The ianevattable sacking

[officer_dibble]

Thomason clearly won’t say no but it would break him under Evatt I think. Particularly when he (Evatt) appears to be a blame everyone but himself person. Far better for a new manager to come in and assess the situation.

[HMX]

I'd be happy with GT as captain.

I wouldn't be happy with the rest of it.

He’s 23 and struggled Saturday. Future captain but absolutely not now. What are all our senior players doing? Hiding. Sums it up.

No change from Wembley then. Where was Santos, and where was Evatt? No 'I got it wrongs' either (obviously).

Re 'not now' – not now with Evatt still here, but with someone else, maybe.

[Worthy4England]

She isn't selling anything. In case you missed it, she's investing money. Who do you have lined up for the takeover?

That’s not the point I’m making. The owners can do what they want as ever. Doesn’t mean I have to think it isn’t an absolute disgrace. Which it is. But they own it and can do as they like. If they want to do it in the name of Bolton wanderers then they can. I can’t stop them.

Take 2 bedsheets. 1 with Evatt out and 1 with sack the board. That will solve all our problems.

Burning pitchfork at the ready for Saturday. I don’t want the owners gone I just want them to get a grip.

How much will it cost to get rid of Evatt? Do you know? It might not be as easy as "lets all have another whip round the investors and pay Evatt off." We've just "spent big" in the transfer market, as you've pointed out...

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

I’m beyond furious at this point. Worst I’ve felt and that includes the disgrace of Anderson.

No, y'see, now you've gone daft again. (IMO.)

I agree with you (to an extent) that a decision to blame and sack Craddock would be a disgrace; and I see why we were desperate enough to sell to Deano/Anderson (intriguingly enough, "He's an old boy! He knows the club!").

What happened thereafter under Ken was horrific and disgraceful for months and years on end and way past this, spineless as it may be.

[BWFC_Insane]

I’m beyond furious at this point. Worst I’ve felt and that includes the disgrace of Anderson.

No, y'see, now you've gone daft again. (IMO.)

I agree with you (to an extent) that a decision to blame and sack Craddock would be a disgrace; and I see why we were desperate enough to sell to Deano/Anderson (intriguingly enough, "He's an old boy! He knows the club!").

What happened thereafter under Ken was horrific and disgraceful for months and years on end and way past this, spineless as it may be.

The thing with Anderson is the man was a crook but the feeling was one that if he went we could improve things.

That proved incredibly hard but I had hope. I don’t see much hope here. Owners have failed to make the decision twice to do so a third time - what is the hope? None with Evatt. And another season wasted in this godawful league. No leadership anywhere and all totally clueless.

I’m thinking that I won’t see this club back in the championship again in my lifetime.

[nicholaldo]

I’m thinking that I won’t see this club back in the championship again in my lifetime.

How old are you?

[Worthy4England]

I’m beyond furious at this point. Worst I’ve felt and that includes the disgrace of Anderson.

No, y'see, now you've gone daft again. (IMO.)

I agree with you (to an extent) that a decision to blame and sack Craddock would be a disgrace; and I see why we were desperate enough to sell to Deano/Anderson (intriguingly enough, "He's an old boy! He knows the club!").

What happened thereafter under Ken was horrific and disgraceful for months and years on end and way past this, spineless as it may be.

As was pointed out many times, at the time in relation to how players weren't being paid and Parky was caught in the middle...etc.

I don't doubt there was only one offer on the table. Like you, what's going on now, is in no fcuking way comparible.

That said - it's clear the bridge has been crossed for many fans right now.

[DJBlu]

Thomason clearly won’t say no but it would break him under Evatt I think. Particularly when he (Evatt) appears to be a blame everyone but himself person. Far better for a new manager to come in and assess the situation.

In my short time as a Bolton fan I dont think I've seen the club do this before. Go against the fans.

Not saying it's right but I think we're in unchartered territory.

I don't know the ins and outs of the management of a football club but I'm sure it's not simple.

[Mar]

If they're getting rid of Craddock and changing the captaincy then there's clearly a round of discussions that have been had with both the management and the players.

They're in there with Craddock on a day to day basis and if his methods aren't working out or have become stale then there's definitely an argument for changing it. It'll change the day to day.

I'd be happy with GT as captain, but that comes with the same pressure that Okocha and Nolan suffered with, so it may not do him any favours either. Hopefully it's a lead by example sort of role.


