| Expectations 15:14 - May 22 with 5764 views | NeverTellMeTheOdds |
When Mick arrived at PR its safe to say expectations were low, we were in the bottom 3 and looking League one bound.
Following a season of staying up and a 14th placed position, expectations were still fairly low and we started pushing our way up the league slowly but surely, finishing a very respectable 9th.
The play off season that followed was great, Mick had built a team that was built of freebies, small transfers and existing players. It was great to be involved with the play-offs again and for me still slightly unexpected as we had been a mid-table team for so long that it felt unnatural being that high in the table (especially when we went top on Boxing day at Brentford!). Obviously it was a disappointing way to end the season losing to Norwich in the play-offs like that but the team still exceeded my expectations this year.
The season after, expectations grew after our play-off miss. We were expected to reach the play-offs again and came close, finishing a respectable 7th. It was a largely frustrating season but expectations wise we started falling behind were we expected to be IMO.
Which then leads onto this season, expectations were not possibly as high as the previous season but most would say that we expected to at least try and be involved in the play-offs this season or at least push for a top 10 finish. We failed miserably, not being in the top half of the table since last year and finishing in a disappointing 16th position.
Its safe to say expectations have gone down now after a torrid season & are probably as low as when Mick arrived. Most are predicting a relegation/lower table scrap next season. With such low expectations is it possible that this might play in our favour next season? With so little expected of the Mick and the team, they can go out and exceed our expectations which may well get some of the feel good factor that is badly needed back at the club.
I have seen it mentioned that we need to get back to the underdog spirit that we had in the play-off season if we are to achieve anything in this league. I do wonder with lower expectations, Mick wanting to prove his doubters wrong and possibly a much needed overhaul of the squad this summer that we might just surprise a few next season.
Just trying to put a positive spin on it. |  |
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| Expectations on 17:11 - May 23 with 1447 views | ClausThomsen |
| Expectations on 08:34 - May 23 by itfcjoe |
Well don't follow it then.
Until we see a proper bit of investment, finishing in the top 6 is hugely unlikely. Mick did it once on a shoestring and Evans seems to now think it's more likely and possible than it is - it is hard to sustain overperformance, us and Brentford are the only Championship sides who seem to have managed it for a sustained period of time. Admittedly they do it in a more eye catching way with better football, but then they have people who know what they are doing in the boardroom. |
Would you give MM any money with one year on his contract and his record in the transfer market since the playoffs? And his record at Wolves where he wasted 10s of millions of pounds on players that slid down from the premier league to league 1 as quickly as was possible?
It would be ridiculous to give MM any money this summer with 12 months left on his contract, but not as ridiculous as letting him see out the contract in the first place. The playing style has nothing to do with ME, this is McCarthy's squad that he's built with his self-proclaimed "due dilligence" and it can't even break down the very worst teams in the division.
Millions of pounds were available to McCarthy (bids were made) but he went for targets at rival clubs who weren't looking to sell. It's lazy to blame ME cause he didn't pay Preston at least twice what Hugill was worth. There's other divisions, countries and continents at our disposal and MM had months to scout between the window shutting and re-opening. And this is a manager with years of international experience. But he went for the same kind of lazy, ridiculous target again.
We *must* cut our losses and sack him, if we don't then the losses will snowball and we're as good as down imo.
And I'm not following that. |  | | |
| Expectations on 08:14 - May 24 with 1409 views | itfcjoe |
| Expectations on 17:11 - May 23 by ClausThomsen |
Would you give MM any money with one year on his contract and his record in the transfer market since the playoffs? And his record at Wolves where he wasted 10s of millions of pounds on players that slid down from the premier league to league 1 as quickly as was possible?
It would be ridiculous to give MM any money this summer with 12 months left on his contract, but not as ridiculous as letting him see out the contract in the first place. The playing style has nothing to do with ME, this is McCarthy's squad that he's built with his self-proclaimed "due dilligence" and it can't even break down the very worst teams in the division.
Millions of pounds were available to McCarthy (bids were made) but he went for targets at rival clubs who weren't looking to sell. It's lazy to blame ME cause he didn't pay Preston at least twice what Hugill was worth. There's other divisions, countries and continents at our disposal and MM had months to scout between the window shutting and re-opening. And this is a manager with years of international experience. But he went for the same kind of lazy, ridiculous target again.
We *must* cut our losses and sack him, if we don't then the losses will snowball and we're as good as down imo.
And I'm not following that. |
At what point will you accept that his transfer business at ITFC is much more relevant than buying players for Wolves when they got promoted?
The 2 transfers he spent a bit of money on last year were both successes, if he is given cash I've no doubt he'll spend it well as his transfer record here when spending a bit on fees or wages definitely has far more hits than misses. |  |
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| Expectations on 08:36 - May 24 with 1400 views | No9 |
| Expectations on 17:01 - May 22 by PhilTWTD |
I think probably something which might be viewed as C+. Continue as per the five-point plan - which in principle is pretty much the only way to go if huge sums aren't going to be spent - but probably upping the subsidy somewhat but not to the levels of the division's top spenders.
