Saturdays Pre Match Entertainment. ( The McLeish Out Demo).

[Ger Regan]

Negative atmospheres breed negative performances. It's surely cannot that difficult a concept to grasp? I don't particularly mind what someone's opinion is for the vast majority of the week, but for the 90 minutes that the villa are playing, EVERYONE should be behind the team (and manager) looking for the same result. Protests, banners etc. do nothing to help that.

[not3bad]

If Villa were awful against Everton and were well beaten it might be more understandable after the game but beforehand is a terrible idea.

[john e]

Negative atmospheres breed negative performances. It's surely cannot that difficult a concept to grasp? I don't particularly mind what someone's opinion is for the vast majority of the week, but for the 90 minutes that the villa are playing, EVERYONE should be behind the team (and manager) looking for the same result. Protests, banners etc. do nothing to help that.

negative managers breed negative performances to

[Toronto Villa]

Interesting and honest post, John. I understand where you're coming from, especially about the performances but unlike you, I have faith, not so much in Alex McLeish but more the people he's surrounded himself with. I'm convinced McDonald and Sid can make a Villa man out of McLeish, I also think McLeish would love to play better football and is humble enough to admit he still has a lot to learn.

After so many years of crap football at Villa Park, it's not going to change overnight but at least the right people are there in place and there is the will to improve. For that alone I think he deserves a chance.

it also shouldn't be a shock to anyone that we have played better away from home and quite poorly at home where we are asked to take the game to the opposition. These after all are mostly MON players, who were purchased to play a certain way. MON's preferred style didn't require you to be that technical and were built for the counter attack. When you lose Ash and Downing then it takes away from our ability to still play that way, which in my opinion a number of the current players still want to do. It will only be when McLeish has had a chance to weed out some of those players and bring in his own that we can truly judge him on his style. But we'll have to wait at least another season to see that come through.

[pauliewalnuts]

I've expressed my opinion of the manager before, so there's no point going over that, but what on earth do people think they're going to achieve by "marching" against him?

I'd like McLeish to prove his doubters (including me) wrong, but more than anything I want Villa to win football matches. In what way is marching going to help this happen? It won't, it will do the absolute opposite of souring things even more.

Do they think Randy's going to sack the manager based on this? Have they stopped to think how fucking stupid Blackburn fans look with the personal shite they throw at Steve Kean and their never ending sequence of protests and demos, and maybe reflect on the fact they're going to make us look the same?

I doubt it.

[James]

I'm not a McLeish fan, not yet anyway, but protests against the manager are exactly what the Blackburn lot are doing wrong. The fault there are the owners, it's the owners they should be demanding to hear from and bring to account for their actions whilst totally supporting their manager and team. I think it's the same for us. We don't know what the board are planning, if anything, or what the longer term vision is. It's the board that we should be trying to bring to account, so if you have to protest about anything don't let McLeish be the target for a problem that he didn't create and isn't being backed over, demand answers from the board and put the pressure where it really should be!

UTV!

[Toronto Villa]

Can you imagine the conversations that are happening behind the scenes amongst the organisers? In fact, they are probably not talking at all. Just grunting at each other, jumping up and down, scratching each other's nuts, before someone's torch lights yet another house on fire.

[ozzjim]

Nonsense, Ozz. It's not for the good of the club it's for the good of his ego. These people are just tiresome attention seekers, it won't change anything they just want to be on SSN and to pretend they've got "passion".

Not an angle I considered it from, mainly as I had not even thought people would do it for their own end. Each to their own I guess.

[Concrete John]

Can you imagine the conversations that are happening behind the scenes amongst the organisers? In fact, they are probably not talking at all. Just grunting at each other, jumping up and down, scratching each other's nuts, before someone's torch lights yet another house on fire.

I very likely scenario, if there is actually more than one 'organiser'!

[Simba]

Forget the Aston Revolutionary Front. ARF ARF. for now. They have been reading the news (Sun) and think they are creating the Aston Spring.

Cors, if things do not improve I will also be filling me beer bottles with unleaded and building barricades accross Witton Lane. Kick the Scots out I will shout. Splitters.

[Simba]

Release the Bedsheet Four!!

[caster troy]

Poor timing for this I agree. Factor in the likely absence of our owner it just seems a bit futile.

We protested before he was appointed and it made no difference, they are hardly likely to ditch him now. Come June and a crushing lack of season ticket sales and/or championship football and things might be different.

[Simba]

Agree. It is just to early and does not have enough support. I appreciate that they (we) are concerned but not yet. We have no choice but to give the bloke a chance and Bloody Hell - Villa Fans have largely been forgiving and patient this season when others would not have been.

But. Problem is now worse as many are indifferent and bored.

A few more poor, negative performances with little fight. Relegation a real possibility and I am afraid we will all be calling for his head. Randy will be close behind.

[KevinGage]

Negative atmospheres breed negative performances. It's surely cannot that difficult a concept to grasp? I don't particularly mind what someone's opinion is for the vast majority of the week, but for the 90 minutes that the villa are playing, EVERYONE should be behind the team (and manager) looking for the same result. Protests, banners etc. do nothing to help that.

I tend to agree Ger.

But sometimes a situation is so unacceptable that supporters (and regardless of individual opinions I think that applies to most at VP)  have to use one of the few channels open to them to effect/ call for change. 

Most are underwhelmed by the football served up on a fairly consistent basis under McLeish. And it's pretty much in keeping with what we were led to expect based on his previous.

But we are not in unacceptable/ job is under threat territory yet as far as league position is concerned.  So protests and the like are far too premature and will just make us look like tits.

[Eigentor]

But we are not in unacceptable/ job is under threat territory yet as far as league position is concerned.  So protests and the like are far too premature and will just make us look like tits.

You get the impression that some people have impatiently been counting the defeats, hoping that a protest soon could be warranted. As we are still placed a comfortable distance from the relegation zone, they've run out of patience and launched a premature protest. They couldn't wait any longer for having a go at Big Eck.

The performances and results so far under McLeish have provided little cause for enthusiasm. But at the same time, we are a long way from the kind of footballing disaster that merits a protest.