This thread is very necessary and I for one and thrilled to be reading it. Its football we all have different opinions, it just happens that in the last 72 hours the ayes to the right (not political) have it, no doubt if we get gubbed on saturday and loose to the Blades the pendulum will swing the other way and Powellies like myself will have to deal with it. A great day to be an addick whatever your viewpoint and a positive step forward for our great club.
Didn't realise he was on the crossbar until a mate sent the link to the Mail report this morning. What a legend!
ANyway, time for a truce between the antis and the pros and everyone get behind the team to roar us to safety and Wembley and turn it into the most unexpectedly memorable season for a long time
For me, the main problem i had (apart from the results) was the style and quality of the football that was being played. However, that seems to have all changed since the Wigan game (and maybe not coincidentally since Kermy left), and the football we played at times last night was exquisite, and football that i didnt think we were capable of under CP - delighted to be proved wrong. As i mentioned before, extremely happy to have a bit of Humble, but i'll have mine with ice-cream please not mash.
I am fully behind CP and want him too get a new contract even if we are relegated, but I'm willing to admit that's quite possibly because I'm being an old romantic and allowing my heart to rule my head. He's a good man, great attitude which made him work hard for his success as a player and has remained 'normal' because of that. He is as much Charlton as anyone of us, obviously cares and wants to be with us and isn't afraid to publicly say and show it. He brought back an excitement and feel good factor that had been missing for so long. It's shouldn't really be an issue but maybe sub consciously there's also an element of pride that we have one of the few black managers. Plus the idea of sticking with a manager through struggling times and coming out the other end successfully whilst everyone else sacks theirs every few games appeals to me greatly.
But he is still learning and clearly has/will make many mistakes. There's no doubt that he has been given far more slack from us fans because of who he is, and although I'd argue quite rightly so, the fans who have been critical of him and want(ed?) a change were also possibly right and just letting their head rule their heart. His tactics, formations and subs have sometimes been baffling. Yes the squad quality was lessened and he showed that with backing he could bring us success, but if it wasn't CP I don't think we would be allowing him such benefit of the doubt and still supporting him so vocally.
I'm not fussed about spending fortunes battling for PL survival. I'd much rather have a club who is competitive, financially secure and sensible, has a decent academy, and a manager who is a good man, has a connection with us that most clubs/managers don't have, and brings us relative success.
I'm one of the ones that is willing to be patient and want to believe we can have all that with CP but I can fully understand those who don't think he is the man. It is still early days and it may be that we are the ones who end up eating humble pie and the doubters are correct...........But for the moment I'm still happy to be an old romantic letting his heart rule his head.
I am fully behind CP and want him too get a new contract even if we are relegated, but I'm willing to admit that's quite possibly because I'm being an old romantic and allowing my heart to rule my head. He's a good man, great attitude which made him work hard for his success as a player and has remained 'normal' because of that. He is as much Charlton as anyone of us, obviously cares and wants to be with us and isn't afraid to publicly say and show it. He brought back an excitement and feel good factor that had been missing for so long. It's shouldn't really be an issue but maybe sub consciously there's also an element of pride that we have one of the few black managers. Plus the idea of sticking with a manager through struggling times and coming out the other end successfully whilst everyone else sacks theirs every few games appeals to me greatly.
But he is still learning and clearly has/will make many mistakes. There's no doubt that he has been given far more slack from us fans because of who he is, and although I'd argue quite rightly so, the fans who have been critical of him and want(ed?) a change were also possibly right and just letting their head rule their heart. His tactics, formations and subs have sometimes been baffling. Yes the squad quality was lessened and he showed that with backing he could bring us success, but if it wasn't CP I don't think we would be allowing him such benefit of the doubt and still supporting him so vocally.
I'm not fussed about spending fortunes battling for PL survival. I'd much rather have a club who is competitive, financially secure and sensible, has a decent academy, and a manager who is a good man, has a connection with us that most clubs/managers don't have, and brings us relative success.
