Chris Hargreaves, Has he got what it takes in the Conference

[ferrarilover]

When Hargreaves was appointed I stated on another thread that I thought it was a big gamble due to (a) No managerial tactical experience (b) Too close to players (c) Doubtful if he has sufficient contacts.
At the end of the season I have no reason to question or alter my comments.

The whole thing's pretty flimsy, but point C is especially mirthworthy.

Matt.

[yellowforever]

The whole thing's pretty flimsy, but point C is especially mirthworthy.

Matt.

Indeed, if only we had a manager who could get players in on loan from clubs like Tottenham and Manchester United...

[tomogull]

I think Hargreaves has got what it takes to get us back in the league ...... BUT we fans have to show a bit of patience because I feel it's going to take two or three seasons to re-build the team. Don't forget that we have dead wood with the likes of Tonge, Hawley and Harding on two year contracts (gee - thanks Knill). The other BUT is the Board of Directors. Good people and ardent Gulls fans they may be, but do they have the knowledge (for want of a better word) to run a football club ?

[DTG]

Listening to the after match interview on RD I would say the CH is pretty damn well pissed off and so he should be. I think he is going to swing the axe deep and hard. Let's see what he's made of now. Good luck Chris.

[hector]

Listening to the after match interview on RD I would say the CH is pretty damn well pissed off and so he should be. I think he is going to swing the axe deep and hard. Let's see what he's made of now. Good luck Chris.

I hope that he clears them all out but I suspect there may have to be some tempering of wishes so it is not a case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

I suspect it will be a lot about attitude. However appalling that team has been, there are players there who should be able to be decent Conference players at the very least, whilst there are others who are clearly not.

Whilst there are obvious cases like Nicholson, Cruise etc, who you cannot imagine for one moment, would be retained, what about someone like Lathrope?

I imagine his attitude is pretty decent and as he showed at Hereford, earlier this season, he is a decent performer at Conference level. Could we get better than him? Is the same true of Harding? There aren't many others, though, who are worthy of keeping.

I suspect Martin Rice will be staying. When shaking hands with supporters on the Pop Side, he was saying 'We'll bounce back!' and whilst he has had a decent season this year, I still am not convinced that he is the solid keeper we need but his performances and attitude probably warrant a new contract, even if it means he has to compete for the no.1 shirt with someone else.

As for Mansell, it seems, if the other thread is true, that he is going. I cannot imagine that Mansell is one of the 3 that Hargreaves has been happy with and whilst he could be ok (although probably not) in the Conference, we need a sense of renewal, just to give that sense of a new direction, and retaining him would not really enable that to happen.

The early bird season ticket offer finishes on Friday (although a part of me wonders if they will extend the offer, like they did last year - they would be mad not to or else Friday's sales will likely be their last) - I cannot imagine too many have taken the club up on it just yet - but it will require a pretty dramatic retained list to persuade people it is worth shelling out.

[Gullscorer]

If there's one thing above all else that CH can do to prove he has what it takes to get us out of the Conference, it is to instil some permanent fighting spirit into the Gulls squad.

Yesterday, Mark Selby beat Ronnie O'Sullivan 18-14 to win the World Snooker Championship after fighting back from being 5-10 down. Because, as Selby himself said, he never gave up, he just kept on going. And Crystal Palace, 0-3 down at home to Liverpool, fought back to a 3-3 draw, because they never lost their fighting spirit, their determination to compete.

Yet how many times over the past eighteen months have we seen the Gulls drop their heads after conceding a goal, and going on to meekly capitulate and surrender the game, with no confidence, no bottle, no guts, no backbone, no desire. That, more than anything else, had been their undoing for far too long, until CH began to re-introduce some real, albeit fleeting, fight and determination into the team over the last few games of the season.

It takes both time and changes in personnel to alter that kind of ethos and to install character into a squad. CH has now had the time to determine what is required and where changes must be made, and his actions over the next two or three months will demonstrate his commitment to making those changes.

We cannot and should not expect him work miracles, but if he can produce a squad of players who are hungry for success and determined to achieve it, that alone should be sufficient to win the support of Gulls fans over the coming months. That is the very least he must do, and I believe he will do it.