Echo says Adkins on brink of Saints job 2.30pm

[saint_stevo]

If it is Adkins, will be interesting to see the difference in subs on Saturday.......last time @ Swindon the crowd had to beg for some subs, and they came 5mins from time.

[Gemmel]

NC doesnt strike me as the kind of chap to go asking for a bit of love and compasion from anyone though. Build up a relationship with top brass maybe but not the ass kisser type IMO.

 

The rags are the type to invite someone like NC into there offices and be all nice as pie then completly slate them in the papers the next day so I dont hold much hope in NC's visit doing too much good.

 

Will wait and see.

 

I agree with your thoughts on Cortese, but he would have realised pretty quickly he had ****ed up and would have to rectify the situation and try and save face. You can pick your battles with most people, but not the British Press and certainly not the Sun. I predicted a while ago that this would be resolved and it will be......and SFC will be the ones to back down.

[SaltashSaint]

Only just seen this news and have to say what a massive disappointment if true. Atkins may be able to get us out of League One - to be fair, any decent manager should this season - but what then? Is he the type of manager who will be able to attract the right sort of players required if we are to continue progressing with the ultimate aim of re-establishing ourselves as a steady Premier League outfit? There is no doubting he has done well at S****horpe where there is little pressure to succeed - more about just keeping the club afloat. But I am worried how he will cope with the expectation levels of Mr Cortese and the club. For me (if this is correct) this is a massive opporyunity wasted by the club.

[SaintRichmond]

And some people need to find some perspective. So what you're advocating is that if Adkins gets us out of this league, but then either relegates us back to L1 or leaves us close to relegation (per Scunny), THAT will be a sign of success?!?! And then if (as per Scunny) he does not improve our position, NC will need to sack him and get another Manager to get us out of the nPC, THAT will be a sign of success?! Ad infinitum.

 

Nigel Pearson was in a completely different position - he came (from the Prem) into a weakened, poorly functioning team at the foot of the CCC and he turned things around IN LESS THAN ONE SEASON! We were desperate - out of money. He was our Adkins at that time - he has gone on to prove himself to be capable at another club also in nPC, so you could say he has achieved greater heights than Adkins.

 

Look - Adkins has done a great job at Scunny in the FOUR years he's been there - I applaude him wholeheartedly - but that's not Saints - we are a totally different proposition. The squad - the supporters - the CEO's vision and plan to get to the Prem in a short space of time.

 

Based on past experiences it's got failure written all over it - I desperately hope not - but that's how I feel right now and I guess only time will tell.

 

You are perfectly right

 

Scu*thorpe are in the CCC, Saints are in Div 1

 

Saints have a great Squad ON PAPER, but are massively Underachieving, and that IS/WAS down to the Manager

 

Our Home ground could be Wembley, but that does not give us the God given right to anything

 

SUCCESS has to be EARNT

[SaintRichmond]

Only just seen this news and have to say what a massive disappointment if true. Atkins may be able to get us out of League One - to be fair, any decent manager should this season - but what then? Is he the type of manager who will be able to attract the right sort of players required if we are to continue progressing with the ultimate aim of re-establishing ourselves as a steady Premier League outfit? There is no doubting he has done well at S****horpe where there is little pressure to succeed - more about just keeping the club afloat. But I am worried how he will cope with the expectation levels of Mr Cortese and the club. For me (if this is correct) this is a massive opporyunity wasted by the club.

 

I don't think that Atkins has a cat in hells chance of getting us out of Div 1

[Dig Dig]

And some people need to find some perspective. So what you're advocating is that if Adkins gets us out of this league, but then either relegates us back to L1 or leaves us close to relegation (per Scunny), THAT will be a sign of success?!?! And then if (as per Scunny) he does not improve our position, NC will need to sack him and get another Manager to get us out of the nPC, THAT will be a sign of success?! Ad infinitum.

 

Nigel Pearson was in a completely different position - he came (from the Prem) into a weakened, poorly functioning team at the

 

 

 

foot of the CCC and he turned things around IN LESS THAN ONE SEASON! We were desperate - out of money. He was our Adkins at that time - he has gone on to prove himself to be capable at another club also in nPC, so you could say he has achieved greater heights than Adkins.

