Not everyone can be blamed

[LincolnDonny]

When i became a senior supervisor at work (also i was on the buying board for the co-operative) i didnt say lets get rid of everyone ....
I worked with lots of staff putting my points across also to directors and put all on the right track to recovering a finacially and great shopping experience for the customers to come back to our stores where i was concerned.

Getting everyones priorities right to do the right thing.
Some so simple as putting prices on the correct items .......where i could i put into place my philosophy of work ethics to cater for all customers new and old so there was no reason for them not to open wallets or purses to spend and get products they wanted ot didnt realise we sold..

Its not rocket science, as the saying goes.

99% of supporters can see where problems lies , but if the ones in charge are blinkered they cannot see or wont see.

Get the people in the right place and pay for those and they can get things moving .....we have had right people before in the right places so what has changed?

OWNERS ...sadly we have lost one or two in  way or another.

They that gave their all for the club.

THEIR CLUB OUR CLUB

[ravenrover]

Based on what?

Based on the bleeding obvious.

Nothing obvious to me, please enlarge

[DonnyBazR0ver]

I can’t be the only one who is sick of hearing the “it could be worse” line trotted out. Of course it could, but it could be much better. In fact it was much better, only 2 and a half years ago before we nosedived. Plus it will be worse, much worse, if we continue at the current trajectory.

DBR - what people are writing here isn’t in response to this result in isolation. Surely you can’t be so blind as to not recognise the much deeper problems that we have?

A massive part of the problem is that those at the club probably share your attitude and aren’t interested in any introspection. We have to look backwards and analyse where things have gone and continue to go wrong, otherwise we’re doomed to keep making the same mistakes and the decline will become terminal.

I'm not blind but I'm also realistic enough to know we can't wave a magic wand and a fairy godmother will come along.

After every defeat, it's the same old debate.  I choose not to go around in circles to get by the same point.

The reality is, as far as the football operation is concerned it's work in progress and not the end of the world.

[EasyforDennis]

I can’t be the only one who is sick of hearing the “it could be worse” line trotted out. Of course it could, but it could be much better. In fact it was much better, only 2 and a half years ago before we nosedived. Plus it will be worse, much worse, if we continue at the current trajectory.

DBR - what people are writing here isn’t in response to this result in isolation. Surely you can’t be so blind as to not recognise the much deeper problems that we have?

A massive part of the problem is that those at the club probably share your attitude and aren’t interested in any introspection. We have to look backwards and analyse where things have gone and continue to go wrong, otherwise we’re doomed to keep making the same mistakes and the decline will become terminal.

I'm not blind but I'm also realistic enough to know we can't wave a magic wand and a fairy godmother will come along.

After every defeat, it's the same old debate.  I choose not to go around in circles to get by the same point.

The reality is, as far as the football operation is concerned it's work in progress and not the end of the world.

Work in progress would indicate we are moving in the right direction. There is no evidence of that however.

[i_ateallthepies]

I can’t be the only one who is sick of hearing the “it could be worse” line trotted out. Of course it could, but it could be much better. In fact it was much better, only 2 and a half years ago before we nosedived. Plus it will be worse, much worse, if we continue at the current trajectory.

DBR - what people are writing here isn’t in response to this result in isolation. Surely you can’t be so blind as to not recognise the much deeper problems that we have?

A massive part of the problem is that those at the club probably share your attitude and aren’t interested in any introspection. We have to look backwards and analyse where things have gone and continue to go wrong, otherwise we’re doomed to keep making the same mistakes and the decline will become terminal.

I'm not blind but I'm also realistic enough to know we can't wave a magic wand and a fairy godmother will come along.

After every defeat, it's the same old debate.  I choose not to go around in circles to get by the same point.

The reality is, as far as the football operation is concerned it's work in progress and not the end of the world.

Then your attitude DBR, is to excuse the inexcusable.

[ForsolongaRover]

The manager draws the focus as always. But it is the bunch of people who deliver the end product who are ultimately failing. In employment, conscientious people can deliver visibly committed performances  working in any reasonably systematic way. Even if operating what is imposed is difficult, the hard-workers will will set about their jobs and put their best efforts into it. That is not happening. Even Rowe seems to have lost his drive.

Why though, does Schofield not get all of them to commit fully and seemingly get away with less than 100% effort? This means that you can criticise him for not properly exercising his authority. He is obviously not inspiring, but as long as they see him making excuses for them they will carry on just going through the motions. It makes him fundamentally weak as well as inflexible. He goes to great lengths to rationalise bad performances and instead of cracking the whip is on an endless search for “positives”. If you dip into his YouTube interviews when at Huddersfield, his style of answering questions with generalities is the same. All that has changed is that he somehow manages to sound more up-beat now, but then again, Huddersfield we’re doing even worse than Rovers.