I'm one of the ones that is willing to be patient and want to believe we can have all that with CP but I can fully understand those who don't think he is the man. It is still early days and it may be that we are the ones who end up eating humble pie and the doubters are correct...........But for the moment I'm still happy to be an old romantic letting his heart rule his head.
Excellent post. Sums it up perfectly. I've been in the middle-ground camp i.e. I love CP to bits and badly want him to succeed and be here for years but at the same time doubting that he has the tactical nous to make a long term success of it and being frustrated with our football. I have decided after the last few days that I would rather have a nice guy who bleeds for our club and will learn his trade warts and all in charge than the usual transitory fly by nights. CP therefore has my unconditional support and I'll just have to find a way to deal with the dodgy substitutions and negative tactics. On the evidence of the last two games, the boy may be learning faster than I'd hoped and Mr Duchatelet's transfer policy may have just sorted out the one great blind-spot that I have suspected may have been holding us back as much as it helped. No offence intended to Yann who will always have a special place, but I've seen more proper football since he left than we played all season so far.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
I have never piled on the venom but hate all the CP is a Saint / CP out stuff. This is thread is about gloating . Why can't we just enjoy an improvement in the teams and Manager performance?
blockquote class="Quote" rel="Curb_It">But like was was said above there would be loads of Powell out threads if we had lost? So you just want it your own way? Lose then pile on the venom... Win and no one is allowed to gloat. Ok I got it.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
Sorry you got it wrong
Powell has a long way to go before he or anyone else for that matter can say things are going well. There is no mystery about the strengthening of the squad. I acknowledge the part that CP has made over the past two wow two games but will not change my opinion unless he proves that he has the ability to improve and as I have said I think we will get to Wembley and stay up. The battle what battle I would only enter into battle if there were an enermy worth fighting. People like by that you mean anyone not thinking that 6 wins out of 29 is not good enough and dare voice their concerns.
Please join the list of those who ignore me then I will have achieved something again tonight.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
Sorry you got it wrong
Powell has a long way to go before he or anyone else for that matter can say things are going well. There is no mystery about the strengthening of the squad. I acknowledge the part that CP has made over the past two wow two games but will not change my opinion unless he proves that he has the ability to improve and as I have said I think we will get to Wembley and stay up. The battle what battle I would only enter into battle if there were an enermy worth fighting. People like by that you mean anyone not thinking that 6 wins out of 29 is not good enough and dare voice their concerns.
Please join the list of those who ignore me then I will have achieved something again tonight.
Happy to grant your wish, because I really have no idea what point you are making now. But if you read your previous post you will see that you referred to your "battle"....
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
Sorry you got it wrong
Powell has a long way to go before he or anyone else for that matter can say things are going well. There is no mystery about the strengthening of the squad. I acknowledge the part that CP has made over the past two wow two games but will not change my opinion unless he proves that he has the ability to improve and as I have said I think we will get to Wembley and stay up. The battle what battle I would only enter into battle if there were an enermy worth fighting. People like by that you mean anyone not thinking that 6 wins out of 29 is not good enough and dare voice their concerns.
Please join the list of those who ignore me then I will have achieved something again tonight.
Happy to grant your wish, because I really have no idea what point you are making now. But if you read your previous post you will see that you referred to your "battle"....
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
Sorry you got it wrong
Powell has a long way to go before he or anyone else for that matter can say things are going well. There is no mystery about the strengthening of the squad. I acknowledge the part that CP has made over the past two wow two games but will not change my opinion unless he proves that he has the ability to improve and as I have said I think we will get to Wembley and stay up. The battle what battle I would only enter into battle if there were an enermy worth fighting. People like by that you mean anyone not thinking that 6 wins out of 29 is not good enough and dare voice their concerns.
