[Archived] Bowyer Sacked

[AllRoverAsia]

You would have thought that 'this very decent guy with Rovers' best interests at heart' would have at least issued a statement wishing the club the very best for the future and also thanking both the club and its fans for the opportunity and support.

His silence, IMV, is a damning indictment of the man.

Harsh.

It's still only a couple of days later and he may well have been told to say nothing until his severance package is sorted.

He may well then tell 281 posters on here, me included, to do one.

[Speedie Dived]

Depends if we are talking big picture. On one hand took over a basket case pointing in one direction, chock full of highly paid failures and loaded with debt. On the other, his lack of ability to consistently provide performances or effect games positively with subs.

That's chapter closed - Jal mentions his opinion on Moyes, which I share partly- felt he was well out of his depth taking on Manchester United and you if you compared the job he did at toffees to the one Hughes did at Rovers? I know who I rate higher.

Superb point on Hughes against Moyes. Hughes has done it with three clubs in the Premier League and failed once.

Championship winning team aside, his rovers team is my favourite I have seen. Could defend, play football, scrap if needed and attack. Very very good side.

Agree with others, Bowyer won't be remembered with any bad feeling but let's be honest he wasn't sacked because he was doing a good job.

He was sacked because he was underachieving and heading nowhere.

Could argue that the club is heading nowhere and he just happened to be the incumbent at the time.

But new chapter now, hope springs eternal.

[Guest]

My main point was that many posters on here seemed to think Bowyer was an untouchable.

Another fallacy presumed as fact. "I want to believe..."

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

You would have thought that 'this very decent guy with Rovers' best interests at heart' would have at least issued a statement wishing the club the very best for the future and also thanking both the club and its fans for the opportunity and support.

His silence, IMV, is a damning indictment of the man.

He can stay silent for me. All his other public pronouncements were pretty boring and latterly quite self serving.

[Husky]

Blah blah steadied ship, kept us up blah blah, yeah fine. that's true. But I have to say the worst Rovers performance I have ever seen in my life was under Bowyer (and that stretches back to my first Ewood game in 1987 - not just the "Glory years" early-mid nineties).

Basically he had to go - though he's gone at least half a year too late for me. It's been fairly obvious to most people that we've been going nowhere for quite a while now.

Perhaps the change is too late to try and save something from this season? Though if there is hope it lies in the fact that as with previous seasons (when we arguably had a better squad) that this league isn't full of mighty and unbeatable teams - many are pretty damned awful and even some of the better ones can be very erratic. For example - the six fingered ones are potentially one win off being top of the table - yet (even though we lost to them) we pretty much battered them in that game.

[Waggy76]

Bowyer is a very poor manager , who shouldnt have been given the job full time in the 1st place .....

The best part of 2 and a half seasons have been wasted ...

[Norbert Rassragr]

Looking back, you're right. Should've just had those few months when we had 23 managers in 1 season.

[roverzee]

Outstanding are you for real ?

Where's his trophies ?

We all already know the answer to this, but are you for real?

Mark Hughes and Moyes have not much more than a year difference when you look at how long they've been in management, with Hugheses spell with Wales and Moyeses at Preston.

Would you and anyone else on here have Mark Hughes back tomorrow? Where's his trophies? The last one was as a player for us under Souness! Damn right everyone would have him back here tomorrow. Despite no trophies in management we all know he's a fantastic manager - and the trophies question is ridiculous in this day and age, probably only Martinez can point to the cabinet with any pride and say I won that against the odds.

Unfortunately the likes of Hughes and Martinez are totally off the radar, but Moyes might not be and there's little doubt there will be nobody of a higher caliber anywhere close. Why anyone would pooh-pooh Moyes in our current situation I just don't understand.

[Alex Rover]

I think everyone's bored about talking about Bowyer. How about we move on.

[RoyRover]

I must say that I'm surprised to see Bowyer sacked now. Would have thought that the summer gone would have been the time to do it, after we failed to reach the playoffs. His biggest achievement has been holding together a club that was on the verge of collapse and calming the whole situation. For that he must be recognised and congratulated.

