I have been given the opportunity to speak out by LCM and have decided that I will use the opportunity to perhaps reflect the sort of attitude I am finding more and more on the terraces of Sincil Bank.
The 125 season has become a massive anti-climax. I thought after Jacko’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ and the so called ‘Special Season’ that things couldn’t get any worse. Now they have.
The situation at Sincil Bank at the moment is incomprehensible to any outsiders. We have proper professionals on the sidelines, youth players being completely ignored and loanees coming in from other sides, some of whom are not fit to lace my boots.
I’m going to launch straight into what may be a rant, but to give the article a bit of structure I thought I’d put a series of questions to the management team. If Chris Sutton, Ian Pearce or anyone else connected with the club would like to respond, that’d be all the better. Somehow I doubt it’ll happen!
1: Why do we persistently leave good professionals who are contracted to the club on the bench?
I’m initially talking here about Janos Kovacs, Danny Hone, Richard Butcher and Aaron Brown. These players have suffered a massive knock to their confidence in recent weeks, and in my opinion Janos for one has responded excellently. At Northwich he was a rock, and yet the next week he’s dropped for Nathan Baker. No offence to Baker but he’s an academy kid who hasn’t experienced this sort of battle week in and week out. Yes at centre half he’s a decent player, but is he better than Kovacs? Probably will be, but he isn’t yet. So why leave a player with League Two experience on the bench? Ok Butcher and Brown haven’t had the best of seasons, but they are here and they are contracted to us. Lets use them. Richard Butcher hasn’t become a bad player overnight, neither has Aaron Brown, Danny Hone and especially not Janos.
2: What do the loan players add to the squad?
Ok I’m sold on Adam Watts and I’m sold on Eric Lichaj. I can understand why Chris Herd is with the squad, and Sergio Torres will be an asset. However we then cast our eyes over Nathan Baker, Joe Heath Delroy Facey and Anthony Pulis…. What do they add to the squad? Pulis was anonymous for the first few games he played, and when he did find the stomach for a battle he did no more than Scott Kerr would have done – another waste of a wage. Nathan Baker is a very talented young lad who will have a strong career in the game, but he doesn’t add anything to a defence that was already fairly mean. Watts came in and strengthened the back line, but surely one of Swaibu, Kovacs, or Danny Hone were up to the job of partnering him? Furthermore Joe Heath is an actual left back with championship experience, so why are we playing a young Villa player with no experience at all? If we are paying Heath a wage, why are we not using him? Either play him or send him back.
That brings me to Delroy Facey. When I saw he’d signed I gave him the benefit of the doubt, but after the three games he’s played I have to ask if Sutton actually has a scouting network – Facey is terrible. I don’t think I can recall a less mobile, less effective forward in red and white stripes since Shayne Bradley, and he only had the one loan appearance for us. Given all the tinkering that Sutton has done, how on earth has he not managed to bring a decent forward in? Villa must have one in their youth team, or maybe Fulham. Surely if everyone else can see that Delroy Facey isn’t good enough our management team can?
3. The budget – its not the issue everyone says.
Not a question, it’s a statement. Certain messageboards and newspaper forums are rife with individuals who say a chronic lack of investment is the problem at the club. This was never a problem under Keith though was it? He worked on a shoestring and unearthed some diamonds. However all of a sudden we have to have a massive budget to compete. I don’t think Rochdale have a big budget, yet they sit proudly atop of the table with smiles all over their cake holes. So why should we need so much investment, and what of the money already invested? Somehow the budget stretches to offering Rob Burch a massive new deal. It stretches to paying wages to Pulis, Heath, Torres, Watts, and Facey. It also stretches to paying wages for Khano Smith, Brian Gilmour and Michael Gordon. I make that an additional eight players to the ones Jacko had, and the budget had run out for Jacko. So why do people say there is no investment when quite clearly that is not the truth at all? Money has been made available to Sutton and some has been spent.
