Tom
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Post by Tom on May 5, 2019 9:20:05 GMT 1
Frying pan, meet fire. Ken Anderson, Bolton's current/previous owner is a scumbag ex-agent, whose ownership of the club has been a disgrace. But Laurence Bassini, Bolton's future/current owner is a two-times former bankrupt who was found guilty of dishonesty and misconduct during his year as owner of Watford, and banned from any involvement in the running of football clubs for 3 years. (A pathetically small sanction, given what he did). I would take any promises he makes about Bolton with a pinch of salt, and I'm not remotely surprised that the Football League is taking its time sanctioning his takeover. I really feel for the fans of the club. I regularly enjoyed my trips to Bolton when they were in the Premier Division. In those days the stadium was wonderful, and the fans were great, with realistic expectations about what they could expect to achieve, and genuine joy when they over-achieved. This won't come as a surprise, but the takeover has now collapsed as Bassini can't provide assurances that he's got the funds. Brentford game rescheduled for Tuesday, I think both sides will field their youth team, but it will be cancelled altogether if Bolton go into administration.
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Tom
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Post by Tom on May 5, 2019 10:54:44 GMT 1
I thought for a long time that Mansfield were going to go up. Andy won't like me saying this but going into the playoffs on the back of last day disappointment I don't think works Memories of our final day game against Birmingham at home in 2009 come flooding back (especially as we are at home to them today - why I'm relieved there's nothing at stake). Coppell sounded close to tears after, as IIRC it meant he was going to miss his son's graduation. We then lost in the playoffs. Also when we pipped Coppell`s Brentford team in 2002 on the last day they then lost in the playoffs, to Crewe in the final IIRC.
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Post by Panda on May 5, 2019 11:18:28 GMT 1
Bolton v Brentford is cancelled. Brentford have been awarded a 1-0 win.
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Post by raliverpool on May 5, 2019 14:36:54 GMT 1
^ Liverpool did it in the end, winning 3-2. Now come on Leicester on Monday night.... Can I say I thought the Magpies were very unlucky to come away pointless last night.
Trent Alexander-Arnold should have been giving a red card for that handball on the line. I'm sure Newcastle would have preferred to be playing against 10 men for 75 minutes with a penalty to convert instead of having a goal and playing 11 men.
I also thought the Toon Army were magnificent last night supporting their team, and were total class with Salah's head injury. They really do deserve so much better than Mike Ashley as a chairman.
Still that is the beauty of football, Liverpool deserved to win midweek, and lose yesterday.
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Post by o on May 5, 2019 15:07:14 GMT 1
I'm glad you brought up the subject of the handball, because the shot went in, no punishment is needed for the offender, but you do wonder, if 10 men and a penalty would have been better for Newcastle over the whole game? Because who popped up for the cross for the 2nd goal...
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Post by Razzle Dazzle on May 6, 2019 15:10:48 GMT 1
Fabinho diving for the freekick to score the winner was harsh on Newcastle, personally I prefer Man City to win the league, Liverpool shouldn't even be in the title race after scoring a record number of offside goals, Milner being 5 yards offside for their goal in their 1-1 draw with West Ham was another shocking decision.
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Post by Shireblogger on May 6, 2019 16:17:38 GMT 1
MID-SEASON MANAGERIAL CHANGES 2018/19: LEAGUE TWO
Regular readers of this annual post will know that I believe changing manager mid-season is rarely a wise thing to do. Occasionally, the Board of a club will recognise they have made a bad decision, and succesfully correct it. But normally it is a panic-stricken roll of the dice, which often comes with disastrous consequences.
And I've proven year in and year out that sacking your manager twice in the season causes so much disruption that the outcome is guaranteed to be failure.
Let's see if my theories held true in 2018/19. Starting with League Two.
Clubs changing manager twice
Notts County
In one of the most cretinous decisions ever made by a football club board, Notts County sacked Kevin Nolan after just 5 matches of the season. Remember, this is the manager who had saved the club from relegation when appointed in January 2017, and then guided them to the Play-Offs in 2017/18. Nolan averaged 1.52 points per match during his 20 months in charge at Notts. They'd have finished 8th if he had scored at that rate in 2018/19.
Notts were 24th (bottom) when Nolan was fired, and replaced with the underwhelming choice of Harry Kewell. Nonetheless, Kewell had guided them to 22nd and apparent safety, when he too was fired.
