DEB (never forgotten) 0 Posted June 5, 2009 http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/0400evertonfc/0100news/tm_headline=mark-ward-s-book-mike-walker-was-doomed-to-fail-as-everton-fc-manager&method=full&objectid=23798970&siteid=50061-name_page.htmlDave Stringer - perhaps the best manager we have ever had?! Walker did very well to re-motivate Stringers side and achieve what he did in his first short spell as our manager - but it went dramatically downhill thereafter. Unable to build his own team, even with the sort of budget he craved at City.Interesting article, and evokes a few memories from the late 80''s & early 90''s. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Holt 521 Posted June 5, 2009 You''ll find more times than not that when players or managers go back to their previous clubs, it more often than not doesn''t work out. There are obviously some exceptions, but Walker should''ve never have come back IMO. Nothing against the man (obviously), but his reputation wouldn''t have been tarnished.But in fairness, we can''t really blame anyone for re-employing the man that got us into europe for the first time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pak mei 0 Posted June 5, 2009 [quote user="Spineless Fooks"]You''ll find more times than not that when players or managers go back to their previous clubs, it more often than not doesn''t work out. There are obviously some exceptions, but Walker should''ve never have come back IMO. Nothing against the man (obviously), but his reputation wouldn''t have been tarnished.But in fairness, we can''t really blame anyone for re-employing the man that got us into europe for the first time.[/quote]I don''t know whether he''d of been successful second time round or not but to be fair to him he had a very tough year of personal problems and his mind was understandably not always on the job. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Icecream Snow 761 Posted June 5, 2009 [quote]Dave Stringer - perhaps the best manager we have ever had?! [/quote]Broke the bank to get Paul Blades and Darren Beckford, then sold them for huge losses after they did buggar all Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WiMMiT 0 Posted June 5, 2009 We''ve all heard things regarding Mike Walker, but the guy writing the article just spent 4 years behind bars for involvment in drug smuggling of some kind.I would tend to be a little sceptical of what he has to say. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 0 Posted June 5, 2009 this mark ward sounds a right **** in fairness. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yellow Peril 4 Posted June 5, 2009 [quote user="WiMMiT"]We''ve all heard things regarding Mike Walker, but the guy writing the article just spent 4 years behind bars for involvment in drug smuggling of some kind.I would tend to be a little sceptical of what he has to say.[/quote] Exactly. Who on earth is Mark Ward anyway ?Mike Walker was, & always will be, God as far as I am concerned.Some ex-con with a grudge will not change that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DEB (never forgotten) 0 Posted June 5, 2009 Taken from Wikipedia:''Walker failed to meet the high expectations of a bigger club. Although Walker oversaw an extraordinary last day escape from relegation with Everton securing a 3-2 home victory over Wimbledon (Everton had been 2-0 down at one point in the game), Everton made a disastrous start to the 1994/95 season, failing to win a single league game until November. With Everton bottom of the table and having made their worst ever start to a league season, Walker was sacked having spent just ten months in charge and recording only six league wins, leaving him with the worst record of any post-war Everton manager. After Walker''s dismissal, Everton went on that season to not only successfully avoid relegation but also win the FA Cup under Royle. Walker did not return to football until taking over again at Norwich in June 1996''Another interesting artice:http://www.sportingo.com/football/a7540_mike-walker-worstever-premier-league-managerMakes you wonder why any board of directors would give him serious consideration after the ''Everton Nightmare''!!!!!!!!!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DEB (never forgotten) 0 Posted June 5, 2009 [quote user="BringBackIwan"][quote user="WiMMiT"]We''ve all heard things regarding Mike Walker, but the guy writing the article just spent 4 years behind bars for involvment in drug smuggling of some kind.I would tend to be a little sceptical of what he has to say.[/quote] Exactly. Who on earth is Mark Ward anyway ?Mike Walker was, & always will be, God as far as I am concerned.Some ex-con with a grudge will not change that. OH DEAR! [/quote] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
. 0 Posted June 5, 2009 NCFC was a very different club then to the one we have now....and I would go back to Ken Brown as the original architect of those glory days. Mike Walker simply used what he was given and rode the wave.Walker was a phoney.... but remains a part of those very special times for the club. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DEB (never forgotten) 0 Posted June 5, 2009 [quote user="Cluck is God"] NCFC was a very different club then to the one we have now....and I would go back to Ken Brown as the original architect of those glory days. Mike Walker simply used what he was given and rode the wave.Walker was a phoney.... but remains a part of those very special times for the club.[/quote]Very fair comment Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
