Is This The Reason We Are Shite?

When I was looking on the internet for how many games Sammy Lee had been in charge for I came across this:

On 14 February 2012 Sammy Lee returned to Bolton for a third time, being appointed as the Head of Academy Coaching. His new role will see him take a senior role working alongside fellow ex-Wanderers players and Academy coaches Jimmy Phillips, Tony Kelly, David Lee, Nicky Spooner and Gavin McCann

We all know that Sam Allardyce brought professionalism to Bolton Wanderers, emloying the best backroom staff a club of our stature could afford. And we all know Owen Coyle has slowly removed these people and brought in his fat cousin Gerald, Auntie Mavis, Granny Coyle etc. But look at the names highlighted in the above quote. How can we be expected to compete at any level when Jimmy Phillips, Nicky Spooner and Gavin McCann are coaching the players?

Is it any wonder we can't pass two yards when the only decent pass Jimmy Phillips ever gave was straight to Matt Le Tissier's feet and allowed Southampton to relegate us in 1996.

Is it any wonder we looked unfit yesterday when Tony Kelly is coaching our players in the art of eating Pringles and Pukka Pies?

Is it any wonder Mark Davies goes missing for hours on end when he's being coached by Gavin McCann, who often played 90 minutes for Wanderers without anyone noticing.

Is it any wonder Petrov & Chung Lee can't cross a ball to save their lives when David Lee is on the coaching staff, one of the worst crossers of the ball ever to pull on the white shirt.

And what about the defence? Should we be surprised we are the most disorganised team in the league when we have Nicky Spooner on the coaching staff. That's the same Nicky Spooner who couldn't hold down a place in the old Division 4!

Owen Coyle has turned this club into a joke, and Gartside and Eddie Davies have let him do it. Shame on them all, we may never recover.

Some amusing phrases in that post, Nat, but you know full well that these are youth coaches you're slating. They're not involved with first team coaching.

largehat wrote:Some amusing phrases in that post, Nat, but you know full well that these are youth coaches you're slating. They're not involved with first team coaching.

Wrong, they are all involved in coaching the first team to some extent, some more than others admittedly. Tony Kelly is head coach of table tennis.

While I accept you can have a good coach who wasn't a top class player himself, to surround yourself with so many average players who spent their careers in the lower leagues cannot be good for the first team or youth players.

No, Nat, I'm not wrong, they are all youth coaches.

The level a footballer played at is not an indicator of their coaching credentials.

I suppose you think Jose Mourinho, Sven-Goran Eriksson and Andre Villas-Boas are figments of the imagination.

You've just got this backward mentality, which, admittedly, many people in and around English football do, that you should be as big a name as possible to be a football coach.

I suppose you want a backroom staff of Paul Gascoigne, Bryan Robson and Ian Wright.

largehat wrote:No, Nat, I'm not wrong, they are all youth coaches.

The level a footballer played at is not an indicator of their coaching credentials.

I suppose you think Jose Mourinho, Sven-Goran Eriksson and Andre Villas-Boas are figments of the imagination.

You've just got this backward mentality, which, admittedly, many people in and around English football do, that you should be as big a name as possible to be a football coach.

I suppose you want a backroom staff of Paul Gascoigne, Bryan Robson and Ian Wright.

You need to follow some of Tony Kelly's Tweets...he's always name dropping. Had a pint with Kevin Davies, played Scrabble with Tim Ream, had a game of Twister with Zat Knight, Adam Bogdan and Mark Davies etc.

As I said, if you'd read my posts properly, you can be a good coach without having been a top player, but at the same time you need as many coaches who've "done it" as possible. If you wanted to learn Spanish you wouldn't surround yourself with Italians.

I need to follow some of Tony Kelly's tweets do I? I though Twitter was "shite" and you weren't on it? You've dropped a bollock in your online persona there, haven't you?

In any case, you haven't exactly shed any new light on the notion that these youth coaches are involved with the first team by pointing out that Tony Kelly is on first name terms or socialises with first team players. 9 out of 10 for comedy and 0 out of 10 for reality as usual Nat.

Your comparison between Spanish and Italian does not work, and even if it did, these guys are youth team coaches so it's a bad comparison made about an irrelevance. Right up your street.

