Good appointment?

[Monthehoops]

After last nights result, I'm beginning to have my doubts. Loads of people are drawing parallels between this appointment and the appointment of Alex... No doubt someone will put me right, but I seem to remember Alex achieved good results immediately, not three straight defeats and shipping five goals to an average side? Hope I'm wrong though and Martin is a massive success.

[Gaspode]

After last nights result, I'm beginning to have my doubts. Loads of people are drawing parallels between this appointment and the appointment of Alex... No doubt someone will put me right, but I seem to remember Alex achieved good results immediately, not three straight defeats and shipping five goals to an average side? Hope I'm wrong though and Martin is a massive success.

A bit of perspective regarding the oft quoted three straight defeats. Cetic and Dundee Utd were two of the toughest fixtures we could have had and I will concede that last night was very,very poor. Had we lost three in a row against teams below us then yes, the panic button would be well and truly pushed!

[Hotchie]

Martin has never sounded in interviews to me as if he really wanted the job. I was convinced from what Ronnie said in his SportSound interview that we were going for an external appointment. Fully behind the new gaffer now. I expected lengthy runs of defeats this season. Three in a row against these teams is no cause for panic.

[Accies4ever]

Don't mean to be a profit of doom, but I think appointing Canning is a mistake.

In the few games he's be in charge, we've played really badly.
I don't believe he's got it in him to be a good man manager and tactically he hasn't got what it takes.
It's not as simple as just repeating what Alex did, the motivational thing has got to accompany what Alex also did.

Being "popular" in the dressing room isn't necessarily a good thing. You've got to be respected and to some degree feared.

I understand the club's idea of appointing from within, but Neil was special and I believe Accies have missed a great opportunity to appoint a really good manager.

As far as I'm concerned, with 10 games remaining before the split, if we don't achieve a top 6 position, then Canning was the wrong appointment and I personally would want him removed before the start of next season.

I'm wondering if we had got the money for Hendrie, if Canning would have been the choice.

Think Beuzelin is a good appointment, and I really do hope Canning works out, but I suspect that come summer, we'll be looking for a new manager.

I would be delighted to be proven wrong.

[The Bajan Bandit]

Alex Neils team played with fight and spirit(all you can ask for) THEY would have been scared to have went in and faced Alex if they had not tried there hardest , the other night was a shambles and it looked liked players have downed tools for the season , could get worse at the weekend .

Canning has to sort out this slump , show he is boss and rattle a few cages , no standing with his arms folded like against Dundee United .

Jury is out , as rare a caretaker boss who has a record of played 3 defeats 3 gets the job .

[Monthehoops]

Agreed. Hopefully now that his title is no longer 'caretaker' the uncertainty will disappear and he'll be more focused as its now 'his job'

[redandwhite1874]

Some people need to take a deep breath and have some faith in the board; their record deserves that. The board know Canning as well as anyone and whilst we will never know a dip in form could well have happened under Alex - it certainly happened last night under Frankie. I think the poorer performances under Alex have been airbrushed amid the wave of nostalgia.

The board have seen 3 defeats and still have faith in Martin; his 'stand offish' PUBLIC comments were really the only thing he could do; he has simply let the board judge him on his merit's and I think he would have accepted it if they had went for someone else. If he had come out and said openly and vigorously that he wanted it and didn't get it his position at the club would have been almost untenable and we could have lost another player and captain.

[Accies4ever]

Like it or not, the board have spoken.

Of course we support, the manager, the team, the club.
If it works out, we'll all be delighted.

I suspect Canning was appointed for 2 main reasons: it was the easy choice (maybe money played a part in that) and the board perhaps like the supporters are thinking that lightning will strike twice and we'll have a manager from within that will bring us success.

However, I have a bad feeling about this and I do not believe Canning is management material.

Accies profile has never been higher, and perhaps never will be again, and I was hoping that the club would capitalise on that and appoint a higher profile manager.

If you look on the worst case scenario, if things go pear-shaped, then it won't cost us a place in the SPL. We then have another opportunity to rectify the situation and appoint a new manager close season. That would likely signal Canning's departure from the club, but he was getting to the end of his career anyway.

Looking on the upside, if things go well, then it proves the club's ethos of appointing from within and developing our own talent is working yet again.

I just don't want the fantastic season we've had to fizzle out in dissapointment, but perhaps that was always going to be the case when Alex left.

This may be an unpopular opinion, but after the 10p game this Saturday, I hope we move on and don't have repeated "all hail Alex" events throughout the season. Neil's gone and we need to accept that and get on with things.

