High Noon Cover up. V Rotherham away Sat 11th Jan 12-30.

[GhostoftheBok]

I think that's possible, certainly (I mean if we didn't we'd probably stick not twist). If the new person, when it occurs, can get rid of aimless tippy-tappy whilst they're about it. That would be another win. But, when I look at our defending and the buck stops with Evatt, there must be others equally as culpable within the coaching team.

The issue right now isn't that he's failing to lift the team above it's level, it's that we're well below it.

Sometimes managers get sacked for not overachieving with a bad/average group, or in a bad environment, and clubs go through a churn of managers - see Stoke.

Evatt has loads of support in the club, has money to spend and has a great talent pool.

You'd have to make a very poor appointment not to get any improvement.

[Worthy4England]

I think that's possible, certainly (I mean if we didn't we'd probably stick not twist). If the new person, when it occurs, can get rid of aimless tippy-tappy whilst they're about it. That would be another win. But, when I look at our defending and the buck stops with Evatt, there must be others equally as culpable within the coaching team.

The issue right now isn't that he's failing to lift the team above it's level, it's that we're well below it.

Sometimes managers get sacked for not overachieving with a bad/average group, or in a bad environment, and clubs go through a churn of managers - see Stoke.

Evatt has loads of support in the club, has money to spend and has a great talent pool.

You'd have to make a very poor appointment not to get any improvement.

That first para had been drawn to my attention, mate.

Either Evatt is coaching the whole shooting match personally or our defensive coaches haven't read the right book yet. We were piss poor defensively last year too, just you get away with it a bit when you're turning in wins. That mentality feels endemic and it needs to change for me.

[The_Gun]

Weren’t we pretty good defensively in 22/23?

Has Evatt forgotten how to coach defence, or was that down to a now departed backroom staff member?

[GhostoftheBok]

That first para had been drawn to my attention, mate.

Either Evatt is coaching the whole shooting match personally or our defensive coaches haven't read the right book yet. We were piss poor defensively last year too, just you get away with it a bit when you're turning in wins. That mentality feels endemic and it needs to change for me.

It's tricky.

He's come into this season needing Johnston and Jones to show up and be Mr Reliable.

He's got Toal and Santos who, when they are really on it, dominate most League One forwards.

Then there's Forrester, who is learning his trade, and Forino, who was supposed to add physicality and is instead MIA.

He's not wanted to block Johnston's pathway back into the team, but has ended up having to play a player who isn't fully recovered from a horrific injury - psychologically or physically.

There are clearly huge coaching issues, but there are also huge personnel issues. So I'm not sure how any manager fixes that without changing the faces at the back. Teams are going for lads who could make a difference.

If everyone is fit and happy there are loads of clean sheets in that group for a manager who is on it. Nobody is fit, nobody is happy and Evatt is all over the show.

It seems we're not changing the captain, so we have to swap the deckchairs.

It's made worse by the midfielder covering Johnston being way off it. Evatt actually tried to put Randall, a quintessential #10, in front of him and move Thommo to the other side to protect his struggling centre back from losses of possession from his captain.

Absolutely desperate.

[Worthy4England]

Weren’t we pretty good defensively in 22/23?

Has Evatt forgotten how to coach defence, or was that down to a now departed backroom staff member?

Yeah, and that's my point. Think we shunted 35 goals in 22/23, 51 last year but I felt we were lucky, this year we're on target for some sorta record!

But you listen to Markham talking about risk taking, Evatt blathering about plan B being better plan A and we focus on landing key assets to help us attack yet the defending's really poor. That's the bit I think is endemic.

[Worthy4England]

That first para had been drawn to my attention, mate.

Either Evatt is coaching the whole shooting match personally or our defensive coaches haven't read the right book yet. We were piss poor defensively last year too, just you get away with it a bit when you're turning in wins. That mentality feels endemic and it needs to change for me.

It's tricky.

He's come into this season needing Johnston and Jones to show up and be Mr Reliable.

He's got Toal and Santos who, when they are really on it, dominate most League One forwards.

Then there's Forrester, who is learning his trade, and Forino, who was supposed to add physicality and is instead MIA.

He's not wanted to block Johnston's pathway back into the team, but has ended up having to play a player who isn't fully recovered from a horrific injury - psychologically or physically.

There are clearly huge coaching issues, but there are also huge personnel issues. So I'm not sure how any manager fixes that without changing the faces at the back. Teams are going for lads who could make a difference.

If everyone is fit and happy there are loads of clean sheets in that group for a manager who is on it. Nobody is fit, nobody is happy and Evatt is all over the show.

