Post by bowranger on May 10, 2018 12:39:35 GMT
That was a summation that I think(!) echos my views!
Was I pleased when we appointed Ollie? NO, not by a long way.
Has Ollie exceeded my expectations on his return? YES, & by a fair bit.
Would it be unfair to dismiss Ollie now? Certainly. He has fully met his remit.
Do I think he would be the right manager for us to progress? Hmm, I'm far from convinced. My heart says that he has earned the right to be given the chance to achieve this. My head queries if he has the ability to manage a steady improvement as his reign is frequently a roller coaster. His loss percentage since his return is also very worrying, which is just a tad under 50%. Of 76 league games played we have lost 37, which appears to me to be well above expectation.
Am I concerned if Ollie goes? Definitely. The togetherness of the squad that we had in the season just finished might be at risk with a change of management. However, this may also be at risk whenever Ollie publicly slates/demeans individual players (and he has a habit of doing this).
Would I be concerned if our management were not dyed in the wool Rangers men? Not at all! This is of minimal value & an irrelevance compared to selecting the right person. There is also only Ollie IMO that could fit this bill. I would rule Ainsworth out of this equation due to reports on how "agricultural" his playing style has been at Wycombe.
Would I be happy with McLaren in charge? Hmm! I certainly would prefer him to any of the usual crop of suspects whose names are floated. Why you may ask & I couldn't give a reason apart from it would feel right to me! However, I would hope that if we are changing, due consideration was given to some managers that are currently employed in lower divisions. Without looking up names, I would offer the incumbents of Wigan, Shrewsbury, Exeter & Lincoln as possibilities. Others may be equally qualified!
Do I think that now would be the right time for a change? Another hmm! IF I felt convinced that Ollie would be retained for the whole of next season, then I would say that he should be allowed to see out his contract. However, with the current speculation I'm not sure that is a possibility (let alone a probability).
Would I feel upset for Ollie? Upset - NO. Sorry for him - YES. It would not compare to how I felt when Gregory dismissed/replaced Stock & Jago. A long time ago, but it shows that the major decisions never alter!
All good - reading that it looks like we're pretty much on the same wavelength on this!
That's also a really good point in terms of timing and Ollie's potential lifespan should be kept on now - I hadn't really thought of it that way. There's the possibility now that the board have made it fairly clear that they aren't 100% confident in Ollie being at the helm, to the extent that it's gone beyond the usual 'we review all roles at the club at the end of the season' chat. So with that in mind, I'd actually be pretty worried about us keeping him on and then the board getting itchy trigger fingers in winter if things aren't as they'd hope - I'd probably take a managerial risk in early Summer over a rise in the likelihood of us chucking Ollie out the door mid-season.
For me, if Ollie is to stay, it needs to be for the remainder of his contract with the appropriate backing or not at all (pending some kind of apocalyptic downturn in form).
