Why do I feel a bit sad?

[Tumbleweed 106]

I have wanted AN to be sacked for a while now. I could see no basis for retaining him or that he would turn things around. Too many mistakes and a squad in disarray. Yet hearing the news tonight I do feel strangley sad. I had wanted to believe in AN as a bright young manager, forging a great future. The guy has a certain conviction, gives an aura of knowing what he is doing and of having all under control. Yet all that was smoke and mirrors, emperor''s new clothes. Ultimately a sham, but while I feel more optimistic now for next season there is still a residual sadness that it never happened for him.

[wcorkcanary 4,329]

Can''t disagree Tumble, i was very impressed with his first year ish. Then my confidence in him dwindled and i wanted him gone, now it feels a bit like a loss, but we were all fooled, including AN , by that meteoric rise up the table to Wembley.

[Guest]

The Wembley win means I''ll always have some sort of respect for Alex Neil. You''re right, it is sad. It''s a huge shame it didn''t work out. There was such optimism when he got us promoted. I wouldn''t​ say it ultimately end up as a sham. Just failure and disappointment.

[Horse Renoir 1]

Wanted him sacked for a while. But yea, deflating. I so badly wanted it to work for him. It is a bit sad. Most of us overlooked how poor we were in the second half of the PL season because we liked this manager so much

Ultimately, looking back, something didn''t feel right ever since that first PL match against Palace where we gave it a great go, but conceded 3 goals and to be honest, it could''ve been 6 that day.

Good manager at Championship level, not quite PL level yet and his failure last year is still costing us. It was a really weak league last year and we just put in so many unforgivable no shows and went down with a whimper.

[shaunieboy77 73]

Neil done well to last this long.. 2 years is about right in this modern era of football management

[Bill 1,788]

Total  respect for himHis heart was in it, and he came across as very open and honestSomething wasn''t working out and time may well tell us what it wasBut it is a results business and so I can only say I wish him well, hope it works out for him elsewhere and thanks for all he didIf only beating the binners in the play off semisand WembleyWembley, for a whole generation who never had ''73, ''75 and ''85

[Barclay seats 4849 the 3rd 0]

Wanted him sacked as I sat in a bar outside Wembley, never thought he was the man to give us a successful premiership run .

Good riddance , don''t dislike him like Roeder, because AN was just deluded , and the stupid board were bewitched by him .

Onwards and hopefully upwards ,, wait ,, the board are still here 😳🙄😬

[Guest]

We''ll never know now will we. The managerial merry go round starts up again.

Another manager for 18 months before you all start bleating again.

On the basis of our bleating Sir Alex would have been sacked on his first 18 months at Manure. So what if we''d have to do another season in the championship,it may have been the season we got promoted and shaped the next 20 years but like I said,the sheep bleated,the shepherd acted and now we get another temp in for 18 months before the sheep bleat again.

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,735]

....."he was the chosen one, he was supposed to bring balance to the force "

[JF 694]

Inch High aka Inchy.. wrote the following post at 10/03/2017 9:24 PM:

We''ll never know now will we. The managerial merry go round starts up again.

Another manager for 18 months before you all start bleating again.

On the basis of our bleating Sir Alex would have been sacked on his first 18 months at Manure. So what if we''d have to do another season in the championship,it may have been the season we got promoted and shaped the next 20 years but like I said,the sheep bleated,the shepherd acted and now we get another temp in for 18 months before the sheep bleat again.

I''m not convinced that the board have taken the slightest bit of interest of the views posted on an Internet forum? As the the fans at the matches, Neil has been given a very easy ride. Your little rant holds no ground.

[Guest]

2 words, Chris Houghton.

[Johnny Stump 1]

What a miserable human being if you wanted him sacked after Wembley.

I am assuming it was immediately after our win, and not a later occasion you sat at a bar at Wembley.

[Mello Yello 2,278]

3 words. It''s Chris Hughton.....

