Give Robinson some slack

T

trickyricky

Level: Billy Beechers
(7 Apps)
No Fun Ghost
I know that this will not go down well on here, but I feel it needs saying.

We all know Robinson has made errors, particularly with not recruiting a striker who can score goals, and he does often let his mouth run away with him.

But looking at this season there has clearly been a time when we had an injury crisis and a time when players were coming back into the team.

During the first 12 games of the season, we picked up 6 points, at 0.5 points per game. We had a tough start, lots of injuries (not helped by some poor signings) an unfit Mackie and lots of new players trying to bed in to the club. This clearly points to some errors in transfer dealings and pre-season.

However, since those games, the club have picked up 40 points in 26 games - 1.54 points per game.

I know this is hypothetical, put if we picked up the same ratio points within that first 12 game spell we would now be on 60 points, which would put us in 6th battling it out for the playoffs. We would all be happy and praising Robinson. I have seen some good football, some good battling performances and a good team morale, so he must be doing something right.

I know we cannot take those first 12 games of the season out of the equation and we currently average 1.18 points per game, but our form from game 12 onwards has been good. People are quite rightly worried about the league position, but I can clearly see some improvements.. Our Achilles heel this season has been we have struggled to put a fully consistent run of form together so the losses are felt even more keenly.

I feel we need to stop this "Robinson out", "Coco the Clown" narrative that is going on and actually support the team and look at the upturn in form when he has had the vast majority of his squad available and fit.

I'm now going to hide in my hole and expect a lot of flack!
 
When results dont go well its often the manager who rightly (usually) or wrongly (occasionally) is in the receiving end of flack.

KR is/has been, imo , in a situation that, to be fair , isnt neccessarily of (all ) his own making

Whether all the facts on who bought in particular players will eventually see light of day remains to be seen. Not helped by what seems to be a control freak absentee owner, who it appears will not allow any decisions to be made at many levels, without his say so.

KR aint the best head coach/manager oufc have had... hes not the worst either. Its been a crap season blighted by all manner of bad decisions...yet concievably theres another 21 points up for grabs, weve won the last two games 'ugly' its taken longer than im comfortable with for the team to start to deliver regularly, nontheless should we win all our remaining games albeit unlikely, we'd finish in a reasonable l1 position

KR esp post match does spout some nonsense(so do i ...and not only post match!), not helped by a scouse accent, which can n does rub some people up the wrong way. Personally im not all that taken with one blank firing striker up top , all that said, KR despite all the down sides, is, I think, passionate about football and passionate about oufc . Right man for the job? The absentee owner believes so, until the owner/board decide otherwise KR will continue to be oufc manager/head coach.
 
I was concerned by his comment after Saturday’s game “ rubbish “ of which he attributed to our team and the performance and add to that a Coventry fan saying we played ugly, then to that I have to say play rubbish and ugly we got three points. I haven’t been in the Robinson in camp and to be frank I’ve been totally pissed off with the team this season but to get rid of Robinson at this point if the season would be wrong and yes I said get rid in January but that was back in January. By no means with recent results has my opinion changed but will say what I feel at the end of the season in or out it just depends.

Do we have another season like this season next season, it does depend on recruitment and managing to keep the players we want, it also does depend a lot on tiger and Eric where we go and see how far they want us to go.

The stadium is also an issue and if and it’s a big if with the worth of Eric will he have the clout to oust Kassam, if that’s achieved then things can only get better.
 
trickyricky said:
I know that this will not go down well on here, but I feel it needs saying.

We all know Robinson has made errors, particularly with not recruiting a striker who can score goals, and he does often let his mouth run away with him.

But looking at this season there has clearly been a time when we had an injury crisis and a time when players were coming back into the team.

During the first 12 games of the season, we picked up 6 points, at 0.5 points per game. We had a tough start, lots of injuries (not helped by some poor signings) an unfit Mackie and lots of new players trying to bed in to the club. This clearly points to some errors in transfer dealings and pre-season.

However, since those games, the club have picked up 40 points in 26 games - 1.54 points per game.

I know this is hypothetical, put if we picked up the same ratio points within that first 12 game spell we would now be on 60 points, which would put us in 6th battling it out for the playoffs. We would all be happy and praising Robinson. I have seen some good football, some good battling performances and a good team morale, so he must be doing something right.

