So, we're bottom of League Division One ...

[pommpey]

Sorry to emphasise that, but the optimists positing that 'Adkins will sort it' and 'Nige has stuff up his sleeve' had better fucking well hope that Nige has something pretty fucking wonderful in store. I don't have to draw an outline in Berol Magic Marker round the situation shown in the pre-season friendlies where three of the goals scored against us were absolutely, unequivocally down to a back four whose abilities are way, way below what Sheffield United need to get promoted and more importantly, stay promoted.

Like most weeks, just a simple look at Gillingham's goals show everything needed to assess that Collins and McEverley will be the undoing of us. All Gillingham had to do was put the ball in the box at height, and those two were all over the place. It's beyond embarrassing really to consider people think we are 'favourites to go up'. We have been 'favourites to go up' for the past four fucking years. Consider also that in the past two competitive games at this level, we have shipped nine goals, none of them 25 yard screamers or well worked team efforts, most of them bagatelle chances whereby any experienced defence would have intercepted or cleared. I say 'experienced' but that isn't the correct term. We have plenty of 'experience' in the back four but we also have a left back playing centre back, a centre back playing his first competitive game for the best part of a year, a right back who has always been 5/10 and a left back who is actually a left winger, although never in anyone's consistent team lineup.

Since Adkins took over, the weaknesses in the squad have been right there in big fucking letters. We couldn't score goals, we couldn't boss midfield and we couldn't defend. The recipe for our downfall. Sure, we've signed Billy Bladey, Connor Sammon and a Barry Oddnob, but fucking hell ... does it not make sense to plug the leaks in the ship before you start buying shells? My experience in the navy that 'Command Priorities' as we used to call them, were FLOAT - MOVE - FIGHT, basically your warship wasn't much of a fucking warship if it was doing it's warship stuff parked, upside down on the bottom of the ocean. You had to repair the damage - plug the leaks ... fix the engine room ... and fight the war. Currently we are shipping water fast and not moving anywhere before we have even fired the guns. Nigel needs to take fucking note.

In fact, is it Nigel's fault? Yeah, partly. But it is partly the fault of the staff, the overseas advertising consultant opportunists, the twitter buddies and the board that the brief to Nigel when he took the job on wasn't 'ship out the shit first'. I refuse to believe, as cack as Doyle was (at times) and as unfavoured as Ben Davies was, they were our gashest players. We still have a busload of players who really, even Division Two would be a struggle for them.

It's a long season, Bladesmen. Today's massive wakeup call to the Adkins-believers shows that shit that wasn't fixed in the close season and the ghosts in the machine are still haunting us.

pommpey

 

[United Aren't Back.]

Spot on.

 

[SwissBlade]

Excellent post pommpey and probably very sobering for many of the excited ones on here, I've not been one of them for once...

I sent a message to Phipps on Facebook prior to the 5-5 game with Swindon, the summary of which was think long and hard before sacking clough if we lose, have a plan and fix the problems that we have. Sacking a manager is a rebuild job, it means a new man coming in has to learn fast. Whereas clough was aware of the issues and could work on them in the summer... Ie centre halves and Chris o'grady

At the time we didn't know the centre midfield would be ripped apart too.

Phipps' post match tweet was that the result was unexpected. It wasn't. It was entirely expected. Maybe not on day one but it was coming.

Like you say, were shipping water.

 

[super_pig]

if Adkins can pull this off it will be the biggest miracle since that (other) bloke with the beard was doling out free lunches in palestine

 

[Lord Bos of Eckington.]

Excellent post pommpey and probably very sobering for many of the excited ones on here, I've not been one of them for once...

I sent a message to Phipps on Facebook prior to the 5-5 game with Swindon, the summary of which was think long and hard before sacking clough if we lose, have a plan and fix the problems that we have. Sacking a manager is a rebuild job, it means a new man coming in has to learn fast. Whereas clough was aware of the issues and could work on them in the summer... Ie centre halves and Chris o'grady

At the time we didn't know the centre midfield would be ripped apart too.

Phipps' post match tweet was that the result was unexpected. It wasn't. It was entirely expected. Maybe not on day one but it was coming.

Like you say, were shipping water.

Swiss , so what are we saying .

If we kept Clough , he knew the short falls and this then could be the season for promotion.

