I think it's safe to say given our budget, Mick added extremely well in the forward areas with Huws/Garner/Waghorn + Celina for very little outlay. Look at what other clubs in this league are spending, no wonder Evans can't get enough of Mick. Cracking on a budget Mick and I really don't think many other managers would have been able to add them four for us. Would Keane or Jewell? No chance. Jim was good until ££££..... THAT SAID - the defence is an issue and I don't think Berra has been replaced properly. I'd LOVE a commanding / read the game CB with a bit of pace come Jan. IF, and it's a big IF, we can keep everyone fit for the second half of the season unlike the first - then who knows what we may be able to actually achieve? We all know Mick isn't going to be sacked, and frankly coming up to half way with the injury issues we've had (still have Didz/ Garner/Adeyemi/Hyam ( if you wanna count him ) Bishop ( not fully fit ) with obviously Dozza out the rest of the season. Difficult games coming up yes, however would it be sensible to just support the current regime until May, whatever your thoughts of Mick or Evans? I have it in my mind that Mick WON'T be here next season. Just a hunch.... think he will leave and seek a final challenge. You never know, perhaps we COULD be the side that enters the top 6. * I await egg on face in 6-9 games when everything has gone wrong, however I'm rather hoping it doens't. I think Sheff Weds / Norwich and other clubs throwing their financial weight around would happily swap points totals with us right now.......
I've been thoroughly impressed with Micks transfer dealings the past couple of years, he's spent very wisely, I just can't stick the boring football any longer. And the negativity towards the fans, he doesn't love the club this to him is just a job. As a club we don't seem to have had a manager who's ever spent wisely when we've had a lot of money we've always been better when we've been frugal. Apparently yesterday was fairly entertaining (I can't comment because I wasn't there and didn't listen to it either) but if that is the case, long may it continue, I could well change my mind about Mick. But saying that apparently the midfield still struggled to keep hold of the ball which has been a weakness since Mick has been here and it won't change by getting new players in, it will only change by changing the manager or coaching differently. I've been fortunate enough to see the 2 performances of the previous 2 seasons which have been voted the most entertaining but we still actually weren't that good. Perhaps we could keep Mick as chief scout but if he's going at the end of the season I don't really see the point in him being here now. Perhaps he may just ruin a few more players of ours by getting them to play out of position or by bypassing our midfield.
ITFCPTC - to be bluntly honest with you I've not enjoyed much of the footy under Mick. I really haven't. Living in Bristol I pretty much only do away days, though my Portman Road and game experiences have been much improved by finding the ITFC South West club. Found a couple of absolute gems there to watch games with. I mean I've been away for the second half of last season and all of this, so my last game was actually a very entertaining and nosebleed open Mick affair at Hillsborough. I missed pretty much all of an improved 13/14 away in Thailand too. That said, did watch a few of the games online.... I've been hopeless this time. Hopeless. However, looks like I'll be back in the UK and MAY be at Wolves if anyone wants a sensible discussion in person I cannot for the life in my fathom how in particular he uses CM. It's always rankled with me, especially as that's where I play! I understand needs must AWAY at SUPERB sides however for other games, especially at home we should DICTATE a lot more than we're going to. Clearly under Mick the idea to dictate a game the way Royle wanted is just laughable. I'm just going to remain positive the rest of this season I think or until we're 8-10 points off. I've thought on several occasion, the latest after the 2-2 draw with Sheff Weds ' meh that's it we're going back to midtable ' however..... we don't appear to be going away right now. Tough December sure, in particular away at Boro + Wolves. Looks grim, but with 3/5 at home to round the year off...... I think we can be a little bit more positive than people seem to wish to be.Reading forums at times is laughable. We're doing better than many realise given budget, divide with management / owner. Warky - it is, we're putting them in for fun! Issue being when you score more you tend to be more open
I also don't think Mick will stay beyond the summer, whether that's because we choose not to extend his contract or if it's down to his personal decision. He is evidently frustrated at the lack of funds at the club and, if the board has already decided to cancel his contract in the summer, then I don't think he will get any money to spend in January. That could well be a shame, as we are still around the play off positions and look poised for another campaign to break into the top six. Could it be an echo of our failure to build in the 2014/15 season, where our only additions were Freddie Sears and a couple of journeymen on loans? Disregard our inconsistent form and apprehension at the start of the season, we are now a much improved side and some of that credit has to go to McCarthy and his signings, which have been mostly successful again. Having said that, it is McCarthy's fault that he has eroded