Whisper it as quietly or as loudly as you like, the wind of change is a blowin’. Gently for now, but discernibly nonetheless.
Some may call him Neil, others (like me) might refer to him as Colin (one half of a well-known anagram), but we did a job on Mr Warnock and his hoofers. One that has potentially lit a fire at just the right time – the business end of the season.
For once I followed Saturday’s match on Radio Norfolk. I originally switched on because I was in the car and wanted to hear if one or both of the Dutch lads had been selected but from there Mark Walton kind of drew me in. And kept me there.
The subsequent Canary Call eulogies were well merited – he and Chris Goreham were superb. Not just because we won, rather more that they were excellent in the way they did their jobs. The closest I’ve ever felt to being at a game from a commentary, anyway.
I had completely forgotten that Mark Walton played in that FA Cup semi-final against Sunderland at Hillsborough when Gunny was injured, even though I was there at the time. Shame on me.
As a backdrop, I also had Michael Bailey’s live internet coverage up and learned something interesting from that too.
Michael was asked about Jez Moxey’s exit: ‘Any more news or thoughts on Moxey exit – pushed, resigned, sacked or?’
He replied: ‘Pushed. Pretty hard.’
There is a feel-good factor surrounding the departure of Jez Moxey. Most of the comments on social media and elsewhere point straight at it – his demise is not largely lamented. And if indeed he was “pushed pretty hard”, could it just be that somebody, somewhere on the Board is starting to take note of the groundswell of plebeian opinion?
So, maybe it is all coming together at the right time. Mitchell Dijks seemed excellent on his debut and the over-riding sense of everything was that the players are at last – to a man – busting the proverbial gut in terms of running through brick walls for our recently-beleagured manager.
Anyone who has ever kicked a ball towards goalposts with real nets on and a referee can imagine the catalogue of fatigue, bumps and bruises and annoying strains facing the physio team at Colney on Monday morning.
There is no respite: Wigan follow tomorrow evening and they have several fresh players and the benefit of 24 hours extra recovery from their fruitless Friday night exertions against Sheffield Wednesday.
Obviously this is where the squad must play its part. And there will be no accusations of tinkering towards Alex Neil if he freshens it up from me.
He will know who is physically armed and ready and who isn’t. Just this once – and I mean just this once – if Mitchell Dijks, for instance, can’t make 90 minutes I will understand. It might have to be Steven Whittaker at left-back. Like the personnel or lump ’em, it’s what we have a squad for.
There is no real point in berating Alex Tettey for attracting the inevitable final yellow either. It’s the way he plays, bless him, and we have Ben Godfrey and Youssouf Mulumbu. One to play (hopefully Godfrey for me, give the lad his chance) and the other on the bench.
Because the next two games are crucial (I know… they all are from hereon in). Four or, even better, six points from these and we are truly back in the mix, hopefully to stay. There will be teams currently above us who will be very wary of a resurgent Norwich.
This is surely the best many of us have felt in many a moon. And that is just as well, because from now until the end of the season it is a case of the status quo.
No changes in the boardroom. No changes in management. No changes in playing personnel. And the appointment of a new CEO shouldn’t affect our prospects between now and the end of the season anyway.
(For what it’s worth I’m firmly in the give the CEO job to Steve Stone and get a Director of Football, even if it is Roy Hodgson, camp).
There is nothing left to legitimately moan about – at least until the end of the season. We have what we have and we must hope it is enough for a decent tilt at the play-offs.
Most of us are always behind the team anyway. We need to stay there and hope that the wind of change blows us some good results and, indeed, good fortune.
Starting in the bleak extremes of the North West tomorrow.
Interested by your Steve Stone observation, Martin – one which I personally agree with, as I find it hard to fathom how someone with such financial expertise isn’t even a director of the Club.
Some have questioned his lack of football contacts – he’s even acknowledged that himself – but, is this absolutely essential? Surely, the CEO has to be a deal maker, but those with a football know how can set them up?
