Which muppet can we appoint next?

[BWFC_Insane]

Don't know a great deal about any of the contenders, but Parky seems like a good choice. My gut feels better about him than the previous 2 appointments.

Think anyone is a gamble. Hope he is decent for us. Something positive at least and hopefully a sign of things to come for the rest of the summer.

Well he's got experience working on tight budgets in the lower leagues, turning failing clubs around, and getting good performances out of poor sides. Did most of that stuff multiple times at Bradford. I'd say he fits the requirements at the very least, now let's just hope he replicates for us what he did for Bradford. Their fanbase certainly aren't happy about him leaving.

Yep. Seems to have a rep for pragmatic fairly direct football. Which suits me as I don't see us being anywhere near good enough to play free-flowing stuff.

[officer_dibble]

Pulled that one out of the bag, assuming the BN has got it right at the 11th attempt . Pleased we've gone about our business professionally and not done it in the media.

[TonyDomingos]

Heh, soap opera. Except hopefully with an ending, and a happy one at that.

If it's Parky, that explains the delay - and as noted, Ken's played the media (and forums) like a banjo. Let's hope the new gaffer unites the club and we move onwards and upwards.

Let's hope it's the right Parkinson: Phil and not his younger brother, Gary.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Phil Parkinson is indeed a month older than the Gary Parkinson who played for us for about half an hour...

[Lord Kangana]

We haven't been duped and in fact have the 1980's West Ham goalkeeping stalwart...by any chance?

[SmokinFrazier]

I'm pretty disappointed it won't be Adkins. Parkinson deserves credit for the cup run Bradford had a while back but what managers achieve in the league is far more telling, and he's not really shone there. I don't think cup runs are the best way to judge managers but that's obviously the highlight of Parkinson's managerial career so far and without it, probably wouldn't be considered for our job.

The best achievement of any candidate was Adkins getting Southampton promoted to the Premier League, which is why I'd have chosen him. I don't see a whole lot in Parkinson's record to think he can take us far - he'll get us promoted because he's not clueless but beyond League One? I'm not convinced.

[plymouth wanderer]

I'm pretty disappointed it won't be Adkins. Parkinson deserves credit for the cup run Bradford had a while back but what managers achieve in the league is far more telling, and he's not really shone there. I don't think cup runs are the best way to judge managers but that's obviously the highlight of Parkinson's managerial career so far and without it, probably wouldn't be considered for our job.

The best achievement of any candidate was Adkins getting Southampton promoted to the Premier League, which is why I'd have chosen him. I don't see a whole lot in Parkinson's record to think he can take us far - he'll get us promoted because he's not clueless but beyond League One? I'm not convinced.

is that not the aim? am I missing something?

[SmokinFrazier]

I'm pretty disappointed it won't be Adkins. Parkinson deserves credit for the cup run Bradford had a while back but what managers achieve in the league is far more telling, and he's not really shone there. I don't think cup runs are the best way to judge managers but that's obviously the highlight of Parkinson's managerial career so far and without it, probably wouldn't be considered for our job.

The best achievement of any candidate was Adkins getting Southampton promoted to the Premier League, which is why I'd have chosen him. I don't see a whole lot in Parkinson's record to think he can take us far - he'll get us promoted because he's not clueless but beyond League One? I'm not convinced.

is that not the aim? am I missing something?

It is in the short term, yeah, but we have to think beyond that too. We'll get promoted next year whether it's Parkinson, Adkins or Peter Reid but that's not the final goal, we need to look at getting back to the Premier League. Adkins has experience of that, I'm not sure Parkinson is capable of it.

[BWFC_Insane]

I'm pretty disappointed it won't be Adkins. Parkinson deserves credit for the cup run Bradford had a while back but what managers achieve in the league is far more telling, and he's not really shone there. I don't think cup runs are the best way to judge managers but that's obviously the highlight of Parkinson's managerial career so far and without it, probably wouldn't be considered for our job.

The best achievement of any candidate was Adkins getting Southampton promoted to the Premier League, which is why I'd have chosen him. I don't see a whole lot in Parkinson's record to think he can take us far - he'll get us promoted because he's not clueless but beyond League One? I'm not convinced.

is that not the aim? am I missing something?

It is in the short term, yeah, but we have to think beyond that too. We'll get promoted next year whether it's Parkinson, Adkins or Peter Reid but that's not the final goal, we need to look at getting back to the Premier League. Adkins has experience of that, I'm not sure Parkinson is capable of it.

Errr why? How many sides who finished adrift at the bottom of the championship go straight back up, without a fair few new signings we are far more likely to drop again than go straight back up.

[plymouth wanderer]

I'm pretty disappointed it won't be Adkins. Parkinson deserves credit for the cup run Bradford had a while back but what managers achieve in the league is far more telling, and he's not really shone there. I don't think cup runs are the best way to judge managers but that's obviously the highlight of Parkinson's managerial career so far and without it, probably wouldn't be considered for our job.

The best achievement of any candidate was Adkins getting Southampton promoted to the Premier League, which is why I'd have chosen him. I don't see a whole lot in Parkinson's record to think he can take us far - he'll get us promoted because he's not clueless but beyond League One? I'm not convinced.

is that not the aim? am I missing something?

It is in the short term, yeah, but we have to think beyond that too. We'll get promoted next year whether it's Parkinson, Adkins or Peter Reid but that's not the final goal, we need to look at getting back to the Premier League. Adkins has experience of that, I'm not sure Parkinson is capable of it.

I'll have some of what your smokin

[Harry Genshaw]

You sound like a manure fan SF. What on earth do you see in our current circumstances that suggests we'll get promotion? We need someone to arrest the slide first. Hopefully Parky is the man

[Bijou Bob]

Nothing at all from the club on this, so time yet for a final twist in the tale......

