Any apologies forthcoming?

One in 28 people in Cheltenham is a millionaire

 

Unsurprising to be honest.

 

When we've beaten the fowls home and away by 5 goals each match and been crowned L1 Champions before the January windows finished then I'll consider an apology until then they can forget it.

 

I've been as critical as most of Khaled in the past and, with good reason I think.
In this instance though I have to give him credit. It appeared from the start Duff was one of our main targets, we went through a recruitment process with him and others including McCarthy and possibly Warnock, covered all the bases and ended up with Duff in the timescale he promised.
Can't argue with that though I'm fully aware that the odd brussen loudmouth will moan about anybody we appoint unless they're a household name.
The club has been in its weakest position in the search for a new manager probably since the days of administration. Duff is a realistic and credible choice.

 

I would suggest that people tend to criticise the rumours not the facts. Obviously because few people know the facts. I would certainly like to have seen it happen quicker looking at the timeline from when we knew we needed a new manager and given Khaled stated we are continuously assessing future managers. Makes me wonder why we need the questionnaire if we do detailed review. However I also understand we have two sides to a contract and it’s equally down to the candidate to dictate speed and decision making. Reading things like McCarthy turned us down and Warnock is favourite is of course a source for people to generate some critical euphoria, it’s what fans do, irrespective of the facts.

 

Of the names mentioned, Duff was the one that seemed to fit best. So hopefully it gets over the line today or tomorrow and the full backroom compliment can be filled quickly so we're fully up and running for pre season.

But let's look at whats been visible. The tangible facts.

Asbaghi officially left on 24th April. For several weeks ahead of that, there were questions being flat batted by El Ahmad about whether Asbaghi would be in post next season. Asbaghi has gone on comment saying well before him leaving, he knew he wouldn't be staying. But lets work with the official date. That puts us into our 8th week without a head coach/manager, with a likelihood that we could have been formulating plans 9, 10, 11 maybe 12 weeks prior.

It was reported on 19th May that we officially approached Cheltenham to speak with Duff. That's almost 4 weeks ago.

On the 31st May, El Ahmad officially confirmed we'd spoken with Duff and Hasselbaink.

On 6th June, Blackpool approached Cheltenham to speak with Duff. It was suggested we were due to speak with him again around the same time.

There are 2 key points that need to be reviewed and I think learned from. 8 weeks is a very long time in football, and if this process was mid season, you'd expect the time delay to be a real issue (though I'd very much hope the club would get their skates on while games were being played). If other bigger, higher up clubs are recruiting at the same time as us, our main candidates could be lost. If Blackpool had moved for Duff, it's highly likely we'd have missed out. And being in limbo for 4 weeks from interview to appointment isn't going to sit well with some.

The second, and this was mentioned by many at the time. Naming candidates officially, especially those working for another club shows a major lack of respect.

We've hopefully made a good appointment (though only time and outcomes will tell us if that is true or not). But let's not allow that to completely mask that we could have conducted this process in a more professional and efficient manner. Simple to tweak and fix and be better next time, though hopefully next time is a long time away for a change.

 

Usual suspects moaning when there is little to moan about.

 

You seem obsessed with the amount of time its taken to replace poya when in reality all that matters is duff starts when the players go back and has a full pre season with them...

And the point uou make about if Blackpool wanted him we would have lost out... if my auntie had a **** she would be my uncle... we had 5 candidates we would have gone to next on the list it would have been a set back but **** me have a day off

 

The club put a lot of fans through the wringer last season, now they need to show us they are going to take the right action and win the trust of the fans, that trust wont come straight away like some would hope and will never come for others, but as fans there will be a demand for better in all aspects of the club. No apologies needed.

 

The thread title doesnt help.

Clean slate. I am happy with the appointment of Duff. Yes it has taken a while but i would rather wait to get the right man in than rush and just get anyone from anywhere.

 

I've said from the start that it was important to have someone in for the start of pre season. It seems we have. Hopefully all the coaching set up are brought in too. So I think you might have gotten me confused in the first part of your post.

I'm not sure how to respond to the second part, but I'll have a try.

Blackpool expressed interest 3 weeks after we made our approach. If we can improve the speed of process, we reduce the risk of other clubs taking our preferred candidates. Surely that's a good thing, no? To make our processes more efficient, more robust, and eliminate more risk?

Actions and decisions within a process define outcome. The more you leave to chance, the more chance plays a part in your outcomes.

 

No problem with the Duff appointment, but not talking him up either. No criticism of the club, but hiring a manager is just a crap shoot. We've appointed similar guys from smaller clubs in the past and it's not worked out. Nor am I one of those who demanded a UK based manager. But providing Duff gets the team playing some constructive attacking football I'll be there for him.

 

Don`t get involved in manager debates it`s pointless we get who we are given and I give my opinion on them when there is something to judge.