In came Neal Ardley, recently fired from Wimbledon having directed them to 23rd place in League One. True to form, the 2nd mid-season managerial change spelt calamity for Notts County, and they dropped out of the Football League after 131 years.
Oldham Athletic
Owned since January 2018 by a former football agent, Oldham Athletic have consequently become a football club basket case, just like Bolton Wanderers since they were bought by an ex-parasite agent. Renowned for interfering in team selection and other on-field decisions, Abdallam Lemsagam masterminded relegation in 2017/18, and sacked manager Richie Wellens in June as a result.
Frankie Bunn got 30 matches, and had the club stabilised in 12th place when he was fired on Boxing Day. Paul Scholes discovered (to absolutely no-one's shock) that football club management is harder than being an opinionated pundit. He walked out after 1 win in 7 matches had seen the club drop to 14th.
Pete Wild, who had been caretaker between Bunn and Scholes, was given this poisoned chalice on a permanent basis after Scholes' departure. Across his two spells, Oldham have won 47% of their matches, but they still finished 14th.
Clubs changing manager once
Macclesfield Town
The exception that proves the rule. Macclesfield were bottom in October when Mark Yates was fired. They appointed a manager with no previous experience as a boss, but a wealth of knowledge gained during his highly successful playing career. Sol Campbell guided Macclesfield to 22nd place and secured safety with 25 minutes of the 2018/19 season remaining. On balance, an inspired appointment. Campbell's record of 35 points from 27 matches in charge would have seen Macclesfield finishing 16th if replicated across a full season.
Yeovil Town
Disaster. Darren Way was fired with the club in 22nd place and just safe, but with in-form Macclesfield looming closer in the rear-view mirror. They then appointed Neale Marmon - a man without any management experience, and without the CV of Sol Campbell. In Marmon's 7 games Yeovil took just 4 points. 8 points would have secured survival, and Way was averaging a tiny fraction under 1 point per match when fired.
Port Vale
Neil Aspin resigned in January with Vale sitting 18th, and amid fans protests against the club's owners who are trying to sell it but retain hold of the ground. Finished 20th with John Askey in charge. A negative change, but who could blame Aspin for jumping ship.
Cambridge Utd
Fired Joe Dunne in December when sitting 21st. Finished 21st with Colin Calderwood in charge. A pointless change.
Swindon Town
Fired Phil Brown in December when sitting 11th. Finished 13th with Richie Wellens (see Oldham) in charge. A negative change.
Northampton Town
Fired Dean Austin in October when sitting 21st. Finished 15th with Keith Curle in charge. A slightly beneficial switch, but Curle has never achieved a promotion as a manager, and this won't change at Northampton.
Enforced Changes
Crawley Town
Harry Kewell poached by Notts County in August. Replaced by Gabriele Cioffi. (Who ?) 16th before, 19th after.
Carlisle United
John Sheridan resigned in January to drop a division and take over Chesterfield, who he improved immensely. Replaced by Steven Pressley. Carlisle were 7th and in the Play-Offs when Sheridan left, but finished 11th, albeit just 3 points out of the Play-Offs.
League One tomorrow.
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Post by raliverpool on May 6, 2019 16:41:08 GMT 1
Fabinho diving for the freekick to score the winner was harsh on Newcastle, personally I prefer Man City to win the league, Liverpool shouldn't even be in the title race after scoring a record number of offside goals, Milner being 5 yards offside for their goal in their 1-1 draw with West Ham was another shocking decision.
According to whom? Donald Trump; Sir Alex Ferguson; or the drunk in your pub?
According to Opta Stats both Liverpool and Man City are both net 4 points up on where they should be if VAR was available & officials did their jobs properly.
According to Opta Stats a three point swing happened via this one incident on January 3rd 2019 which due to the ineptitude of the referee will ultimately see Man City as 2018/19 champions:
Based on Opta Stats calculations as that lunge took place on 30 minutes, then from that point on Man City should have been a man down, and as they calculate a man advantage equals a goal advantage every 42 minutes (based on the previous 5 years calculations) then Liverpool would have got a draw (+1 point) and not a 2-1 defeat; and Man City would have had to settle for a draw instead of a win (-2 points).
Incidentally the top four would also be sorted out this season as it actually is had VAR existed as both Chelsea (+3 pts) Spurs are (+2 pts) in decisions over the season (the rest of the top 6 are Arsenal (+1) & Man Utd (+3)). The one side who have really lost out this season re: lack of VAR/referee decisions are Cardiff City (-8 pts) who would otherwise level with Brighton (-3) & Southampton (-1).