It is fascinating to hear that some absolve him of blame because it was someone else that recruited the players. How many managers in any walk of life can take a new job and get to replace all the staff they inherit? In almost any workplace you have to use your skill to get the best out of the people that are there - better than the last man in this case - that’s what management is.

Going another step up the chain, Copps been ineffectual in mentoring Schofield. What evidence was there that he was a competent coach in his previous club? He just sounds a bit more confident version of his Huddersfield self. Fundamentally he has remain set in his ways and hasn’t changed a bit since he came, doggedly pursuing an agenda which seems the polar opposite of the Coppinger template.

And going up the chain, the Board are weak for the same reasons. That nothing has visibly changed even though the customers are on the point of deserting the stadium for ever is unbelievably bad business practice. Where are Blunt and Baldwin?

[Redroy]

I can’t be the only one who is sick of hearing the “it could be worse” line trotted out. Of course it could, but it could be much better. In fact it was much better, only 2 and a half years ago before we nosedived. Plus it will be worse, much worse, if we continue at the current trajectory.

DBR - what people are writing here isn’t in response to this result in isolation. Surely you can’t be so blind as to not recognise the much deeper problems that we have?

A massive part of the problem is that those at the club probably share your attitude and aren’t interested in any introspection. We have to look backwards and analyse where things have gone and continue to go wrong, otherwise we’re doomed to keep making the same mistakes and the decline will become terminal.

I'm not blind but I'm also realistic enough to know we can't wave a magic wand and a fairy godmother will come along.

After every defeat, it's the same old debate.  I choose not to go around in circles to get by the same point.

The reality is, as far as the football operation is concerned it's work in progress and not the end of the world.

Nick's point isn't 'let's wave a magic wand' though is it. It is let's look at what the f**k has gone wrong and not do it again. And do better.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

I can’t be the only one who is sick of hearing the “it could be worse” line trotted out. Of course it could, but it could be much better. In fact it was much better, only 2 and a half years ago before we nosedived. Plus it will be worse, much worse, if we continue at the current trajectory.

DBR - what people are writing here isn’t in response to this result in isolation. Surely you can’t be so blind as to not recognise the much deeper problems that we have?

A massive part of the problem is that those at the club probably share your attitude and aren’t interested in any introspection. We have to look backwards and analyse where things have gone and continue to go wrong, otherwise we’re doomed to keep making the same mistakes and the decline will become terminal.

I'm not blind but I'm also realistic enough to know we can't wave a magic wand and a fairy godmother will come along.

After every defeat, it's the same old debate.  I choose not to go around in circles to get by the same point.

The reality is, as far as the football operation is concerned it's work in progress and not the end of the world.

Nick's point isn't 'let's wave a magic wand' though is it. It is let's look at what the f**k has gone wrong and not do it again. And do better.

Unless we have access to behind the scenes it's very difficult to pinpoint what exactly is going wrong. Difficult to say how much it's down to DS and how much down to the players.

A couple of games ago with that debacle v Harrogate, I wouldn't have lost any sleep if they sacked DS. Easy to think the players weren't playing for him but then they put in a better performance. It's that inconsistency throughout, and not just under DS reign so far.

Under Wellens and to a degree with McSheffrey, folk were almost doing their best to hound them out but, low and behold turns out Wellens is capable of managing a team. Hindsight hints that Wellens was the right manager at the wrong time. He's virtually admitted he made mistakes but we weren't willing to give him any more time. So basically we can't always assume it's purely the manager being incompetent. Only those closer to him can make that assessment.

Judging by results alone it's 50/50. If somehow we can change that to 75/25, it's potential promotion.

Football is full of gambles and decisions and even though lessons can be learned it doesn't insulate folk from making mistakes but hopefully we'll get more good decisions and fewer mistakes. That runs from top to bottom.

[Campsall rover]

1The board
2 The manager
3 HOF
4 Players

You can't blame them all. who's really at fault

All 4 have got to shoulder the blame. I'd add though that it's probably the level we're at. Doncaster's a big town but the residents are apathetic about the football team. Before we had the relegation to the conference  and then the big push to the Championship we were just a lowly 4th tier club, with around 2,000  hard core fans, that is all we'll ever be really, the glory years of Penney and O'Driscoll were very much the exception, not the norm, we're now about whereabouts what we are, I'm sure there'll be the odd exceptions. Let's not get delusions of grandeur, we're not a Leeds United, a Sheff United or Wednesday, we're mot even a Barnsley Hull, Huddersfield or Bradford, we're more of a Scunny or a Chesterfield. Get your rashion book out.

