From Coppell and Cotterill to Wilson: Ranking Bristol City's nine managers this century Since 2000, City have grown to become a strong force in the Championship with some bumps on the way please log in to view this image As far as football clubs go, and true to the identity they like to project, Bristol City have been a relative model of stability when it comes to managerial turnover. Since the dawning of a new century the Robins have employed nine full-time managers.The average shelf life of a City manager has been 26 months, with that record, it's no surprise that the Championship's longest-serving manager is of this parish. But where can Lee Johnson be considered on the pantheon of modern-day Robins managers? We've ranked them - not including caretakers - in descending order with our reasons as to why ... 9. Steve Coppell (2010) Questions have to be asked of anyone who lasts 92 days in a job, and Coppell's "tenure" was so brief it's barely long enough to even be considered such. Appointed at the end of the 2010/11 season to effectively succeed Gary Johnson, the former Crystal Palace and Reading manager looked a great fit: a deep and unique thinker of the game who had promotions on his CV, had worked at the highest level and with a reputation of discovering diamonds and improving players. However, all was not well with Coppell in Bristol - whether it be the signing of David James, the transfer that allegedly triggered his departure, his own inability to settle in the area or overall passion for the job, as claimed in his resignation statement - it ended before it even got going. City lost both games he was in charge - 3-0 against Millwall and 3-2 to Southend in the League Cup - but, while his time in the dugout was barely a blur, the summer transfer window of 2010 was reasonably impressive. Albert Adomah and Kalifa Cisse arrived and made impacts ... but then that is considerably offset by Nicky Hunt and James who still send shudders through parts of Ashton Gate whenever mentioned. 8. Brian Tinnion (2004-05) We feel guilty just writing this, such is Tinnion's legend around the club and the job he has done as loans manager, where he continues to help form the foundations of City's future. But we have to remain objective and, at the risk of stating the obvious, after the initial honeymoon period Tinnion's time in charge of City was not a particularly pleasurable one, for him, the club or the fanbase. Indeed, so painful were results that it briefly affected his own legacy at City, such was the anger felt towards the team during the 2005/06 season, having failed to make the play-offs the previous campaign - albeit by a solitary point. The nadir was, of course, the 7-1 defeat at Swansea which he still has the good grace to joke about but, at the time, it felt like a giant black hole for all concerned. With hindsight, while playing on emotion can gain some currency with supporters, the appointment of Tinnion to succeed Danny Wilson could be perceived as much as a political move as anything. It provided a link and seamless transition from the Wilson regime, in theory maintaining stability, while also helped heal wounds with supporters upset by the departure of the previous manager. Alas, it just didn't work out. 7. Derek McInnes (2011-13) Perhaps the right man at the wrong time because, as McInnes has since proved, there was a fine football manager in there, it just wasn't able to be fully realised in BS3 for whatever reason. Hired at the age of 40, the Scot was a rising star in the British game and, like many of Lansdown's coaching appointments, made a lot of sense in terms of the attributes he could bring and how he fit into the club's ethos. But City under McInnes were an inconsistent beast and although he secured survival post-Millen, it was not without its difficult moments. A seven-game winless run across February and March proved particularly difficult to stomach and the overall relegation picture - which City finished nine points above - was also simplified by Portsmouth's 10-point deduction for entering administration. The initial noises emanating from the club were of a forward-thinking and clever coach who was bring fresh ideas to the team and, in mitigation, McInnes had to deal with the sale of Nicky Maynard and all the nastiness surrounding his contract. But the following season sealed his fate as a disastrous run of one win in 14 games - with 10 defeats - between October and December saw the Robins plummet once more towards the foot of the table leaving the club no option but to dispense with his services in January. 6. Keith Millen (2010-11) Part of the furniture for so long at City, there's no doubt Millen has been a fine servant of the club: four years a player, under-17 coach, assistant to Tinnion and Gary Johnson, twice a caretaker, stepping in to restore some balance, he more than deserved his shot at the main job. And, to be honest, in the 13 months he was in charge he didn't do a great deal wrong. He had been caretaker when Coppell was appointed and then after being overlooked first time around was then given the role three months later. Picking up the wreckage of that can't have been easy and with no pre-season to work with and a squad probably left slightly bemused by events, Millen was then straight into the cut and thrust of a Championship season for his first permanent managerial job. City finished 15th, well clear of relegation, and their points haul was only three fewer than the previous campaign under Gary Johnson in which they ended the season in 10th. But, at the same time, it did feel the club was treading water to a degree with Millen - through no fault of his own - a quick fix to repair a growing crack in the wall, rather than the long-term solution. Yannick Bolasie-aside it was a fairly flat summer transfer window in 2011 which was then compounded by a dreadful start to the following season with one win from City's opening 11 games, which left the Robins rock bottom and Millen out of a job. 5. Sean O'Driscoll (2013) "Why oh why is the manager that took Bristol City back into League One positioned here?" you may ask. Well, the simple answer is it wasn't wholly his fault, as we have detailed above, with O'Driscoll took over from McInnes with the club in a perilous position. The early signs were good with a strong burst of form creating signs of optimism but that was undone by a risible end to the season with a miserable zero wins from nine matches. Relegated they were and rightfully so. It was a thoroughly miserable time to be a City fan and unfortunately O'Driscoll's persona - surly, monotone, almost dismissive - did little to raise spirits or forge any great lasting links between supporters. To all intents and purposes it was as bad as it got, worsened then by the start to the 2012/13 season in League One with the club waiting until October 26 for a first league win. But, here's where the case for the defence stands, O'Driscoll did form the foundations of the squad which Steve Cotterill would then gloriously guide back into the Championship: Aden Flint, Marlon Pack, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, Derrick Williams, Scott Wagstaff and Frank Fielding were all signed that summer. You could see what O'Driscoll was trying to do ... even if it didn't quite come off. And almost all those players would tell you what a fine one-on-one coach he was, it just didn't translate onto the field. 