Gary Megson's Dad. Has a lot to answer for

Then there’s Gary Megson, currently spreading his very own brand of one-dimensional hoof-ball misery amongst the followers of Sheffield Wednesday. Owls fans were optimistic ahead of the new season, having somehow escaped from the relegation zone that Megson placed them in last time round. After two dismal away performances in succession, that feeling has gone, replaced by one of despair.

The scene of last night’s disaster was Gigg Lane, home of Bury FC, where crowd numbers reached a previously unknown 5,209 due to visiting fans, who’d trundled down the M62 unaware of the horrors they were destined to endure.

Bury manager, Richie Barker was in no doubt about the ease of the task which faced him. “With all due respect to the players now, we’re not playing against Chris Waddle or Des Walker,” he laughed.

So it proved. By half-time Wednesday were two down, having had no shots on target and with a 39% share of possession. How familiar that looks.

At this point, Owlstalk.co.uk, online home of the Yorkshire club’s supporters, went into meltdown. The posts below are reproduced as written, apart from the addition of a few dozen asterisks.

‘What the f**k was that I’ve just seen. Long Long season ahead at this rate, played off the field by Bury, DISGRACE. Milan and Megson f*****g part with some cash and get it f*****g sorted ,We are a joke FACT.’

‘So glad i worked late so i couldnt make it to Bury.’

‘Not much better than the s***e I witnessed at Bournemouth by the sound of it…..’

‘this is the pits.’

‘Make that the worst 90’

That was one thread. Others were titled, ‘Gary “It’s not my fault” Megson’ , ‘Megson can’t motivate the players’ ,‘Shambolic, Disgusting, Abysmal, Clueless’ and ‘Just got back….garbage!’. It doesn’t take great deductive powers to guess at the contents.

There’s something about the Ginger One’s football that provokes rage amongst those doomed to watch it. The fury continues, long after he’s been given the boot, as fans of all the clubs he’s managed, apart from West Brom will testify.

Wednesday supporters were warned of this in good faith by their Bolton counterparts when he pitched up at Hillsborough, but a desire to defend their own, coupled with indoctrination from Megson’s friends in the media led to the advice being rejected.

But as said, we’re nice people. A quantity of pitchforks, and ‘Megson Out’ placards, were placed into storage at the Reebok, in the confident expectation that they’d be required when someone else was daft enough to give him a job. Those items are on their way to South Yorkshire, with our compliments.

- Richard McCormick

TweetFollow @RMc2407

Can someone turn off those lights on your way out...!

However, reading several posts on various Bolton messageboards over the past three weeks, more than a few fans consider the season to be over already. In their minds, our season ended on 19th March 2011 at approximately 16.35.

This was when the boot of Manchester United’s Johny Evans collided with the knee of Bolton’s Stuart Holden. The initial reaction was not good: Holden was stretchered off the Old Trafford pitch in obvious distress and Bolton fans feared the worse. Two days later, those fears were realised: Holden was out for six months (‘gutted smilely’).

Evans, to his credit, called to Holden to apologise for the challenge, an apology that Holden has yet to receive from De Jong for a similar tackle twelve months earlier. Holden has accepted Evans’ apology conceding that, unfortunately, injuries are a risk in a contact sport such as football. Arsenal fans take note, it’s not just your players who can suffer injury as a result of a mistimed challenge, a fact that poor Holden knows only too well.

Since signing for Bolton in January 2010, becoming Owen Coyle’s first signing in the process, he has had two season ending injuries in as many seasons. For a player who is not considered to be ‘injury prone’, he has spent a lot of time keeping Sean Davis company in the treatment room.

It was that Jonny Evens who did it...!

I have every faith that Holden will bounce back from this set back, just as he has the others in his career. He seems to have the right attitude and is already focusing on his recovery. That said, I’m sure he’ll be gutted about missing the biggest game of his club career, not to disrespect to his achievements in the MLS.

He has been a breath of fresh air in a Bolton midfield terrified of the ball in recent seasons. Confident in possession, keen for the ball and with an eye for a pass as well as being equally adept in his
defensive duties: he is / was (I can’t be arsed checking) the top tackling midfielder in the Premier League. A solid all rounder. The only slight criticism I can think of is that I thought that he may have chipped in with a few more goals, although I instantly forgive him that when I remember that one of the goals he did score was the winner against Blackburn, the first at home for 13 years. What a goal it was too!

Losing a player of Holden’s quality will obviously be a big blow as, in this author’s opinion (and that of many others), he has been our player of the season this year, and by some distance. Any team would be weaker in his absence. However, despite losing our best performer, is our season effectively over?

Bloody Hell.... look what you've started now Jonny.... hope you're proud of yourself ?

Unfortunately, the stats do not make for good reading: since Stu-S-A made his league bow for the Mighty Whites in March 2010 against Wolves,  we have won 41% of league games in which Holden has featured (impressive eh?) compared with just 20% when Holden has been absent (not so impressive).

Another issue we have is the fitness of Mark Davies. In an ideal world, I’d pick Mark Davies and Holden to be my starting midfield duo as I think they compliment each other well; they’re both comfortable in posession, good on the ball (Davies especially) and are always willing to take the ball and try and make something happen, a trait which I feel some other Bolton players do not have. To lose Holden is a spanner in the works; to lose Davies too is a toolbox in the works.

However, despite what the stats say (people can use stats to prove anything even remotely true), we are not a one man team. (As yesterday’s game v West Ham proved) We were in great form prior to the Man Utd game with six wins in the previous nine games in league and cup.

