TheBogEnd » Statement regarding Craig and Adam

Andy Harrup · 22/4/2015 5:58 pm

Tooting & Mitcham United FC will be parting company with Craig Tanner and Adam Moriarty at the end of the season.

The club feels a change is required in order to attain it's ambition of promotion from Ryman South.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Craig and Adam for all their hard work in bringing stability to the Club over the last 2 years and would like to wish them all the best for the future.

We will now look to appoint a new management team as soon as possible.

GregB · 22/4/2015 6:10 pm

Dreadful news. Here we go again. New manager, new players back to where we were. Did they want to leave? I just knew this would happen and the excuse is always 'it's best for the club to move for promotion'. How often have we been told that?
Thanks Craig and Adam for all your efforts and sorry to see you go.

abovethebench · 22/4/2015 6:19 pm

If we had lost on Saturday then that would have been a perfect excuse, but they didn't. When did Craig and Adam know? I will be sorry to see them go. Now who are we going to get? Someone to take us into the Combined Counties?
Thanks to the both of you for all your efforts, which can't have been easy at times.

Ollifehere · 22/4/2015 6:19 pm

This is a shock !!! A big thankyou and goodluck to Craig and Adam for stabalising the team I have enjoyed some of the best football played by us at Imperial Fields over the last 2 seasons . Get the revolving door reinstalled!! the club needs stablility for goodness sake I feel a mass exodus approaching now .

PhilD · 22/4/2015 6:50 pm

I'm led to believe today by a very good source that the new manager has already been chosen and is Mark Hams.

If true then I don't believe that's the correct choice. He's recently been 1st team assistant manager/coach at Redhill and has just seen them relegated. Before that he got sacked from Walton Casuals having managed them to 9 straight defeats at the start of the season using a ridiculous amount of players! He also runs the Kingstonian academy, surely that's a bit of a conflict of interests as well being associated with another club local to you, especially as you run your own academy?!

endofthelane · 22/4/2015 7:29 pm

WHO ARE THE DECISION MAKERS IN THIS CASE?

Is it Steve Adkins or is it a members club decision?

Wolfie Smith · 22/4/2015 7:35 pm

Adkins makes the decisions

endofthelane · 22/4/2015 8:09 pm

Thanks Wolfie - what are his credentials for choosing a Ryman League manager and did the members club have any involvement in the decision as I was under the impression that the members club ran the footballing side of things.

Wolfie Smith · 22/4/2015 8:14 pm

Craig and Adam had drafted a proposal on what they wanted to do at the club and how they was gonna take it forward this must have been at least 4-6 weeks ago and had given it to Steve so I'm sure he gets the final decision. Would be good to know if the Members Club had a small say it. Will probably have to wait till the next AGM to find out!

endofthelane · 22/4/2015 8:28 pm

Wolfie - considering that the members club website haven't managed to give us any info on the last AGM yet, I wouldn't hold your breath for an official response from them.

alanj · 22/4/2015 8:42 pm

I am absolutely disgusted at this somewhat shabby treatment of two people who put the pride back in our great club, this is not my heart ruling my head but they at the very least should have been allowed to start next season and if not in a play off spot by Christmas, then review the situation.
What a shabby way to treat them both, I sincerely hope they both get another club soon and show our management/owner what he has lost.
I had better finish now before I say things I might regret.

alanj · 22/4/2015 8:49 pm

Can not agree with you more Gary, Mark Hams! no thank you, not exactly the most successfull manager?coach.
I was going to suggest to Harry getting some flyers printed, at my expense, to then distribute them locally, giving a history of the club, the facilities, the management and players, ready for the first friendlies, NOT NOW!

PhilD · 22/4/2015 9:47 pm

A great coach that has just helped Redhill get relegated you mean?!

And if the rumour you've heard is the same one I heard from a player tonight about Frank Wilson being manager then I'd fear the worst even more! Ran your reserves and seems to have stabbed Tanner and Moriarty in the back getting in the owners ear, nice guy to have running the side!