As Andy correctly points out according to the rules of the game the referee overruled the clear red card offence by Trent Alexander-Arnold for a deliberate hand ball + last man on the 24th minute.
According to Opta Stats as he was entitled to do that as a correct decision overriding a penalty + red card, then it works on the assumption that the game carries on as it actually did via Atsu's goal as there is no double jeopardy rule. But had played stopped with a sending off + penalty, then on a pro-rata basis of a 78% success rate, Newcastle would have been expected to score the penalty this time (as they actually did in normal play via the rebound), plus Liverpool would have conceded/or scored one less goal then they actually achieved (assumption Newcastle would score extra goal in the 66th minute (24+42 mins via their red card/extra man tariff calculations). So the result would have been a draw, and tonight's Man City v Leicester City fixture would be about as exciting to look forward to as the final session of the World Snooker Final is going to be (with Judd Trump currently 7 frames ahead 16-9 (first to 18)).
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Post by Robin on May 6, 2019 17:21:22 GMT 1
Notts CountyIn one of the most cretinous decisions ever made by a football club board, Notts County sacked Kevin Nolan after just 5 matches of the season. Remember, this is the manager who had saved the club from relegation when appointed in January 2017, and then guided them to the Play-Offs in 2017/18. Nolan averaged 1.52 points per match during his 20 months in charge at Notts. They'd have finished 8th if he had scored at that rate in 2018/19. I actually think sacking Nolan was the right decision. Results had been incredibly poor even going back to the previous season end, but the bizzare decisions that surrounded the appointment and then sacking of Kewell baffled everyone. No one knows what happened there, but it caused immense damage. Ardley was a poor choice. Anyone even mildly competent would have been able to keep Notts up, it wasn't that big a challenge.
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Post by Razzle Dazzle on May 6, 2019 18:19:46 GMT 1
You can argue all day about hypothetical scenarios that prove you right, what can I add? That's not the same hypothetical scenario as I've worked out but hey ho
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Post by o on May 6, 2019 20:36:48 GMT 1
Nice to have a season where we only have 1 manager! Thing is, if we stuff up in the playoffs, which we probably will, then there will be calls to sack the manager, as last season he took us from the playoffs to outside them, and this season took us from automatics to play offs. Does the blame lay at the manager's door, or the players, and the fact that we lost our gk, and right back at crucial points in the season, and never quite found the best replacements? So frustrating when we have owners who love the club, and have poured money in, but also done stuff behind the scenes(5 a side pitches, supporters bar, corporate hospitality, etc.) to get us on an even keel, so we are not spending beyond our means, and can be self sufficient. Life just seems unfair in football sometimes.
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frag
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Post by frag on May 6, 2019 22:15:12 GMT 1
How ironic that city are set to buy the title, thanks to the only player in their squad that they bought without the oil money.
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Post by Earl Purple on May 7, 2019 11:50:50 GMT 1
We have also gone a whole season with the same manager, the first time since 2012-13. If we don't succeed in the playoffs I have no idea what is going to happen with Lee Bowyer's contract.
I also worry that Scunthorpe who were in the playoffs both of the past 2 seasons, and Bradford City who were in the playoffs in 2016 and 2017 have both been relegated this season. Does that mean now if you fail in the playoffs 2 seasons running you are destined to go down? Sheffield United did get up after a long series of playoff failures though then managed another promotion, and Huddersfield went up in our promotion season of 2012 via the playoffs having failed in them both of the previous two seasons, and they subsequently also got another promotion.
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Post by Shireblogger on May 7, 2019 16:06:39 GMT 1
MID-SEASON MANAGERIAL CHANGES 2018/19: LEAGUE ONE
Clubs changing manager twice
Scunthorpe United
Sacked Nicky Daws after just 4 games, with Scunthorpe in 18th. "Chairman Peter Swan admitted he made a mistake in giving Daws the job permanently" after a successful caretaker period (4 wins from 9 games). Stuart McCall took over, and Scunthorpe were still 18th when he too was fired in March. Andy Dawson steered the club down to 23rd and relegation. Two totally unnecessary management changes resulting in relegation. How many mistakes is Peter Swan entitled to make before he is forced to resign ?
Yet another piece of evidence supporting the Shireblogger Rule of Football Management, which says if you change your manager twice in mid-season, calamity always follows.
