Robins (8 Viewers)

[PUSB-We_are_going_up]

Funny how last season around Christmas fans were saying that they think this was the furthest MR could take us, now people talk about promotion to the Premier league. He has been a fucking miracle worker long may it continue!

 

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[Hutch11]

His record is compared to this manager or that manager but the reality is that he's produced an entertaining, competitive team despite the owners, despite the budget and despite playing out of the city.
Sure there are maybe more tactically astute managers out there but he fits here and I personally wouldn't like to see anyone else at the helm

 

[Skyblueweeman]

You're always going to get one or two moan about him because that's what they like to do.

As I've said before - does he get everything right? No. But as Hutch states above - he just fits. It's rare you have a manager at this level that just seems to have that perfect blend of relationship with fans, relationship with staff, relationship with players and a great level of tactical nous.

He's more than earned the right to lead us through blips - even a tough season. Certainly before we're calling any taxis.

 

[Offhegoes]

From all accounts a strict disciplinarian, but he has created teams full of spirit that play for each other, and play for him. He's replaced players we have lost (McNulty, Willis, McCallum, Chaplin) with better players.

 

[Frostie]

Nah, "shits himself at this level", signs shit players & the 2 promotions to get here were flukes according to some...

 

[Sick Boy]

If he gets us promoted to the PL he would easily be our greatest manager of all time.

 

[Skyblueweeman]

If he gets us promoted to the PL he would easily be our greatest manager of all time.

Top 2 already you reckon?

 

[PVA]

I'd prefer Kenny Jackett or Neil Warnock.

But seriously he's done an incredible job and no one can argue otherwise.

 

[Sick Boy]

Top 2 already you reckon?

It we achieve a top half finish this season there’s a strong case, yes.

 

[Tomh111]

His record is compared to this manager or that manager but the reality is that he's produced an entertaining, competitive team despite the owners, despite the budget and despite playing out of the city.
Sure there are maybe more tactically astute managers out there but he fits here and I personally wouldn't like to see anyone else at the helm

Not sure how you can say he isn't tactically astute, we play a very good system and create opportunities against almost every team we play. We also look defensively solid in the main and have great structure, it's rare we get carved open for goals. Very often when we concede it is individual lapses in concentration.

I'd argue that his tactical awareness, along with the culture he has created, is one of the biggest reasons that we are where we are on a smaller budget.

 

[shmmeee]

Not sure how you can say he isn't tactically astute, we play a very good system and create opportunities against almost every team we play. We also look defensively solid in the main and have great structure, it's rare we get carved open for goals. Very often when we concede it is individual lapses in concentration.

I'd argue that his tactical awareness, along with the culture he has created, is one of the biggest reasons that we are where we are on a smaller budget.

I think most people use it to mean “doesn’t throw on random subs or change to a totally different formation if things aren’t going well”

 

[Kingokings204]

Mark Robins is the best thing to happen to us. Who was our longest manager before him?

2 promotions and a cup. Staying in the championship and now a top half finish all on a minimal budget and ground moves. Bloody hell. I honestly thought we would never get back to the championship.

anyone who can’t see Robins is a good thing for us is crazy.

 

[Hutch11]

Not sure how you can say he isn't tactically astute, we play a very good system and create opportunities against almost every team we play. We also look defensively solid in the main and have great structure, it's rare we get carved open for goals. Very often when we concede it is individual lapses in concentration.

I'd argue that his tactical awareness, along with the culture he has created, is one of the biggest reasons that we are where we are on a smaller budget.

I didn't say he wasn't just that in people's opinion there may be managers that are more so.
I think he has worked and continues to work wonders

 

[Deleted member 5849]

Top 2 already you reckon?

No. Sillett and Hill above. Can make cases for Storer and Milne, even Cantwell too.

 

[Grendel]

Top 2 already you reckon?

