George Burley

[CSA96]

 

[Bad Wolf]

Oh damn. All the best, George. My first ever managerial appointment as a Saints fan.

[Miltonaggro]

Really liked Burley as a player in that great Ipswich side and he had a solid CV as a manager before joining Saints, including getting Ipswich to fifth in the Prem and the UEFA Cup (PL Manager of the season 2001). Sketchy on a limited budget at Saints 2005-2008 and some personal issues apparently, but some way off our former Saints' managers shit list.  I sincerely hope George recovers his health and beats that bastard disease.   

[St Chalet]

If he battles cancer like he signed midfielders he will be absolutely fine. Get well soon George.

[Toadhall Saint]

Yeah get well soon GB

[sadoldgit]

5 hours ago, Miltonaggro said:

Really liked Burley as a player in that great Ipswich side and he had a solid CV as a manager before joining Saints, including getting Ipswich to fifth in the Prem and the UEFA Cup (PL Manager of the season 2001). Sketchy on a limited budget at Saints 2005-2008 and some personal issues apparently, but some way off our former Saints' managers shit list.  I sincerely hope George recovers his health and beats that bastard disease.   

He was rumoured to have a drink problem. Given the drinking culture amongst footballers in those days I wouldn’t be surprised. The expectations were high when he arrived but when it became clear that we weren’t going to be amongst the front runners a lot of people turned on him on here. He had a similar win % to Lawrie McMenemy and like you, I don’t think he deserves to be anywhere near a list of our poor managers.

Best wishes to him for a full and  speedy recovery.

[CB Fry]

When he was appointed it felt like exactly the right manager, a really good fit and someone who could take us up.

Unfortunately it didn't quite turn out that way and he spent the last of our money trying to get there.

But gave us some great moments.

Good luck fighting it George.

Edited September 10 by CB Fry

[a1ex2001]

13 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

When he was appointed it felt like exactly the right manager, a really good fit and someone who could take us up.

Unfortunately it didn't quite turn out that way and he spent the last of our money trying to get there.

But gave us some great moments.

Good luck fighting it George.

I’d echo those thoughts, I thought he was a great appointment and he brought some good players with him sadly it didn’t work out and like you say it was all down hill from there.  Things could have been very different if we’d won that penalty shoot out against Derby! 
 

Best of luck to George and his family I hope this is a fight he wins.

Edited September 10 by a1ex2001

[Ted Bates Statue]

2 hours ago, sadoldgit said:

He was rumoured to have a drink problem. Given the drinking culture amongst footballers in those days I wouldn’t be surprised. The expectations were high when he arrived but when it became clear that we weren’t going to be amongst the front runners a lot of people turned on him on here. He had a similar win % to Lawrie McMenemy and like you, I don’t think he deserves to be anywhere near a list of our poor managers.

Best wishes to him for a full and  speedy recovery.

I think he had a serious budget by our standards, and I expected more from him. Funnily enough, I felt that the forum was unusually patient towards him in a way that hasn't really been seen with others. The win percentage thing is a classic argument, but of course Burley's record was better than managers like Strachan or Hoddle as they were managing us at a higher level. Definitely better than Dodd and Gorman though, but I think the stats tell us more about them than GB.

[Lighthouse]

He seriously underachieved here with the resources he had available and ended up leaving us in basically the same position as when we joined. Obviously it goes without saying that we all wish him well in his battle with the big C, however.

[sadoldgit]

14 hours ago, Ted Bates Statue said:

I think he had a serious budget by our standards, and I expected more from him. Funnily enough, I felt that the forum was unusually patient towards him in a way that hasn't really been seen with others. The win percentage thing is a classic argument, but of course Burley's record was better than managers like Strachan or Hoddle as they were managing us at a higher level. Definitely better than Dodd and Gorman though, but I think the stats tell us more about them than GB.

I’m not sure about the patient bit. I had many a row with dear old Alpine about him, even when we hammered Wolves away he was slagging him off. There were plenty of people calling for his head along with the usual - plays his mates, no plan B, should be doing better with the players at his disposal (where have we heard that before?) etc. I appreciate the stats thing, and yes, he managed at a lower level but you can only play what is in front of you and he still had a decent return of points, just not good enough sadly. 

[Charlie Wayman]

I remember being quite excited by his appointment and thought we played reasonably well under his leadership. He had plenty of success at other clubs and like many others I hoped he could bring a little of that magic to St Mary's. That wet night at Derby as others have observed might well have moved the needle but it was not to be. 

His time here was beset with rumours about his personal life style but that was of no interest to me. 

Good luck George with your fight against cancer. Have faith and stay positive.

[rooney]

Was glad when Scottish FA took him off our hands as George did not live up to expectations here.However we can offer our best wishes to him for good treatment and recovery.

[Whitey Grandad]

18 minutes ago, rooney said:

Was glad when Scottish FA took him off our hands as George did not live up to expectations here.However we can offer our best wishes to him for good treatment and recovery.

Yes. No ill will towards him and he was worth a punt at the time but leaving to manage Scotland was probably the best for everyone.

Good luck with your treatment George.