[Archived] Bowyer

[Kamy100]

I said in the summer that regardless of who the manager is we won't get into the playoffs this season. This squad has had a losing mentality for the last three years, you aren't going to turn that around overnight, this coupled with the cost cutting was going to make things very difficult for us in terms of promotion. I think that Bowyer is doing a very good job in very difficult circumstances. He has very little money to spend, so had to rely on getting freebies and looking to sign young players who hadn't quite fulfilled their early promise and get them back on track. He is having to deal with an absolute circus off the field. He has improved us from last season, we are now in mid table and clear of any relegation worries which dogged us last season.

Bowyer has made mistakes this season, but the hope is that he will learn from them. If Rovers sacked him now, who would you replace him with? Venky's is dirt within the game and now we have the added bonus of having to cost cut, so the likes of Holloway,Clarke and Mackay won't come anywhere near Ewood, we may have the chance of getting one of them if he was promised a big budget in January but that just isn't going to happen. So sack Bowyer will most likely lead to us getting a desperado manager such as Coyle.

Bowyer is under a lot of pressure, there are people in and around the owners who will be pushing for them to sack him., I hope that they continue not to listen to them because at the moment the last thing that we need is a managerial change, at least on the pitch we are no longer a circus that we were last year.

[arbitro]

Reading this thread there are times when I think that some supporters and Venky's deserve one another. The bottom line is that Gary has been asked to rebuild a club that has been torn apart over the past three years and he has been asked to do it on a limited budget. The fact that the owners didn't want to pay £1 million for the Polish 'keeper but were OK to sign Eastwood on a free would suggest that promotion on the cheap is the plan and that rarely works, particularly as Gary was asked to virtually rebuild much of the team. From what I have seen this season a top ten finish would be a result after just about avoiding relegation to League One last season. I'm just staggered that some want a change of manager after everything we went through last season.

We are up to our eyeballs in debt and yet some want to add to that by changing the manager who will want his own backroom staff and his own players bringing in. It's total madness.

I have seen only a few on here who want him gone and nobody out of the fans I have regular contact with want him out but the fact is that despite inheriting a poisoned chalice he shouldn't be immune from criticism. In recent games his tactics and team selection have, in my opinion cost us. This game is all about results and ultimately any manager will be judged on them. Bowyer will be no different.

[Rover_Shaun]

Can I ask a question regarding a claim of some matchday grumblers not understanding football?

What does 25 attempts at goal and 63% possession get you if you can't consistantly convert it into goals, can't defend?

Maybe the 8 year old knows the answer.

[FGS5635]

I swear some folk want us to finish mid table just so they can say 'Told you so'

[Rover_Shaun]

That is where we will finish and a fine job it will be given that its the utmost ceiling of the clubs current setup, on all levels. imo

Beats last season. But why settle when you can aspire?

[Parsonblue]

I have seen only a few on here who want him gone and nobody out of the fans I have regular contact with want him out but the fact is that despite inheriting a poisoned chalice he shouldn't be immune from criticism. In recent games his tactics and team selection have, in my opinion cost us. This game is all about results and ultimately any manager will be judged on them. Bowyer will be no different.

I agree he will be judged on results but he is a young manager in his first job. He will make mistakes just as the players make mistakes. He needs time and if people believe that it's promotion or bust then prepare for bust because we are not good enough to go up this season. The owners are hardly taking that view when they tell the manager to sell before we buy in January and during the summer give him a very small budget with which to work. The fact we couldn't afford £1 million for an international goalkeeper but opted for a free transfer 'keeper from Portsmouth is hardly the action of an owner intent on promotion this season.

I swear some folk want us to finish mid table just so they can say 'Told you so'

I have no problem with mid table. It is where I have believed we will finish from the start of the season and I think if Gary can get us to 8th or 9th it will be a good result given the turmoil of the past three seasons.

[thenodrog]

There might be better options in some eyes but with the Venky's record plus this current debate and the Administration thread running at the same time will certainly ensure that no manager any better would even dream of coming here. We are the most surefire managerial graveyard in English football.

[den]

I agree he will be judged on results but he is a young manager in his first job. He will make mistakes just as the players make mistakes. He needs time and if people believe that it's promotion or bust then prepare for bust because we are not good enough to go up this season. The owners are hardly taking that view when they tell the manager to sell before we buy in January and during the summer give him a very small budget with which to work. The fact we couldn't afford £1 million for an international goalkeeper but opted for a free transfer 'keeper from Portsmouth is hardly the action of an owner intent on promotion this season.

