Fletcher is the Caretaker (merged)

It's certainly sounding that way. he's settled here, and his playing days are numbered, if not at an end.
What better way to cut costs than have a temporary player manager.
What better way to ensure there are no more player threats of strike action if the takeover thing should go on and on. Just as with Mariner, no one will stand up to Fletcher in the changing room.

I see Mr Webb is backing Fletch/ Ro 'so we can take stock'.......................... in the Conference I presume.

I like to think I know a bit about football, and I can usually spot a good player. Obviously by supporting Argyle I have not had much practice at this, but I have seen lots of opposition players.

The one position I useless at judging though is central midfield. Whether its on TV or live, I really struggle with my judgement. So what I am trying to say is Fletcher any good? He appears to be a Jonah as we narrowly avoided relegation when he was here on loan. Two successive relegations followed and now we are bottom of the 4th division.

And what is all this about him being a great leader in the dressing room?

I like to think I know my football too, Frank. The best ways to assess a player are undoubtedly as a manager, or perhaps more informatively, as a teamate or opposing player.
As a spectator, I rarely concentrate on individuals like a manager would, as my eyes are everywhere trying to enjoy the game as a spectacle.
I was an attacking box to box midfielder, myself, although i mcould play anywhere but the lone striker.

When the team started to implode, I went out of my way a couple of years ago to watch for the reasons our centre back pairings were always left exposed in a way that never happened with Seip and Timar under Holloway. I watched Fletcher intently, along with the rest of the so called defensive midfield that had replaced Wotton and the hugely impressive Nallis.
One of the football cliches is some 'unpopular' players do unseen work for the team. well, having played the game at a reasonable level for longer than I care to remember, it is also true that there are some 'popular' players who do unseen harm to a team's chances. This is often only understood by the teamates, and is even missed by managers.
And my opinion of Fletcher .... vey slow, caught on his heels far too often, vulnerable to people pinching the ball from behind, and absolutely appalling positional sense leaving exposed centre backs time and time again. In my mind, barring a couple of good goals, he is undoubtedly one of the main reasons we dropped like a stone. I never saw his 'better' days as an international, so I can't comment, but some players can just lose it very quickly, it happens in sport, even though they can still hack the training ... look at Tiger Woods.. I suspect the reason the brilliant Warnock didn't play Fletcher at Palace was not just the Pasoti myth of financial constraint at the club.

Before we signed Fletcher the Palace fans were saying that Fletcher had "lost it" very suddenly. Something along the lines that his legs had gone at the age of just 28.

Stevie Adams used to do a great job of shielding Cocko and Wotton as well.

That interesting snippet would certainly ring true Frank. There were certainly few other takers for Fletcher's services.... I always thought that fact to be a bit Alan Judge.... another overrated whippet who couldn't run fast. ... looked like he was though

and Larrieu is his assistant. Good luck to him, but I'd rather someone with experience (although we probably can't afford it) and not another 'Mariner' type appointment.

Do either have any coaching badges?

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It was really just about the only thing that makes sense though. We have no money to get anyone else and he's the senior pro, the guy with the experience and ability to lead. He's clearly the voice of the dressing room and we can see from his ability to bring the rest of the squad with him over the strike ballot and before that the giving of money to the staff that he has their respect and attention.

Long term we need experience but hey, when your back is up against the wall and you're thrust in to leadership before your time you either sink or swim. Maybe come the end of the season when our future is assured and he's managed to make a good fist of things, he'll have enough experience to justify permanency. A key appointment is Ro, the best fist pumping tea cup throwing managers have a quiet 'arm round the shoulder' number two to balance things out. If they work their roles out sensibly and work as a team there's no reason why they can't improve things.

(oh and Ro's friendship with a certain French agent/scout might earn us a couple of little bargains like they turned out to be first time round)

The only good thing about this appointment is that finally we are now at the beginning of the end of Fletcher's Argyle career.

With continuing bad results, a new manager will have to be brought in after the sale, whenever that might be, and a grumpy Fletch can then set about spending the last months of his Argyle career dominating manager number 3. I say 3, because I suspect he didn't dominate Sturrock in quite the way he did Mariner and Reid.

Clever move from Ridsdale, he's managed to buy off the two leaders of the player strikes with promises of jam tomorrow ... should put an end to the strike threat and give the green light for more deferrals. As the weeks go by though, this just might come back to bite them all. I hope for everyone's sake, Jonah is a better manager than a captain and player.

Other, less cynical, opinions are available though.

Just as i predicted last week. Now just give it a few weeks and see an approach for tisdale.

I posted on pasoti for the first time in 4 2 years yesterday, pointing out the fact the trust knew about this as my info came straight from the hoarses mouth, already threatened with a ban.