PhilD · 22/4/2015 10:04 pm

Of the 2 potentials you mention Hayden Bird would be a good shout considering the good job he's doing at Merstham and I know he's looking elsewhere but he always likes to go somewhere with money and upsets people very easily.

The other Matt Howard from Corinthian Casuals is very interesting as the other end of the scale I understand they don't pay players and he'll have finished in a near enough same league position as Tooting so must be a very good option indeed.

Plumpton · 22/4/2015 10:25 pm

Very very shocked.....seems surreal reading this. More when I've got my head around it.....

fretters · 23/4/2015 12:54 am

Was at work when I got the message about 5 hours ago. Just got home and I'm still coming to terms with it!!! Just cannot for the life of me get my head around this decision!!!!!!! What I want to say is pretty much what everyone else has been saying. So what happens now??? Do we start again??? Craig and Adam have brought the feel good factor back to the club over the last two seasons and now that feel good factor is in danger of being taken away again. Feeling utterly despondant at the moment!!!!

geoff g · 23/4/2015 6:46 am

Having read all the views, I don't think Frank is the answer, what we need is someone who is experienced in managing a team at this level or even higher. Hayden Bird would want a big budget, Mark Hams would be a good number 2 as he was at Kingstonian. At the moment I don't have a preference because I don't know who will be applying for the job, if indeed it's going to be advertised. It's no good plucking a name out of thin air. We should not rush into it. Perhaps George as manager & Billy as Director of Football.

Hackbridge Harry · 23/4/2015 7:16 am

gary walker wrote:
I have heard the Members club wanted Craig and got over ruled.
I have heard other disturbing news that has amazed me which is unprintable as I think the club has embrassed them selves enough today.
If it was Hayden currently 3rd in the table you could understand it. I am gob smacked.
I need to calm down and get off here before I embarrass myself. Fxxk sake. Mark Hamms. #joke .

At the members club AGM we were told that three proposals had gone into Steve Adkins, one of course being from Craig. We were then asked for our opinion of how we felt the season had gone. The split was about 70% - 30% in Craig’s favour but there were still people not happy with the way the season had gone and were not happy with the management team.

I have no idea if there have been any other talks between people involved in the members club and Steve Adkins after that night.

23/4/2015 8:16 am

The fact of the matter is, the team has not moved forward this season. A big deal was made during the close season that Craig got the budget he asked for, so he has no excuse. We are going to end up with less points and in the same or lower position than last season. The performances – especially since November have been as a whole, poor. 10 players sent off (so far) is not a good statistic either!
Yes we are in the final of the London Senior Cup, but the opposition has hardly been high class (until Hendon in the final).
Craig unfortunately does not appear to have learnt from mistakes made. To be frank, the club is a business and in most businesses these days the people at the top have targets and if they fail to reach these targets they find themselves looking for a new job! Like it or not that’s what happens and I guess that’s what has happened here.

endofthelane · 23/4/2015 8:52 am

I agree that this season has been disappointing in terms of results and the second half of the season the performances have been patchy at best. But I don't agree that football should be treated like any other business, particularly the playing side. If you look at Harry's other team, there were times in the past when Gavin Rose was performing badly, but look at them now. Wealdstone are another. Gordon Bartlett struggled for a couple of seasons - and he's a very experienced manager. Now look at them.

If we were looking for guaranteed promotion within 2 seasons then we should have appointed an experienced manager. But we didn't - and we took on a rookie. So I would expect a lot more leeway on his supposed mistakes. I would say he had a good season last year (considering the circumstances) and a poor season this time (but not a disastrous one). So one disappointing season and you get the chop. Its not right.

Bog End Ultra · 23/4/2015 8:53 am

DaveM wrote:
To be frank, the club is a business and in most businesses these days the people at the top have targets and if they fail to reach these targets they find themselves looking for a new job! Like it or not that’s what happens and I guess that’s what has happened here.

The exact point I was making to Alan and Joe on Saturday, our benefactor Mr Adkins sees football as a simple mathematical equation, if you have the best playing budget he expects you to finish first, anything less is a failure, if you have the 5th highest budget he expects you to finish in the play offs, anything less is a failure. I don't know how our playing budget compared to those clubs that finished in the play offs and I'm not and never will be a businessman. I'm just a sentimental old footy fan so I guess I'll just have to take my medicine this morning.

