Gadgey

As much as the team selection raised eyebrows, as has been said, it was a free pass and nothing more than a training session/trial. It just seems to me that McGhee has inherited a team entirely bereft of confidence. Although it is not on display terribly often, there is some ability there and I would guess that is why he was asked to come in and do something with it. Yes, there really is an imbalance in the squad but given that the majority of those "on the books" have longer term contracts and the loanees go in January, it doesn't give much scope for a cull at the end of the season and a there's a ticking clock towards January. Therefore McGhee has no choice but to do the best with what he's got, and seek to transform some of his surplus ie defence and attack. It makes sense that Laing and Moult (who are on longer contracts) should be tested on their flexibility cos quite simply, going out and buying a quality combative midfielder is not an option for the time being. We won't go down and I'm happy to wager that we will also avoid the playoffs.

I feel a degree of responsibility for some of this whole "davidgate" shenanigans. It was my post that may have goaded him into his rant and perhaps what he said are not to everyone's liking....but I can understand his sentiment. I don't agree with the whole abstinence of attendance thing because quite simply, it would achieve nothing. Even if done on mass, without a representative voice, a boycott would only do more harm than good. Is there something deeply wrong at the heart of the club and how it functions? I don't honestly know and I would wager nobody else who contributes to this forum does either and if they did, they haven't articulated it. In the absence of hard fact, we are left to breed opinion based upon the opinions of others whose opinions are based on the opinions of others and so the perpetual irrationality prevails. LH has never hidden the fact his offer to the club was a loan and that he expected to be paid back. From the outset, he was clear that this 'vision' of his was solely reliant upon the success of the well society. These are facts. How LH has conducted himself in the media of course has left a great deal to be desired but his behaviour has been consistent with the character assessments given to me about him by people I know professionally who once had to deal with him during his time at the Craig. Is the club in a better state than it was before he came? Arguably yes and arguably no, but we can't properly tell until the 'five year plan' begins to bear fruit or LH walks away because we didn't meet our contractual obligations to him. Would we have been better off without LH? Don't know and why waste any grey matter worrying about it....whatever the alternative, it didn't happen. So in a nutshell, if people want answers and aren't happy about the manner in which their beloved football club is being run, don't just be a keyboard warrior or deny yourself your lifelong pleasure (pain) of being a lifelong well fan....do something about it!!!! Get organised and make your voice heard!!! The well society is a perfect vehicle....so use it....ask the difficult questions.....influence the future of your club!!!!! Now geez a brek wi the woe is me !!!!

His managerial record isn't awful. Though granted, there have been clubs that it's fair to say that it didn't go too well. With regards his whoring tendencies, I guess he's at an age now and taken the ego knocks where perhaps he's now content with his lot and not looking to be jumping ship again. Perhaps not, and he still thinks he's got a 'big club' job left in him. I think one defining factor is he still lives in Brighton and unlikely to relocate so again, maybe if he is settled, he could be lured to a job closer to 'home'. I think he's been brought in to get the playing side of Les' master plan back on track and when he goes perhaps at the end of season '16-17, have his successor coming from within.

Now the next question is who will be the no2?

Oh davie baby....I hope you're no dropping the lip cos I disagreed with you earlier????? I've already articulated my reasons for optimism but in response to your analysis of a 'shambolic' 8 years, yeah, it could've gone better, but I think he chose his clubs badly. As he said in the press conference, his departure and arrival at Aberdeen were misrepresented at the time and instead of going to the Celtic job I suspect he was most likely falsely promised, he wound up at the managerial grave yard of pittodrie. Bristol Rovers have never been an easy place to get success and I was surprised to see him there. He saved them from relegation and then struggled the following season. I think by his own admission it was a failure but I have a fairly good knowledge of leagues one and two (a number of friends who support teams in those leagues and going to games with them) and the turnover of players, managers and form inconsistencies are the order of the day. Either way, I'm not surprised that having assessed the 80+ candidates, the football committee dug out McGhees telephone number. And Dave and others will just have to live with it.