[JF 694]

Inch High aka Inchy.. wrote the following post at 10/03/2017 9:31 PM:

2 words, Chris Houghton.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and this new found love in with Chris Hughton is based on what he is achieving at a championship club, at the time we were in our 3rd PL season. Let''s see how Brighton perform in the PL before we put him on a pedestal

[Creative Midfielder 1,985]

Likewise - not only have we lost a very young manager who I think will go on to enjoy success elsewhere but we''re stuck with the players who are the major cause of our problems.Given the number of contracts running out in the summer I''m sure some will go anyway but I don''t see a new manager conducting the same scale of clear out that AN was speaking about earlier today which is exactly what we need.Ironic really that one of his biggest mistakes was to have too much faith and loyalty in players that did it for him two years ago, but have let him down badly this year.

[Darth Canary1 91]

Only natural to feel bit a sad, I always do when we sack managers that actually delivered something. He wasn''t the right man to rebuild the squad however

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,735]

nobody but nobody could surely have disagreed with the sacking of Hughton at the time??......yes, we would all agree it was too late ...but nobody was surely complaining it was the wrong decision when it finally did happen.

people must have some short memories on how painful it was watching us under him....especially away from home?

[Syteanric 1]

Because a chapter has closed. Not just A N but the knowledge of the next few seasons of 12th and 13th place finishes looming.

[Guest]

We cannot keep up with this 18 month managerial merry go round, give somebody a chance to build their own squad not made up of half theirs and half the previous managers squad. If we are to get anywhere then we need to give somebody at least 2 seasons regardless of if that means an extended stay in the championship.

[Tumbleweed 106]

I think our chances of avoiding those 12th or 13th places and challenging next season for promotion have dramtically improved though. With Neil my abiding memory of him will be coming out at Wembley having changed into his tracksuit, a brooding slightly malevolent presence. Just too inexperienced at the end of the day, could get a short term bounce but not the depths to rely on for the long term. Roll on City, we go again....

[Creative Midfielder 1,985]

[quote user="GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary"]nobody but nobody could surely have disagreed with the sacking of Hughton at the time??......yes, we would all agree it was too late ...but nobody was surely complaining it was the wrong decision when it finally did happen.

people must have some short memories on how painful it was watching us under him....especially away from home?[/quote]Of course they can and do disagree - he could have been sacked earlier, he could have been sacked at the end of the season. But at the time the decision was made it was 100% wrong and turned our possible/probable relegation into certain relegation. As collateral damage it also cost us an extremely good youth coach who we haven''t been able to replace with anyone of the same quality.Today''s decision seems to have a lot of similarity, although at least it won''t relegate us this year.

[Guest]

Creative gets it!

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,735]

selective memory going on here....Chris Hughton was taking us down, it was a last albeit late roll of the dice.

Some of the football played under him was as dire as I''ve seen in nearly 40 yrs of watching NCFC......away from home was torturous to the point where I actually stopped going for a bit as I couldnt put myself through it any longer.

[Yorkshire Canary 118]

He did well for 6 months and that''s it. He has secured his financial future on the back of that not bad for a guy in his 30s

[GJP 79]

Glad he''s gone.

He''s had a great achievement here in getting us promoted - which will probably be the high point of his managerial career.

But he''s been f*cking it up since pretty early on in the Prem season and he''s been allowed to go on far too long.

[Mister Chops 7]

Surely all you who wanted him gone should be dancing a jig on his metaphorical grave though?

[50 years a Supporter 0]

He is a human being and he has to face failure for probably the first time in his life. He threw his heart and soul into it and came up short.

We are human beings too - of course we feel empathy. No one likes to see a trier get knocked down and have to admit to themselves that they just weren''t up to it.

He is, however, being well compensated and will probably never have to work again if he invests his pay off prudently - unlike lots of us who have been made redundant at some stage(s) in their working life.

I know it''s a cliché but the experience may well make him a better man and/or manager in the long run,

To feel the highs you have to know the lows., and at least he and we have happy memories together.

It''s better for both parties to move on - something that was blatantly obvious to all bar a handful of sane Norfolk people for many weeks now.

I''m sure both parties stand a better change of seeing the highs again travelling separate paths......

[ron obvious 1,498]

He has a lot of admirable qualities, but he failed. The reason for his failure is simple. He couldn''t, or wouldn''t, organize a defence. That is indefensible (! sic).