Please join the list of those who ignore me then I will have achieved something again tonight.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
My view on CP will change if we carry on getting results like the last two. Before the QPR game it was claimed that Chris had been left with a weakened team since the January window closed. This has been proven wrong and we have a team to escape the drop zone and get to Wembley. He still has a way to go to prove he has the ability to improve and until then my battle with the love children will go on. Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
So let me get this right.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
Sorry you got it wrong
Powell has a long way to go before he or anyone else for that matter can say things are going well. There is no mystery about the strengthening of the squad. I acknowledge the part that CP has made over the past two wow two games but will not change my opinion unless he proves that he has the ability to improve and as I have said I think we will get to Wembley and stay up. The battle what battle I would only enter into battle if there were an enermy worth fighting. People like by that you mean anyone not thinking that 6 wins out of 29 is not good enough and dare voice their concerns.
Please join the list of those who ignore me then I will have achieved something again tonight.
Everyone on here knows how I feel about the gaffer so very little to add to that now without embarrassing myself...
The tide has now turned ....It's no surprise that the addition of both AA & Tudgay has strengthened the squad.
But we must not forget the incredible growth before our very eyes of our very own young guns in midfield who our manager had the guts to throw into the cauldron that is a relegation fight.
Some may say " needs must " but the inclusion & faith shown in both Diego and Jordan is testament to the stature of the man himself. And of course Morgan & Harry should not be excluded from this fast growing list of baptisms.. I doubt they'll be the last. And we should not forget the ongoing debt of gratitude we all owe to Paul Hart & his team.
With the experience and support both on & off the pitch of senior players such as Morro, Hughsey and most of all his skipper, SCP ( and yes, I'll continue to use that title !) knew the youngsters would cope - such is the spirit, determination and work ethic he has instilled into this group of players.
For the doubters, I'll continue to say that IMHO it would take a VERY special man to extract such loyalty & willingness to "die for the cause" from his players .....in fact, I'd go so far as saying it's nigh impossible.
Because we already have that Special Man in our midst & for said unbelievers, in the words of the song " You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone"....
Dust off that cheque book & pen, please RD . You know it makes sense.
All fans, and all opinions have an important role to play. Too much praise can lead to complacency, too much critisism can lead to self doubt and destruction. There is nothing wrong with constructive critisism where warranted. Any manager would be foolish to ignore a large section of fans if the message being portrayed was that we were playing far too much hoof ball and being far too negative for example. Powell admitted himself that he made mistakes last season, perhaps it may be helpful to him if fans recognise his mistakes sooner than he himself does. The same thing goes for all of us.
Powell has had a difficult job, but we honestly haven't had the green this season added to that. Refs at the Valley seem to have been so keen to prove their neutrality that they have reffed against us.
He has however got a few breaks for a change. Two strong refs in our last 2 games who haven't sided with us, but haven't killed us with their decisions. Also, a little bit of luck that Poyet has settled in so quickly and AA has turned out to be a top player. You get the feeling the tide has turned.
But we have to be honest, we probably have our toughest game of the season on Saturday and may slip back a bit after that. We shouldn't panic if that happens as we need to carry on the optimism and spirit. The other games coming up are winnable and I'm sure with the players we have we can go on a run.
Powell is the man, and part of the reason for that is because the fans love him. It takes pressure off the players. He is also a terrific manager who will get better. He will take us to the promised land if he is allowed to. Get him signed up a.s.a.p.
All fans, and all opinions have an important role to play. Too much praise can lead to complacency, too much critisism can lead to self doubt and destruction. There is nothing wrong with constructive critisism where warranted. Any manager would be foolish to ignore a large section of fans if the message being portrayed was that we were playing far too much hoof ball and being far too negative for example. Powell admitted himself that he made mistakes last season, perhaps it may be helpful to him if fans recognise his mistakes sooner than he himself does. The same thing goes for all of us.
Isn't all this 'Powell making mistakes' stuff a little too critical. Managing a football team is like a General going to war. Mistakes are going to happen all the time because you are dealing with situations that are only partially under your control and human beings making instant decisions. The winner is the not the one who makes no mistakes, it's the one who makes the least worst mistakes. Surely, even Sir Alex continued to make mistakes over the whole of his career? Of course, SAF had a superior set of players and the luxury of being able to take risks (make mistakes!) when adding more players. CP does not.