Don't be counting chickens! Knowing Motherwell, it could be tango calderwood say in front of the cameras at 17:30 LOL With McGhee at the helm, I'm feeling fairly optimistic about the season again

Did anyone actually go to Finland? Where did the story come from? Happy to be proven wrong but I would wager Simo Valakari was never really a credible contender.

So what does a manager or player do in that scenario? Come out publicly and say you're loyal to the club, you're flattered by the interest shown etc and then, move to said other club .... you're a dick! Say nothing publicly and allow the press to hypothesise and fans to fret aaaaand.....you're a dick!!!!! Nobody should ever say never and given that we the fans are without knowledge of the real events surrounding his departure, we are not in a position to truly cast an informed opinion on whether mark McGhee was in the right or wrong! Like I said on an earlier post, I've not heard anyone complaining about Simo whoring himself out for the job? That story had to come from somewhere and given how tight lipped our club has been throughout this entire process, it wasn't from Lanarkshire. So far as I'm concerned, mark McGhee is not the sort of bloke I'd want to go for a pint with, but given the squad we've got, he's the right man for the job!

Of all the names mentioned, Mark McGhee is the only one that I would feel an immediate confidence in turning things around. If nothing else, he'd get them fit, more disciplined and lasting the full 90. Mcghee has the ability of turning the 'small margins' that we have been losing by into draws and wins. Yeah, the way he went last time did leave a bad taste in the mouth but that is football. What must the SJK fans be thinking about Simo openly applying for the Motherwell job with 2 years left on his contract? Yet not a mention of him being a sell out scummer on Motherwell forums because of course he'd be coming to us and not leaving us. Time is a healer and results even more so.

I tend to agree

Not to worry, we'll all get a chance to establish a proper fan/player relationship wi big Lee when he inevitably winds up back at fir park in his 30s (after hopefully a successful career soon sooth) LOL That's what all Motherwell exports do isn't it???

More than a touch of dejavu reading that thread. Just swap the name Erwin with Taylor or Robinson or Grimshaw or so on and so forth.

I think that is somewhat generalist. Of course nobody knows who will be the next Motherwell manager and of course, this is a fans forum. Put the two together and you will get opinion, conjecture, optimism, debate and dare I say scepticism. Yes of course there will be some who will not approve of whoever the manager will be and there may even be a few who will voice that opinion on this forum, in the pub or at fir park. But hasn't it always been the case? I will always remember some of the dogs abuse wee tam used to get but yet he is now revered. Given the mood on here regarding McGhee, I think that is clear indication of the open mindedness of the majority regarding who the next gaffer would be. So in essence, if you have an issue with people voicing opinion based on conjecture, perhaps you ought not bother reading this thread anymore so it doesn't wind you up any further.

He seems a really nice bloke who would be brave enough to challenge the dressing room like he did when he first went to Oldham. But Dickovs managerial record can only be best described as poor. Low table insignificance with Oldham and a relegation with Doncaster with only one cup upset and a keen desire to develop youth to try and counter that. A quick google search tells all. http://m.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/sport/doncaster-rovers/rovers-news/fans-forum-dickov-s-luck-ran-out-mike-follows-1-7457642 http://m.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/sport/doncaster-rovers/rovers-news/fans-forum-squad-depth-a-major-concern-wes-grimes-1-7429127

I loved that u16s World Cup and still feel the sense of injustice in that Saudi team getting away wi murder. Does anybody remember fan favourite Wullie Broon that played for Ghana???? Leaving that to one side.....if I were to put money on Dickov getting the job, it'd be my most resented winnings in living history....a bit like betting on the accies cuffing us again. I really really don't want Paul Dickov to be our next manager.....if he is, it is a true indication of the poor state our club is in.

I'm getting increasingly disheartened as each day passes by and another worrying name (like Dickov) gets thrown in the mix.

I'm well chuffed Mixu has declared himself too important for us....a bullet dodged!!!

