Secretchief's Realistic Weir Wishlist

[secretchief]

Below I offer some thoughts on some realistic things I'd like to see Weir do. You may notice that a lot of these points include things which used to bug me about Wilson and which I believe held us back. Feel free to comment/add your own.

1. Play wingers on the correct wings. The job of a winger is primarily to beat his man on the outside, get to the byline and deliver a cross. Medieval I know, but it’s better than having them cutting inside all the time. I will admit that this sort of worked when we had Blackman, who liked to beat people, cut inside, skirt the 18 yard box and have a crack. But it was insane to persevere with it when no-one else was interested in or capable of doing it.

2. Keep an eye on contracts. I don’t expect you to sit there and thrash out every detail, but if you are signing someone who is, say, 89 years old and we are allowing them optional extensions, put a stop to it. As we have seen over the past four years, this is profoundly detrimental to the aspiration of building a proper team. We are not run for the convenience of our players.

3. The board are going to sell our best players, usually at the first opportunity. Be mentally strong. Don’t use it as an excuse to fail. I know that when McCabe sells our best players it send the signal that failure is ok and it’s acceptable to muddle through and be mediocre. Try not to let the team internalise this.

4. Bring in players on the basis of youth, pace, and power, not ‘experience’, whatever that is. If we need experience so badly, put yourself on the team sheet, don't bring in people we are going to have to release immediately. Short-termism must stop.

5. Can we have genuine, not token, attempts to bring youth through. We now know that keeping DeGirolamo under wraps was the wrong thing to do. Even if it reveals that they may not be good enough (Ironside looks like he might go either way), at least it gives us the benefit of an honest appraisal. Youth does not equal ‘emergency cover’.

6. No more first half non performances, please. Try and win the game for all of the game, not the last 45 minutes. I have no clue as to why this occurred so frequently under Wilson.

7. No more apologism for poor performances. If we get battered and put in an unacceptable performance, say so. The players won’t melt. Fundamentally, your job is set the bar high and never ever let that standard drop.

8. The captain is not immune to being dropped if his contribution is inadequate or unacceptable. In fact you may want to select a new captain. To be honest, I think the ball winner/flair player and target man/shadow striker binaries are a bit outdated anyway. McDonald is a deep lying playmaker. Getting him to score goals, despite what people think, is not going to solve every problem we have. With the right wingers and a box-to-boxer behind him (plus some aggressive pushing on from full-backs), we can build a team around him.

9. That reminds me. Forward thinking and running from full-backs. They won't disintegrate if they cross the halfway line.

10. Appraise the dross ruthlessly and try to move it on. Unless you are a motivational genius, offering Williams a clean slate/olive branch isn’t going to help matters.


11. Most fundamentally, goals. If Porter plays a large part in the season, we will not get near the promotion places. This is a fact. No tolerance for strikers who can’t score.

 

[broomhillblade]

Below I offer some thoughts on some realistic things I'd like to see Weir do. .

Hey Jimmy... who are you calling a Weirdo?

 

[dingledog]

Can't argue with that. Would perhaps something about getting the players fit. We all know that it's a long season, but it's their job, they should be fit enough to last the whole season.

 

[Ted Danson]

I hope he doesnt fold his arms

 

[secretchief]

Fitness is a good one. I would take them to a remote Scottish island and make them catch fish and build fires to create team spirit too. It will be character building, especially if there are midges.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

I hope he doesnt fold his arms

Oh dear, I've never seen such a passionless display

 

[raul]

12 - Bring in your own people, prioritise with a fitness coach.

 

[Ted Danson]

Oh dear, I've never seen such a passionless display

View attachment 5966

Thats it then, I'm not setting foot in BL until that he unfolds his arms.

McCabe isnt getting another penny of mine.

 

[Hartley Hare]

Good points Secret, count me in to that brief.

 

[CG Blade]

Good appraisal, go to the top of the class Better article than he could produce....

 

[puppet]

Everybody who bashes Porter yet hails the loss of Miller's brief burst of form tends to forget his best games were playing off porter, who also looked a different player again himself.

