[Archived] Sam Allardyce

[Bennisfromheaven]

I have absolutely no problem with us playing this sort of football at the moment in order for us to get results But Big Sam will have his work cut out this summer to replace an ageing & lacking in quality squad! especially in midfield, we have nobody that will retain the ball & keep it moving bar Tugay who is still defying his age!! (does he still smoke 40 day???)

To rebuild the squad it will take a massive investment from the trustees who do not seem to be forthcoming with these funds so i can see us struggling over the next couple of years until we are finally sold!!

[Parsonblue]

we have won one in six,play our best centre forward on the wing,hoof the ball up front,play for dead ball situations,long throws are our speciality,bwfc 2006.lardarse's limitations are showing

And it's still one hundred per cent better than what Paul Ince served up!

[joey_big_nose]

There is no doubt we are going down a very "Bolton-esque" route at the moment. Always looking for the second ball off Cruz, no buildup play, no playing through the midfield.

However a moot point is whether the football is any worse than the last four or five years? I mean although there are a lot of high balls when we do get it in the right areas we get some pretty slick moves and decent passing.

Also I do feel like we can hurt pretty much any team at the moment, which is very unlike how I felt since the FA cup semi final.

Mixed feelings about it. Definately what we need right now, but next season? Hmm. It could get a bit tiresome. I am sort of hoping Sam decides to vary it a bit next year to improve his managerial reputation. But then "If it ain't broke...."

[gumboots]

There is no doubt we are going down a very "Bolton-esque" route at the moment. Always looking for the second ball off Cruz, no buildup play, no playing through the midfield.

However a moot point is whether the football is any worse than the last four or five years? I mean although there are a lot of high balls when we do get it in the right areas we get some pretty slick moves and decent passing.

Also I do feel like we can hurt pretty much any team at the moment, which is very unlike how I felt since the FA cup semi final.

Mixed feelings about it. Definately what we need right now, but next season? Hmm. It could get a bit tiresome. I am sort of hoping Sam decides to vary it a bit next year to improve his managerial reputation. But then "If it ain't broke...."

I have no time for allardyce as you well know, but we have no midfield therefore bypassing it seems quite a good idea. Everton play exactly the same kind of football and look where it gets them - 6th place. In fact last night I felt we got sucked down to everton's level because that's exactly how they like to play. We need to learn to play this way better if we are to stay up and quickly because it looks like it's how we're going to have to play. Whatever works at this stage is fine by me. However, we need more than just draws to stay up (actually if we could guarantee to get a draw in every game we might still just make it). what worries me most is not the style of play but that the strikers seem to have forgotten where the goal is. Now part of the reason for that might be that Santa Cruz was rarely in the box, part might be that our most natural goalscorer is not on the pitch, part of it is that Roberts is fine if you give him no chance to think, but when he has time he always chooses the wrong option. I don't think we're playing that badly but goals win games and we're still not getting enough.

[Billy Castell]

The game was between two teams that had two midfields of limited skill but plenty of energy. I'm sure we'd all like to see Rovers play and win in the style of the 1970 Brazilin team, or the Barcelona team of a few years ago, but I just can't see Mokoena dribbling past two players and releasing Roberts who'd then skip over a defender and put it between the keepers' legs.

Waggy may have a point in that RSC was not in his best position, but I am not entirely sure that he is the sort of player who can be an out-and-out target man. nor can I see Roberts or McCarthy being much cop out wide. So RSC is probably there as he is the least worst in that system.

Sam is doing OK, and there is more of a spirit of survival about the club than there was before Ince got sacked. We'll play ugly, and often dull football but if we stay up, I for one couldn't give a toss.

[Mr. E]

This is the most infantile line of argument I've ever seen on this list. Who's to blame ? Everyone knows but you. But here's a clue--the incompetant idiot who got sacked too late.

We are 18th because , at one stage, we had 13 points from 17 games and were leaking goals like a sieve. Remember Wigan-all over after 11 minutes. We are still trying to make up the ground Ince lost for us. I note you totally ignore the FACT that Sam's side has taken 14 points from 10 games which I repeat is NOT relegation form.

Sam deserves our whole-hearted support in this not the sniping you keep giving him.

Stop raging and calm yourself down a little bit. I know people hate Ince, but blaming him solely and fully for everything wrong at the club ignores the problems and offers no solutions.