Which begs another question. Maybe the Club doesn’t actually want to be in the position again where one person – the CEO – has too much influence / control?
I would like to feel pleased at Moxey’s departure, but am unsure. What if Jez was actually the only person in the boardroom who could see AN’s flaws? What if he had ambitions greater than The Smith’s outdated views?
Moxey’s record at Wolves was not that fantastic, but I also have very little confidence in the Board members that remain in place.
Hopefully the team can continue winning and so help take our minds off the deep concerns of management/coaching/ownership.
I’m starting to feel optimistic again which isn’t necessarily a good thing. It’s the hope that kills…
(For what it’s worth I’m firmly in the give the CEO job to Steve Stone and get a Director of Football, even if it is Roy Hodgson, camp).
Why is it that whenever we need to make an appointment we consider somebody that either is sufficient inexperienced or has some inadequacy for which we need to appoint somebody else to cover? Is there nobody out there with sufficient skills to do the job on their own…we apparently pay them enough for it!
“Some have questioned his lack of football contacts – he’s even acknowledged that himself – but, is this absolutely essential?”
Anything but! I would have thought that that plus a lack of football knowledge would make him eminently suitable for our Board!
Moxey possibly wanted to run the club the way he was allowed to at Wolves and the board/Smith family had no intention to lose that much power.
Delia has as much stated she wants to keep the club in the family by appointing her nepthew to the board has he got money to invest in the club of his own or will inherit from Delia and hubby.
All the good work the smiths have done over the years will be wasted if they don’t start to find investors that are willing to help even if it means losing control I know other directors have also put money into the club and none of these are wealthy enough to make the club a power player or sustain a long term prem status.
Maybe Moxey was trying to get a Chinese consortium to invest and this didn’t go down well, maybe his ambition was to stagnant at city for 16 years as at wolves we will never know all is done it will never be open to discussion or comments.
let just back what we have at the present and hope for a better end to the season.
“Maybe the Club doesn’t actually want to be in the position again where one person – the CEO – has too much influence / control?”
Yes Gary,that’s probably the case. One Autocrat on our Board will be more than enough!
I’m with John on those points. If the manager needs his,own manager, he is inadequate and his manager should be doing the job. Why pay two men to do one job?
I really wish the Wigan fixture wasn’t scheduled for this week. A week to,digest and enjoy an away win would be more than welcome.
I am intRigued by the news that Moxey was pushed, pretty hard. I suspect we will never know the reason but suffice to say it would tell us a lot about what is happening at the club. Radio Norfolk descended into farce on Saturday as one of our less enlightened supporters tried to convince us Delia had sacked moxey for proposing an increase in the price of pies! Personally I cannot make my mind up as to whether moxeys removal was a good thing without knowing the reasons for it. Just whose corner was Jez fighting? Was he a sacrifice to appease the plebs? Interesting.
#1 Gary; #2 pab: this question of who wants what in terms of “control” is indeed an interesting one.
I suspect at the end of the day certain aspects of “control” begin and end with one particular individual and it would currently take a lot to convince me otherwise.
This is one reason why I think Steve Stone would make a good choice as CEO – as Gary says he has much financial expertise. But the football knowledge to balance this has to come from somewhere, and is an area in which we are currently desperately lacking at Board level.
#3: Don: Absolutely!
# 4,5 John: Actually, I agree with Gary that football knowledge is not essential from a CEO, but as mentioned above I agree that our current Board are apparently devoid of such knowledge and that a Director of Football seems essential.
To me splitting the tasks seems sensible in this case – we have one half of the equation in situ (Steve S); now we need to acquire the football man. Financial expertise not essential.
“Word on the street” is that AN might baulk at a DoF but that would not be my prime concern.
Martin always talks sense, but in my view never more than today.
We clearly need some re-jigging in the management structure. As with team formation, I’m a believer (especially if you have limited resources as we do) in playing to your strengths.
