Alan Knill and the board

[teeboo100]

I think in the last few seasons torquay have been blessed with many media friendly managers that the players and fans can relate to. I have been watching our managers body language and in a nut shell its dreadful. He is either ill not interested or just oblivious to the shambles that is going on around him at the moment. Ive been listening back to some of his pre and post match interviews he seams to be making comments regarding the budgets and lack of money that hes having to work to a very tight budget. Well does anyone know of a manger in torquay history that have been backed as much as alan has so far hes been allowed to bring in Chris brass he has a goalie coach various other technical coaches i e video annalists. In recent weeks he has been given licence to bring in 5 new players I think the board deserve great credit in allowing this to happen yet he seams to walk about like hes on death row this in my opinion cannot be allowed to go on .I was behind him for the burton game he must have gone through 10 bottles of water and spent a large majority of his time turning around and shrugging his shoulders at directors. The team at the moment needs a strong leader i dont want him out yet but what i do want is a manager that has a bit of passion and pride about himself that with hopefully reflect on his team and eventually through to the terraces come on Alan shake up a leg old boy this club needs you.

[AustrianAndyGull]

Leadership is critical when you are going through a tough patch.

We don't have any from the top down.

2 and 2 make?

[Scott Brehaut]

Well does anyone know of a manger in torquay history that have been backed as much as alan has so far hes been allowed to bring in Chris brass he has a goalie coach various other technical coaches i e video annalists. In recent weeks he has been given licence to bring in 5 new players.

Paul Buckle

[DTG]

I think the next 5 games plus the FA Cup game is the maximum time I would give Knill to turn it around. If we get knocked out of the Cup (not knowing the draw yet) and lose the majority of the League games or worse the GAWS game then that's it for me. He has 6 games as far as my support will go. I really hope he turns it around and silences the critics before steering us to mid table mediocraty.

I think the Board have to take the blame for this. They are responsible for the negativity and problems around Plainmoor. They have missed so many opportunities and have all the competence of Gerald Ratner.

[stefano]

I think the Board have to take the blame for this. They are responsible for the negativity and problems around Plainmoor. They have missed so many opportunities and have all the competence of Gerald Ratner.

I take it you mean the multi-millionaire Gerald Ratner DTG? I think a few million would enable me not to care if people thought I was a tw*t!

Mind you he is best remembered for saying something off the cuff without regard for accuracy or the consequences ... something a trip around fans forums of football clubs will provide plenty of examples of!

[DTG]

I take it you mean the multi-millionaire Gerald Ratner DTG? I think a few million would enable me not to care if people thought I was a tw*t!

Mind you he is best remembered for saying something off the cuff without regard for accuracy or the consequences ... something a trip around fans forums of football clubs will provide plenty of examples of!

The very same Stef. He managed to ruin his business overnight with one throw away remark. Perhaps I'm being unfair to Mr Ratner. He did at least build a successful business before cocking it up. Our Board have been one cock up after another.

[usagullmichigan]

Knill has to go. Ben Smith is back in Ivybridge after a successful season managing Ytterhogdals IK, can he come help out? :~D

[diamondgirl]

You have to have a happy medium, I think. I would not want a manager with the shambolick attitude of Paulo Dicanio. He seems to think he is passionate about the teams that he manages, but really he is just a typical expansive, hot bloodied Italian who appears to believe he is bigger than the club. My guess is that someone like that just alienates themselves from players and supporters alike.

Having said that, I think Teeboo100 is right. I'm not calling for Alan's head (yet) but he would gain a little more respect, from supporters, if he were to show a bit more passion. Maybe a stray boot hitting karl H (Sorry Karl) in the face would motivate the players a little more. I would rather Alan did something like that, than come out with some of the post match comments ("It FELT like a win" and "I though we did ok apart from the 3 goals, without reply, that we conceded") I'm sure that the players would be more determined to do better, if they were told that they were not doing very well, if you know what I mean.

[royalgull]

I don't care whether the manager is sat down, on the phone or screaming and hollering like a madman as long as the team is organised, there is a method to the madness and the results are there. We don't have any of these 3. Some of the best managers are ones that are very low key.