I really can’t be bothered to get into these arguments anymore but you can’t compare managers in lower divisions to the top flight

You even look at someone like Milne and his record is excellent as a struggling top flight team

it’s a bit insulting to Sillett really as well given the context of what he took over

you could argue that the championship now is comparable to the top flight of yesteryear so you need to look really at the record in this league versus what went before pre 2000

By cold logic Noel Cantwell was our most successful manager. He just was

 

[Sick Boy]

I wonder how things would have turned out if he’d taken over instead of Andy ‘the fans’ choice’ Thorn? They’d have been outrage at the time if it had happened though.

 

[Flying Fokker]

If he gets us promoted to the PL he would easily be our greatest manager of all time.

I think you may need to ask a few of our elder members for their opinion. I missed the rise of the Sky Blues in the 60's. The club came from nowhere. Jimmy Hill was more charismatic for starters. And as pointed out in previous posts, many managers could hold the interests of city fans. Particularly Sillett and Curtis pairing. So different era. Live in the now but never ignore what built this club. Oh....And those who battled on regardless of the owners.

 

[Grendel]

I wonder how things would have turned out if he’d taken over instead of Andy ‘the fans’ choice’ Thorn? They’d have been outrage at the time if it had happened though.

He was a fairly obvious choice then and may have kept the club up as he had a good stint at Rotherham

You can compare historical players and managers in relative leagues but you cannot really compare across different leagues - if you did that with players you'd say Leon Clarke was better than Mick Ferguson - he wasn't

 

[Flying Fokker]

I really can’t be bothered to get into these arguments anymore but you can’t compare managers in lower divisions to the top flight

You even look at someone like Milne and his record is excellent as a struggling top flight team

it’s a bit insulting to Sillett really as well given the context of what he took over

you could argue that the championship now is comparable to the top flight of yesteryear so you need to look really at the record in this league versus what went before pre 2000

By cold logic Noel Cantwell was our most successful manager. He just was

Totally on board with those sentiments. But I have a different take on who was our best manager. Give Robins another 5 years in chargeand we'll look at it again.

Oh, and the greatest manager (s) we never had....Clough and Taylor? But, their football was boring. Which also brings into mind when we nearly bought Trevor Francis!

 

[Gint11]

Robbings is our King!

 

[The Philosopher]

As I’ve said before, it’s Adi that I think we would miss massively if he were to take up a management position. It’s the combination of the two that has been the key imo.

 

[Sick Boy]

Totally on board with those sentiments. But I have a different take on who was our best manager. Give Robins another 5 years in chargeand we'll look at it again.

Oh, and the greatest manager (s) we never had....Clough and Taylor? But, their football was boring. Which also brings into mind when we nearly bought Trevor Francis!

Wasn’t the Clough thing just so he could get a better deal at whatever club he was at?

 

[Deleted member 5849]

Wasn’t the Clough thing just so he could get a better deal at whatever club he was at?

There's also no guarantee we wouldn't have got the Brighton or Leeds version.

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

The football the team has produced this season has been better than in most of our 34 top flight seasons. The quality of the games too has been better than in most of those seasons.
You cannot take anything away from JH. He totally transformed the club, not just the team, but he was working with a Chairman who backed him financially.
Milne produced two or three brilliant teams in his time here. The Fergie and Wallace season remains my all time favourite for the shear excitement of that team and the all out attacking policy that they had. He also brought in Tommy Hutch our greatest ever player.We were short of money and always had to sell to survive, Denis Mortimer being a case in point but I still feel that Milne had the full backing of the board over his nine years in charge.
Sillett did transform al lack lustre relegation threatened group of players into entertaining cup winners. We were during his time consistently in the top ten.
Cantwell was amazing in the way that he kept us up those first two seasons in the First Division and then in the third had us qualifying for Europe. However the catastrophic drop in gates was down to the sterile football we played. This team is far better to watch.
I don’t think any of our previous managers has had to contend with what Robins has. Yes, a supportive ‘board’ (we haven’t really got a board). But I think they have only been supportive as Robins has succeeded and has taken the heat off them.
When he took over we really were at our lowest ebb. We had a poor, poor team and a fractured fan base. The atmosphere in the stadium was like a morgue with many turning up in hope and to keep the club going rather than anything else. The football was dross.
With very little money he has rebuilt the team several times in the past 5 years. He has also rebuilt the clubs infrastructure and there is a clear plan and pathway forward.
He has achieved all of this while having to play away from the city for two of his five years.
To achieve the success he has against the backdrop of all of this is amazing. Year on year improvement playing a scintillating style of football despite having one of the lowest budgets, certainly in League One and the Championship.
The thing is that as soon as we falter, as soon as we take the inevitable one or two steps back, some will have their knives out for him.