That’s why I’d have liked to see more experimentation on the field with wing-backs – Ivo Pinto and Olsson seemed naturals for that role, as does Dijks – and also in the backroom. Steve Stone clearly has strong qualities but not football expertise; we potentially have a rich source of that in Roy Hodgson.
I understand managers being wary of a Director of Football. But surely it’s worth exploring, to see whether a job description and individual could be found that AN would be comfortable with.
In the meantime, long live the happier mood across the Norwich City community!
There’s something slightly surreal to some of the replies to my initial comments.
For starters, the majority shareholders are not, contrary to some suggestions, actively looking involved in the day to day running of the Football Club.
Second, while accepting that it’s preferable for the CEO to have football contacts, it’s not an absolute prerequisite. And here’s my point – you can’t, on the one hand, suggest that such knowledge is absolutely essential and then claim that our recruitment set up – coordinated, hands on, by the CEO, with all that football contact knowledge – has been a raging success over the past two or three years. It simply hasn’t been.
Third, whether we like it or not, we’ve managed to get ourselves into a position where we couldn’t move a number of fringe squad members on, both last summer and in January because, by the Club’s own admission, some are being paid too much by Championship standards.
Perhaps those wishing for a return of the CEO before last may just want to ponder if giving too much control to one individual really is the way to continue, or, whether the Board strategy review is happening for a reason?
I think a D.o.F position would not be a positive move and would undermine any manager. I’m of the opinion that when that position is mooted, it shows that the structure is currently wrong.
I like Steve Stone and he was (allegedly) disappointed not to get the CEO role that eventually went to Moxey. However, we need a CEO to challenge the status quo – when necessary – and I’m not convinced Stone would be that man.
If it is ‘decided’ by the owners that a CEO role is no longer required next season, I would be deeply concerned. I was no fan of Moxey, but I’m not convinced his ‘departure’ is a good thing – at least until we get some hard facts. A CEO should be allowed to get on with things without interference. Not sure if that was the case at NCFC.
Darren (13): A sensible call for caution about judging in the absence of hard facts – and for concern about a CEO not being allowed to do his job.
However, the little evidence I’ve heard about Moxey’s situation and departure tends me to think it was necessary. The Southampton ticket pricing was certainly in keeping with the attitude he showed towards City fans in other forums.
Also, Delia & Michael departed from their previous norm with the appointment of David McNally. If they weren’t prepared to honour the pledges of independence they gave a CEO, surely it would have emerged during McNally’s time rather than now.
I’m suspecting the problem was Jez rather than the job.
@13 – Darren & @14 – Stewart. I don’t think anyone is suggesting that the CEO role is redundant. It’s more a case of reviewing roles and responsibilities.
If you invest too much power in the hands of one person then they will not perform at their best because there is no challenge to justify their actions. This is why a good assistant manager improves the manager’s performance. Remember Peter Taylor as assistant to Brian Clough? Neither man performed as well without the other. This surely would apply in the case of the CEO also?
It seems obvious that the management structure at NCFC is not working. The turnover of key members has been alarming (& unexplained)I do not have privy to whether this is down to the owners or other factors ,but for Norwich City to function to its full potential it is vital that the present shambolic situation is sorted ASAP . There have been many solutions suggested by many , some more practical & possible than others. To my mind the key non footballing post is the CEO. It is no coincidence that the most successful period in recent times ( on the pitch ) coincided with a strong & capable CEO ( Mc Nally ) It was he that sacked a failing manager , brought in a good one & got the buisiness side working more efficiently.
There is much debate as to whether the CEO should be a ‘football’ person or a buisiness one. Surely he ( or she ) should have experience & expertise in the buisiness OF football.
Long gone are the days when a football club could be run from the heart . Perhaps this is why Delia & co have struggled since the departures mentioned. Modern football is a multi billion pound global buisiness & needs to be run as such .ie with a hard buisiness head à la McNally & Bowkett . Find the right personal again for Norwich & I m sure we will see our club thrive again. Whether that is with a director of football , with AN or ANother is for that CEO & his board to decide