The only way is up

Thanks to holiday, and now a dose of pleurisy, coupled with a torn inter-costal muscle, I have missed Argyle’s last two home games. Apparently they have been our worst performances for some time. We now sit ignominiously at the foot of the CCC and our rivals are rubbing their hands in glee as our predicted demise looks assured. Pasoti and the other messageboards are in meltdown and the rumour mill has gone into overdrive, with Sturrock’s sacking or resignation a matter of hours, days or weeks away, depending on who you believe.

From my sick bed, this all looks rather bizarre. Why back a manager to the extent that Sturrock has been backed, only to sack him when success is not immediate? Surely, surely, we need time to allow Mpenza, Marin and Gallagher (not to mention the new central midfielder that’s supposedly coming) to bed in? The side itself is a complete new build, lacking in confidence, but not without ability as the Wolves result showed. Anyway, who would replace Sturrock? Those calling for Darren Ferguson need to realise one thing straight away: there’s about as much chance of Ferguson coming as Jose Mourinho. From the available candidates, the best two are either about to take over at Cheltenham (Martin Allen) or would be utterly unacceptable to the fanbase because of the controversial nature of their departure from Home Park the last time. Other than them, we are down to the usual list of jobbing (i.e. useless) out-of-work managers: Reid, Gregory, Cotterill, Robson. No-one with any sense is coming here.

I could whinge about the abject failure of the Board to do the decent thing and sell to the Ball/Warren/Jones consortium when it became apparent that they simply couldn’t compete at this level. I could ask what benefit the much-vaunted Japanese investment has brought, other than allowing the existing Board to dispose of a small percentage of their shares for no doubt a handsome profit. But that would be old ground. What I will confess to is a nervousness that the Board are fans – and thus alarmingly prone to behaving like fans. The fifteen-year-olds are baying for Sturrock’s blood. My worry is that the Board will listen to them.

Sturrock’s new Argyle needs time to grow and gel. Above all, it needs the support of the fanbase, not a hysterical over-reaction to a few bad games. Argyle fans need to grow up, get some patience and start to realise that some things take time. We are five games in, for heaven’s sake. Now is not the time to panic. There is no-one out there to wave a magic wand and make things happen instantanteously. Argyle fans need to stop whining, start supporting, and above all get off various players’ backs – and the manager’s. To quote a member of yesterday’s opposition: “We need a twelfth man here. Where are you? Where are you?”

Category: Team News

Tags: Team News

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