Burton Friendly

[HighfieldBlade]

Interesting article from Burton Albion website looking back on John Brayford's career.

https://www.burtonalbionfc.co.uk/news/2025/july/20/long-read-john-brayford/

 

[UTB Blade]

That’s bollocks the fans lost it with him due to his arrogance stubbornness pathetic tactics pathetic team selections and his unprofessional behaviour dragging the club down
Oh and his waste of resources that had all the ability to gain another 10-12 points
The Wilder mark 2 was not Wilder mark 1
It’s the Mark 1 I will be eternally grateful for and respect - Mark 2 wasted a great opportunity and he let us all down

He didn't "let us all down" - he didn't let me down, nor did he let my Dad down, who's been watching, and appreciating, CW since he very first signed on with the club, all those decades ago. That might only make two of us who don't feel "let down" by him, but it's still not "all".

Maybe the people who feel "let down" by CW, are those who lack the capacity to appreciate him and everything he's achieved for this club.
Their loss.

 

[UTB Blade]

A lot of fans didn’t think the same way as you. That’s a shock, isn’t it. Obviously their opinions don’t count for as much as yours so they are bad fans, or “fans” as you put it in a pathetic attempt to belittle. Im sorry you didn’t get your own way, but get over it.

My post wasn't "a pathetic attempt to belittle" anyone.

I put "fans" in quotation marks, as I was quoting the words of the poster I was replying to, just as I've put "a pathetic attempt to belittle" in quotation marks to quote your words, as I'm replying to you.

According to this AI overview of when to use quotation marks, I've used them correctly:

 

[UTB Blade]

I think professional investors that purchase an enterprise for over £100m usually make decisions dispassionately and devoid of emotion. So yes, I think once Wilder wasted valuable resources and ultimately failed to win promotion, the owners would have made their decision regardless of fan opinion. Probably not the best way to run a club anyway, madness of crowds and all that.

You believe fans hounded him out, that is, the board wouldn’t have sacked him if not for fan backlash. Ok that’s your opinion. I have a different one.

I’ve already gone over the reasons why your last paragraph doesn’t tell the whole story. I see no relevance of his achievements in 2017 or 2019, as I say, that version of him is long gone unfortunately.

As you say, we have a difference of opinion. You don't think CW was hounded out, I do. Both opinions are valid, and it matters little now, as he's gone, either way.

It would just have been nice for him to have left under happier circumstances, with the appreciation of the majority of the fan base, rather than their disparagement. However, to reiterate what I put in my post to ATL Recs, above: for all those unwilling or unable to appreciate CW and what he's achieved for this club - their loss.

 

[Blade45]

He didn't "let us all down" - he didn't let me down, nor did he let my Dad down, who's been watching, and appreciating, CW since he very first signed on with the club, all those decades ago. That might only make two of us who don't feel "let down" by him, but it's still not "all".

Maybe the people who feel "let down" by CW, are those who lack the capacity to appreciate him and everything he's achieved for this club.
Their loss.

It's multifaceted in my opinion. I wasn't let down by the entire season in general, I thought we'd get playoffs but likely finish 5th or 6th, and we obviously did a lot better than that. Wilder deserves credit for that part. I don't think many expected us to be challenging for automatic promotion, which we were.

However, our drop-off in form towards the latter stages of the season was disappointing. Losing three on the bounce to Oxford, Millwall, and Plymouth (where Wilder had a go at some Plymouth players committing the crime of celebrating their victory near him) was especially disheartening, because all three should've been victories. Once we lost to Burnley, we had no chance of going up automatically, and whilst we beat Bristol City fairly comfortably, it was all for nothing as we obviously lost in the final. In that sense, I was let down. If Wilder deserves praise for having us top of the table in late March (which he does), he also deserves criticism for how the season finished.

All things considered, I think it was best for both parties to move on. He is rightfully considered a legend of the club, considering how he got us promoted twice in three seasons and had us 9th in the Premier League. I wish him the best with everything moving forwards, and thank him for everything he's done. I'm personally looking forward to the Selles era at the club.

 

[Nick Jansky]

My post wasn't "a pathetic attempt to belittle" anyone.

I put "fans" in quotation marks, as I was quoting the words of the poster I was replying to, just as I've put "a pathetic attempt to belittle" in quotation marks to quote your words, as I'm replying to you.

According to this AI overview of when to use quotation marks, I've used them correctly:
View attachment 217021

A disingenuous reply if ever I saw one.

 

[ATL Recs]

He didn't "let us all down" - he didn't let me down, nor did he let my Dad down, who's been watching, and appreciating, CW since he very first signed on with the club, all those decades ago. That might only make two of us who don't feel "let down" by him, but it's still not "all".

Maybe the people who feel "let down" by CW, are those who lack the capacity to appreciate him and everything he's achieved for this club.
Their loss.

He had his golden period and that period set the club up for where we are now I will be eternally grateful for that period
When he came back he let me down with his blinkered stubborn arrogance and unprofessional behaviour and use of the new owners funds
Now he isn’t one who can move the club forward in any way - stuck in a Basset time warp

 

[A Storm of Blades]

As you say, we have a difference of opinion. You don't think CW was hounded out, I do. Both opinions are valid, and it matters little now, as he's gone, either way.

It would just have been nice for him to have left under happier circumstances, with the appreciation of the majority of the fan base, rather than their disparagement. However, to reiterate what I put in my post to ATL Recs, above: for all those unwilling or unable to appreciate CW and what he's achieved for this club - their loss.

I understand where you’re coming from. I can see the affection you have for Wilder, I did too. There’s a lot of sentimentality in your posts which is fine, in fact it’s quite admirable. Unfortunately, sentiment is not something there’s an abundance of within elite level sport, nor I would suggest in the minds of professionals that just bought a club for £100m.

I think the owners acted ruthlessly but not through the angry lens of a supporter wanting to hound him out, but as cold hard business men, looking at KPIs. They clearly don’t share the same affinity we had with the Wilder years, but then I really don’t want them to.

As I’ve said before, do we want to modernise or not? If we do, we might have to give up the notion of nostalgia and stories of our dads watching with pride as blades supporters come through the ranks to take roles in the club. We might have to become a bit more clinical, international and progressive. If that establishes us as a Premier League club and even win a trophy, I genuinely don’t care if it wasn’t achieved by dye in the wool Blades.

I honestly think the visceral reaction to Wilder’s sacking, the distrust of things like AI etc is in part explained by a fear/dislike in some quarters of anything modern.