It's a theory anyhow.
I don't know why professional footballers can't pass a ball 10 feet each and every time. Kids at the park seem to be able to do that.
I'm not asking for Arsenal like beautiful footy but Swansea have managed to do it with a team of so-called nobodies. How many times yesterday did a pass get mis-controlled, bobled ....possesion lost.
It's beyond me at this point....it's basic football skills. And you are born with it ...you can shout at players all day for effort but the basic skill has to be there.

I don't think who is coaching the under-15s has a lot to do with yesterday, terrenceanne. None of the players who played yesterday are products of our youth system.

The players we picked yesterday were not properly prepared for the game, they decided to feel sorry for themselves because they went behind to a blatantly offside goal, and were arguably unfit, and played in a poor system. Everything to do with Coyle and the players and nothing to do with Nicky Spooner and Jimmy Phillips.

largehat wrote:I don't think who is coaching the under-15s has a lot to do with yesterday, terrenceanne. None of the players who played yesterday are products of our youth system.

The players we picked yesterday were not properly prepared for the game, they decided to feel sorry for themselves because they went behind to a blatantly offside goal, and were arguably unfit, and played in a poor system. Everything to do with Coyle and the players and nothing to do with Nicky Spooner and Jimmy Phillips.

So why did we have pre-season games, again?

Fitness levels, formations judging, partnership building, team building - none which were shown yesterday.

bwfc71 wrote:

So why did we have pre-season games, again?

Fitness levels, formations judging, partnership building, team building - none which were shown yesterday.

Clubs have pre-season games to give players match practice, sharpness, to improve fitness, and for tactical experimentation.

Something has clearly gone wrong along the way with that process, but that's why they are played.

Tell me more about the fried chicken.

largehat wrote:

bwfc71 wrote:

So why did we have pre-season games, again?

Fitness levels, formations judging, partnership building, team building - none which were shown yesterday.

Clubs have pre-season games to give players match practice, sharpness, to improve fitness, and for tactical experimentation.

Something has clearly gone wrong along the way with that process, but that's why they are played.

Tell me more about the fried chicken.

Fried chicken is BH's forte, not mine!

Something gone wrong - there is only one thing that has gone wrong and that is Coyle - ever since the FA Cup semi-final drubbing. I admittedly gave him benefit fo the doubt at the beginning of last season due to the number of top teams we had to play in first 10 matches - something that has not been seen before or even matched this season, but he never showed ay strength in changing the team, the formation etc etc etc and yet continually blamed poor referee decisions, injuries et al and then when we lost Muamba it was like the floodgates had opened for him to say whatever he wanted to knowing that he conducted himself properly over the situation he wouldn't be able to get fired without bad publicity for the club!!!

Don't know about the others but Jimmy Phillips is 100% only a youth team coach.

The under 18,s beat Arsenal under 18,s 5-1 yesterday Bang goes Natashas theory.

Born to be a wanderer wrote:The under 18,s beat Arsenal under 18,s 5-1 yesterday Bang goes Natashas theory.

Not siding with Nat, but one isolated game is hardly enough to declare we've got the best under 18's in the world.

Top players are in the first team at 17 and 18.

Not saying we have but Arsenal will be no cloggers.So maybe a bit of positivety for once towards the kids 5-1 well done.The Academy is producing young players.Riley and Vela played in the premiership last season.I think the Academy is doing an ok job.

Born to be a wanderer wrote:Not saying we have but Arsenal will be no cloggers.So maybe a bit of positivety for once towards the kids 5-1 well done.The Academy is producing young players.Riley and Vela played in the premiership last season.I think the Academy is doing an ok job.

I was at this game and we did indeed hammer Arsenal. But it should be pointed out that while our under-18's were aged 16-17, the Arsenal lads were aged around 7.

You should do stand up Nat.I would have rather have been there than sitting on a wooden bench with a big pole (no not a large eastern european man) obscuring my view.I posted on here if KD,N,Gog and Knight were to start we would be fucked.KD a passenger like starting with 10 men and Knight caught out of position AGAIN! for the 2nd goal then leaving Ream and Ricketts to try and cut out a ball that if the donkey was in his position would have easily cut out.Im taking back the N,Gog cos he might be ok with Sordell but KD never again.See what happens v Derby but unless Coyle can get some reaction from these players he has to go.