[Archived] Michael Appleton - New Rovers Manager

[JAL]

Appleton sounds a tough man who wont put up with any crap from anyone n will install discipline into the squad. which the squad needs.

Couldnt see anything wrong with the discipline of the team under Bowyer and McPhilips.

[chaddyrovers]

thought you didnt care about pressers?

if you watch Rovers player interview it shows clips of training and how much the players are listen to him.

Appleton sounds a tough man who wont put up with any crap from anyone n will install discipline into the squad. which the squad needs.

Couldnt see anything wrong with the discipline of the team under Bowyer and McPhilips.

but under Kean and Berg???

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

Well sorry but its hard not to be a bit patronising when he completely contradicts himself in the space of about 10 minutes. Tells someone to ignore press conferences and judge results, then posts a load of excuses for Appleton's poor results and mentions positives about his press conference.

I take properly damaging circumstances into account, I don't take into account fans sticking on some rose-tinted specs and trying to polish a turd (maybe a bit harsh, but roughly illustrates my point). Ok, so Appleton would have narrowly avoided relegation with Portsmouth, you can't say thats terrific because he had a bad side. John Coleman had a bad side with Accy Stanley in the Unibond Premier and ended up taking them to the League 2 play-offs, thats terrific. What Appleton did at Portsmouth was perhaps ok.

A 5-game rot isn't a proper rot. Holloway managed for 161 games at Blackpool, and was in a 5-10 game slump, is Appleton supposed to be some kind of genius for almost managing to get them out of it? Yeah compared to Berg he did well because Berg was frigging awful, probably the worst manager in Rovers history.

Well you thought I was being an arse, I thought I was strongly disagreeing. Kinda used to the Rovers Fans taking the hump with me, happened often enough when I objected to the Berg appointment.

[bigbrandjohn]

We don't know what we don't know, so making judgments before half a dozen games is purely about perceptions. His record is good or bad depending on whether your glass if half empty or half full. My perception for what it is worth is that no nonsense style is probably what we need, and shoring up the defence is definitely what we need.

Not sure if he will motivate by fear or attaboy, time will tell. I personally never enjoyed working for dour individuals but if you need to get the job done and silence the nonsense chatter that has been a part of our club in recent years he may be the one.

So the big questions is whether to put a fiver on whether he remains for the next twenty games or not . He may, on the basis that he has a two and a half year contract not a Shebby six month one. I think and hope he will quietly put his stamp on a reasonable squad and great facilities and move us close to the play off places. My fiver will be that he lasts the twenty games. One man's perception.

[Mike E]

I think it's more a case of trying to at least enjoy yourself. I don't see how realism = Appleton probably will fail, when it could equally = Appleton probably will be a moderate success. If you can't see positives in anything, what is there to enjoy about supporting Rovers? Is it not better to hope and be let down than just expect nothing? Sounds like misery rather than realism to me.

Even so, there's nothing to go off either way really. Neither the Portsmouth or Blackpool jobs are comparable to Rovers aside from owners that are tight or non-existent. I think he did pretty well on a regular 15 or 16-man squad and did half-decent with a Blackpool side that had rarely trained and had hit a fair slump.

Bowyer, McPhillips, Grant (and Drench?) deserve plenty of credit, but I believe Appleton can build on that work quite easily. I don't believe we'll be promoted even if we miraculously make the play-offs. But I do think Appleton will do a fair job here and hopefully he can get us up to the PL for the 2014/15 season.

[roverandout]

i think he will be a good appointment, as long as he wields the axe when players are not performing to their potential (when i say axe i mean come down on them with an iron fist)

[Mike E]

i think he will be a good appointment, as long as he wields the axe when players are not performing to their potential (when i say axe i mean come down on them with an iron fist)

I'd prefer he actually fists them. Much better punishment. They'd run for the hills.

[bazza]

All of us that go to Ewood on Saturday must get behind the team, Appleton and the owners (yes, the owners) who will be present.

Let's do it. No cat calling to the Rao family. Let us show them what great supporters of BRFC we are.

Think about it. Do we really want Rovers to progress or do we want them to fail and go into administration just to get rid of the current owners?

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

I think it's more a case of trying to at least enjoy yourself. I don't see how realism = Appleton probably will fail, when it could equally = Appleton probably will be a moderate success. If you can't see positives in anything, what is there to enjoy about supporting Rovers? Is it not better to hope and be let down than just expect nothing? Sounds like misery rather than realism to me.

Even so, there's nothing to go off either way really. Neither the Portsmouth or Blackpool jobs are comparable to Rovers aside from owners that are tight or non-existent. I think he did pretty well on a regular 15 or 16-man squad and did half-decent with a Blackpool side that had rarely trained and had hit a fair slump.

