Tonda Eckert

[Willo of Whiteley]

10 hours ago, Hoggins said:

 

 

10 hours ago, maysie said:

Since Tonda took over.

We were so wasteful over Christmas, and maybe over-confident for say Charlton at the weekend.

But you can’t deny that record is excellent right now.

Shame we ballsed up the season with fifty draws under Will Still and decided to over-eat on Christmas pudding during the festive period.

[pimpin4rizeal]

1 hour ago, Midfield_General said:

The end of the poor Christmas period form and the start of the current run of great form maps pretty much directly onto two events:

- The end of Armstrong / Archer starting at centre forward, and Stewart / Larin starting instead

- Bazunu being replaced by Peretz

So it turns out that in the Championship you need a keeper who can make saves and a target man with a physical presence up top. Amazing. 

However, ditching 3 at the back, bringing Bree back in and replacing Manning with Welington as first choice left back have had a big impact as well. Tonda learnt from that period and changed it, which is the sort of trait you want to see in a manager.

Yeah I think Bree is just as important as the other two events though since we switched to a back four we have been flying and to go with that he’s also providing a massive goal threat quite regularly too The man has been sensational and probably player of the month for me 

[ally_uk]

I'm actually pleased for him, obviously has a good understanding with the players, isn't afraid to field youth players and give them a chance.

Yesterday's game I thought the performance was super. 

I'm so glad Matsuki has been given a run out, he caught my eye during preseason and I was a bit miffed at the time why he didn't play during the initial start of the season  

[trousers]

Yep, fair play to Tonda for turning things around (hopefully permanently).

He quite rightly attracted flak during his mid-season 7 match spell in the league without a win, and is now quite rightly attracting praise for a 7 match spell in the league without a defeat. 

Consistently do badly, get criticised.

Consistently do well, get praised.

Who knew...?

Edited Wednesday at 10:14 by trousers

[whelk]

4 minutes ago, trousers said:Yep, fair play to Tonda for turning things around (hopefully permanently).

He quite rightly attracted flak during his mid-season 7 match spell in the league without a win, and is now quite rightly attracting praise for a 7 match spell in the league without a defeat. 

Consistently do badly, get criticised.

Consistently do well, get praised.

Who knew...?

Yes we all do it and there is massive recency bias when talking about football but you don’t go from clueless to being good and vice versa. 

[S-Clarke]

I want him to do well, and he has done well up to this point - but we do have one of the best teams in this league, so we had to have an uptick given our quality. However, once we've moved away from this fixed 3 at the back, shoehorning Wood and Armstrong in at 9, we've looked more comfortable. I never thought we had the CB's who are happy in a 3, they all seem much more comfortable in a pair. THB - Bednarek,  THB - Stephens etc. 

There are a few things that have shifted since that miserable Christmas -

- The Bazunu experiment being ended

- The return of Bree, so we didn't have to force a winger to play in a 5.

- The introduction of a 4 at the back as we had Bree to operate as a proper RB again. 

I think we were somewhat unlucky with Mads and Jelert having injuries pretty much all season, so our RB slot was never perfect and I think we tried too much to fill that gap, thus changing the entire team structure to fit around Fellows.

I feel there is more balance now, we play with proper 9's, we play with proper full backs and we have a pair of CB's in position to build a partnership. It's the most consistent 11 we've had all season to the point where we can actually name it most weeks, that's a huge shift from earlier days.

Credit needs to be given to Tonda who has been involved with 1) identifying the issues, and 2) suggesting and implementing the solutions which make sense.

There will be further bumps in the road, he is still very inexperienced in many aspects, but it looks like he has the backing of the group and they're all grown up and big enough to know what's right or wrong on the pitch. We just needed someone who didn't overcomplicate the plans they're asked to follow.

[trousers]

1 minute ago, S-Clarke said:

I want him to do well, and he has done well up to this point - but we do have one of the best teams in this league, so we had to have an uptick given our quality. However, once we've moved away from this fixed 3 at the back, shoehorning Wood and Armstrong in at 9, we've looked more comfortable. I never thought we had the CB's who are happy in a 3, they all seem much more comfortable in a pair. THB - Bednarek,  THB - Stephens etc. 

There are a few things that have shifted since that miserable Christmas -

- The Bazunu experiment being ended

- The return of Bree, so we didn't have to force a winger to play in a 5.

