Most liked posts in thread: Gary Bowyer - when do we judge?

@Fordy117 give it a rest now, your negativity is draining and counter-productive.

Everyone knows new teams need time to gel and get used to playing with each other. They will improve for the run in horse racing terms.

Give him a couple of months with this new team before firing shots.

 

I agree, we will win games. We will also draw some and lose some. Lincoln drew 16 times last year but still won this league by a clear 6 points. A bit of perspective is needed.

 

I will add that if anyone is over-reacting it's those who jump on anyone who dares to criticise or show concern. It's not just about one bad result, it's the worry that they have gone into the new season with key roles left unfilled (again).

 

A good manager knows where things are not going well and when we are in stalemate and changes it in game as soon as is needed, He does not wait until injuries force his hand,
When Alex Ferguson was asked how can you tell a good manager he replied that a good manager sees and makes the changes in the game before the crowd realise themselves and call for them,
All the supporters hope that GB is the manager for us but on yesterdays showing where he saw like the crowd how narrow we were and the problems in the team he did nothing until forced, Must do better is the verdict

 

Maybe just maybe you are the biggest WUM on this forum. I think these threads just sow discontent amongst fans. Do you support city or just support them when they win i dont get it? Its game 1 ffs, yes we are all irritated but it was obvious the players looked nervy. Scannell came on and simply did not look for the ball something was wrong with him yesterday. It might be small things like this that forced the formation choice.

 

Forget the 22 attempts at goal, its always a misleading stat. Fact is we rarely troubled their keeper and by the end we were very easy to defend against even with an extra man.

 

It seems some were happy with a draw yesterday although i suspect these same people were still dreaming of league 1 football last season when we were rock bottom. Make no bones about it yesterday was 2 points dropped and personally i expect a far better performance at Grimsby.

 

Responsibility for one game? Are you being serious?

 

Crikey, he displayed an inability to get us promoted?

If we hammer Grimsby 3-0 under similar circumstances, I sure hope you're going to stick to your theory that dominating games isn't going to get us promoted.

 

Which December?

 

He’ll have given it a good go staying up but to me it’s such an obvious correlation. If they knew going down was a clear possibility then they’ve gone for someone early to give him a full post and pre season who has a proven record of bouncing back first time. Time will tell of course.

 

I can see both sides to the debate
Agree it's way way too soon to judge this season but consider his record to date with us
Played 12
Won 2
Drawn 3
Lost 7
Win rate 16.7%
Granted last seasons wasters weren't his players but you have to keep one eye on whether he has the ability turn us around
I do think it's time he forgot about his past glories at the mighty Blackpool
and prove his credentials at Bradford City
Jury is definitely out for me

 

I'm sad to see that the Fordy117 who was so positive late last season was actually Fraudy117, and you're still the same old doom mongerer who projects negativity on to dominant displays...

 

I think there has been an overreaction in some quarters to our first two league games, but it is true to say that the spectre of last season is still hanging over us and we need to get three points as soon as possible, the longer we leave it then the more the pressure will grow, especially in light of the underwhelming results towards the end of last season.

The way I see it some people overestimate how precarious the situation Bowyer is in whilst Bowyer himself seems to underestimate how precarious a situation he is in. Despite the goodwill in pre-season we haven't turned the corner yet, at the end of the day we are a football club and we haven't started to turn the corner until we start winning games of football.

To that extent I don't think that the Oldham game represents a "last chance saloon" scenario. Metaphorically I would describe the Oldham game as Bowyer's "Battle of El Alamein", to use a world war 2 analogy. After a series of reversals and crushing defeats this is our chance to draw a line in the sand and say "this is where our luck changes".

If we lose it won't be the end, but it could prove to be the beginning of the end...

 

I agree with you about him not appreciating the importance of getting a result tonight (I think he had accepted the defeat pre-game, the way he talked up Preston, but rather than putting out a first XI, risking injuries and ultimately losing narrowly, thought he best rest the older lads, give the fringe lads a run out and, if they failed, at least he could then go to the chairman and say the backups aren't up to it and they need to release funds to bring in a few Championship lads on loan), but there is no way on earth he would be sacked even if we lose on Sat. Even if we lose 0-3 or even if all of Kop boos him off at FT, he still won't get sacked (yet).

He has a very good relationship with Rhodes and seems to get on well with Rupp. They will look at his CV and think 'he did it with Blackpool, he's triumphed through adversity'.

I also think Rhodes and Rupp will look at last seasons farce, appointing a manager late and having a slapdash pre-season, and then sacking him and having two other managers before the season is out. They want stability. Bowyer has had a clear run in pre-season and assembled his squad earlier. We did lots of early business. I know we all feel we need a couple more bodies but there is more chance of the board releasing additional/unexpected funds to him than there is of him getting the bullet.

I believe they'll want to see him build on what he has supposedly done in pre-season.

In a month or so, if the pressure has continued to build and if we're losing in the league, then the situation may change. But there is absolutely no chance he is going anyway for the moment. Two league games into the season and although we haven't torn the opposition to shreds, we've competed.

 

We will see on Saturday; plus somebody asked during pre season what he would bring to Bradford City, and he said winning games!! Ok, let’s see it. I am not an impatient fan, but I need to see results and his best 11. No more messing about, time to start delivering those winning games. City fans have had enough of abysmal and abject displays for nearly two years now.

 

We do need to give him time but, at the same time, it is always nice to see the manager thinking on the same lines as the fans. It seems Bowyer is the only man at the club that likes the 4-3-3 set up. It is tricky for us City fans to buy into it as we have never achieved success with it, though Bowyer seemingly has elsewhere.

Without wanting to be labelled a happy clapper, I can understand why Bowyer has made some of the weird decisions he has. Doyle isn't suited to a no. 10 role but he was worth a try in the first game. If you have three strikers in the squad on decent wages, it solves yourself a rotation problem if they can all fit in the same side. Sadly, they don't seem compatible. But you can see why he at least tried to make 4-3-3 work.

We have started with a RB at LB. That has hindered our attacking output as we have no natural overlap. However, as Longridge missed a few pre-season games, GB might not had seen enough to start with him. He knows Henley from his time at Blackburn, of course. So although he's been a square peg in a round hole, you can understand why he started him.

Tonight he has been slated for rotating in a cup tie. I can understand the frustration from the fans (granted, I didn't go) but cup games are regularly used for this purpose by managers. It would have been nice to get a win on the board to boost morale but, all things considered, it seems GB just wrote the tie off before it had started.

Saturday will tell us plenty. We know we are going to be at full strength again. But are we going to stick with the same 4-3-3 we've used to now or are we going to see some adaptability and a willingness to change things around. Are we going to see a natural left footer start at LB to give us better balance on the overlap and are we going to see Paudie replace Anthony O'Connor at the back. How are we going to sure up the central midfield, which still looks the weak point in the team? The next few games look really important in addressing these issues as the excuses will soon run out.

 

The only explanation I can offer for last night selections is that he sees his first choice league team options as paper thin and was protecting as many of them as possible from injury.

 

I agree, and I'm coming round to the view that the club isn't expecting promotion this year, maybe not even trying for it. That might explain the resigning of three very mediocre midfielders. Just a holding operation for this season, then go for it next year without the deadwood. Bowyer might even have suggested it himself, and got the agreement of the owner, which also might explain his very relaxed approach. But would anyone ever dare to admit this to the fans?

 

"if you think this team will roll over for us..." this is the laziest point in the history of football forums.

I can guarantee you that no City fan that posts on here genuinely thinks any team are going to roll over and let us win, but if you can't beat Cambridge at home, and Grimsby then it's safe to say you aren't playing well enough.