Nobody wants YBR to continue more than me (for as long as he is willing and able), but IMUO he also deserves a volley along with the players after this game.

I can't comment on the performance (though others who can don't appear to have seen a single positive). But the result alone is unacceptable for this club. Not to take anything away from BCFC but all too often this season Bobby seems to have failed to find ways of sufficiently motivating the current batch of professional players on our books.

Again IMUO only a handful of our current first team are good enough to be occasional squad players in the Newcastle I hope one day to be truly proud of. The rest haven't been, and never will be good enough and should be rotated out as quickly as possible.

But here's the rub - practically every club has its fair share of journeymen, yet many find ways of turning them into fair TEAM players most weeks. Consistently this season we haven't seen that and Bobby has to take ultimate responsibility. Fair or unfair ?

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000

Answers

fair - up to a point. YBR will take the flak - he's wise enough and noble enough to recognise that the buck stops with him - unlike TDO and TSM.

However - the problems go back to TSM and his divide and rule tactics, hardly helped by Gullit. We seem to have two definite camps in the players now - those who do and those who don't. Want to play for the club. Those who do are invariably not good enough [Speed, Barton, Lee and i'm beginning to include AS] and those who don't [Goma, Domi et al] recognise that it would be better for their careers if they were elsewhere. The young 'uns just stand and stare in disbelief.

YBR has inherited an ailing club, divided. I don't think i'm overreacting. I've kept very quiet on things for a long time now and i've been prepared to give players the benefit of the doubt. YBR has a MASSIVE job, made all the harder because it's a club he loves and many of the players don't. He should be enjoying his later years, not chucking tea cups against walls, trying to motivate others to his level.

The only place to start is by refusing to accept mediocre players and mediocre performances.

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000

oh, and you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

similarly, you shop in the bargain basement and for every gem, you'll pick up a few shiny looking duds that fall apart after a third of the season....

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000

Fair enough points min, but I'm really tired of hearing the excuse that the current manager's plight is largely down to problems inherited from his predecessor. I've been hearing that one ever since Arthur Cox left and it has to end.

It's only part of the story - at some point some hard decisions have to be taken at our club, a few of our 'unprofessionals' have to be made an example of. And I for one can't wait, despite the probability that the tabloid hacks will fall on us with glee and sharpened talons.

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000

OK - fair enough. Unfortunately I was too busy playing pool to notice what was happening in the game in general, but when a 30+ year old pro like Barton makes space on the left hand side, checks back on his right foot and doesn't deliver a cross in 6 yards of space, you have to consider his worth. Lets face it, the team is almost bankrupt when it comes to true class. I didn't watch it all, but that moment told me where we were. We'll finish above Coventry by 9 points.

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000

And the reson I didn't watch at all...purely and simply because we had no chance of coming out winners. Bankrupt in terms of class, that's what we are.

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000

The point I'm trying to make concerns the lack of motivation and commitment, rather than the lack of class (which I think we all agree on). Frankly, while Bobby continues the transition bringing a few of the youngsters along, I'd rather see 11 dependable journeymen Gallachers in black & white than the current shower o'sh#te. I'm sick to death of them

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2000