It seems we're not changing the captain, so we have to swap the deckchairs.

It's made worse by the midfielder covering Johnston being way off it. Evatt actually tried to put Randall, a quintessential #10, in front of him and move Thommo to the other side to protect his struggling centre back from losses of possession from his captain.

Absolutely desperate.

They were broadly fit and happy last season and still shipped 50+ goals in the league....Not good enough.

[GhostoftheBok]

They were broadly fit and happy last season and still shipped 50+ goals in the league....Not good enough.

Which is where the tactical issues came in, but it's going to be 70+ this season at this rate.

4 of the same defenders as 22/23 are going to ship double the goals.

That's organisation AND availability.

If you're not fixing the former you have to fix the latter to even begin to drag it back.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

He's come into this season needing Johnston and Jones to show up and be Mr Reliable.

He's got Toal and Santos who, when they are really on it, dominate most League One forwards.

Then there's Forrester, who is learning his trade, and Forino, who was supposed to add physicality and is instead MIA.

Here's the thing...

Jones has been off it for quite some time now and he knew Johnston was going to take time. To expect them to be Mr Reliable was probably expecting too much.

Santos has also had injury problems and is sometimes needing injections to play I believe.

Forrester is learning his trade and clearly not ready for anything beyond filling in here and there.

Forino is a known sicknote.

Defence was an issue last season as Worthy quite rightly reminds us frequently.

On what planet does our defence work this season when paired with half a midfield? If it isn't incompetence then its dereliction of duty.

[GhostoftheBok]

Here's the thing...

Jones has been off it for quite some time now and he knew Johnston was going to take time. To expect them to be Mr Reliable was probably expecting too much.

Well yeah, that's rather the point. We took a massive gamble on Forino, because we needed that signing to go well with the known issues we had. The same goes for Tutu, for that matter.

The players themselves (if they were in one piece) look right, but there was a huge chance they'd both miss loads of football.

So he came in needing things which were not reasonable to expect. A lad who'd been out for a year to be absolutely fine immediately and his old vice captain to come back rapidly and in form.

We all discussed those two deals in the summer as being big gambles on fitness.

Any new manager coming in (who plays a 3) is immediately looking for two centre backs and a RWB to strengthen his hand. So Evatt needs to be doing the same.

The issue he has is that he already has too many players. Who can he actually, in the real world, move on? I don't know the answer to that.

You are right the injury risks we take are off. I've agreed with that forever and a day.

We are buying minutes elsewhere on the pitch. We have to do the same at the back. Sign at least one defender who is like to stay fit.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

Its the culmination of a lot of poor decisions over several seasons. He should be sacked for bringing in 3 defenders and 2 of them being crocks and the incumbents are all injured or recovering from injury.

[GhostoftheBok]

Its the culmination of a lot of poor decisions over several seasons. He should be sacked for bringing in 3 defenders and 2 of them being crocks and the incumbents are all injured or recovering from injury.

We all agree he should be sacked. He's not going to be, so how do we win enough games?

Sheehan in the right role is huge. 2 losses with him as the pivot, 7 without him in that role. 8 wins with, 3 without. There's a reason Buckingham targeted him in the final.

Solidify the defence and get Sheehan back in the team, you're probably looking at play-offs.

[irie Cee Bee]

A new manager first order of business for the rest of January is to bring in a good strong, fit centre back to stop the hemorrhaging. He has the material to play a successful 4-2-3-1 system with this squad.

Baxter
JDC Santos New-Signing Tutu
Matete Morely
Mendez Gomez Randall Schon
Collins

He has the material to work with if he is of any worth. In fact, he has many options to get the squad performing. We just cannot continue with Evatt. He has lost himself in his ego and the players are suffering.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

Its the culmination of a lot of poor decisions over several seasons. He should be sacked for bringing in 3 defenders and 2 of them being crocks and the incumbents are all injured or recovering from injury.

We all agree he should be sacked. He's not going to be, so how do we win enough games?

Sheehan in the right role is huge. 2 losses with him as the pivot, 7 without him in that role. 8 wins with, 3 without. There's a reason Buckingham targeted him in the final.

Solidify the defence and get Sheehan back in the team, you're probably looking at play-offs.

How is he suddenly solidifying the defence?

How are you fitting both Sheehan and Randall into midfield without it getting further overrun without putting Roy Keane in or his L1 equivalent?

[GhostoftheBok]

How is he suddenly solidifying the defence?

How are you fitting both Sheehan and Randall into midfield without it getting further overrun without putting Roy Keane in or his L1 equivalent?

