Tony Mowbray Discussion

[tomphil]

They can and have played some decent stuff under Mowbray and it's rare we get walloped at home by anyone. It's just in his nature to implement a boring safety first core style of play which is a shame as this squad when on its toes can be quite vibrant.

The style is as the manager does though.

[philipl]

On Saturday we went from 1-0 up to 1-2 inside 10 minutes of the restart.

Come on, don't tell me it is uncommon for Rovers to emerge from the dug out looking like they don't have a game plan beyond holding it steady and the opposition manager has very effectively shifted things around to exploit our weaknesses.

[rigger]

3 hours ago, philipl said:

On Saturday we went from 1-0 up to 1-2 inside 10 minutes of the restart.

Come on, don't tell me it is uncommon for Rovers to emerge from the dug out looking like they don't have a game plan beyond holding it steady and the opposition manager has very effectively shifted things around to exploit our weaknesses.

The worst part for me was we went from a team in total control, to a group of players that looked like they had never met. In the space of one half-time, team-talk.

[tomphil]

7 minutes ago, rigger said:

The worst part for me was we went from a team in total control, to a group of players that looked like they had never met. In the space of one half-time, team-talk.

That isn't unusual we seem to either start like that or end like that but it's a regular theme.

[47er]

15 hours ago, tomphil said:

They can and have played some decent stuff under Mowbray and it's rare we get walloped at home by anyone. It's just in his nature to implement a boring safety first core style of play which is a shame as this squad when on its toes can be quite vibrant.

The style is as the manager does though.

All true. We do play some decent stuff, usually for maximum of around 20 minutes but we never seem to dominate even poor sides. In fact we often lose to them!

How we start is no guide as to how we'll finish and vice versa. Scores are usually close so the game can nearly always be decided in the last few minutes either way.

We never wallop anyone. Can't remember the last 5-0! Has there been one under Mowbray?

I haven't checked any stats before I wrote this so I stand to be corrected but, in my experience, we have never been as boring for such a length of time as we are now.

That's just my opinion.

 

[oldjamfan1]

21 minutes ago, 47er said:

All true. We do play some decent stuff, usually for maximum of around 20 minutes but we never seem to dominate even poor sides. In fact we often lose to them!

How we start is no guide as to how we'll finish and vice versa. Scores are usually close so the game can nearly always be decided in the last few minutes either way.

We never wallop anyone. Can't remember the last 5-0! Has there been one under Mowbray?

I haven't checked any stats before I wrote this so I stand to be corrected but, in my experience, we have never been as boring for such a length of time as we are now.

That's just my opinion.

 

Sheff Wed away last season

[47er]

10 minutes ago, oldjamfan1 said:

Sheff Wed away last season

Ha! 

 

Edited September 1, 2020 by 47er

[CrouchingNunhiddenCucumber]

17 hours ago, oldjamfan1 said:

New owners. Nothing less will bring those 10k people back now. Its alright getting a full house for a promotion lap of honour but we could barely get 25k Rovers fans on when we were at the top of our game most weeks so week-in-week-out in the second division it isn't going to happen (hence the 5-0 analogy above). For all his faults Mowbray has been the best of a very bad bunch over the past decade, the common denominator is our absentee owners.

How we get rid of them I don't have the answers to either mate, I'm afraid.

Maybe we just need to have one lucky season... 

This is about all we can hope/pray for, sadly. 

[tonygreenbank]

10 hours ago, philipl said:

On Saturday we went from 1-0 up to 1-2 inside 10 minutes of the restart.

Come on, don't tell me it is uncommon for Rovers to emerge from the dug out looking like they don't have a game plan beyond holding it steady and the opposition manager has very effectively shifted things around to exploit our weaknesses.

I do agree with you that there is an ebb and flow of a game played over 90 minutes. Managers who are losing do try to exploit weaknesses in the opposition to get back in the game. My point to you is that at the end of the game on Saturday the opposition manager ultimately failed to do this and lost the match to a manager who exploited their weaknesses more effectively.