I am a Banana 0 Posted June 5, 2009 Well, he was certainly better than most managers we have had in the near past! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JF 694 Posted June 5, 2009 The facts are that the football under Walker was by far the most entertaining i have seen at Carrow Road and he took us to heights we will never see again. For me he will always be a Norwich legend. And if he was a phoney what the hell have the clowns been since? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dame to Blame 95 Posted June 5, 2009 Sounds like this Ward bloke had a grudge because Walker dropped him and he didn''t like it ,all made up rubbish if you ask me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JJ 0 Posted June 5, 2009 At Norwich, Walker had built up huge respect amonst the players in his 5 years as a coach. Stringers team was looking tired and running out of steam, but Walker fine tuned it and took it up another notch. He just couldn''t replicate that at Everton with a new squad and by the time he came back to Norwich the momentum (and most of the players he had nurtured) had gone. I''ll always love him for what he did here though. Great, great times. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
whoareyou? 0 Posted June 5, 2009 Always wondered what he could have achieved here if Chase had backed him. I suspect with a little funding we may well have won the first ever Premier League season which would have been astonishing.Sadly Chase decided winning the League was going to cost cash so it never happened and Walker walked.Great great times the like of which i doubt i will ever see again in my lifetime! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yellowbeagle 0 Posted June 5, 2009 As if it isnt bad enough that we are having to endure the current bad times some of us want to dismantle the distant good memories aswell. What the hell makes any of us want to rubbish Mike Walkers efforts, some of my fondest memories he was a massive part of. Give the guy some credit the couple of seasons before he was manager we were struggling against such greats as Notts County. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
. 0 Posted June 6, 2009 [quote user="Yellowbeagle"]As if it isnt bad enough that we are having to endure the current bad times some of us want to dismantle the distant good memories aswell. What the hell makes any of us want to rubbish Mike Walkers efforts, some of my fondest memories he was a massive part of. Give the guy some credit the couple of seasons before he was manager we were struggling against such greats as Notts County.[/quote]No-one is rubbishing the years he helped give us... but I''m afraid he was handed it on a plate and then showed how actually inadequate he was when given the Everton job....Nice bloke though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yellowbeagle 0 Posted June 6, 2009 [quote user="Cluck is God"][quote user="Yellowbeagle"]As if it isnt bad enough that we are having to endure the current bad times some of us want to dismantle the distant good memories aswell. What the hell makes any of us want to rubbish Mike Walkers efforts, some of my fondest memories he was a massive part of. Give the guy some credit the couple of seasons before he was manager we were struggling against such greats as Notts County.[/quote]No-one is rubbishing the years he helped give us... but I''m afraid he was handed it on a plate and then showed how actually inadequate he was when given the Everton job....Nice bloke though.[/quote]Sorry cant agree with you he re-motivated players who we''re looking like relegation material the couple of seasons before. He also brought in a good replacement in Robins for Fleck. Megson holding the midfield allowed Crook more freedom to do what he should have been able to do in the years before. He also brough in decent squad players like Ekoku and Prior, aswell as a big role in bringing Sutton through. He was also knew when to make a subsitution at the right time to impact a game. The style of our game changed with his appointment, we became more direct without hitting it long, where under Stringer towards the end we over passed until we gave a silly goal away, some of the football we played under Walker was the best football I''ve witnessed at carrow road. Agreed he didnt do very well at Everton were radical changes were needed and bigger managers also struggled, but the people slagging him on here make it sound like we were some amazing team that he just happened to be lucky enough to take over and that any manager could have come in and done well, the two years before Walker took over we were very poor at times, losing to some real crap. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Delia Out! 0 Posted June 6, 2009 [quote user="Cluck is God"][quote user="Yellowbeagle"]As if it isnt bad enough that we are having to endure the current bad times some of us want to dismantle the distant good memories aswell. What the hell makes any of us want to rubbish Mike Walkers efforts, some of my fondest memories he was a massive part of. Give the guy some credit the couple of seasons before he was manager we were struggling against such greats as Notts County.[/quote]No-one is rubbishing the years he helped give us... but I''m afraid he was handed it on a plate and then showed how actually inadequate he was when given the Everton job....Nice bloke though.[/quote]Too true Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Camuldonum 0 Posted June 7, 2009 [quote user="Yellowbeagle"]As if it isnt bad enough that we are having to endure the current bad times some of us want to dismantle the distant good memories aswell. What the hell makes any of us want to rubbish Mike Walkers efforts, some of my fondest memories he was a massive part of. Give the guy some credit the couple of seasons before he was manager we were struggling against such greats as Notts County.[/quote]I have even fonder memories of his time as Colchester United''s goalkeeper. We have not found a better one yet. No it did not go well at Everton but he saw them off a last day escape from relegation I believe shortly before being fired. Lovely genuine guy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
norfolkbroadslim 223 Posted June 7, 2009 For those too young to remember and if I recal correctly, there were something like a dozen passes (at least) before the clip starts. A shame as there doesn''t appear to be a full clip out there. Like has already been mentioned, some excellent, beautiful football under Walker.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7yuKZlTtjQ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites