behind him.

One game in but I'll put money down that we'll become a mid table championship club with this current set up.

You'll get bad odds. Most relegated clubs become a mid table championship club.

 

[Northamptonncfc]

You'll get bad odds. Most relegated clubs become a mid table championship club.

Luckily I never barely bet on Norwich anyway with the exception of the under 1.5 goals when Hughton was in charge. Sadly I can't see us doing any better the whole thing seems amateurish at the moment.

Another point did anyone think the players looked in good nick on Sunday? Wolves seemed to cover more blades of grass I thought we looked a bit out of shape at times.

 

[GozoCanary]

In the grand scheme of things, I'm not overly worried about the Wolves result, or even performance. What worries me much more is the lack of clarity coming out of CR these days. Pilkington contradicting the manager, Bassong and Becchio still not sorted out, did RvW jump or was he pushed?, why are so many players 'injured' at the moment?, Neil Adams letting us know via Pink Un that it wasn't his choice to let RvW go and it won't be his choice if Fer and others leave, etc etc.

The Board screwed up big time last year and their response has not been impressive. They don't seem to have any real desire to learn from their mistakes, but have focused instead on consolidating their own power. I know continental teams have a 'manager' who is essentially a coach and I understand the arguments that the modern game is too complex for the old days of an English-style all-powerful manager a la Ferguson. But is the reason Adams got the job over 'better' candidates because he was willing to operate in the board's preferred corporate system and effectively be a yes man? It's speculation, but to me it seems reasonable speculation.

We are starting to bear all the hallmarks of a run-of-the-mill modern corporation. A 'tough leader' (Death or Relegation!) and underneath him a load of mediocre employees whose first thought is 'cover my ass'. No one takes responsibility, no one steps out of line, no one takes a chance, no one is creative or visionary. Our team have even played that way for more than a season and Sunday suggested nothing is going to change any time quickly.

I know what I'm saying is speculative, and may not even seem directly related to what happens on the pitch, but I think we are spiralling downwards into a mediocrity where everyone, from McNally downwards, is just looking after themselves and making sure the mud doesn't stick to them personally. I suspect we'll be closer to a relegation fight than a promotion challenge this season.

 

[JM Fan]

In the grand scheme of things, I'm not overly worried about the Wolves result, or even performance. What worries me much more is the lack of clarity coming out of CR these days. Pilkington contradicting the manager, Bassong and Becchio still not sorted out, did RvW jump or was he pushed?, why are so many players 'injured' at the moment?, Neil Adams letting us know via Pink Un that it wasn't his choice to let RvW go and it won't be his choice if Fer and others leave, etc etc.

The Board screwed up big time last year and their response has not been impressive. They don't seem to have any real desire to learn from their mistakes, but have focused instead on consolidating their own power. I know continental teams have a 'manager' who is essentially a coach and I understand the arguments that the modern game is too complex for the old days of an English-style all-powerful manager a la Ferguson. But is the reason Adams got the job over 'better' candidates because he was willing to operate in the board's preferred corporate system and effectively be a yes man? It's speculation, but to me it seems reasonable speculation.

We are starting to bear all the hallmarks of a run-of-the-mill modern corporation. A 'tough leader' (Death or Relegation!) and underneath him a load of mediocre employees whose first thought is 'cover my ass'. No one takes responsibility, no one steps out of line, no one takes a chance, no one is creative or visionary. Our team have even played that way for more than a season and Sunday suggested nothing is going to change any time quickly.

I know what I'm saying is speculative, and may not even seem directly related to what happens on the pitch, but I think we are spiralling downwards into a mediocrity where everyone, from McNally downwards, is just looking after themselves and making sure the mud doesn't stick to them personally. I suspect we'll be closer to a relegation fight than a promotion challenge this season.

vc - You've said what I feel much better than I could ever have said it. I only got back in time to see the 2nd half on Sunday, but most of what I saw bore a striking resemblance to most of our games under CH.

I'm hopeful that with 2 home games coming up, we'll see a variation of tactics and I'd also like to think that some of our 'injured' players will at least be on the bench. IMO, we really need Tettey and Howson back in the team (assuming the board aren't actually considering bids for them!!)