Not only was our form impressive, but the spirit within the team was as good as I can remember. 3-2 victories against Aston Villa, after going behind twice, and Birmingham in the cup, after twice being pegged back, demonstrated the great character and spirit in this Bolton team.

Under Megson, we would have lost the game against Villa for sure and could have easily lost the game against Birmingham. I very much doubt we would have gone on to win 3-2 under Megson. If I’m honest, I doubt we would have done so under Allardyce, whose teams were set up to grind out narrow 1-0 opposed to last minute winners.

The team demonstrated amazing resolve in each of those matches. Having dominated for large periods against Birmingham, passing up several opportunities to secure the win, they were hit with a big sucker punch with Phillips’ goal, however good a goal it may have been. It would have been easy for Bolton to take the draw and look to the replay in that position, but Owen Coyle’s men are made of sterner stuff. They didn’t allow Birmingham to establish any momentum following their goal and, ultimately, got the result which, overall, I think they fully deserved.

That is the type of attitude and desire that needs to return, not only on the pitch but in the stands. There’s no point in us feeling sorry for ourselves. Holden is a great player, but he’s just that, one player. The results we got before were down to the team, not any one man.

The fans and the team need to return to the previous mindset we had all of a month ago. Holden’s injury could be the defining moment in our season, it could give M Davies the chance to shine etc, but we can’t let it define our season.

We have a fantastic opportunity to reach our first FA Cup final in 53 years. What has happened in the last three weeks cannot be erased; it cannot be altered, however much we may wish it could be.

Go on cocker.... do it for me...!

However, we do have control over the next few matches. I’m sure Coyle will have team fully prepared for the semi final, but the fans can play their part too. The players need us now more than ever. Together, we can win this semi final, no matter who is in our midfield. Contrary to what the naysayers may believe, our season is far from over!

-Dave Hallsworth-

I see our beloved former manager, the ginger one of the patchy CV and personality disorder, has been at it again. In a spectacularly inept (more of that later) article by The Mirror’s David Anderson, Megson has been spouting off again on his two favourite subjects: how great he is, and how terrible we are.

Megson's PR man, David Anderson. Also works for the Daily Mirror

It seems to me that most journalists, being too busy tweeting, scratching their arses, snorting coke, or whatever it is they do to avoid doing a lick of work, seem to swallow this sort of guff hook line and sinker. Or more to the point, can’t be arsed checking the veracity of his increasingly warped ramblings.

So us kindly folk at bwfcforum and Manny Road have decided to do the leg work for them – them being busy and all – with an exploration of the Ginger Maestro’s favourite oft-repeated “facts” about his time at Bolton Wanderers Football Club.

Misspeakings

Before Hilary Clinton’s modern re-invention of “misspeaking”, we’d have been struggling for a title to keep the lawyers happy. The definition of a lie is a deliberate untruth designed to mislead. Obviously, it’s not our place to determine whether Megson deliberately comes out with nonsense with the intent of misleading or whether he’s simply a delusional idiot.

Fortunate for us then that the definition of misspeaking is to speak mistakenly, inappropriately, or rashly. Fortunate also that Mrs Clinton has given us a new context in which to use it. When she claimed to have landed in Bosnia under sniper fire and in grave danger, what she actually meant to say was that she was met by a rather nice welcoming committee replete with greeting ceremony and young girl with flowers. It just came out a bit wrong.

Obviously, it helped her to realise her mistake when some bloke managed to dig out a video of the actual landing, so in the spirit of that bloke rooting round for the video, let’s get back to Megson’s recent tirade.

Spectacularly Inept

We’re now pretty used to journalists printing any old claptrap, but two things make Anderson’s piece stand out from the crowd.

Firstly, he’s added his own flavour to the piece, supporting the bitter waffling of the Ginger One with his own assertions that we “have tried to airbrush him from (our) history”, that Megson saved us from “oblivion”, and his opinion that Coyle’s successes have been “built on the solid foundations laid by Megson”. Safe to assume we’re not in for an unbiased article here, then David.

Secondly, he has reprinted in full, unchallenged, and without even the most basic logic check Megson’s usual mish-mash of ludicrous inaccuracies. We’ll examine this further, but for now hands up if you think that Megson got rid of 34 players from the squad he took over.

Too Many, there’s Just too Many …

In a perfect world I’d address the article in its entirety in one fell swoop, but unfortunately I can’t type all that fast and no doubt there’ll be something worth watching on telly before long. Hence “part one”. Obviously, if I ever get round to it, there’ll part two and possibly others to follow.

Oh, and there’s just too much material to cover. On a quick run-through, sticking to known facts rather than just opinion, I counted at least ten Megsonisms in the full article.

For those who don’t know, a Megsonism is defined as a statement containing purported facts that are mostly or entirely incorrect. It’s alternatively defined as “utter bollocks”.

The Job in Hand

All those numbers make Gary's brain hurt

For part one, I’ve selected one sentence from the article. This particular sentence contains at least two – potentially three – Megsonims, hence not a bad place to start.

Here it is in its entirety:

“Out of the squad I took over, we got rid of 34 players and only two went to Premier League clubs, which would suggest that 32 of them were not up to the job.”

Let’s take this a bit at a time: “Out of the squad I took over, we got rid of 34 players…”

Did anybody put their hand up earlier? Yes? How bloody big do you think our squad was?

When Megson took over he inherited a first team squad of 27. Anybody spotted a flaw yet? If we’re being stupidly generous (I’m not) you could include five kids in there, mainly because they were floating around the periphery on squad photo day.