Gary McCallister grew up a Motherwell fan. Didn't he get the BT cameraman to show his brother in his Motherwell scarf sat in the POD before the start of second playoff? If I recall, he was in the running around the time McCall got the job and it was around then that he publicly made the comment about selling all talent. His CV says coach first and foremost and manager a comparably poor second. There are very few managers who survive the heart of their team being ripped out and even less allowed time to rebuild or maintain momentum. I really like the guy (maybe cos he's one of us and ain't shy of saying so) but worry about this whole club legend, Motherwell man infatuation. We don't need a love in, we need a brave man willing to kick some arse!!!!

Identifying depression, stress and other mental illnesses are often difficult to identify in yourself and in others. Medical advancement have worked wonders for identifying all sorts of illnesses and diseases but the identification of and treatment for mental illness is still by comparison in the dark ages. Sufferers try really hard to disguise the symptoms of mental illness from others and often manage to hide it from themselves for an extraordinary length of time. O'Leary says himself in that article that upon reflection, he had been suffering from mental health issues since the age of 13 yet hadn't recognised that he was until having sought professional help.....which was after his perceived ill treatment by calderwood. By no means am I defending calderwood as I don't know the full picture, but from experience of working closely with and on behalf of people who are suffering from depression and in particular workplace stress, the accounts of events described by the mental health sufferer are often considerably different to that of others present. So in a nutshell, perhaps what O'Leary describes happened that way, perhaps it didn't, but not at any time did he declare that calderwood purposely targeted him because he had depression. The general consensus on Motherwell forums is that the team are not performing to their capabilities and that in order to reverse the apparent apathetic trend, a strong character is required to come into that dressing room, have the battle with the egos and affirm their status as alpha male. Isn't that what calderwood was doing at killie? At the time, they had a comparable squad to ours and he turned them around. He sought to install a siege mentality and O'Leary would've been a key player as he was one of their more talented. So to have someone of that ilk refuse to step up to the plate and give no reason as to why.....You focus on those who are and leave him behind. So yeh, maybe we don't need someone to come in, have the war and sound the rallying cry cos let's face it, the Motherwell first team squad appear to be showing the classic signs of depression.

As much as Jimmy C (and eddiemunster, the C isnae for Cumberland) is an unfashionable suggestion for Motherwell manager, if you just looked at his managerial record without your judgement being clouded by orange sausages, he should be in the running for the job! The thought of 'Craggs' getting the job gives me the fear....as clever as he is, as loyal a servant he has been, his appointment would be a punt and our club simply cannot afford a punt!!!! Don't get me wrong, calderwood has never been high on my wish list on any of the occasions when we've needed a manager but let's face it, he's never been relegated, won more games than he's lost and has a proven track record. McGhee is arguably in the same category but if you were him, would you want to go back to a club who's fans sang about you being a nonce in response to you leaving that club for a better paid job with better resources?

Roger Hind....even worse than Bobby Watson and Harri Kampman!!!!

Based on his managerial track record, Steve Evans has the potential of being a very positive appointment. Yeah, in his early managerial days he got in a spot of bother with the taxman, but the whole club (Boston Utd) was at it at the time. His managerial track record is likely to be better than pretty much every other candidate and reputationaly, would take no shite from any Charlie big spud has been or wanna be in the dressing room. He's achieved promotion at every club he's managed and has his teams playing at a good tempo with a battling spirit. I expect he will not be short of offers as we enter manager sacking season and would be somewhat of a coup if he chose to come to us.

Personally, I don't think either of the Finns will be considered and would be deeply disappointed if Mixu gets the nod! I really like Simo and had the pleasure of his company on a number of occasions when he played for us. He looks like he's got the makings of being a good manager, but I just don't think that given our present vulnerability, that this is the right time to appoint a 'prospect'. Also, if we did appoint him, it would cost, and most likely he wouldn't take up post until the title race is decided for his present club. That said, Mixu is even more of a punt!!! Despite his experience, he really made a pigs ear of the Finnish national side and in doing so, proved that his coaching ability was limited when trying to get the best from limited resources. Press reporting today that Ian Holloway is a contender. What are people's view on him? He's achieved his best when working with provincial clubs and from past behaviours, has proven that he would fit with the 'community based football club' business plan. Dare I say a talented Kenny Shields????