Thursday 18th March, 2010 News
Brandon leaves Bradford City
Chris Brandon has left Bradford City bringing to an end a disappointing two years for the Tong born City fan in which injuries hampered his chances of making an impression at the club.
Signed by Stuart McCall two summers ago Brandon was the first of many expensive new arrivals but – more than any other – he failed to fulfil his promise with injury and an attitude which seemed uncharacteristic of a player pulling on the shirt of his home City club.
While many of the players signed in the summer exited or took pay reductions last summer Brandon did not. He was at loggerheads with management about his best position – it would appear that if Stuart McCall and Mark Lawn were united on one thing it was the relative merits of Brandon – which he believed to be central midfield.
Brandon is believed to have been a single game away from triggering the offer of a new contract – a deal negotiated by Mark Lawn without the knowledge of the manager it is said – and so exits to avoid that.
5 hours ago
We have heard the phrase “Football is a results based business” a lot at Valley Parade in the last decade with it being brought up on Nicky Law exit, with Stuart McCall speaking the words as he left and Peter Taylor – who is enjoying mixed results on his fist half dozen games five of which were away from home – accepting the idea on arriving at the club. BfB starts The Barry Articles with the the question:
“Is Football Really a Results Based Business?”
Dave Pendleton Bantamspast Curator & Former City Gent Editor
During the heady days of Bradford City’s Premier League sojourn I remember thinking that hanging on for grim death in the lower reaches of the top flight was about the best a club of City’s stature could hope for in the unequal modern game. Even a fluky cup final appearance was off the agenda as the manager was likely to ignore the temptations of cup glory and commit all to remaining in the lucrative Premier League.
Although our expectations have been lowered quite dramatically during the last decade, the brutal truth is that success is likely to be just as fleeting in the lower reaches. The odd promotion, perhaps wild eyed we might dream of re-establishing ourselves in the Championship. Trophies? Think Johnstone’s Paint. So, in truth do the results really matter that much? Our support base, and TV income relevant to which ever division we find ourselves in, dictate that we can never compete with the majority of Premier League clubs and a fair number of Championship clubs.
If we accept that we have a level, then surely it is performances and entertainment that matter and not results? City do have a minor footballing tradition. Remember the chants of ‘we want football’ when John Docherty tried to introduce direct football to Valley Parade? Perhaps a certain style is the best we can achieve. But, I’ll guarantee that some of our fans would be enraged by neat passing, they would scream at the players to ‘get stuck in’ and ‘get it forward’. The squeaky wheel gets the oil, so yes results do matter, particularly if Mark Lawn continues to read the official message board.
Steve Baker Stalwart City fan and Bantams Bar regular
Yes of course it is. Any team, player, manager, chairman, fan or neutral wants to see football teams win football matches. Without that people wont watch games and the commercial aspect to the game falls flat. If this doesn’t exist then you would probably have 1 league in the country – what do all the non-league teams strive for? Existence yes, but you cant argue that they wouldn’t love to be in the 3rd round of the FA Cup at Old Trafford or Anfield. People will watch this, follow it with interest, drive commercial revenues which helps the club out – but all in all they are looking for a win.
We have seen in some circumstances in the last few seasons teams who don’t set-up to win, or who come for a 0-0. But that is the result they are looking for – Grimsby’s nil nil draw with City earlier in the season was a good example. That was the result they were after and its what they got. Result.
If your winning, then things seem easier. If your losing and your backs are against the wall, its tougher. Look at Rafa Bentiez’s current predicament.
Peter Taylor has done enough in my view to warrant a longer contract. He has got results that have seen us gain points, although in some circumstances, the players have let him down. I believe with a full pre-season and a few signings of his choice will make a world of difference. Winning football matches makes people (fans, players, commercial investors) interested in football.
So how can we argue its about anything else?
Jason Mckeown City Gent & BfB Writer
The result on a Saturday afternoon is the most important factor for any club – but it cannot become the be all and end all.