 

Look - Adkins has done a great job at Scunny in the FOUR years he's been there - I applaude him wholeheartedly - but that's not Saints - we are a totally different proposition. The squad - the supporters - the CEO's vision and plan to get to the Prem in a short

space of time.

 

Based on past experiences it's got failure written all over it - I desperately hope not - but that's how I feel right now and I guess only time will tell.

 

I'm not advocating that at all! The fact that he couldn't push on with scunny was down largely to their lack of resources...we saw how much of an overhaul we had to go through last season just to have a fighting chance of being promoted. He couldn't have done any more which is why the fans love him and also presumebly, why he wants that chance to go the extra mile here.

 

I'm just finding it hard to understand why there is so much negativity when there is as much chance of him coming here and doing well. History is littered with unfancied managers doing what supposedly big name managers couldn't do and this may well be our turn

[buctootim]

I think its a great signing, really chuffed. There are too many 'wow' managers out there whose reputation is actually based on their playing career honours or clubs they managed 10 years ago and have long since lost the fire. Adkins is still on the way up. Will be a great ride imo.

[JackanorySFC]

So this means there will be a discrete climbdown over the photographers ban with perhaps a little something extra in terms of publicity for Saints as a sweetener to enable Cortese to portray the move not as a u-turn.

 

Yes, certainly seems that way. The meeting was 100% arranged by NC, not the other way round (hence NC going to Wapping in his own time). Genuinely don't know the details of the discussion (although at "Fortress Wapping" they don't let you through the gates unless your waving a white flag) just the times he was in the newsroom and the fact he was shown around after the meeting and saw how newspaper production works.

 

Will be interesting to see the Sun's reaction tomorrow (if Adkins is announced tonight) and/ or Monday after the Swindon game.

 

3 posts, over and out.

[DT]

v underwhelming

[PokingFun]

And some people need to find some perspective. So what you're advocating is that if Adkins gets us out of this league, but then either relegates us back to L1 or leaves us close to relegation (per Scunny), THAT will be a sign of success?!?! And then if (as per Scunny) he does not improve our position, NC will need to sack him and get another Manager to get us out of the nPC, THAT will be a sign of success?! Ad infinitum.

 

Nigel Pearson was in a completely different position - he came (from the Prem) into a weakened, poorly functioning team at the foot of the CCC and he turned things around IN LESS THAN ONE SEASON! We were desperate - out of money. He was our Adkins at that time - he has gone on to prove himself to be capable at another club also in nPC, so you could say he has achieved greater heights than Adkins.

 

Look - Adkins has done a great job at Scunny in the FOUR years he's been there - I applaude him wholeheartedly - but that's not Saints - we are a totally different proposition. The squad - the supporters - the CEO's vision and plan to get to the Prem in a short space of time.

 

Based on past experiences it's got failure written all over it - I desperately hope not - but that's how I feel right now and I guess only time will tell.

 

Pearson did not turn Saints around FFS, we were lucky to survive. That is a complete myth regardless of what people thought of Burley.

 

If NA comes in give him 100% support and expect promotion as I firmly expect this team to have more (or at least similar) quality to S****horpe when they have been promoted. All the best to the fella, I have an open mind.

[dune]

Yes, certainly seems that way. The meeting was 100% arranged by NC, not the other way round (hence NC going to Wapping in his own time). Genuinely don't know the details of the discussion (although at "Fortress Wapping" they don't let you through the gates unless your waving a white flag) just the times he was in the newsroom and the fact he was shown around after the meeting and saw how newspaper production works.

 

Will be interesting to see the Sun's reaction tomorrow (if Adkins is announced tonight) and/ or Monday after the Swindon game.

 

3 posts, over and out.

 

It's just a gut feeling, but I wouldn't be surprised if NC wasn't told to sort the mess he has created from above, i.e a direct order from the Liebherr family. His stance has afterall diminished what should be a period of reflection for their father and I know if I was a member of the Liebherr family i'd have been fuming over what he'd done.

[revolution saint]

I think its a great signing, really chuffed. There are too many 'wow' managers out there whose reputation is actually based on their playing career honours or clubs they managed 10 years ago and have long since lost the fire. Adkins is still on the way up. Will be a great ride imo.

