Manager/Coach [Poll] When Should Robinson Go?

At what point should Robinson go?

  • Now, he's had plenty of chances to build a successful squad and hasn't

    Votes: 47 22.1%
  • January if we're not in the top 10

    Votes: 65 30.5%
  • End of the season if he doesn't make the playoffs

    Votes: 53 24.9%
  • Not in the foreseeable future

    Votes: 48 22.5%

  • Total voters
    213
  • Poll closed .

Carpy

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Seeing as it seems to be the topic of debate on the transfer thread.
 
I don't see this as black and white as some people seem to do.

It's not as simple as 'if we don't reach top-six, get rid' or 'if we don't have x points by y games, get rid' in my opinion.

KR has done a lot for this club. I will always be full of admiration for the way he's thrown himself into the community, how deeply he seems to care about the club and county and, particularly, how well he dealt with the passings of Micky Lewis and Joey Beauchamp. In that respect, you couldn't really ask for more from a manager.

But, on the pitch, which you would have to say is the most important part of the role - although he hasn't exactly done badly (two PO finishes, some great cup results, exciting football etc) - he has proven himself to be flawed and incapable of evolution. The reasons we were unable to take the next step two years ago are still the same reasons why I personally think it's unlikely we'll take the next step this season and that is causing frustration among many.

When it's time for him to go, I think it will be obvious. We're not at that point yet because this season is still so young and so much could still change even in just the next seven days or so. I could be totally wrong in my pessimism about this season, we could be sitting here in a couple of weeks' time having beaten Lincoln and Morecambe, knocked Palace out of the cup and everything seems rosy!

But there is unquestionably more pressure on the manager to succeed this season than there ever has been before and that could come with a price if we're unable to kick on.
 
Although I dislike it, the transfer window ends in a couple of weeks. So if KR has at last seen what's missing (we all know!) and rectifies that properly over that period and then manages to create a team rather than a collection of individuals, he surely has to be given time to get that working. So until Christmas (and a couple of the already injured players might also be back by then). But if it is as poor as it currently is (and we all hope it isn't) I am not sure another, more difficult window in January would make much difference.

Is assigning a 'position' target very useful? I would prefer the powers that be - they will be the ones making the decision - to look at the way we are playing and the points difference between us and the autos, us and the playoffs and us and the relegation zone - 10th and a couple of points off the playoffs would be OK, 10th and 10 points off them would be more problematic for me.

As an aside, I can't help feeling (and this is certainly not personal and probably not logical) that things are feeling a little 'stale' and some of what we have seen so far is very deja vu, but may I suppose be that the owners see the new stadium approval > construction > move as more important in the short term as log as KR keeps us competitive. An expensive game to play though.
 
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I would have liked to have seen us make a change at the end of last season and given a new manager the funds KR is currently enjoying but now that it hasn't happened like that, I think we need to wait until December/January. For me though, I'd have higher targets for Jan and want to see him have us in the playoffs, we've got to stop this nearly being good enough.
 
Just seems to be the same old problems
its gone stale. If we are not near he should not be given another window
But are our owners hands on??
 
We did this already (at the back end of last season). My position is as it was then (incidentally not covered off by the poll options - then or now) - give KR the Summer and the start of this season but not necessarily even 'til January.

If we're not in clear contention for automatics by say - mid-October (around 15 games in) - then that is the time to pull the trigger.
By 'in contention for automatics' I mean in the top 4 or 5 and no more than 5 or 6 points off automatics - i.e. still distinctly possible that we could go up automatically.

If we're 8th and 10 points+ off the top 2 and already saying '... but we could still make the play-offs' then I believe it would be sufficient reason to give someone else a go with a fresh approach. They'd have a more than reasonable squad to work with (if lacking in certain areas) and would have two-thirds of the season in which to have a significant impact (and a January window).

The right appointment at that stage (and there would be plenty of suitors) would be more than confident of getting at least a play-off spot (the best we could realistically hope from KR) and still maybe more (which all the evidence of KR suggests would be beyond him by that stage).

For me, they'd be no point in limping through the rest of the season and into January and beyond with all the vague notions of 'if we do this, if we do that, if he signs this, if he signs that'. The poll option of 'January if we're not in the Top 10' again seems to suggest that just being in with a shout of the play-offs is enough - all bar about 6 sides will still fancy their chances then.

At the end of last season he had the basis of a very good squad at this level. He has had the Summer to improve it (and has been backed financially to do so). If there are no clear signs that KR can take us to the next level one-third of the way into this season, why persist with him further?
 
"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"
 
Poll extended to allow folks who don't want him to go yet to have their say. Democracy.
Also names of voters not visible. Democracy.
 
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