Bowyer, McPhillips, Grant (and Drench?) deserve plenty of credit, but I believe Appleton can build on that work quite easily. I don't believe we'll be promoted even if we miraculously make the play-offs. But I do think Appleton will do a fair job here and hopefully he can get us up to the PL for the 2014/15 season.

I can see the positives in things, they just seem to be different things than what you can. For example I think the players have performed admirably this season. We lost the 3 best ones in our squad last season, including 90% of our firepower in Hoilett and Yakubu and our only decent midfielder in N'Zonzi. For all the world I thought under Kean we would immediately settle into mid-table. Well we didn't, we settled into the top 2 instead, because Gomes and Rhodes were phenomenal, Rochina was inspired and even Dann put in a few decent performances.

Are you seeing the positives in that? No you think the players should be "fisted" as punishment. Basically, I blame Berg for being a **** manager and think otherwise we'd be challenging for automatic promotion (because we would) and so the players deserve a huge amount of credit this season for holding it together in awful circumstances. You seem to think the players are to blame for a lot of this season and already seem to be using them as the excuse if Appleton fails to make the play-offs, just as many fans did when Berg was in charge.

[DE.]

All of us that go to Ewood on Saturday must get behind the team, Appleton and the owners (yes, the owners) who will be present.

Let's do it. No cat calling to the Rao family. Let us show them what great supporters of BRFC we are.

Think about it. Do we really want Rovers to progress or do we want them to fail and go into administration just to get rid of the current owners?

I don't know what's worse, advocating getting behind the owners (ugh) or actually believing we have a chance of succeeding under the punatics.

Good luck convincing people to get a Venky's sing song going that doesn't include the words 'f-ck' and 'off'.

[Mike E]

I don't believe the players are to blame at all. Kean has let 2 years go by with very little fitness training and (by the looks of things) discipline. Regimes since then have tried to instill discipline and succeeded to varying degrees. Appleton looks like the hard-ass guy we needed imo. The only player I'm truly disappointed in is Robbo. Basic conditioning for a goalkeeper is to stay at least moderately fit and he couldn't be arsed to do that.

What we need is for the players to find their top form. Bowyer managed this, but he didn't want the managerial post and he seems better suited to reserve/youth development anyway. But hopefully Appleton can build on the foundations laid by him.

With that being said I do agree that the players deserve a ton of credit for not letting their morale completely collapse. Perhaps this is due to keeping most of last season's squad together in the face of relegation and the addition of senior and respected players (even if those senior players haven't performed all that well).

[BPF]

if you watch Rovers player interview it shows clips of training and how much the players are listen to him.

Hilarious

All of us that go to Ewood on Saturday must get behind the team, Appleton and the owners (yes, the owners) who will be present.

Let's do it. No cat calling to the Rao family. Let us show them what great supporters of BRFC we are.

Think about it. Do we really want Rovers to progress or do we want them to fail and go into administration just to get rid of the current owners?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome

[bigbrandjohn]

By any stretch of the imagination a good interview. Down to earth and the agents talk is refreshing.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jan/17/michael-appleton-blackburn-rovers?

[Mike E]

A good, forthright interview. Headstrong and confident. Let's hope that attitude is relayed to the players and we can continue to build on the Bowyer/McPhillips/Grant/Drench foundations!

[dwayne cage]

So Appleton hasn't got an agent and has never met JA?

Seems like a lot of people got hot and bothered again over an apparent ITK spouting mass amounts again.

[CapeTownRover]

Interesting bit was that he wanted to keep Gary Bowyer on with the 1st team in some sort of role. I'm sure I read that somewhere, and that Bowyer decided not to take up the offer. Bowyer must be reasonably happy to be back with the reserves I assume, as there is no real pressure there. Bowyer did a good job with the 1st team, but anyway, at least Appleton acknowledged Bowyer and his teams contribution

[chaddyrovers]

So Appleton hasn't got an agent and has never met JA?

Seems like a lot of people got hot and bothered again over an apparent ITK spouting mass amounts again.

its seems this way but Kamy n GM must hav got their info from good source.

[USABlue]

He spoke very well.

As did Kean in his early days, till we found out it was repetitive BS

[Rover_Shaun]

All of us that go to Ewood on Saturday must get behind the team, Appleton and the owners (yes, the owners) who will be present.

Let's do it. No cat calling to the Rao family. Let us show them what great supporters of BRFC we are.

Yep. Lets line their route to the ground with rose petals and get the police to stop all the traffic. Then we can offer them the pre-selected virgins taken from all the families of Blackburn.

[Mercer]

By any stretch of the imagination a good interview. Down to earth and the agents talk is refreshing.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jan/17/michael-appleton-blackburn-rovers?

I think Appleton is making all the right noises.