With that level of ambition we have no hope.
So what was the club in some of the 30’s & the 50’s and again between 2007/08 and 2013/14

We are considerably larger as a town now CITY than Both Scunthorpe and Chesterfield.
Also larger than Barnsley and Huddersfield for that matter. Yes they have better histories. History is the past not the future.
We have underachieved as a football club for large parts of our history but that doesn’t mean that should be the status quo. DRFC have proved that they can hold their own in the 2nd tier playing fantastic entertaining football.  The club has also shown there is a decent potential fan base if we can sustain 2nd tier football.

In no way should we expect and be satisfied with tier 3/4 football. Every club should have the ambition to be higher than their current status.
Yes for many clubs it’s not very realistic to achieve 2nd tier football. Even 3rd tier would be a massive achievement for some. But nothing is impossible if you have belief and a manager with that belief, drive and ability. Look at Accrington Stanley. They really should be no more than a National League Club.
For Doncaster Rovers Championship football should always be the goal.
If clubs the size of Rotherham, Wigan and Blackpool can get there, then so can we. As we have done in the past.
It’s called Ambition. It has to be backed up with reasonable funds to achieve it of course. But the no 1 factor is the Manager.  You have to have the right manager

[The Beast]

[/quote]

1The board
2 The manager
3 HOF
4 Players

You can't blame them all. who's really at fault

All 4 have got to shoulder the blame. I'd add though that it's probably the level we're at. Doncaster's a big town but the residents are apathetic about the football team. Before we had the relegation to the conference  and then the big push to the Championship we were just a lowly 4th tier club, with around 2,000  hard core fans, that is all we'll ever be really, the glory years of Penney and O'Driscoll were very much the exception, not the norm, we're now about whereabouts what we are, I'm sure there'll be the odd exceptions. Let's not get delusions of grandeur, we're not a Leeds United, a Sheff United or Wednesday, we're mot even a Barnsley Hull, Huddersfield or Bradford, we're more of a Scunny or a Chesterfield. Get your rashion book out.

With that level of ambition we have no hope.
So what was the club in some of the 30’s & the 50’s and again between 2007/08 and 2013/14

We are considerably larger as a town now CITY than Both Scunthorpe and Chesterfield.
Also larger than Barnsley and Huddersfield for that matter. Yes they have better histories. History is the past not the future.
We have underachieved as a football club for large parts of our history but that doesn’t mean that should be the status quo. DRFC have proved that they can hold their own in the 2nd tier playing fantastic entertaining football.  The club has also shown there is a decent potential fan base if we can sustain 2nd tier football.

In no way should we expect and be satisfied with tier 3/4 football. Every club should have the ambition to be higher than their current status.
Yes for many clubs it’s not very realistic to achieve 2nd tier football. Even 3rd tier would be a massive achievement for some. But nothing is impossible if you have belief and a manager with that belief, drive and ability. Look at Accrington Stanley. They really should be no more than a National League Club.
For Doncaster Rovers Championship football should always be the goal.
If clubs the size of Rotherham, Wigan and Blackpool can get there, then so can we. As we have done in the past.
It’s called Ambition. It has to be backed up with reasonable funds to achieve it of course. But the no 1 factor is the Manager.  You have to have the right manager

The 30s and 50s, 2007/8 and 2013/14 are the exceptions that prove the rule, every dog has it's day. Agree we are a big town but there's not a big feeling for the club like you get in similar size Cities like Sunderland, Derby, Coventry, even smaller towns like Burnley, Blackburn, Barnsley. Donny's full of geeks that support Leeds, Liverpool and the Sheffield clubs. Unless someone comes is willing to come in and throw money at the club, that they won't get back, we are where we are. Yes we're a lot bigger town than Scunny, Chesterfield, Mansfield but until the Snodins brought the buzz back to the club we were lesser supported. Obviously I'd like the product to be better on the pitch to come and watch but I can't expect someone to come bank roll us and pay for my team to punch above it's weight.

[ForsolongaRover]

DBR: Are we often in a position to apportion praise or fault completely accurately - probably not, but if we could not give our take on events we would not be posting our opinions. So we continue and often disagree.

Beast: The proposition was that “Not everyone can blamed” and the premise is that where Rovers are currently is below our reasonable expectations as a club.

