[Archived] Sam Allardyce

[PAFELL]

Yes he kept us up however we also finished 10th under him too - plus pro rata were on course for finishing in the top ten again this season....

I have not said he was bad for Rovers. The truth is he did good.

But in my opinion the football was cr@p. Fully accept that as football is a business and staying in the prem at ALL COSTS is what counts. It dosent change the fact that the football was cr@p.

Sam did good for Rovers by producing bad football that was sufficient to keeping Rovers in the prem. But that is the nature of the beast - survival in the premiership at all costs.

This is not me slagging Sam down, as he did what he had to do, with what players and money, he had available to him. But in myopinion it was cr@p football.

[John]

But it wasn't just "keeping us up" - intially he had to firefight because of the complete mess he inherited.

Finising 10th is not just staying up and we were on course for it again this season or possibly higher.

Also his record at Bolton proves undoubtedly, given time, his teams can finish high up within the top 10 best teams in the land.

[Mattyblue]

It obviously wasn't cr@p- Burnley, Hull and Portsmouth were cr@p.

You didn't find it pleasing on the eye? Fair enough, but as someone who gets no better statisfaction than seeing my beloved Rovers win, I enjoyed it.

[PAFELL]

It obviously wasn't cr@p- Burnley, Hull and Portsmouth were cr@p.

You didn't find it pleasing on the eye? Fair enough, but as someone who gets no better statisfaction than seeing my beloved Rovers win, I enjoyed it.

Totally agree it achieved results and also about always wanting to see Rovers win. But not pleasing on the eye - is a good assessment.

[chaddyrovers]

i reckon Sam Allardyce will come back for a couple of his old coaches like Iain Bruskill and Mark Howard

[67splitscreen]

Neil Mac joined Bury as manager so hopefully Sam will be back for Kean as his No. 2.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

I'm still here, not my first choice would have preferred Curbishley to come back but BFS is the next best appointment. You can't argue with his track record and we need a strong manager who will keep the owners and brady in their place.

Roll on the championship.........

Good luck Mick, give the Dingles a banging for me.

[chaddyrovers]

Neil Mac joined Bury as manager so hopefully Sam will be back for Kean as his No. 2.

Neil Mac hasn't joined them yet. if he does become manager then SA will come in for Iain Bruskill as his number 2

[thenodrog]

Like us all they will tolerate the style, if it gets results on the pitch and they gain promotion. But when the results turn bad, they will turn on Sam and his style of football. Sam kept Rovers up - to that I am grateful. But the football was cr@p. Others on here may not share that opinion - so be it, their choice. For me the football under Sam was cr@p. The negativity against certain teams again to me was a cr@p approach. Yes it kept Rovers up, which in it self was good thing. Am I for or against Sam - neither. I just think his style of football was utter cr@p.

All the airy fairy passing football in the world will not get a club promoted from the Championship unless it's allied to much grit and determination. We saw how crap QPR were in January but they absolutely walked it last season on the back of a Colin's agricultural style of football matched with the extravagent skills of Adel Tarabt. When we came up our Tarabt was Eyal Berkovitz, Championship defenders simply had no answer to his quality.

[thenodrog]

i was talking to a fan the other day who said her whole family had come to the point under Allardyce where they were looking for reasons not to go to Ewood and had stopped attending away games at all becuase none of them looked forward to going to Ewood any more. She said it must be the only ground in the country where even when you won and appreciated the 3 points you still felt, but I might have been better off doing the ironing or some other meaningless chore.

Gotta say I'm with Andy Gray and Richard Keys after that statement gumboots. Could we have a poll on how many of us have ever EVER felt like doing the ironing rather than being at ewood?

Reminds me a bit of yesterdays clip of Alex Fergusons press conference and the stupidest question ever!