Surely, his statement, as Guardian article, about agents quashes all previous rumour, speculation:

Appleton was at least able to allay their fears about the reason he was chosen. He can categorically deny it had anything to do with Jerome Anderson or his Sport Entertainment and Media Group.

"For a start I've never met Jerome in my life, secondly I haven't got an agent," Appleton said. "It's a lot cheaper not to have one and I learned that very quickly as a player. Once I found I was allowed to speak to Blackburn it was just a matter of turning up with a lawyer to make sure the contracts were done properly. That saved me a few quid."

I was one of the few who 'welcomed' the appointment, given the market where we now shop, when it looked as though we were heading in that direction and I just have a feeling that somehow, we will be proved to have unearthed a very good manager.

Off to Ewood later to pick-up some tickets for tomorrow's match - will be just my third visit this season and I hope it's better than Wolves and Bolton matches.

[neophox]

how poor at Blackpool???

Holloway lost 5 of his 7 games at Blackpool

Appleton only lost 2 of 11 games at Blackpool.

He sorted out the defence and help make them defensively better.

spoke to a Blackpool fan today who said Appleton will be a good manager here if given time and allow to sign his own players.

Blackpool have failed to get a manager yet with four managers turning down the job there. O'Driscoll, Clark, Robinson and Houston. Oyston is now speaking to Nick Barmby and Paul Ince.

You forgot that he's speaking to STEVE "F**" KEAN........Oyston has promised fans to get it right!

Blackpool did beat us with a poor team with Appy as manager and to be fair our players is much better than Blackpool players but we have underperformed giantly this season.

I think Appleton is making all the right noises.

Surely, his statement, as Guardian article, about agents quashes all previous rumour, speculation:

Appleton was at least able to allay their fears about the reason he was chosen. He can categorically deny it had anything to do with Jerome Anderson or his Sport Entertainment and Media Group.

"For a start I've never met Jerome in my life, secondly I haven't got an agent," Appleton said. "It's a lot cheaper not to have one and I learned that very quickly as a player. Once I found I was allowed to speak to Blackburn it was just a matter of turning up with a lawyer to make sure the contracts were done properly. That saved me a few quid."

I was one of the few who 'welcomed' the appointment, given the market where we now shop, when it looked as though we were heading in that direction and I just have a feeling that somehow, we will be proved to have unearthed a very good manager.

Off to Ewood later to pick-up some tickets for tomorrow's match - will be just my third visit this season and I hope it's better than Wolves and Bolton matches.

I hope you're damn right. Will be nice to go to Ewood un saturday watching something refreshing for a while.

[DE.]

Interesting bit was that he wanted to keep Gary Bowyer on with the 1st team in some sort of role. I'm sure I read that somewhere, and that Bowyer decided not to take up the offer. Bowyer must be reasonably happy to be back with the reserves I assume, as there is no real pressure there. Bowyer did a good job with the 1st team, but anyway, at least Appleton acknowledged Bowyer and his teams contribution

Bowyer never really seemed comfortable in the spotlight. Bit of a shame as his stint here suggests he potentially has the ability to manage or at least be assistant at first team level. Well, except the Wolves game which made me question if he had gone insane.

But if he's happy where he is, fair enough.

[AggyBlue]

I was one of the few who 'welcomed' the appointment, given the market where we now shop, when it looked as though we were heading in that direction and I just have a feeling that somehow, we will be proved to have unearthed a very good manager.

This is my first comment on his appointment.

I think the guy has a steely determination about him, just what we need as a club. I have a good feeling he will do well.

[ABBEY]

All of us that go to Ewood on Saturday must get behind the team, Appleton and the owners (yes, the owners) who will be present.

Let's do it. No cat calling to the Rao family. Let us show them what great supporters of BRFC we are.

Think about it. Do we really want Rovers to progress or do we want them to fail and go into administration just to get rid of the current owners?

Sorry pal but that is a wimpy post. I'm a firm believer in standing up for what I believe in and I believe these crackpots are killing us . It's not a case of wanting failure . Hand on heart and deep down can you see ANY reason that these people can get it right. The rovers I have loved since my grandad brought them into the family when he told me of the day we played Bolton in the big crowd game , the tales my late dad told me to the tales I've told my lad is not that rovers any more. If it means giving them turds some stick then so be it. I told one the party at Wigan what I thought of them and nearly got arrested and I have no qualms about telling them if on million to one chance I bump into them .

I always thought it was rovers til I die not rovers til they die and that's what is/has happened.

This is my first comment on his appointment.

I think the guy has a steely determination about him, just what we need as a club. I have a good feeling he will do well.

I did until I heard ambitious owners , the word positive and Orr may be back ....

Sounds like he's kean 2.

[riverside returns]

Abbey, surely when a club is paying a player and he becomes available to a new manager, it makes sense to bring him back and have a look at him, especially when we are short in that position.

It would be stranger not to do so.