McGhee spot on in the Argus

[Man of Harveys]

Sorry to add a totally abusive response, and I know this is very much another debate, but walking out on us after his own failure (as LI sums up for us above) is why Coppout is a PRICK and a dirty piece of Palace scum of the highest order, and the day he was applauded back across the Withdean pitch was a low point in my life

I know what you mean, although I don't think he behaved that much worse than Micky Adams did, who moaned like Leon Knight playing musical chairs when he didn't feature for some vacancy or other, and vocally touted his arse on every managerial street corner before before he also did a runner. Of course, thankfully he'd achieved loads with us by then but his behaviour tarnished the silverware slightly, for me at least. Although...Horton's departure was the grimmest of the lot - that really felt like a betrayal at an already-low Albion time.

Managers are the first to complain when someone gets sacked for losing a few games but they also have the morals of alleycats when it comes to it and we've been f***ed over by more than our fair share of them.

 

[Les Biehn]

He did though didn't he?

Yes, exactly. He did do reasonably well so I don't think his reputation wasn't damaged.

Taylor clearly done a bunk before he got found out, I totally agree. However Adams and Coppell were offered better jobs so who knows what else they would gone on to achieve here.

Now if MM's reputation was so good how come noone came in for him like these 2 after he got us promoted? This isn't to slag him off but to make the point his reputation was average when he joined, average when he left. Trying to make out he was some sort of martyr, willing to sacrifice his rep for us is disingenous.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

I agree with all but the last bit, I dont think he ever lost Heart managing us, he just lost the crowd.

My Dad spotted McGhee when the final whistle had blown against Ipswich, the day we stayed in the Championship. He didn't celebrate like Booker or White, he said he looked a broken man. This was long before he got the sack. I still maintain he lost heart for the job. The pressure of it all got too great.

 

[Da Man Clay]

My Dad spotted McGhee when the final whistle had blown against Ipswich, the day we stayed in the Championship. He didn't celebrate like Booker or White, he said he looked a broken man. This was long before he got the sack. I still maintain he lost heart for the job. The pressure of it all got too great.

McGhee was never really a man to celebrate, Look at the play off semi final, he was more worried about getting off the pitch. I remember reading his programme notes from one of the games from last year and it showed he still had the passion and feeling for the club.

EDIT: (found it in LI'S signature) "I have been in professional football since I was 16 - that's 33 years this summer. I have seen and done it all. In Brighton, I thought that I had found a club that sat outside the norm. People who love their club but are realistic about their club's prospects in dire circumstances. That appealed to me. That is what I call true loyalty. Supporting the club as you have done through the hard times. I am prepared to be here through these hard times and to develop a squad as I have started to do in preparation for the day that we all move to a new stadium at Falmer. I need your support, patience and understanding in the long-term because there is no quick fix. I hope you will continue to give me that opportunity." Mark McGhee, 17th April 2006

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

McGhee was never really a man to celebrate, Look at the play off semi final, he was more worried about getting off the pitch. I remember reading his programme notes from one of the games from last year and it showed he still had the passion and feeling for the club.

EDIT: (found it in LI'S signature) "I have been in professional football since I was 16 - that's 33 years this summer. I have seen and done it all. In Brighton, I thought that I had found a club that sat outside the norm. People who love their club but are realistic about their club's prospects in dire circumstances. That appealed to me. That is what I call true loyalty. Supporting the club as you have done through the hard times. I am prepared to be here through these hard times and to develop a squad as I have started to do in preparation for the day that we all move to a new stadium at Falmer. I need your support, patience and understanding in the long-term because there is no quick fix. I hope you will continue to give me that opportunity." Mark McGhee, 17th April 2006

Fair enough, I am only going on what my Dad saw and he said McGhee looked broken. I remember McGhee getting rather excited during the playoff games!

 

[London Irish]

I think that now the dust has settled with McGhhe departure that his reputation in the football world is still intact.

Sure, he is still eminently employable, but it remains the fact that this was his first relegation on his CV of his own (Leicester's from the Prem was "inherited" and the football world does forgive those as it did with us and Coppell). That does damage your reputation to a degree.

Take Phil Parkinson, a fine young manager whose one bad experience means he now has to rebuild his reputation once again as a No2.

 

[Da Man Clay]

Fair enough, I am only going on what my Dad saw and he said McGhee looked broken. I remember McGhee getting rather excited during the playoff games!

When we scored he did in the Semi's. In the final I remember him having a go at someone literally just after the goal as the job wasn't done yet (cant remember what stage that was at, was watching a tape of the game and cant remember!)

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

I think a manager has a right to leave if he has done well for a club, and deserves the chance to move up. See Micky for this one. Ok, I don't think Leicester were a particularly great prospect, but they were still in a better position than us, and I don't hold the fact he left against him in the slightest. If you recall him leaving, he went with nothing but our best wishes, thanks to the years of hard work he put in and numerous achievements as a result.