 

[Norfolkbhoy]

Very disappointing result and performance. I personally struggle with the shape of our midfield and the personnel In the defence, I had high hopes when Whittaker joined us on a free but frankly he was poor last season, he has had a poor pre season and looked a liability on Sunday, we then have rusty who is a proven and very able rb at champ level playing in the cb role to which he is physically unsuited, particularly in this league. We have in reserve ryan Bennett and seb bassong who are both excellent cb's at this level. This feels very much like square pegs and round holes to me. I do not think you can play a midfield as lightweight as Sunday's and hope to have sufficient possession in this league. I see surman and wes as either or due to their lack of pace and strength. I don't see the point of not playing pilks when he is a much better player. Adams strategy seems to be a surprising combination of extreme pace in Redmond and e Bennett and no pace in surman and wes so if our strategy is to play one the break then nobody in central midfield has the pace to keep up and is we play possession football I don't see Redmond or Bennett being able to retain the ball well enough.

In fairness to Adams any team at this level would struggle without their two first pick central midfielders but I don't think his team selection or tactics helped.

And just for the record wolves are not that great. How many of their team would you swap for ours? They were the better side on the day and deserved the win but most of our side have plenty of experience in the top flight whereas theirs were two divisions below us last season and they have not exactly broken the bank strengthening their squad. If people think that us playing poorly and only losing 1.0 to wolves is acceptable then we are going to have a very mediocre season despite the excellent squad of players at Adams disposal

 

[JM Fan]

Very disappointing result and performance. I personally struggle with the shape of our midfield and the personnel In the defence, I had high hopes when Whittaker joined us on a free but frankly he was poor last season, he has had a poor pre season and looked a liability on Sunday, we then have rusty who is a proven and very able rb at champ level playing in the cb role to which he is physically unsuited, particularly in this league. We have in reserve ryan Bennett and seb bassong who are both excellent cb's at this level. This feels very much like square pegs and round holes to me. I do not think you can play a midfield as lightweight as Sunday's and hope to have sufficient possession in this league. I see surman and wes as either or due to their lack of pace and strength. I don't see the point of not playing pilks when he is a much better player. Adams strategy seems to be a surprising combination of extreme pace in Redmond and e Bennett and no pace in surman and wes so if our strategy is to play one the break then nobody in central midfield has the pace to keep up and is we play possession football I don't see Redmond or Bennett being able to retain the ball well enough.

In fairness to Adams any team at this level would struggle without their two first pick central midfielders but I don't think his team selection or tactics helped.

And just for the record wolves are not that great. How many of their team would you swap for ours? They were the better side on the day and deserved the win but most of our side have plenty of experience in the top flight whereas theirs were two divisions below us last season and they have not exactly broken the bank strengthening their squad. If people think that us playing poorly and only losing 1.0 to wolves is acceptable then we are going to have a very mediocre season despite the excellent squad of players at Adams disposal

Another EXCELLENT post norfolkbhoy, especially the 'square pegs in round holes' reference. Let's hope that NA uses the full squad at his disposal and doesn't 'freeze out' certain players in preference to his favoured ones.

 

[RiverEndRick]

Excellent OP 1950, but I've said it before and say it again now that the divisions in our fan base will likely destroy any chance of success this season. One away match 1-0 loss doesn't make a season. On the Pilks issue, he made it very clear that he was correcting Paddy Davitt, not Neil Adams, but that won't satisfy the conspiracy theorists. This predictive criticism is just amazing. Let's just see what happen in the next week before we start hitting the panic button.

 

[RiverEndRick]

If people think that us playing poorly and only losing 1.0 to wolves is acceptable then we are going to have a very mediocre season despite the excellent squad of players at Adams disposal

I don't think acceptable is the right word, here. I, like most, found it disappointing but understandable in the circumstances. I have no doubt that we will be a strong team at home this year and get our share of results away as well.

 

[Hucks for Manager!]

If people think that us playing poorly and only losing 1.0 to wolves is acceptable then we are going to have a very mediocre season despite the excellent squad of players at Adams disposal

For ****'s sake, no. We are going to play poorly and we are going to lose plenty throughout the course of the season. That's just how football works for ****'s sake. You can't win every bloody game no matter how good you might think you are. Wolves are going to be a very stubborn team at home this season and will win at least half their games there. We were away from home, we were no worse than them, and people need to get some grip on reality. Every team will play badly in a season, every team will lose. We are not the Invincibles for goodness sake.

It's one game. It means **** all.

Sorry for swearing so much but this is ridiculous.