 

[Pinchy]

12 - Bring in your own people, prioritise with a fitness coach.

Oh, go on then, just for you.

 

[Pinchy]

Bring in players on the basis of youth, pace, and power, not ‘experience’, whatever that is.

If you don't know what it is, you haven't got any. When you do get some, you'll realise it's value. It's that quality that enables you to say "I know what to do in this situation - I've done it many times before".

I note the usual omission of ability from the checklist. It's the Bladesfans' Way.

Can we have genuine, not token, attempts to bring youth through. We now know that keeping DeGirolamo under wraps was the wrong thing to do. Even if it reveals that they may not be good enough (Ironside looks like he might go either way), at least it gives us the benefit of an honest appraisal. Youth does not equal ‘emergency cover’.

In other words, select young players on the basis of youth alone, whether or not they are good enough? It's professional football - not the X Factor!

No tolerance for strikers who can’t score

Except non-scorer Ironside, because he's young?

 

[secretchief]

Bring in players on the basis of youth, pace, and power, not ‘experience’, whatever that is.

If you don't know what it is, you haven't got any. When you do get some, you'll realise it's value. It's that quality that enables you to say "I know what to do in this situation - I've done it many times before".

I note the usual omission of ability from the checklist. It's the Bladesfans' Way.

Can we have genuine, not token, attempts to bring youth through. We now know that keeping DeGirolamo under wraps was the wrong thing to do. Even if it reveals that they may not be good enough (Ironside looks like he might go either way), at least it gives us the benefit of an honest appraisal. Youth does not equal ‘emergency cover’.

In other words, select young players on the basis of youth alone, whether or not they are good enough? It's professional football - not the X Factor!

No tolerance for strikers who can’t score

Except non-scorer Ironside, because he's young?

a) Experience seldom seems to translate to tangible results on the field, and I really mean 'players who are past it but who are considered to have valuable mental attributes by virtue of having a long career'. If the official club policy is to buy players who may have sell on value (and it definitely is), greyhairs aren't the way to go.

b) I have no problem adding ability to the list. Lumping me in with people who (euphemistically) prefer 'passion, commitment, effort etc' (what you would call the Hoofwaffe), is misguided and unfair. All I am saying is that it can be difficult to unearth young, complete players at this level. Of course we should go for players with ability.

c) I never said we should select players on the basis of youth alone. Your 'in other words' is not a fair description of what I said - again, you misrepresent me. But pretty much all of our players are not very good. I'd sooner play younger ones who have a chance of developing, than older ones who won't.

d) I actually don't think Ironside will make it and I don't think it's good enough, but I don't want to write him off on a public forum. He is still young, he may improve, we won't know unless he gets a few more games. Ok, he lacks pace and composure and he shouldn't be indulged for too long before achieving something (a goal, for example). A loan move would definitely be in order if we had enough players.

I generally agree with what you say, Pinchy, but I think you misinterpreted a lot of this. We might disagree on the value of 'experience' but that's about it in reality.

 

[Pinchy]

a) Experience seldom seems to translate to tangible results on the field, and I really mean 'players who are past it but who are considered to have valuable mental attributes by virtue of having a long career'. If the official club policy is to buy players who may have sell on value (and it definitely is), greyhairs aren't the way to go.

b) I have no problem adding ability to the list. Lumping me in with people who (euphemistically) prefer 'passion, commitment, effort etc' (what you would call the Hoofwaffe), is misguided and unfair. All I am saying is that it can be difficult to unearth young, complete players at this level. Of course we should go for players with ability.

c) I never said we should select players on the basis of youth alone. Your 'in other words' is not a fair description of what I said - again, you misrepresent me. But pretty much all of our players are not very good. I'd sooner play younger ones who have a chance of developing, than older ones who won't.

d) I actually don't think Ironside will make it and I don't think it's good enough, but I don't want to write him off on a public forum. He is still young, he may improve, we won't know unless he gets a few more games. Ok, he lacks pace and composure and he shouldn't be indulged for too long before achieving something (a goal, for example). A loan move would definitely be in order if we had enough players.

