Paul Wotton - like, not keen or indifferent?

[westbaygull]

I'm just idly musing, so no disrespect intended to anyone at the Club, but I would be interested to gauge opinion on here.
Irrespective of where we are in the table, our results, how far we've come from nothing in the summer - how do you feel about our manager?
In previous seasons there seems to have been much more chat about whoever was in charge at the time but not so much this season about PW.
So, as the title says. Do you like PW, are you not overly keen or do you not care as long as we're promoted?
And as an additional probe...if you were a pro player, do you think he would bring out the best in you?

[numpte]

This sort of thread should be posted in a years time (if at all) considering where we were last summer with a more stable environment and a lesser player turnover likely ahead. Like him, doing a great job all things considered.

We are the biggest club fan wise in this division but that’s all. Certainly not the biggest budget and in that regard we are punching this season.

[Fozziefan]

You’re joking right?

The previous manager was Gary Johnson. Who would you prefer?

I think he is a fantastic fit for the club and dread the day Argyle come to pinch him off us.

The second question is more thought provoking though and maybe I’m contradicting myself here but…I do think he could be tricky to work under ( but of course this is pure speculation). I say this because he’s openly never satisfied and also seems to refer to some players informally by nickname (MJ, WJD, etc) and others by surname making me think he might have his favourites - I’m sure some players respond better to him than others.

We are a sixth tier club and just as we can’t get top level players the same is true hiring managers. So in the absence of Pep Guardiola, he’ll more than do for me.

[westbaygull]

As I said in my post, it's not intended to be a time sensitive question ie dependant on whether we get promoted or not. Nor is it a thread slating him. Just curious about what people's thoughts are surrounding our manager at this point.
It's easy to judge at the end of the season, he'll either be a hero or getting slated, so I fancied a mid-season toe dipping to see how he was viewed

[desperado]

Don't think he'll be getting slated at the end of the season except by the deluded
It's good that's he's never satisfied. Don't think there's anything in the nickname thing, just some players have one that fits easily. Not sure why Hasani is called Larry though.

[portugull]

Great communicator, really cares, thoughtful, I am 100% happy with the Board's Appointment.

He is like a breath of fresh air and his team has Plainmoor rocking. What is there not to like?

[North Curry House]

First of all, I thought it was fantastic that before the game yesterday, Paul Wotton took time out to go on to the pitch and embrace Tony Bedeaus family and friends. I thought that was a brilliant gesture and appeared very personal - right from his heart. Taking a few minutes to show great respect, empathy and kindness spoke volumes.

I know those sat behind him in Bristows Bench moan about his industrial language and constant bereting of players and officials but I put that down to pure passion.

Is he the best Manager? Maybe not but he did a decent job at Truro, with a part time side and limited resources and is doing the same for us. Therefore I support him, like someone said, his honesty is refreshing after the last manager, who only was interested in himself and giving a job to his (otherwise out of work) sibling, while treateing us all like fools and preverbial mushrooms.....kept in the dark and fed a load of sh**.

My only reservation is he has been out of the football league for a long time and ask how that impacts on signing players. Most of our signings in days gone by, were of EFL players but now we rely on Bath, Weymouth and lower tier clubs.

Should Paul be poached by another club, how about approaching Darren Moore or Garry Monk, both started at TUFC and have been around the EFL scene since their playing days. The former was married to a local girl at Cockington, with the latter, brought up in Shiphay. Their contacts would be colossal.

To answer the original question, l think Paul Wotton has been an excellent fit and long may it continue, he has my full support. However we need to win the NLS to guarantee promotion THIS season, the playoffs are a total lottery, although exciting and a "money spinner", they should be avoided at all costs......just look what happened last time at Ashton Gate. We MUST learn!

In Paul, we trust.
COYY.