I have witnessed so many defeats in Cup competitions at Ewood by so called inferior opposition over the years that I am delighted that we beat Doncaster

[philipl]

I am delighted we beat Doncaster- don't get me wrong.

But trademark Mowbray is

1) over think and over compensate for the opposition pre-match so put out a confused and disjointed Rovers starting team which never gets going in the first half

2) under think what the opposition manager is going to do at HT

3) be pretty rigid about timing and personnel for substitutions 

[Atko's Engine]

So disappointing to be reading again on the transfer thread about Mowbray's lack of integrity / decency / pension pot.

Yes I'm sure his salary dwarfs most ours on here but do folk seriously think that's the only reason he's been here for 3+ years?  He could get a decent job elsewhere now if he left, he's repaired his reputation in the game (should that have been his original intention, which I doubt) as nearly everyone whose asked about it outside of Ewood thinks that overall he's done a great job in hugely adverse circumstances.

So maybe he's staying precisely because he has integrity as he wants to help the club progress further and return to some of its former glories despite the owners for the sake of the club, the fans, and the town; unlike say Lambert, who couldn't wait to leave?

I really can't help thinking that were he to leave, we'd be in similar straits to Ipswich following the departure of Mick McCarthy. On here at least, I don't think his contribution to the turnaround at this club will be properly appreciated until he's gone, which is a shame. 

[rigger]

2 hours ago, Atko's Engine said:

So disappointing to be reading again on the transfer thread about Mowbray's lack of integrity / decency / pension pot.

Yes I'm sure his salary dwarfs most ours on here but do folk seriously think that's the only reason he's been here for 3+ years?  He could get a decent job elsewhere now if he left, he's repaired his reputation in the game (should that have been his original intention, which I doubt) as nearly everyone whose asked about it outside of Ewood thinks that overall he's done a great job in hugely adverse circumstances.

So maybe he's staying precisely because he has integrity as he wants to help the club progress further and return to some of its former glories despite the owners for the sake of the club, the fans, and the town; unlike say Lambert, who couldn't wait to leave?

I really can't help thinking that were he to leave, we'd be in similar straits to Ipswich following the departure of Mick McCarthy. On here at least, I don't think his contribution to the turnaround at this club will be properly appreciated until he's gone, which is a shame. 

I am Willing to forgive Mowbray most things,  even spending large sums on shots in the dark. What I cannot forgive is his persistence with Bell.

[tomphil]

He should get credit for the good things he does and he has but it's over shadowed by criticism. That though is borne out of sheer frustration not hatred or a need to see him fail to prove points.

Just sheer frustration he's a very frustrating manager to observe and listen to and the stuff he turns out on the pitch follows suit. Polish off the rough edges and he should be a good top end challenging championship manager. Trouble is that'll never happen now and there is no set up at Ewood to help do or encourage that and probably no real desire.

It's as comfortable as it'll get for him and he knows it so we have the gentle plod. That often gets peoples backs up and no manager anywhere from the very top of the pyramid is immune to being questioned by their clubs fans. It's hilarious when some on here try and make out that's unique at Rovers. By the same token Tony and the way he does things hangs his chin out regularly to be aimed at that's why it's a constant theme.

Plenty defend him at all times as well though.

Edited September 3, 2020 by tomphil

[Mattyblue]

Apart from a brief spell at Coventry, TM has spent his managerial career largely at stable/normal/well run football clubs. 

Be interesting to know what he really thinks about the dysfunctional nature of the operation here. Does he relish the fact he’s given the freedom to work in an environment where there’s little pressure from his Chief Ex/owner/D of F, a situation they just not the norm in the madcap Championship, or does he feel frustrated that this club just won’t ever achieve what he wants for it?