Ollifehere · 23/4/2015 8:56 am

1. The fact of the matter isthe football has most definately moved forward - most fans views not just mine
2. They got the budget they asked for yes and they had crucial injuries to big players since November which saw a drop in performances
3. 10 players sent off I agree not good - but the view that ' Craig unfortunately does not appear to have learnt from his mistakes' is unfair I think, remember this was a new management team in their first job - I thought initially an excellent decision by the club as it uses the acadamy philosphy from building the club from within - give an opportunity to a former player and captain - reinforce opportunities to young people give them a vision of what they could acheive etc . Am I the only one thinking now that by sacking Craig and Adam it suggests to all the young players coming through you dont really get a chance and also for the next manager(s) if it is Frank , you wont get a chance either. Steve doesnt appear to be learning from his own ' mistakes' ...is this Franks first job ? what has he done in non-league? The club are living in the dark ages we have lost an inspirational management team who brought in a style of play that enabled the acadamy boys to come in seamlessly. Steve if you continue to listen to the 'get the ball forward' boys on the committee any longer you will be playing in the combined counties with Redhill and who helped them to get there? Mark Hamms

Bondy · 23/4/2015 9:12 am

At last, just as this risked becoming the 'Jordan Cheadle Affair - Episode 2' (where most were unhappy with his/the back 4 performances but then revealed themselves to be desperately in love with him when he was released) we have the relevation that the Members Club AGM had mixed opinions if this was the right partnership to take the club back up to where they desperately need to be (the No 1 priority) and some words of sense from DaveM.

How many of those now enaging in high pitched wailing and renting of clothing were so desperately keen during the 6 week period that saw us fall out of any play off place possibilities with a league record of Won 1 / Drew 3 / Lost 7?

Feel free to jump on me but I would emphasise:
- it has been wonderful to finally have some stability after the nonsense of revolving door managers and players
- I have greatly enjoyed turning up to watch my team play football by passing the ball out from the back. And I have supported Craig & Adam in that, even when the groans have cascaded down from the stand behind me when a mistake has cost us yet another goal.
- I enjoyed the initial return to much greater on pitch discipline (sadly that has slipped away)
- the team had clearly been given a well thought out game plan and were allowed/encouraged to play without constant bitching and histronics from the management, even when things went wrong
- they have not been afraid to give young players a chance to gain game time experience
- plus loads of other good things.
However:
- as Dave M states above, in a poor standard league where some teams on pay their players anything we will finish lower than we did last year on what I believe to be quite a reasonable budget
- a pre season target was set and a budget given to acheive that which, I believe, was later bumped up. And the target was, very sadly, not achived.
- Ultimately, the man who foots the bill has the final say. Don't like it? Get your own money out.

Personally I blame Adam. Clearly he stopped playing for the 1st team way too early!
Something we do all agree on.   Or do we?.

Last edited by Bondy (23/4/2015 9:50 am)

endofthelane · 23/4/2015 9:27 am

That's precisely the point. I think that even though there were plenty of groans from the terraces as we conceded yet another goal from one of our corners, there was also an overriding understanding that we have two rookie managers and that, in a change from the usual, we were embarking on a long term strategy for slow and steady improvement - not boom and bust.

Bog End Ultra · 23/4/2015 9:49 am

endofthelane wrote:
That's precisely the point. I think that even though there were plenty of groans from the terraces as we conceded yet another goal from one of our corners, there was also an overriding understanding that we have two rookie managers and that, in a change from the usual, we were embarking on a long term strategy for slow and steady improvement - not boom and bust.

Exactly Endo, exactly.

A friend of mine is goalkeeping coach at Burgess Hill and when we went there earlier on this season he told me it had taken them 3 years to get to the stage they had reached. That was 3 years with a guy that had managed Whitehawk and coached at Brighton & Hove Albion, not a rookie.

Forgive me my high pitched wailing Bondy, I'm an emotional sort of bloke