Already, opinion seems to be divided on the attributes of the next City boss, but according to Capital Canaries' committee member Simon Nicholson, all supporters must firmly get behind the new man in charge as speculation mounts over who will be next in the Carrow Road hotseat.
The weekend has seen a few more names added to the melting pot and we could even see a new man at the helm before Thursday's annual general meeting ? which is already destined to be a tasty affair.
It would certainly give the under-fire City board a much-needed boost if they were able to wheel out the man trusted with the job of dragging the Canaries out of their current mess.
Tony Pulis, Pierre Littbarski ? as exclusively revealed by myfootballwriter.com ? and Martin Allen have joined early front-runner Paul Jewell as potentials as well as a million and one other names being discussed on various message boards.
With all betting suspended yesterday on the identity of the next man in charge things could just be about to come to a head, but whoever that new man is, he must be given a chance says Nicholson, general committee member of the London-based supporters group which boasts over 400 members.
If he has any chance of succeeding, then he must have the backing of one and all the minute he steps through the Colney doors.
Otherwise, the poor bloke will already be fighting a losing battle?
“We have to get behind the new manager, whoever that may be”, said Nicholson, who attends all of City's home games despite his Hertfordshire base.
“Whether it is a popular appointment or not, we must all stick together as failure this season is completely unthinkable. To drop into the third tier of English football would be a disaster and the new manager will need every bit of support he can get.
“There will obviously be fans who would have wanted someone else but he will need our backing if we are to turn the corner and start winning matches again.”
Of course, at the end of Grant's tenure, that is exactly what they were not doing – winning football matches, but although Nicholson believes it was time for Peter Grant to leave the club, it was still sad for all concerned when he departed, having not finished the job he so desperately wanted to do.
It was not for the want of trying that's for sure but when teams are not winning picking up points, there will be only one fall guy. If you live by the sword, you die by the sword?
“For me it was a sad day when Grant left the club,” he added.
“He'd only been in charge a year and for what it's worth, he seemed like a good guy. But football is all about results and for whatever reason, he just couldn't get his team winning football matches, which is what managers live or die by.
“The cost of failure is so, so high these days, everybody wants success yesterday so I guess Grant had to pay the price for the team's failings on the pitch in recent weeks.
“In retrospect, I guess it was a mistake appointing him but it is easy to be wise after the event. Every managerial appointment is a gamble and this one obviously didn't pay off.
“But, for me, the players are every bit as much to blame as the manager. It is always him who is accountable and I suppose as the manager, the players' failings are his.”
The board have come in for some criticism after the departure of the Scot, with some blaming them for poor judgement in his appointment and from speaking to Nicholson, it is clear they have plenty of fans to win over in the coming weeks and months ahead.
Talk has been rife that Delia and her husband Michael Wynn Jones are ready to sell up, with Andrew and Sharon Turner ? City's newest board members ? likely to step into their shoes.
There does seem to be a sense of confusion in the air at present but one way to ease any worries amongst the Canary faithful would be show they really mean business with the next managerial appointment; win back any doubters out there and City can really get motoring again. Everyone pulling in the same direction can make one hell of a difference.
“I do know that the group of fans who feel alienated by the board and their direction seems to be growing,” Nicholson revealed.
“That is just my opinion and it is so important that we get this next manager right. It promises to be interesting times ahead.”
Tom Haylett
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