That would still only give us 32, and really would be a bit daft in any case, unless you believe the likes of Johann Smith or Scott (who) Jamieson were ever in our first team squad. And in any case, including the kids makes Megson’s ridiculous claims about reducing the average age of the squad even more ludicrous. So we’ll stick to 27.

Now, for anyone struggling with the maths, here’s the first problem. You can’t get rid off 34 players from a squad of 27. Honest. If you’re not convinced, here’s a simple experiment. Take 27 peanuts from a bag of dry-roasted. Throw the rest away. From those 27 peanuts, give 34 of them to your best mate. See? Good.

Onto the next problem: of the squad of 27 Megson inherited, 10 were still at the club on the day of his departure. For the doubters, the 10 were Hunt, Samuel, Gardner, KD, McCann, Vaz Te, Jussi, Joey O’Brien, Al Habsi, and Andy O’Brien. Of those 27 peanuts, throw another 10 away. Then give 34 of the remaining 17 to your best mate.

That’s the first Megsonism done to death. Only 17 players from the squad Megson inherited had left the club by the end of his woeful tenure.

Next bit: “…and only two went to Premier League clubs”

Those two obviously being Abdoulaye Meite to West Brom and Danny Guthrie to Newcastle. Oh, and Kevin Nolan, also to Newcastle. And Anelka to Chelsea. And Diouf to Sunderland.

You could also add Andranik to Fulham, but that would be a bit pedantic, given that he didn’t really get a kick for them.

Back to the nuts. Throw away all bar two. Now call one of your nuts (apologies) “Guthrie”. Call the second one “Meite”, the third one … what do you mean, you don’t have a third one?

Second Megsonism done, but there’s a further angle to this, and possibly two Megsonisms in one.

By stating specifically the Premier League, Megson implies that all the others dropped down into lower divisions. Slightly misleading, then, when four players went to top-flight clubs in Italy, Spain and France. The four, for the record, were Dzemaili to Torino, Wilhelmsson to Deportivo, Braaten to Toulouse and Cid to Nice.

Finally: “…which would suggest that 32 of them were not up to the job”

We’ve already established that only 17 players from the squad were moved on by Megson. We’ve also established that 5 of them went to Premier League clubs and that 4 went to clubs in major European leagues, and on that criteria alone (particularly for anyone who saw Gerald Cid play) suggesting that they were good enough for our dour relegation struggles.

By my reckoning, that leaves us with 8 players, not 32, that by Megson’s reckoning were “not up to the job”.

It may be fair enough, albeit disrespectful, to suggest that the likes of Mikel Alonso, Heidur Helguson, Andranik Teymourian, and Lubomir Michalek were “not up to the job” of playing in the premier league. Likewise, our third choice keeper Ian Walker was at the end of his career, and at the club purely for his experience and a bit of emergency cover, but never likely to start a premier league game.

Stelios 'Not up to the Job' Giannakopoulos

However, it is far more contentious that Gary Speed, Ivan Campo, and Stelios Giannakopoulos were “not up to the job” at the point when Megson took over. Whilst we all probably felt it would be their last seasons with us, we also felt they were good enough for that season, and both Campo and Stelios played a part in our skin-of-the-teeth survival. Stelios scored as many goals that season as Kevin Davies, and Campo started 25 premier league games. Take away the two extra points from Stelios’s injury time winner against the hapless Derby, and we’d have been down.

To claim that he “got rid of” players such as these – who had been great stalwarts for us and top class internationals – because they were “not up to the job” highlights the complete lack of dignity of this odious tosser. You could also point out that his claim to have “got rid of” the likes of Anelka and Diouf is somewhat misleading, but I think we’ve put enough Megsonisms to bed for one day to go trawling for others.

And so to the Summary Bit

I’d probably best fit in an apology to Sheffield Wednesday fans at this point. We don’t mean to keep dragging him up, but he just won’t stop having a dig.

You’d think that the triple whammy of not only getting another job in football, but also managing the club you support AND a sleeping giant would be enough for Megson to finally move on and let go of the bitterness, but clearly not. I’m sure it’s as galling to Wednesday fans as it is to us.

Anyway, to conclude, I’ve taken the liberty of re-writing the above statement so that Megson can use it in future in the full knowledge that it is – unlike much of what he says – factually accurate:

“Out of the squad I took over, 17 players moved on, 5 to the premier league and 4 to the top flight of other major European leagues, whilst 2 of the remaining 8  played a big part in keeping Bolton in the Premier League, and me in a job, in my first season.”

- Wakeywhite

Shortly after his appointment, the Ginger One regaled a sparsely populated room of journalists, rapidly losing the will to live, with tales of how he’d been mistreated by Bolton fans, betrayed by the chairman and dissed by the tea lady.

Post interview and Megson returns to his quarters

‘I’d love to be in a position where you can take Sheffield Wednesday and get a result at Bayern Munich and beat Athletico Madrid over two legs and beat Manchester United for the first time in forty years,’ he speculated.  Sam Allardyce, who guided the Wanderers to wins at Old Trafford in 2001 and 2002 has yet to comment.

That Megson was in a position to spout forth was something of a surprise, as it was assumed that no one in their right mind would employ such a serial failure.  But then Owls owner, Milan Mandaric has always been unconventional, and this is Sheffield Wednesday, a club that once tried to sue its own supporters.

Fast forward a fortnight and there was more drivel.  This time it came from the diseased keyboard of Megson’s representative on earth, the grimly untalented David ‘Hans Christian’ Anderson, who describes himself as the Phil Neville of Mirror Sport – which is accurate, but not in the way he intended.

