Andy Munro thinks he may have reached the End of the Road.
If somebody had told me five years ago that Blues would lose 8-0 at home to Bournemouth, I would have definitely thought they’d had one over the eight. Almost suicidal, by the end it was simply embarrassing; the worst game I’ve witnessed down the Blues and after over fifty years of watching far more downs than ups that is saying something. In fact it’s not often you can say that we were lucky to only concede eight but that’s the hard truth of an inept display.
I’ve consoled myself with the fact that 15(?) years ago we won away 7-0 at now-Premier League Stoke and I’m convinced the good times will come again. However, if I’m honest, I think never mind Gary Rowett or Mike Phelan, Jose Mourinho couldn’t save us from relegation and like Wolves a couple of years ago, I think we’ll need to go down before we can gain proper momentum and properly progress. Certainly the job is a poisoned chalice for the incoming manager with the current ruling Chinese junta making Ken Wheldon seem like Father Christmas. So I’m not expecting any turnaround anytime soon, especially with a fixture list from hell coming up.
As to the game, I’m trying to erase it asap from my memory. It has to be said that the referee did us no favours and the sending off was harsh although it can’t be used as an excuse for a gutless performance. Re the (hopefully)interim management some questions have to be asked……with a defence that regularly concedes goals why play Robbo instead of Hall, as a central defender, given the pacy Bournemouth attack? Why play Randolph instead of Doyle when the latter had a fine game in midweek?
Why have the youth and enthusiasm of Reilly and Arthur on the bench? Is Mitch Hancox still alive? Why did Denny Johnstone bother to leave Celtic? Why wasn’t Gray in the squad (‘hopefully’ because of a minor injury). Does Packwood have to pick up his pension before he’s deemed ready to play? When we’re down to ten men, why take off our only pacy forward, albeit a raw player,like Thomas. No way had Donaldson or Novak have the pace to hurt Bournemouth on the break.
The clear fact is that Clark has put together a decidedly average squad (not completely his fault due to lack of resources) and when average players lose confidence they are decidedly poor. Only the right sort of manager can turn those players into something reasonably competent (and that’s all most of them can ever be) by instilling confidence and playing to a pattern and structure. Neither Clark or his caretaker successor (who incidentally looks like the bloke who likes growing veg down the local allotments) have been remotely able to do either.
It’s always fun to name your own side so, as I’m depressed, I deserve to indulge myself accordingly so I would name the following against the Wolves, bearing in mind Edgar will be suspended. Doyle; Caddis,Packwood,Hall, Hancox; Cotterill,Reilly,Davies, Gray; Johnstone, Donaldson.
