Just reading that Danny Rohl is now the 4th longest serving manager in the Championship at 1 year and 8 months - though it's likely it won't be for much longer.
He was behind newly promoted Phil Parkinson at Wrexham (almost 4 years), Keiron McKenna from relegated Ipswich (3 and a half years) and Portmouth's John Mousinho (2 years and 5 months).
Incredibly, 8th place is Paul Heckingbottom at just over 300 days - so the increased rate of attrition in the Championship is making tenures shorter each season. Makes me wonder why any club offers more than a two-year contract and then has to pay their man off.
Indeed. I find it impossible to read any of the Gazette's reports without coming to exactly the opposite conclusion to the one seemingly entailed by the article. So today's PR piece on Edwards ticking all of the right boxes for the job except one ,leads me inevitably to the conclusion that he ticks none of the right boxes except one: that he was Scott's mate and a shoo-in on a short- list of one.
Nearly all articles on the matter have become opinion pieces that seemingly gloss over the negatives and selectively push the positives.
I should add that they are capable of writing negative articles as they were queuing up to have a pop at Michael Carrick once the club had sacked him.
It surely can't be accidental so makes you wonder who these articles are aimed at and is their purpose simply to curry favour with the key actors at the club.Unless the writers are being directed to write such articles - no wonder AV decided it was time to leave!
Seems strange as there been something going on in the background for awhile, Edward's name was creeping in even before last season, the local rags as soon as Carrick left basically said it's his job, Scott's friend , doesn't smell good,
Whilst there is little or no sentiment in managerial changes I liked Michael Carrick and despite his faults at times produced some excellent football and certainly improved a lot of the young Boro players.
I was disgusted that he wasn’t (or didn’t want to !) say his goodbyes to the Boro public and fans. I expect he messaged his players personally.
I would suspect this is not the last time we have seen him on a football field as a coach or manager.
OFB
I agree, OFB. Contrast Wilder’s effusive statement today after his sacking by Sheffield United with the total silence from MC. At the very least I would have expected him to thank Steve Gibson for the opportunity and the fans for their support. It’s puzzling. Might we suspect that he has been told to say nowt as a condition of his compensation package? If so, that would be terrible if it prevented him from saying goodbye.
@werdermouth. Has Michael Beale "actually" had ANY success with any team anywhere?
@werdermouth. But doesn't he still work at MFC in some capacity or have I got that wrong.
@werdermouth. When you actually think about it and if you had the time to research Manager / Coach sackings, you would find all sorts of strange goings-on.
As you said werder, the tenure of Championship Coaches ins dropping like a hot potato.
Given that many are given three year contracts, but are sacked in less than two years, then money, certainly in the short term is not an issue for them.
The sacking club will not want to pay out the remaining balance straight away, but like players, write in down over the contract period.
Now I am no accountant, but I am sure that will cause a headache for both club and Coach when leaving and then getting offered a new job during his original contract period. Or gardening leave.
The HMRC will be interested to say the least.
Yes AV has recently had a role with MFC as club historian and hosted a badge rebranding focus group exercise with supporters as part of the 150th anniversary preparations. AV always had good connections with Steve Gibson and also organised that Untypical Boro focus group that some of us attended.
I may be wrong but I seem to recall him not being keen on the changes the Gazette new ownership wanted to make and their plan to control what they wrote, where and how - it was essentially a shift to being content providers for advertising. Philip Tallentire left also at the same time.
Has any smoke been seen yet, rising from either Rockcliffe or the Riverside?
@werdermouth. Has Michael Beale "actually" had ANY success with any team anywhere?
He did OK at QPR, had them top of the Championship for a while and then left to join the other Rangers in Scotland - did quite well but ultimately lost out to Celtic in league and cups.
Gazette reporting Rob Edwards appointment is imminent - but then said should be concluded in the next couple of days. I suspect it's now about getting his coaching team sorted before the unveiling or maybe they just trying to build the up the tension for added excitement...