Club strategies have to be built on more solid foundations than the up-and-down nature of a league campaign. There are greater responsibilities and longer-term interests to be mindful of, which Bradford City clearly realise.
Financially sinking in 2002 and 2004, the Bantams fell to the point where it became difficult to feel upset about defeats. The club was on its knees, relying on the community and fanbase it represents to keep going. Was the club saved so every subsequent resource could be piled into buying players more able to win matches, or for the enjoyment fans shared in supporting a football team and the difference it makes to the area? After the rescue in 2004, we fans quickly turned back attention to the joy and despair of results – but we’ve never forgotten what we might have lost.
And in recent years, City has put longer-term interests ahead of short-term results. A season ticket initiative that puts more bums on seats than pennies in the bank; a manager in Stuart McCall who was given time and patience to develop, at the detriment of instant results; a youth set up which is costly to run and has provided only limited returns. These are not quick-fix approaches and may have cost City success, but they matter to its fanbase and community.
The result on a Saturday afternoon is the most important factor for any club – when everything else is competently managed.
David Markham T&A Reporting Legend
Results business has become a football cliché – repeated by directors as their reasons – or should that be excuses – for sacking managers. And not only managers, supporters abuse managers from the stands, write letters to the press or usually nowadays messages on websites to build up pressure and often directors capitulate.
It is true, of course, that managers live or die by results. Think of Stuart McCall, who resigned from City a month ago – another ten points and maybe he would still be at Valley Parade. If only City had converted their two penalties – Michael Flynn missed at home to Lincoln when the score was 0-0 and City went on to lose 2-0 while Gareth Evans missed two minutes from the end of the Accrington match – another two points were dropped. Think also of the needless penalty given away at home to Cheltenham and the last minute equaliser scored by Northampton to realise what a thin dividing line there is between success and failure in management.
Managerial changes are not always the solution to a club’s problems. Think of the managerial changes made in League Two this season – Peter Jackson sacked at Lincoln with the season barely a month old, replaced by a high profile ex-player Chris Sutton and yet the club are still hovering just above the relegation zone. Mike Newell, sacked by Grimsby in November, but the club are still threatened with relegation to the Blue Square Premier League.
Of course, directors would not be human if they were not tempted to make changes to obtain improved results – and it is easier to sack one man – the manager – than get rid of 11 players.
To go back to the original question, as financial pressures increase and media and fans become more and more impatient for success results become more important than ever. Lots of fans would rather see their side play badly and win rather than play well and lose.
Perhaps directors should take more care in choosing their managers and giving them contracts. And then give them more time to develop their plans instead of wielding the axe after two or three bad results or a bad start to the season. It was remarkable how managerial casualties there were in the first couple months of this season. As well as achieving good results at first team level, managers must also be given time to develop youth policies and scouting systems, which are crucial to the long term future of all clubs. Clubs yearn for stability. Few achieve it because of the ‘results business’ syndrome. Think of two of most successful English clubs – Manchester United and Arsenal – and think of how long Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have been in their jobs. Is there a lesson to be learned there?
About The Barry Articles
The Barry Articles – named after the ever divisive figure of City history that is Barry Conlon – are a series of questions asked to people connected to the Bradford City community to stimulate debate and give further breadth of opinion on the site.
We have cast a wide net to find the authors who are writing The Barry Articles – fans, writers, radio people, print journalist and players have been asked if they want to partake – and like the centre forward himself we hope that The Barry Articles will never without something to enjoy.
Tuesday 16th March, 2010 News
Ryan Kendall signs on a month long loan
As Peter Throne, Michael Boulding and his brother Rory leave Valley Parade Peter Taylor has gone back to his former club Hull City to sign Ryan Kendall on a month’s loan.
20 year old Striker Kendall has been tipped for the Tiger’s first team by coach Trevor Morgan and is unsurprisingly for a player signed by Taylor praised for his hard work.