Bradford City
The only other League One club to suffer 3 managers in 2018/19 were Bradford. Uncoincidentally, they finished well adrift in 24th. Bradford were 17th when Michael Collins was given his P45 in September. David Hopkin came in, and led the club down to 23rd. When he went in February, Gary Bowyer was asked to finish the job. With Park Avenue enjoying a period of resurgence, the National League could be hosting a Bradford derby within a few years.
Clubs changing manager once
Walsall
Panic stricken, Walsall fired Dean Keates at the start of April after a run of 5 consecutive defeats. They were 22nd. They finished 22nd - Martin O'Connor didn't have a prayer.
Southend
Southend also rolled the dice, and just survived. Chris Powell went in March with the club 20th, outside the relegation zone on goal difference. In came Kevin Bond, and he failed to better Powell. Southend finished 19th, avoiding relegation on goal difference, saved by an 87th minute goal in their final game. Great leadership or pure luck ?
Rochdale
Also fired in March was Keith Hill, with Rochdale inside the relegation zone. Brian Barry-Murphy did make a significant different. They went from 1 point per match to 1.8 per match, and finished 16th, 4 points clear of relegation. A successful switch.
Bristol Rovers
Rovers were 21st in mid-December when Darrell Clarke bit the dust. They too improved, and finished one place ahead of Rochdale on goal difference, also avoiding relegation by 4 points. Marginally positive.
Wimbledon
Neal Ardley was relieved of his duties in mid-November with Wimbledon in 23rd. He was soon back in charge, at Notts County, and we all know how that ended. In came Wally Downes. After 4 months, Downes had overseen Wimbledon's fall to bottom of the table, but also an FA Cup shock as they eliminated West Ham. But, finally, things came good, and Wimbledon did enough to finish 20th, avoiding relegation by a goal difference margin of just 3, with a 0-0 draw at Bradford on the last day securing safety.
Peterborough
How we all laughed. The famously unpleasant tax dodger Steve Evans got fired in January with 'Boro occupying the final play-off place. In came club legend Darren Ferguson for his 3rd spell as boss. And 'Boro's form dipped just enough for 7th place Doncaster, from whom Ferguson had resigned in the summer, to overtake them and claim the right to challenge Charlton for Wembley Play-Off Final.
Enforced Changes
Luton Town
Nathan Jones was poached by Stoke in January - a decision they are now probably regretting. Luton were 2nd at the time. Head scout Mick Harford took over as caretaker for the rest of the season, guiding Luton to the League One title with just 2 defeats in his 21 games in charge, one of which came after promotion had been secured. Job very well done.
Gillingham and Plymouth Argyle both fired their managers towards the end of the season, after their fates were sealed.
Championship on Thursday.
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Tom
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Post by Tom on May 7, 2019 19:25:04 GMT 1
I'm still bemused by Gillingham sacking Steve Lovell. He is Gillingham's equivalent to Brian McDermott at Reading, i.e. doing various jobs at the club before becoming manager (and IIRC he was part of a joint caretaker management team along with Andy Hessanthaler and others between Peter Taylor and Justin Edinburgh in 2014-15). Even more so with Lovell as he was also a successful striker with them too. I thought he'd done an ok job, kept them up for the last two seasons and had that win over Cardiff in the FA Cup this season, albeit they were lucky to get to the 3rd round in the first place. I know Paul Scally can be ruthless but even for him the timing seems odd with only 2 games left. The fans aren't happy, rumours of Steve Evans coming in to replace him too...
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Robbie
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Post by Robbie on May 7, 2019 21:21:39 GMT 1
Good grief! Liverpool have gone 3-0 ahead v Barcelona tonight to make it 3-3 overall! Could they do the improbable and win 4-0 tonight?
I was about to post they'd scored to make it 2-0 then 3-0 flashed up. I wish I still had BT Sport to watch this game, I'm trying to find a stream of the game but the usual places aren't working properly tonight... typical!
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Post by smokeyb on May 7, 2019 21:37:35 GMT 1
Watching the game, Liverpool are not letting Barca play
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Post by smokeyb on May 7, 2019 21:38:59 GMT 1
4 nil
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Robbie
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Post by Robbie on May 7, 2019 21:40:10 GMT 1
4-0!
Wow!!!
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Robbie
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Post by Robbie on May 7, 2019 21:43:32 GMT 1
Blow the whistle ref (10 minutes to go though)!
Come on Brighton on Sunday, beat Man City, Liverpool to beat Wolves.
Sounds good to me!
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