I know we cannot take those first 12 games of the season out of the equation and we currently average 1.18 points per game, but our form from game 12 onwards has been good. People are quite rightly worried about the league position, but I can clearly see some improvements.. Our Achilles heel this season has been we have struggled to put a fully consistent run of form together so the losses are felt even more keenly.

I feel we need to stop this "Robinson out", "Coco the Clown" narrative that is going on and actually support the team and look at the upturn in form when he has had the vast majority of his squad available and fit.

I'm now going to hide in my hole and expect a lot of flack!
Click to expand...
Haven't actually heard any calls for 'Robinson out' during the games, apart from the end Luton game. IMO if he was ever going to get the sack I felt it was then. Fans have been very patient and 2,000 at Coventry Saturday proves that. Still don't think he's the man to push us forward but credit where its due for recent results.
 
I won’t pretend to be a big fan of Robinson but Saturday was a positive tipping point for me. It was a good solid battling performance backed by a large positive support. I was proud to be an Oxford fan and a lot of that does go down to Robinson’s selection and tactics. He’s proved that when he cuts out all the bluff and BS he can be an astute manager with tactical nous and, as the opening poster says, does seem to live and breath football and care about what he does. He’s also proved on several occasions that when he (and we) need a victory, he can pull one out the bag. Maybe it’s still a bit of a feel good factor of what for me was an enjoyable afternoon but I am prepared to cut him some slack - for now. He does need to have a strong end to this season though and then show in the summer that he’s learned from his previous mistakes in transfer windows - ie, keep quiet about his targets until they’ve signed on the dotted line, ease off the over inflated promises and excitable promises, and most importantly build a competitive, balanced squad. If he can do all that and we start next season reasonably, then I’ll be prepared to trust him a bit more.
 
Just to be consistent can I just confirm I am still well and truly in the Robinson out brigade, despite the Coventry win. Those that want him out get accused by some of only piping up when we’ve lost.

It has been a terrible season on the pitch. Not saying Robinson has been dealt an easy hand, but he should have done better with the resources he has had. I just don’t think he is a good bet for us in the long term.

I actually think he has got off relatively lightly. Overall I think his signings have been poor, too many stupid comments after games, too many chucking players under the bus, tactically not all that etc.

I would love to be wrong and really hope I am, but I can’t see him performing at the level / or punching above the budget he has to work with.

Hope he is gone at the end of the season.
 
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One could turn a blind eye to his yobbish antics on the sideline or the drivel which spills from his gob whenever a microphone is put in front of it if he was delivering results.

However, his record since joining the club has been poor and the team this season has under-performed miserably in relation to budget.

He doesn't seem to have the intelligence to be able to critically reflect on his own performance (always somebody else's fault), therefore I don't see him improving the error of his ways.

OUT.
 
Yes, there is no point in getting rid of him right now - but (agreeing with Upthecowboys) you cannot be taken seriously if you want him out every time we lose and to stay every time we win! Staying up by a few points this season (if we do) with a creaking, unbalanced squad of his own choosing is not success by any definition of the word.

For all the reasons quoted ad nauseam on the forum (most of all his record as manager in relation to his budget!), I would like a change at the end of the season. There is (yet again) a big rebuilding job to do, and I don't trust Robinson to do it properly or quickly.

I suspect that we will be stuck with him for a while longer though.
 
A top 8 budget and a season long relegation battle is a pretty damning record no matter where we finish (unless its 8th or above lol).

Everything we hear from KR may or many not be BS. Its difficult to believe anything he says. I have serious doubts wether he is the right man for the job medium or long term, but I have said since Jan there would be no point in changing this season.

If KR is here next season I would want to see the following improvements from him and the club:
- More flexibility in tactics \ formation
- Much better transfer policy
- Get the main part of the squad built early
- Fewer loans
- Fewer midfielders
- A decent striker or 2
- More defenders
- Players in their proper positions
- Only sign players who are fit and have a decent injury record
- Think before you speak

Not rocket science . If he shows he can learn and if the club can prove they have learnt the transfer windows lessons we will be OK. If not its another season of struggle for us under KR.