As for old Coppout, he had the cheek to walk out on us after a FAILURE. Hinshelwood's ineptitude masked the fact that Coppell got us relegated through his own poor performance. LI said it, we were out the bottom 3 in February, and the Palace man dragged us back into it. How, 6 months later, he has the nerve to leave us for another club after signing a new contract (was I the only person hoping he would piss off during the farcical wait that summer?) I don't know. That, I'm afraid, is disgraceful. We paid him for a year, and all he gave us was a relegation and a lack of loyalty. Call it bitter if you like, but there is too much of a love-in where that bald tosser is concerned. How people on here can dare to abuse McGhee (a manager who actually gave us something, even if it did go somewhat tits up towards the end) I do not know, when you only have to look at his predecessor for a perfect hate figure.

I think you are letting your rational anti-Palace hatred come into your feelings here. Hinshelwood and Coppell both got us relegated, I beleive if Coppell had started with us that season we would have never have lost 11 games in a row.
As I said in my post if you think that Coppell showed disloyalty then you are wrong. He did what any other experienced football man would have done. He went for the better option.
The reason Coppell delayed so long was because he had an affinity for the club, he even walked out on his first interview with Madjeski beacuse he didn't get on with the man and wanted to stay at the Albion.

 

[London Irish]

But he said that he wants to get back in to managment




But to be honest from my point of view i'm enjoying going to games more now than what i did under mcghees last 12 months as manager, as we do look like we can get a goal in a game rather than hope to get one.
Theres was games last season that i missed as i couldn't be bothered to go but would have gone if mcghee wasn't in charge.

But the fact remains you are not representative, crowds have dropped fairly badly since McGhee's sacking - so in fact far more people, about 500-800 perhaps, have actually made the completely opposite choice to you.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

When we scored he did in the Semi's. In the final I remember him having a go at someone literally just after the goal as the job wasn't done yet (cant remember what stage that was at, was watching a tape of the game and cant remember!)

Well lets agree to disagree, I think that McGhee was broken and had no more heart for the job.

 

[Da Man Clay]

Well lets agree to disagree, I think that McGhee was broken and had no more heart for the job.

Fair enough.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

I think that now the dust has settled with McGhhe departure that his reputation in the football world is still intact. Any football club chairman who knows a bit about football knows the Brighton job is a tough one. McGhee did initially very well, but he eventually lost heart in managing the Albion.

You would not think that if you were standing by the dug outs went Brentford scored in injury time to prevent us having 9 point out of 9 , McGhee turned round and smashed his fist into the back of the dug out with such force I could see the dent on the other side

 

[Nibble]

Sure, he is still eminently employable, but it remains the fact that this was his first relegation on his CV of his own (Leicester's from the Prem was "inherited" and the football world does forgive those as it did with us and Coppell). That does damage your reputation to a degree.

But MM had a reputation as a steady lower league manager with loyalty issues. He left us with his management rep slightly tainted (through relegation but lets not forget enhanced by the promotion and relegation survival) but his loyalty rep enhanced so it was about the same.

Saying 'I believe he sacrificed his reputation coming here' is fine' it is clearly an opinion so doesn't need backing up with facts. Slipping 'he sacrificed his reputation by coming here' into a post is disingenuous as it is being passed off as fact which it isn't, it is a refutable opinion.

*That post is by me, Les Biehn, I am using Nibble's computer and didn't realise he was logged in.*

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

Adams - walked at the first chance to a bigger club

Taylor - walked when he knew the budget was not there

Coppell - pissed the club about for weeks and then walked at the first chance to a bigger club

McGhee - stayed loyal to the end as he promised through thick and thin and did not walk after a promotion and an incredible survival on his cv when he could have and was then shat on from a great height at the first signs of trouble

 

[London Irish]

I still maintain he lost heart for the job. The pressure of it all got too great.

No I don't think so. But there was one great change in him from the previous season, that is true enough. The end-of-season plot badly damaged his relationship with the board and he was becoming more and more outspoken in post-match interviews about the lack of playing resources. I think he was clearly fed up with being the sole focus of fans' dissatisfaction and was being very clear in spreading the blame about a bit. Dick Knight decided to nip that in the bud very quickly.

 

[cjd]

For once a reasoned debate from just about everybody...well done !
One thing that puzzles me about this article......what axe has Andy Naylor got to grind with the club...?
There have been a few instances recently, where Naylor has deliberately chosen to use his "newspaper" to stir up trouble.
I noticed on the Whing transfer story, he chose to print word for word Mickey Adams diatribe about "who said he was for sale "etc etc. Think it,s pretty well known that the money he asked for Whing was exorbitant...yet Naylor wants to put the emphasis on apparently Mickey Adams not wanting to sell., which is a lie. Andy Naylor is obviously in the McGhee camp, and would appear to me to be wanting to do whatever he can to destroy this club. I find the whole article quite sad....an old mate (Naylor) just unable to accept that McGhee,s time was up.....or does he know something about the Albion that we don,t....and he daren,t print it...?
Whole article smacks of bitterness to me....