- The introduction of a 4 at the back as we had Bree to operate as a proper RB again. 

I think we were somewhat unlucky with Mads and Jelert having injuries pretty much all season, so our RB slot was never perfect and I think we tried too much to fill that gap, thus changing the entire team structure to fit around Fellows.

I feel there is more balance now, we play with proper 9's, we play with proper full backs and we have a pair of CB's in position to build a partnership. It's the most consistent 11 we've had all season to the point where we can actually name it most weeks, that's a huge shift from earlier days.

Credit needs to be given to Tonda who has been involved with 1) identifying the issues, and 2) suggesting and implementing the solutions which make sense.

There will be further bumps in the road, he is still very inexperienced in many aspects, but it looks like he has the backing of the group and they're all grown up and big enough to know what's right or wrong on the pitch. We just needed someone who didn't overcomplicate the plans they're asked to follow.

Good summary IMO 👍🏻

[BERMUDASAINT]

16 hours ago, SaintsRoyalty said:

This is most Saints fans in a nutshell since Koeman left. There is a semblance of a fair point but patience is not going to change the inevitable. There are three main traits.
 

One, comparing a shit manager to another shit manager and therefore concluding first shit manager isn’t as shit as the second shit manager so must be alright.

Second, giving proven no mark managers/players endless chances if they are nice quiet types yet absolutely ripping on a talented footballer if he doesn’t perform at his usual high standards every game.

Thirdly, ignoring the word pedigree. Every decision in life is a gamble but you can shorten the odds if you judge the pedigree of a player or manager. As far as football managers go, Eckart is the runt of the litter. Yet the attitude is let’s give him a go in arguably the most important season for the club since we were in Europe.

Add the above ingredients up and the result is mediocrity. Hence the last few years at this club. We should all take a moment to actually let it sink in that the manager of our club has never managed or played the game. We simply cannot get comfortable with that being a thing. Ibrox would be on fire if that happened there. 

Hey thick head, or dick head, HE HAS PLAYED THE GAME AS A CM. I put a long career history just for you....but i guess you are bad at reading comprhension.

Yes we have a young manager who is averaging almost 2 ppm. 

Has the team looking like the one early punters were betting on being at the top of this league.

We were shambles under Still, this player is shite, that player wrong position, wrong style and no hope feeling.

Tonda had turned this ship around (in honour of our seafaring tradition) from chrashing on the rock (relgation to L1). I now see a TEAM that will play to their potential consistantly, that alone is enough for me to love this team and game again.

Ps. His first jobs were as a analyst for German team, it shows he is very intelligent and has good analytical skills.

The other was Head Scout for Klon, showing he has the ability to spot good players.

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 12:11 by BERMUDASAINT

[Lymington Saint]

I think that he is growing into the job. He has shown an ability to learn and to make the necessary changes. There is a much better shape about the team and the players seem to be responding. Still a work in progress though. 

[Turkish]

Nothing to do with managers or formations 

[benjii]

Interesting that no one has managed 2 points per match since Eckhart took over. 

This really was a golden chance to win a league and we spaffed it.

[saintant]

15 hours ago, maysie said:

Since Tonda took over.

Can't argue with that. Considering his age and lack of experience his record to date is remarkable. He has the potential to manage at the highest level if he continues turning in these numbers. Probably a bit early to know what the future holds for him but you can't question his record with us so far.

[hypochondriac]

14 minutes ago, saintant said:

Can't argue with that. Considering his age and lack of experience his record to date is remarkable. He has the potential to manage at the highest level if he continues turning in these numbers. Probably a bit early to know what the future holds for him but you can't question his record with us so far.

It might be harsh but I still don't think we have been overly convincing. I think really he has got us performing roughly how we should be given we have a host of players that would get in virtually every squad in the division. He still deserves credit though, particularly for turning us around after the drop off in form. We look better in comparison to others because in truth no one has really run away with things, especially after Coventry shit the bed recently. 

[Turkish]

4 minutes ago, hypochondriac said:

It might be harsh but I still don't think we have been overly convincing. I think really he has got us performing roughly how we should be given we have a host of players that would get in virtually every squad in the division. He still deserves credit though, particularly for turning us around after the drop off in form. We look better in comparison to others because in truth no one has really run away with things, especially after Coventry shit the bed recently. 