 

[djr8369]

Not sure how you can say he isn't tactically astute, we play a very good system and create opportunities against almost every team we play. We also look defensively solid in the main and have great structure, it's rare we get carved open for goals. Very often when we concede it is individual lapses in concentration.

I'd argue that his tactical awareness, along with the culture he has created, is one of the biggest reasons that we are where we are on a smaller budget.

I think people are too eager for him to make a sub when the reality is we often have a weak bench and it would be a huge risk when the stakes are high.

 

[steve cooper]

The football the team has produced this season has been better than in most of our 34 top flight seasons. The quality of the games too has been better than in most of those seasons.
You cannot take anything away from JH. He totally transformed the club, not just the team, but he was working with a Chairman who backed him financially.
Milne produced two or three brilliant teams in his time here. The Fergie and Wallace season remains my all time favourite for the shear excitement of that team and the all out attacking policy that they had. He also brought in Tommy Hutch our greatest ever player.We were short of money and always had to sell to survive, Denis Mortimer being a case in point but I still feel that Milne had the full backing of the board over his nine years in charge.
Sillett did transform al lack lustre relegation threatened group of players into entertaining cup winners. We were during his time consistently in the top ten.
Cantwell was amazing in the way that he kept us up those first two seasons in the First Division and then in the third had us qualifying for Europe. However the catastrophic drop in gates was down to the sterile football we played. This team is far better to watch.
I don’t think any of our previous managers has had to contend with what Robins has. Yes, a supportive ‘board’ (we haven’t really got a board). But I think they have only been supportive as Robins has succeeded and has taken the heat off them.
When he took over we really were at our lowest ebb. We had a poor, poor team and a fractured fan base. The atmosphere in the stadium was like a morgue with many turning up in hope and to keep the club going rather than anything else. The football was dross.
With very little money he has rebuilt the team several times in the past 5 years. He has also rebuilt the clubs infrastructure and there is a clear plan and pathway forward.
He has achieved all of this while having to play away from the city for two of his five years.
To achieve the success he has against the backdrop of all of this is amazing. Year on year improvement playing a scintillating style of football despite having one of the lowest budgets, certainly in League One and the Championship.
The thing is that as soon as we falter, as soon as we take the inevitable one or two steps back, some will have their knives out for him.

I'm surprised you think we played sterile football under Cantwell, yes to a certain extent in the first 2 seasons due to neccessity, and I know my memory isn't too good now but I remember some really exciting football.
Here is a typical review from the era

Matchday Memories: On This Day 1970 – Gunners Gunned Down By Sky Blues At H.R. : Coventry City Former Players Association || CCFPA

www.ccfpa.co.uk

 

[harvey098]

It’s not just the results on the pitch, which obviously have been phenomenal, it’s everything around it. I look forward to hearing his post match interviews whether we’ve won or lost, he gets the tough calls right on letting popular players go and he generally has just reconnected the fans to the club. What a man.

