Time for change

[Bosco]

I was going to leave this untill the end of the season,as someone said after wales "lets wait till the end of the season and then judge",well as far as im concerned the seasons over.Its been a long time coming but saturday night was the last straw.Alan has brought us fantastic success and many memorable moments,i have always been a supporter/defender of matthews but now i believe it is time to part ways.This season has been a terrible as far as im concerned.Yes,we can try and comfort ourselves with our unbeaten run,but when it comes down to it how many memorable moments have we had this season.We have got by on draws and 1-0 wins all season.Waterford twice and rovers away are the only real great matches i can remember and 3 matches in a whole league season is very very poor.We simply cannot continue with a manager that is disliked by a big majority of our fans most of whom have left us.Town games just simply arn't attractive anymore to people.Even those of us who come out week in week out now find it reasonable to get a crowd of 700 out there.We simply cant progress while the majority of the current squad and management are there.

[Dillo]

Having watched Eircom League weekly last night I can't help but agree with you there Bosco. Matthews has brought De Town as far as he can in my view. To hear him criticise his players in public after the game was very unprofessional on his part. He branded the performance as "inept" and said that "if the players did not change their mentality then the players will change". As Pat Scully rightly remarked, there is a time and a place to do this but not in public. Very seldom do we hear managers at any level in football issue such threats to their players in the public ear. It is apparent that there is somewhat of a crisis developing at Flancare with Matthews possibly knowing that his time is up. It was a shamblic performance saturday night and the nature of our defending for most of the goals was horrendous. Loosing to Carmarthen 5-1, Rovers 4-2, dumped out of the cup by UCD, even failing to beat a poor Bray outfit (arguably the worst footballing team in the league) at home a couple of weeks ago and now conceeding 5 to bottom of the table Finn Harps, sadly reflect a team in decline. I would like to see Matthews step down at the end of the season. Fair enough, he must be complimented on his cup triumphs which were memorable days but say what you like, Stephen Kenny made this club what it is today. He did the spadework and made LTFC for what it is today. The pedigree of the man is evident from what he has done at Derry this season. As for De Town, if the current management is still in place next season, I predict a red and bleak road ahead.

[Macy]

Fair enough, he must be complimented on his cup triumphs which were memorable days but say what you like, Stephen Kenny made this club what it is today. He did the spadework and made LTFC for what it is today. The pedigree of the man is evident from what he has done at Derry this season.

Yeah give Kenny credit for Matthews winning us 3 cups.

Here we get to the bottom of it - people are still obsessed with Kenny (who left us in the bleeding relegation play off position with a crap team that Lawlor did well to keep up). They're like the sad old drunk in the corner that can't get over the fact his missus has walked out and left him and he just mumbles into his pint about how everything was fine when they were still there.

Whatever about the decisions that have to be made at the end of the season, don't continue to perpertuate this myth that Kenny built everything. It's ignorant to Matthews, the only manager to bring us a senior trophy, never mind the work done by the committee.

[Tallanted]

kenny got us promoted lawlor kept us up matthews won us cups. its all history forget it. what has happened in this season has been embarrassing. its about what is happening now and that is nothing at the moment. its time we got rid of matthews. his true colours were shown on tv last night. it is unexceptable

[Ronnie]

Look, Kenny left us , fact, best of luck to the man, 3 great seasons and half a crap one.
Lawlor, did half a season and we sacked him. Other than the win in Ballybofey a bloody disaster.
Matthews has 4 seasons done, this being his worst, but the previous three are our clubs best three seasons ever. Yes changes are needed, this is very much becoming a serious hangover season, but I don't believe the manager needs to be changed. Some here have been calling for his head from his first season in charge! We spent 78 years without winning a senior trophy, the man brings us 3 in 2 years and cause we don't win one the next year we throw him out? Oh yes, and bring in who.....?