 

I think the thing is Adkins has achieved success for Scunny in a totally different environment to what he will find here. At Scunny he had no expectation and little pressure - at Saints he will have huge amounts of both. He's used to getting the best out of limited players - here he'll have to deal with ego. To get results at Scunny he would have had to stop the opposition and effectively become one of those teams that we struggle to break down - opposite problem here.

 

He could be great but personally I don't think it's the right move for either him or us and I feel a bit sorry for him. He'll constantly be compared to Pardew and I would imagine that most people would rather have Pardew. I hope he proves me wrong but it seems a totally uninspired appointment.

[CanadaSaint]

The most important perspective, by far, is that our new manager sincerely embraces Cortese's philosophy - whether or not we personally agree with it.

 

I'd suggest that the key components of that philosophy are A) a reporting structure which holds the player development/academy side in balance with - not subordinate to - first team affairs, B) a committee approach to first team squad development, C) financial sustainability based on the funding made available by Cortese and the Liebherrs, D) clear progress towards a return to the Premier League within five years, and E) attractive football - the "Southampton style".

 

The sooner we all accept that these are the rules while Cortese is around, the better. Too many posters are screaming for someone who can't even tick the first box, and too many posters are dissing people who have a good chance of ticking all the boxes.

[Saint J 77]

I don't think that Atkins has a cat in hells chance of getting us out of Div 1

 

But he could help Lambert lost some weight

[Lord Duckhunter]

I think the thing is Adkins has achieved success for Scunny in a totally different environment to what he will find here. At Scunny he had no expectation and little pressure - at Saints he will have huge amounts of both. He's used to getting the best out of limited players - here he'll have to deal with ego. To get results at Scunny he would have had to stop the opposition and effectively become one of those teams that we struggle to break down - opposite problem here.

 

He could be great but personally I don't think it's the right move for either him or us and I feel a bit sorry for him. He'll constantly be compared to Pardew and I would imagine that most people would rather have Pardew. I hope he proves me wrong but it seems a totally uninspired appointment.

 

What Lawrie achieved with Grimsby and Donny was a toatally different environment to what he found at saints. He had to deal with massive egos, as oppossed to limitted players.

He had to follow Ted, when most people would have rather had Ted.

 

Didn't do too bad did he?

[buctootim]

What Lawrie achieved with Grimsby and Donny was a toatally different environment to what he found at saints. He had to deal with massive egos, as oppossed to limitted players.

He had to follow Ted, when most people would have rather had Ted.

 

Didn't do too bad did he?

 

Exactly. And as far as I remember Chris Nichol had zero management experience when he joined Saints.

[Lord Duckhunter]

Exactly. And as far as I remember Chris Nichol had zero management experience when he joined Saints.

 

And a certain Mr Redknapp had loads.

[Cestrian Saint]

Here we go again. This reminds me of the time we appointed Paul Sturrock.....

[Thedelldays]

arrogant arroganr saints fans...

 

if we signed a player from the NPC who had done VERY well in the last few year..we would all be very happy..

 

signing a manager from that very same criteria is under whelming..? WTF...?

[revolution saint]

What Lawrie achieved with Grimsby and Donny was a toatally different environment to what he found at saints. He had to deal with massive egos, as oppossed to limitted players.

He had to follow Ted, when most people would have rather had Ted.

 

Didn't do too bad did he?

 

Got us relegated the first year - can't NC giving Adkins that much of a learning curve to be honest. Thing is you or I can quote precedents from both sides of the argument and ultimately those precedents are irrelevant in a debate over whether this will be a success or not. Unless you could point to Adkins having been in a similar situation before?

[corsacar saint]

IF true give the man a chance.S****horpe are a decent footballing side,which Nigel Adkins must take a lot of credit for.

He comes across as a decent,intelligent guy as well. We are in league 1 for gods sake,who do some of you expect us to attract?

[Thedelldays]

IF true give the man a chance.S****horpe are a decent footballing side,which Nigel Adkins must take a lot of credit for.

He comes across as a decent,intelligent guy as well. We are in league 1 for gods sake,who do some of you expect us to attract?

 

MoN....apparently

 

HAHAHAHAHAHA

[The Majestic Channon]

You are perfectly right

 

Scu*thorpe are in the CCC, Saints are in Div 1

 

Saints have a great Squad ON PAPER, but are massively Underachieving, and that IS/WAS down to the Manager

 

Our Home ground could be Wembley, but that does not give us the God given right to anything

 

SUCCESS has to be EARNT

 

If Adkins loses 13 of his first 64 games will you want him out ?

