Have all the dummies been thrown out of the pram yet?

[Ted McMinn Football Genius]

8 hours ago, IslandExile said:

"Now listen you lot.....I want you to play your heart out so that, come the transfer window, we'll be in a position to replace you. Got that?"

I’ve got to say I have been worried by that since the talk of a takeover became more of a reality than just hope.
With the news of the transfer embargo possibly being lifted with new owners prepared to spend a little cash, some players don’t react well to change. 

Competition for places is great for the team just not always for the individual 

[cheron85]

9 hours ago, IslandExile said:

"Now listen you lot.....I want you to play your heart out so that, come the transfer window, we'll be in a position to replace you. Got that?"

I would imagine some of our players would value the couple of games rest every now and then which a larger squad allows you

The chances of us bringing in 11 players of vastly greater quality than the current squad are highly unlikely, but since the current squad have shown they can win games and compete with some fairly decent sides at this level, adding a few extra options and some fresher legs every now and then should probably benefit us

10 hours ago, sage said:

If so, shall we move onto the next game?

Yep

It's been a poor couple of weeks - And the lack of wins and endless draws were draining

But worth remembering we ended Cov's 100% winning Home start, Swansea, Huddersfield and Luton are all doing fairly well, we deservedly beat Stoke, got a hard fought draw against West Brom

Worth remembering we've lost five games so far - 3 sides in the top 6 have lost five games too - This league can be properly topsy turvy and a bit more efficiency in the final third can be the difference between and good and bad run of games

Okay that's drained me of all remaining positivity 

[angieram]

5 minutes ago, cheron85 said:

I would imagine some of our players would value the couple of games rest every now and then which a larger squad allows you

The chances of us bringing in 11 players of vastly greater quality than the current squad are highly unlikely, but since the current squad have shown they can win games and compete with some fairly decent sides at this level, adding a few extra options and some fresher legs every now and then should probably benefit us

Yep

It's been a poor couple of weeks - And the lack of wins and endless draws were draining

But worth remembering we ended Cov's 100% winning Home start, Swansea, Huddersfield and Luton are all doing fairly well, we deservedly beat Stoke, got a hard fought draw against West Brom

Worth remembering we've lost five games so far - 3 sides in the top 6 have lost five games too - This league can be properly topsy turvy and a bit more efficiency in the final third can be the difference between and good and bad run of games

Okay that's drained me of all remaining positivity 

Shame! That was a pretty good effort. ?

[Eddie]

10 hours ago, Boycie said:

So you’re allowed your opinion but we’re just spitting our dummies out the pram.

Sir, sir, can I go to the toilet please?

Careful where you spit your dummy if you do.

[Ram-Alf]

8 hours ago, uttoxram75 said:

Losing two games on the trot nowadays is end of the world stuff in any league. Whether you have a budget like Man United or in admin like Derby. Its relentless, two losses and its all over for modern fans.

There's losing, And there's the manner in which you lose, We all can have a bad day, Teams can carry 1 maybe 2 players who are having a bad day, 5-6 is pretty impossible.

[Miggins]

Good thread, @sage. For what it's worth I guess I'm somewhere in the middle. All the posts are well written and well reasoned and want nothing but the best for the club. I think by nature I'm generally quite a positive mortal but I have to say that my optimism has been severely tested just recently. My heart tells me we'll be fine, keep the faith, get behind the club. My head is telling me that the next couple of months are likely to be very testing and tough and the reality is that we may not stay up. However, to paraphrase a famous song, I'm trying hard to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative and not mess with Mr. Inbetween. After all, the tough journey ahead is so much easier when hope is your companion and hope and positivity from everyone might just get us over the line. ?

[CBRammette]

1 minute ago, Miggins said:

Good thread, @sage. For what it's worth I guess I'm somewhere in the middle. All the posts are well written and well reasoned and want nothing but the best for the club. I think by nature I'm generally quite a positive mortal but I have to say that my optimism has been severely tested just recently. My heart tells me we'll be fine, keep the faith, get behind the club. My head is telling me that the next couple of months are likely to be very testing and tough and the reality is that we may not stay up. However, to paraphrase a famous song, I'm trying hard to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative and not mess with Mr. Inbetween. After all, the tough journey ahead is so much easier when hope is your companion and hope and positivity from everyone might just get us over the line. ?