[Macy]

Look, Kenny left us , fact, best of luck to the man, 3 great seasons and half a crap one.
Lawlor, did half a season and we sacked him. Other than the win in Ballybofey a bloody disaster.
Matthews has 4 seasons done, this being his worst, but the previous three are our clubs best three seasons ever. Yes changes are needed, this is very much becoming a serious hangover season, but I don't believe the manager needs to be changed. Some here have been calling for his head from his first season in charge! We spent 78 years without winning a senior trophy, the man brings us 3 in 2 years and cause we don't win one the next year we throw him out? Oh yes, and bring in who.....?

The voice of reason....

[town73]

The voice of reason....

Agreed.

Kenny got us promoted, but left a team that was struggling at the time. Lawlor did his best to get us relegated. Had sufficient players to get us out of bother - just.

We won three national trophies - should have been four - during Mathews' seasons in charge with a team built completely by Mathews. Teams have phases, and from time to time they need to be rebuilt. Now is that time, which is what Mathews was referring to in his comments on TV3 on Monday night.

What he said on TV3 should not be taken as a negative comment. It was a warning to players that contracts will not be renewed easily - which he has told them in private. It was a message that he is aware that current form is not good enough. Scully, in true 'Rico' form, misread it completely.

In spite of a team that is performing badly, we're still in with a shout for fourth - although hardly likely - which in my book would be a fantastic achievement. To get rid of our manager now smacks of panic in the extreme.

If you want a reminder of how big our achievement in winning back-to-back FAI Cups was, watch how much Drogheda and Cork will (rightly) make of it.

[Bosco]

Matthews has done wonders for the club,he brought us from a team battling to stay up to 3 time cup winners and no one is denying that,he is a good manager and would probably be snapt up should he leave,however i believe he has brought us as far as he can.Ok,maybe its just a bad season but lets forget about the league season gone by and focus on other points.Its is not good for a club to have a manager in charge who is disliked and has been disliked for a long time regardless of cup wins.Why is it that he is soo disliked even do he is such a successful manager?Why does the topic of him being sacked come up soo much?Why is it that he has fallen out with soo many players(francis,lavine,murphy,prunty,baker,cawley) ,and his public outburst on saturday is only going to cause more rows.The players have lost confidence in matthews and that is something which should never happen.The players should have a passion to play for their manager and if that is not the case its the manager who should change and not the players.As a defense minded manager,we continuely play an ugly style of football,yes we do occasionally play great football but lets face it,very rarely.The crowds are not coming out to flancare and only a very dramatic change is going to change their mind.A huge clear out is needed,there is a negative vibe around the club and this vibe has not been created by the players alone.It would look very fickle from the outside to sack matthews now,as do he has been sacked as there has been no success this season but from the inside we all know that this has been brewing for a long long time.Where would a replacement come from?I'm not sure but where did matthews and kenny come from?When we went out of the cup,it was not all doom and gloom to me,we were challenging for 3rd and would have kept 4th spot easily but as far as i can see the season ended after the ucd game for the players and management(maybe rico was right).

[Bosco]

We were unlucky to lose to UCD - the ref' 'did us' by awarding them a peno. in the Flansiro - and he even admitted it !
We had a million and one chances in UCD, but failed to take 'em. Gough was guilty of a dreadful mistake that led to the second UCD goal - was it Matthew's fault he was about four yards off the defender ???????/
And we were desperately unlucky not to beat Bray - how the ball stayed out of the net I don't know. It was reminiscent of the Camarthen game at home when we could've scored TEN goals, but the ball miraculously stayed out of the net ..........

Luck should not come into it against the likes of UCD,Bray and camarthen.Good teams do not need luck to beat teams they are superior to.

How would you feel being a fan of PAts, Bray, UCD, Rovers, Derry, Drogs ????????????