What I read into your contributions is that you regard what has happened as inevitable and there is no responsibility for it amongst anyone that is involved. You base this on how you assess the club’s historical achievements for the period which appears to cover the period from around 1946 to the end of the last century, but do not specify why.

You seem to imply thereby that the modest aim of just sustaining a position is untenable and what we are seeing is Fate returning the club to its deserved place in the scheme of things.

Only those who might endure with equanimity the equivalent of tolerance of a painful and untimely illness could accept what you seem to find inevitable. The current hierarchy might well be fairly comfortable alongside you.

[Sammy Chung was King]

To win trophies a culture needs to be created, before this happens a culture needs to be got rid of, before we win anything .
It seems to go much deeper than the manager. The whole club is full of despondency.
Yes there are quite a few sides doing worse than us lower down, there are also teams doing much better than us with a similar set up.

In my opinion, we are ready for a change of ownership, if the right person comes along.
Ideally we need a new manager. I would have either Sean O’Driscoll as the manager, or Coppinger as manager with Sean overseeing the football operations.

On retention of the current squad, there aren’t many I would lose sleep over if they left.
You need to retain Maxwell, Hurst, Molyneux, Miller, Olowu. Get Faulkner back from his loan with a new contract.
Anderson is signed back up so that’s not worth talking about. Rowe hasn’t pulled any trees up. Being injured and played all over the place hasn’t helped. I would retain him.

Most of the other experienced players I would allow to leave. Goalkeeper we need to find a Neil Sullivan type. The back up goalkeepers I would allow to leave.
Our scouting needs to be improved, other clubs are finding players I’m sure we can.

The stadium needs a good clean top to bottom.
We need a manager that is enthusiastic and gets the players enjoying their football.
The squads mental toughness has been found wanting on many occasions over the last few years. We need competitors in the squad, to add to the promising young players.

Self sufficiency is all well and good when starting from a position of strength, we are not in that position.
We need some real top signings to get a buzz about the place. We need to build a squad that isn’t prepared to lose games. We are too laid back about losing games. The team is too nice, top of the fair play league and not even an intertoto cup to play for!

If this manager carries on as he has been doing in the next few games, I think we need to get that experienced manager we need, so he can look over what he has to build in the summer.
Yes I want to see good football, but also a manager and squad that can adapt to situations.

There needs to be a lot of pride in wearing our shirt. A strong mentality is needed as well as more talented players.
This squad should be doing much better than it has. I feel that there are players holding a bit back. The manager isn’t capable of getting the best from them.

The board need to find a rebuild of a good side that can get promoted out of this league. What is the point of running something and not being ambitious? Please don’t tell me they are. It’s been proven over the last few seasons that they are quite ambivalent to where we end up.

Some of those players when signed looked good signings, but have produced nothing. The funding provided has been a patch up job. We need properly scouted players with a bit of experience and a knowledge of how to win things.
We can’t keep meandering along its going to eventually lead to relegation.
Does the board not see the warning signs?, they are there for all to see.

[The Beast]

DBR: Are we often in a position to apportion praise or fault completely accurately - probably not, but if we could not give our take on events we would not be posting our opinions. So we continue and often disagree.

Beast: The proposition was that “Not everyone can blamed” and the premise is that where Rovers are currently is below our reasonable expectations as a club.

What I read into your contributions is that you regard what has happened as inevitable and there is no responsibility for it amongst anyone that is involved. You base this on how you assess the club’s historical achievements for the period which appears to cover the period from around 1946 to the end of the last century, but do not specify why.

You seem to imply thereby that the modest aim of just sustaining a position is untenable and what we are seeing is Fate returning the club to its deserved place in the scheme of things.

Only those who might endure with equanimity the equivalent of tolerance of a painful and untimely illness could accept what you seem to find inevitable. The current hierarchy might well be fairly comfortable alongside you.

If you read my first post on the subject, I say that all 4 groups must shoulder the blame for the abject performance of the club over the last couple of years but yes I did see it as inevitable that after the play off loss at Charlton we'd struggle to maintain that level, I didn't expect relegation last season but I think the ridiculous injury situation put pressure on recruitment which wasn't good to say the least. This year has been very disappointing, after a good start. I honestly don't know the answer but my expectation is very much tempered, I don't think we're too big for this league and even though I'm a gambler myself I'm not that bothered about gambling the club's future on the promise of the sunlit uplands.

[Alan Southstand]

Gambling the Club’s future? What future is that (on the path we’re on)?

This season is not a one season exception, it’s been getting worse for the last 2 or 3! We’re now not even stagnating, we are going backwards at a rate of knots.