With Adkins ( although a good manager / positive guy ) we are now a season behind for promotion.

Clough has taken a full season to get to know the league , Adkins will need a season to get to know the league .

Both Clough and Adkins have to go through a learning curve of League 1 . ( Adkins has managed and been succesful in this league , but not recently ,and the league has evolved since his time ).

Are we saying this is not the year for promotion , but next . My own opinion , is this season , we will not get automatic , but play offs at the best.

Just interested

UTB

 

[billyblademan]

Sorry to emphasise that, but the optimists positing that 'Adkins will sort it' and 'Nige has stuff up his sleeve' had better fucking well hope that Nige has something pretty fucking wonderful in store. I don't have to draw an outline in Berol Magic Marker round the situation shown in the pre-season friendlies where three of the goals scored against us were absolutely, unequivocally down to a back four whose abilities are way, way below what Sheffield United need to get promoted and more importantly, stay promoted.

Like most weeks, just a simple look at Gillingham's goals show everything needed to assess that Collins and McEverley will be the undoing of us. All Gillingham had to do was put the ball in the box at height, and those two were all over the place. It's beyond embarrassing really to consider people think we are 'favourites to go up'. We have been 'favourites to go up' for the past four fucking years. Consider also that in the past two competitive games at this level, we have shipped nine goals, none of them 25 yard screamers or well worked team efforts, most of them bagatelle chances whereby any experienced defence would have intercepted or cleared. I say 'experienced' but that isn't the correct term. We have plenty of 'experience' in the back four but we also have a left back playing centre back, a centre back playing his first competitive game for the best part of a year, a right back who has always been 5/10 and a left back who is actually a left winger, although never in anyone's consistent team lineup.

Since Adkins took over, the weaknesses in the squad have been right there in big fucking letters. We couldn't score goals, we couldn't boss midfield and we couldn't defend. The recipe for our downfall. Sure, we've signed Billy Bladey, Connor Sammon and a Barry Oddnob, but fucking hell ... does it not make sense to plug the leaks in the ship before you start buying shells? My experience in the navy that 'Command Priorities' as we used to call them, were FLOAT - MOVE - FIGHT, basically your warship wasn't much of a fucking warship if it was doing it's warship stuff parked, upside down on the bottom of the ocean. You had to repair the damage - plug the leaks ... fix the engine room ... and fight the war. Currently we are shipping water fast and not moving anywhere before we have even fired the guns. Nigel needs to take fucking note.

In fact, is it Nigel's fault? Yeah, partly. But it is partly the fault of the staff, the overseas advertising consultant opportunists, the twitter buddies and the board that the brief to Nigel when he took the job on wasn't 'ship out the shit first'. I refuse to believe, as cack as Doyle was (at times) and as unfavoured as Ben Davies was, they were our gashest players. We still have a busload of players who really, even Division Two would be a struggle for them.

It's a long season, Bladesmen. Today's massive wakeup call to the Adkins-believers shows that shit that wasn't fixed in the close season and the ghosts in the machine are still haunting us.

pommpey

Couldn't have put it better myself. I hope we look back in May and have a little wee-giggle at that lineup, because in no shape or form was that a promotion winning starting XI.

 

[davidpinder]

Excellent post pommpey and probably very sobering for many of the excited ones on here, I've not been one of them for once...

I sent a message to Phipps on Facebook prior to the 5-5 game with Swindon, the summary of which was think long and hard before sacking clough if we lose, have a plan and fix the problems that we have. Sacking a manager is a rebuild job, it means a new man coming in has to learn fast. Whereas clough was aware of the issues and could work on them in the summer... Ie centre halves and Chris o'grady

At the time we didn't know the centre midfield would be ripped apart too.

Phipps' post match tweet was that the result was unexpected. It wasn't. It was entirely expected. Maybe not on day one but it was coming.

Like you say, were shipping water.

