Administration and recovery

[Enoch]

Is that the same Phil Parkinson that got BWFC promoted from League One at the first attempt

The same one who starts next season with 7 players and minus 12 points. He's being set up as the fall guy.

Seven, now you're just being silly.

I've already had the call and I'm applying some dubbin to me boots as I type.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Say's Nixon. Hasn't he made a big enough cock of himself over the past few days already? I'm not saying that he's wrong, entirely, but he's not a source I'd quote.

Like Worthy says, Bruce, it’s a forum. You can quote someone without agreeing or believing in it.

It’s an interesting claim, and an unequivocal one from the man often accused of prevaricating.

I’ll be intrigued to see how those who say Nixon’s never right will react to it.

[Bertie Wooster]

Is that the same Phil Parkinson that got BWFC promoted from League One at the first attempt

Of course it is and you know full well Mr Enoch, you also know that he had a squad far better than everyone apart from Sheff Utd, and he still almost managed to cock that up, until the last game. However if you want to sit on a row of your choice entirely to yourself next season, when everyone in the stadium can hear you cough & fart, with a very stiff neck bored out of your skull, and watch BWFC decline even further please by all means carry on supporting Mr Parkinson.

I honestly can't see the point of FV going through this entire process, agreeing to put serious money into BWFC and then retaining one of the main people responsible for the further decline of the club & our relegation last season.

Its their choice & yours, but for me its not going to galvanise & get the fans on side is it ?

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

For the record, I don’t think it’s the best idea. But in some ways it’s not the worst. We really need to crack the f*ck in with player recruitment.

And it’s worth noting I edited something today from a Bradford fan who would give his full set of teeth to turn back time and keep Parkinson. Doesn’t make him the right PR move or even the right choice IMO. But next season is likely to be a big-ass battle.

If he stays, the first month is huge. Some of the ill feeling might (might) die down with a couple of wins. But they’re not easy to come by with a cobbled-together squad.

Has Wheater crossed the border yet?

[Bertie Wooster]

For the record, I don’t think it’s the best idea. But in some ways it’s not the worst. We really need to crack the f*ck in with player recruitment.

And it’s worth noting I edited something today from a Bradford fan who would give his full set of teeth to turn back time and keep Parkinson. Doesn’t make him the right PR move or even the right choice IMO. But next season is likely to be a big-ass battle.

If he stays, the first month is huge. Some of the ill feeling might (might) die down with a couple of wins. But they’re not easy to come by with a cobbled-together squad.

Has Wheater crossed the border yet?

Yes but it will become toxic again after a couple of losses, you cant have Parkinson building a new hoof ball team in the next few weeks, then being sacked in Oct and then expecting a new manager to take over a Parkinson long ball squad and improve things.

Come on who seriously wants to watch anymore of Parkinson's so called football week in week out. The more I think about this the more I think that Nixon is just winding fans up.

[Bruce Rioja]

Say's Nixon. Hasn't he made a big enough cock of himself over the past few days already? I'm not saying that he's wrong, entirely, but he's not a source I'd quote.

Like Worthy says, Bruce, it’s a forum. You can quote someone without agreeing or believing in it.

It’s an interesting claim, and an unequivocal one from the man often accused of prevaricating.

I’ll be intrigued to see how those who say Nixon’s never right will react to it.

Well, I'd certainly never quote Worthy either

I don't say that Nixon's never right, but do understand the very nature of his position, and as such treat his claims with caution.

Let's open the Parky debate out though. As a STH do I want to see his brand of football every other week? No, it's awful. Had I invested in the club would I be happy to see Parky try to pull this together? Yes, absolutely. As a stakeholder? A foot in either camp.

[jmjhb]

I can understand keeping Parky on even though I don't agree with it personally. More concerned with Aldridge staying on - why?

[Worthy4England]

Torn on this. Given we hardly have any players and I suspect they couldn't yet "execute" a redundancy we'd have a further hiatus until deal signs. That might not be this week for all we know. Then they'd have to talk targets with new broom. What they can do is prep work with Parkinson in terms of targets to then try and get us some squad early after signature of the SPA. So from a timing point of view, they might think stick with what we have is the best option logistically.

That said, new broom would almost certainly not be in the same football style and I think many fans would take that gamble. Like DSB said, first month feels important...

[Harry Genshaw]

Given how close we are to the new season and with so few players, then I think it's the correct decision.

It does feel like a missed opportunity not to galvanise the support and the community behind a new man and a new ethos. I also share the concern of Parky building a squad of his preferred players that we'll be saddled with when he's gone.

However, a week or so ago I was seriously doubting that we'd have a side ready for the opening game (& there's still some doubt) and what's needed, for now, is a steady hand on the wheel.

I ecpect he'll get dogs abuse the first time we go a goal down.

[LeverEnd]

Massive missed opportunity if true. They need to bring the club together, not divide it further. We'll have fans fighting each other in our end again, and that's the ones that turn up. Without the clean slate many just won't come back, and when that happens some of them never do. It won't stop me going but I'll be at Wycombe with a lot less enthusiasm.
Pressure would've been off with a new guy in, they've just piled it on themselves, the new players and certainly Parky himself. I can't imagine why he'd even want to stay?

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

There is, in my mind and from bits I’ve heard, a question over whether PP even wants the job. He’s not daft enough to think he’s universally popular. On the other hand, after a three-year trial why walk away now?