Over to former Wanderers defender, Nicky Hunt for the verdict on Everton’s captain.

‘Bolton fans will regret hounding out success Gary Megson,’ trumpeted Anderson in an ungrammatical start to a witless diatribe in December 2009, as his hero trudged toward the job centre.  The prediction wasn’t exactly accurate.  Unbridled joy was, and still is the overriding feeling amongst the Reebok faithful.

There’s a school of thought that the least popular manager in history got the boot because of those fans.  It’s a special school, for people with learning difficulties.

Prior to his dismissal, Megson’s side was occupying a relegation spot having garnered eighteen points from eighteen matches – a one point per game ratio that had been maintained throughout the whole of the year, and one which ensures a relegation battle every time.  No clean sheets had been kept in the league and the lead had been squandered on eighteen occasions.   Add in defeats at home to Sunderland and Blackburn, who hadn’t won on their travels elsewhere and losses at Wolves and Hull – both relegation rivals, and it’s easy to see why the man’s position had become untenable.  Provided that is, you have an IQ that stretches into three figures.

As part of his new contract, Megson has to do the plumbing at Hillsborough. It’s a clause that Milan Mandaric may already regret inserting.

But that was just a bad start to the season, right?  Wrong.  The previous campaign finished with one win in eleven games and that after failing to score on eighteen (funny how that number keeps popping up) occasions in the league.

Not that you’d hear such truths from Megson.  Instead, the claims get ever more preposterous.
The fun really starts with Anderson’s latest outpouring, particularly the quotes, henceforth known as Megsonbites.

‘It sticks in my craw, the stick I took…’ -  Really?  Here’s another quote:  ‘It doesn’t bother me, it’s water off a duck’s back.’  – G Megson,  October 2008.

‘It was public knowledge that they were £96million in debt…’ – ‘They’ were in hock for £42 million before you pitched up Gaz.

‘When Sammy Lee left Bolton, they asked Abdou Meite what could be done and he said something like, there’s only Sam Allardyce or Jesus Christ who can save Bolton from getting relegated.’ -  That’ll be the Abou Meite who you accused of being a liar and hounded out of the club.  Suddenly his opinion matters.

‘The average age when I was there was 32.’ – No it wasn’t, unless you’re counting yourself, the coaching staff and several older members of the crowd.

‘…we got rid of 34 players…’ -  An astounding feat. There were only 27 of them.
‘…we lowered the wage bill…’ – No you didn’t.
‘…the worst start in Premier League history..’ No it wasn’t.
‘…we lowered the running costs…’ – Wrong again.

In next week’s Megsonbites, Gaz reveals how he led Bolton to the Premier League title on a £7.50 budget, rescued the area around the Reebok Stadium from famine and wooed the women of Bolton to such an extent that local maternity units are now overflowing with ginger babies, all called Gary.

Before that, Manny Road exposes Megson’s biggest distortion of the truth.   Tune in tomorrow.

- Richard McCormick

(incidentally, when fans discuss the golden era of Bolton Wanderers, for me our second greatest period – after the 1920′s – is 30 Dec 2009 to 8 Jan 2010)

I’ll start by saying I’m a huge fan of Owen Coyle. In my opinion, this is the best managerial appointment we have ever made. Whether we go on to have the success to justify that statement remains to be seen and depends on a whole range of factors, but for me there has never previously been an available candidate more perfect for the job. I’ve stated my reasons for this in great depth many times in the past on the old official board and others, so I won’t go over old ground.

we're all a happy bunch here...

All that said, my take on the first year under OC is that if anything the “Coyle revolution” has gone slightly slower than I expected / would have liked.

To evaluate the changes, it seems reasonable to summarise based on some key areas: our league position, the style of football, spirit / morale within the club, and mood / enthusiasm of the supporters.

League position:
A massive “pass” for OC thus far. Taking over in the bottom three and guiding us comfortably to safety last season was a solid start, but it’s our lofty heights this season that really catches the eye. It’s pretty safe to say that we would be nowhere near 6th at this stage of the season under the previous manager. I’d also say it would be unlikely that we would be anywhere near this position now if BSA had never left (or worse – returned).

However, we shouldn’t get too carried away yet. We have put ourselves in an excellent position to give us a chance of a top 8 finish, but there’s a long way to go yet. Other teams have games in hand, and our position could look a bit different after the next couple of games.

We’ve also benefited from a season where some of the fancied sides have started poorly. Nobody would have predicted at the start of the season that Liverpool, Everton AND Villa would all be outside the top 8 at this stage of the season.

What our position does give us is the confidence that we can beat anyone on our day. We have thus far bounced back from our defeats and have yet to face a losing run, so while there is obviously the risk that we may drop down the table in the second half, our position at this point is outstanding.

Style of football:
I suspect I’m in the minority in that I saw changes (or thought I did …) in our style more or less straight away, albeit they were not major and were more indications of our attempt to play better football than any great transformation.

However, thus far I think this is the area where OC has had the least success, although admittedly this may be judging things against my optimistic expectations.
Undoubtedly, things have progressed signifcantly since the dark, ginger days. We are undoubtedly trying to play positive attractive football. When it comes together, we look great. When it doesn’t – and it often hasn’t – we don’t look massively different from the Megson era.