Ok here are some facts. FACT: We are in a recession and every other walk of life has experienced cut backs. FACT: Attendances are below average (I’ll deal with fans staying away in a minute). FACT: Sutton has had some budget to play with. FACT: Of the players he has brought to the club SIX did not play any part on Saturday.
So next time someone mentions the budget or lack of investment by the board I want you to look at those facts right there. It’s almost as if Sutton has been given money, he’s rushed into River Island, bought everything he can afford and then got home and decided he doesn’t like half of it. Madness.
There is some good news, speculation suggests that maybe the three Villa lads come free. There is no foundation to rumour that Notts County are paying us to have Facey, although if they were I still wouldn’t thank them.
4. Steff Wright and Dave Roberts should put their hands in their pockets.
Why? Dave Roberts is a paid employee and Steff Wright is trying to run the club like a business. Just because County spend and Rotherham live beyond their means doesn’t mean we should. We are not in the bottom three because Steff Wright won’t remortgage his house, we are in the bottom three because players that last year could win football games are sat up in the stands, and kids from a sheltered Premiership background are trying to compete with seasoned professionals.
Steff, Dave and the rest of the board do a remarkable job under increasingly pressurised circumstances, and yet they still retain a level of humility and acceptance in the face of some staunch criticism. Everyone who is involved in running this club does a good job, irrespective of what a section of the fans believe. If they had money to spare I have little doubt they’d push some the clubs way, but they live in 2009 Britain just like we do, where everything costs more and money is extremely scarce. So next time a fan goes onto the Echo website mouthing off about ‘invest this’ and ‘spend that’ maybe they should put their hands in their pockets and pull out their last tenner: will they spend it on food and stuff for them, or give it to the club? I know which I would do, and believe me I love the club.
5. What has Scott Kerr done wrong?
I’ll answer that: nothing. Last year he was Player Of The Season. He has always led by example, always scrapped and fought for everything he can. He’ll probably admit he isn’t the most technically gifted player ever, but as a captain you couldn’t ask for more. He’s robust, aggressive, vocal and tenacious. You’d think the new manager would instantly want a player like that on his side. So how did Sutton achieve this? By dropping Captain Kerr.
Not only dropping him, but almost erasing him from the side completely. An injury crisis meant he made his way back into the side, and impressed with his usual display. His reward for that increased endeavour? Being taken off at home to Rochdale and replaced by a left sided wide man. Ok so Herd shifted into the middle and Brown out wide, but this is the same Chris Herd who seems quite comfortable giving possession away in his own half. He cost us a goal at home to Vale, almost did the same at Crewe and then made a third attempt to do so against Rochdale. Is this the sort of player we need in the middle when we are 3-1 down at home to the league leaders? No. What we need is someone with heart, passion and a desire to haul The Imps away from the predicament they are in. Or to give him his actual name: Scott ‘Captain’ Kerr.
6. What has Michael Gordon done wrong?
Michael Gordon looked like one of those gems you unearth every so often. He came in from non league and had an impressive debut against Cheltenham. Since then he’s been sighted less than the baby Rooney. Why? He’s an Imp on a permanent basis, he was signed to play out wide and yet the loanees are getting in instead. Is he injured? How would we even know? The information coming from the club is less than great at the moment. Even the Echo seem happy to keep running stories about ‘we are in a relegation battle’ with a different players face and name every week. Yes, thanks we know we are in a relegation battle because THE LEAGUE TABLE SAYS SO. Which takes me to point number seven….
