Personally I wouldn’t sack him

I think people are missing the glaringly obvious mistakes from Clarke that show his lack of nouse to be in this position.

• Playing O’Keeffe week in week out
• Playing Connell further up the field
• Not playing Nwakali (although he was cack yesterday)
• Daft substitutions most games (yesterdays were the worst of the season)
• Slagging players off to the press
• Set piece defending tactics
• Playing a high line against Man Utd
• Playing O’Keeffe every game

 

The alternative to O'Keefe is Cotter. I'd go O'Keefe every time.

 

This all goes to show how poor our recruitment is.

easy to see why FGR went down so easily with O’Keefe in the side.

 

No doubt. But then folk need to start looking more at our recruitment these last three years than at Clarke.

 

I’ve just seen the highlights and they are shocking goals. I’ve not seen the game so can’t judge performance personally, but losing by 4 at home to one of the weaker teams will have alarm bells ringing.

I don’t disagree that Clarke hasn’t been given a good squad, but he’s not developing, motivating, stabilising or improving.

Do I think a different coach could do better with these players. Probably. Do I think Clarke would do better with better players? I’m not sure.

Whether it’s the right call or not, I’m fully expecting Clarke to be sacked after such a result in such a gutless chaotic manner.

 

I don’t think we’d gain much sacking DC if I’m honest. We’re where we are because of terrible recruitment and it’s going to be a long haul to get out of the mess we’re in. Problem is that we keep making the same mistakes every time so I’ve no faith we’ll learn and build it better next time.
That said, I think a poor festive period and he’ll be gone. Season tickets have got to be sold for next term in a few weeks time. Good luck with that one…..

 

I expect him to be sacked too. But the type of manager we need to take control of taking this group of misfits, being pragmatic and finding ways to win won't be interested.

I'd go Mick McCarthy tomorrow BTW.

 

I wouldn’t. As I said yesterday, Cotter is crap but he’s 10 x better than O’Keeffe, who I think is one of the worst players I’ve ever seen in a Barnsley team.

Don't know where people get this better defender lark from. He’s made of straw, gives the ball away in dangerous positions, doesn’t really get round the back of defences at the other end of the pitch and is basically a liability.

He must have a great agent though, getting us to agree to a 4 year contract.

I agree completely about our recruitment though, it’s been a crock of ****. But Clarke picks the team and the tactics and he’s accountable for it.

The squad is still better than the majority of this division, it’s still a top 6 team in terms of wages etc but we look completely devoid of any plan. It’s effing dreadful to watch.

 

I think we've got a plan. The new Sporting Director has said so. I just think its the wrong one and I genuinely don't lay the majority of blame at Clarke's door.

And for the record I still think I'd go O'Keefe over Cotter.

 

I would sack the bloke who came in the Summer and said 'there's no problem with the defence' or words to that effect, the same bloke who has left us with no competent and proven goalkeeper at this level, who is also the same bloke who has left us with four wide defenders/wing backs, three of which are right-footed but none of which can defend for toffee and none of which can play in a back 4, meaning the manager has to stick with a back 5 or play central defenders at full-back.
Spot on and I would add bring at least one striker (should be 2/ 3 as suggested by the coach) as an absolute priority. With knowledge Cole was going 6 months in advance and we had little chance of re signing mcatee.

 

agree totally and it’s also part of the reason we are running at an 8m deficit.

The academy should go for the one John Stones it’s produced all the others never really made a name for themselves until they moved elsewhere. it’s just been a drain on finances rest of the time I think from memory it costs circa 2m a season to run. Would move to just an u23 and first team setup and pick up released players for this squad ala Brentford’s model.

 

The academy has to go. It produces absolutely nothing, just doesn’t justify the outlay at all.

 

Especially now that the EPPP basically means a higher ranked academy can walk in and take your best talent for 3k upwards.

The EPPP has been greeted with scepticism from parts of the English Football League. Some claim the Premier League has blackmailed the Football League by threatening to remove all youth development funding if the Football League did not accept the new deal.[15] It has been described by some as a way of catering for only the elite. The new rules mean that a Category 1 academy can go to any other training ground to watch a player (giving 48 hours' notice) and effectively buy the player for a fixed fee starting from £3,000.[16]

 

I wouldn't sack him either. But I wouldn't have sacked Collins. It's a pointless exercise whilst whoever is in charge of recruitment is doing what he's doing. He's also suffered a load of injuries at a vital period.

 

I think its a direct consequence of our manager turnover. Why would managers persevere with academy lads when they know they're a month away from the sack?

Jalo & Yoganathan are probably the only two been given more than 5 games of football in the last 3 years.