What is different – and massively – is that even when we don’t look great, we know that we are trying to play positive football. Under Megson, it was patently obvious to everyone that things, style-wise, were never going to get any better. On the odd occasion the ginger one hinted we might develop our style over time – usually around the time we were trying to flog season tickets – he very quickly went on to deny it.
We are clearly a much better side on MOTD, hence we are the new media darlings, but the hype over our transformation has been hugely exaggerated.

The reason that we haven’t made the level of progress style-wise that I expected (and I believe Coyle wanted) is simple: we haven’t been able to change the personnel much. Because most of the squad were under contract and we haven’t been able to sell many, Coyle has only been able to bring in two significant signings (Allonso is “one for the future”, to quote BSA). Holden has been inspirational, and sums up the type of player Coyle wants – a “proper” footballer, always comfortable in possession. Petrov has yet to set the world on fire, but on paper was a great signing, and demonstrates Coyle’s passion for exciting wingers.

Match attack superstar...

Other than that, he’s been stuck with mostly Megson’s signings. There are clearly different opinions on the quality of the ginger ones transfer activity. For (further) clarification (Don), with one or two exceptions, I believe he wasted £40m+ on largely mediocre players, but even if you think Megson bought well, I suspect you’d probably accept that they were bought to play Megson football. By and large – LCY and Mavies excepted – they are not comfortable on the ball.

Whilst Coyle has worked wonders with the squad he has, and we have seen clear and demonstrable progress in areas such as possession and pass completion, we still struggle at times to keep hold of the ball and control games. Incidentally, our average possession per game has gone from sub-40% under Megson to 50% plus under Coyle. Admittedly, I’m guessing about the 50% plus, but it’s a fairly confident guess that I’ll confirm at some point when I can be bothered.

My overall verdict on style of football: another “pass” (pardon the pun), but by nowhere near as much as the media and others would have you believe (although as Coyle himself says, we are very much a work in progress).

Spirit / morale within the club:
I tend to be a bit sceptical of the propaganda that comes out of football clubs. Interviews these days are carefully managed by the press office, so the odd snippet claiming everyone is happy and the manager is a nice bloke prove nowt.
At a push, the volume of positive “news” could be used as an indication, or you could claim to interpret the “tone” of the stuff that comes out (“he said he liked Megson, but you can tell that he really likes Coyle), but in reality it’s all fluff.

So how do we judge the improved morale and spirit within the club?

Ok, the volume and consistency of the “good news” since OC came in does seem relatively convincing, and the less processed stuff, e.g. remarks in live interviews, twitter etc, all support the party line that Coyle is an inspirational / positive / infectious manager.

It’s also been commented on elsewhere that everyone around the club, ticket office, club shop, etc etc, seem much brighter than they did a year or so ago, i.e. everything “feels” better, much like it did in Rioch’s tenure.

But the proof in the pudding is what we actually see on the pitch.

The players have demonstrated a spirit that was invisible under the ginger one.
Maybe this can be attributed to Coyle’s acclaimed man-management versus Megson’s petulent shout/bully/sulk approach. At least now we can believe that if a player’s out of the team it’s because the manager thinks someone else will do a better job, rather than because the manager’s fell out with him.

Under Megson, if we went behind we gave up the ghost. Under Coyle, we’ve come back from two down against Blackpool and – with ten men – Birmingham.
Under Megson, we couldn’t hold on to a two goal lead. Under Coyle this season, we’ve gone on to score a third goal on four occasions and – despite scares against Spurs and Wolves – have gone on to win when we take a two goal lead.
We’ve seen it consistently throughout the season so far. I’m sure everyone can pick their own examples, but I’d also point to beating Blackburn with ten men, or the disappointment etched all over the faces of the players when we’ve only managed draws away at Villa and Everton and at home to Man Utd.

This, again is a massive “pass” for OC.

Mood / enthusiasm of the supporters:
Is it fair to judge a manager’s performance on the mood of the fans? Probably not, in all fairness. It’s been commented elsewhere that we have some bloody miserable fans at the best of times, and you don’t have to do too much research to realise that there are plenty who couldn’t manage an independent thought, let alone a football club.

However, whilst I’d accept that we’re probably not the best qualified to judge a manager’s performance, at the end of the day it’s OUR CLUB in a way that, sadly, it is rarely if ever the manager’s club.

It also matters because a disgruntled fan-base rarely goes hand in hand with success on the pitch.

It’s pretty obvious that the mood has improved massively over the last year. A surprisingly healthy league position has had a massive impact, but it was also the easiest area for Coyle to succeed in.

In a nutshell, Megson alienated the vast majority of the fans over his time in charge. By the end, he was roundly disliked (“hated” by many).

Owen Coyle is everything that Megson isn’t. It’s pretty much as simple as that.

Where Megson was ultra-negative, Coyle is positive. Where Megson was surly, Coyle is charming. Where Megson had a pop at the supporters, Coyle praises and thanks us. The list is pretty much endless.

It’s worth noting that Coyle wasn’t universally worshipped from day one. There have still been plenty – let’s call them miserable wankers, for want of something better – who couldn’t help spouting off that the football wasn’t much better, the crowds weren’t coming back, we had the same number of points under Megson etc etc etc.

Let’s also not kid ourselves that they’ve all been won round. They’re simply keeping quiet until they think of something else to moan about. But whilst they tend to be vocal on internet forums, and there are always a few to be heard in the ground, the miserable wankers really don’t count. They will never ever be happy, so fcuk ‘em.

The mood of “the fans” generally is – quite obviously – another massive pass for OC.

Summary …
OC’s had a huge impact on the spirit within the club and the mood of the fans. Our current league position is exceptional against anybody’s pre-season expectations. The league position obviously helps with the feel-good factor. Massive success in these areas.