@wedermouth
Gazette reporting Rob Edwards appointment is imminent - but then said should be concluded in the next couple of days. I suspect it's now about getting his coaching team sorted before the unveiling or maybe they just trying to build the up the tension for added excitement...
Alternatively, they’re trying to ensure that none of us is actually awake when the announcement is finally made……….
I suspect that MFC is deliberately stretching out the “announcement” of Edwards as the new Boro manager so that the reaction is “thank god they have confirmed” rather than “a backlash” to the appointment.
I personally don’t think that there will be a large uptake, when season tickets go back on sale, it is also worrying how low the sales of “early bird” tickets were, as it is being kept as a closely guarded secret.
Come on BORO.
Realistically, exmil, many of us who DO buy season tickets could probably save money if, instead of even the cheaper early bird tickets etc, we simply picked and chose the games we wanted to go to. That way (1) if I'm away for a long weekend I may decide not to come back for Boro v Oxford United (or whatever) but instead stay with my wife and friends if I'm camped in the upper Dales, or in Northumberland and listen to the radio if I can get reception and save myself the time and fuel of the return trip to Teesside. Or (2) if a game is announced as being on live TV I can go to a pub and watch it rather than return for the game if I am away, or even if I am at home. Of course all that means (3) some of the trips I try to arrange to go the North West of Scotland would not be put at risk as a result of a reluctance to commit to a date without knowing what the situation is as regards a Boro home game(s). Or even (4) other events in life that might seem more attractive options than a football game ... as not everything is camping or football, nor even cricket!
I mean, it's not as if the ground is likely to be sold out for ANY league games next season, so I'd probably get a ticket even if I decided I wanted to watch a game fairly near to matchday. I guess if everyone bought tickets on a match-by-match basis, the actual attendances would plummet. "Ticket not already bought and paid for? I'm not so sure I'm much bothered about that particular game. I'll give it a miss..." Of course people who do other things on a weekend or midweek evening, may find the things they do instead of going to the match turn out to be (1) cheaper and (2) more enjoyable.
I have been giving some thought to moving over to the Dark Side. Maybe a motorhome or campervan rather than a caravan and towcar. At present if I'm away for the weekend or longer, and it clashes with a Boro game, I can always leave my wife at camp (we normally have friends with us on the same field) so the caravan is still available for her to use if I drive the towcar to Teesside. But if I have a motorhome or campervan, I'd need to take the vehicle back with me... Early days on that one. No decisions made at present (apart from having renewed the ST for 2025-26).
This will very probably be my last season of buying a ST.
As with Dormo, I can make a decision on a match by match basis, depending on where. we are camped, Teesside or Spain.
Of course if Edwards and Scott get us promoted, then I may change my mind. Although at this moment, I think there is more chance of relegation than the promised land.
This will very probably be my last season of buying a ST.
As with Dormo, I can make a decision on a match by match basis, depending on where. we are camped, Teesside or Spain.
Of course if Edwards and Scott get us promoted, then I may change my mind. Although at this moment, I think there is more chance of relegation than the promised land.
I have been saying this my last season since Strachan was in charge
Make no mistake, Boro is now a club in crisis. The players saw at first hand the conflicts between Carrick and Scott that punctuated last season and their loyalties must have lain firmly with a coach who improved them, defended them and who attracted most of them to the club. In the "show us your medals " culture of today's professionals, Carrick commanded instant respect, Scott very little. The tributes given to their former coach by many players since his departure are testament to that
For most of the Boro's prized assets there can be little incentive to stay when those responsible for last season's toxicity remain firmly at the helm, and the style of play which encouraged their creativity comes under scrutiny under a new coach.
I predict something of a major exodus, the assembly of a largely new and inferior squad, and an unsettled start to the new season.
I wish it were not so, but that is the choice the club appears to have made.