One other thing. (And yes, this is all suppositional talk.) Iles has rounded up where last season’s squad are, and apparently 13 of them are still free. Now in some cases that’s because they’re crap, but to a greater or lesser extent you get the feeling Parky could right now be lining up agreements with the following, who would make the squad look much healthier on one-year contracts:

Wheater
Brockbank
Hobbs
Taylor
O’Neil
Vela

https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/1 ... ilderness/

[BWFC_Insane]

Worth keeping in mind that FV are new to the world of football. They don't know the inner workings of agents, players and like anyone new to an industry will take time to find their feet. There have been meetings about player recruitment between FV, admins and people in the club this week and I suspect given change of control will likely be next week that they need to put plans in action now ahead of that and to do that need a management team.

For people completely new to an industry to rip up the existing management team immediately and replace them - is risky - but to do it in the position we're in, in a very practical sense would be more than difficult. I would be surprised if their plan is to keep Parky longer term - in fact I'm fairly sure had they taken control sooner he may well have gone already. But given where things stand I suspect that they might see how things go initially.

I simply cannot see there being time or practicality to next week say "sorry Parky you're out" find a new management team work with them on recruitment and then build a team by the start of August. It just seems very unlikely. And remember that FV being new to football are not like Ken Anderson who had the contacts to effectively build a team himself if he chose to and bring a manager in to inherit said team.

[Branagan]

Seems we (or FV) have to choose between two evils here:

1. New management team and all the time, upheaval and bedding in that would require - then forcing them to start of on the back foot in every way imaginable.

2. Keep Parky and gain some of the groundwork that comes with him (albeit cracked and full of weeds) but risk losing the 'new era' feel and getting stuck in the same rut we've been in - as well as seriously alienating the fans, maybe for a long time to come.

I am torn. It sounds like a choice between logistics and sentiment - head and heart. But I am actually leaning towards the decision that keeping Parky, the message that would send about our intent, and the affect that will have on the atmosphere would be too negative. The football definitely will.

I don't think you can give it to a brand new management team either, however. If you could even find one willing to take it on at this point.

Maybe the solution is to give it to David Lee on a caretaker basis. He knows the club, where the loos are etc. He's also worked with the youngsters that I think we'll be relying on to a good extent. It's important that it's a caretaker role, however, because it will be a difficult step up for Lee - even without the points penalty - and I don't think the club would do itself any favours by throwing him in at the deep end and setting him up to fail. So more of a 'can you keep us afloat while we carry out a proper managerial recruitment process?' Then of course, if he does well, he can always be in contention.

Whether Lee would go for that is another factor of course.

[BWFC_Insane]

David Lee with an already established squad is one thing. But what experience does Lee have of signing senior players for the first team? We're talking practicalities here like identifying frees, liaising with agents, discussing terms, arranging trials etc....Lee hasn't done any of that. He's not connected in the game. It just isn't a practical option right now in my view.

[nelson66]

How can you say David Lee is not connected in the game - do you know that ?
I'd be delighted if he were given a chance

[DJBlu]

I doubt David Lee is a loner in the football world. He will not have sat on his arse and watched the world go by. He's in tune with most of the U23s around the country and will know who is likely to be a good fit for our side. No doubt he'll have contacts at clubs at this level and will have worked alongside the recruitment team at Bolton.

To say he's not connected in the game is such a nonchalant flippant remark.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

He’d need to hire an assistant, coaches, goalkeeper coach. He’d have to recruit players he’s presumably never seen (unless they faced his U23 team) without the benefit of scouts or agents. The U23 world is very small compared to the seniors.

I like Didsy but it would be an enormous, enormous risk to appoint an untried manager with this laughably threadbare squad for a season that starts in four weeks with us on at least -12 points.

I completely understand the desire for a fresh start. I agree it would be better. But good god that new manager would have to hit the ground running. Can we afford that risk? Say we get a new manager - Didsy, Simon Grayson, Kevin Nolan, whoever - and a woefully half-baked team gets three points from its first five games. Where’s the bounce then?

Again, for the record (and the binaries), I still feel deeply uneasy with retaining Parky. But I would feel much more worried about elevating Didsy or indeed taking a flier on anyone who hasn’t got a thick contacts book of people he can hire - now.

[BWFC_Insane]

Knowing U23s is no doubt a bonus but we'll be restricted on the loans we can bring in so will mainly be dealing with players available on a free transfer. I personally cannot imagine David Lee has enough experience of dealing with players and agents to be let loose at this stage without some experienced help - just my feeling on it. DSB has it right. Keeping Parky will not be the ideal. But given where we are this is making the most out of a bad situation right now. Taking further time out to change managers is in reality unlikely to be an option. Parky at the least will know the agents of players who are available and can be working on talking to them now. Immediately. Hopefully to start signing them in a week or so.

[Bruce Rioja]

How can you say David Lee is not connected in the game - do you know that ?
I'd be delighted if he were given a chance

Really? I'd say that the last person we need right now is a novice.

[Harry Genshaw]

It'll be interesting to see how Bury get on. They're in a higher division, losing players left right and centre and had to abandon the first days pre season training due to having no insurance. It's a huge task for their new inexperienced manager.

Here's hoping they crash and burn whilst giving us 6 points.