He reduces the number of times we hoof it up the pitch in a panic, only to have it come right back at us.

The simple fact is we win more games and play a lot better with Sheehan in the team in his proper role.

I'm not concerned about it being perfect, because Evatt is currently cocking up and Sheehan won't change that. What I'm fussed about is how we get "better", hopefully enough to get into the play-offs.

Sheehan makes us considerably better, because anyone in a panic just gives him the ball and he sorts it out.

We need an aggressive, physical left-sided defender who can step into midfield and recover at pace. With Toal coming back that allows us to have that ball-winner stepping out when needed on either side.

After we lost to Huddersfield and changed shape we didn't lose a single game in which Sheehan and Toal started, so we build off that.

Randall, if used properly, basically gives us another reliable out for panicked players.

If you get those two working players eventually stop panicking, because they have two outs and (if we make a signing and get a bit of luck) a better defensive unit behind them.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

How is he suddenly solidifying the defence?

How are you fitting both Sheehan and Randall into midfield without it getting further overrun without putting Roy Keane in or his L1 equivalent?

He reduces the number of times we hoof it up the pitch in a panic, only to have it come right back at us.

The simple fact is we win more games and play a lot better with Sheehan in the team in his proper role.

I'm not concerned about it being perfect, because Evatt is currently cocking up and Sheehan won't change that. What I'm fussed about is how we get "better", hopefully enough to get into the play-offs.

Sheehan makes us considerably better, because anyone in a panic just gives him the ball and he sorts it out.

We need an aggressive, physical left-sided defender who can step into midfield and recover at pace. With Toal coming back that allows us to have that ball-winner stepping out when needed on either side.

After we lost to Huddersfield and changed shape we didn't lose a single game in which Sheehan and Toal started, so we build off that.

Randall, if used properly, basically gives us another reliable out for panicked players.

If you get those two working players eventually stop panicking, because they have two outs and (if we make a signing and get a bit of luck) a better defensive unit behind them.

You stick with that optimism. I just don't see him fixing enough for it to matter much. I have no doubt Sheehan and Randall can make some magic happen with the ball, its when they don't have the ball and the opposition run straight through midfield at our shambles of a defence that scares me.

[BWFC_Insane]

You don’t get out of league one with luxury midfield players. We need at most one of Sheehan and Randall - whichever can play number 10 and actually put their laces through the ball and score goals and do some hard running off a target man then two physical runners doing the actual midfield roles. Right now that’s Matete and a new signing.

But the only way any progress can be made is Evatt going. Scraping the play offs and losing - would be dreadful. The only way anything good happens is if he goes at this stage and we start to build with new ideas and momentum.

[GhostoftheBok]

You stick with that optimism. I just don't see him fixing enough for it to matter much. I have no doubt Sheehan and Randall can make some magic happen with the ball, its when they don't have the ball and the opposition run straight through midfield at our shambles of a defence that scares me.

I don't think I'm very optimistic at the minute. However, we did go unbeaten when Sheehan and Toal were both playing. We did lose 2 in 12 with Sheehan as the pivot. We still lost 5-0 to Stockport (without Toal), so it's hardly perfect repair work that might happen; but even with Evatt screwing up Sheehan made his football tick.

It won't make us win against the best sides. That's much heavier lifting and I've no confidence Evatt's up to it.

I'll take being flat track bullies over whipping boys.

Flat track bullies with a solidified back 3 might get you somewhere a bit further along.

[GhostoftheBok]

You don’t get out of league one with luxury midfield players. We need at most one of Sheehan and Randall - whichever can play number 10 and actually put their laces through the ball and score goals and do some hard running off a target man then two physical runners doing the actual midfield roles. Right now that’s Matete and a new signing.

But the only way any progress can be made is Evatt going. Scraping the play offs and losing - would be dreadful. The only way anything good happens is if he goes at this stage and we start to build with new ideas and momentum.

He's currently the manager, so as Bolton fans it might be worth discussing what might be done with him as manager, rather than purely discussing fictional worlds in which he isn't.

If your position is that YOU don't want to talk about actual football until he's gone, that's cool. Don't.

[Worthy4England]

We've leaked 25 goals with Josh in the team, in the League. This notion that we're like George Graham's Arsenal qhen he's there doesn't feel right. Didn't we bench him for Wiggin, to save him from trauma?

[GhostoftheBok]

This notion that we're like George Graham's Arsenal qhen he's there doesn't feel right.

If I'd said that then yes, it would indeed be weird.