[Upton Rover]

To win trophies a culture needs to be created, before this happens a culture needs to be got rid of, before we win anything .
It seems to go much deeper than the manager. The whole club is full of despondency.
Yes there are quite a few sides doing worse than us lower down, there are also teams doing much better than us with a similar set up.

In my opinion, we are ready for a change of ownership, if the right person comes along.
Ideally we need a new manager. I would have either Sean O’Driscoll as the manager, or Coppinger as manager with Sean overseeing the football operations.

On retention of the current squad, there aren’t many I would lose sleep over if they left.
You need to retain Maxwell, Hurst, Molyneux, Miller, Olowu. Get Faulkner back from his loan with a new contract.
Anderson is signed back up so that’s not worth talking about. Rowe hasn’t pulled any trees up. Being injured and played all over the place hasn’t helped. I would retain him.

Most of the other experienced players I would allow to leave. Goalkeeper we need to find a Neil Sullivan type. The back up goalkeepers I would allow to leave.
Our scouting needs to be improved, other clubs are finding players I’m sure we can.

The stadium needs a good clean top to bottom.
We need a manager that is enthusiastic and gets the players enjoying their football.
The squads mental toughness has been found wanting on many occasions over the last few years. We need competitors in the squad, to add to the promising young players.

Self sufficiency is all well and good when starting from a position of strength, we are not in that position.
We need some real top signings to get a buzz about the place. We need to build a squad that isn’t prepared to lose games. We are too laid back about losing games. The team is too nice, top of the fair play league and not even an intertoto cup to play for!

If this manager carries on as he has been doing in the next few games, I think we need to get that experienced manager we need, so he can look over what he has to build in the summer.
Yes I want to see good football, but also a manager and squad that can adapt to situations.

There needs to be a lot of pride in wearing our shirt. A strong mentality is needed as well as more talented players.
This squad should be doing much better than it has. I feel that there are players holding a bit back. The manager isn’t capable of getting the best from them.

The board need to find a rebuild of a good side that can get promoted out of this league. What is the point of running something and not being ambitious? Please don’t tell me they are. It’s been proven over the last few seasons that they are quite ambivalent to where we end up.

Some of those players when signed looked good signings, but have produced nothing. The funding provided has been a patch up job. We need properly scouted players with a bit of experience and a knowledge of how to win things.
We can’t keep meandering along its going to eventually lead to relegation.
Does the board not see the warning signs?, they are there for all to see.

Not a bad write up, however Coppinger as manager? No way should that ever happen there’s to much sentimental feelings in this club that’s why we find ourselves in such a mess. No Copps

[The Beast]

Gambling the Club’s future? What future is that (on the path we’re on)?

This season is not a one season exception, it’s been getting worse for the last 2 or 3! We’re now not even stagnating, we are going backwards at a rate of knots.

My point is I'm not going to start singing 'Sack the board', when to my knowledge there's no viable alternative waiting in the wings. I think I'd rather watch the dros being served up than go to Wheatley Hall Road with the Mrs on a Saturday. I'd give Schofield a couple more months see if things get any better, we're not going up we're not going down, he's only young something might click.

[ncRover]

I don’t think that sacking Schofield at the moment would do anything to improve our final position this season. We need a top half finish to look a more attractive proposition for potential summer signings.

My worry is that his lack of adaptability would go in to next season. And we all know the club’s recent track record on recruitment. I worry that there will be poor recruitment based on Schofield’s rigid plan A, that we will have another sub-standard squad and that we have to go through all of this again.

We all know exactly the kind of players we need more of in the squad, but do Coppinger and Schofield?

Is there a culture of accountability at the club? Can the players deliver under stress and go through stress in order to achieve success? No. A lot are just here for an easy ride and know they will get just that. Some try yes but they just aren’t that good. There is a culture of burying heads in the sand, because at least everybody gets on that way. Or is positivity dialled up to delusional levels just the modern way?

Do we have the budget to sign the best technical footballers (ones who can actually keep up not like Close and Tomlin) at this level to play the desired style of football successfully? Things don’t need over complicating at league 2 level. We also heard at the start of the season how we are always in line for the best young loan talent but we see Salford getting the likes of Louie Barry on loan.

Do we have the positive atmosphere at the club and the entertaining value-for-money match day experience to attract new fans? Because without that, the gate and therefore budget gets less and less every season. The average rovers supporter seems to be getting older and older.

I do think that everyone can be blamed. Is there someone for football clubs like Gordon Ramsey when he goes in to a failing hotel shouting at everyone?