I have no problem with mid table. It is where I have believed we will finish from the start of the season and I think if Gary can get us to 8th or 9th it will be a good result given the turmoil of the past three seasons.

We're not good enough to go up Parson, you're probably right. Thing is, with a better manager from the off, we very well might have been. We are losing games that another manager might not have done. It doesn't take a great side to get into the top six in this league.

I differ about mid table being good enough. In normal circumstances, you would be right. These aren't normal circumstances and given the lack of any kind of statements from the owners, the only way the fans can look at the situation is with much fear.

As for sacking Bowyer, well that's not an easy one, simply because we don't know what's around the corner. If it's a matter of getting away from relegation and going into Administration - and that might well be the situation - there's no point at all. The time for installing the right manager was in the summer and for me, Venky's bottled it.

I'll ask you a question. If the owners could find someone now, with good experience and a good record in this league, would you go for him hoping to get out of this division, or settle for where we are and face the consequences - and why?

[thenodrog]

I'll ask you a question. If the owners could find someone now, with good experience and a good record in this league WHO IS READY AND WILLING TO COMMIT MANAGERIAL HARI KIRI would you go for him hoping to get out of this division, or settle for where we are and face the consequences - and why?

There that makes more sense now Den.

How about a cheeky offer to Fergie? He's he's looking somewhat bored these days... maybe one last big challenge might rouse him from his retirement slumber. Have you got his number Den?

[den]

There that makes more sense now Den.

Thanks Gord.

I can't go along with the view that we can't attract anyone better than Bowyer though.

[CapeTownRover]

so based on who our owners are, supposed administration looming, no proper manager would want to come here? so might as well keep Bowyer in charge, and do the best we can, and be happy with where we end up at the end of the season. this should be an opportunity for Bowyer, or anybody else to make a real name for themselves, and this includes the players. "from laughing stocks, to Promotion" etc should be the headlines, but it seems nobody from a playing and management level seems to want to grasp this opportunity. They might be trying, but when you huff and puff, then you have to settle for what you get. Its up to Bowyer to push these players, and to get them to cut out these school boy errors, because lets face it, we should have beaten both Sheffield Wednesday and Birmingham easily.

[DE.]

Thanks Gord.

I can't go along with the view that we can't attract anyone better than Bowyer though.

Name some reasonable names den. What are you thinking, Mackay? Holloway? McLeish? Coyle? You can't make that statement unless you have some people in mind.

[thenodrog]

..... because lets face it, we should have beaten both Sheffield Wednesday and Birmingham easily.

There were you CTR? How many times have you read about the dog eat dog unpredictability of this Division yet you still come out with what amounts to schoolboy logic. Brum rode their luck massively whilst Sheff Wed were good value for a point. It happens and that is why we all don't win the pools every week. tbh I am quite enjoying the unpredicability, it's how football should be.

Name some reasonable names den. What are you thinking, Mackay? Holloway? McLeish? Coyle? You can't make that statement unless you have some people in mind.

You've just beaten me to it DE.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

The problem with naming alternatives is you then get a flock of people jumping on the suggestions with a cynical, pompous disgust, as though we're still a big hitting PL club who are too good for unfashionable Championship managers. All we can reasonably expect, and all we need, is a manager who has promoted a club from the Championship before. That one quality would be a significant improvement on Bowyer. So Megson, Holloway, Warnock, McCleish etc. And now queue the hysterical replies for why they're awful choices...

[Stuart]

A cautionary tale for those who think Blackburn Rovers 2014 can do better than Bowyer...

Harry Redknapp

Tony Adams

Paul Hart

Ian Woan

Paul Groves

Avram Grant

Steve Cotterill

Michael Appleton

Guy Whittingham

Andy Awford

Richie Barker

It's a slippery slope when you are in trouble financially...

...and we've already had Appleton! *gulp*

[DE.]

The problem with naming alternatives is you then get a flock of people jumping on the suggestions with a cynical, pompous disgust, as though we're still a big hitting PL club who are too good for unfashionable Championship managers.

I think you've got the wrong end of the stick. If anything it's the other way around, the Rovers name is so tarnished nowadays and our financial situation so dire that attracting even a good calibre Championship manager is unlikely. We're much, much more likely to get a chancer like Coyle or somebody unproven from a lower division. Or we'll promote another coach.