[Whiskeytown]

I think Saturday will draw a line under all the Alex Neil stuff. Important we get behind the team and make it as noisy an atmosphere as possible. Section A, gie it laldy and join in everybody else!

[Todd_is_God]

I believe Accies have missed a great opportunity to appoint a really good manager.

This is what concerns me also. When would you ever think Accies would receive over 60 applications for a job that was never really advertised. There will have been some tripe amongst them I am sure, but still, there will likely never be that amount of interest again.

Given the club made the deadline public, and hearing Les Gray after the Celtic game, I did not expect Canning to be given the job, and Beuzelin brought in as his assistant.

Given how the last three games have gone, thats a huge gamble by the board.

I expect this is a stop gap, and that we will see a new manager in the summer.

[redandwhite1874]

Since wild speculation is the way of things currently here is my take.

The board were in receipt of lots of applications for the job, even though they were probably minded to appoint Canning. The latter will have been based on years and years of actual experience and knowledge of Canning as a player, manager and as a person; and also that he bought in 100% to the ethos of the club However, as applications were coming in they decided to at least go down this route and at least consider these options. They looked at the options and some / a lot could probably be excluded by any of us - Hartson / Gattuiso etc ; could anyone see them putting in the hours that billy and Alex did and the hours that I am sure Martin will?

They then weighed up and picked Martin when considering all the options. This board has an excellent record in picking managers and staff and deserve to be supported in their decision. I think the last thing this decision is is that of a 'stop gap'. Can I also ask what higher profile means ? should the only criteria not be overall likliehood to succeed'? or does someone having a more public persona somehow translate to being a better fit at our club? Cliches like 'cheap option' 'easy choice' and 'stop gap' are not really how I see the board taking this decision and I don't see a scrap of evidence to support it.

[Don van Vliet]

Since wild speculation is the way of things currently here is my take.

The board were in receipt of lots of applications for the job, even though they were probably minded to appoint Canning. The latter will have been based on years and years of actual experience and knowledge of Canning as a player, manager and as a person; and also that he bought in 100% to the ethos of the club However, as applications were coming in they decided to at least go down this route and at least consider these options. They looked at the options and some / a lot could probably be excluded by any of us - Hartson / Gattuiso etc ; could anyone see them putting in the hours that billy and Alex did and the hours that I am sure Martin will?

They then weighed up and picked Martin when considering all the options. This board has an excellent record in picking managers and staff and deserve to be supported in their decision. I think the last thing this decision is is that of a 'stop gap'. Can I also ask what higher profile means ? should the only criteria not be overall likliehood to succeed'? or does someone having a more public persona somehow translate to being a better fit at our club? Cliches like 'cheap option' 'easy choice' and 'stop gap' are not really how I see the board taking this decision and I don't see a scrap of evidence to support it.

Sound analysis.

[Birf]

Well so far, ehrm...........not so good. It's an attempt to repeat the same sort of formula of course, but the truth is that an awful lot of the stars need to align for a club like ours to continue as it has done. The vultures are circling for our players. There's more than a hint of predictability with it all.

[H9crx]

The team is full of Neil's Boys, we need a few new faces to fight for places and for the gaffer.

A few good signings will lift the mood of the club!

Watching Tom Elliot makes me think back to the last Jan in the top flight! A cold night in perth 4 new signings chucked in the team and a red head from the youth team!

That red head was Ziggy, it just shows how good we have it this year. We don't need panic signings but a few good ones to try and get top six!

Where is Jole Thomas

[Monthehoops]

Kind of changed my mind here. Listened to all the chat today and feeling a bit more positive about things. It seems to me that the board have thought about this and tried to create a proper management structure. I know it's a different age, but reminds me of Liverpool succession of Paisley, Fagan etc

[Colombian Boffin]

Kind of changed my mind here. Listened to all the chat today and feeling a bit more positive about things. It seems to me that the board have thought about this and tried to create a proper management structure. I know it's a different age, but reminds me of Liverpool succession of Paisley, Fagan etc

I agree. Martin sounded like a different person in Gilbert's interview today. Given what Les said too, I really hope and half expect a more "normal" or even better performance tomorrow.

[Accies999]

The beginning of a new era. Hopefully we can forget all the AN stuff and move on. Alex served us well and moved the club in the right direction but he's the Norwich manager now. Let's get behind the new management team and hopefully we'll continue to progress as we have done. Martin knows how the club works and he's obviously identified players to strengthen the team. 2 or 3 decent signings could get our season back on track. Good luck Accies.

[Park Materson]

NO.