[saint lard]

Appalling appointment if true,Shortsighted on the behalf of Cortese/Reed.

 

He won't be here long.

We seem to have taken alot of steps backward just recently,back to normality it seems,well i enjoyed the year just gone, i must'nt be greedy i suppose.

 

More than happy to be proven wrong,of course.

[Dibden Purlieu Saint]

Great appointment. Very highly respected. Prefer him to a 'big' name.

 

The people who are saying that he isn't what we need clearly know **** all, and are probably saying this as Wikipedia doesn't have as many lines on him as it does the bigger names.

 

Just cos you hadn't heard of him prior to 3 weeks ago doesn't make him **** / unsuitable for the job.

[Lord Duckhunter]

Got us relegated the first year - can't NC giving Adkins that much of a learning curve to be honest. Thing is you or I can quote precedents from both sides of the argument and ultimately those precedents are irrelevant in a debate over whether this will be a success or not. Unless you could point to Adkins having been in a similar situation before?

 

We need to get a Manager in and back him, as the board did with Lawrie. Had these forums been around then, they'd have gone into meltdown when he was appointed and crashed when he got us relegated. Who was right, the Directors who backed him, or the supporters who wanted him out?

[CanadaSaint]

Appalling appointment if true,Shortsighted on the behalf of Cortese/Reed.

 

He won't be here long.

 

Do you have a rationale to go along with those views - other than the fact that he's not a "big name"?

[Saints foreva]

Appalling appointment if true,Shortsighted on the behalf of Cortese/Reed.

 

He won't be here long.

We seem to have taken alot of steps backward just recently,back to normality it seems,well i enjoyed the year just gone, i must'nt be greedy i suppose.

 

More than happy to be proven wrong,of course.

 

I am not sure how Adkins is a step back from Pardew?

 

Adkins got S****horpe promoted twice from League One despite spending no money and losing their better players.

 

Pardew failed to get Saints promoted from League One despite spending £3m+ on new players.....

[Lord Duckhunter]

Specific examples positive and negative mean bugger all to the success of a new manager. It'll be a new scenario and down to them.

 

Agreed, but all this "Appalling appointment", is nonsense. On paper the best appointment Saints have made in the given situation was Harry Redknapp (to keep us up), the worst Lawrie Mac.

 

Lets give the guy our 100% support with open minds, and none of the needless "but", "cheap option" and "could have been XYZ if it wasn't for NC" stuff that keeps geting posted

[Channon's Sideburns]

TBH Pardew was another Burley in the making.

 

He even started maing the same lame excuses for performances.

 

If it is you Nigel, welcome and goodluck.

[dune]

Great appointment. Very highly respected. Prefer him to a 'big' name.

 

The people who are saying that he isn't what we need clearly know **** all, and are probably saying this as Wikipedia doesn't have as many lines on him as it does the bigger names.

 

Just cos you hadn't heard of him prior to 3 weeks ago doesn't make him **** / unsuitable for the job.

 

Precisely, and i'd rather have a manager that is joining us because he's keen to progress as a manager, than someone who's had better positions and is now joining us because they cannot maintain their previous level.

 

Pardew was never right for us because he was arrogant and thought he was better than he was, give me a humble and hungry up and coming manager any day of the week.

[teamsaint]

Lawrie Mac came from a Lincolnshire team....seems like a good precedent to me.

 

hope that Adkins turns out good... tHink there is every chance he will.

 

Look at some of our " big name " managers

 

Redknapp

 

Burley.

 

A big name iss hardly a guarantee of success....

[West End Saint]

If it is to be Adkins he will have my full support obviously he is talented he has done a very good job with Scunny and the fans will need to get behind him and give the guy a chance.

 

As many have said a lot of us were underwhelmed with Pards and lots thought Burly and Harry being big names would be great well they werent and Pards did well so who can tell.

 

All I am interested in is Saints doing well and getting promoted we are in league 1 and this guy has been promtoted out of it twice so lets see what he can do.

 

Other than MON which was not going to happen he is the best of the rest much prefer him to Brown or Dowie or Hart or even Keegan.