All fans, and all opinions have an important role to play. Too much praise can lead to complacency, too much critisism can lead to self doubt and destruction. There is nothing wrong with constructive critisism where warranted. Any manager would be foolish to ignore a large section of fans if the message being portrayed was that we were playing far too much hoof ball and being far too negative for example. Powell admitted himself that he made mistakes last season, perhaps it may be helpful to him if fans recognise his mistakes sooner than he himself does. The same thing goes for all of us.
Isn't all this 'Powell making mistakes' stuff a little too critical. Managing a football team is like a General going to war. Mistakes are going to happen all the time because you are dealing with situations that are only partially under your control and human beings making instant decisions. The winner is the not the one who makes no mistakes, it's the one who makes the least worst mistakes. Surely, even Sir Alex continued to make mistakes over the whole of his career? Of course, SAF had a superior set of players and the luxury of being able to take risks (make mistakes!) when adding more players. CP does not.
All fans, and all opinions have an important role to play. Too much praise can lead to complacency, too much critisism can lead to self doubt and destruction. There is nothing wrong with constructive critisism where warranted. Any manager would be foolish to ignore a large section of fans if the message being portrayed was that we were playing far too much hoof ball and being far too negative for example. Powell admitted himself that he made mistakes last season, perhaps it may be helpful to him if fans recognise his mistakes sooner than he himself does. The same thing goes for all of us.
Isn't all this 'Powell making mistakes' stuff a little too critical. Managing a football team is like a General going to war. Mistakes are going to happen all the time because you are dealing with situations that are only partially under your control and human beings making instant decisions. The winner is the not the one who makes no mistakes, it's the one who makes the least worst mistakes. Surely, even Sir Alex continued to make mistakes over the whole of his career? Of course, SAF had a superior set of players and the luxury of being able to take risks (make mistakes!) when adding more players. CP does not.
Yes indeed, and he is having to make decisions whilst under a great deal of pressure, pressure which we fans do not have. Which is why I think it is important that others (outsiders if you like) are allowed to express their opinions on where they think we are going wrong and where we can improve, and why it is important for CP and the coaching staff to listen. Sometimes when we get caught up in difficult situations in life, our brain gets confused and we can't see the wood for the trees. Sometimes the answer is actually quite simple, yet we continue along the same wrong route, getting ourselves into even deeper problems. It is very important to listen to the views of others. Here is a hypothetical (I'm not saying it is true). Fans have been saying for a long time that we have been playing too much hoof ball. RD comes in and say's, "I'll soon solve that" and promptly sells Yann. CP would never have contemplated selling Yann and neither would we, yet an outsider has seen it completely differently and we go on to win the FA cup and stay in the Championship.
Comments
ANyway, time for a truce between the antis and the pros and everyone get behind the team to roar us to safety and Wembley and turn it into the most unexpectedly memorable season for a long time
As i mentioned before, extremely happy to have a bit of Humble, but i'll have mine with ice-cream please not mash.
But he is still learning and clearly has/will make many mistakes. There's no doubt that he has been given far more slack from us fans because of who he is, and although I'd argue quite rightly so, the fans who have been critical of him and want(ed?) a change were also possibly right and just letting their head rule their heart. His tactics, formations and subs have sometimes been baffling. Yes the squad quality was lessened and he showed that with backing he could bring us success, but if it wasn't CP I don't think we would be allowing him such benefit of the doubt and still supporting him so vocally.
I'm not fussed about spending fortunes battling for PL survival. I'd much rather have a club who is competitive, financially secure and sensible, has a decent academy, and a manager who is a good man, has a connection with us that most clubs/managers don't have, and brings us relative success.