Unfortunately results on the pitch haven't been good enough. He was never able to instill a level of consistency in the team, that would have gotten us to the playoffs. This season there have been some results which have been very unlucky for us, with Fulham away and Burnley at home being two such examples. He goes with my very best wishes, because he seems like a decent bloke, who wasn't the most convincing of managers.

In terms of a replacement, Paul Lambert is the bookies favourite. I'm sue Tim Sherwood will also be linked with the job. I wouldn't want him near the place in a managerial capacity. Rovers legend, but terrible manager. Ian Holloway and Nigel Pearson are out of work too. Would Brendan Rodgers and David Moyes be willing to step down a level? I douubt it. Whoever gets it, needs to be seen by the owners and the fans as a long term appointment.

[bluebruce]

Unfortunately the likes of Hughes and Martinez are totally off the radar, but Moyes might not be and there's little doubt there will be nobody of a higher caliber anywhere close. Why anyone would pooh-pooh Moyes in our current situation I just don't understand.

I certainly wouldn't. The man is already a hero to me after his sterling work with Manure. If he were to then come here and get us promoted, he would be an absolute legend. Up there with Andy Cole for handing us the title then winning us a cup.

Oh but he won't be coming anywhere near us.

[Black Burn]

Bowyer is a very poor manager , who shouldnt have been given the job full time in the 1st place .....

The best part of 2 and a half seasons have been wasted ...

A very "poor" manager who got us 8th and 9th the past 2 seasons, so what does that make the managers who finished under us? Terrible? Did those teams waste their 2 seasons as well?

Yes, Bowyer's results have been very poor this season, but let's scale down our expectations and be a bit more realistic instead of thinking we would have gone up those 2 seasons had Bowyer not been in charge. Hell, Bowyer finished above Mick McCarthy in his first season in charge, and even now McCarthy still hasn't gotten Ipswich promoted despite the claims of many on here that hiring him will guarantee promotion. Does that make McCarthy a poor manager? Nope. He's still a good manager, and Ipswich is doing well, especially this season where they are much better than us (but we still beat them at home! Hah!).

I think most people are being overly harsh on Bowyer, their perceptions clouded by their overwhelming desire for promotion or playoff spots. Yes, the squad we have is good, and according to some, "promotion material" - but who built the squad in the first place?

I don't know if any other manager will do better or worse, but I want to point this out: If Paul Lambert comes in here, and we don't get promoted in the next 2 seasons, I really, REALLY hope that people don't call for his head and slate him off the same way they are doing Bowyer now. Give the new manager time, whoever he is, and don't start having unrealistic expectations like "oh, he's gotten teams promoted before, there's no reason why he can't get us promoted instantly!". If Lambert or the new manager pulls it off, great, I'll be over the moon and cheering my lungs out to celebrate, but I'm not going to be bitter, disappointed and start ranting and raving how some other manager like David Moyes or Nigel Pearson would have done a better job if Lambert doesn't manage to pull it off, even by next year.

[matt83]

A very "poor" manager who got us 8th and 9th the past 2 seasons, so what does that make the managers who finished under us? Terrible? Did those teams waste their 2 seasons as well?/quote]

I'd say terrible. It was the general consensus (and even by Bowyers admission) we should have been in the play off mix especially during the times of parachute payments and no ffp. The fact we spent one weekend in the top 6 during his entire tenure is in my opinion terrible. Only ever really performed after we bottled it and playoffs were over.

He deserves our gratitude for his first few months in that first season down getting a team woefully underperforming playing again. But his next nearly 2 and a half seasons have been a total waste and he deserves massive criticism for that.

For all I'm not happy going into day 3 managerless bowyer had to go.

[Black Burn]

A very "poor" manager who got us 8th and 9th the past 2 seasons, so what does that make the managers who finished under us? Terrible? Did those teams waste their 2 seasons as well?/quote]

I'd say terrible. It was the general consensus (and even by Bowyers admission) we should have been in the play off mix especially during the times of parachute payments and no ffp. The fact we spent one weekend in the top 6 during his entire tenure is in my opinion terrible. Only ever really performed after we bottled it and playoffs were over.

He deserves our gratitude for his first few months in that first season down getting a team woefully underperforming playing again. But his next nearly 2 and a half seasons have been a total waste and he deserves massive criticism for that.

For all I'm not happy going into day 3 managerless bowyer had to go.