Wouldnt mind being a derry fan.Ucd seem to be having a decent season,LC final and no relegation worries.Bray likewise.Drogs havnt been good enough considering the money that has been put into them and reaching the cup final may save doolin his job.Both rovers and pats have taken massive wage cuts this season and lost players.Rovers have done very well,also taking into account that they have been deducted 8 points.Pats have had an awful season i will admit.

WE ARE JOINT FOURTH IN THE LEAGUE ......................

Or in other words 6th and getting lower

[Wiseguy]

Matthews should not be going public with statements like that and i'm sure he regrets it but sacking the man isn't the solution.This season hasn't been a great one and has shown up some players for what they are.Matthews should have another season at it and bring in the right players then we'll see how everything shapes up.As is always the case some people on here are just waiting for the chance to stick the knives in.

[observer]

The overall picture may get dramatically worse over the coming months. Now that performances and attendances are on a serious downward trend I cannot see Jim Hanley continue to put his time and money into the club. If or when he goes then I can see the club crashing out of the premiership and into serious financial difficulty. Matthews attack on the players was a serious mistake and seems to have signalled the end of his tenure as manager.
It is a pity that the committee of Longford Town did not take issue with Alan over the past few years in relation to his policy not to play young locals. Preferring instead to bring in Dubs who were past their sell by date (eg.Liam Kelly). By accepting this position the committee made it clear to all our promising young locals that they had no future with the club. This has resulted in lack of spirit in team performances, waste of money on larger wage bills, and critically decreasing gates as locals have no players to identify with. No player associated with the team has come through the local youth teams. Gary Murphy played youth football in Athlone and Gary Cassin in Dublin. No doubt the committee will say there were none good enough but how can you know when they were never given the chance.

[Xlex]

Matthews only said on T.V. what must have been said in the dressing room. And to be honest after losing 5-0 at Finn Park, it isn't a complete shocker...

There is too much negativity around Matthews and the performances for the average supporter to get their asses to games and we are facing an uphill battle with full-time supporters bad mouthing him when when they get a chance.

We need a fresh start, and that begins at management, and it's not all his fault. That's the sad part of it all.

IMO I'd be looking at building a side around Dillo, Barry, Prunty, Deano, Martin and Mooney.

[Macy]

And who exactly would you get to replace Matthews ?

This is the big question for the Matthews out brigade. We fell on our feet with Matthews being part of Lawlors team and taking his chance as caretaker.

So who the fook will we bring in that is going to turn everything around?

[Dillo]

[QUOTE=Cop on]Je$us lads will ye get a grip. We were unlucky to lose to UCD - the ref' 'did us' by awarding them a peno. in the Flansiro - and he even admitted it !
We had a million and one chances in UCD, but failed to take 'em. Gough was guilty of a dreadful mistake that led to the second UCD goal - was it Matthew's fault he was about four yards off the defender ???????/




It's all IFS and BUTS with you cop on. You should do as your Username suggests and COP ON! We are currently languishing in 6th position in a very poor league with more games played than the teams above us. The gap between the top three and the rest is immense. Luck doesn't come into the equation when playing the likes of Bray and Carmarthen for that matter. Face up to the facts and stop making excuses. I firmly believe we should be our fourth fai cup final this December. UCD should have been beaten and both Bray and Drogs were very reasonable draws had we gone through. As Bosco rightly pointed out, there is a negative vibe at the club and this vibe hasn't been generated by the players alone. Gone are the days of passion and that never say die attitude. Players like Alan Murphy and Vinny Perth epitomised what De Town were about- what they lacked in quality they made up for in endeavour and sheer graft. Longford's recent successes have been based on the defensive side of their game but that also seems to have disappeared. Ferguson and O' Connor are not performing and are always prone to error. Sean Prunty is a shadow of the player he was a few seasons ago. We still haven't found an adequate replacement for Stewy Byrne. A mass flancare exodus might just be on the cards...

[Macy]

Who would you bring in? I know it's far easier to rant away at Matthews, but it's a simple enough question if you're so ready for a change....

