A Ship Without A Rudder

[BannedUserIAT]

D'OhNeill had us sailing down the wrong river to get to the ocean. He got as far as he could down that river, I grant you. And the view, on occassion, was pretty nice.

But, in order to get to the ocean, he needed to turn the boat around. He refused to do it and chose instead to walk the plank, floating aimlessly until some Arabs came along and have him lots of money to captain their little boat up some shitty estuary no-one really knows (or cares)  anything about. 

So, now we're reversing course in order to find the right river that takes us to the ocean.

On the way, we've already caught some fish. They've not matured to full flavour yet and one isn't even legal size but it looks so so good. No doubt the new captain, armed with a much longer reel and far more knowledge of the waters, will land us some excellent fish. And, eventually, I'm sure, we'll get to the ocean where we'll be joined by bikini models with legs that don't quit and magnificent breasts, pouting lips and this really unique way of...oh, hang on - wrong website. Sorry.

[luke25]

Thats a much better example than my attempt

[Dave]

Very nicely done Troy.

[sfx412]

Its strange what some so called fans can find positive in a time of adversity

Its as though the worst injury list in memory didn't exist, or that the start of the problems were caused by a turncoat quitting a poorly prepared side just as the season started.

Interesting stuff

[Toronto Villa]

I was a MON supporter for most of his time with us. Howver the last 9-12 months he became far too stubborn for his own good, and his departure leaving us when he did, in the manner that he did was nothing short of disgraceful. He did a lot of good things, but people will rightly or wrongly remember him for his final act. Houllier will take much of what has been left him and push this club on to better days faster than MON would have had he stayed.

[hawkeye]

Toto i think you supported him until the end, but its good you have now seen the error of your ways

[KevinGage]

I have major doubts about Houllier - I have from day one.

But we're effectively still in fire fighting mode at present and the guy deserves some time to implement his own ideas and strategies. Some look promising, others less so.

Thing is, even if he struggles to the point that we need to make a change at the end of the season or in 12-18 months that is a direct consequence of the timing of MON's departure in the first place. It was the worst, most inopportune time to leave, resulting in a limited selection pool as most other managers (unlike MON) wouldn't bail on their club at that time of year to join us. The ones who were good enough for the role anyroad.

[mr-villa]

Last season we lost 5 away from home in total. So far this season we've already lost 4. Yes he was wrong to walk out when he did but you can't dispute the facts of the contual top 6 finishes and wembley appearances. I remember many wanting MON to go were the same people who were asking for Mourinho, Jol and Hiddink to replace him. I wonder if they've sobered up yet. I don't blame GH he's doing what he can with the cards he's been dealt however the team is going backwards quickly. Is everyone happy now?!

Lost five away actually in the league, Newcastle, Stoke, Spurs, Sunderland and Blackburn

[TheSandman]

Our problem is that we are weighed down with too much ballast. Also, we sourced much of this ballast at the dock before we set sale rather than at foreign ports where we would have been able to source lighter and cheaper ballast. We spent £6million on some orange ballast from Chelsea that is neither use nor ornament and these kind of mistakes dogged the captaincy of our former captain. He also put this ballast in the wrong place leading to a horribly unbalanced ship.

We also are down to the bare bones in terms of crew. We have lost two first officers from the engine room one after the other and whilst First Officer Reo Coker and his predecessor Petrov had their deficiencies they were both solid officers with reasonable knowledge of operating the boat. We are having to staff HMS Aston Villa with cadets for Pete's sake! Sure the Scottish Cadet and his colleague from Tamworth are promising officers but it is not ideal to rely on such inexperienced crew.

Our new captain needs time to get going and restaff the ship but I have every confidence in him.

[Concrete John]

as a Martin O' Neill fan

As a fellow fan of our previous manager I think it's somewhat redundant to argue about his pros and cons.  He's gone and the club, the team and us fans need to move on.

[Somniloquism]

He did absoloutely nothing to prepare the squad for the coming season, we have the worst injury crisis in living memory

Virtually all of the injuries have occurred since GH came in with a more rigorous training regime. I'm not blaming GH as this is the juggling act that occurs with all clubs. Train them a lot and risk a lot more injuries but ultimately build up the stamina to the desired level. Don't train them hard enough and less chance of injuries but ultimately less fitness and staying power for the whole season. Although MON could have alleviated the second bit by rotating the squad more in previous seasons.

Hopefully with most of our players missing for a quarter of the season each it will mean we will have a stronger finish anyway this year. What I'm really looking forward to is a win in March so hopefully Houllier can deliver.

[Concrete John]

Its strange what some so called fans can find positive in a time of adversity

I'd rather than than finding negatives in times of success, relative or otherwise.

[usav]

He did absoloutely nothing to prepare the squad for the coming season, we have the worst injury crisis in living memory

Virtually all of the injuries have occurred since GH came in with a more rigorous training regime. I'm not blaming GH as this is the juggling act that occurs with all clubs.

You kind of are though, why mention it otherwise?   

How about Petrov, NRC and the others that were injured in games or in practice games?

[Pete3206]

Its strange what some so called fans can find positive in a time of adversity

Tsk! It's "fans" if you please.

[Shrek]

Yeah MON was the man, he was great.

Another four years of Martin and we would have been bankrupt. What would Martin have done with all these injuries? Spend spend spend and continue to stifle our youth academy.

We are in a transitional period. Look at how well Bolton are playing, after allowing nearly a year for the manager to settle in.

Be patient things are looking positive.