[Chris Black come back]

I don’t think some supporters escape blame here either. People expecting us to be laying out huge unfunded sums (“investment”) on players to get us into the Championship are fantasists. We have every right to be hugely let down by the catastrophic mismanagement at every level over the last 2-3 seasons, but we also need to live in the real world. We have stable and decent finances, which with better recruitment and retention decisions and a capable manager should have us all things being equal mid or upper mid-League One. That’s where we should sit and should be aiming for as a long term goal. Getting back and staying in the Championship is probably for the birds.

[donnybez]

I just think we need to stop with this 'we know best' attitude and recognise that we are failing to do the basics and in doing so have no foundations to build success upon.

'Lets play exciting expansive football!' No. Lets actually start by being organised, by working harder, and by working smarter. Dave Penny build the foundations of our success with a hard working team - SOD then build on that with expansive players gradually. I love ambition but it needs realism. We aren't performing well and the stats back that up. We don't play well at home and our record of more defeats than wins since Moore left backs that up.

Truthfully if as a ST holder I had to put up with Dyche styled football for a year I'd take that hit if only so I could remove the sinking feeling I get everytime the oppo player has the ball in front of our defenders without requiring surgery - we are in the bottom 5 of our division for goals conceded for goodness sake! Carlisle at the top of the attacking tables have nearly 20 goals more than us!

[Reg of the Rovers]

If Copps wasn't HOF we'd be baying for that persons blood. You'd expect the HOF to have a lead influence in good manager recruitment, good player recruitment, and footballing 'identity' - and all of those things under the HOF's reign have been terrible, not just poor, but absolutely terrible. Copps has a lot of credit in the bank, quite rightly, and that's insulating him from blame,   but if we're investing in a Coach and HOF model then we are surely in our rights to effect absolutely accountability from both in terms of this absolute shambles we've become.

[ncRover]

I don’t think some supporters escape blame here either. People expecting us to be laying out huge unfunded sums (“investment”) on players to get us into the Championship are fantasists. We have every right to be hugely let down by the catastrophic mismanagement at every level over the last 2-3 seasons, but we also need to live in the real world. We have stable and decent finances, which with better recruitment and retention decisions and a capable manager should have us all things being equal mid or upper mid-League One. That’s where we should sit and should be aiming for as a long term goal. Getting back and staying in the Championship is probably for the birds.

Agree. Wycombe and Shrewsbury both top half league 1. Aspiring to be like them is realistic.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

If Copps wasn't HOF we'd be baying for that persons blood. You'd expect the HOF to have a lead influence in good manager recruitment, good player recruitment, and footballing 'identity' - and all of those things under the HOF's reign have been terrible, not just poor, but absolutely terrible. Copps has a lot of credit in the bank, quite rightly, and that's insulating him from blame,   but if we're investing in a Coach and HOF model then we are surely in our rights to effect absolutely accountability from both in terms of this absolute shambles we've become.

Why on earth would we be baying for the HoFs blood?

In a risk taking job not all decisions are going to work out. There are few windows of opportunity for the HoF to change personnel. It takes time to turn things around and I would hope folk recognise that Copps is committed to improving things. You could tell that with the passion he spoke with at the Meet the Owners event.

And I don’t  think it's a fair assessment to say all the recruitment under Copps has been terrible.

I'm sure he'll be wrestling with many problems and solutions on a daily basis and in his role, he's unlikely to be making knee jerk decisions. He has to keep looking at the bigger picture.

If we treat the HoF position in the same way as Head Coach or manager, then we really are in trouble.

I really do think if Copps felt his job was being made too difficult and he wasn't getting the right support from the board, then he'd walk.

[Campsall rover]

 

I don’t think some supporters escape blame here either. People expecting us to be laying out huge unfunded sums (“investment”) on players to get us into the Championship are fantasists. We have every right to be hugely let down by the catastrophic mismanagement at every level over the last 2-3 seasons, but we also need to live in the real world. We have stable and decent finances, which with better recruitment and retention decisions and a capable manager should have us all things being equal mid or upper mid-League One. That’s where we should sit and should be aiming for as a long term goal. Getting back and staying in the Championship is probably for the birds.

Agree with all that except the last sentence.
Yes staying in the championship is not easy, it’s extremely difficult on gates of 11/12.000.
But it’s something a club in a City with over 300.000 inhabitants should be aiming to achieve.
This is predominately a football town / city, not a rugby one or anything else. There are thousands of football fans who support other clubs in the Doncaster. Many are armchair fans that don’t go to Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield to watch the team.
There is a huge untapped potential support that could be persuaded to cone and watch their local team but they need to see DRFC achieve consistently on the pitch. 