[A cup of beans]

i was talking to a fan the other day who said her whole family had come to the point under Allardyce where they were looking for reasons not to go to Ewood and had stopped attending away games at all becuase none of them looked forward to going to Ewood any more. She said it must be the only ground in the country where even when you won and appreciated the 3 points you still felt, but I might have been better off doing the ironing or some other meaningless chore.It isn't just about the winning, for some of us. It's about a certain level of entertainment that, whilst not compromising your chance of winning, gets you a bit more excited. There will still be the dull one nil when you are not playing well and just need to grind something out - every team plays those sometimes - but also the incredibly exciting matches where you don't want them to end. We had few of those under Allardyce. I think he was like the nasty medicine you sometimes have to take - you need it to cure what's gone wrong, but you can't wait for the day when someone says you no longer need it.

post of the year.

i think given time.. he will get wham up, but the west ham fans arent the most patient and if they dont start with a few wins.. the pressure will be turned up.

[thenodrog]

You're wasted on here mate. Allardyce is no laughing matter!

Back to topic, perhaps we can agree what would and would not constitute success for him in his new role before revsionism sets in? Surely, if he is one of the top 7 managers in the country (copyright TGM), promotion at 1st attempt is the least we can expect, if not champions? Who is he up against down there? Also, since his strength is his system, then who stays/leaves WHU shouldn't matter? And since he is unparalleled working on a budget then transfer budget shouldn't matter either? Plus I would expect a finish of at least 15th the year after. All of the above should not be a stretch given what Chris Houghton - not one of the top managers in the country - achieved.

Interesting thoughts. I might save them for reference.

Rem it took Souness nearly two seasons to get the squad attitude sorted but imo Allardyce is a better manager than him.

hehe.. excellent point 47er, i does seem odd, well not only odd, but quite frankly stupid aswell. I havent posted an argument in a week or 2, regarding sam vs kean, as all has been said multiple times. Yet those who advised us, us who questioned sam dismissal, to forget about it and move on, are apparently not bright enough, to follow their own advice.

i know we live in a free world and have the luxury of free speech, but i would love it, if the mods just put an end to this circle-debate. Sam hasnt been here for 6 month sand yet this is still being debated. YAWN.

Problem is that his shadow still looms large over the new regime.

[thenodrog]

This is not me slagging Sam down, as he did what he had to do, with what players and money, he had available to him. But in myopinion it was cr@p football.

No argument there although to be fair the hoofball bit is a massively overused criticism. However it best suited the combined talents of our squad. Ince tried the other way and so too did Kean with the same players and both embarked on record breaking losing runs which would have seen us relegated if extrapolated over 38 matches.

The plain and blunt truth of the matter which is obviously unpalatable to the less knowledgeable experienced amongst us is that we are still playing in the Premier League solely because of Sam Allardyces management of the club. It's not rocket science is it?

[John]

The plain and blunt truth of the matter which is obviously unpalatable to the less knowledgeable experienced amongst us is that we are still playing in the Premier League solely because of Sam Allardyces management of the club. It's not rocket science is it?

Correct and we should all be grateful, including Kean, for those points accumulated in the first half of the season....

[Steve Moss]

It obviously wasn't cr@p- Burnley, Hull and Portsmouth were cr@p.

You didn't find it pleasing on the eye? Fair enough, but as someone who gets no better statisfaction than seeing my beloved Rovers win, I enjoyed it.

I enjoyed it also. Sam's "style" was not one dimensional as some have claimed, and whatever tactics he employed they were interesting to watch if only to observe a system in play.

The plain and blunt truth of the matter which is obviously unpalatable to the less knowledgeable experienced amongst us is that we are still playing in the Premier League solely because of Sam Allardyces management of the club. It's not rocket science is it?

Rocket science? No. Heresy to some? Yes.

We survived despite Kean, not because of him. Absent positive changes we'll likely be relegated next year. Whether its improving the squad or improving the manager or both, something has to give.

So I very much hope Venkys buys a quality striker or two, and tweak the balance of the field, this summer as I don't think we'll have a lot of time for mid-course corrections this time around.

[jim mk2]

We survived despite Kean, not because of him. Absent positive changes we'll likely be relegated next year.

.

Careful, you'll upset the spotty youths in the Blackburn End.