I generally agree with what you say, Pinchy, but I think you misinterpreted a lot of this. We might disagree on the value of 'experience' but that's about it in reality.

You've redeemed yourself with that phrase alone, particularly in rightly identifying some familiar euphemisms often used on here to justify very poor footballers

 

[Bladesway]

1. Play wingers on the correct wings. The job of a winger is primarily to beat his man on the outside, get to the byline and deliver a cross. Medieval I know, but it’s better than having them cutting inside all the time. I will admit that this sort of worked when we had Blackman, who liked to beat people, cut inside, skirt the 18 yard box and have a crack. But it was insane to persevere with it when no-one else was interested in or capable of doing it. I expect a manager to know the best positions for players. He knows the tactics best etc etc. I want wingers to turn a man (different to beating him) hit the byline and cross back toward onrushing strikers. This has created more goals and opportunities than any other single activity I have ever seen on a football field.

2. Keep an eye on contracts. I don’t expect you to sit there and thrash out every detail, but if you are signing someone who is, say, 89 years old and we are allowing them optional extensions, put a stop to it. As we have seen over the past four years, this is profoundly detrimental to the aspiration of building a proper team. We are not run for the convenience of our players. Do you think no one else has done this before? Its about balance. We need some experience, especially if we are going to go down the kids route. If the manager is given the freedom to keep young, good players (and this is central to everything) then he needs experience to compliment it. Problem is, when you sell all the young players in January what are you left with?

3. The board are going to sell our best players, usually at the first opportunity. Be mentally strong. Don’t use it as an excuse to fail. I know that when McCabe sells our best players it send the signal that failure is ok and it’s acceptable to muddle through and be mediocre. Try not to let the team internalise this. Sorry but this is the cause of failure. It is why Blackwell and Wilson both failed. Good players sold replaced by shit. Its not an excuse when its a fact.

4. Bring in players on the basis of youth, pace, and power, not ‘experience’, whatever that is. If we need experience so badly, put yourself on the team sheet, don't bring in people we are going to have to release immediately. Short-termism must stop. See my point 2.

5. Can we have genuine, not token, attempts to bring youth through. We now know that keeping DeGirolamo under wraps was the wrong thing to do. Even if it reveals that they may not be good enough (Ironside looks like he might go either way), at least it gives us the benefit of an honest appraisal. Youth does not equal ‘emergency cover’. We don't know that keeping Jeronimo was the wrong thing to do at all. What has he proven? I know, he has a fancy foreign name, but if his name was John Smith would we be making the same overtures about him? Bruno Riberio was a fancy name, but he was shit. If you throw a kid in to prove him and he screws up, it may break his career. I believe these people know what they are doing. I believe Wilson knew what he was doing. I don't however believe Morgan did and that is why we threw kids on the pitch, just to placate the fans. Its about balance.

6. No more first half non performances, please. Try and win the game for all of the game, not the last 45 minutes. I have no clue as to why this occurred so frequently under Wilson. How long have you supported the blades? I struggle to remember the last time we played well for 90 minutes. If we go in 3 up at half time we usually make a horlicks of it 2nd half and cling on.

7. No more apologism for poor performances. If we get battered and put in an unacceptable performance, say so. The players won’t melt. Fundamentally, your job is set the bar high and never ever let that standard drop. His job is to manage the players to the best interests of Sheffield United. If you think lambasting them in the media works, I'm afraid you are wrong. Its gratifying for us to have blood on the carpet I know, but we don't have the power in this relationship I'm afraid. Even at League One its the players.

8. The captain is not immune to being dropped if his contribution is inadequate or unacceptable. In fact you may want to select a new captain. To be honest, I think the ball winner/flair player and target man/shadow striker binaries are a bit outdated anyway. McDonald is a deep lying playmaker. Getting him to score goals, despite what people think, is not going to solve every problem we have. With the right wingers and a box-to-boxer behind him (plus some aggressive pushing on from full-backs), we can build a team around him. KMac is an over rated show pony in my estimation. Flatters to deceive and goes AWOL too often. Totally disagree we could/would/should build a team around a lazy do nothing. If he starts showing willing however, I would do a 180 on that.