[emerson massey]

arrogant arroganr saints fans...

 

if we signed a player from the NPC who had done VERY well in the last few year..we would all be very happy..

 

signing a manager from that very same criteria is under whelming..? WTF...?

 

At least someone is speaking some sense...

 

On another note, has it actually been confirmed are we all still just speculating on an Echo story

[DrunkenSaint]

They way i see it, some players really liked AP and only came here because of him being a "top manager" but now he's left, players heads have dropped and if rumors are true that some players want to leave only another "top manager" will change thier minds from leaving. Adkins might have some success at Scunny but he isnt a really known guy so players might think this is a step backwards. Its also taken 4 years to get his team where they are, if he does become out new manager than Good luck to him and i'll get behind him but if NC wants promotion this season i just dont think it will happen.

[Dark Munster]

Pearson did not turn Saints around FFS, we were lucky to survive. That is a complete myth regardless of what people thought of Burley.

 

If NA comes in give him 100% support and expect promotion as I firmly expect this team to have more (or at least similar) quality to S****horpe when they have been promoted. All the best to the fella, I have an open mind.

False. We were in disarray when he arrived and free falling to relegation. In an incredibly short time he installed confidence in the players and pulled it around, and in the end achieved 1.23 points per match (W3 D7 L3), finishing on 54 points. Leicester were relegated on 52 points, a record high amount. It is a complete myth that Saints were lucky to survive. No team in the history of football anywhere in the world have been relegated on 53 points, yet alone 54.

 

And we all know what happened when he joined Leicester, proving his (Lowe-loving) critics completely wrong.

[saint lard]

Do you have a rationale to go along with those views - other than the fact that he's not a "big name"?

 

I truly believe he won't be able to cope with the pressure on him from either Cortese or us the fans,he is someone who i expect to quite possibly get us out of this division then watch us stagnate in the championship,if we are lucky to achieve that imo.

Yo yo manager for what will become a yo yo club.

Not a long term appointment in my view.

I will own up to i wanted,Zola and Clarke working in tandem.

Every candidate has his propective faults and every supporter has his opinion,like it or lump it.

[Dark Munster]

But he could help Lambert lost some weight

Oi! I resemble that remark!

 

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?25020-New-manager-announcement-tomorrow&p=837976#post837976

Edited 8 September, 2010 by Dark Munster

[Saint Fan CaM]

Saints have a great Squad ON PAPER, but are massively Underachieving, and that IS/WAS down to the Manager

 

Woah, hang on there...Saints are NOT massively underachieving YET (although the results have been poor since AP left). The season's not over!

 

There is no past experience of Adkins at Saints. We've had so many managers you could make a case for any candidate being doomed to failure, including MON, but what's the point?

 

You're right - we've no past experience of Adkins at Saints, however we do have past precedence with the strategy of appointing more managers in a given season than you could shake a stick at. And I am highly sceptical that (despite his 'success' at Scunny) he has a good enough CV at this point in time to do the job needed here right now.

 

I'm not advocating that at all! The fact that he couldn't push on with scunny was down largely to their lack of resources...we saw how much of an overhaul we had to go through last season just to have a fighting chance of being promoted. He couldn't have done any more which is why the fans love him and also presumebly, why he wants that chance to go the extra mile here.

 

I'm just finding it hard to understand why there is so much negativity when there is as much chance of him coming here and doing well. History is littered with unfancied managers doing what supposedly big name managers couldn't do and this may well be our turn

 

You're right of course - he may be our best manager yet. In a history littered with Managers that have failed to impress or have not lasted the course with the CEO, the question is will Adkins turn out to be another McMenemy or another Sturrock? Has he got the balls to stand his ground when we lose some key players, when we're not achieving the results expected, when we're looking more like relegation fighters than promotion candidates, when the fans are on his back? The expectations of this club are far greater than Scunny (with respect to Scunny). We shall see - good luck to him.

[saint lard]

It's short sighted because people don't know you he is. Someone the possibility of their own ignorance never seems to enter the equation.

Your contribution is wonderful,you must be so proud.

Just because all and sundry don't agree with you does not make thier opinions invalid.

 

Did you write that with Google translater on?