7. Why are we no longer being told how the injury situation is going?
So is Gordon injured? Is he dropped? How far off fitness is Torres and Connor? Is Khano Smith fit? Where has Pulis gone? Has Facey got a dietician or is it glandular? Who knows, because all we are being told is that clubs are after Burch and we are in a scrap for survival. I know were are scrapping for survival because every week the first two results I look for are Darlington and Grimsby – you don’t do that if you’re top of the league. Probably not the clubs fault, but wouldn’t it be nice to know what was actually going on. It’s really Flash Gordon’s situation that baffles me. Keith Alexander found gems in the non league, namely Yeo, Futcher, Weaver, and Butcher…. But they became gems by being played, not just sitting in the stands watching the team they are meant to represent being made to look like mugs in front of 2,000 home fans. That’s embarrassing.
8. Crowds being down isn’t the clubs fault.
Ok so I’m changing tact now, but I get so wound up when I hear falling attendances are the players fault. We are in a recession, money is tight, and it’s nearly Christmas. People will not spend £17 to come and watch Lincoln, top three or bottom three. Last year a Friday night mauling of Accrington attracted just under 2,800 people. A similar attendance braved Port Vale a week or so ago. So the attendances there are comparable. People pick and choose matches to go to, so would you pick Rochdale at home a fortnight before Christmas, or Bolton away in the cup a week after? We might have 2,000 home fans for the Rochdale game, but I bet we managed 1,500 at Bolton. Circumstance dictates that there will be a fluctuation in numbers, and sadly we have Gordon Brown and his mental economic policies of the last ten years to blame not a bunch of underachieving footballers led by a rookie manager struggling to grasp the reality of what he’s committed to.
9. The brewing argument between the Trust and The 12th Man is just ridiculous given the other issues we have.
Some of you may be aware of the growing discontent between the supporters trust and the latest fans vehicle ‘The 12th Man’. 12th (as I’ll refer to it) are starting an initiative to attempt to pour funds into the club, but have challenged the ability of the trust to do the same. As a lurker on a rival site (Lincoln Vitals) I have been watching the debate develop with wide mouthed shock. It would seem a few individuals no longer feel the trust operates in the clubs best interests, and that they don’t do anything like enough fundraising for the club.
Anyone who wants to raise money for the club and support them through this time should be welcomed by every other, whether it’s the 12th Man, Supporters Trust or Joe Bloggs off his own back. However bickering and arguing just adds to the tension and discontent around the club.
Before Xmas LCM will attempt to bring you a view from both sides of this argument, but either way we implore the parties concerned to set aside their differences, agenda’s or whatever the problems may be and just sort it out. There are more pressing issues to hand, namely our fight against dropping into the BSP.
So I think that’s my rant more or less over, hopefully the editor won’t censor too much of it (Ed: Nope, you say what you think old boy). However before I sign off I also have a couple of questions I’d like to ask rhetorically which have been suggested as possible problems / rumours around the club.
Do the players have a dislike / lack of respect for Chris Sutton and Ian Pearce?
Rumours are circulating that key senior players hate Sutton for his cold approach to managing them, and his attempt to completely reduce Jackson’s team to rubble in a few short months. There is no secret about the fact LJL and Butcher will be looking for a move in January, along with Danny Hone.
What have the youth players done wrong?
Why are we blooding Villa youths, but our own youths have been cast down with the sodomites? Ok that may seem a bit strong, but Andy Hutchinson and Nathan Adams can’t get near the first team, yet a lumbering cart horse like Facey can/ Go figure.
Is there a clause in the Villa lads contracts that if fit, they have to play?
Sounds ludicrous, but some forums have suggested Baker, Lichaj and Herd have to play if fit, hence them coming here for free. It’s an interesting thought, and would explain why Kovacs had a great game at Northwich, then found himself warming the bench the week after as Nathan Baker retook his place in the squad. Is there an agreement in place? Are we just ‘Villa Reserves’…. If so can we have the Delroy Facey of the Premier League; Emile Heskey for a bit?
In conclusion I’m afraid all I see ahead is a winter of discontent at Sincil Bank. With the recession, and our editor still moaning about a girl who dumped him two months ago I’m already sick of this Christmas period, I just sincerely hope in May the fears above have all been addressed, and we are 22nd or above in League Two.