9. That reminds me. Forward thinking and running from full-backs. They won't disintegrate if they cross the halfway line. Yep, bang on.

10. Appraise the dross ruthlessly and try to move it on. Unless you are a motivational genius, offering Williams a clean slate/olive branch isn’t going to help matters. You are picking on individuals here and I don't agree. You don't like Williams and thats fine (you don't care for Porter either looking at it). I believe that the Manager knows who he wants and where he wants them to play. If he gets it right we succeed (as a team) if he gets it wrong he gets the sack. In fact in Wilsons case even if he gets it right he gets the sack.


11. Most fundamentally, goals. If Porter plays a large part in the season, we will not get near the promotion places. This is a fact. No tolerance for strikers who can’t score. Horseshit based on your not liking an individual. He can score and has scored. He has also played link up and battering ram. Some people may not understand his role but with the right people around him (think team again) he can put the ball in the net. Remember Andy Gray? Slow, useless, all he did was score goals? Put him up front with Kitson however and he is always going to struggle.

All in all I would say you want to be Manager yourself. Most observations state the obvious and there is nothing here groundbreaking.

What we actually need is a clear and long term plan backed by an Owner/Board who won't go mental mid season and sell all the best players. It really is that simple. Had he not done that we would be in the Championship by now, end of.

 

[secretchief]

Ok, a few responses to Bladesway.

1) Yes, we expect managers to know the best positions for their players. And yet Wilson played Williams on the left wing and even, on (I think one) occasion, Squinny on the right. We had Blackman as a striker and then on the right wing. Which was his best position? Why did he change it if he knew which was best? What's Murphy's best position, winger or striker?

2) We've got experience coming out of our ears, we don't need to sign any more 30+ olds. When you sell your best young players in January you are left with eldery dross. No argument there, agree 100%.

3) Yes, it's a cause of failure. Of course I agree. Selling our best players and replacing them with poor ones is stupid, shortsighted and self-defeating. It's the single most dominant factor responsible for our decline and continually sabotages our attempts to improve. But while McCabe is in charge he is going to do it every chance he gets and twice on Sundays. He will never stop, change his mind, or reverse this policy. These are 'realistic' proposals, they are based on the position we are in. This is going to keep happening. As long as it does, the manager and playing staff need a determined response. Admittedly this one is wishful thinking.

4) Interesting you should mention Bruno Ribiero. Warnock says he was the most talented player he ever had but he sold him as soon as he could because he didn't have a muck-and-nettles attitude. The guy wasn't 'shit'. As to DeGirolamo, he has international pedigree. What is he going to have 'proven' in the youth team or under 21s? How is he going to prove anything unless he plays? I don't understand. If you don't play youngsters until they are 'proven' no youngsters would ever play. And we know it was wrong not to play him because our attack was pedestrian and floundering and he can offer something different. Anyway DeG is just an example. It could have been anyone, no matter what his name was. Who cares what he is called?

5) I have supported the blades since my first match at 5 and I am now 33. One of my first games was blowing a 3-0 lead at home to Reading. But in all that time I have never encountered so many pisspoor first halves as last season. It wasn't an accident, it was systemic.

6) It's ok to defend players and performances in the media and do the talking in the dressing room, whatever. This isn't a big deal. I don't know if you can definitively say that home truths don't work. They can, on occasion.

7) Agree to disagree on Kmac

8) Williams is just an example, there are four or five who could be moved on. Yes, I am picking on individuals, individuals who aren't good enough who shouldn't have been offered contracts but were because the management thought they were better than they are.

9) Porter's goalscoring record is poor, check the stats. He has 8 in 55 appearances. That's one every 7 games. What's this he can score and has scored stuff?