The elephants gestation period that is Boro finallyappointing a new manager continues, yawn, who precisely is in charge of this pantomime? They do not fill me with confidence and hope, hopefully it will end soon and then the real problems will start with players in the club and those they hope to bring in.
I've read all of the posts on the Diasboro site and I cannot believe that they do not represent an accurate cross section of all the Boro fans. Obviously that is with the exception of the two fans that the Teesside Live leader-writer knows, as a full-on analysis of the situation goes that really is the best so far.
Never mind, we thought last weekend but who knows to paraphrase a well-known Englishman 'is it the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end, who knows because don't and I don't think they do either.
UTB,
John
You could alsways looke at the third option?
No not leave the wife at home !
No, instead but a motorhome with a small tow bar harness to tow a Fiat 500 or similar?
I’ve seen quite a few harnessed up like that and looks a good rig.
OFB
@forever-dormo What you need is a Motorhome that tows a small car, although I’ve often wondered whether that makes any more sense than a car/caravan combination. I’ve resisted buying a Motorhome since we sold our Campervan, on the grounds that we’d struggle to park it at home and it’d be another white box on the roads. I’ll admit that there are days when I’m tempted…
From reading about Rob Edwards I think the players will like him and his ways of communicating - the main issue will be that it will be easier for some players to decide it’s time to move on. The key will be whether they buy into the new regime and believe in the tactics and indeed see them getting results.
It’s all in the balance really and Edwards will need to get the supporters on side too - whether the players have a grudge against Scott because of his desire to oust Carrick is hard to know but we’ll soon discover if they are playing for their new head coach!
I’ve heard e-scooters are all the rage these days but it might take a while to get to the Riverside once the battery runs out and you have to push it 😉
Although at this moment, I think there is more chance of relegation than the promised land.
That sentence struck a chord with me.
If Carrick had remained in charge, I don't think I would have fancied us for promotion or playoffs given where the squad is and the likelihood that we might lose a key player (Hackney is the only key player in the squad in my opinion), but I would have ruled out relegation.
I have absolutely nothing against Rob Edwards whatsoever but there is real uncertainty at the club now and, as Len alluded to, maybe worse.
I think I agree that if you told me that Boro would either be promoted or relegated this coming season, I think there's more chance of relegation. That's shocking.
My feeling towards the end of the season was that most Forum members felt MC had come to the end of the line. The senior management obviously concurred, so he had to leave.
I’m not sure what people expected next but in any other season and without the link to Scott, I suspect we’d be more prepared to welcome Edwards’ appointment.
It’s all gone very negative again and I don’t see a change in that feeling on here until we win a few games once the season has started. Let’s wait and see how things transpire
Interestingly, I didn't feel that (wanting Carrick out) on this Forum, Martin. I thought the wider Boro fanbase had turned, but not yet Diasboro.
If I'm right, then maybe we are overly down here as opposed to elsewhere.
Either way it's happened and Edwards will have my support. I just hope he gets more - or better quality - support from upstairs than Boro's last three managers have had.
@andy-r You could be right - maybe my memory is playing tricks again. The sooner an announcement is made, the better, I think.
I think it's an accumulation of promises then disappointments, over quit a number of seasons, and it drains you , it would be different if we were a Barnsley or Preston , or Wigan , but we've seen the promised land , smelt it, deep down new we were a club ,as big as some Premiership clubs , but for reasons beyond our belief we flatter to decide, I think some now are starting to wonder if the club is just disfunctional , go one way then reverse , throw money away on players without a plan as to where they fit, smaller clubs seem to find gems, I might be wrong but I bet we've spent as much money as Glasgow Celtic , in the last ten years, they find quality forget the league they're in, they compete in Europe.
On another note ,and yes I've had a dig at Carrick only because of the eighteen losses , that's not good
My question is didn't the team have the highest missed easy scoring opportunities in the league ,chances that should have gone in?