With a bit more investment in the period of 2008 to 2014 we could have established ourselves long term at championship level.
There is no reason why it can’t be achieved. If the WILL is there to achieve it then it IS achievable.

Just look at clubs like Luton Town even Millwall who are not a big club with a large fan base. They have a very loyal one but only ave 13/14000 even when in the top 6
Preston are not a big club but a very well run one. Even QPR are not although they have had considerable investment and the budget will be very decent.
Rotherham are a similar size club to us but put us side by side as a mid table 2nd tier club and I would be 99% confident we would have a higher ave gate.

Most the above clubs and others have achieved what they have through good management on the playing side & excellent recruitment of course. 
We have had neither of the these for a few years. Hence why we are a mid table League 2 side.

The board have made us financially stable and I hold my hat out to them for achieving that.
That’s great and we have to be thankful to them for making us investable in.

But a football club also lives or dies on the football field. Our loyal 6.000 fans who turn up week in week out They do so because they hope to see their team win. They also hope to be entertained and go home having enjoyed watching the football played.
All most fans see at present is a football club dying on its feet because the finances don’t affect supporters on a weekly basis. The football does affect us on a weekly basis. That’s what we support the club for. THE FOOTBALL. 
It has been dreadful for over 2 years. Totally devoid of any entertainment value. The results have also been dreadful which has compounded the lack of entertainment on display.
The quality of football will always be of 2nd priority to most if we are winning.

So part 1 financial stability has been achieved.  5 star rating.
Part  2 the football results has deteriorated alarmingly 1 star rating.

So the question to the board is when is part 2 going to be addressed? Are you waiting till we drop another division or are you not bothering at all and are going to allow the slide to continue?
Or are you waiting for this Knight in shinning armour to come along and buy the club?

The latter of the 3 may never happen or might happen so far down the line that we are rebuilding from the National League North.
I never thought I would utter those words again Ref DRFC.  Unless action is taken in the next 2 months to address the Manager/ coach position and the playing recruitment this summer then I fear the worst.

Mr Blunt we need action now not tomorrow not next November, not next year or tge one after.
The football slide has gone far enough.

Bring in a proper football manager who understands the lower leagues. Who has success on his CV
Who has a footballing philosophy that will achieve success at League 2 & League 1 level also.

This last 2 appointments have been a joke.  GM was thrown to the wolves. Offered a job he couldn’t refuse.
Not his fault.
He had no credentials to do the job. We were a league 1 club who were in danger of relegation.
What experience had he that suggests he would have kept us up?  None

DS 9 games as a manager in the Championship. What credentials has he to manage a team to achieve promotion out iPod League 2?  None.
Good coach he may be but he is the not only the coach, he is also the Manager. He decides on formation, tactics, playing style and has to be a motivator.
DS so far has shown none of those required attributes.
He is do far out of his depth it no looks as though he is losing the players belief in what he is telling them.

Mr Blunt, action now or please stand down and let someone else have the Chair.  I don’t know who that should be but right now anyone else would be a better choice.
You are presiding over the worst football we have seen since 97/98. You are the Chairman. The buck stops with you.
You now need to start making some decisions to turn this around.

I think I speak for most when i say WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH.   

[Bessie Red]

To win trophies a culture needs to be created, before this happens a culture needs to be got rid of, before we win anything .
It seems to go much deeper than the manager. The whole club is full of despondency.
Yes there are quite a few sides doing worse than us lower down, there are also teams doing much better than us with a similar set up.

In my opinion, we are ready for a change of ownership, if the right person comes along.
Ideally we need a new manager. I would have either Sean O’Driscoll as the manager, or Coppinger as manager with Sean overseeing the football operations.

On retention of the current squad, there aren’t many I would lose sleep over if they left.
You need to retain Maxwell, Hurst, Molyneux, Miller, Olowu. Get Faulkner back from his loan with a new contract.
Anderson is signed back up so that’s not worth talking about. Rowe hasn’t pulled any trees up. Being injured and played all over the place hasn’t helped. I would retain him.

Most of the other experienced players I would allow to leave. Goalkeeper we need to find a Neil Sullivan type. The back up goalkeepers I would allow to leave.
Our scouting needs to be improved, other clubs are finding players I’m sure we can.

The stadium needs a good clean top to bottom.
We need a manager that is enthusiastic and gets the players enjoying their football.
The squads mental toughness has been found wanting on many occasions over the last few years. We need competitors in the squad, to add to the promising young players.