By the looks of that post you are trying to say we should of kept Clough? Sorry Swiss but I don't think that would have been the right thing to do. Yes we maybe not have lost 4-0 yesterday but we more than likely would have lost 1 or 2-0 and then heard after the game we lost to a good side and we dominated and were unlucky not to get at least a point. The back 4 would have probably been different yes but what quality would Clough have brought in? Another McEveley? or another full back who can player their?. Adkins said before the game he had hoped a new signing was going to be in place before yesterday but it wasn't, should that signing have been brought in sooner? Yes it should but we were saying the same when Higdon signed last season. Believe it or not that result yesterday might not be a bad thing now the board will see that they need to get off there arse and get the players in instead of fannying about with new sponsors and fancy new dugouts, if they don't then we could have Jose mourinho in charge and would still struggle with that set of players. Players I need to remind you that were mainly cloughs signings or a player whose confidence has completely gone since he was frozen out.

 

[SwissBlade]

Swiss , so what are we saying .

If we kept Clough , he knew the short falls and this then could be the season for promotion.

With Adkins ( although a good manager / positive guy ) we are now a season behind for promotion.

Clough has taken a full season to get to know the league , Adkins will need a season to get to know the league .

Both Clough and Adkins have to go through a learning curve of League 1 . ( Adkins has managed and been succesful in this league , but not recently ,and the league has evolved since his time ).

Are we saying this is not the year for promotion , but next . My own opinion , is this season , we will not get automatic , but play offs at the best.

Just interested

UTB

The point, at the time ( you have to remember that the message to Phipps was whilst clough was still in charge with one game remaining) was that Clough knew the issues, so sacking him removes the one man at the club who knows the weaknesses.

I think you're missing my point slightly as I wasn't comparing Adkins and Clough and nor was I putting timelines onto promotion, since the summer I've given up on promotion, we've no stability at the club and won't have until we address the issues.

Phipps' really has gone down in my estimation and his tweet yesterday sums it up. "Didn't expect that" he said. Well if the club had looked at a single game last season and saw us concede it'll most likely have come from a set piece! Even Adkins seemed bewildered in his interview....

So why, if we sack a manager, do we not focus on the main weakness in the squad?

Ps we will never go up via the play offs. Ever.

 

[SwissBlade]

By the looks of that post you are trying to say we should of kept Clough? Sorry Swiss but I don't think that would have been the right thing to do. Yes we maybe not have lost 4-0 yesterday but we more than likely would have lost 1 or 2-0 and then heard after the game we lost to a good side and we dominated and were unlucky not to get at least a point. The back 4 would have probably been different yes but what quality would Clough have brought in? Another McEveley? or another full back who can player their?. Adkins said before the game he had hoped a new signing was going to be in place before yesterday but it wasn't, should that signing have been brought in sooner? Yes it should but we were saying the same when Higdon signed last season. Believe it or not that result yesterday might not be a bad thing now the board will see that they need to get off there arse and get the players in instead of fannying about with new sponsors and fancy new dugouts, if they don't then we could have Jose mourinho in charge and would still struggle with that set of players. Players I need to remind you that were mainly cloughs signings or a player whose confidence has completely gone since he was frozen out.

Probably reads the wrong way. The intent of the post is that if you sack an intelligent manager, then you remove the one man with the knowledge of what works and what doesn't. The new man needs time to learn about the team and players.

The point was about Jim Phipps being surprised at the outcome yesterday when all he's done this summer is tweet about exciting times, new shit kits and the pitch....

 

[davidpinder]

Probably reads the wrong way. The intent of the post is that if you sack an intelligent manager, then you remove the one man with the knowledge of what works and what doesn't. The new man needs time to learn about the team and players.

The point was about Jim Phipps being surprised at the outcome yesterday when all he's done this summer is tweet about exciting times, new shit kits and the pitch....

Well then we agree as that was my point with the sponsors and fancy dugouts, this board had managed to brain wash businesses and I was one last season into thinking we are a club going forward "look we have a new pitch like Wembley" being installed but they forgot about building a good team to get out of this shit league, forget trying to get to the Premier league, yesterday was one of the most embarrassing results I can ever remember there shouldn't be one club in this league capable of beating us 4-0, this needs addressing on the pitch now not off it wondering who will sponsor each blade of grass.

 

[grafikhaus]

The point, at the time ( you have to remember that the message to Phipps was whilst clough was still in charge with one game remaining) was that Clough knew the issues, so sacking him removes the one man at the club who knows the weaknesses.