Kendall’s contract that The KC Stadium expires in three months time.
2 days ago, in the early morning
Peter Thorne’s departure from Valley Parade is a sad and unbefitting end for a player whose efforts over the last two-and-half-years have proved so memorable. Although Michael has written an excellent tribute, I’d also like to add my own.
Stuart McCall’s second signing after Barry Conlon, injury prevented Thorne from making an instant impact but, after netting against Chester City in an FA Cup 1st Round tie in November 2007, he played a key part in the team’s revival after a slow start to the campaign. That form continued into the start of the following season at least, though further injuries and loss of form saw him go goalless for three months, before he was the nearly hero of City’s late promotion push collapse – scoring memorably in the last minute against leaders Brentford to earn a draw, and then having perfectly legal goals against Morecambe and Dagenham ruled at pivotal moments in the games. It could have been so different for Thorne and City.
Thorne was a goalscorer and little more, and in the modern era where players’ faults are highlighted to unfair proportions, the fact he did little but tuck away chances was a reason to criticise, especially when he wasn’t tucking away those chances; but such prowess is hard to come by and will be missed. After the huge hole that was Dean Windass leaving in 2007, you feared City might struggle to find a goalscorer to replace him. Thorne took on that role and was widely loved for it. Now we can fear we might struggle to replace him.
Half a chance was often all he needed, bang, goal and the usual understated celebration. He scored many simple goals but he also scored some excellent ones, his high number of goals against Notts County probably standing out most. He netted a hat trick against the Magpies in January 2008 and two on the opening day of the season after, but it probably his effort at Meadow Lane in February 2008 that will go down as my personal favourite Thorne goal. Controlling a long pass from TJ Moncur calmly, he spun into the area and unleashed a powerful shot past Russell Hoult. No wonder Notts County were sick of him.
But they should have to see him one more time. After such heroic efforts Thorne shouldn’t be allowed to exit via the backdoor in this manner. We supporters deserve the chance to say goodbye and to show our appreciation, and Thorne deserves the chance to receive it. Make him the guest of honour at City’s game with Notts County next Tuesday, invite him onto the pitch at half time to meet his public. Let us chant his name one more time and remember the many great moments he provided for City.
We’ll really miss Thorne, please let us at least say goodbye.
2 days ago, in the early morning
Following yesterday’s exit for the Boulding brothers the club have announced that Peter Thorne is leaving the club this week after two and a half years at Valley Parade.
Thorne’s record of 31 goals in 73 games made him top scorer although injury curtailed the effectiveness of the former Cardiff striker – who along with Barry Conlon was Stuart McCall’s first signings at the club – in his first and last seasons.
One of McCall’s biggest “if onlys” was that he would have liked the striker fitter for longer and another is that Thorne’s tally of 31 was not increased by the one he poked home at Morecambe only to be waved away by a poorly placed Referee.
At the start of this season Thorne agreed – at McCall’s insistence – a year long extension at a reduced rate despite his worries that his persistent back injury would stop him playing a significant role.
Thorne finishes his City career on 198 goals for all clubs in total and there is a school of thought that says that the club – and Peter Taylor – would have been well advised to allow the supporters a cheery send off of one of the most popular players of the past few years. Perhaps.
Thorne is not only held in high regard by supporters. Stuart McCall made him captain and paid warm tribute to him and the assistance he offered the other forwards in training. This was echoed time and time again by the likes of Gareth Evans who talked about how the senior forward had advised him on how to get through bad patches, how to be a better player.
Should Thorne decide to move from player to management I feel sure that he would have something to offer a club and should he do that I feel sure he would be a success. One club near his North West home could do worse than offering the former Norwich, Cardiff and Bradford City striker a chance to take charge.
One day his path might take him to the Valley Parade – home or away – and when he does he will be given the warm tribute that his smart play and clinical finishing deserves.