I think we're going to have to get used to being mid-table - as if we weren't already - as the division has moved away from us. The odd season of overachieving and maybe promotion via the play-offs at some point but I think it needs to be accepted that we're more outsiders in this division than we have ever been. |
"I think we're going to have to get used to being mid-table"
Spot on which is why we shopuld want entertainment and excitement from ITFC rather than the negative stuff MM dishes up | | | |
| Expectations on 17:02 - May 24 with 1366 views | ClausThomsen |
| Expectations on 08:14 - May 24 by itfcjoe |
At what point will you accept that his transfer business at ITFC is much more relevant than buying players for Wolves when they got promoted?
The 2 transfers he spent a bit of money on last year were both successes, if he is given cash I've no doubt he'll spend it well as his transfer record here when spending a bit on fees or wages definitely has far more hits than misses. |
It's more relevant but the Wolves record is worrying - can you accept that? Ward and Webster look decent but he's hardly broken his back scouting them. Players like Oar and Stewart weren't signed for a fee but we still spunked a load on em. Hit and miss at best imo, and definitely more misses since the playoffs. But it's only since the playoffs that MM deserves any serious criticism imo.
The main point is that he has 12 months left. Do you really want a manager splashing cash on players with so little time left, players that may be no use to a new manager? Again, you've got to look at what happened at Wolves' collapse after his sacking with players he'd signed for big money.
I can't see many players going for a 12 month contract here, or any contract at all if they saw us play last season.
I know what I'd like to see us spend our first £1 million on this summer, and it isn't on a player. I still think the club needs to make a statement, even if he's staying. Our worst league position since the garden of eden needs to be acknowledged and not treated like white noise - as it is at the moment. | | | |
| Expectations on 20:09 - May 24 with 1337 views | itfcjoe |
| Expectations on 17:02 - May 24 by ClausThomsen |
It's more relevant but the Wolves record is worrying - can you accept that? Ward and Webster look decent but he's hardly broken his back scouting them. Players like Oar and Stewart weren't signed for a fee but we still spunked a load on em. Hit and miss at best imo, and definitely more misses since the playoffs. But it's only since the playoffs that MM deserves any serious criticism imo.
The main point is that he has 12 months left. Do you really want a manager splashing cash on players with so little time left, players that may be no use to a new manager? Again, you've got to look at what happened at Wolves' collapse after his sacking with players he'd signed for big money.
I can't see many players going for a 12 month contract here, or any contract at all if they saw us play last season.
I know what I'd like to see us spend our first £1 million on this summer, and it isn't on a player. I still think the club needs to make a statement, even if he's staying. Our worst league position since the garden of eden needs to be acknowledged and not treated like white noise - as it is at the moment. |
Oar, Stewart and Jonny Parr are his only real misses when he's spent a bit in fees or wages - and if Oar had his contract ripped up that wasn't an expensive mistake.
The Wolves record doesn't overly worry me, that that team was relegated to L1 isn't on Mick at all because theres no way a squad with Berra, Stearman, Hunt, Ebanks-Blake, Hennessy, Johnson, etc etc should have been.
The average tenure for a manager in this league is about 12 months - doesn't stop other teams spending money with changing of manager etc. It shouldn't stop us spending as a club at all - but without a Director of Football or similar we are always going to have this issue re spending money. | |
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| Expectations on 17:16 - May 25 with 1292 views | ClausThomsen |
| Expectations on 20:09 - May 24 by itfcjoe |
Oar, Stewart and Jonny Parr are his only real misses when he's spent a bit in fees or wages - and if Oar had his contract ripped up that wasn't an expensive mistake.
The Wolves record doesn't overly worry me, that that team was relegated to L1 isn't on Mick at all because theres no way a squad with Berra, Stearman, Hunt, Ebanks-Blake, Hennessy, Johnson, etc etc should have been.
The average tenure for a manager in this league is about 12 months - doesn't stop other teams spending money with changing of manager etc. It shouldn't stop us spending as a club at all - but without a Director of Football or similar we are always going to have this issue re spending money. |
Yeah, but they're not hired for 12 months - the short time managers have isn't part of the plan, hence the backing.
What happens is the new manager comes in, performances improve, the team will hit a peak (the playoffs in our case) and then start to slide down, leading to the manager's sacking.
The quicker you nip the downward trajectory in the bud, the better it is for the club. Our chairman won't nip it in the bud until we're bottom of the league - which is our main problem. We're out of this league in the next 2 seasons because we're festering now.
Even if you think the relegation to league one isn't on Mick at all, you must admit he wasted a huge whack of money on players who were average at best. You can't defend his recruitment in the premiership and on one of the largest budgets.
I've followed Ipswich Town since 1994 (in the premier league), I'm getting on a bit now and following a team which is (to me) a centreback's wet dream gone wrong couldn't be less appealing. Mick's instilled his classic centreback 'fear the opposition' mantra into every attacking player that walks through the door. I used to play as an attacker, and if you play with fear you're gonna have a stinker. This team is just going to be solid and devoid of any style, and our only hope under MM is if he flukes some sort of attacking cohesion. That's not going to happen if we're hoofing it to Dominic Samuel, and I can't take another short-sighted write-off of a season ala the last one.
Maybe I'm just over it. | | | |
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