Self sufficiency is all well and good when starting from a position of strength, we are not in that position.
We need some real top signings to get a buzz about the place. We need to build a squad that isn’t prepared to lose games. We are too laid back about losing games. The team is too nice, top of the fair play league and not even an intertoto cup to play for!

If this manager carries on as he has been doing in the next few games, I think we need to get that experienced manager we need, so he can look over what he has to build in the summer.
Yes I want to see good football, but also a manager and squad that can adapt to situations.

There needs to be a lot of pride in wearing our shirt. A strong mentality is needed as well as more talented players.
This squad should be doing much better than it has. I feel that there are players holding a bit back. The manager isn’t capable of getting the best from them.

The board need to find a rebuild of a good side that can get promoted out of this league. What is the point of running something and not being ambitious? Please don’t tell me they are. It’s been proven over the last few seasons that they are quite ambivalent to where we end up.

Some of those players when signed looked good signings, but have produced nothing. The funding provided has been a patch up job. We need properly scouted players with a bit of experience and a knowledge of how to win things.
We can’t keep meandering along its going to eventually lead to relegation.
Does the board not see the warning signs?, they are there for all to see.

Not a bad write up, however Coppinger as manager? No way should that ever happen there’s to much sentimental feelings in this club that’s why we find ourselves in such a mess. No Copps

Retain Molyneux, are you joking. He has done absolutely zero to merit any extension to his current contract. He's a poor imitation of the show pony Harry Forrester!

[ncRover]

To win trophies a culture needs to be created, before this happens a culture needs to be got rid of, before we win anything .
It seems to go much deeper than the manager. The whole club is full of despondency.
Yes there are quite a few sides doing worse than us lower down, there are also teams doing much better than us with a similar set up.

In my opinion, we are ready for a change of ownership, if the right person comes along.
Ideally we need a new manager. I would have either Sean O’Driscoll as the manager, or Coppinger as manager with Sean overseeing the football operations.

On retention of the current squad, there aren’t many I would lose sleep over if they left.
You need to retain Maxwell, Hurst, Molyneux, Miller, Olowu. Get Faulkner back from his loan with a new contract.
Anderson is signed back up so that’s not worth talking about. Rowe hasn’t pulled any trees up. Being injured and played all over the place hasn’t helped. I would retain him.

Most of the other experienced players I would allow to leave. Goalkeeper we need to find a Neil Sullivan type. The back up goalkeepers I would allow to leave.
Our scouting needs to be improved, other clubs are finding players I’m sure we can.

The stadium needs a good clean top to bottom.
We need a manager that is enthusiastic and gets the players enjoying their football.
The squads mental toughness has been found wanting on many occasions over the last few years. We need competitors in the squad, to add to the promising young players.

Self sufficiency is all well and good when starting from a position of strength, we are not in that position.
We need some real top signings to get a buzz about the place. We need to build a squad that isn’t prepared to lose games. We are too laid back about losing games. The team is too nice, top of the fair play league and not even an intertoto cup to play for!

If this manager carries on as he has been doing in the next few games, I think we need to get that experienced manager we need, so he can look over what he has to build in the summer.
Yes I want to see good football, but also a manager and squad that can adapt to situations.

There needs to be a lot of pride in wearing our shirt. A strong mentality is needed as well as more talented players.
This squad should be doing much better than it has. I feel that there are players holding a bit back. The manager isn’t capable of getting the best from them.

The board need to find a rebuild of a good side that can get promoted out of this league. What is the point of running something and not being ambitious? Please don’t tell me they are. It’s been proven over the last few seasons that they are quite ambivalent to where we end up.

Some of those players when signed looked good signings, but have produced nothing. The funding provided has been a patch up job. We need properly scouted players with a bit of experience and a knowledge of how to win things.
We can’t keep meandering along its going to eventually lead to relegation.
Does the board not see the warning signs?, they are there for all to see.

Not a bad write up, however Coppinger as manager? No way should that ever happen there’s to much sentimental feelings in this club that’s why we find ourselves in such a mess. No Copps

Retain Molyneux, are you joking. He has done absolutely zero to merit any extension to his current contract. He's a poor imitation of the show pony Harry Forrester!

Agree, to add to that - I think Hurst is talented, but he is not ready to be consistently first choice in a promotion team. We need 2 or 3 new attacking players for next year.

[Lesonthewest]

Gambling the Club’s future? What future is that (on the path we’re on)?

This season is not a one season exception, it’s been getting worse for the last 2 or 3! We’re now not even stagnating, we are going backwards at a rate of knots.

Yes & I think a few have jumped ship.