Snowflake RoyalFrom Despair To Where? So I should cut him some slack because he "gave up on the season too easily"?
What utter revisionist nonsense.
Yes Clarke fcuked it up with the whole Fulham nonsense destabilising the squad but this was a squad that entered October 3rd in the table so there was no lack of ability on the playing side. Regardless of the number of loan players, there was bags of ability but confidence was low but one of McDermott's, strengths was supposedly his ability to foster team spirit and motivate the players.
He then appeared in the press on a number of occasions with thinly veiled whinges about the owners and the squad, almost getting pre-emptive excuses in. You can't "give up on the season" when you're looking to build for the next. It's unprofessional and sets completely the wrong example to the players. Steve Coppell always used to say that how you finish a season sets a marker for how you start the next. You take that momentum and confidence (or lack of) into pre season and that sets the tone.
You should cut him some slack because he inherited a shambles of players with no interest in performing or who had been destroyed by Clarke.
No i wouldn't cut him any slack; he was the manager and his job was to motivate the players and he was brought back for that reason. From memory he didn't use the loanees much anyway. He signed dross too eg Rakels, Gravenberch etc