Trouble is, Swiss, Clough may have 'known the weaknesses' because he was complicit in causing them in the first place. It's no good speculating what Clough might have done. He had long enough and we were going backwards. davidpinder says 'we may not have lost 4-0 (under Clough) yesterday'. Based on what? Pommpey's excellent Post #1 highlights a chilling fact:

'Consider also that in the past two competitive games at this level, we have shipped nine goals'. So Clough was in charge when we shipped 5 against Swindon.

To continue the 'nautical' theme, we're up the creek without a fucking paddle.

 

[super_pig]

we won't 'play' our way out of this division.. even with a nice pitch to play on it will be a battle.

 

[dingledog]

It's clear that we, as supporters, are seeing things very differently to the club. Hindsight is easy, I worried about yesterday's game, my misgivings came true.we need a new goal keeper and at least two centre backs.

Why hasn't it happened, I can only assume we have no funds to get them. As for squad size, no one would want the players we currently have. So pay them off and get rid. It will be the cheapest option in the long run.

Mr Phipps is quickly losing the confidence of lots of us. His engagement with supporters increasingly looks like a smokescreen. He is a nice bloke, but he is also an employee of the part owner. His commitment to the blades would end if his employers ended. Mine will never end.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

Sorry to emphasise that, but the optimists positing that 'Adkins will sort it' and 'Nige has stuff up his sleeve' had better fucking well hope that Nige has something pretty fucking wonderful in store. I don't have to draw an outline in Berol Magic Marker round the situation shown in the pre-season friendlies where three of the goals scored against us were absolutely, unequivocally down to a back four whose abilities are way, way below what Sheffield United need to get promoted and more importantly, stay promoted.

Like most weeks, just a simple look at Gillingham's goals show everything needed to assess that Collins and McEverley will be the undoing of us. All Gillingham had to do was put the ball in the box at height, and those two were all over the place. It's beyond embarrassing really to consider people think we are 'favourites to go up'. We have been 'favourites to go up' for the past four fucking years. Consider also that in the past two competitive games at this level, we have shipped nine goals, none of them 25 yard screamers or well worked team efforts, most of them bagatelle chances whereby any experienced defence would have intercepted or cleared. I say 'experienced' but that isn't the correct term. We have plenty of 'experience' in the back four but we also have a left back playing centre back, a centre back playing his first competitive game for the best part of a year, a right back who has always been 5/10 and a left back who is actually a left winger, although never in anyone's consistent team lineup.

Since Adkins took over, the weaknesses in the squad have been right there in big fucking letters. We couldn't score goals, we couldn't boss midfield and we couldn't defend. The recipe for our downfall. Sure, we've signed Billy Bladey, Connor Sammon and a Barry Oddnob, but fucking hell ... does it not make sense to plug the leaks in the ship before you start buying shells? My experience in the navy that 'Command Priorities' as we used to call them, were FLOAT - MOVE - FIGHT, basically your warship wasn't much of a fucking warship if it was doing it's warship stuff parked, upside down on the bottom of the ocean. You had to repair the damage - plug the leaks ... fix the engine room ... and fight the war. Currently we are shipping water fast and not moving anywhere before we have even fired the guns. Nigel needs to take fucking note.

In fact, is it Nigel's fault? Yeah, partly. But it is partly the fault of the staff, the overseas advertising consultant opportunists, the twitter buddies and the board that the brief to Nigel when he took the job on wasn't 'ship out the shit first'. I refuse to believe, as cack as Doyle was (at times) and as unfavoured as Ben Davies was, they were our gashest players. We still have a busload of players who really, even Division Two would be a struggle for them.

It's a long season, Bladesmen. Today's massive wakeup call to the Adkins-believers shows that shit that wasn't fixed in the close season and the ghosts in the machine are still haunting us.

pommpey

There are times Pommpey when you have gone overboard (not a pun!) but you have got it spot on NOW with Adkins.

I think I will be joining you this season as an attack dog unless something is sorted.

Being Pro Clough I "expected" our problems of recent seasons to be addressed, whilst some were and I am sure Clough had the best intentions, ultimately they were not.

Adkins has picked up exactly where Clough left off - not addressing the key and fundamental issues. The mistake he made was wiping everyone's slate clean - he said it and now he has to stick with it. Just a massive error on his part yet we will probably get up and down performances until he eventually decides that a lot of the squad are NGE.