Lets not sugar coat this KR's first year has been very poor. Recent up turn in form has taken it into mealy acceptable level I hope this is maintains or improved upon. Even then I would still not be totally convinced by KR (for that I would need a very decent transfer window in the summer).
 
There is an argument to say that the worst of the signings have been unlucky or not entirely down to him.

Holmes was a gamble worth taking. We had all seen what he was capable of as recently as last season, and in spells this season he was a class above. He had the pre planned op on his back and the hope would have been that he would be fixed. Unfortunately that didn't happen and we didn't get the value from him that we'd have wanted.

Carruthers had a decent fitness record before coming to us, and could have been a big player for us. The long lay off through injury meant that we were scratching around for replacements at the beginning of the season until Mous held down a place.

Sam Smith had a decent pre season and came on the back of some decent reports. Clearly Tiger had more than a little involvement with his Reading links, but either way young loanees are always a gamble and this one failed.

Hanson has been ok, and nothing more. But a big issue was the amount we paid out. If he'd come in for £100k I'm sure everyone would have been far more understanding. But the big price tag raised expectations massively and there is no way he will meet those expectations. He might have been on Robinsons radar but Tiger would have pushed the deal through at silly money and that's where the problem lay.

McMahon was ok and did a job, but with issues in his private life taking priority it made sense to let him go. No blame should be attributed in either direction under these circumstances.

The rest of the signings have generally been ok, although unbalanced. He has promoted youth and is present behind the scenes to help the youth and under 23 set up link into the first team one. He has publically supported a lot of players as well as giving them a kick up the ass. Generally the players seem to back him, despite rumours to the contrary, so he must be doing something right.

As for results, August was shocking but we could and probably should have best Sunderland, made stupid mistakes against Coventry, were better than Wycombe and should have got something from Walsall and Wimbledon in a frustrating September. An extra 5 or 6 points in that month would have kept us out of the drop zone and given us a platform to build on. October was then much better and generally we've not been bad since then. Robinson is no Bill Shankly but then again, how many top top managers would have put up with everything that has gone on behind the scenes this season?

Whatever happens, he'll stay until May and then it will depend on what happens in the boardroom as to whether he stays or goes. We could do better, but we could also do a lot worse,!
 
trickyricky said:
I know that this will not go down well on here, but I feel it needs saying.

We all know Robinson has made errors, particularly with not recruiting a striker who can score goals, and he does often let his mouth run away with him.

But looking at this season there has clearly been a time when we had an injury crisis and a time when players were coming back into the team.

During the first 12 games of the season, we picked up 6 points, at 0.5 points per game. We had a tough start, lots of injuries (not helped by some poor signings) an unfit Mackie and lots of new players trying to bed in to the club. This clearly points to some errors in transfer dealings and pre-season.

However, since those games, the club have picked up 40 points in 26 games - 1.54 points per game.

I know this is hypothetical, put if we picked up the same ratio points within that first 12 game spell we would now be on 60 points, which would put us in 6th battling it out for the playoffs. We would all be happy and praising Robinson. I have seen some good football, some good battling performances and a good team morale, so he must be doing something right.

I know we cannot take those first 12 games of the season out of the equation and we currently average 1.18 points per game, but our form from game 12 onwards has been good. People are quite rightly worried about the league position, but I can clearly see some improvements.. Our Achilles heel this season has been we have struggled to put a fully consistent run of form together so the losses are felt even more keenly.

I feel we need to stop this "Robinson out", "Coco the Clown" narrative that is going on and actually support the team and look at the upturn in form when he has had the vast majority of his squad available and fit.

I'm now going to hide in my hole and expect a lot of flack!
Click to expand...
 
I fully endorse what TrickyRicky says. I genuinely feel that some of the abuse and name calling on this forum has been embarrassing and immature. I would still think that even if I felt he was a poor manager, which I don’t. Managers make mistakes...and KR has..but on balance I think he is decent and improving. He is not a Michael Appleton or Wilder but those 2 were excellent if abrasive at times.
 
I don’t really care what he says on the radio after games, only about the results. They haven’t been good enough, partly down to bad luck but mostly down to poor signings and tactical inflexibility.

He will stay if we stay up, which looks likely now, but he can’t afford another first 11 games like this season, his record here wouldn’t justify giving him more time then.
 