Surely he can’t be happy that we still pretty much have the same senior defenders from when he joined and ended up in League 1? Yet, he says all the right things about the owners and all the rest of it. There’s no doubt he’s rehabilitated his standing in the wider game, so we’ll see if TM really was the one keeping the show on the road when he finally departs...

[tomphil]

I think the way Rovers is operated has it's plus points as well as minus ones from a managers perspective. You've got to know how to play it and he's the best so far at that.

Difficult when you are expected to run the whole show as well as the first team. That's tempered by the fact when he asked for help he was able to basically move his coach to a DOF role as well and seemingly hand select his own CEO.

There are definite unique advantages to the odd way of this ownership and nobody will ever starve after working for them that's for sure.

[Darwen Rover 007]

So just got home but heard Gareth Ainsworth on radio 5 live a short while ago... got to admit his words were very motivational, almost inspiring... 

Would take him in a heartbeat now.

[Norbert Rassragr]

Dodgy hair dye though.

[Stuart]

1 hour ago, Darwen Rover 007 said:

So just got home but heard Gareth Ainsworth on radio 5 live a short while ago... got to admit his words were very motivational, almost inspiring... 

Would take him in a heartbeat now.

At a club with zero forward planning and the manager and “chairman” big mates we will be absolutely on our arses before we are looking for a new manager.

[Norbert Rassragr]

Get some defenders in, or leave Tony.

[philipl]

Mowbray is simply not good enough

[DE.]

He's good enough if you want a team who performs at roughly the level they should do, sometimes a little higher or lower in either direction.

He is not good enough if you want a manager who can get a team punching above its weight, or a manager who considers defence as a major priority. It's not just Rovers where he has had a poor defence - it's practically every team he's ever managed. He's also not a manager you want to give much money to as he doesn't seem good at judging who to buy for serious money. There are a lot of managers with that problem though - Mark Hughes is another off the top of my head. Much better when the chequebook is limited. Compare the impact of Dack and Arma, bought for modest fees, against Gallagher and Brereton. 

[matt83]

Mowbray is what he is. If you want to nail on that 8th-15th zone he’s the man all day long. If we want more roll the dice if we’re terrified of less 8th-15th it is. 

[unleaded]

Sick and tired of his waffle ... same crap different year ....Still No Defenders and lost count of how many transfer windows have passed  ..... Sounds like an old man who’s out of his depth .. 

 

..... always talks a good game but never walks the walk ...Will persist with BB & SG because he wants to be proved right even if the answers in his face .... 
 

 

[Silas]

It was theoretically exactly a year ago (1st game of season) the this thread started as Mowbray out.

I actually think he's earnt a lot of goodwill since then, done some good stuff, improved the attack and playing style considerably. 

And if we signed at least 2 competent defenders tomorrow (LB + CB), then I would be fully on board, could see the progression, and he would have flipped me to firmly "Morbray In" in 12 months. Fair play for that.

But......if we end this window with no, or extremely poor, defensive additions then I'm going to spontaneously combust.

And my anger will be directed at him. And I'd make no apologies for it.

He's a handsomely paid manager, operating at a fairly top level in World football, and has highlighted himself for 2 years that this squad needs defenders.

It's put up or ship out time. If he doesn't fix this glaringly obvious issue then deserves all the criticism he gets. 

And the transfer saga's/budget/owner problems don't wash with me. I fail to believe we don't have the resources and structure in place to at least double the effectiveness of that back 4 before the window closes. 

I mean, you're starting at such a base level to begin with, it would be some feat if any addition failed to improve it. 

[SBlue]

Have to say that the substitutions to introduce Rothwell and Dolan was really great game management.

Set us up really well too - game plan of pressuring Bournemouth’s shite play out from the back, which lead to BB and JRC being knackered.

 

But then he brought Evans on when we were chasing a goal??
 

What’s that about??

Had to be Buckley.

Edited September 12, 2020 by S8 & Blue