[culmstockgull]

Regardless of the end of season position Wotton will not be slated, considering the short time frame to assemble some form of squad, our budget, which I imagine is not even top five further depleted by paying off old debts. But some good recent additions and we should be pleased with our season too date when you bear in mind what the alternative scenario could have been, could it be better, always , but that is just me and I won't to be winning every game . We have a relatively small and unbalanced squad and the injuries have identified how thin we are, we are lacking in the defence and forward department but seem to be almost make a team out of our numerous midfielders.
The options for next season if we should not be promoted are full of promise, a full close season, months rather than weeks to plan and strengthen the squad, a welcome and renewed support for the club, anyway the thought of away days to carlisle, barrow hartlepool gateshead etc do not fill me with much anticipation but will have to be endured at some stage, are we quite ready for the national with its much higher wages and vastly higher travelling costs set against a group of owners who seem to be business people who know how to balance the books.At some stage we will have to make that leap but it is refreshing to have a season with far more positives than negatives.

[Dave]

Personally I don't think any of us can or should underestimate the size of the challenge presented to Paul Wotton. In most cases managers walk into their new clubs and there's a core base of a squad in place , meaning recruitment isn't so urgent, in most cases there's a board/ownership that has been a place also for a number of years plus, so some finance, process, infrastructure all set etc.

PW arrived at our club at the very start of year 1 of a new ownership, the canvass at TUFC at the start of this season totally blank, a squad of just 1 player, no longer with us, the new ownership in an impossible position of being able to forecast it's revenue, they could never predict the local community would back the club along with the exiles the way it has, in terms of attendance figures, season ticket sales, club shop sales, and the club bars that are packed before and after games, no one, not even TUST could have dreamed the CSI would double it's target, so a real low bar set to the budgets for this season, there is no doubt PW didn't get all the players he wanted in the summer, there's no doubt some players were signed because the club needed numbers, squad building is still ongoing.

Paul Wotton so far has been a breath of fresh air, especially compared to the arrogant, stubborn, excuse making bull-shitter that went before him. Yes Wotton's standards are high and he's never satisfied, no problem with that at all, you'll end up with players who's standards are high and wont except second best, that's where your success will come from.

His post match interviews have been honest, he's admitted when the team have got lucky, he's critized poor performance, praised good performance, if the players are honest they won't have a problem with that, success never comes with out honesty, every player should know when they've not played well, no player should ever need telling.

I've been to every home match bar 1, and to 3 away games, I've not seen a complete performance yet, we've seen bits and pieces of good play, and had spells in games when it's been like watching paint dry, but the one thing PW has proved he understands more than GJ ever did, it's not about ego's, it's about results, results, results, PW has set the team to be hard to beat and got results, that's what it's all about.

[Taelee73]

By far the best fit we could have got. Right age, right experience, hungry, local, knows the division.

Deserves huge credit for putting together a squad in around 4 weeks, I have faith he’ll ship out the weaker ones and keep improving the team over the next 12 months. Calls it as it is, no evading poor performances, no sleight of hand over the injury situations.

He did a fantastic job at Truro, getting that side playing attractive attacking football.

Our team will hopefully evolve over the seasons, to perform in whatever division we are in.

I find it bizarre that anyone has moaned about results, frustrating to leave the FA cup early of course. it’s still very early into the building process. If we keep hold of him I can’t see why we won’t progress to the FL within a new 5 year plan.

He is old school, I don’t think he takes fools lightly, I think at another club Mussa would have been shipped out or disappeared from view by now, but he is trying to improve his play. Some players won’t work out, that’s football.
We sit 5 rows behind the dugout, he calls players by their first name or nickname, he gets really frustrated at any poor play, decision making by player or official. Johnson and Downes stood there saying nothing pretty much all match.

I feel he is totally committed to improving the football team, over just about anything else. He will mention the support when asked post match, saying the right things, but I don’t think he would care if there where 500 or 5000 behind him, as he solely cares about improving the team, as it should be.

I’m really glad he is here.

[Dilmond]

You’re joking right?

The previous manager was Gary Johnson. Who would you prefer?

