Pauno Whelmguage v2.0

[Millsy]

Was going to append in the whelmguage on page 2 so as not to clutter the board, but I would like to see poll results even at this early stage, however early it may be.

What is the consensus now?

We (i.e. I ) may have been generally underwhelmed by the chap largely because of his mediocre record but also coloured by the circumstances around the sudden change and loyalty to Bowen, who we felt was deserving of a longer chance.

Now we've moved on from Bowen and the shock randomness and we have a few results and performances to go by, what are our thoughts?

[Snowflake Royal]

Going well so far.

Think Joao is the main factor myself. But that will be put to the test next up by the looks.

Did well against a decent side that can play dirty, so less concerned about how Barnsley had us penned back.

Three games too few to get really excited by, but you can't ask for more than 9 points.

Need some signings to fill out the squad weakness though. DM, RB, LW. Hard to sign a new striker given how many we've got, but we have no one who offers what Joao does, hopefully we don't need someone at that level to get by, at least for a short time hopefully.

[NewCorkSeth]

I dont want to come across negative here but I am going to reserve any serious judgement of his ability as a manager until we are a few more games in. He has done well, selected the right teams, made sensible subs, seems to have done good work on the training pitch and, from reports, he is very hands on and positive.

But. This is still Bowens team likely playing Bowens formation. Would we have the same results under Bowen? I dont know. A lot could be down to the apparent change in professionalism under Pauno (Bowen apparently let the players go out drinking and what not after a win). I just can't commit to Pauno being the reason for the change when we are playing a more sensible midfield structure which is clearly what Bowen wanted and Joao is fit. Makes too much of a difference.

Obviously I am delighted with where we are and how we have been playing. Just think its a bit early to tell if that is down to the manager or the players right now.

[WestYorksRoyal]

I dont want to come across negative here but I am going to reserve any serious judgement of his ability as a manager until we are a few more games in. He has done well, selected the right teams, made sensible subs, seems to have done good work on the training pitch and, from reports, he is very hands on and positive.

But. This is still Bowens team likely playing Bowens formation. Would we have the same results under Bowen? I dont know. A lot could be down to the apparent change in professionalism under Pauno (Bowen apparently let the players go out drinking and what not after a win). I just can't commit to Pauno being the reason for the change when we are playing a more sensible midfield structure which is clearly what Bowen wanted and Joao is fit. Makes too much of a difference.

Obviously I am delighted with where we are and how we have been playing. Just think its a bit early to tell if that is down to the manager or the players right now.

One big difference from Bowen was effective subs nice and early to change the game when it was drifting against Barnsley. That game may well have petered out to 0-0 under Bowen

[alfie9]

I am impressed so far. Not just the results but he seems to be cultivating a good atmosphere, the core unit of the squad seems to be closer than ever. He is using Bowen's team and a 4-2-3-1 that I'm sure the team has a degree of familiarity with, but his team selections (Luton was controversial but we weren't trying to win anyway), tactical changes and substitutions have been spot on. A somewhat insignificant example is when he brought on Holmes out of position for the injured Araruna. Had enough wits about him to trust Tom Holmes rather than moving back a midfielder and messing with the winning formula.

I know a lot of you have a bone to pick with Stam but the vibe reminds me of when he came in. Despite the sometimes boring football, Stam cultivated a really good atmosphere and was popular among the players. Veljko seems like a strong man manager in the same vein as Stam, but less obsessed with keeping the ball. Stam's man management got a pretty average team to 3rd place.

While I think Pauno fully deserves credit for this first month, none of this is to diminish the good work Mark Bowen did behind the scenes. If this season ends up being something special, Bowen will be in the conversation simply for bringing in Josh Laurent for free. He will be playing a massive role in our playoff season, if we make it happen.

[Snowflake Royal]

I dont want to come across negative here but I am going to reserve any serious judgement of his ability as a manager until we are a few more games in. He has done well, selected the right teams, made sensible subs, seems to have done good work on the training pitch and, from reports, he is very hands on and positive.

But. This is still Bowens team likely playing Bowens formation. Would we have the same results under Bowen? I dont know. A lot could be down to the apparent change in professionalism under Pauno (Bowen apparently let the players go out drinking and what not after a win). I just can't commit to Pauno being the reason for the change when we are playing a more sensible midfield structure which is clearly what Bowen wanted and Joao is fit. Makes too much of a difference.

Obviously I am delighted with where we are and how we have been playing. Just think its a bit early to tell if that is down to the manager or the players right now.

One big difference from Bowen was effective subs nice and early to change the game when it was drifting against Barnsley. That game may well have petered out to 0-0 under Bowen

Bowen made loads of subs around the normal 65 - 75 minute mark, and plenty were attacking, he rarely had the option of calling in Meite though, because he was usually starting.

[WestYorksRoyal]

I am impressed so far. Not just the results but he seems to be cultivating a good atmosphere, the core unit of the squad seems to be closer than ever. He is using Bowen's team and a 4-2-3-1 that I'm sure the team has a degree of familiarity with, but his team selections (Luton was controversial but we weren't trying to win anyway), tactical changes and substitutions have been spot on. A somewhat insignificant example is when he brought on Holmes out of position for the injured Araruna. Had enough wits about him to trust Tom Holmes rather than moving back a midfielder and messing with the winning formula.

I know a lot of you have a bone to pick with Stam but the vibe reminds me of when he came in. Despite the sometimes boring football, Stam cultivated a really good atmosphere and was popular among the players. Veljko seems like a strong man manager in the same vein as Stam, but less obsessed with keeping the ball. Stam's man management got a pretty average team to 3rd place.

While I think Pauno fully deserves credit for this first month, none of this is to diminish the good work Mark Bowen did behind the scenes. If this season ends up being something special, Bowen will be in the conversation simply for bringing in Josh Laurent for free. He will be playing a massive role in our playoff season, if we make it happen.

Think the smaller squad has a big impact on morale and atmosphere. Bowen inherited an inflated squad which Gomes had mismanaged in many cases.

If Pauno keeps this up and takes us up, fair play. The gamble will have worked. But Bowen did a very important job for this club in the circumstances. Arguably Gomes too, just by keeping us up and helping fans like the team again.

[Lower West]

Thought that the subs yesterday were interesting. Could have easily reverted to playing 5 at the back and brought Aluko on. Instead showed faith in the youngsters to both play out of normal position. Like the positivity.