Is Slade still clearing up the mess left by Adams?

[Chesney Christ]

Elphick - excellent under Wilkins and won player of the season, became crap under Adams. Has remained so.

Virgo - was a fairly highly regarded central defender playing regularly in The Championship before he re-joined us. Then Adams decided he was better at right-back, right-wing, left-wing, centre midfield and up front. Has not been the same player since.

Cox - skilful and creative pre-Adams and won player of the season not long ago. Can now only just about garner a place on the bench.

Adams inherited an exciting, promising side on the up and turned them into a shambles. If Slade had taken over at the start of last season, I don't believe we would be in anything like the position we are now.

 

[Chesney Christ]

Not forgetting the promising Joel Lynch who was perfectly happy at the club under Wilkins, then asked to leave when he realised that his new manager thought he was worse at football than COLIN HAWKINS.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

It takes a long time to turn around the mentality of a football club, it's a long term process. I think you have to consier that Russell inherited a squad starring some truly awful players and not all of them have flown the coup, some of them are even being pressed into first team duty! I think that come the end of this season, when contracts are up and the tosh are released, we'll be in an even better position next season. This season might not be a bundle of laughs and it might not be pleasant to endure.... but Slade needs the season to get the club turned around and get us moving forward.

Faith, patience and respect.

 

[SirDouglasLoft]

Not forgetting the promising Joel Lynch who was perfectly happy at the club under Wilkins, then asked to leave when he realised that his new manager thought he was worse at football than COLIN HAWKINS.

That story was the biggest joke ever! After hearing that my opinion of MA quickly changed!!

 

[Chesney Christ]

It takes a long time to turn around the mentality of a football club, it's a long term process. I think you have to consier that Russell inherited a squad starring some truly awful players and not all of them have flown the coup, some of them are even being pressed into first team duty! I think that come the end of this season, when contracts are up and the tosh are released, we'll be in an even better position next season. This season might not be a bundle of laughs and it might not be pleasant to endure.... but Slade needs the season to get the club turned around and get us moving forward.

Faith, patience and respect.

To be fair, I don't there are many "truly awful players" left at the club but there are several good players performing badly, partly because of the losing mentality created by Adams and his insane decisions.

I also believe last season had a major impact on Adam Virgo. No wonder he is playing without confidence when he spent half of last season trying to work what position he was meant to be playing.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

To be fair, I don't there are many "truly awful players" left at the club but there are several good players performing badly, partly because of the losing mentality created by Adams and his insane decisions.

I also believe last season had a major impact on Adam Virgo. No wonder he is playing without confidence when he spent half of last season trying to work what position he was meant to be playing.

I can think of 2, and 2 who have been thoroughly disappointing from the moment they arrived at the club. All 4 have had good games, but none of the 4 have a future at this club in my opinion. I agree Micky's reign did create a losing mentality, and I don't think it's fair to blame Slade for not being able to magically change it. Had we beaten Walsall on the opening day, which we would have deserved, we wouldn't be here now I'm sure. It's not easy changing the mentality of a football club!

With regards to Adam Virgo, I don't think confidence is his problem. I think concentration, pace and his lack of ability to read the game are his problems, and it's not easy to get around that little combination of issues. That said, I think he would work well with James Tunnicliffe, in theory, they should compliment each other rather well. But I would rather Elphick in the side than Virgo, personally!

 

[beorhthelm]

i suppose that one way to describe Booker.

 

[Gordon the Gopher]

Not forgetting the promising Joel Lynch who was perfectly happy at the club under Wilkins, then asked to leave when he realised that his new manager thought he was worse at football than COLIN HAWKINS.

A real shame that he left. Would have solved a lot of problems we have had this year both with the centre of defence and the left back berth! Yes he had lapses of concentration but they now look minor compared to some of th gaffs from this and last season!

 

[Mellotron]

A real shame that he left. Would have solved a lot of problems we have had this year both with the centre of defence and the left back berth! Yes he had lapses of concentration but they now look minor compared to some of th gaffs from this and last season!

