We keep hearing how difficult it is to entice good players to PAFC to play for us, I've said it myself. OK at present that is an easy question to answer......NO MONEY, so how did we manage to do it ten years ago ??? Div 2 Champions.........Div 1 Champions.........in the Championship play off mix for quite awhile.........and ending up tenth in the Championship that year. We won't dwell on all the things that went wrong after that, they've been well documented. Is it luck that you get a good team together or is it damn good management? Then success on the field draws other good players to be wanting to be part of it. Whats the magic formula for success? Please someone tell me...I'd love to know, I would then bottle it and make a fortune.
Good post Plym, I think part of the answer is a good manager who can sell the club/city/area to players and Holloway was class at that, so much so that he believed his own hype and as we all know spouted it at every opportunity! I think Reidy is the best manager we have had since him and has got the players playing attractive football I haven't seen since the Holloway era but he is a quieter more modest man and in his case i think only success itself (and trainers have been mentioned as being much needed) will bring in the players we need - a vicious circle I know but there it is.
I suggest 10 years ago is a long time - the influence of Sky, the PL, agents, the Bosman case in 1995, the cumulative weakening effect of overspending in all divisions etc etc have had a big effect. Oddly, Sturrock seems to have the knack in the lower leagues [Southend had a decent year last year in difficult financial circumstanes and are 7th now] but maybe that didn't transfer to the higher leagues either with us or Southampton. Holloway's efforts were in the Championship so they don't bear much comparison to our current plight. It was always going to be difficult for Reid and I never expected better than lower mid-table. Even that's looking hard now!
I have said many times before that the promotion sides in Argyle's recent history contained no stars at all. What we got was a very good blend and total team togetherness. How do you find a teamlike this? Pure luck in my opinion. Holloway got one with Blackpool to a certain extent. You can have a team full of stars who win absolutely nothing.
The difference ten years ago was that players knew they would be paid. The new signings have had no guarantee of that. Perhaps when it is realised that we are (almost) solvent again the type of player we need will be attracted to the club.
How will we cope when the transfer window closes very soon.........will it be to late to find a goalscorer or an attacking mid-fielder ?