I'm one of the ones that is willing to be patient and want to believe we can have all that with CP but I can fully understand those who don't think he is the man. It is still early days and it may be that we are the ones who end up eating humble pie and the doubters are correct...........But for the moment I'm still happy to be an old romantic letting his heart rule his head.
Excellent post. Sums it up perfectly. I've been in the middle-ground camp i.e. I love CP to bits and badly want him to succeed and be here for years but at the same time doubting that he has the tactical nous to make a long term success of it and being frustrated with our football. I have decided after the last few days that I would rather have a nice guy who bleeds for our club and will learn his trade warts and all in charge than the usual transitory fly by nights. CP therefore has my unconditional support and I'll just have to find a way to deal with the dodgy substitutions and negative tactics. On the evidence of the last two games, the boy may be learning faster than I'd hoped and Mr Duchatelet's transfer policy may have just sorted out the one great blind-spot that I have suspected may have been holding us back as much as it helped. No offence intended to Yann who will always have a special place, but I've seen more proper football since he left than we played all season so far.
Either way we all support Charlton with a passion regardless of our views on Powell, Thuam, Hamer, the pitch or the pies
blockquote class="Quote" rel="Curb_It">But like was was said above there would be loads of Powell out threads if we had lost? So you just want it your own way? Lose then pile on the venom... Win and no one is allowed to gloat. Ok I got it.
When things were not going well, it was because CP is a bad manager. However the last two results are not anything to do with CP, but because the squad has been mysteriously 'strengthened' ? Despite the fact that last night the only player on view from the 'strengthening' was Ajdarevic?
The trouble with the "battle" that you and people like you choose to wage is that it is not based on any rational argument.
Powell has a long way to go before he or anyone else for that matter can say things are going well.
There is no mystery about the strengthening of the squad. I acknowledge the part that CP has made over the past two wow two games but will not change my opinion unless he proves that he has the ability to improve and as I have said I think we will get to Wembley and stay up.
The battle what battle I would only enter into battle if there were an enermy worth fighting. People like by that you mean anyone not thinking that 6 wins out of 29 is not good enough and dare voice their concerns.
Please join the list of those who ignore me then I will have achieved something again tonight.
He will be driving the bandwagon bus.
The tide has now turned ....It's no surprise that the addition of both AA & Tudgay has strengthened the squad.
But we must not forget the incredible growth before our very eyes of our very own young guns in midfield who our manager had the guts to throw into the cauldron that is a relegation fight.
Some may say " needs must " but the inclusion & faith shown in both Diego and Jordan is testament to the stature of the man himself. And of course Morgan & Harry should not be excluded from this fast growing list of baptisms.. I doubt they'll be the last. And we should not forget the ongoing debt of gratitude we all owe to Paul Hart & his team.
With the experience and support both on & off the pitch of senior players such as Morro, Hughsey and most of all his skipper, SCP ( and yes, I'll continue to use that title !) knew the youngsters would cope - such is the spirit, determination and work ethic he has instilled into this group of players.
For the doubters, I'll continue to say that IMHO it would take a VERY special man to extract such loyalty & willingness to "die for the cause" from his players .....in fact, I'd go so far as saying it's nigh impossible.
Because we already have that Special Man in our midst & for said unbelievers, in the words of the song " You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone"....
Dust off that cheque book & pen, please RD . You know it makes sense.
He has however got a few breaks for a change. Two strong refs in our last 2 games who haven't sided with us, but haven't killed us with their decisions. Also, a little bit of luck that Poyet has settled in so quickly and AA has turned out to be a top player. You get the feeling the tide has turned.
But we have to be honest, we probably have our toughest game of the season on Saturday and may slip back a bit after that. We shouldn't panic if that happens as we need to carry on the optimism and spirit. The other games coming up are winnable and I'm sure with the players we have we can go on a run.
Powell is the man, and part of the reason for that is because the fans love him. It takes pressure off the players. He is also a terrific manager who will get better. He will take us to the promised land if he is allowed to. Get him signed up a.s.a.p.