Performance and style-wise, for me it’s been more a mixed bag. Fantastic at times, but I think there is much, much better to come, particularly once OC has chance to change the personnel at the club.

So here’s to 2011 and another year of progress under OC.

Happy New Year everyone.

Guest Bogger -Wakey-

A proud moment for Super-kev

It’s not just fans of other clubs who seem keen to claim certain questionable players as ‘legends’. El Hadji Diouf has achieved legendary status to some Bolton fans, despite the fact that his consistency could often be called in to question and, regardless of his ‘love’ for the club, he felt the overwhelming urge just prior to our biggest match of the season at home to Sunderland to announce to the national press that, irrespective of the result of said match, he would be leaving Bolton for a big club on the continent. Now, I’ve visited Sunderland in the past and, while it does seem like another country, and sometimes another world, it sure as hell isn’t in Spain!

So what does constitute a legend? Well, in my humble opinion, in order for the word legend to have the impact it deserves, it has to be limited to certain players who have had a profound impact on the club. We have had some world class players grace the famous white shirt of Bolton Wanderers, particularly over the last ten years: Jay Jay Okocha – so good they named him twice; Youri Djorkaeff – World Cup winner in 1998 and European Championship winner in 2000; Ivan Campo – two time Champions League winner; Fernando Hierro – three time Champions League winner and five time winner of La Liga; Eidur Gudjohnsen – two Premier League titles with Chelsea and a La Liga title and Champions League winner with Barcelona; Stelios Giannakopoulos – European Championship winner with Greece in 2004; Nicolas Anelka – Premier League, FA and Champions League winner with Arsenal and Real Madrid respectively prior to his time with us, not to mention adding further Premier League and FA Cup success with Chelsea following his time at The Reebok. In total; ten domestic league titles, seven Champions Leagues, two European Championships, two FA Cups, one UEFA Cup, one UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one World Cup and an Olympic Gold Medal. Not to mention, the small number of 457 International caps. In short, these guys have won it all.

However, despite being hugely talented players and for all their numerous winners’ medals, only Ivan Campo has a legitimate claim of being a Bolton legend in my eyes. Legendary status is not about ability alone; it is about passion for the shirt, the club and the fans; always giving 100% effort and commitment in every game, no matter what your ability; staying at the club for a prolonged period of time and having created some amazing memories for the fans to treasure forever.

While I’m sure United fans will remember Hernandez’s winner for a few weeks, especially if it sparks a decent run in the competition, I doubt it will remain a talking point for generations nor will it last long in the memory unlike, say, a late equaliser in the Alianz Arena to claim an unforgettable 2-2 draw against a true powerhouse of European football, Bayern Munich.

The player who scored that goal is not a Champions League winner; he’s not an FA Cup winner either, having his one chance of a final appearance cruelly taken away from him in the eleventh hour whilst playing for Southampton in 2003. At the time of writing, he doesn’t have any international caps to speak of, although that will hopefully change in a week. However, despite the lack of international recognition or domestic honours, there is one player, one man who epitomises what being a legend is all about. That man is Kevin Davies.

Just can't put my finger on it....!

Two weeks prior to Diouf’s shameful self promotion, we had an arguably more important home game against West Ham. Four points adrift from safety and with time running out, it was imperative that we win. Failure to do so would almost certainly see us relegated, and didn’t the cockneys know it. In a match when we needed the players to stand up and be counted, one player stood taller than most. Even after putting Bolton into a second half lead, crashing the ball into the roof of the net after Green (who else) had made of mess of dealing with a Bolton corner, Davies continued to provide an all action display which eventually resulted in a severely dislocated finger. That would have meant the end of the action for most players, but not Kevin Davies. After getting it popped back into place, he returned to field in a relative act of strength and determination that would have made the Lion of Vienna proud. Bolton went on to record a five match unbeaten run which included further wins against Middlesbrough and Sunderland and our Premiership survival was secured.

For those of us who have watched Kevin Davies since he first arrived at Bolton in 2003, his call up, whilst welcome, is long overdue. Even Davies himself had given up the dream of international football, assuming that his three U21 caps would be the pinnacle of his international career, and even believed that the call telling him the news was some sort of wind up. But a wind up it most certainly wasn’t. Capello, in what was an admittedly unexpected move, had indeed called up Kevin Davies to the England squad to face Montenegro on October 12th. Davies is part of an unwanted pub quiz trivia question regarding his lack of an international call up. Which eight players have cost more than £7m in a single transfer but have never represented their country at senior level? No doubt Davies will be hoping to amend that question to read ‘which seven players’ come Tuesday evening.

His call up has naturally attracted criticism in some quarters: he’s too old seems to be the primary concern and, had it not been Davies who had been called up, it’s one which I would tend to agree with. That said, when you look round for the youthful alternatives, Andy Carroll seems to be the only option, and he has all of 20 Premiership appearances to his name. However, they always say, if you’re old enough, you’re good enough, but Carroll also falls down on those criteria too. The other concern (apart from the obvious that, as he plays for Bolton, he is clearly not good enough for international football) is that due to his all action, competitive style of play, he’ll instantly be dismissed for serious foul play due to the continental style officials. They must have forgotten that Kevin Davies managed to amass thirteen UEFA Cup appearances for Bolton Wanderers and, despite being refereed by the same officials who will oversee the England matches, he was never dismissed and managed to play for the full 90 minutes in each match.