In terms of Evatt, i'd be happy if he stays provided things change. The trouble with that is that it's looking ever more likely that he's unable to do that and that we're just delaying whilst it gets gradually worse. Allardyce had a two month period without a win in the league in November and December 2004 and then there was a late Diouf goal at WBA and that last minute Nolan goal that broke all the tension and got us on a 7 game winning streak. It feels like we need that moment, and that upward momentum to get us back to our best. We're either going to have that happen, or an end of Megson style ending.

[officer_dibble]

I do think we need to wait to hear anything official…

[BWFC_Insane]

I do think we need to wait to hear anything official…

Confirmed by Iles.

[sonicthewhite]

I think it's got to a point where Evatt and his team need to go AND the captaincy has to be given to someone else as well. Santos has never been captain material.

[BWFC_Insane]

If they're getting rid of Craddock and changing the captaincy then there's clearly a round of discussions that have been had with both the management and the players.

They're in there with Craddock on a day to day basis and if his methods aren't working out or have become stale then there's definitely an argument for changing it. It'll change the day to day.

I'd be happy with GT as captain, but that comes with the same pressure that Okocha and Nolan suffered with, so it may not do him any favours either. Hopefully it's a lead by example sort of role.


In terms of Evatt, i'd be happy if he stays provided things change. The trouble with that is that it's looking ever more likely that he's unable to do that and that we're just delaying whilst it gets gradually worse. Allardyce had a two month period without a win in the league in November and December 2004 and then there was a late Diouf goal at WBA and that last minute Nolan goal that broke all the tension and got us on a 7 game winning streak. It feels like we need that moment, and that upward momentum to get us back to our best. We're either going to have that happen, or an end of Megson style ending.

Allardyce had poor runs when he’d already established himself as one of the best managers in the country. Evatt has spent a fortune and not managed above league one. They are polar opposites.

Evatt is never going to be close to Allardyce. Not close.

Evatt is a lower league manager who has had a lot of money and bottled it when it mattered. Who puts himself above the club.

[Worthy4England]

“I find that hard to take, find it slightly disrespectful,” he said of criticism received during and after the Huddersfield defeat. “As I said, I have got one of the highest win ratios of any Bolton managers in history, back-to-back Wembley appearances in two years, a promotion, broken club record goals, but that is forgotten in football. It is five games in and I am no longer good at my job and it’s time to go, and that hurts. That is what I said about tarnishing my legacy here, I don’t want to do that. I think I have done too well, worked too hard, you know how hard I have worked to get this club and lift it up to where it has been, maybe not sat here right now, but where it was last season and in the summer and the reputation we have got throughout the leagues now. I have worked too hard to let that slip away. We will all go away and have some conversations and see what happens.”

Not sure defense is his best course of attack, just right now.

[officer_dibble]

https://t.co/TwlJ6mAmY3 - iles

Ok, well that’s a fecking disgrace Sharon.

[Bertie Wooster]

Its all speculation until we get something official, however if rumours are true and Evatt is staying - he commented about the negativity around the club and personally to himself in his post match on Saturday, what the heck is going to happen if we lose against Reading - It will get much worse (if again it's true) that one of his coaches has been the scapegoat after Evatt himself said that he doesn't know what to do to change things.

Its actually comical bordering on farcical.

[HMX]

Yuck.

[BWFC_Insane]

Blame a coach is the Evatt way. He is a terrible human being. And is destroying our club.

[officer_dibble]

I’m grateful the M62 is closed on weekends. Gonna be a horrible few months.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

In case you can't access the BN

https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/2 ... hange-way/

WANDERERS will keep faith with manager Ian Evatt for this weekend’s home clash against Reading – but the axe is set to swing on members of his backroom staff.

Talks between the Bolton boss and the club board staff this weekend have concluded, with the decision pointing towards keeping the management structure intact for the time being.

Evatt took training today and is scheduled to be in the dugout against Reading but The Bolton News understands that a decision has been made to dispose of at least two roles in the coaching and analysis department.

No official announcement is expected in the short term, but it appears that Matt Craddock, who was promoted from B Team manager to the first team set up in November 2023, is among those who could leave the club in the coming days.

Craddock was initially brought in to manage the newly installed second string in 2021 following spells with Preston North End and with the Football Association. He replaced Sam Hird on a temporary basis at the start of last season and was handed the position full-time a few months later following an interview process, which involved Evatt.

Wanderers added to their coaching ranks again in the summer, bringing in Stephen Crainey from Wigan Athletic for a compensation fee.

It is not yet known whether any replacement staff will be sought.