Now, I am going on the attack about Baxter - if there are people on here that want to defend Baxter then please do - for me he will never ever be our quarter back - our puppet master who pulls the strings for our other players. Sorry, just an opinion and the fact he can pass a ball sweetly is just not the only requirement. He is just a pretty player, you have to be totally effective in central midfield for 90 minutes.

We need to sort central defence NOW, we have a RB who simply doesn't know how to defend consistently and we are now devoid of left backs. We also need to sort central Midfield - NOW. Once again, like last year it appears as though pre-season has been an utter waste of time.

UTB

 

[SwissBlade]

A few of you are missing the point entirely.

In this thread, at least it's not a point about keeping clough but it's about having that knowledge of what we needed to improve...

Jim Phipps' surprise when we've done nothing defensively in the transfer market has ignored the last seasons issues entirely.

 

[sheffielder]

We're only 3 points off top spot.

 

[him behind you]

Well then we agree as that was my point with the sponsors and fancy dugouts, this board had managed to brain wash businesses and I was one last season into thinking we are a club going forward "look we have a new pitch like Wembley" being installed but they forgot about building a good team to get out of this shit league, forget trying to get to the Premier league, yesterday was one of the most embarrassing results I can ever remember there shouldn't be one club in this league capable of beating us 4-0, this needs addressing on the pitch now not off it wondering who will sponsor each blade of grass.

Not arguing with you Dave but I do disagree with one thing you say. There is absolutely no reason why we shouldn't be beaten 4-0 by any club in league 1. We have to accept that we are a league 1 side and, over the last couple of years, have filled a squad with players who are OK at that level at best. We are where we are on merit. No amount of investment will have any impact on that without a manager who is able to recruit players who are better than that or who can play in a system which works for their abilities - We have to hope that Adkins is capable of this because Clough showed that he wasn't. We have to accept that this is where we are, failure to do so makes us sound like our porcine neighbours up near Barnsley.

 

[grafikhaus]

Hindsight is easy.

But is it hindsight? Yesterday's result reminded me of Sept. 14, 2010 at home to Scunthorpe in the Championship. We'd finished just outside the play-offs the previous season and optimism was high. 0-1 down at half-time, we lost 0-4. After the game, all the talk was about 'how well we'd played'. It was early in the season. No need to panic. Well, we finished second-bottom. Scunthorpe finished bottom. Does anybody think Gillingham are going to 'do a Bristol' this season? Me neither. In fact, I'd bet Port Vale beat them next Saturday.

Not 'hindsight'. Just a massive wake-up call. Again.

As for squad size, no one would want the players we currently have. So pay them off and get rid. It will be the cheapest option in the long run.

Now you're just being silly. Don't you know the 'cheapest option in the long run' is to sell Maguire, McDonald, Lowton, the Kyles etc. The proof is in the pudding.

 

[metalblade]

You do all know that since we were in the Premiership we have had a complete change of personnel at the club with one or two very notable exceptions, I wonder when the Prince with begin to realise someone has had his pants down, seems to me like he will be bearing the brunt of buying our way out of the shit while the rest smile and tell us how big a blade they are.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

You do all know that since we were in the Premiership we have had a complete change of personnel at the club with one or two very notable exceptions, I wonder when the Prince with begin to realise someone has had his pants down, seems to me like he will be bearing the brunt of buying our way out of the shit while the rest smile and tell us how big a blade they are.

Can we not leave McCabe out of this.

Players and managerial staff are to blame - not McCabe.

UTB

 

[Edinblade]

Clough knew we had no CB's at the start of last season and failed to sort it for the whole season.
Adkins knew we had no CB's the day of his appointment. He's even made one of last seasons makeshift CB's captain. I find this impossible to understand. If he doesn't have it sorted then this season is a relegation scrap.
So many posts I've read for the last 12 months have banged on about CB's.
Can someone tell my why it's not been sorted, it's not rocket science.

 

[metalblade]

Can we not leave McCabe out of this.

Players and managerial staff are to blame - not McCabe.

UTB

Like it or not it is true, one guy has been here for a fair while and should have a clue, the other guy and his American sidekick are new to this game and haven't, they like it or not are on a very steep learning curve.

 

[travellingblade]

We're only 3 points off top spot.