[scotty]

But he could help Lambert lost some weight

 

lol

[Saint Fan CaM]

False. We were in disarray when he arrived and free falling to relegation. In an incredibly short time he installed confidence in the players and pulled it around, and in the end achieved 1.23 points per match (W3 D7 L3), finishing on 54 points. Leicester were relegated on 52 points, a record high amount. It is a complete myth that Saints were lucky to survive. No team in the history of football anywhere in the world have been relegated on 53 points, yet alone 54.

 

And we all know what happened when he joined Leicester, proving his (Lowe-loving) critics completely wrong.

 

 

Thanks for saving me the trouble looking up the stats - you're absolutely right. And not only did he turn the team around, he gave the supporters someone to believe in - for the first time in a decade, pretty much the whole of SMS was right behind the Manager and when he was kicked out by Lowe most fans were appauled.

[Mouldy Coat]

Just hope Adkins doesn't become a Paul Sturrock part 2.

[PaulGilchrist_76]

Adkins eh? Still, it will keeps costs down. I give him 'til Xmas.

[Dark Munster]

And some people need to find some perspective. So what you're advocating is that if Adkins gets us out of this league, but then either relegates us back to L1 or leaves us close to relegation (per Scunny), THAT will be a sign of success?!?! And then if (as per Scunny) he does not improve our position, NC will need to sack him and get another Manager to get us out of the nPC, THAT will be a sign of success?! Ad infinitum.

 

Nigel Pearson was in a completely different position - he came (from the Prem) into a weakened, poorly functioning team at the foot of the CCC and he turned things around IN LESS THAN ONE SEASON! We were desperate - out of money. He was our Adkins at that time - he has gone on to prove himself to be capable at another club also in nPC, so you could say he has achieved greater heights than Adkins.

 

Look - Adkins has done a great job at Scunny in the FOUR years he's been there - I applaude him wholeheartedly - but that's not Saints - we are a totally different proposition. The squad - the supporters - the CEO's vision and plan to get to the Prem in a short space of time.

 

Based on past experiences it's got failure written all over it - I desperately hope not - but that's how I feel right now and I guess only time will tell.

What had Pearson achieved before he came to us? Not that much.

[Dark Munster]

when WGS was appointed most Saints fans were underwhelmed after his failure at Cov

When Dave Jones arrived most saints fans were underwhelmed

when Chris Nichol arrived " "

When Laurie Mac arrived " "

 

A big name doesn't gaurentee success. We are hiring a bright up and coming young manager who so far has beaten all expections. Pardew was a good solid manager, but he certainly wasn't special

Yes indeed, and you can add Nige Pearson to that list.

 

In fact, I feel the same way about Adkins (if he is appointed) as I did when Pearson was appointed: cautiously optimistic.

 

As opposed to when Gray, Wigley, Dudd/Gormless and the Dutch duo were appointed: complete despair.

[Dark Munster]

And what if he did enquire after those 2 and they both declined ?

 

"Cheated again" !!!

 

What drama queens we have as fans !

 

Good luck Adkins - Perhaps he will come with a galvanising attitude much the same as Pearson did.

This.

[Saint Billy]

Reckon we should sign their goalkeepr.

 

This is the first time i've seen NA and even from the short clip you can tell he's a good laugh and has a good bond with his players. I'd be happy with him as our next manager.QUOTE]

 

Ok, your winning me over. It does seem that the players have alot of time for him. Its refreshing to see a manager mucking in with his players and not being too precious. Hopefully he can instill the same spirit down here.

[lordswoodsaints]

I don't think you can compare what lawrie did 30 or 40 years ago with what could or could not be achieved today.... Football has moved on,it is a different era,it is a completely different game.

Greed dominates the game and because of that fans are less tolerant,clubs and fans on the whole expect instant success, managers don't get the time they used to have.

Back in the day if football had been like it is today lawrie wouldn't have lasted as long as he did.

[CLOTH EARS]

I am sure Adkins will make a decent manager somewhere where he will be given time. Cortese cannot expect him to come in here and expect us to suddenly win every game. IF Adkins came in and results dont improve much after half a dozen games will Cortese stand for that will he start to doubt his choice of manager? IMO we needed an impact manager who would turn the players heads as soon as he walked in the changing room, someone who would represent a statement of intent from the club to those working in it and to us supporters.