I think he is a fantastic fit for the club and dread the day Argyle come to pinch him off us.

The second question is more thought provoking though and maybe I’m contradicting myself here but…I do think he could be tricky to work under ( but of course this is pure speculation). I say this because he’s openly never satisfied and also seems to refer to some players informally by nickname (MJ, WJD, etc) and others by surname making me think he might have his favourites - I’m sure some players respond better to him than others.

We are a sixth tier club and just as we can’t get top level players the same is true hiring managers. So in the absence of Pep Guardiola, he’ll more than do for me.

Gary Johnson got us promoted, and if it hadn't been for sheer stupidity on his part, would have got us promoted back to the league.

The Jury is out on Wotton!

[Southampton Gull]

For those who point to Truro he had years to put that side together yet their new manager has them ticking along nicely and in a loftier position so not convinced that's a great marker. I personally find him annoying and quick to find excuses for poor results.

He said anyone who thinks we should be running away with the league is deluded. Well if it wasn't for the awful recent run that's exactly what we'd be doing.

I didn't like Buckle either but he had success with us so it doesn't matter if I like the manager or not it only matters what happens on the pitch.

Right now we find ourselves riding the crest of the new wave of ownership which has been a breath of fresh air to everyone and exactly what was needed after the charlatans connected to the previous ownership. To like or dislike the current manager is of no consequence as long as the club gets the success it richly deserves based on the efforts of the current custodians of the club. Before others bring up my defence of the previous manager just think back to who I was singling out as more culpable and more deserving of the abuse. They've all gone now thank god so my opinion isnt tainted by that and totally on what we have now. The jury is definitely out on Wotton for me, if he makes the most of the resources he's been provided with he should be able to take us up and then we'll see what he's really made of.

[TheYellowFromExeter]

For those who point to Truro he had years to put that side together yet their new manager has them ticking along nicely and in a loftier position so not convinced that's a great marker. I personally find him annoying and quick to find excuses for poor results.

He said anyone who thinks we should be running away with the league is deluded. Well if it wasn't for the awful recent run that's exactly what we'd be doing.

I didn't like Buckle either but he had success with us so it doesn't matter if I like the manager or not it only matters what happens on the pitch.

Right now we find ourselves riding the crest of the new wave of ownership which has been a breath of fresh air to everyone and exactly what was needed after the charlatans connected to the previous ownership. To like or dislike the current manager is of no consequence as long as the club gets the success it richly deserves based on the efforts of the current custodians of the club. Before others bring up my defence of the previous manager just think back to who I was singling out as more culpable and more deserving of the abuse. They've all gone now thank god so my opinion isnt tainted by that and totally on what we have now. The jury is definitely out on Wotton for me, if he makes the most of the resources he's been provided with he should be able to take us up and then we'll see what he's really made of.

With your point about Truro’s new manager having Truro ticking along nicely in a fraction of the time Wotton had with them. You could argue that it is quite similar to the situation at Liverpool - albeit at a much lower scale - where Klopp (in this case Wotton) set a lot of the foundations whilst also achieving success and giving Slot (in this case Askey) a good starting place to build even further onwards.

I know I have gone off on a bit of a tangent but I wouldn’t necessarily say that Askey is a ‘better’ manage than Wotton just because Truro are now higher in the table than when Wotton was in charge of them.

[Dave]

Paul Wotton as Truro manager never had a home ground, after months of postponents at Tauntons ground was faced with having to travel to Gloucester, to play their home games.

Paul Wotton ended up facing 3 games a week to finish Truro fixtures on time.

Paul Wotton didn't have the benefit of an average home gate of 1675 as its stands currently, Truro average gate last season due to no home ground was 236 not all of those were tinners.

Paul Wotton still managed to pull Gary Johnsons trousers down and smack his arse at Plainmoor

[Southampton Gull]

Ahh my first nibble, that was easy.

As I said in my post, the previous regime have all gone but if you're still hung up on Gary Johnson I'll bring you some kleenex