Kind of with you on that. He deserves huge credit, it's also highlights how poor Will Still was. However he also has a very good squad which should be top 6 minimum. All this shite about players not being good enough etc was a load of nonsense. If he was behind the clear out then even more credit is due, there seems to be a lot more spirit and harmony in the squad now, the players are clearly playing for him, which cant be said for the last few we've had.

[Cabrone]

Some managers just fit certain clubs and I get the feeling he just fits this one.

He's taken stick but you can't get on his back too much with that record. He's also getting better as the games go on and he gets a better feel for team formation\selection.

Whatever he does from now on in at least I've had more fun watching his teams than I ever did for Jones, Selles, Martin, Juric, Rusk and Still.

It's been the most fun since Ralph left in 2022.

[hypochondriac]

5 minutes ago, Turkish said:

Kind of with you on that. He deserves huge credit, it's also highlights how poor Will Still was. However he also has a very good squad which should be top 6 minimum. All this shite about players not being good enough etc was a load of nonsense. If he was behind the clear out then even more credit is due, there seems to be a lot more spirit and harmony in the squad now, the players are clearly playing for him, which cant be said for the last few we've had.

Agreed. He's broadly performing in line with my expectations. I wouldn't say we are massively outperforming anything, simply others have underperformed. We were massively below expectations and now we are where we should be. He still gets significant credit for that though to be fair. Shame we had to have the zero wins in seven in the middle of things though. 

[West end Saints]

6 hours ago, Turkish said:

Nothing to do with managers or formations 

When you consider immediately before this run we were 3 defeats in a row, 5 without a win - could anyone realistically have expected any appointment to do better? Personally no.

You can only judge with what he has done so far, which is a decent sample now,  and it has been an excellent appointment without a doubt.

 

 

[Daft Kerplunk]

He's a tricky one to read.  He seems like he might not have the personality to deal with the big characters of an allegedly ambitous football club but then he also doesn't give much away, which might be very helpful to deal with that pressure.  We are still pretty dull at times and that period after we scored last night was mostly crap, but second half was a big improvement.  The game is pretty much the same (stats say nothing more than anyone who has watched the game for years can see with their own eyes) but the way it is coached is obviously changing, and if he is able to coax performances out of players who lack the self-motivation of top players, and remain calm under pressure and not lose it, he could be well-suited to make good progress. 

[Mr X]

He's definitely the intense silent man of few words type (starey eyes) never going to be a rapport with the fans type manager that people will warm to......Which is fine the talking can be done on the pitch, he certainly deserves credit for the turn around in form recently from a very poor run.... And he had a job to do with morale at an all time low from stills tenure, I'm certainly happy for him to stay for the rest of the season whatever happens, I don't think he's excelled as the football isn't always exciting but he's done a decentish job but fail to make the playoffs now and it should be considered a failure as harsh as that sounds!  

Edited 23 hours ago by Mr X

[goodymatt]

 

[SuperSAINT]

On 25/02/2026 at 10:23, S-Clarke said:

I want him to do well, and he has done well up to this point - but we do have one of the best teams in this league, so we had to have an uptick given our quality. However, once we've moved away from this fixed 3 at the back, shoehorning Wood and Armstrong in at 9, we've looked more comfortable. I never thought we had the CB's who are happy in a 3, they all seem much more comfortable in a pair. THB - Bednarek,  THB - Stephens etc. 

There are a few things that have shifted since that miserable Christmas -

- The Bazunu experiment being ended

- The return of Bree, so we didn't have to force a winger to play in a 5.

- The introduction of a 4 at the back as we had Bree to operate as a proper RB again. 

I think we were somewhat unlucky with Mads and Jelert having injuries pretty much all season, so our RB slot was never perfect and I think we tried too much to fill that gap, thus changing the entire team structure to fit around Fellows.

I feel there is more balance now, we play with proper 9's, we play with proper full backs and we have a pair of CB's in position to build a partnership. It's the most consistent 11 we've had all season to the point where we can actually name it most weeks, that's a huge shift from earlier days.

Credit needs to be given to Tonda who has been involved with 1) identifying the issues, and 2) suggesting and implementing the solutions which make sense.