any goodwill from the Ipswich supporters following a combination of misguided media comments, negative nature around the Ipswich job, snide remarks about the supporters, and his approach and results in the previous season. Had he showed more humility and modesty at his time here, and actually looked like he was passionate about the club, then he would have been more popular and most supporters may have regarded him as a welcome long-term manager. The recent wins over Derby and Nottingham Forest have dealt a heavy blow to the theory, but we still have a history of struggling against the big-name clubs in this division, underlining the perception that we are an upper mid-table team. I would give Mick until the end of the season, I think we owe him that much. This is still very much his team and, despite some of the more extreme comments on here, he has improved the squad, he has got us playing a more entertaining style of football (even if some of the starting eleven struggle to adapt to this), and he has blooded several youth players into the squad. He has also proved adept at working on a limited budget, something we already knew he can do. The discussion over the next manager has been touched upon before, and will no doubt continued to be discussed until a concrete decision is made, but I think most of us can agree that it will be difficult to replace McCarthy and to find somebody who can take us to the next level using the limited funds in place here. Some people would like to just see an entertaining side, and that's fair enough, but I feel we need to show much ambition at this club and most of that ambition needs to come from a board that will have the confidence to appoint a manager with success in the lower leagues and an attacking football philosophy and to back that new man with sufficient levels of investment to ensure we don't fall behind our competitors in the transfer windows.
Great post Nuggets and very well reasoned. The phrase "Careful what you wish for" springs to mind when it comes to the departure of Mick at the end of the season! I truly hope that the management have already identified at least a couple of managers as targets before we get to that stage but knowing what we do about this regime I am not too hopeful. We need a manager who can perform miracles on a shoestring budget and will be happy to blood the youngsters while being expected to compete against clubs who have far larger budgets! Good luck with that!
In a nutshell, this. Mick's been a ruddy pain at times with what he's said / style of play however bar LAST season whether people agree with me or not, I think RESULTS ALONE have actually been pretty ruddy good given the investment ( or a total lack of ) he's had since 2012. I'm not saying everything's rosy and we're going to come top 6 E I E I E I O - just feel this WILL be the final season of Mick's reign and perhaps just see where it takes us? For what it's worth, I think we'll end up 8-11 however one side always edges in goes on a run, we're scoring goals so why not!
Yeah and there in lays the Conundrum! Only one other man that I can think of who would work under these constraints is Tony Pulis!
It's as obvious as the nose on Mick's face that we are a better team and club since he joined us.. From where we were then (and the money spent since) we have done incredibly well to build an effective squad to compete toward the top end of the league (except for last season) That said, 5 years is an absolute lifetime in Football and I think most would agree that there is a feeling of a natural conclusion to Mick's tenure and I just hope he is able to go out under happier circumstances as he deserves respect for his work here. As for this season, I'm never too worried about positions as it's about how many points you get and we know that 70+ will get you into the playoff mix at the business end.. As things stand we're earning 1.6 points a game which if we continued through until May would put us on 74 points.. Personally I think we're a classic example and the absolute epitome of the upper mid table championship side who will sit somewhere between 7th & 12th all season without ever being able to break into the coveted top 6 but always within 1 or 2 results.. But I'll be happy with that this season, given where we were in May and the squad that Mick has started pulling together.
I'd go with that. Issue being for the new manager ( watch Mick sign a new deal now I've done this ) is the mandate in terms of budget. * Try to compete for top 6 with a budget 20% that of 15 or so clubs in the division........ It's utterly laughable really to consider what we're supposed to achieve in this league. Yes, we have history. We'd like the game played a much more progressive way. Issue being, 'sexy' players often cost more - certainly having an 11 pulling the same way and all being comfortable on the ball - if you wish to sign a PROVEN 11 then financially this costs a hell of a lot more than Mick's generally had available to him. The three previous idiots really are the issue with why we are what we are now! Of course, Huddersfield managed to gain a squad of UNPROVEN on a small amount of ££££ so it's possible sure - just much more needle in a haystack and more difficult. Anyway, onto this season for me now! Lets see what we CAN achieve. Be interesting as to how Garner + McGoldrick fit back in and whether we sign what I feel we really need to have a shot this season in Jan - a very good CB............ over to you Evans - AH... there in lies the issue...........