As I said, the overwhelming desire of getting into the playoffs has clouded people's perception. Did Bowyer fail to get us into the playoffs? Yes. Is he a "terrible" or "poor" manager because of it? No.

McCarthy has failed to get Ipswich Town promoted in 2 seasons now, and 1 of the seasons he finished below us. Does that make him a bad manager despite his proven track record? I don't think so.

Yes, sacking Bowyer is the right decision - simply put, 3 wins in 16 games is terrible - but to say the previous seasons were a total waste is a massive exaggeration. Yes, he probably deserves criticism for it, but he's certainly not a poor manager - just think about it, he was better than 16 other managers in his first season and 15 in the previous season! The world isn't Rovers-centric, other teams exist too, with their own ambitions of getting into the playoffs.

There definitely are plenty of managers better than Bowyer, but he's certainly better than a lot of managers. To label him as poor and terrible just because he failed to get into the playoffs (which only 4 teams can get into, excluding the 2 automatic ones) is unfair. He's not an excellent manager by any means of the imagination, but he's certainly not as poor as a lot of you are making him out to be.

[Speedie Dived]

A very "poor" manager who got us 8th and 9th the past 2 seasons, so what does that make the managers who finished under us? Terrible? Did those teams waste their 2 seasons as well?

Yes, Bowyer's results have been very poor this season, but let's scale down our expectations and be a bit more realistic instead of thinking we would have gone up those 2 seasons had Bowyer not been in charge. Hell, Bowyer finished above Mick McCarthy in his first season in charge, and even now McCarthy still hasn't gotten Ipswich promoted despite the claims of many on here that hiring him will guarantee promotion. Does that make McCarthy a poor manager? Nope. He's still a good manager, and Ipswich is doing well, especially this season where they are much better than us (but we still beat them at home! Hah!).

I think most people are being overly harsh on Bowyer, their perceptions clouded by their overwhelming desire for promotion or playoff spots. Yes, the squad we have is good, and according to some, "promotion material" - but who built the squad in the first place?

I don't know if any other manager will do better or worse, but I want to point this out: If Paul Lambert comes in here, and we don't get promoted in the next 2 seasons, I really, REALLY hope that people don't call for his head and slate him off the same way they are doing Bowyer now. Give the new manager time, whoever he is, and don't start having unrealistic expectations like "oh, he's gotten teams promoted before, there's no reason why he can't get us promoted instantly!". If Lambert or the new manager pulls it off, great, I'll be over the moon and cheering my lungs out to celebrate, but I'm not going to be bitter, disappointed and start ranting and raving how some other manager like David Moyes or Nigel Pearson would have done a better job if Lambert doesn't manage to pull it off, even by next year.

Exceptionally sensible post. Well put sir.

Think it will fall on deaf ears though sadly. There is a modern day thing in football that most fans crave a messiah to walk through the door and change everything instantly.

[K-Hod]

Results on the pitch weren't good enough consistently. It's a results business. Bowyer knew this when taking the job.

People shouldn't adjust their expectations in line with what Bowyer 'achieved' while he was here.

'Most fans crave a messiah that will change things instantly'. Nope, but he did have 3 years and several transfer windows without embargo, as well as a competitive squad.

He did well to save us from relegation, then we stagnated. Can't believe this still requires any explanation.

[donnermeat]

Who cares anymore? The discussion has been done to death, nobody is going to convince anyone otherwise at this point....

Looks like we could have the new manager announced today, a potentially great appointment that should have been made months ago. I for one am looking forward to getting behind the new man whoever it is. Hopefully it's not too late to make at least a semi success of the season.

[47er]

Exceptionally sensible post. Well put sir.

Think it will fall on deaf ears though sadly. There is a modern day thing in football that most fans crave a messiah to walk through the door and change everything instantly.

Give it a rest. He's gone and he's not coming back.

A very "poor" manager who got us 8th and 9th the past 2 seasons, so what does that make the managers who finished under us? Terrible? Did those teams waste their 2 seasons as well?