I'm not saying they are groundbreaking points, they are commonsense observations which could improve on what we have been doing. Until we get new ownership, which may never happen, our players are always going to be sold for short-term profit. This is about adapting to those circumstances because if we don't, we'll tank, if indeed we haven't already.

 

[UnitedBlade]

What an excellent post, Secretchief, can’t disagree with any of it. I have a couple of other suggestions.

1. Play wingers on the correct wings. The job of a winger is primarily to beat his man on the outside, get to the byline and deliver a cross.

One thing Weir said last night was that he was a big fan of wingers getting their crosses into the box and forwards busting a gut to get on the end of the crosses. Halle bloody lujah at last we might see the end of our recently ineffective wingers. I agree we should start the wingers on the “right” side. I very much doubt McFadzean had ever played on the right wing before being brought into the side. I have no problem with them switching occasionally

2. Keep an eye on contracts. optional extensions. We are not run for the convenience of our players.

Yes

3. The board are going to sell our best players. Be mentally strong.

Again yes. Our downfall has been the complete inability to replace with anyone suitable. Wilson saying “I promise you Forte will score goals” didn’t help – he wasn’t the right replacement for Blackman but maybe he thought he was going to be allowed to hold on to Blackman. Either way, can’t be an excuse for what we saw after Christmas.

4. Bring in players on the basis of youth, pace, and power, not ‘experience’.

Yes. The term “experience” drives you mad. Experience and good is fine. Experience but well over the hill is not

5. Can we have genuine, not token, attempts to bring youth through.

People moaned and moaned about Diego probably not being ready (mainly on Mad and mostly by people who had never seen him) but I promise you he was ready and should have been playing much earlier. We had plenty of opportunities to give the youngsters good time off the bench but Wilson didn’t do it. It will be very interesting to see how Weir deploys subs – who, when and in which circumstances. Sadly Diego probably is someone who won't play for us for long as he has the ability to play at a much higher level.

6. No more first half non performances, please. Try and win the game for all of the game.

Drives me spare. Also let’s ban “keeping the ball” when we are one up. We are fucking useless at keeping it effectively, so go for another goal. This is supposed to be entertainment.

7. No more apologism for poor performances.
8. The captain is not immune to being dropped

Yes

9. That reminds me. Forward thinking and running from full-backs. They won't disintegrate if they cross the halfway line.

Yes, but see your point on wingers, they need to be able to cross the ball effectively in the last third. Send them off to Mr Lowton for a masterclass.

10. Appraise the dross ruthlessly and try to move it on. Unless you are a motivational genius, offering Williams a clean slate/olive branch isn’t going to help matters.

Williams, Porter and Cresswell have to go in my opinion

11. Most fundamentally, goals. If Porter plays a large part in the season, we will not get near the promotion places. This is a fact. No tolerance for strikers who can’t score

YEEESSSSSSS

Other points I would like to add

12) Once and for all can we sort out Corners and Free Kicks. I recognise McMahon scored a couple of crackers but what about the rest of the season.

13) I am sick to death of watching centre forwards falling over trying to get free kicks (Kitson and Cresswell mainly but Blackman was doing it at the end of his stay). Tell them to try and do something positive and if they continue Fine them and Drop them. Sick of it.

UTB

 

[Bladesway]

Fair comments SC, thats what its all about.

RE Porter. Scored at previous clubs and everything I see from him shows a guy who is selfless and will put himself about for the team. With a lump alongside him I agree he is limited (which is why I wouldn't have sold Blackman) but you put someone like Kabba alongside him and he is next seasons HMS. He creates space and room for those around him and makes intelligent runs for others to exploit.

Oh and the individuals aren't as important as the team. That team could have got promoted under Wilson, even after the Blackman sale. Look where we were with 5 games to go.

 

[secretchief]

Cheers Bladesway,

Granted, Porter's pre-Derby record is impressive, but I don't think those days are coming back. And yes, when partnered with Miller he put in his most productive performances. If we actually had wingers (remember them?) who could put the ball on his head, who knows. As with McD, agree to differ.

I agree the team is important! That's why they should be assembling a hut on the isle of Skye, fishing and building character!