If there are people who genuinely think we would appoint a good manager, I'd like to ask what they've seen from Venky's that makes them think they would do things any differently. Shelfy and Singh are still on the payroll, we've still got an unproven rookie manager (albeit a better one than previously), we're still in horrendous debt and the manager is still being forced to fly out for Pune in a regular basis disrupting training and preparation. What about their recent actions makes anyone think they would actually bring in anybody decent? Surely if they were going to do so they would have done last season when we were throwing money down the drain like it was worthless.

[FGS5635]

The problem with naming alternatives is you then get a flock of people jumping on the suggestions with a cynical, pompous disgust, as though we're still a big hitting PL club who are too good for unfashionable Championship managers. All we can reasonably expect, and all we need, is a manager who has promoted a club from the Championship before. That one quality would be a significant improvement on Bowyer. So Megson, Holloway, Warnock, McCleish etc. And now queue the hysterical replies for why they're awful choices...

I dont want this to be a hysterical reply and can see where your going with this, but megson is barely better than a kean return. Not sure any fan would accept megson. The rest are valid and can be argued are better than bowyer

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

I think you've got the wrong end of the stick. If anything it's the other way around, the Rovers name is so tarnished nowadays and our financial situation so dire that attracting even a good calibre Championship manager is unlikely. We're much, much more likely to get a chancer like Coyle or somebody unproven from a lower division. Or we'll promote another coach.

If there are people who genuinely think we would appoint a good manager, I'd like to ask what they've seen from Venky's that makes them think they would do things any differently. Shelfy and Singh are still on the payroll, we've still got an unproven rookie manager (albeit a better one than previously), we're still in horrendous debt and the manager is still being forced to fly out for Pune in a regular basis disrupting training and preparation. What about their recent actions makes anyone think they would actually bring in anybody decent? Surely if they were going to do so they would have done last season when we were throwing money down the drain like it was worthless.

Well I was mainly going off the reaction to my suggestion of Megson a couple of months ago. Not sure how many variations on the word "rubbish manager" were used but it was quite a lot. I pointed out his achievements, got "rubbish manager" in response. I pointed out his record at Wednesday, "rubbish manager" again. So this widely held opinion must be based on an underlying assumption, and to me it seemed to be the traditional Rovers fan arrogance in play again. Still stuck in the days when we could afford to dismiss unfashionable, unattractive managers. Crystal Palace will hire them, but we won't.

Agree with you on Venkys but then I suppose we could say that about any decision made at the club in the last 3 years. This board pretty much loses any purpose at all unless we all pretend to ignore the fact that Venkys will do what they want and pretty much never base it on logic or whats in the clubs best interests.

[Stuart]

Well I was mainly going off the reaction to my suggestion of Megson a couple of months ago. Not sure how many variations on the word "rubbish manager" were used but it was quite a lot. I pointed out his achievements, got "rubbish manager" in response. I pointed out his record at Wednesday, "rubbish manager" again. So this widely held opinion must be based on an underlying assumption, and to me it seemed to be the traditional Rovers fan arrogance in play again. Still stuck in the days when we could afford to dismiss unfashionable, unattractive managers. Crystal Palace will hire them, but we won't.

Agree with you on Venkys but then I suppose we could say that about any decision made at the club in the last 3 years. This board pretty much loses any purpose at all unless we all pretend to ignore the fact that Venkys will do what they want and pretty much never base it on logic or whats in the clubs best interests.

We don't want Megson. Rubbish manager.

[JAL]

My crticism of Gary Bowyer at this moment must be how do you expect to win games in this league with the quality of keepers you have and by playing Lowe and Williamson in the engine room, its doing a disservice to the other teams in this league surely and hands them an advantage.

[Tom]

As others have said if we are going to be 'supported' for a few more seasons yet them I'm happy with the job he's doing, if it really is promotion or bust then something else is needed

Fact is we don't really know for sure what will happen when we don't go up

[den]

Name some reasonable names den. What are you thinking, Mackay? Holloway? McLeish? Coyle? You can't make that statement unless you have some people in mind.

Silly game DE. Pointless. Just as naming "players we would like" is silly and pointless.

[K-Hod]

To be fair Den, you did say we should be looking at better (which is a fair point), who would you choose?

[den]

To be fair Den, you did say we should be looking at better (which is a fair point), who would you choose?

See above. I'm not being obtuse, but it is rather pointless and silly.

[darrenrover]

As others have said if we are going to be 'supported' for a few more seasons yet them I'm happy with the job he's doing, if it really is promotion or bust then something else is needed

Fact is we don't really know for sure what will happen when we don't go up

Spot on, pretty much agrees with my sentiments.

Fact is we as supporters haven't a bloody clue as where we're at or what to think for the best. In that scenario, invariably you fear the worst.