2014-03-13

After a season of relative calm, when compared to the circus of the last three years, last night against Bournemouth it seemed that we were back to the dark days of last season with fans becoming disillusioned with the team and the players putting in an abject performance which predictably resulted in a loss and a chorus of boos both at half-time and full-time.

The main topic of discussion after the match among fans was whether Gary Bowyer is the man to take the club forward, with many fans on social media actively calling for his head. At the ground there were no “Bowyer Out” chants, but there was an audible sense of frustration and fans were openly questioning the tactics that the manager had employed in recent weeks and months.

It is fair to say that the last ten matches have seen Gary Bowyer seem wanting in the tactical aspects of the game. There have been a number of weird tactical decisions which have had a negative impact on the performances and in some games he has been to slow to react to changes that the opposition managers have made.

That came into sharp focus against Burnley. Dyche changed the shape and playing style of the Burnley team midway through the second half, but Bowyer did not react until it was too late and Rovers ended up losing the game and the 35-year-long record. It was the same against Derby at Ewood Park. Again, MacLaren made changes during the second half which Bowyer simply did not react to and it resulted in Rovers losing control of a game that we should have won.

However, does all this mean that Rovers should sack Gary Bowyer? In my opinion, no. Many will question this view, but I have a number of reasons. For the last three years one of the main things that fans have called for is stability at the club, particularly on the playing side of things. Last year was a total and utter circus, so while the points total at this stage may not be much better than last season, the club is far more stable. We are no longer a circus and all footballing decisions are being made by the manager and not by outside forces who may have vested interests which may not be in the best interests of the football club.

Secondly, Rovers have gone through a major overhaul of the playing squad. At last count 17 players had left the club by early February and the core of the squad is now made up of young British players. The clubs such as Burnley, Derby County, Leicester City and Nottingham Forest who are doing well this season have had the core of their squads together for well over twelve months, which has allowed them to develop their style of play and has led to consistency of selection. Gary Bowyer does not have that luxury at the moment — he is still building his squad. Now, whether the players brought in are of the required standard is a different question, but at the very least he needs to be given until next season before passing judgement.

The third reason for not sacking Bowyer is the owners. Let’s say that they sack Bowyer today: who is to say that they will make an appointment that would be an improvement? They are surrounded by advisors and associates who have a great deal of influence on their decision-making process. These people will have their own ideas on who should replace Bowyer and those choices may not be based on what is best for Blackburn Rovers and will be based on which manager they are close to. In that kind of scenario we may end up with a “desperado” manager. Gary Bowyer has faults and of course primarily it is a job for him, but having been at the club for a number of years the overriding feeling that you get after talking to him is that he has the best interests of the club at heart.

Maybe over the last three years with all the chaos that has gone on at the club the fans (myself included) have started to buy into the “hire ‘em, fire ‘em” culture which has pervaded the club both on the footballing and non-footballing side. Maybe we don’t have the patience any longer and at the first sign of a dip the manager immediately becomes a target for fans. Maybe this is the result of having owners who are never anywhere near Ewood, so fans take their frustrations out on the team or manager.

So, in summary, I am prepared to give Gary Bowyer longer to get things right. Rightly the manager should always been judged on results and everything else is secondary, but I feel that due to exceptional circumstances that existed at the club when Bowyer took over, he deserves to be given longer. He does, however, need to learn from the mistakes that he keeps on making.

Mainly there seems to be no consistency of selection. Now, partly that is down to injuries, but it is also down to Bowyer continuously tinkering with the team and the formation. He needs to be much more positive in home games. It is fine to have a solid base, but there are games where we have to be more dynamic and dominate the opposition, not let them settle and control the match. He also needs to be much more active in terms of having a Plan B or reacting to changes that the opposition manager makes. I am sure that this season has been a very steep learning curve for him, but he needs to now show the fans that he is the man to take us forward. If he does survive, then next season some of the fans who have been willing to give him time won’t be as forgiving.

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