I remember being told quite a few of us were stupid for thinking Joel Lynch was class, and were shouted down when we stated Joel would play at a higher level.

He now starts every game for a Championship side just 4 points from being top.

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

Interesting thread that just returns to the folly of the Wilkins sacking. Such a shame

 

[Austrian Gull]

After seeing what I saw in Saturday, Slade is also contributing to the mess by picking out-of-form and unfit players (Elphick, Navarro) and not playing a natural wide player out left. Let's not forget some of the questionable transfer dealings of the summer and a failure to prepare the team properly.

Adams undoubtedly did a bad job but he cannot be blamed for a lot of what has gone wrong this year.

 

[Behind Enemy Lines]

There are still problems in all areas of the team. The biggest is in the defence which has continued to concede unbelievably soft goals, a hang up from Adams. Now, partly this has been bad luck.. injuries to Whing and particuarly McNulty, have really cost us but also it is a failure to buy an experienced centre half - a wide old head to LEAD the back four which I think can go some way to explain why we've been so bad defensively. The other is poor decision making and just very poor play. What has happened to Tommy Elphick? How can a player look so bad when he looked such a class act two seasons ago? Again, a wide old head to play alongside him may be the answer. Virgo has been a terrible signing, El Abd is not good enough and Tunnicliffe is one for the future. Much work to be done there still.

The midfield is better than last season... Dicker, Crofts and Bennett all look sound acquistions but we still lack creativity and up front the jury's still out on Dickinson. With Forster not scoring at the moment, where are the goals going to come from? Certainly not from Gary Hart. Murray doesn't want to be here and must be sold. A new, pacey striker will have to be found.

You never expect that all of his signings would work but you have to say that out of what 10 ? new players, only 2 or 3 have which, is a poor return when you have had the money to totally re-build the squad.

You might argue that team needs more time to gel but to lose 5 out of 7 home games is just not good enough. We're a third of the way through the season now, it's a results business and Bloom will have to act if we don't beat Hartlepool.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

Not forgetting the promising Joel Lynch who was perfectly happy at the club under Wilkins, then asked to leave when he realised that his new manager thought he was worse at football than COLIN HAWKINS.

I think this is a rewriting of history. I may have the timeline wrong but I think Lynch had also thrown his toys out of the pram when Wilkins was manager.

 

[clippedgull]

I think this is a rewriting of history. I may have the timeline wrong but I think Lynch had also thrown his toys out of the pram when Wilkins was manager.

That's how I remember it too.

 

[El Presidente]

Is this the same Adam Virgo who in his last season for us played as a centre forward and was our leading goalscorer, and whose goals kept us up. He then went to Celtic for three unsuccessful years when he was signed as a right back under Gordon Strachan...........and all of this is the fault of Adams?

 

[El Presidente]

The other is poor decision making and just very poor play. What has happened to Tommy Elphick? How can a player look so bad when he looked such a class act two seasons ago?

...because he had Guy Butters playing alongside him.........who was released by........errr........Dean Wilkins.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

If the problem is what Forster revealed in yesterday's Argus - that only a percentage of the players back the manager - maybe it goes back to before Adams' time.

 

[Gritt23]

Interesting thread that just returns to the folly of the Wilkins sacking. Such a shame

The folly of the Wilkins sacking will hang over us for some time, as a LOT of damage was done by Adams. When holes appeared in the side they were plugged by youngsters from the youth side who already had an understanding with the players in the team because they had grown up together. That has been completely lost, and we are worse because of it.

 

[Gritt23]

...because he had Guy Butters playing alongside him.........who was released by........errr........Dean Wilkins.

And the next day Wilkins was on his way .... so we never really saw what his plan was alongside Elphick, and what experienced CB he may well have had his eyes on.

Medium term though, my money would have been on Lynch. Lynch and Elphick looked like the future for many years at the position, sadly MA thought Hawkins ..... well, we all know the rest.

 

[NMH]

...because he had Guy Butters playing alongside him.........who was released by........errr........Dean Wilkins.

Because Guy was 90, and retirement to his villa was overdue.
You can't blame DW for that!