What you totally ignore is that I am not asking the question who is better. What I am saying is that it doesn't matter who is "better" if we can't get out of 18th place. No matter who is better, neither have been good enough so far. Never have I said this means the manager should be sacked or whatever you're getting at, but I don't have the blindfolds on to ignore our failure at this point.

Perhaps you can also scream at BFS himself who admits we're nowhere near where we should be by now.

waggy, it's like someone else said, we're back to where we were with Mark Hughes circa 2004. Allardyce has inherited a deflated team that has been poorly invested by the board and previous manager. We don't have the quality to play good football. WBA stick to this principle and they're still rooted to the bottom of the table. That's where we would be if Ince was still here, no doubt. Sam doesn't care about impressing fans or neutrals, he just wants us to scrap as many points as we possibly can.

And the question is why are we back we were with Mark Hughes in 2004? Because we hired a manager who fixed us for a while, but then didn't have the commitment to stay. Which is the best we can hope under BFS as well. Would this be enough for people? Endless cycles of having a season or two of confidence before the team gets sold and we have to start from scratch fighting for survival again?

[American]

The damage was done in the summer and is pretty much irreversible. Allardyce is stuck with the squad that Ince left him.

Allardyce was stuck for a month with the squad Ince left him. He had a month to make improvements (which he did) so if we can't get enough at this point at least a part of it will be down to his failure to make more improvements, or the boards failure to allow him to.

[JAL]

we have won one in six,play our best centre forward on the wing,hoof the ball up front,play for dead ball situations,long throws are our speciality,bwfc 2006.lardarse's limitations are showing

How many have we lost in six ?

Cruz showed what a good team player he is last night, Treacy would not have been right to play on the left against Everton.

It was'nt all 'Hoofball' but when we are SEVERLY LIMITED in the centre of midfield and out wide - what else do you expect.

Many of us thought it was a poor game but none of think Everton are a better side than us.

Cheer up waggy, its support Rovers need right now, you can do the blame game come the end of the season.

[47er]

Stop raging and calm yourself down a little bit. I know people hate Ince, but blaming him solely and fully for everything wrong at the club ignores the problems and offers no solutions.

What you totally ignore is that I am not asking the question who is better. What I am saying is that it doesn't matter who is "better" if we can't get out of 18th place. No matter who is better, neither have been good enough so far. Never have I said this means the manager should be sacked or whatever you're getting at, but I don't have the blindfolds on to ignore our failure at this point.

Perhaps you can also scream at BFS himself who admits we're nowhere near where we should be by now.

I''m not raging and I don't hate Ince so don't try to cover up your inept arguements by caracaturing me.. I just think he was useless. You on the other hand keep defending him and attacking Sam. Grudgingly admit that our position is improving and that we now have a chance of avoiding relegation where we had none before and I'd think the discussion was over.

And the question is why are we back we were with Mark Hughes in 2004? Because we hired a manager who fixed us for a while, but then didn't have the commitment to stay. Which is the best we can hope under BFS as well. Would this be enough for people? Endless cycles of having a season or two of confidence before the team gets sold and we have to start from scratch fighting for survival again?

[Exiled in Toronto]

Allardyce was stuck for a month with the squad Ince left him. He had a month to make improvements (which he did) so if we can't get enough at this point at least a part of it will be down to his failure to make more improvements, or the boards failure to allow him to.

Agree with that. I thought half the reason for getting rid of Ince when we did, albeit 4 games too long, was so the new bloke would have the transfer window to work in.

Sam decided to hold onto RSC and forego the 15 million we would have cleared that could have been used to address the worst set of central midfielders in this league and perhaps the one below. RSC has hardly done anything since the window 'slammed shut' to merit that decision, adding a whole 1 goal to his tally. Personally, I'm not sure why Sam went for a LB, good though he is, but Spit does look better than what we had on the flanks.

He kept Rocky and the existing midfield because that best suits his brand of football. We're playing like BWFC of old only not as well. If that keep us up, fair do's, let's start clubbing towards a statue of him. If we go down, he surely must carry some of the blame because he has made some massive decisions, including a 180 degree shift in how we play.

I hope it works because it sure is sh!te to watch - there has to be some benefit

[RevidgeBlue]

We're playing like BWFC of old only not as well. If that keep us up, fair do's, let's start clubbing towards a statue of him. If we go down, he surely must carry some of the blame because he has made some massive decisions, including a 180 degree shift in how we play.