There will be further bumps in the road, he is still very inexperienced in many aspects, but it looks like he has the backing of the group and they're all grown up and big enough to know what's right or wrong on the pitch. We just needed someone who didn't overcomplicate the plans they're asked to follow.

Great summary.  The only other thing that I’d add to all this which has been key - Downes.

[Badger]

3 hours ago, Mr X said:

He's definitely the intense silent man of few words type (starey eyes) never going to be a rapport with the fans type manager that people will warm to......Which is fine the talking can be done on the pitch, he certainly deserves credit for the turn around in form recently from a very poor run.... And he had a job to do with morale at an all time low from stills tenure, I'm certainly happy for him to stay for the rest of the season whatever happens, I don't think he's excelled as the football isn't always exciting but he's done a decentish job but fail to make the playoffs now and it should be considered a failure as harsh as that sounds!  

He doesn’t have to be a jocular wisecracking manager on the interview rounds for supporters to warm to him. After what we’ve seen over recent years it’s a welcome change to have someone who seems enthusiastic and dedicated to the job and club.*

*for the time being anyway. 

[Badger]

48 minutes ago, goodymatt said:

 

Perhaps inevitable there’s interest, especially from Germany. Or his agent hurrying up that improved three year contract. 

[AlexLaw76]

He is doing well for a team with players that should be top 3. Being 7th is not his fault (nice one Will), but Tonda needs to get some big game wins under him.

Boro away was pathetic, Pompey away was meh, let's see how he handles March.

 

The talk on here earlier in the season of Saints not having a good squad was hilarious, and shows how clueless some fans are with either our own players and/or the league in general.

[Osvaldorama]

Credit to him, he’s completely turned us around. 
 

His one limitation so far is in-game substitutions still seem to be a bit robotic.
I think this will come with experience.

Also,  he’s more than made up for that in how he’s re-built the side. So nice to have a settled eleven and not playing in a stupid 5 at the back. 
 

Literally just doing the basics and the obvious things has made us look like a football team again. Who knew. 

[Ex Lion Tamer]

On 25/02/2026 at 15:36, hypochondriac said:

Agreed. He's broadly performing in line with my expectations. I wouldn't say we are massively outperforming anything, simply others have underperformed. We were massively below expectations and now we are where we should be. He still gets significant credit for that though to be fair. Shame we had to have the zero wins in seven in the middle of things though. 

I think the squad argument only really works since Peretz came in (and to a degree Larin as well). Before that we were playing with a hopeless GK, so didn't really have anywhere near the best team in the division. 

Form since Peretz = job done well:

 

Edited 19 hours ago by Ex Lion Tamer

[trousers]

So far, Tonda's tenure can be divided into three 7 match chunks... 

- An excellent first 7

- A poor next 7 

- An excellent last 7

Here's hoping he can break that cycle over the next 7 games...

 

[StrangelyBrown]

On 25/02/2026 at 10:23, S-Clarke said:

I want him to do well, and he has done well up to this point - but we do have one of the best teams in this league, so we had to have an uptick given our quality. However, once we've moved away from this fixed 3 at the back, shoehorning Wood and Armstrong in at 9, we've looked more comfortable. I never thought we had the CB's who are happy in a 3, they all seem much more comfortable in a pair. THB - Bednarek,  THB - Stephens etc. 

There are a few things that have shifted since that miserable Christmas -

- The Bazunu experiment being ended

- The return of Bree, so we didn't have to force a winger to play in a 5.

- The introduction of a 4 at the back as we had Bree to operate as a proper RB again. 

I think we were somewhat unlucky with Mads and Jelert having injuries pretty much all season, so our RB slot was never perfect and I think we tried too much to fill that gap, thus changing the entire team structure to fit around Fellows.

I feel there is more balance now, we play with proper 9's, we play with proper full backs and we have a pair of CB's in position to build a partnership. It's the most consistent 11 we've had all season to the point where we can actually name it most weeks, that's a huge shift from earlier days.

Credit needs to be given to Tonda who has been involved with 1) identifying the issues, and 2) suggesting and implementing the solutions which make sense.

There will be further bumps in the road, he is still very inexperienced in many aspects, but it looks like he has the backing of the group and they're all grown up and big enough to know what's right or wrong on the pitch. We just needed someone who didn't overcomplicate the plans they're asked to follow.