[Dillo]

Sin an Ceist Macy! We're not exactly blessed with top managers in this country are we?

[Macy]

Sin an Ceist Macy! We're not exactly blessed with top managers in this country are we?

Yeah well maybe some of you should think about it before demanding Matthews sacking. He is one of the top managers ffs

[Bosco]

Ah ffs. So he shouldn't have fallen out with a player who was over in England on the pi$$ while he should have been at training. I admire the man's patience with a player who was an absolute disgrace in his unprofessional attitude.

Any manager would have fallen out with lavine,he deserved to go,however the point was not just about him.What about the other 5 players he has fallen out with that we know of and more to come.Oh and you can make that 6 i forgot about adrian murphy.

A huge clear out ?? So you'd get rid of who ?? Kirbs ? Prunty ? Barry ? Dillo ? Paiso ? Deano ? Mooney ? And who exactly would you get to replace them ?

Allmost everyone on this board has admitted that a huge clear out is needed!Do you not agree?So you dont think the players or the management should change?What is your solution then?Why would i get rid of any of the players you mentioned?They are probably the only players who have performed for us + martin.How about getting rid of the likes of cronin,myler,o'connor,gough,even barrett-the players who have not been good enough.To replace them?Thats up to the manager,if it be matthews,he has shown that he is able to find good players(mooney,deano,martin,dillo,paiso,barry)and some not soo good ones.Why not give the youth a chance?Something which alan has shown no interest in.Young paul kelly is a fantastic talent and i would love to see him getting a chance.18 year old mcnicholous signed last year and never got a chance to prove himself and now hes gone.

And who exactly would you get to replace Matthews ?

Thats up to the board should they decide to sack matthews.Kenny and matthews came out of nowhere.Your above quote is the exact same response i gave to people doubhting matthews before when i was defending matthews.Can he be that hard to replace?Our success in the cup was largely down to his defencive style of play.We did not need to go out and win games in the cup as draws kept us in it,in the league drawing games hasnt done the trick.At the moent we habe possibly the most talented squad of players we have ever had but matthews does not get them to play good football on a regular basis.I believe we have a decent squad of players,look at what happened when rico inherited a good squad of players.he wasnt exactly known for being a great manager.If matthews stays and things change then fair enough,i will support that,i am not 100% behind matthews being sacked,but i know something has to change and if it be the management then so be it.

(Seems like you're waiting for someone to walk in out of nowhere. remember Lawlor !!!!)

Remember kenny,remember matthews?

Do you really think a huge clear out will have people streaming into the Flansiro ?

A huge clear out no,but a huge clear out with the idea of bringing in some young enthusiastic players who might play for the jersey and not for their wages.People want exctiment and a shake up might bring that,the boring style of football whic alan has our team playing is not exciting nor is getting thumped by the likes of finn harps,camarthen and rovers.Can you see big numbers coming out to flancare next season when we under go our usual terrible start to the season and then try to make up for it in mid season.The average bandwagoner/barstooler is bored of longford town and things need to be freshend up as a club cannot exist with no fans.

[Bosco]

Ha! HA! This is hilarious. Lads - Matthews ain't going nowhere. The only ones who want Matthews out are the four or five deluded ones who chose to post on this forum. The 'silent majority' have no wish for Matthews to go/be pushed.

What in the name of god are you on about? .I'll try and respond to a post that doesnt make sense.5 out of 10 who have posted in this thread think matthews should go.Others are hesitant as we may be taking a chance on who should replace him but allmost everyone admits something has to change.Who are the silent majority?????Are they the other 900 odd fans who havn't posted on this thread.Well presuming you have attended alot of town matches this season,im sure you will know that this "majority" havnt been too silent about their views of alan during the season,sometimes they have been harsh in their criticism but now i am sure they will be quick to let people know their views on matthews.

p.s Are unable to make a post without insulting someone??Maybe the cork fans had a point!

[Terry Phelan]

Pat Dolan