X Isle wrote:

Other, less cynical, opinions are available though.

I'm sure they are, from the Pasoti Trust book shop no doubt.

So, if we come to the next payday deadline in, say, let's forget September, let's say October, and there is no deal, yet there is no strike threat, but yet another deferral, will you conceed the possibility of what's gone on, and the reasoning behind it, or has the inclusion of the mythical packaged retiscent Brent totally turned your head. Was HE, and what you think he represents, all you wanted ?
Just asking like.

125+1 wrote:

Just as i predicted last week. Now just give it a few weeks and see an approach for tisdale.

I posted on pasoti for the first time in 4 2 years yesterday, pointing out the fact the trust knew about this as my info came straight from the hoarses mouth, already threatened with a ban.

Knowledge is power, particularly in the hands of those trying to 'be somebody'.

125+1 wrote:

Just as i predicted last week. Now just give it a few weeks and see an approach for tisdale.

I posted on pasoti for the first time in 4 2 years yesterday, pointing out the fact the trust knew about this as my info came straight from the hoarses mouth, already threatened with a ban.

Out of interest, did the threat come today?

Chemical Ali wrote:

125+1 wrote:

Just as i predicted last week. Now just give it a few weeks and see an approach for tisdale.

I posted on pasoti for the first time in 4 2 years yesterday, pointing out the fact the trust knew about this as my info came straight from the hoarses mouth, already threatened with a ban.

Out of interest, did the threat come today?

no yesterday that was. i just stated a certain person who attended the last meetings with the trust and brent passed info on to me and a friend what was going to happen, hence why i posted it, the fact that the trust was acting all innocent as if they did not have a clue what was going on pissed me off, and then for webb to get on his high hoarse annoyed me even more, so i told a few home truths and it didnt go down to well.

The thing that seemed to annoy them more was the fact i mentioned the argyle trust was meant to be independent, but they are quite clearly not.

Well, upset the pasoti trust you must expect to get banned from pasoti

penzancepirate wrote:

X Isle wrote:

Other, less cynical, opinions are available though.

I'm sure they are, from the Pasoti Trust book shop no doubt.

So, if we come to the next payday deadline in, say, let's forget September, let's say October, and there is no deal, yet there is no strike threat, but yet another deferral, will you conceed the possibility of what's gone on, and the reasoning behind it, or has the inclusion of the mythical packaged retiscent Brent totally turned your head. Was HE, and what you think he represents, all you wanted ?
Just asking like.

If's and but's can kiss my nuts Penz. You just can't say what'll happen with this process but I guess we'd we'd be talking 16th October by the next staff wage deadline. James Brent should have completed* by then, so it'd be a moot point. (*either completely in or completely out).

I WANTED an octagenarian multi-millionaire Argyle fan to pop his clogs and leave his wealth to Argyle.

I WANTED and Argyle fan to scoop the Euromillions rollovers.

They didn't happen. So, James Brent doesn't represent an ideal for me, just clearly the best option for staff, fans and a value driven football club from the trio of bids. It's more a case of what I didn't want which was an asset carve up involving a private property developer landlord (PPDL).

Was he all I wanted?. He's not a PPDL, he isn't going to sell off the ground to anyone but PCC, he will bring good governance (proven track record of that), he will get the business to stand on it's own two feet (proven track record of that). It won't be roses round the doorway, we'll be in the lower leagues for some time to come but we can begin to grow and there won't be a glass ceiling with him, plus Argyle will be run with honesty and integrity again. So yes, he is Penz.

However, until such time as Brent (or better) completes i'm still wary of a PPDL sneaking in.

X Isle wrote:

[However, until such time as Brent (or better) completes i'm still wary of a PPDL sneaking in.

Oh, it's emminently possible that another "latecomer" will wait to see what terms Brent can extract from the creditors whilst appearing the last resort. And then they could pounce and steal the deal. And how would those nice people know what to offer ? ... well Mr Ridsdale will tell them.

My main point however is Fletcher's appointment is essentially a strike breaking deal and opens the door for months and months more deferrals, yet it appears the bucketeers and others sit easy with that disgrace as long as it's Brent doint the prevaricating.... some bunch of fans we've got at this club.

As for the property developing landlord, I've never been convinced the figures stack up for that sort of party, any other late bid would probably be another attempt from previous interests, if they feel Brent is squeezing them out.

I'm not so sure the need for a strike would arise though, I think if it's going to happen at all it'll be quite swift this time. That said it requires an element of faith to believe that, and faith is a rare commodity these days so who f**king knows what'll happen.

'Bucketeers' I like that, led by 'Long John Petrie' .

X Isle wrote:

'Bucketeers' I like that, led by 'Long John Petrie' .

He's a dish. Unlike the Southern Dumpty.