True, Davies may not have the skill of Messi and, to be fair to Kev, the same can be said for a lot of players, but, for fear of trotting out the clichés, he does have a good touch for a big man; the goal against West Brom being a prime example. He also has an element of craft and guile to his game which often goes overlooked. His outside of the right foot pass to Lee in the build up to Elmander’s goal against West Ham being yet another example of his skill with the ball at his feet and, had it been created by a player known for their passing ability e.g. Scholes or Fabregas, we would have no doubt seen it replayed for months.

He also has the attributes which were missing from the England team this summer; heart, passion, desire and pride in the shirt. If he gets even two minutes at the end of the match to wear the Three Lions of England, it’ll mean so much more to Kevin Davies than to the many players who come through the youth teams ranks nowadays who believe that they have made the grade simply because they have a Rolex watch and a Aston Martin at the age of 18. They can learn a lot from Kevin Davies. Had the England team shown the same passion, desire and will to win which Davies demonstrated two years ago against West Ham, there is a good chance that our World Cup dreams may not have ended with the same pathetic performances in the group stages before being torn apart by a far superior and efficient German team in the last 16. Rooney may be one of the best players in the world, but you couldn’t tell that this summer in South Africa yet regardless of form, opposition or circumstances, Kevin Davies always puts in a shift; Kevin Davies always puts in a performance. The same cannot be said for some of his new team mates.

Davies should feel immense pride in his call up, regardless of whether he gets any time on the pitch. We all do. It is the pinnacle of any player’s career to represent their country, or at least it should be. Davies is no exception. He has done incredibly well for Bolton and it is fantastic for himself and the club that he has (finally) got the recognition he deserves. It would be incredible for the fairytale call up to have a happy ending and Davies to get the cap he deserves but whatever happens Kev, you’ve done us all proud!

Super Kevin Davies – England International (hopefully); Bolton Legend (definitely)

Dave Hallsworth

"Rooney just hasn't been the same since all this came out"- Ferguson

It’s the game which every Bolton fan looks for when the fixtures are published; United at home. The team we love to beat more than any other. Seems hard to believe it was eight years ago that we recorded the second of our famous wins over United, and in their own back yard to boot. However, since that night in September, our record against Man Utd. has not made for nice reading; one solitary league win, Megson’s first as Bolton boss, and the first at home since December 1978; two draws, which felt like defeats due to the manner in which they were obtained – a last minute equaliser from Solskjaer denying us a famous double in 2002/2003 and an even later equaliser from David Bellion (remember him? No-one else does) in 2004 after ‘Sir’ Les Ferdinand had handed us a late lead.

Every other match against United has resulted in defeat, and some heavy defeats at that. Can this Sunday be any different? After the ‘concentrating on the league’ result on Tuesday, I can understand people being sceptical about our chances of success. However, there are some reasons to be optimistic surely? Well, Rooney’s had a poor start to the season by anyone’s standards, but especially his. That’s always a plus, yeah? Well, perhaps not. The last time we faced a Rooney in the middle of a goal drought, he went home with the match ball! The ‘charity boys’ strike again! That said, J’Lloyd Samuel isn’t playing so they’ll have to do without his impeccable finishing ability. Swings and roundabouts really.

Berbatov has been in good form though since the start of the season, and may be the player to fear from an attacking sense. More so than Rooney going off current stats. However, we are all too aware of the threat that Berbatov can cause having snatched yet another late winner in 2009 when Andy O’Brien managed to tackle himself and Puygrenier whilst leaving Tevez unscathed and free to cross for the a chance even the Bulgarian of old was not going to pass up. Added to the new form of Berbatov, similar to our own no. 9 (never thought I’d get to say that), there’s the long standing duo of Giggs and Scholes, who, the latter in particular, seem to turn out world class displays week in, week out. There’s also the added problem of Nani who seems to have found an end product to his endless trickery and, considering the lack of faith most fans have with at least one of our fullbacks, they could be in for a torrid afternoon. Is it all bad though? Should we do what Megson was only one short step away from and send out the reserves? Or better yet, not send out anyone at all. Just let them take the three points and leave the ‘stars’ free to concentrate of the ‘winnable’ game next week away at West Brom.

Do we stand any chance? Can we get something from this weekend? I think so. Their defence has looked far from solid since the season began, especially away, having conceded soft goals, and ultimately leads, in their previous two away games. True, Goodison Park and Craven Cottage are not happy hunting grounds for United of late and, sadly, the same cannot be said of The Reebok but their defence has looked undeniably shaky. Ferdinand could be back to play alongside Vidic. I’ll leave it up to yourselves whether you think that is good or bad for us. True, he is a great defender on his day, but he hasn’t played much football in the last few months and he’ll certainly have a baptism of fire coming up against Kevin Davies, who always gives defenders a game, and a rejuvenated Elmander, who is troubling goalkeepers more than ball boys this season. Is it not going to be easy this Sunday. Let’s face it, it never is, but we have reasons to be optimistic. Again, excluding the Carling Cup defeat to those bitter folk down the road, we’ve got some decent form to speak of ourselves.