But with a -8 goal difference (after one game)

 

[Worksop II]

I think you are all forgetting the impact the Desso Pitch and New Dugouts (headrests dont you know) are going to have

At least we should see their impact on the Team performance before kicking off

Also I have ITK info about a new remote control for the Big Screen

No patience some fuckers

 

[dingledog]

It's not a blame thing, it's people's heartfelt observations and past experience. The only people who consistently deserve credit are the long suffering supporters.

I got the impression from his radio interview that the manager was somewhat gobsmacked at what he had witnessed and he was hurting as well. As for the players same owd I think.

 

[dingledog]

Forgot to add. We are bottom of the league on merit. Remember the table doesn't lie.

 

[davidpinder]

Not arguing with you Dave but I do disagree with one thing you say. There is absolutely no reason why we shouldn't be beaten 4-0 by any club in league 1. We have to accept that we are a league 1 side and, over the last couple of years, have filled a squad with players who are OK at that level at best. We are where we are on merit. No amount of investment will have any impact on that without a manager who is able to recruit players who are better than that or who can play in a system which works for their abilities - We have to hope that Adkins is capable of this because Clough showed that he wasn't. We have to accept that this is where we are, failure to do so makes us sound like our porcine neighbours up near Barnsley.

Sorry what I should have said is, we should have built a side that should never be being beat 4-0 by a team in this league if we want promotion. Can't recall BC losing 4-0 last season to a side like Gillingham.

 

[him behind you]

Sorry what I should have said is, we should have built a side that should never be being beat 4-0 by a team in this league if we want promotion. Can't recall BC losing 4-0 last season to a side like Gillingham.

That makes more sense mate. I never had you as one of those "we're a big club therefore we should....." people so was surprised with how I read it.

 

[Bartleby]

Adkins has picked up exactly where Clough left off - not addressing the key and fundamental issues. The mistake he made was wiping everyone's slate clean - he said it and now he has to stick with it. Just a massive error on his part ...

I don't think the wiping the slate thing is fundamentally wrong in itself, and I don't think it means Adkins is blind to the problems in defence - I would think that he is addressing this and apparently he was hoping to have signed a centre half before yesterday (source Andy Giddings on twitter). Also the stuff he said post-match about set pieces he also said earlier in the summer - he mentioned needing the height etc to handle them at both ends of the pitch - so he is aware of this (whereas Clough's ludicrous "solution" to that problem was that we shouldn't give away free kicks and corners in the first place and to blame those that did for the resulting goals we gave away).

In the meantime as we wait hopefully for some signings before the end of the window, he did seem genuinely surprised about the defensive capitulation. I would hope the assumption from that is that they have actually worked on defending set pieces and displayed some evidence in training of being able to, but that the players forgot. Basham said the team lacked heart (giddings again) which maybe backs that up.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

I don't think the wiping the slate thing is fundamentally wrong in itself, and I don't think it means Adkins is blind to the problems in defence - I would think that he is addressing this and apparently he was hoping to have signed a centre half before yesterday (source Andy Giddings on twitter). Also the stuff he said post-match about set pieces he also said earlier in the summer - he mentioned needing the height etc to handle them at both ends of the pitch - so he is aware of this (whereas Clough's ludicrous "solution" to that problem was that we shouldn't give away free kicks and corners in the first place and to blame those that did for the resulting goals we gave away).

In the meantime as we wait hopefully for some signings before the end of the window, he did seem genuinely surprised about the defensive capitulation. I would hope the assumption from that is that they have actually worked on defending set pieces and displayed some evidence in training of being able to, but that the players forgot. Basham said the team lacked heart (giddings again) which maybe backs that up.

Wiping the slate clean with players that are NGE for this division is only going to get Adkins the sack in 10 months time.

If the players aren't good enough and Adkins believes he and his management team can make them better, then a genuine good luck to them.

My answer to that is by the time they find out, it will be too late for this season (again) and we will be playing catch up all season (again)

It is ok having a look at lets say Baxter, it is another having a look at the centre halves - a situation that i would have expected Morgan to have marked Adkins card about.

Adkins could have had a coffee with a few thousand Blades and would have receive the same answer - it is so obvious.

If we do not solve the CH problem we are going to get more results like Gillingham.

UTB