Scotchegg said:
In the region of £400k by all accounts.
Click to expand...

If this is true, then it's the biggest indictment of Robinson's management and a huge tick in the 'OUT' column.

Because I'm not saying that Hanson's terrible - but from what I've seen, there's hundreds of players of his standard that change teams in League One every season on a free transfer.

If you're going to spend £400k on a player at a club our size, then they better be your best player or thereabouts, not rooted to the bench six months later in a relegation-threatened squad.

There's enough evidence to suggest that Robinson's a decent enough motivator, somewhat competent tactically, and although he talks nonsense to the press, I'm happy enough to ignore that if he's getting results (I assume Wilder is still talking nonsense up in Sheffield, but I doubt the fans there care at all!). But you have to be good at spotting talent and getting value for money for your signings at League One level - as Appleton very clearly was. Otherwise you get the club into trouble both on and off the field. And given his track record, I'm not sure Robinson is.
 
tonyw said:
If this is true, then it's the biggest indictment of Robinson's management and a huge tick in the 'OUT' column.

Because I'm not saying that Hanson's terrible - but from what I've seen, there's hundreds of players of his standard that change teams in League One every season on a free transfer.

If you're going to spend £400k on a player at a club our size, then they better be your best player or thereabouts, not rooted to the bench six months later in a relegation-threatened squad.

There's enough evidence to suggest that Robinson's a decent enough motivator, somewhat competent tactically, and although he talks nonsense to the press, I'm happy enough to ignore that if he's getting results (I assume Wilder is still talking nonsense up in Sheffield, but I doubt the fans there care at all!). But you have to be good at spotting talent and getting value for money for your signings at League One level - as Appleton very clearly was. Otherwise you get the club into trouble both on and off the field. And given his track record, I'm not sure Robinson is.
Click to expand...

But apparently he wasn’t a Robbo signing
 
tonyw said:
If this is true, then it's the biggest indictment of Robinson's management and a huge tick in the 'OUT' column.

Because I'm not saying that Hanson's terrible - but from what I've seen, there's hundreds of players of his standard that change teams in League One every season on a free transfer.

If you're going to spend £400k on a player at a club our size, then they better be your best player or thereabouts, not rooted to the bench six months later in a relegation-threatened squad.

There's enough evidence to suggest that Robinson's a decent enough motivator, somewhat competent tactically, and although he talks nonsense to the press, I'm happy enough to ignore that if he's getting results (I assume Wilder is still talking nonsense up in Sheffield, but I doubt the fans there care at all!). But you have to be good at spotting talent and getting value for money for your signings at League One level - as Appleton very clearly was. Otherwise you get the club into trouble both on and off the field. And given his track record, I'm not sure Robinson is.
Click to expand...
In all honesty, this was more likely a Tiger statement signing rather than one from Robinson.
 
Scotchegg said:
In all honesty, this was more likely a Tiger statement signing rather than one from Robinson.
Click to expand...

Well if Robinson didn't have any input into the Hanson signing then he's of course absolved - and we're really in trouble if our owner is getting us 400k further in debt to buy defensive midfielders/fullbacks who can't get a game in the Championship.

But frankly, if it was a 'glamour' signing (for our level) like a Peter Crouch or similar....then I could see it being an owner decision. But - as ZtH says above - are we really supposed to believe that he went and bought a relative unknown from Derby behind his manager's back?
 
tonyw said:
Well if Robinson didn't have any input into the Hanson signing then he's of course absolved - and we're really in trouble if our owner is getting us 400k further in debt to buy defensive midfielders/fullbacks who can't get a game in the Championship.

But frankly, if it was a 'glamour' signing (for our level) like a Peter Crouch or similar....then I could see it being an owner decision. But - as ZtH says above - are we really supposed to believe that he went and bought a relative unknown from Derby behind his manager's back?
Click to expand...

Robinson said himself that Hanson wasn’t one of his signings
 
tonyw said:
When was that? Genuinely curious because I can't find anything online, other than the typical effusive praise when we signed him.
Click to expand...

It was said in a post-match interview a few months back. A fleeting reference which was questioned at the time and reaffirmed (I think) but felt very much like a spur of the moment comment after an emotional game. Whether it’s true or not, who knows.
 
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