We’ve only lost one game, away at Arsenal, and we were in with a shout of getting something their too until the sending off killed it as a contest. We’re also showing some bottle and drive which was absent last season. Apart from playing Stoke, we managed to obtain all of zero points from losing positions last season. If you include Stoke, the grand total is four points. We have managed to get level in the last three league games in which we went behind, and managed to get points from two of them. Such a comeback, especially the one against Birmingham, would have been unthinkable under Megson. Don’t get me wrong, I’d prefer us not to go behind at all, but at least we have demonstrated that we can still get something from games, despite any early setbacks. I think the form of Petrov can be the key on Sunday. He has had an indifferent start to his Bolton career, and may not have had quite the impact many of us would have hoped. However, he has the ability to be a match winner and, if we can get him the ball, I think he can give the United right back just as difficult a match as the likes of Nani and Giggs are likely to give Steinson and Robinson. We know that Davo will be his usual defence harrying self and Elmander seems to be playing without such a huge weight on his shoulders. Funny what a goal (or three) can do. Jussi will of course return between the sticks, although credit must go to Bogdan for some impressive saves and performances in tough games. I’m sure he will be a better keeper for his experience.

Yes, we’re still without Cahill but, at the risk of putting off any potential suitors, we have only kept two cleans sheets with him in the side in over a year. While I would not put the blame for that solely of Cahill’s shoulders, it is evidence enough that we can cope without him. I believe that we can give United a good game. I think Coyle will demand a response following Tuesday’s unpleasantness. I think we can trouble them going forwards. They’ve already dropped silly points and their defence looks far from solid. Plus, I fancy us to lift our game come Sunday. I play football Monday evenings with a shit load of United fans. It would be good to walk in there with a smile on my face having put another dent in their title dreams (even if it is only September). Here’s to a good game, a full house (although I think a 5-0 Bolton triumph is more likely) and a good result. Come On You Whites.

There’s another tenuous link with the Whites provided by bean-pole striker Nikola Zigic who signed for McLeish recently.  Sam Allardyce and Harry Redknapp watched the Serb as he played for Crvena Zvezda against Cork City back in 2006, with the possibility of recruiting him.  Sam’s thoughts aren’t recorded, but ‘Arry wasn’t impressed.

Not a Pretty Sight

‘I don’t think five million will buy him,’ advised Zigic’s agent after the game.

‘I know, I’m one of them,’ replied Bagpuss.

Birmingham were last season’s surprise package.  They were expected to struggle but survived comfortably, thanks to some stout organization and occasional last ditch defending.

So far the two sides have identical results, one draw, two wins and entrance to the next round of the Carling Cup.  The performances of Owen Coyle’s side have been patchy.  They were disjointed against Fulham and overrun in the first half at West Ham, before finishing as comfortable victors.  Yet the points tally so far is satisfactory.

Coyle has an almost full squad to pick from, bar Ivan Klasnic and Sean Davis, who was only kept on to keep the medical staff busy now that Ricardo Vaz Te has transferred to the treatment room at another club.

The defence is a worry and the midfield hasn’t gelled yet, although individually there seems to be potential there.  The most encouraging thing so far has been the improvement in Johan Elmander.  Let’s hope it’s not another false dawn.

The last game at the Reebok between these two ended in a 2-1 victory for the Whites, but as all parties involved had already booked their summer holidays, it has limited relevance.  Expect a tightly fought encounter with (optimistic hat on) Bolton running out the eventual winners.

Gary's Gardening Efforts Haven't Met With Success...

Former Bolton manager Gary Megson appeared on TV at the weekend.  Despite warnings on this very site, a few Wanderers fans chose to tune in.  Others have foolishly watched various clips of the programme that are lying around on the internet.

This wasn’t necessary.  Everyone knew what he was going to say.  If the Ginger One was to be believed, Bolton were all but challenging for a Champions League place when he was unfairly placed on gardening leave.

Just to balance things up, here are a few snippets from that Wikipedia article, which cast Gaz in a slightly different role than the one as football saviour.

Norwich

‘Megson managed the Canaries for the remainder of the 1995-96 season, but was sacked at the end of the season’

Blackpool

‘Megson left at the end of the season.’

Stockport

‘Soon after he left Stockport by mutual consent.’

Stoke City

‘His tenure at the Britannia Stadium was brought to an end…’

West Brom

‘…on 26 October Megson was dismissed…’

Nottingham Forest

...but his taste in gnomes isn't bad

‘In terms of points they were nearer to the relegation zone than the playoff zone when he resigned in February 2006 after being put under a lot of pressure by the Forest fans.’

Leicester City

‘…he left Leicester on 24 October 2007, just 41 days and nine Football League Championship games after his appointment.’

Bolton Wanderers

‘On Wednesday 30 December 2009, Bolton announced that Megson had been relieved of his duties as manager with immediate effect.’

So there you have it, the managerial equivalent of Michael Ricketts, except that lard-arse was good once.

Now you might say it’s unfair to quote so selectively and that the full story isn’t being told.  You’d be correct.  But Gary Megson can have no complaints.  After all, he started it.

Police have also warned householders not to be alarmed if they find the normally placid man next door shinning up the drain pipe in order to rip down his satellite dish. On a positive note, housewives may find their other halves keener than usual to take the kids to the park or wash the car.

Not even a fellow ginge is pleased at the news

The reason for these bizarre happenings?  It’s down to the man who refuses to go away, or as a poster on another Wanderers site succinctly put it,  ‘the turd that won’t flush.’   At 11am, former boss Gary Megson will take to the screen on Goals On Sunday in order to ‘lift the lid on life at the Reebok’, as the publicity blurb has it

Megson will explain that Bolton were bottom of league below Derby when he joined, that he took them the furthest they’d ever been in Europe and how he rescued the club from relegation, not once, but twice.  He’ll also mention that the players were a great group of lads, but the fans were mean to him.  Not that it mattered, as they were pathetic, made mountains out of molehills and the criticism was like water off a duck’s back.

There.  Now you don’t need to put yourself through the trauma of watching it.