I find it easier to be optimistic just now focussing on hoping we will be in existence and can rebuild rather than worrying about staying up as with this thin squad we will have bad days when tiredness and lack of rotation options hit performances badly. Its then that a lift from fans can really help hopefully! Even when we nearly went out of existence and went down to third tier in 80s there were positives such as my all-time favourite Bobby D and the rebuild and rise thereafter was a great time to be a Derby fan. Unless you're one of the big clubs there are often periods of despair which make those good seasons even sweeter and why I could never be a fan of anyone else. Keep the faith ??

[Jimbo Ram]

5 hours ago, Bris Vegas said:

Interested to know your thoughts on Rooney not being the worst manager in the league. Who then is worse?

He’s probably got the worst win % of all the managers in the league. He’s probably the lest experienced. And he’s probably only one of a few who don’t have a promotion or top six finish to their name.

I’m not saying he is the worst. But as a manager, he has no credentials or achievements to his name whereas at least the likes of Grant McCann, Darren Ferguson, Lee Bowyer and Nigel Pearson have promotions on their CV.

Frankie McAvoy also has none, but he has been in a coaching capacity for the past decade whether as assistant or first-team coach.

Rooney has absolutely nothing other than his name and Mel’s previous wish to use his name to attract another buyer.

I know he has his hands tied, but I’ve seen nothing during his tenure here to suggest Rooney is capable of becoming a good manager.

Sums up why he should never have been appointed ?

[Alty_Ram]

My main concern is that we have missed several opportunities to pick up points against opponents that we have had a realistic chance of 3 points with. Handing 3 points to the 2nd from bottom team who were on a terrible run was an awful result and we now play a useful Millwall side who are on the verge of playoffs followed by 3 of the current top 5, one of which who just put 7 past a team that beat us last weekend.

It's not easy to be positive about this next sequence of games and nor is it crazy talk to say that there is a good chance that we'll lose them all. We had an intensity and stubbornness about us a few games back that we seem to have lost and those levels of intensity and stubbornness were allowing us to partly bridge the gap in squad quality. Put quite simply, we have to be at our absolute best to get a win with this team and for whatever reason our levels seem to have dipped. It feels as if the initial backs to the wall adrenaline buzz is fading and this paper thin patchwork squad looks to be running on empty. ?

[sage]

1 hour ago, Miggins said:

Good thread, @sage. For what it's worth I guess I'm somewhere in the middle. All the posts are well written and well reasoned and want nothing but the best for the club. I think by nature I'm generally quite a positive mortal but I have to say that my optimism has been severely tested just recently. My heart tells me we'll be fine, keep the faith, get behind the club. My head is telling me that the next couple of months are likely to be very testing and tough and the reality is that we may not stay up. However, to paraphrase a famous song, I'm trying hard to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative and not mess with Mr. Inbetween. After all, the tough journey ahead is so much easier when hope is your companion and hope and positivity from everyone might just get us over the line. ?

I'm not a happy clapper. i certainly wouldn't put my house on us staying up. However, 'hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies'.  

[sage]

6 hours ago, Bris Vegas said:

Interested to know your thoughts on Rooney not being the worst manager in the league. Who then is worse?

He’s probably got the worst win % of all the managers in the league. He’s probably the lest experienced. And he’s probably only one of a few who don’t have a promotion or top six finish to their name.

I’m not saying he is the worst. But as a manager, he has no credentials or achievements to his name whereas at least the likes of Grant McCann, Darren Ferguson, Lee Bowyer and Nigel Pearson have promotions on their CV.

Frankie McAvoy also has none, but he has been in a coaching capacity for the past decade whether as assistant or first-team coach.

Rooney has absolutely nothing other than his name and Mel’s previous wish to use his name to attract another buyer.

I know he has his hands tied, but I’ve seen nothing during his tenure here to suggest Rooney is capable of becoming a good manager.

