How impressed are you with BMcD's return to the club?

[Nameless]

Rotherham are a decent side with a good manager.

Blimey, Warnock didn't last long then.....

[Maneki Neko]

I've always maintained that when we won this league last time round, there were 2-3-4 sides better than us, but it came together just right and the winning beast fed on itself.

I think you mean 2-3-4 sides that had the potential to be better than us, but failed to do so.

[The Sum of the Parts]

I've always maintained that when we won this league last time round, there were 2-3-4 sides better than us, but it came together just right and the winning beast fed on itself.

I think you mean 2-3-4 sides that had the potential to be better than us, but failed to do so.

Or that they played better football and had better players, but didn't get results as good as Reading...

It's as much about the mix of players and their effectiveness as a team as it is about how good the individual players are.

[CountryRoyal]

I've always maintained that when we won this league last time round, there were 2-3-4 sides better than us, but it came together just right and the winning beast fed on itself.

I think you mean 2-3-4 sides that had the potential to be better than us, but failed to do so.

Or that they played better football and had better players, but didn't get results as good as Reading...

It's as much about the mix of players and their effectiveness as a team as it is about how good the individual players are.

Appropriate post for your name but 100% agree.

Just look at Leicester now and QPR of recent times.

[The Sum of the Parts]

Yep, and that's what McD is good at - given a little time.

Clarke, on the other hand, was a pretty good coach but pretty rubbish when it came to motivating players and blending a winning team.

[Hoop Blah]

The optimist in me looks at last night with slight indifference. While it’s a bit much to suggest it was a ‘weakened’ side, it wasn’t our A-team and the formation, tactics, experience, form and on-pitch relationships are all significant enough factors to wave off this defeat and not worry too much about it in terms of progression, or Friday’s game. 

It's not our first choice 11, there were 6 changes from McDermott's preferred line up at the weekend and I imagine we'll see pretty much the same changes on Friday, so that's absolutely a weakened side in my book.

Why are you arguing about a point we agree on? My whole point was that because of the line-up and number of changes it would be unfair to cast any meaningful judgement.

It's like you just want to argue against me about anything, however semantic.

You said it would be unfair to call it a weakened team. I'm saying it was absolutely a weakened team. That's not semantics, it's just disagreeing with some of your post.

I agree that, because of the context of this week, it's a game we just write off just as we should do when looking at a load of Clarke's results last season when the team were safe but distracted by the cup run.

[CountryRoyal]

Yep, and that's what McD is good at - given a little time.

Clarke, on the other hand, was a pretty good coach but pretty rubbish when it came to motivating players and blending a winning team.

Time will tell. I'm certainly not in the anti-McDermott camp but I was initially against him coming back and despite the short term euphoria and feel good factor when he re-signed the longer this season plays out the more I remember I thought his previous success came from such a deep relationship with the players and the club, which obviously isn't the case now.

I'm not going to judge him til Christmas next season when he's had a summer to build his own team.

I still think he's better than Clarke and Adkins though but that isn't actually saying a lot.

[The Sum of the Parts]

Yep, and that's what McD is good at - given a little time.

Clarke, on the other hand, was a pretty good coach but pretty rubbish when it came to motivating players and blending a winning team.

Time will tell. I'm certainly not in the anti-McDermott camp but I was initially against him coming back and despite the short term euphoria and feel good factor when he re-signed the longer this season plays out the more I remember I thought his previous success came from such a deep relationship with the players and the club, which obviously isn't the case now.

I'm not going to judge him til Christmas next season when he's had a summer to build his own team.

I still think he's better than Clarke and Adkins though but that isn't actually saying a lot.

In the same way that there's debate over whether teams are better/more effective/whatever than others, I'm not sure it's possible to say that any one manager is "better" than any other (except in the extremes - e.g, comparing Alex Ferguson with Terry Bullivant...)

Management is a blend of skills - communication, motivation, tactical nous, ruthlessness, patience, empathy, charisma etc etc - and the skills that need to be used at any one time depend upon the individual players being managed, the whole make-up and motivation of the team, and the particular situation being faced. Rodgers was perfect at Swansea, a disaster at Reading. Same manager, same skills and style - different situation.

So some players might be managed most effectively by Alex Ferguson throwing teacups at them, while others might be managed most effectively by an arm round the shoulders and confidence-boosting encouragement (as McD got the best out of Shane Long).

The art of management is having all those skills available to you, and of knowing which one to use in which situation.

[Maneki Neko]

I've always maintained that when we won this league last time round, there were 2-3-4 sides better than us, but it came together just right and the winning beast fed on itself.

I think you mean 2-3-4 sides that had the potential to be better than us, but failed to do so.

Or that they played better football and had better players, but didn't get results as good as Reading...

It's as much about the mix of players and their effectiveness as a team as it is about how good the individual players are.

agreed

apart from "better"

[Extended-Phenotype]

Or that they played better football and had better players, but didn't get results as good as Reading...

Yeah, I'm with brendy and am calling you up on "better". How can their football have been " better" if it failed to get as many points?

More "Attractive"? Maybe. But "better"? Of course it wasn't - they finished below us in the system which ranks how good your football is, the league table.

[genome]

Didn't we already have a ten page discussion over how to define a "better team"?

[stealthpapes]

So some players might be managed most effectively by Alex Ferguson throwing teacups at them, while others might be managed most effectively by an arm round the shoulders and confidence-boosting encouragement (as McD got the best out of Shane Long).

The 'trick' Fergie pulled was being able to do both, and to have the skills and weight to be able to do both with equal effect.

[Extended-Phenotype]

Didn't we already have a ten page discussion over how to define a "better team"?

Dunno

Why did it take 10 pages to work out the team who wins is better?

[genome]

You must be new here

[RoyalinBracknell]

Thought he gave a really good interview with BBC Berks after the game - love this man. Three FA Cup quarter-finals in five years is a great achievement. I hope he's here for several years,

There was a bit of surprise when Al HabsiHabsi came back into the team but generally he's been excellent and our goalkeeping problems that seemed ever-present in the first half of the season now seem to have gone.

[leon]

Thought he gave a really good interview with BBC Berks after the game - love this man. Three FA Cup quarter-finals in five years is a great achievement. I hope he's here for several years,

There was a bit of surprise when Al HabsiHabsi came back into the team but generally he's been excellent and our goalkeeping problems that seemed ever-present in the first half of the season now seem to have gone.

He's a real man manager- gets the best out players.

Not that the pricks on here understand good management.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Agree, let's go

Heads down to get near the play-offs


Next season.....decent opposition......Newcastle, Villa etc to front up against

[leon]

Agree, let's go

Heads down to get near the play-offs


Next season.....decent opposition......Newcastle, Villa etc to front up against

Two fcuking annoying teams with annoying fans are who think they're Barcelona but are actually just shit. Really mediocre shit.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Yeah but big gates and Ian Royal

[Longhorn1970]

Yep, and that's what McD is good at - given a little time.

Clarke, on the other hand, was a pretty good coach but pretty rubbish when it came to motivating players and blending a winning team.

Nonsense