Back on topic, it will be interesting to see how Sam copes with the triumvirate of Brady, Gold and Sullivan. Brady's been none too complimentary about Sam and Rovers in the past so (assuming he is appointed) I assume Sam is Sullivan and Gold's choice. I have sympathy for him dealing with those three. Incidentally, with West Ham and her former club Birmingham both relegated in the same season, Brady's credibility as a sucessful business manager on the The Apprentice is open to question. Sugar should fire her forthwith.

[chaddyrovers]

Careful, you'll upset the spotty youths in the Blackburn End.

Back on topic, it will be interesting to see how Sam copes with the triumvirate of Brady, Gold and Sullivan. Brady's been none too complimentary about Sam and Rovers in the past so (assuming he is appointed) I assume Sam is Sullivan and Gold's choice. I have sympathy for him dealing with those three. Incidentally, with West Ham and her former club Birmingham both relegated in the same season, Brady's credibility as a sucessful business manager on the The Apprentice is open to question. Sugar should fire her forthwith.

On Sky Sports yesterday Sunday Supplement show, one reporter said it was David Sullivan who is the one who wants Sam Allardyce and he's been the only one of those 3 in the meeting with Sam.

here is the link where he said this. there start talking whu just after 41 minutes in from the start:-

http://www.skysports.com/podcast/0,20494,19913,00.html

[ada2020]

I enjoyed it also. Sam's "style" was not one dimensional as some have claimed, and whatever tactics he employed they were interesting to watch if only to observe a system in play.

Interesting to watch, it is a football match not an educational video we are talking about.

As effective as it was it was mind numbing, I walked away from a few games this season while he was in charge feeling like we had lost despite winning.

He is a good manager, sure I'm not disputing that, but his style is mind numbing and only for a time, over shadowed by the elation of seeing rovers win.

As for relegated next season, let it begin first before condemning us to relegation.

And no I'm not a spotty oik in the Blackburn end either.

[gumboots]

Interesting to watch, it is a football match not an educational video we are talking about.

As effective as it was it was mind numbing, I walked away from a few games this season while he was in charge feeling like we had lost despite winning.

He is a good manager, sure I'm not disputing that, but his style is mind numbing and only for a time, over shadowed by the elation of seeing rovers win.

As for relegated next season, let it begin first before condemning us to relegation.

And no I'm not a spotty oik in the Blackburn end either.

Can I also point out that watching a match on tv with camera angles commentary etc is nowhere near the same as watching the same thing getting frozen to the bone and waiting for the final whistle at Ewood. the excitement of a good win isn't the same but also the boredom of certain performances is also not as excruciating.

[jim mk2]

Can I also point out that watching a match on tv with camera angles commentary etc is nowhere near the same as watching the same thing getting frozen to the bone and waiting for the final whistle at Ewood. the excitement of a good win isn't the same but also the boredom of certain performances is also not as excruciating.

I remember that in Steve Kean's first game in charge v West Ham in December. Minus 15, frozen stiff and the worst football match I have watched in 50 years.

[Kelbo]

I remember that in Steve Kean's first game in charge v West Ham in December. Minus 15, frozen stiff and the worst football match I have watched in 50 years.

Yes and the atmosphere at the game is the worst I have experienced in over 50 years of watching Rovers !!

[92er]

I remember that in Steve Kean's first game in charge v West Ham in December. Minus 15, frozen stiff and the worst football match I have watched in 50 years.

Now come on Jim, it wasn't good but I can remember :

Colder games, such as a televised home game against Sheffield United in Nov or Jan a few years ago.

Worse games. How does the home game against Crewe Alex in the first round of the FA Cup register???

[jim mk2]

Now come on Jim, it wasn't good but I can remember :

Colder games, such as a televised home game against Sheffield United in Nov or Jan a few years ago.

Worse games. How does the home game against Crewe Alex in the first round of the FA Cup register???

West Ham was worse. Don't know which was more numbing - the cold or the "football".

[Amo]

Sam was gradually sucking the life of the club with his brand of football. We've had more highs and lows under Kean in six months than we had with two years of Big Sam.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Good luck to him at West Ham....no axe to grind here!