Maybe the mangers who were below us (putting the deduction to one side)

He has motivated the players in a difficult situation to give everything. He has got the fans (at the game) on board. He recruited well given the parameters. He is trying to play decent football but is more pragmatic than Cocu. 

Never described him a a great or even a good manager.  

[Jimbo Ram]

33 minutes ago, sage said:

Maybe the mangers who were below us (putting the deduction to one side)

He has motivated the players in a difficult situation to give everything. He has got the fans (at the game) on board. He recruited well given the parameters. He is trying to play decent football but is more pragmatic than Cocu. 

Never described him a a great or even a good manager.  

So if you were the new owner would you be looking to bring in a new Manager or stick with Rooney?

[sage]

57 minutes ago, Jimbo Ram said:

So if you were the new owner would you be looking to bring in a new Manager or stick with Rooney?

i'd give him a chance with a level playing field. 

[Tyler Durden]

1 minute ago, sage said:

i'd give him a chance with a level playing field. 

It's a tough one isn't it....I mean if the new owners smelt like we had a chance of staying up if for example the points deduction was reduced then would they put their faith in Rooney or go for another more experienced/capable manager?

[sage]

3 minutes ago, Tyler Durden said:

It's a tough one isn't it....I mean if the new owners smelt like we had a chance of staying up if for example the points deduction was reduced then would they put their faith in Rooney or go for another more experienced/capable manager?

Yes, there is no straightforward answer. I think he deserves a chance with a level playing field but i am sure there are better managers out there. It may depend on who is available at the time. I wouldn't sack him then start looking. It may sound harsh but i would be scouting for possible alternatives and may launch a 'pre emptive strike' if someone outstanding came up.    

[Yani P]

I would hope they would give him a chance to prove himself under the normal  circumstances that any other manager would experience..like you say, they could always be lining up a replacement if he fails..

but I can guarantee none of the names mentioned would ever have had to cope with a set of circumstances managing a club that our rookie manager has..

[ketteringram]

26 minutes ago, sage said:

Yes, there is no straightforward answer. I think he deserves a chance with a level playing field but i am sure there are better managers out there. It may depend on who is available at the time. I wouldn't sack him then start looking. It may sound harsh but i would be scouting for possible alternatives and may launch a 'pre emptive strike' if someone outstanding came up.    

I'm not sure when we are ever going to be in a level playing field situation. 

[Ramarena]

43 minutes ago, sage said:

Yes, there is no straightforward answer. I think he deserves a chance with a level playing field but i am sure there are better managers out there. It may depend on who is available at the time. I wouldn't sack him then start looking. It may sound harsh but i would be scouting for possible alternatives and may launch a 'pre emptive strike' if someone outstanding came up.    

It’s an interesting position a new owner is going to find themselves in regarding the manager. Do they stick or twist now. Or wait till the end of the season and reassess then.

I think they will stick with him baring some unpredictable event occurring. 

I’m not sure it will be so easy to get rid of him anyways even if the new owners wanted to. He’s contracted till the end of next season, on what I imagine would be a complicated deal to unravel (third party involvement) without big financial penalties. 

As I said at the end of last season, he’s probably here until he decides to leave or his contract ends, whichever comes first.

[CBRammette]

55 minutes ago, Tyler Durden said:

It's a tough one isn't it....I mean if the new owners smelt like we had a chance of staying up if for example the points deduction was reduced then would they put their faith in Rooney or go for another more experienced/capable manager?

It is really tough. There are no guarantees either way and subject to Curtis' unexplained comments about training they seem(ed) playing for him. There are also some apparent dips in progress though like Sibley and Joswiak hasnt made a mark. They may just not be good enough

[Tyler Durden]

3 minutes ago, CBRammette said:

It is really tough. There are no guarantees either way and subject to Curtis' unexplained comments about training they seem(ed) playing for him. There are also some apparent dips in progress though like Sibley and Joswiak hasnt made a mark. They may just not be good enough

Cynically I think that that if the points deduction appeal fails or isn't markedly reduced then the new owners will allow Rooney to carry on until the end of the season as our relegation to League 1 will be seen as a fait accompli with the view that there will be a wider pool of replacements available in the summer and time to sound them out and make plans accordingly.