Reading opinions of late, I can't help but draw parallels between the feelings towards Harry Redknapp and Mark Hughes; and even, dare I say it, Neil Warnock [MK Dons away in the FA Cup springs to mind]. I'm now questioning whether there is a wider problem; that the club itself unconsciously 'gives permission' for the players to ease off. Especially as this seems the consistent theme, irrespective of whoever comprises the management team. I remember a similar theme being opined a few years ago - it was illustrated by a rotting plank of wood that was resident in the changing rooms at the training centre. The players just shrugged and accepted the rotting plank; the broad consensus was that it appeared one day, and no one quite knew why it was there. What was definite, was that it was no one's responsibility to remove it, so it stayed. So do we have the rotting plank / broken window mentality at QPR? In the early 1990s, Rudy Giuliani, then the newly elected Mayor of New York City, set out to prove that New York Cityâa city which for years had been assumed to be too big, too unruly, too diverse, too broke to be managedâwas in fact, manageable. He had read a seminal article by James Q. Wilson and George Kelling (written in 1982), called âBroken Windows.â Duly impressed with the concepts elucidated in the article, Rudy was the first big city mayor to put the theory into action. The âBroken Windowsâ thesis posits that something as simple as a building with a broken window signals abandonment, a lax attitude toward property, and therefore an absence of respect for the law. The âbroken windowâ is the first step in a neighborhoodâs slow decline and deterioration. In the neighborhood, over time, other evidence of decay would show upâfor example: more broken windows, trash accumulation, graffiti and abandoned cars. The change is slow and for a time, imperceptible to the people who live in the neighborhood. The theory states that left unrepaired, the broken window slowly but surely turns into many broken windows. Pretty soon, this obviously abandoned building attracts people who have taken to hanging out there. Panhandling, prostitution, drug dealingâall become part of the regular activities in front of the building which then spreads out into the neighborhood. People who live in the area start to feel vulnerable and begin to withdraw. They become less willing to intervene to maintain public order (for example, they are afraid to break up the groups of toughs loitering on the stoop) or address physical signs of deterioration. Sensing the withdrawal, the dealers, panhandlers, prostitutes and petty criminals become bolder and intensify their harassment and vandalism. Residents become yet more fearful and withdraw further from community involvement and upkeep. This atmosphere now attracts new offenders from outside the area, who sense that the neighborhood is a less risky site for crime. The cycle that started with one broken window has spiraled down, resulting in a broken neighbourhood.
We've had no team spirit since Warnock broke it with SWP and Barton who were on 3 times as much money on others but they weren't better than them. How would you feel if a boss bought in someone to replace you at a vast cost and they were not as good as you. Hughes makes it worse and then Redknapp made it even worse. We need someone to clear house and this summer is the perfect opportunity, the thought of Redknapp being the one to do it frightens the life out of me, he will set us back years if he buys more dross. TLDR, I agree.
Think you make a very good point, Sku. We have elderly broken players on massive wages, an inadequate training ground and a stadium that limits our income and as a result our future. On the other hand we aren't a big club and never will be, when I was young we were a third tier club and to think we have some god given right to be in the Premier League is delusional in the circumstances. The risk of course is when lower league clubs expand as have Wigan or more recently Brighton pushing us further down the table of economic heavy lifting. Brighton have nearly double our average gate and a brand new stadium, god forbid Brentford do the same to us. The responsibility for resolving this lies squarely with Fernandes, Beard and associates not with us fans nor the players nor Harry for that matter. Money, big money needs to spent. Not loans to paper over the cracks as is now the case; and so we return to the rotten plank and broken windows the perfect analogy of the club today.
What you descibe in your first sentance to the extent it maybe true, was due to the rather special circumstance of new owners providing funds but with only about a week to bring in playes before deadline day, at the start of a new first season in the PL! Players with anything at all in their brains should have known and understood that. In top football more than most jobs, players are on widely varying contracts - it's the way it is. I can't believe players are so put out of joint by this it can cause such a "malaise". If it goes that way, there is extremely poor management in not explaining / managing that. If players still don't understand, they need moving on for their stupidity in not understanding where they are working.