Do you think he identified the problems quickly enough?

For me they were so blatantly obviously only someone with deceitful eyes would claim otherwise and frankly I didn't buy into the "height" bullshit.

Don't get me wrong I think he's doing well and I do wonder if he's getting less interference now we're getting results??

[It's There]

Tonda/Spors identified early, but couldn't change it until an window opened, so kept the soundbites appropriate. We desperately needed a keeper and big striker. Both have been a great impact in helping the team, as well as the switch to the back 4.

[Jack]

11 minutes ago, It's There said:

Tonda/Spors identified early, but couldn't change it until a window opened, so kept the soundbites appropriate. We desperately needed a keeper and big striker. Both have been a great impact in helping the team, as well as the switch to the back 4.

Big striker or not, we should’ve gone to a back 4 way before we did. Was so blatantly obvious we needed the extra man in midfield rather than playing Fellows at RWB and knocking it around the back 5 before giving it away. And with Manning’s complete lack of positional awareness, the formation was killing us. A CB at RB would’ve been far better than a 5 with Fellows and Manning 

[StrangelyBrown]

8 hours ago, It's There said:

Tonda/Spors identified early, but couldn't change it until an window opened, so kept the soundbites appropriate. We desperately needed a keeper and big striker. Both have been a great impact in helping the team, as well as the switch to the back 4.

This is horseshit I'm afraid.

There was no reason not to play a back 4. If Baz was incapable of playing with a 4 then McCarthy has played with a four for most of his career. If it was about height then play Stephens at right back - he's filled in there plenty. Playing 4 at the back doesn't necessitate a target man.

Tonda has done well, but let's not reinvent history - he should have switched to a four way sooner.

[Billy the Kidd]

10 hours ago, trousers said:

So far, Tonda's tenure can be divided into three 7 match chunks... 

- An excellent first 7

- A poor next 7 

- An excellent last 7

Here's hoping he can break that cycle over the next 7 games...

 

It also shows he does well against teams we expect to beat but crumble when we come up against better teams. 
 

those game we lost, I think were teams that pressed us harder (other than Oxford where we alerted awful). 

[Lymington Saint]

1 hour ago, StrangelyBrown said:

This is horseshit I'm afraid.

There was no reason not to play a back 4. If Baz was incapable of playing with a 4 then McCarthy has played with a four for most of his career. If it was about height then play Stephens at right back - he's filled in there plenty. Playing 4 at the back doesn't necessitate a target man.

Tonda has done well, but let's not reinvent history - he should have switched to a four way sooner.

We all know we should have played a back 4 all season. What we dont know is what interference from SR kept us playing a back 5 for so long.

Key thing for me is that Tonda is still learning and is not afraid to make changes. Target has to be to make the playoffs and see where it goes from there.

[AlexLaw76]

10 hours ago, It's There said:

Tonda/Spors identified early, but couldn't change it until an window opened, so kept the soundbites appropriate. We desperately needed a keeper and big striker. Both have been a great impact in helping the team, as well as the switch to the back 4.

Not having that. Should never have started the season in the mess of a formation, and it should have been binned waaaay before it happened.

[S-Clarke]

10 hours ago, StrangelyBrown said:

Do you think he identified the problems quickly enough?

For me they were so blatantly obviously only someone with deceitful eyes would claim otherwise and frankly I didn't buy into the "height" bullshit.

Don't get me wrong I think he's doing well and I do wonder if he's getting less interference now we're getting results??

I don't think he did, no. It was a slow burn to get there, not going to lie.

I think looking back some elements were forced with the injuries to Jelert, Mads, Wellington, Bree not here etc - so we had screwed full back positions for some time, which didn't help. He did have Jelert available for a few weeks though though and we still persisted with Fellows at RWB, which confused me. But maybe there is something we're missing with Jelert.

What we were doing previously was square pegs/round holes, but it all feels and looks more balanced now - and all it took was a bit of common sense. Honestly sometimes it's as simple as playing the best players in their best positions. We're not perfect, don't get me wrong, and if we get done tomorrow then all chips on the table....! But I'm more comfortable when I look at a balanced team, rather than seeing players forced into roles not suited to them.

[S-Clarke]

13 hours ago, SuperSAINT said:

Great summary.  The only other thing that I’d add to all this which has been key - Downes.

