In defence of Hurst

Quoted from FishOutOfWater

And on the Makreth / Colbeck point you raise....it really makes me wonder what Hurst (and Scott to be fair to him) were doing when they decided that Michael Coulson was not worth keeping hold of?  

I know he wasn't every fan's favourite and had a lot of abuse from some folk who sit around where I do in the Pontoon but jeez...imho he was twice the player either of his subsequent replacements were, proving his worth to York, in the Football League too, since we were minded to let him go

Quoted from rancido

I've never been one to slag PH off but I am beginning to think he has reached his level  ie Conference Premier. He has signed some ( at least on paper ) good players but seems incapable of really knowing how to use them. He then does strange things like giving three youth team produced players and never using them. He said he had been chasing Mackreth for two seasons but on the evidence so far I can't understand why. He doesn't appear to have scintillating pace, always seems reluctant to take on his full-back and is hopeless at supporting his own full-back. Joe Colbeck might not have been that fast but at least he knew how to cover his full-back and you got one good game in about six from him. I don't know what Paddy has done wrong but I feel he is being totally wasted at the moment and I'm sure he will go at the end of the season and be a good signing for another team who use him in his natural position. Very few of the players even do some of the basics correctly , like supporting other team mates, making yourself available for short passes and being mobile instead of being static. A lot of the play seems to be reactive instead of pro-active and are very lethargic. I'm not questioning their fitness , just their whole approach to the game. I certainly think JF and the Board may have to make a season defining decision soon as regards PH's future with this club. He might unearth two or three players who could turn our season around but if things don't improve by the end of January then I don't believe we will get the promotion we desperately need.
One thing I would address to JF ( getyourfactsright ) is what was PH's brief when he was made manager in his own right? Was it get promotion as a first and only priority or did it also include trying to get some silverware on the way ie FA Trophy if possible? Now I know it's nice to get a cup and give the players a chance to play at Wembley but the club's future MUST take priority over any other distractions. Surely this should have been made clear to PH because anything other than promotion must be interpreted as failure. It's ok getting to the play-offs three or whatever seasons in a row but financially that is not good enough for this club without the promotion that goes with it. I'm sure that when JF was running Five Star if he had a production manager who failed to reach his production targets 3 years in a row then he wouldn't hesitate in replacing him. This is a very similar scenario and should be looked at in the same light.

Quoted from GrimRob

We've got the fourth highest wage bill and we're currently fourth, so it's hardly been a disastrous season so far as we're more or less where we should be in the league. Not that there isn't plenty of room for improvement but you could probably say that for every team in the division with the exception of Barnet.

Quoted from Getyourfactsright

They earn an average wage at best.

Happy New year and best wishes John

Quoted from Marinerz93

How the hell have we got the 4th highest wage bill if the players earn an average wage at best.  

It should, be average wage at LEAST, it all becomes clear why we have such an average team at best.  In that regards play off's is great value for a team who earn average at best.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

I wonder, in the context of GYFR's post, what he considers the average wage to be in this area?

Quoted from Vance Warner

He was out of contract and wanted to play in a higher league for a team nearer his home - not much we could have done about that. The further down the pyramid we've fallen the bigger a burden our geographical location is. It certainly gives Barnet a big advantage over us.

Quoted from Vance Warner

He was out of contract and wanted to play in a higher league for a team nearer his home - not much we could have done about that. The further down the pyramid we've fallen the bigger a burden our geographical location is. It certainly gives Barnet a big advantage over us.