The team selections are done out of a hat, we have no method to our play, no set way of playing (whilst I didn't like Ling's at least you could see what he was trying to get the team to do), the funds that are available haven't been spread evenly throughout the squad which has absolutely killed us recently and we're losing nearly every week. Not a great combination is it really?

The one and only saving grace I keep telling myself is I am certain we have better players than last year. I am certain we have goals in our team and those teams even with dump defences tend to win enough 4-2's 3-1's over the course of a season to be ok.

I think Knill is a terrible manager, I thought that when he first arrived and nothing that has happened since has swayed my opinion of him. He has failed in most of his jobs as a manager and from what I've seen of us like I've stated I see no improvement, no shape, no continuity, no method of what we're actually trying to do. It's a lottery who will play, where they will play or whether we'll just sign another young striker on loan.

[yellowmonkey]

Ian Holloway is looking for a job

[supergulls]

So is Martin Allen, would anyone like to see him here ?

[Southampton Gull]

So is Martin Allen, would anyone like to see him here ?

Jane would...........

[AustrianAndyGull]

So is Martin Allen, would anyone like to see him here ?

Why not, half the battle at this level is getting that bit extra out of ordinary footballers which Knill is unable to do. Then he could take it from there. Then again, what is to say he would do any better than Knill?

I don't know anything anymore, it seems there has been a Newcastle United / Sunderland - esque air of calamity around Plainmoor these last 2 seasons and we just need someone calm, sensible and progressive thinking without any issues to steady the ship and take us forward gradually. We are still dull and boring but even sh*tter than under Ling so we've regressed as if that were somehow possible after last year.

[bengull]

Alan Knill is distinctly uninspiring on the touchline, that's not a problem if we're well drilled and organised and are working to a game plan. Trouble is, we're not. I've lost count of the amount of times I have seen Manse, Nico, Downes, Tonge etc run over and ask what the hell is going on. Meanwhile Chris Brass' modus operandi appears to be to stand there and swear at people.

Teeboo has made a cracking point, Knill is not media savvy and so a lot of his interviews and answers are perplexing the crowd. Good managers create good rapports with the fans and at the moment there is zero there. His 'felt like a win' soundbite is going to be used as an instrument to bash him with at every opportunity now because it was such a silly and naive thing to say- even if you can sort of see what he was trying to say. it was worded horrendously.

There seems to be little harmony within the squad, I really feel we have to go back to basics now and start again. There is still time to do so. Sacking Alan Knill is an option we simply do not have so we have to get behind him, equally he needs to start justifying why we should get behind him.

[AustrianAndyGull]

Alan Knill is distinctly uninspiring on the touchline, that's not a problem if we're well drilled and organised and are working to a game plan. Trouble is, we're not. I've lost count of the amount of times I have seen Manse, Nico, Downes, Tonge etc run over and ask what the hell is going on. Meanwhile Chris Brass' modus operandi appears to be to stand there and swear at people.

Teeboo has made a cracking point, Knill is not media savvy and so a lot of his interviews and answers are perplexing the crowd. Good managers create good rapports with the fans and at the moment there is zero there. His 'felt like a win' soundbite is going to be used as an instrument to bash him with at every opportunity now because it was such a silly and naive thing to say- even if you can sort of see what he was trying to say. it was worded horrendously.

There seems to be little harmony within the squad, I really feel we have to go back to basics now and start again. There is still time to do so. Sacking Alan Knill is an option we simply do not have so we have to get behind him,

Perfect sense.

Look, we're Torquay and most fans would reasonably have expected us to be fairly rubbish this season but have some really good days and ultimately hold our own in the middle of the table. What Knill has brought to the club in terms of results, performances and management capability has been nothing short of abysmal and it isn't unreasonable for fans to have expected Knill to have made us a bit more progressive, a bit more solid and have put a few more points on the board at this stage.

That is why he has to start making things happen. He has managed to provide a bunch of fans at a club who expect to be near the bottom a situation even worse than their lowly expectations in the first place. He must be totally unlucky or desperately sh*t.