Think the OP is too clever for its own good. Talking about rotting planks and New York are well intended but over complicated. Redknapp and Hughes are the source and cause of the problem Neil Warnock has an excuse because money arrived late. He made panic buys and got it wrong but I’ll excuse him of that and had we given him another transfer window or 2 we wouldn’t be worse of than we are. With one or 2 exceptions our premiership problems we signed players who thought they were better than they were and were only here for the money and have never performed remotely close to the levels their pay packets would justify: SWP, Bosingwa, Park, Barton, Zamora and Johnson etc x30 This year we signed players on loans and on short term end of the career contracts who have no long term ambition and while the old pro’s Dunne, Hughes, Benayoun have more professionalism than last year’s pre-maddona’s they still lack any passion for the club and their best acheivements are long behind them. Redknapp is a ****ing disgrace and sent us backwards. Obviously I hope we get promoted but we are totally unprepared for that league and would nead to sign 15-20 players in the summer. If we don’t go up we would also need to sign 15 player in the summer On top of all this a manager who is more excited and passionate when talking about the situation of other clubs than our own and you are left with a malaise. I’m sure that within the next few games I’ll be within earshot of Bond, Jordan, and Redknapp whether its in or outside the ground and I intend to let them know what I think of them
Its a difficult one because most of us want an exciting team and skillful plus hard working players playing in the premier league but we still want our little club at heart. Every away game we hear Kevin Gallens magic hat and although it relates to one of ours and good times unfortunately nothing stays the same. I personally although hard to admit would like HR out at all costs and would have loved to have turned SSN on today to find him sacked because I think a change of manager now would give us the kick up the backside we need right now. Maybe we have to take it on the chin that from now on there will always be players at the club who are going to be overpaid wastes of space unless we have the biggest clear out in history. Lets hope Bircham learns under Olly and in a couple of years can lead Rangers to success with a lot of underpaid youngsters.
I think the managers who bring through young unknowns and form a strong team are far better than the lazy attitude of Hughes and Redknapp who will only bring in named, established players. On paper our team looks relatively impressive for a Championship team yet they never dominate other teams.
Apparently the residents of Sandbanks are a bit upset at the moment, as flash houses down there are being rented out for weekend stag and hen parties. Bit noisy and tasteless for them. I live 50 yards from a pub and its brilliant.
Well the OP didnt go where it was supposed to Sku did it? I was going to comment that I use a similar system at work but its kind of got lost in the direction the thread ha taken....good post though
I assumed the rotting plank referred to Luke Young...but then I also misread Rudy Guiliani as Ruud Guillet at my first glance. Once I got over that confusion and realised that Ruud Guillet was never mayor of New York I think there's a lot of sense in what was said. Feels like the season is ending on something of a damp fart. What we need for 2014/15 is some new young planks, some new windows and a mayor that isn't going to put up with the pimps and vandals currently doing a good job of ruining our beautiful but slightly down at heel football club.
Good Question Stu Soon we may all look around and say Who is QPR? A fat crass Asian man leads us on a road of promises **** those fault it is but we have a dinosaur manager who has an ego the size of the moon and is IMO the most crass manager of all time and should be in prison We are a club with a unique heritage and built in acronym The only club in London that's name doesn't relate to an actual place? Yet by luck we have Queen in our title and are in London and they still can't market us into the class we should be Have a worldwide unique kit so they then change us into pirates with thin strips Money so we buy Barton and Co collect a brilliant list of players who can't play together then employ a total fraud in Redknapp who has milked off the people under him who know a bit about football he gets us relegated because he doesn't care and takes a year to call the club us instead if them He then trashed the old team and replaces them with old soldiers and loan deals We lost our heartbeat number 10 a number and shirt famous in football The club has it all to **** up and is run by idiots it seems Yes I know 100% I could market this club a lot better ... I really could It's sad to see it going this way after such a promise Thank **** I am getting out and the summer is coming No excuses we should of won this league by 20 points not 10 If we are going to hero worship a player like Austin while we had talent like Remy we deserve to turn into the Austin Morris of football clubs Allez les Bleus
Not a bad analogy sku. Could be a lot of truth in it. In the words of Dave, WE'RE ALL INFECTED! INFECTED I TELL YOU! RIGHT FROM THE VERY TOP THROUGHOUT OUR CLUB RIGHT DOWN TO THE SUPPORTERS.
We need a proper purge but with Stalin being long dead I'd go for italian 'sergente di ferro' style management. Sort the slackers out and end the bullshit.
From the heart Dave. I honestly don't know what I want from the club any more. I have no connection to the players or the way they play. Its pretty obvious most of them don't have a connection with the club. I like Fernandes but am beginning to think its never going to happen the way he dreams and there are a lot more short term fix its (badly) to come. Even if we get rid of Redknapp I am not looking forward to the summer as we don't have a coherent player acquisition/development approach, and there is no time for a new man to fix it. I hope we get promoted (but only if Redknapp retires, we know we'll just get another bunch of short termers in in a desperate attempt to survive if he stays) but would expect us to be relegated again (hopefully with spirit this time). I've only been to one match since the new year and haven't missed it. Balls. What a waste.
Fron the heart, another Saturday comes and im dreading it, i just want the season finished the world cup started because i know that the England team will let us down,but i expect it from them i dont expect my team to let me down i want them to want it as much as i do,**** Redknapp and Fernandes and Beard, i just wish they would all **** off and sell to someone with half an idea on how to run a small football club