4. Danny Wilson (2000-04) So near and yet so far. To many, Danny Wilson is the quintessential concept of a Bristol City manager in the 21st century: sharp, passionate, hard-working and with an attacking style that made his teams easy to love across his four seasons at the club. The club's league positions under Wilson: ninth, seventh, third, third. The latter two impressive but also tough to take as City missed out on the automatic spots in League One by virtue of three points in 2002/03 and one point in 2003/04. Defeat in the 2004 play-off final to Brighton - a desperately disappointing afternoon where the Robins simply didn't turn up - sealed his downfall and provided the unfortunate end to Wilson's time after so much fun with him at the helm. After the industry of Tony Pulis, Wilson brought entertainment back to Ashton Gate, made a star of Scott Murray and also delivered a team with a strong West Country core in Steve Phillips, Louis Carey, Danny Coles and Joe Burnell. And a trophy, in the form of the 2003 LDV Vans Trophy. It's just a shame he couldn't quite get the Robins over the line. 3. Lee Johnson (2016-present) Johnson Jnr's time at City, of course, remains unfinished and should he eventually - as we all hope - seal promotion to the Premier League he'd unquestionably leap to the front of this list. For whatever reason, which goes beyond that those winless runs, he will always have his dissenters at Ashton Gate and that alone is a fascinating aspect of his management which, to the rest of the country, has marked him out as one of the brightest young English coaches in the game. Rescuing City from the nether regions of the Championship and turning them into a team in consistent play-off conversation - although, granted, not quite getting them there - is an impressive turnaround made more so by the volume of quality players he's had to sell. That talent - Joe Bryan, Bobby Reid, Adam Webster, Josh Brownhill - were all improved on his watch and his USP has been his ability to constantly regenerate and rethink City season after season, losing core tenets of his team. Sustainable and gradual improvement may not be a particularly sexy concept in modern football but it's been vital in dovetailing with how the Lansdown family want the club to be run and ensured that, in such a fluctuating league as the Championship, City have remained on an even keel. It should also be forever remember that how joyous the 2017/18 season was, even if it ended in such bitter frustration. 2. Steve Cotterill (2013-16) Rightly or wrongly, for all of the above, the true measure of a manager in the eyes of fans and in terms of their overall legacy isn't balance sheets and slogans, it's cold, hard silverware. However, it's also that sense of adventure and enjoyment that football can bring and Cotterill's 2014/15 undoubtedly delivered it. Also, it should be emphasised, after so many seasons of mediocre and passive football. Taking O'Driscoll's team from the depths of League One into mid-table was, as Cotterill has since said, as much of an achievement as what transpired the following campaign with the League One title and Johnstone's Paint Trophy. But that season is the one that resonates with supporters that stirs the blood and whips up the passion for the team. Much of that stems from Cotterill who can be an absolute maverick. An English manager in the old style of a desire to be the all-powerful figurehead in charge of every aspect of the club, his fervent fury - good and bad - on the touchline energising fans and players alike. Unfortunately that style, and desire for autonomy in his role, against the backdrop of a poor start to the 2015/16 season proved his undoing. His success had previously permitted it, but once the aura of winning wore off, he was left exposed. What was achieved and, more importantly, how it was achieved will forever be remembered and talked about among supporters, however. 1. Gary Johnson (2005-10) No man has got City closer to the promised land and that 1-0 defeat to Hull City by the slimmest of margins must forever burn deep for Johnson. What if that stomach bug hadn't hit the squad? What if Bradley Orr hadn't gone off? What if Dean Windass hadn't struck the sweetest goal of his career? City may not have turned up in the 2008 play-off final but everything that could go wrong, with the exception of a sending off, probably did go on the day and it will forever headline Johnson's reign. But getting City to that stage was a mighty achievement in itself, so soon after the Robins had emerged from League One on his watch and Johnson's team played with similar momentum on the field. Classic, direct wing play with a sense of adventure in the boots of Nick Carle, David Noble, Lee Trundle and Ivan Sproule (as sporadic as their form was), there was a welcome uncertainty to that team which made them so watchable. Enabled, in part, by the spine of Jamie McCombe, Marvin Elliott and Louis Carey. Although there was a strong old-school streak about Johnson he very much fit the Lansdown model of appointments. Signed from the lower leagues with Yeovil, he was brought in with very much a medium to long-term plan in mind and delivered a welcome rocket up the team. Unfortunately (a common word in this piece) that forward thrust couldn't be sustained and although City maintained their status as a good Championship team, that burst of exhilaration up to Wembley had ever so slightly ebbed away. Maybe it had a more damaging effect that first imagined but Johnson's gift to City was to create that optimism in the first place; that the idea of the Premier League wasn't as far away as it seemed at the start of the century. A vision that very much guides the club in 2020. https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/coppell-cotterill-wilson-ranking-bristol-4110928
What a mix, some real winners, some absolute disasters, some fence sitters, Coppell was a mistake, Danny boy was enjoyable, GJ got it right and nearly gained Premier status, Cotts gave us League Champions award for the first time in 60 years and a cup, LJ steadied the ship and is still trying and steady, then there was SOD, made some great signings and never got the credit. That's about it.