Yep, credit where it's due. I'm still not totally on the Downes side given how he kicked up last year and the way he downed tools in previous games, but he seems happier in the setup we've got right now. 

[Roo1976]

On 25/02/2026 at 09:28, Willo of Whiteley said:

 

We were so wasteful over Christmas, and maybe over-confident for say Charlton at the weekend.

But you can’t deny that record is excellent right now.

Shame we ballsed up the season with fifty draws under Will Still and decided to over-eat on Christmas pudding during the festive period.

but in reality we have only gained 1 point on the automatic spots....

[trousers]

12 hours ago, trousers said:

So far, Tonda's tenure can be divided into three 7 match chunks... 

- An excellent first 7

- A poor next 7 

- An excellent last 7

Here's hoping he can break that cycle over the next 7 games...

 

 

2 hours ago, Billy the Kidd said:

It also shows he does well against teams we expect to beat but crumble when we come up against better teams. 
 

Good observation, which means the next tranche of 7 games will tell us how much the latest good run of 7 games has been influenced by an upturn in the manager's (& team's) performance or more down to the reduced quality of opposition. Interesting times...

Edited 6 hours ago by trousers

[Charlie Wayman]

1 hour ago, trousers said:

 

Good observation, which means the next tranche of 7 games will tell us how much the latest good run of 7 games has been influenced by an upturn in the manager's (& team's) performance or more down to the reduced quality of opposition. Interesting times...

Keep the faith!

[Fabrice29]

1 hour ago, trousers said:

 

Good observation, which means the next tranche of 7 games will tell us how much the latest good run of 7 games has been influenced by an upturn in the manager's (& team's) performance or more down to the reduced quality of opposition. Interesting times...

Do we really believe the defining factor between the top teams in each division is the manager? And therefore the results between them are solely on the manager?

[goodymatt]

31 minutes ago, Fabrice29 said:

Do we really believe the defining factor between the top teams in each division is the manager? And therefore the results between them are solely on the manager?

Not solely but there are some good examples this season where managers have come in and immediately found vastly improved form, which continued over a decent sample size. Such as Tonda, Clement and Matos.

Also Boro were on a downward slope under Carrick, sold couple of their best players but Edwards and now Hellberg getting so much more out of that team consistently. Lampard at Cov another example. Ipswich under McKenna. Quite a few examples.

[Convict Colony]

My main complaint was that this entire forum knew we should be playing 4 at the back and fellows isnt a wing back yet it took a long fucking time until it got to him as well.

 

[Fabrice29]

3 hours ago, goodymatt said:

Not solely but there are some good examples this season where managers have come in and immediately found vastly improved form, which continued over a decent sample size. Such as Tonda, Clement and Matos.

Also Boro were on a downward slope under Carrick, sold couple of their best players but Edwards and now Hellberg getting so much more out of that team consistently. Lampard at Cov another example. Ipswich under McKenna. Quite a few examples.

You’re right but claims like ‘let’s see what the next 7 games are like’ seem a bit wild to me. What if Eckert passes trousers test over the next 7 games with flying colours but never wins a game again. Good or bad? 

There’s obvious differences a manager can make, you’ve named some and Eckert has done well in some but I do think this fan base can take a step back from wild conclusions on managers, good or bad, based on small samples of results especially when 11 players on the pitch have stopped giving stupid goals away which immediately makes us more competitive.

[Fabrice29]

5 minutes ago, Convict Colony said:

My main complaint was that this entire forum knew we should be playing 4 at the back and fellows isnt a wing back yet it took a long fucking time until it got to him as well.

 

Probably worth noting Fellows form has dropped since the change (because having less space to run into as a dribbler isn’t always ideal) and it was also a change facilitated by actually having a fit and available right back too. 

[trousers]

4 hours ago, Fabrice29 said:

Do we really believe the defining factor between the top teams in each division is the manager? And therefore the results between them are solely on the manager?

Where did I say "solely" you giblet muffin?

 

Edited 32 minutes ago by trousers

[Weston Super Saint]

8 minutes ago, trousers said:

Where did I say "solely" you giblet muffin?

 

Wow! Is this your first time off the fence?

How does it feel, scary?

[trousers]

4 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

Wow! Is this your first time off the fence?

How does it feel, scary?