I hope it works because it sure is sh!te to watch - there has to be some benefit

Agree almost entirely with that.

The only point I would differ on slightly is that I thought Sam was 100% correct to keep RSC in January. I can't believe Sam really thought the midfield was good enough and he should have surely been backed to that extent given the potential downside of going down - even if it was only a couple of temporary loan signings.

[Hughesy]

Many of us thought it was a poor game but none of think Everton are a better side than us.

Cheer up waggy, its support Rovers need right now, you can do the blame game come the end of the season.

Oh dont you worry, he has been doing it all season. I think he is actually a dingle!

[broadsword]

Takes a brave man to call waggy a dingle!

[gumboots]

Agree with that. I thought half the reason for getting rid of Ince when we did, albeit 4 games too long, was so the new bloke would have the transfer window to work in.

Sam decided to hold onto RSC and forego the 15 million we would have cleared that could have been used to address the worst set of central midfielders in this league and perhaps the one below. RSC has hardly done anything since the window 'slammed shut' to merit that decision, adding a whole 1 goal to his tally. Personally, I'm not sure why Sam went for a LB, good though he is, but Spit does look better than what we had on the flanks.

He kept Rocky and the existing midfield because that best suits his brand of football. We're playing like BWFC of old only not as well. If that keep us up, fair do's, let's start clubbing towards a statue of him. If we go down, he surely must carry some of the blame because he has made some massive decisions, including a 180 degree shift in how we play.

I hope it works because it sure is sh!te to watch - there has to be some benefit

Nobody knows how much we actually in cold, hard cash were offered up front for santa Cruz. Presumably not enough to be able to get what Allardyce wanted in replacement strikers, defenders and midfielders. Also what santa cruz is expected to do is get goals. However, when he's not doing that he does lots of other things for the team. He made at least one superb and important tackle on Wednesday and if you watched Hansen's summary of what he did on Suday on MOTD you'd see that his allround contribution is very important to us. He's a team player and we need them at the moment.

[Paul Mellelieu]

I thought that we were happy to sell but couldn't find a replacement in time.

[gumboots]

I thought that we were happy to sell but couldn't find a replacement in time.

We might have sold if the price, the replacements etc had been good enough. Nobody apart from those involved in any deals really knows any more than that. some know bits but the true whole picture is presumably known only to the chairman, the manager and those in on any negotiations. I don't think it was only the time element that influenced it although the longer it went on the less likely it was to be possible to replace him.

[DP]

I thought that we were happy to sell but couldn't find a replacement in time.

Shame Sam didn't get the same info as Tony Pullis in the transfer window. If there's ever a striker you want in a relegation scrap it's James Beattie

[Paul Mellelieu]

Shame Sam didn't get the same info as Tony Pullis in the transfer window. If there's ever a striker you want in a relegation scrap it's James Beattie

Rovers were aware of Beattie's availability.

[jonv]

Why would we need Beattie when we have 23 million worth of striker whose keeping us up with all his goals!!

[LeChuck]

Shame Sam didn't get the same info as Tony Pullis in the transfer window. If there's ever a striker you want in a relegation scrap it's James Beattie

Just what we'd need - another 30 something costing millions that we'd never see a return on.

Thankfully Sam's list of Roque replacements seem to be early-to-mid twenties.

[waggy]

just been reading the back issues of the telewag,and lardarse says he will not walk away if the rovers go down,jw has already said he will not sack him,very cosy position to be in.why bother

[DP]

Just what we'd need - another 30 something costing millions that we'd never see a return on.

Thankfully Sam's list of Roque replacements seem to be early-to-mid twenties.

So you don't think staying up is seeing a return?

[LeChuck]

So you don't think staying up is seeing a return?

It's such a short-sighted attitude though, a club like ours with no outside investment can't do that and expect to stay up for more than a few years. I made a bigger post about this, I might dig it out at sometime if I remember but it should be fairly obvious anyway.

[DP]

Fair enough. I guess it's just more annoying that Stoke signed him rather than we didn't. Don't forget he played his part in sending us down 10 years ago and it could happen all over again. A Blackburn lad to boot as well

[LeChuck]

If we could have sold McCarthy or Roberts and brought in Beattie that would have been great, they're all about the same age. I hope we can get someone a bit better (and younger) to replace Roque though.