It's clear that the club are in a bad place, and that something drastic is needed to drag us out of the malaise that has set in since the Marcus Evans takeover.

Whilst plenty of people are rightly critical of Paul Jewell for the short-termism that has blighted his time in charge, the same can be said of Evans with his managerial appointments and such initiatives as Operation Premiership.

The club needs to take stock, look at its relationship with the fans and really make an appointment for the long-term.

The one bright spot in the Marcus Evans era is the time afforded to managers even though it was clear that there were issues. Both Roy Keane and Jewell survived spells that would have seen dismissals at other clubs. This is something to be pleased with.

I think that we should take the concept a stage further and implement a new five-year plan for the club and allow a manager real time to develop the club and players.

I'm not saying that we should give someone five years, and not sack them however badly they do. I think we need some clear targets about what we see as acceptable performance and communicate those with the fans as well as the manager.

This is how I see it panning out:

This year - Staying up is the only target for the new boss this year.

Off pitch - Start process of improving relationship with fans. Prioritise academy development.

Next Year - Consolidating the team, building it as they see fit. Only target is to avoid relegation, allowing the boss to experiment with players, formations, tactics.

Off pitch - Developing a pricing strategy in line with our recent performances. Sell four-year season tickets to allow fans to experience all of the rest of the Plan and invest revenue.

Year Three - Target moves up to a mid-table finish, but with a team starting to play stylish football and show clear signs of development.

Off pitch - Develop a clear relationship with fans, involve a fan representative on the board.

Year Four - Play-off challenge, clear idea of team playing the Ipswich way. Academy products making the first team squad.

Off pitch - Academy is high-performing, match-day is quality experience, gates rising.

Year Five - Title Challenge

Off pitch - Club is recognised as a key part of Ipswich and Suffolk community.

And this is where is where it gets far-fetched!

Year Six - Premiership

Off pitch - The biggest news in re-engaging with the fans is not freshly painted turnstiles!

If the club were to develop a plan if this sort, it would inform the manager recruitment process, as some of the candidates would be able to buy into this, and some clearly couldn't.

If a potential manager can't describe what their impact on the academy would be, and how they plan to develop and work with it, they shouldn't be allowed into the club.

marcusevans added 20:57 - Oct 25 I'd settle for a great new manager who gets us into the play offs at the first attempt. This man will have 18 children all at different schools in the area thereby interacting with the community. By the way it will not be John Barnes, he only has 7 kids!
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GeorgiDoundarov added 13:23 - Oct 26 Well I agree 100% that there must be a plan - short term and long term in order to have a success. My only remark will be to expedite things a little bit: 1. Year 1 (this year) - avoid relegation, consolidation, setting team spirit and get some critical players during the January break (like George Boyd who may not be available after that) 2. Year 2 - do a good business on the transfer market during the summer - once at least for a change as we've seen what Magilton, Keane, and Jewel did... Shoot for top 6 right away. 3. If Year 2 not successfull this is the year of a promotion. 4. Year 4 - consolidate in the PM 5. From Year 5 on - manage to stay and improve in the PM. As I see this Curbs can do it! He can get us promoted and he can make us a "typical" PM team!

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BuckieBlue added 17:57 - Oct 26 Interesting blog. LIke Georgi i do think we can reduce time limit. The league isn't that strong this year so anyone half decent can get us mid table, with a play off push next season. Further on if Fulham can establish themselves in PL (after not having a team since Sir Bobby's days as a player!) then no reason why we can't. One silver lining from these past three years decline is that any noticable improvement in our league positions will look great by comparison and guarantee more patience.

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