[Prufrock]

I'd have preferred Adkins, but then Coyle, Freedman AND Lennon were my picks of those in the frame at the relevant time (Viz readers, can anyone match that).

Spectre of Reid aside, I thought the field was pretty good, all things considering. Obviously, don't trust his name, but we'll see. If it all gits wrong I'll enjoy saying how that Parkinson is a wanker.

[BWFC_Insane]

Nothing at all from the club on this, so time yet for a final twist in the tale......

The club announced a press conference for tomorrow.....

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

I'd have preferred Adkins, but then Coyle, Freedman AND Lennon were my picks of those in the frame at the relevant time (Viz readers, can anyone match that).

Spectre of Reid aside, I thought the field was pretty good, all things considering.

I'll second all of that.

I'm pretty disappointed it won't be Adkins. Parkinson deserves credit for the cup run Bradford had a while back but what managers achieve in the league is far more telling, and he's not really shone there. I don't think cup runs are the best way to judge managers but that's obviously the highlight of Parkinson's managerial career so far and without it, probably wouldn't be considered for our job.

The best achievement of any candidate was Adkins getting Southampton promoted to the Premier League, which is why I'd have chosen him. I don't see a whole lot in Parkinson's record to think he can take us far - he'll get us promoted because he's not clueless but beyond League One? I'm not convinced.

I'd have preferred Adkins too, but you're doing him a huge disservice. A huge disservice. He's:

- Taken them on the mentioned cup run, resulting in a major final that we haven't even been close to achieving since 2011.
- Turned the club around from potential relegation into non-league football
- Promoted them from league 2
- Established them in league 1
- Got them to the play offs in league 1

All whilst operating on a relatively small budget, and getting decent performances. It's no indicator of success here, but he's certainly proven it in the leagues we're now looking at. Adkins, as much as I rate and wanted him, had the backing of a relatively rich and well run board under Liebherr and Cortese, and good academy set up under their Director of Football whose name fails me.

I was/am interested in Adkins too, but I agree SF's being a bit unfair on Parky there. For a start he's two years younger than Adkins (and three younger than Cotterill) so you'd expect them to have the beefier CV. (That said, with 13 years' management experience on the clock he's no naive kid.)

As noted, he's (currently) the fifth-longest serving manager, and it's not just at Bradford that he's stuck around: he spent three years at Colchester (kept them in League One, then finished mid-table with a couple of cup runs, then took them up as runners-up). He doesn't rush into decisions - while he was Pardew's assistant at Charlton he was offered the Huddersfield management job but turned it down. Hull and Charlton didn't go as well but his five years at Bradford have shown a definite upward curve: 18th in D4, 7th in D4 (League Cup finalists, promoted through play-offs), 11th in D3, 7th in D3, 6th in D3 (play-off semis). That's not a bad half-decade of growth, and that rate is arguably more sustainable than racing through the divisions.

On a side note, as a mate said to me: wasn't Ken Anderson talking very knowledgeably about Bradford's wage bill back when he gave his first interview? Joining the dots here, but could this have been quietly and subtly on the cards for a good while?

Also, as a bonus, it'll really piss off fans of Bury, where he was quite the popular chap.

[malcd1]

Weren't there rumours of Bradford sacking Phil Parkinson a few weeks ago? Nixon has intimated they changed their mind when Bolton came sniffing, hoping for compensation (300k mentioned on Twitter) rather than having to pay PP off. KA & DH then decide they aren't paying any compensation and appear to have both Adkins and Cotterill in their sights. The story is fed to Marc Iles who innocently writes the article completely unaware that KA/DH still want Parkinson but are playing games with Bradford. Bradford crumble at the last moment and lower their demands. Deal finalised.

Only guesswork but I like the idea that we have two streetwise people at the helm. Only time will tell if Phil Parkinson is the right man for the job but it looks like BWFC have got their man.

[LeverEnd]

Looking at Twitter and the Bradford press, their fans are really gutted he's going. Then there's this article with the views of one of their fans.

http://www.burndenaces.co.uk/2016/06/10 ... inson.html

I like this bit best...

Under Phil Parkinson, we had some of the fittest and mentally toughest City teams we've ever had, and some very strong second half teams. City would often concede and you'd just expect them to come back straight away - they were that resilient.

Parkinson will recruit a core of strong characters and cultivate a particular work ethic that will influence everything he does

[LeverEnd]

The complete opposite of recent BWFC teams. It will be tough to do with what he's got and little money, but given time and patience I think he'll be a good appointment.

Like I thought coyle freedman and lennon would be.

[TonyDomingos]

The complete opposite of recent BWFC teams. It will be tough to do with what he's got and little money, but given time and patience I think he'll be a good appointment.

Like I thought coyle freedman and lennon would be.

Not quite the complete opposite of us: "City would often concede'.

[BWFC_Insane]

For me the thing I like hearing about PP is that he's a pragmatic manager who sets teams up to keep clean sheets and plays a fairly straightforward style. I'm interested in what he does here. Perhaps he'll get the best out of Madine?

I feel we've had managers previously who wanted to play in a certain way that didn't suit the level or quality of players we have. I think you can be easily fooled and look at Mark Davies and Clough and think we have enough quality to play in front of teams and open them up, we don't by a long way and I think Lennon's persistence with plodding possession style football cost us last year when I think we should have been going back to front very early.

Be interesting to see what Parkinson does if the embargo is lifted as for me we're going to struggle to play how he set Bradford up given we're as weak as water currently. Perhaps he can bring in a few experienced physical players who know this level. Think that is critical really and getting the embargo lifted will determine the season.