 

[Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed]

Excellent OP 1950, but I've said it before and say it again now that the divisions in our fan base will likely destroy any chance of success this season. One away match 1-0 loss doesn't make a season. On the Pilks issue, he made it very clear that he was correcting Paddy Davitt, not Neil Adams, but that won't satisfy the conspiracy theorists. This predictive criticism is just amazing. Let's just see what happen in the next week before we start hitting the panic button.

this simply isn't true.

neil adams was quoted by paddy davitt as saying pilks wasn't fit to feature. he also claimed he wasn't fit at the end of last season. pilks, and his brother both say this is bulls**t. as i said elsewhere, nothing particularly unusual about a manager telling a few white lies to keep certain things under wraps but pilks, unprofessional as it may have been has broken his silence. he's a very frustrated young man at the moment because he feels as though he is being ignored by the management and sadly he isn't alone. there's a lot happening behind the scenes at the moment which concerns me tremendously, not just with adams but with the players behaviour as well. we've got a lot of problems and they aren't just whether the manager can get the winless monkey off his back.

 

[Resurgam]

Well Pilks seems to have been gone now. Not too sure how or why this has happened.
If Adams has pushed the sale through, because he didn't like him, then Adams must go now.
If it is for disciplinary reasons, then Adams should go now.

If the move has gone through from above Adams, then the board should go now.

Nobody is bigger than the club, and that most definitely includes the bloody board.

 

[Hucks for Manager!]

Well Pilks seems to have been gone now. Not too sure how or why this has happened.
If Adams has pushed the sale through, because he didn't like him, then Adams must go now.
If it is for disciplinary reasons, then Adams should go now.

If the move has gone through from above Adams, then the board should go now.

Nobody is bigger than the club, and that most definitely includes the bloody board.

I'm not happy with it, and it's proper weird, but you can't sack Adams for selling one player. Give the guy a bloody chance.

 

[KIO]

this simply isn't true.

neil adams was quoted by paddy davitt as saying pilks wasn't fit to feature. he also claimed he wasn't fit at the end of last season. pilks, and his brother both say this is bulls**t. as i said elsewhere, nothing particularly unusual about a manager telling a few white lies to keep certain things under wraps but pilks, unprofessional as it may have been has broken his silence. he's a very frustrated young man at the moment because he feels as though he is being ignored by the management and sadly he isn't alone. there's a lot happening behind the scenes at the moment which concerns me tremendously, not just with adams but with the players behaviour as well. we've got a lot of problems and they aren't just whether the manager can get the winless monkey off his back.

I have no idea whether what you say is correct or not Supers, but I must admit looking at it from the outside the whole thing stinks. You know what, I lay the blame solely at McNally's door and he has gone way down in my estimations. Was the sacking of Gunn and the appointment of Paul Lambert a stroke of genius or a stroke of bloody good luck? All I do know is that everything that came after has been a complete balls up. Fair enough, when Hughton was appointed most of us thought that he had pulled another rabbit out of the hat, but when it was obvious last year that things weren't working he and the board fannyed about before wielding the axe. What a time to do it as well with just 5 games left, four of which we were never going to win anyway. We were told that 'no-one' was available in January when they thought of making a change so they stuck with CH. What a total load of bollocks, EVERYONE is available, always, if you are prepared to pay for their services. Then of course we were told that the club 'scoured Europe' for Hughton's successor before eventually appointing Adams who was already caretaker. Who are they trying to kid ? Do they think I'm some kinda 'double yolker' ? Now we have these 'alledged' 'white lies' re Pilkington coming out of Colney FFS, our club is turning into a laughing stock.

Edit:- We already are a laughing stock !

Rant over

(nearly anyway, I may return with more vitriol !)

 

[Resurgam]

I'm not happy with it, and it's proper weird, but you can't sack Adams for selling one player. Give the guy a bloody chance.

If he has got rid of Pilks because he doesn't like him, then he shouldn't be given any mire chances. How many other players could he do this to?
We could end up with half the decent players being sold.

 

[Hucks for Manager!]

If he has got rid of Pilks because he doesn't like him, then he shouldn't be given any mire chances. How many other players could he do this to?
We could end up with half the decent players being sold.

You're aiming your frustration at the wrong person. It's not Adams' fault he was hired, and it's almost certainly not all down to Adams that Pilks is being sold. He's had one game as permanent manager, you cannot seriously want him gone already?