I'm on my third time of reading that now and I am still shaking my head.
'Quite right, too! Good gaffers in any profession will upbraid under-performing staff in private but defend them to the hilt in public – that’s what proper management is all about.'
Errrm, defend them to the hilt in public? Did Pressley NOT say these words here then?
"Players were told exactly how it is at this club. I will not defend them anymore,” he added. "I defend these players with my life, all the time, but not anymore because certain individuals are not giving me, or the club, that back. Mark my words players will be banished from this club.'
Otis...I generally find myself agreeing with most of what you say...it's generally well considered and fair. But on this occasion I have to disagree with you in the most polite fashion.
It seems to me that those jumping in first here, to shoot the article down in flames, are those who might feel under some sort of personal attack about their comments, bile, on the internet. As I write this, there hasn't been one positive reaction to the article. I don't intend to defend or attack anyone here, but I'm prepared to cut Pressley some slack, because I too have noticed that chances have been created in front of goal, and squandered, penalties missed...none of which Pressley can have control of in that moment...that's down to the player. Had those chances been taken, I suggest we'd be a lot higher up the table, and our attitude towards our manager would be very different.
It's difficult being the front man when nothing is going right for you, and for the most part I accept Pressley's positivity...I also accept he has the right, to blow his stack, and to get it horribly wrong. And I also accept we have every right to tear him apart as we seem to be doing more than regularly on here.
But my real argument is this....we know all this, but are we helping! The problems at our club are huge, but are we helping by constantly pointing out the obvious! I travel from London for as many games as possible, because I'm a Sky Blue supporter. I never went to Northampton, because I'm a Sky Blue supporter. And as such I shall continue to support the team, and in this case the manager as well, because it's a thankless task, and as fickle fans, we are so easily swayed by what's in front of us, we fail to see the bigger picture...which is as far as I'm concerned sisu, and we will never move forward till they're gone.
It was a brave article to write, and I'll no doubt get some flack for writing this, but I have no idea what is really going on, and neither I suspect, do most of us. So in the meantime I'm going to sit it out under the dark cloud of sisu, and hope that one day soon, they do the decent thing and move on....then we can all let our shoulders drop, and look forward to watching our team play. PUSB!