Walsall FC blog: The not-so specials and the enemy
Let’s make one thing very clear, Walsall’s humiliating 5-1 thrashing at Coventry had nothing to do with poor refereeing, writes Saddlers blogger Mark Jones.
It did however have everything to do with a team who looked as if they just didn’t want to play, either for themselves, for each other or , crucially, for the manager. And they certainly weren’t playing for us fans.
It was a game which could have been billed as the Battle of the Teams Who’ve Made a Real Botched Job of Moving Grounds and Now Struggle to Cope Because They Pay Too Much Rent and Get Very Little in Return. A bit of a tongue twister for sure but you get the point . . . which is more than we were ever likely to.
What was really frustrating was that Cov didn’t have to work that hard to beat us, which is quite apt given manager Mark Bobbins’s aversion to graft in his forgettable 12 months as a player with us. All over the pitch we were second-best, making errors that weren’t even good enough to be classed as schoolboyish; and you could see the lack of discipline that lead to the captain’s sending-off brewing up about an hour before it actually happened. One to discuss on his next refereeing course perhaps?
Leaving two on one from a short corner, failing to close players down, giving the ball away when there were simple passes on, not playing to the whistle - these are all basics that have nothing to do with the wider issues of budget restrictions and poor leadership at the club.
There was only one positive and that was our support. If the 1,414 home fans that turned out for the Lincoln debacle were an indication of the new lows that the current regime have inflicted on the club; then the thousand plus Saddlers who travelled to the Ricoh, despite their high prices (£10 to park? £10?), despite it being just before Xmas and despite us having gone 14 games without a win, show that people do still care but in every respect we are being short-changed.
Most fans stayed with the team long after the self-destruct button had been pressed, and those that left early or vented their frustration on the players and management were doing so out of sheer exasperation.
We’ve never really had a huge rivalry with Cov, largely because our paths haven’t crossed that often. Which is probably just as well as the previous league meeting ended with a 6-1 thumping too.
Indeed last Saturday’s drubbing had a number of parallels with that game in January 2004. Then as now we were into the third season with a manager who had taken the credit for keeping us up, who’d plodded along just above the relegation zone the following year without really kicking on, and was now watching on as what was very much his own team seemed to be disintegrating in front of his eyes.
OK, so there are some differences, the Great Escape of 2011 could hardly be put down to luck, being in the right place at the right time or the work of the previous boss. I’m sure that Dean would love to get his hands on the (relatively) large funds that were available in those days and we never had any t-shirts printed for the odious Mr Lee (Which is a pity really because I could’ve come up with a few slogans).
However the club refused to act quickly or decisively back then when it was blindingly obvious that change was needed and only relieved the manager of his duties when it was far too late and the damage had been done.
Not that I actually think that changing the manager would be the magic wand that I suspect some people are hoping for.
The big picture for the club will still be one of a huge decline; but 15 winless games and increasingly shambolic performances dictate that tough choices and unpleasant decisions have to be made.
The way things are going it’s unlikely we’ll need to get too worked up about the Sky Blues again in the near future. Right now things are looking much more Pirelli than Ricoh.
Comments for: "Walsall FC blog: The not-so specials and the enemy"
Chris
What's the problem with Colin Lee?! I don't know exactly what you remember but we achieved our highest ever league finish under him in his second season, and then in the third season we were in the playoffs after our Boxing Day win at Cardiff (hardly 'plodding along'), only for Jeff to refuse to spend money on the squad to keep up the momentum; something which ultimately culminated in the usual money saving too little, too late signings in March (Craig Burley et al), the Paul Ritchie debacle and to Mr Lee becoming, understandably, disenchanted (a situation fairly similar to that encountered by Richard Money, even down to parallels between the Ritchie situation, and Paul Boertien - I wonder what the common theme is there?!).
James
How things have changed in a couple of months. In September we were playing attractive football and winning the plaudits up and down the country. Now it seems we are a club in crisis. Can't quite put my finger on where the slump started but I think the uncertainty surrounding the goalkeeping position, the disappointing penalty shoot loss out to Port Vale, the unlucky defeat at Shrewsbury and a few games where we conceded last minute goals, plus the loss of Flo and the strange decision to drop Bowerman when he was really on fire all contributed to the lack of belief and confidence. It's going to be a long cold winter of gloom unless we can get a win under our belts in the next two games to lift the confidence.
Johnno
Another good blog - good work, agree with most of it.
Johnno
Totally agree with the comments. I pick and choose away games because of cost and time constraints but Cov at home was a certainty. But to waste £100 on the dross that was served up is inexcusable. I personally think if we have Sir Alex as manager on Saturday the performance of the team would have been no better.
We are where we are as a club, and I don't think changing the manager will improve things. The players need to look at themselves very hard and if they want to be called footballers then act like one on the pitch. They talk a good game but fail to deliver. Someone must have tokld them they are too good to be putting in the performances they are doing, indeed September proved that, but players cannot live on past performances. thety need to put in a good shift everytime they don the shirt and play for the team who pay their wages.
There were 4 or5 players who did that on Saturday, but you can't play 4 v 11 on the pitch. The captain was a disgrace. No leadership and discipline and I for one would seriously consider his position as captain as his heart does not seem to be in it these days unlike the past couple of seasons. Don't ask me why only he can say but it goes for many of the squad. If it is the manager, then collectively show him what you can do rather than just turn up for a game. Don't blame the officials, just get on and do your job.
I will renew my season ticket when the time comes regardless because I support the club. If the players don't then they can move on. Regardless where we finish the season all I want is to see a team performance that we as supporters can be proud of. Everyone wants to win, I'm not sure our players do at the moment...........
Bernard Hadley
Mark Jones compares the records of Colin Lee and Dean Smith and thinks that Smith is better? Lee was competing at a higher level. Smith would not last five minutes in the Championship. It would be even more embarrassing than watching his efforts in League One.
Lee brought this club to its best ever league position, and if given the correct backing could have taken us into the Premier League within a few more seasons. Given him enough time and Dean Smith will take us into the Blue Square.
Lee had almost completed the unprecedented feat of avoiding relegation from the second division for the third year in a row when he was sacked. Smith only managed to keep us in the third level thanks to a ten point deduction from Plymouth.
Walsall fans who called for the sacking of Lee are like Charlton fans who wanted Curbishley sacked and Villa fans who were happy to see O'Neill leave.
belgiansaddler
Lee was a joke who served up some of the most gutless dross I have ever had the misfortune to watch following the Saddlers, His formiddable managerial record elsewhere speaks volumes as does the fact that he is probably the most divisive manager in our history!
coventriansaddler
When we lost to Cov 6-1 we were in the second tier, not third. Sorry.
WFC_Rob
Great blog - a really good read and fully addresses exactly what went wrong last weekend.
When the same mistakes keep being made by the same players and the same manager, it's easy to understand why the fans get so frustrated.