trousers

Yeah, agree there's pros and cons to either approach.

I guess it might depend on whether the club has a first team coaching position in mind for Rusk under Rohl? If Rusk is going to remain involved with the first team next season it *could* be beneficial to give him the reigns for the remainder of this season to provide a degree of management continuity for when Rohl takes over in the summer. Dunno. Just thinking out loud.

It’s not more noise though, it’s more of an echo. One outlet runs the ‘story’, and several others just repeat it

I'm getting Josh Sims and Ryan Seager vibes with Ballard. Loads of promise and touted for first team regularity, only to fade away when on the cusp of making it. Hope I'm wrong, obviously, but just a hunch.

I was hoping we'd go for Beethoven Javier but having just realised he passed away in 2017 I'd have Rohl over Beethoven any day of the week.

Nige talking nonsense again...?

Yeah, agree, but I was merely saying that people might be "less hacked off"... Multiple levels of hacked-off-ness are available of course....

At least Rohl doesn't play "clueless football" though...?

That's the key point to me.... I reckon people would be less hacked off with them if they were more candid with fans. Here's hoping they listened to you FF!

Middlesbrough forfeited a PL game vs Blackburn in December 1996 (due to 23 of the first team squad going down with food poisoning) and were handed a 3 point penalty in addition to a default 3-0 defeat, so it would seriously hamper our concerted effort to avoid relegation if we went down that path.... Oh.... Btw, somewhat amusingly, Middlesbrough were relegated by two points that season, so would've ended up safe if they'd fielded a team of academy players instead of forfeiting* (*Subject to the consequences of the butterfly effect of course - FAO MLG)

Indeed. That clip dispels the mantra from some that our downfall is predominantly down to the quality of the players. Yes, of course quality is a factor, but so is the total lack of esprit de corps shown by most of the players game after game.

*Trousers suppresses his inner Widow Twanky*

I guess that's because it's natural / logical to look for possible reasons why we lost when we lose.... There's logically no need for a post-mortem if/when we grab a (rare) win. Nevertheless, even teams that aren't fully fit will inevitably scrape a result every now and then.

I don't think it does but life is too short to argue the toss on a internet football forum.

Maybe it's a combination of everything rather than having to pick and choose from a list of potentially detrimental factors?

Blaming him for "everything", as you stated? I see people citing him as the 'main' reason we are where we are, but haven't seen anyone saying it's 100% down to him. Fair enough if you've seen posts to the contrary that I've missed, although I would venture that anyone laying the blame for "everything" at Martin's door are in an extremely small minority of the fan base.

Ok, I'll bite... Name 3 posters that cited Martin as the sole reason for our woeful season.... #thingsthatdidnthappen

Sums it up for me too. Yes, I get the "most of these players aren't PL quality" mantra, but you don't have to be PL quality to bust a gut for the team, and for the fans. Most of these players compound their shiteness by seemingly not giving a shite either.

I always felt we should've appointed a caretaker manager when Martin's doomed reign came to an end. Lallana, Rusk, whoever. Was the most logical approach given we were all but relegated anyway. Another SR cock-up to appoint a full-time manager, and one that appears equally out-of-his-depth as Martin to boot.

Good to see Russball making a comeback there... #faffingaroundatthebackthenlosingit

Jeeez... More shoe horns than a branch of Freeman Hardy Willis...

Are we playing a back 4 now or has Smallbone slotted into the back 3?

Player who hasn't scored since December 2023.... Tick...

If Fernandes isn't playing for a top 8 PL side next season then my name's Barbara Lighthouse