Monday, May 04, 2009

Ridsdale stands by Jones ... again!


I love you Dave
I love you too Pete



Just 24 hours after Cardiff City’s capitulation from Premiership hopefuls to Championship also-rans, Peter Ridsdale has felt the need to defend his under-fire manager on Cardiff City’s official website and give him the infamous vote of confidence.


Cardiff City have inexplicably crashed, their failure to see out the season collecting a solitary point out of the last 12, giving Ninian Park the worst possible send off and conceding 12 goals which ultimately saw the Bluebirds miss out to Preston has produced mass angst and have the knives out with many calling for a cull of the failing, under-performing players and a sizeable number wanting the head of manager Dave Jones as well.


Peter Ridsale acknowledged how, “The headlines in the local papers are calling for the manager's head and the emotion of a last day disappointment leads to some supporters lashing out and calling for change.” But responds by adding “it is easy to go around firing people but the real decision makers stand by good people and don't pander to the unaccountable pundits in the local press or a small but vocal minority of supporters.”


Ridsdale and Jones have long been accused of having a mutual love-in and that isn’t about to change with Publicity Pete standing by his man stating, “Dave Jones has done an outstanding job since he took over as manager. Has he made mistakes, of course he has, haven't we all? … he has got more things right than wrong” and ending, “To kill all the speculation before it goes any further, Dave Jones is the manager of Cardiff City Football Club and will remain so… Dave will spend the summer months learning the lessons from the season just ended and we will take appropriate decisions about the strengths and weaknesses in the playing squad so that we enter next season stronger that we ended this”.


Fans have mixed feelings about Jones but I feel it would be too knee-jerk to dismiss him now. For what it’s worth, here’s my feelings.


I find it hard to like Dave Jones as a person or Cardiff City manager. He has no rapport or feelings for the fans, I don't like his siege mentality attitude, his arrogance and the comfort he enjoys at what must be the safest managers job in football at a club where he is also given shares in it. I don't like the way he blames anyone/everyone bar himself whenever something goes wrong.


He's also the only manager I've never sung about at City because I just can't identify with him.


I do think serious questions should be asked about he handled City's run-in.

- The farce with our goalkeepers
- Mark Kennedy being bomb-proof. He burned out yet never had a rest, Capaldi was ignored.
- Quincy being taken on loan for big bucks yet ignored while Parry, Whitts and co who contributed nothing to City for 3 months both kept getting games while Chris Burke was dropped out of the squad.
- Giving out contracts to Kennedy and Scimeca at the expense of others when it was needless last month before knowing what level we'd be at.
- His selections, tactics and subs yesterday hardly inspired.


As the slide/rot set in, he didn't seem to have any answers and was powerless to turn it around while alienating some players at the same time. That really worries me.


On the other hand, getting to Wembley was way beyond my expectations last season and with the woeful summer we had (which also raises some questions about Jones), making the Top 10 was my realistic expectation for this season.


However we went beyond that and should have been play-offs minimum. Dave Jones and his players - all are in it together - should be thoroughly embarrassed and ashamed for the way they pathetically ****ed it up.



As much as I am genuinely worried where the club go from here and have massive doubts that DJ can push it forward, I'd stay with him and give him the chance. I'm not comfortable with it but I think it would be the wrong thing to sack him now.

However, new stadium, more fans, expectations will be way up for next term - I do feel Jones will be in massive trouble if we're nowhere in the table by November ... and right now, I'm more confident about City falling back than pushing on.

HAPPY SUMMER THEN DAVE!

1 comment:

Peter Ugarte aka Blue Madness said...

Couldn't agree with u more