 

[Sick Boy]

The football the team has produced this season has been better than in most of our 34 top flight seasons. The quality of the games too has been better than in most of those seasons.
You cannot take anything away from JH. He totally transformed the club, not just the team, but he was working with a Chairman who backed him financially.
Milne produced two or three brilliant teams in his time here. The Fergie and Wallace season remains my all time favourite for the shear excitement of that team and the all out attacking policy that they had. He also brought in Tommy Hutch our greatest ever player.We were short of money and always had to sell to survive, Denis Mortimer being a case in point but I still feel that Milne had the full backing of the board over his nine years in charge.
Sillett did transform al lack lustre relegation threatened group of players into entertaining cup winners. We were during his time consistently in the top ten.
Cantwell was amazing in the way that he kept us up those first two seasons in the First Division and then in the third had us qualifying for Europe. However the catastrophic drop in gates was down to the sterile football we played. This team is far better to watch.
I don’t think any of our previous managers has had to contend with what Robins has. Yes, a supportive ‘board’ (we haven’t really got a board). But I think they have only been supportive as Robins has succeeded and has taken the heat off them.
When he took over we really were at our lowest ebb. We had a poor, poor team and a fractured fan base. The atmosphere in the stadium was like a morgue with many turning up in hope and to keep the club going rather than anything else. The football was dross.
With very little money he has rebuilt the team several times in the past 5 years. He has also rebuilt the clubs infrastructure and there is a clear plan and pathway forward.
He has achieved all of this while having to play away from the city for two of his five years.
To achieve the success he has against the backdrop of all of this is amazing. Year on year improvement playing a scintillating style of football despite having one of the lowest budgets, certainly in League One and the Championship.
The thing is that as soon as we falter, as soon as we take the inevitable one or two steps back, some will have their knives out for him.

Arguably Pressley worked under much more difficult conditions compared to Robins and galvanised the club during a very low period.

 

[Skyblueweeman]

I really can’t be bothered to get into these arguments anymore but you can’t compare managers in lower divisions to the top flight

You even look at someone like Milne and his record is excellent as a struggling top flight team

it’s a bit insulting to Sillett really as well given the context of what he took over

you could argue that the championship now is comparable to the top flight of yesteryear so you need to look really at the record in this league versus what went before pre 2000

By cold logic Noel Cantwell was our most successful manager. He just was

I mean, I didn't ask you to be fair - I had responded to a comment from Sickboy who said there's a chance he could be our best ever. I then asked if he would currently be considered top 2 - without saying that's what I thought he was.

Appreciate your comments and rationale - would help in my manager rankings, but you're commenting to the wrong poster. Your 'Weeman' alarm must need re-wiring ;-)

 

[CovBrummie94]

Arguably Pressley worked under much more difficult conditions compared to Robins and galvanised the club during a very low period.

How would you argue that?

 

[Greggs]

True story, the setting doesn't matter - but I'll tell you anyway. It was my dog's circumcision party yesterday and I happened to bump into one of my old friends from up north. He says there is lots of chat about Robins going to Middlesbrough in the near future, a lot depends on how much support he gets in the summer, but it's understood that him and Adi are both keen on the move. Worrying.

 

[gazza]

I really can’t be bothered to get into these arguments anymore but you can’t compare managers in lower divisions to the top flight

You even look at someone like Milne and his record is excellent as a struggling top flight team

it’s a bit insulting to Sillett really as well given the context of what he took over

you could argue that the championship now is comparable to the top flight of yesteryear so you need to look really at the record in this league versus what went before pre 2000

By cold logic Noel Cantwell was our most successful manager. He just was

where would you rank robins now?

 

[AOM]

I think most people use it to mean “doesn’t throw on random subs or change to a totally different formation if things aren’t going well”

Hmm I dunno. Pretty sure I heard Guardiola go "Forwarddddddd" in the FA Cup on Saturday

 

[Grendel]

Arguably Pressley worked under much more difficult conditions compared to Robins and galvanised the club during a very low period.

The thing is it doesn't matter if you are Jimmy Hill, Mark Robins or Sir Alex Ferguson - if you have Leon Clarke and Callum Wilson sold under your feet and get Josh McQuoid in return its not ending well

 

[Sick Boy]

How would you argue that?

Points deductions, playing at Northampton, there was A LOT more negativity within the fanbase and towards the club in general, infighting within the fanbase, wankers going on about starting a new club, best players sold and getting shite in to replace them etc.