Yes, Bowyer's results have been very poor this season, but let's scale down our expectations and be a bit more realistic instead of thinking we would have gone up those 2 seasons had Bowyer not been in charge. Hell, Bowyer finished above Mick McCarthy in his first season in charge, and even now McCarthy still hasn't gotten Ipswich promoted despite the claims of many on here that hiring him will guarantee promotion. Does that make McCarthy a poor manager? Nope. He's still a good manager, and Ipswich is doing well, especially this season where they are much better than us (but we still beat them at home! Hah!).

I think most people are being overly harsh on Bowyer, their perceptions clouded by their overwhelming desire for promotion or playoff spots. Yes, the squad we have is good, and according to some, "promotion material" - but who built the squad in the first place?

I don't know if any other manager will do better or worse, but I want to point this out: If Paul Lambert comes in here, and we don't get promoted in the next 2 seasons, I really, REALLY hope that people don't call for his head and slate him off the same way they are doing Bowyer now. Give the new manager time, whoever he is, and don't start having unrealistic expectations like "oh, he's gotten teams promoted before, there's no reason why he can't get us promoted instantly!". If Lambert or the new manager pulls it off, great, I'll be over the moon and cheering my lungs out to celebrate, but I'm not going to be bitter, disappointed and start ranting and raving how some other manager like David Moyes or Nigel Pearson would have done a better job if Lambert doesn't manage to pull it off, even by next year.

I hope we judge him on his performance. That's what every fan and manager expects.

We did so with Bowyer but, for too long, the owners didn't listen.

[Black Burn]

He did well to save us from relegation, then we stagnated. Can't believe this still requires any explanation.

I think you'll find that almost everyone agrees on this.

It's just that some people insist on labeling Gary Bowyer as terrible and poor while forgetting the good stuff he pulled off. Yes, he also stagnated and won only 3 out of 16 games, but that's not the entirety of his reign and to criticize him heavily as a terrible manager is overly harsh.

That's all I'm saying.

[BlooBoy]

Time to lock this thread ..?

[Speedie Dived]

Give it a rest. He's gone and he's not coming back.

The post was about history repeating itself, not read one person saying that Bowyer shouldn't have gone.

Clearly you have not grasped what the post was about.

[blueboy3333]

Results on the pitch weren't good enough consistently. It's a results business. Bowyer knew this when taking the job.

People shouldn't adjust their expectations in line with what Bowyer 'achieved' while he was here.

'Most fans crave a messiah that will change things instantly'. Nope, but he did have 3 years and several transfer windows without embargo, as well as a competitive squad.

He did well to save us from relegation, then we stagnated. Can't believe this still requires any explanation.

how arrogant. 2 top ten finishes with a basket case of a club is no mean feat...ask wigan and blackpool fans. He did a hell of a lot more than save us from relegation. We did stagnate in the end and the venky's made the sensible decision to get rid and hopefully bring in a better manager...a manager that will benefit from the good work Bowyer has done.

[Rover_Shaun]

He did well to save us from relegation, then we stagnated. Can't believe this still requires any explanation.

Nail head.

He's been sacked having took the team back to where he found it. Therefore those who didn't rate him were right.

Time to consign him to the minor footnote in the history books and look forwards

[tomphil]

Very poor manager ? No not really just a good coach who never really fully crossed the great divide into being a manager. He managed the first team and appeared to maybe treat the players the same as he did at youth team level. Mainly because that's the only experience he could take into the job.

Will make a decent gaffer or better still head coach for a modest team who's happy to sit in the league that they are in and have no great pressure on them. Outside the Prem and top half of the Champ of course.

[Black Burn]

how arrogant. 2 top ten finishes with a basket case of a club is no mean feat...ask wigan and blackpool fans. He did a hell of a lot more than save us from relegation. We did stagnate in the end and the venky's made the sensible decision to get rid and hopefully bring in a better manager...a manager that will benefit from the good work Bowyer has done.

Don't forget Millwall...there were many here and on Facebook wanting Ian Holloway to come manage us, but look at what he did to Millwall. And he actually brought Crystal Palace backward - the only reason why they got promoted was because Dougie Freedman did most of the job beforehand, if I remember correctly.

There are worse managers than Bowyer. There are also better managers than Bowyer. He doesn't belong to the "terrible" or "very poor" category, and as with the Holloway example, some fans are too quick to judge on whether a manager is successful or a failure.