Paul Sturrock

[londonblue]

I wouldn’t say bouncing straight up was a dead cert but it wouldn’t surprise me. I wouldn’t be happy if I were a Yeovil fan, long ball tactics for them now, I certainly don’t miss those days, he does now how to play that system though. I know people have a pop at Brown and the lack of goals but I’d rather watch a Brown team over a Sturrock team any day of the week.

Paul Sturrock is a pragmatist. He plays the style of football that he thinks is best suited to a) the players available, and b) the division. His belief is that the best way out of the lower divisions, where players have less technical ability, is to play a more direct style. Had we have been promoted, then I believe the playing staff would have been tweaked, and the style changed.

 

[Ayrshire Blue]

I would say that his appointment of Tilson was a pretty successful decision, seeing as he led us to back to back promotions. Short memories.

You mean like those who forget Paul Brush was the brains behind that entire operation?

 

[Beefy]

We were never going down when Tilly took over. Any competant manager would have kept a team with Flahavan, Cort, Jupp, Maher, Gower, Jay Smith and Constantine in the Football League.

I'm a huge Tilly fan but let's not over-egg it. We were crap the first half of that season but had we gone down it would have been one of the biggest cases of underachievement in 100+ years of the Football League.

Regardless, good luck Paul Sturrock. It is a shame that every conversation about him has to be framed in the context of Steve Tilson.

 

[londonblue]

You mean like those who forget Paul Brush was the brains behind that entire operation?

Of course that is your opinion, and may or may not be fact.

 

[Jai]

One thing I noticed about that Sturrock side that so nearly went up three years ago. I can only think of one or two of those players who are currently playing at a higher level than us (Anthony Grant, Clohessy which is debatable). Shows what he did with limited players. Dickinson/Gilbert are non-league, Mohsni failing in Scottish Championship which is a dire standard, not sure where Glenn Morris is now, Barker at Aldershot, Phillips at Wimbledon, Ryan Hall can't get a game at Luton, Kane Ferdinand is fighting the drop with Cheltenham. That team really was greater than the sum of its parts.

 

[Firestorm]

Morris is at Aldershot as well

 

[Ayrshire Blue]

Of course that is your opinion, and may or may not be fact.

Stop and think about it for a second and just take a quick look at where their respective careers have gone...

 

[lee bradbury is a legend]

Morris is at Aldershot as well

Morris is now first choice Keeper at Gillingham.

 

[Pak Power]

Good luck Luggy, absolute gentleman on the occasions when I met him

 

[londonblue]

Stop and think about it for a second and just take a quick look at where their respective careers have gone...

That doesn't make it anything other than your opinion. If you would have shown me a list of times where Brush had made decisions on team selection, transfer targets etc. then you might have a point, but to tell me to look at where their careers have gone since doesn't prove anything.

If anything it proves the opposite. Paul Brush was manager of Leyton Orient before he got sacked and joined Tilly as his assistant. If he was the brains of the outfit how come he hasn't managed another club since?

 

[Jam_Man]

Stop and think about it for a second and just take a quick look at where their respective careers have gone...

Brush is only a youth coach, hardly evidence that he was the brains behind anything.

IF he was that good he would be a manager, not backroom staff.

I really dont see where people get these opinions from, how does anyone come to the conclusion that Brush ran things ? Even when they got another job Brush had to be Tilson's assistant again, and he didnt use this apparent brain to save Lincoln from relegation.

As for Sturrock, Im glad to see him back in with a job but surprised he got it to be honest. Did wonders here the first two seasons under difficult conditions to start with.

 

[Ricky Otto]

Paul Sturrock is a pragmatist. He plays the style of football that he thinks is best suited to a) the players available, and b) the division. His belief is that the best way out of the lower divisions, where players have less technical ability, is to play a more direct style. Had we have been promoted, then I believe the playing staff would have been tweaked, and the style changed.

I don't doubt that Sturrock is a good manager and he is certainly a likable man. My gripe is that I really didn't enjoy watching us under his management. I don't expect miracles at Southend but I do like to see us try to play. In our league one relegation season I remember so mamy games seeing us play good football to be undone by mistakes trying to play when maybe we should have hoofed it out, I'd still that over a season staying up watching Sturrock hoof everything out of defence and put as many balls into the box as possible hoping something goes in.

 

[Jam_Man]

Indeed, people complain about our style but we scored loads of goals that second season and had regular threads even when we were top of the table complaining about the style and hoofball was the phrase of the season.

Shame as most seasons that would have got us promoted and the ends would have justified the means.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

We were never going down when Tilly took over. Any competant manager would have kept a team with Flahavan, Cort, Jupp, Maher, Gower, Jay Smith and Constantine in the Football League.

All it took was dropping Donkey Broughton to transform that team.

 

[A Century United]

I don't doubt that Sturrock is a good manager and he is certainly a likable man. My gripe is that I really didn't enjoy watching us under his management. I don't expect miracles at Southend but I do like to see us try to play. In our league one relegation seasonI remember so mamy games seeing us play good football to be undone by mistakes trying to play when maybe we should have hoofed it out, I'd still that over a season staying up watching Sturrock hoof everything out of defence and put as many balls into the box as possible hoping something goes in.

Really? Really? Relegation playing pretty football trumps "ugly" success? This club's survival depends on us climbing the leagues, and you would prefer entertainment? I think that's bollocks!

 

[Sowfend Not Sarfend]

Really? Really? Relegation playing pretty football trumps "ugly" success? This club's survival depends on us climbing the leagues, and you would prefer entertainment? I think that's bollocks!

It's the elusive combination of pretty football and successful football that it would seem plenty of Southend fans are after. It is something that Steve Tilson delivered very well I think.
Both Paul Sturrock and Phil Brown have produced reasonably succesful Southend teams based on league placings alone (though the 'we are too big for League 2' brigade may disagree) but both have been plagued by complaints about the standard of entertainment their teams delivered.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Morris is now first choice Keeper at Gillingham.

Wow, is he really?! :stunned:

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Wow, is he really?! :stunned:

He only seems to have played 4 and a half league games.

Given that he's conceded 10 goals in that time, and from what we saw of him, I wouldn't have thought it was his job for long.

 

[rlb999]

No doubt PS will be looking carefully at who we don't retain this summer.

 

[OldBlueLady]

No doubt PS will be looking carefully at who we don't retain this summer.

I would certainly imagine Clohessy will be on his shopping list!