Manager announcement this evening

According to the official Twitter feed

Who are the bets on then?

Jim

It is Gary Owers

Great News, rated him as a player and manager.
I know this will be an unpopular decision for many, (sorry Steve S, have to disagree with you on this one)
Worked with the youngsters at Bristol City I believe.
So glad to see the back of Britton.
Worried about the cost of any contracts, was expecting someone in until the end of the season, perhaps he is.
I have no doubts that he will succeed and the stay away fans will return.

Welcome back Gary

We wanted some to put a bit of grit into the team and rally the troops. Think this could be exactly what we need. Onwards and upwards!

Although i am a regular now i was an occasional fan during his original reign. Whats the history? Why would he be an unpopular choice?

Well, out of all the managers we've had I'd say he has the best track record with signing players. Evans, Holland, Partridge to name but a few.

Players I've spoken to since he's left have all said he's a superb coach. Whether that also means he's a great manager is something I don't know.

Good appointment. Well done to the Biard for acting quickly.

Roll up the sleeves time

bristoldome wrote:Although i am a regular now i was an occasional fan during his original reign. Whats the history? Why would he be an unpopular choice?

There was some bad feeling when he left for FGR. From the website pen pictures...

Gary surprisingly left Twerton Park in May 2005 after he was offered the managers position at Forest Green Rovers. Joined City in October 2003 from the Gloucestershire club as player coach but within a month was elevated to the manager's hot-seat following the sacking of Alan Pridham. Continued to play and looked to have City heading in the right direction before his sudden departure. In a long professional career Gary made over 600 appearances, including an FA Cup Final outing against Liverpool, for Sunderland, Bristol City and Notts County, before dropping into non-league football with Forest Green. He only lasted 15 months in the Forest Green hot-seat before being sacked and joined Weston Super Mare, where he was appointed caretaker manager in February 2007.

He's been at Aldershot, Plymouth, Motherwell and Gateshead since, all but the Scottish one as assistant manager.

We had a great run at the end of his first season, propelling us into those weird play offs to see who would make the cut for the new Conference South. The defeat to Dorchester at TP was a huge let down. But this was followed by 2 incredible highs the following year - the Williams inspired fightback at Chipp and the grand day out at Barnet.

Will be interesting to learn if he's got the job just until April or beyond then.

Interesting. I think as he has already been at the club - and left somewhat abruptly - there will be a few not overly impressed with the appointment but I am sure the majority (especially those who wanted to see the back of Howells and Britton) will get right behind him from the start.

As Mark says his record for bringing in players is second to none and his recent jobs, although somewhat nomadic, suggest he should have a widespread knowledge of players, given it covers Plymouth to Gateshead with a short stop even further north with Motherwell. He also seems to have had a number of youth related jobs which I am sure helped his application.

It certainly seems the club was on the way up under him before - we'd have probably qualified for the newly formed Conference South in 2004 had he taken over from Alan Pridham a few weeks earlier - and he laid the foundations for the successes we enjoyed under his successors.

I am also pleased Jimmer has been retained as assistant manager.

Thanks Comrade. I watched city when he was in charge but not enough to make a lasting impression. Whats his style of play? Good man manager? Good with the press?

I can't honestly remember, but I remember he was good with the fans. He was at the centre of perhaps the most shambolic supporters club event of all time, when we tried to do the end of season presentations in what is now the TR Hayes Lounge. The bar bell fell apart as we tried to get order and on learning that he had to present the East Anglian Branch Player of the Season award to Frankie Bennet, Owers quipped "you can't have seen him play much!"

Classic. Fraser breaking the bell and all that.

I also think he (Owers, not Fraser) ran a series of Soccer Schools for kids when he was here before.

Great memories of the win at Barnet

A good appointment I reckon - let everyone get behind him and hopefully we can move back up the table and not keep looking over our shoulders.

I hadn't realised until I looked at the archive that he was the last manager before Adie Britton joined the club (as assistant to John Relish) so in some ways we have gone full circle.

Looking forward to Whitehawk, and hopefully having the 'new manager bounce'.

Good to see positive remarks all round. Lets hope it continues. Cmon City!!

Given we don't have the money to appoint a miracle worker, this looks a very sound appointment.

Before my time here so can't comment but, at least, he wasn't sacked under a cloud so that is one thing about a former manager returning. Like yuffie, I am glad to see Jim kept on. I would also be interested to know what style of play he managed. Not only has the football since I have been watching us been, on occasion, excellent but we still have the players to play that way. If he brings in a more direct game, I am not sure we have the players to cope. Having said that, Partridge and Holland had a fair bit of skill.

Marc Monitor wrote:I would also be interested to know what style of play he managed.

I saw him play many times in a Sunderland side which was expected to play non long ball football (could we say good football?). They played with width and crossed a lot of balls in. He was key to that and always had something to say to fellow players. Looking back, not dissimilar to Kev Nicholson.

To me it looked pretty similar to the play when he managed here. I remember him whipping it in a number of times akin to his Roker Park days.

I think he is just what we need right now, the players we have would suit how it was then albeit with a little less ability...... I'm excited!

comrade powell wrote:

bristoldome wrote:Although i am a regular now i was an occasional fan during his original reign. Whats the history? Why would he be an unpopular choice?

There was some bad feeling when he left for FGR. From the website pen pictures...

Gary surprisingly left Twerton Park in May 2005 after he was offered the managers position at Forest Green Rovers. Joined City in October 2003 from the Gloucestershire club as player coach but within a month was elevated to the manager's hot-seat following the sacking of Alan Pridham. Continued to play and looked to have City heading in the right direction before his sudden departure. In a long professional career Gary made over 600 appearances, including an FA Cup Final outing against Liverpool, for Sunderland, Bristol City and Notts County, before dropping into non-league football with Forest Green. He only lasted 15 months in the Forest Green hot-seat before being sacked and joined Weston Super Mare, where he was appointed caretaker manager in February 2007.

He's been at Aldershot, Plymouth, Motherwell and Gateshead since, all but the Scottish one as assistant manager.

We had a great run at the end of his first season, propelling us into those weird play offs to see who would make the cut for the new Conference South. The defeat to Dorchester at TP was a huge let down. But this was followed by 2 incredible highs the following year - the Williams inspired fightback at Chipp and the grand day out at Barnet.

Will be interesting to learn if he's got the job just until April or beyond then.

We did OK with him. Re the play off dissapointment, Dorchester threw money at a several short term signings. They were brought in just prior to the play off game and 'did a job' on us before disappearing.

Good appointment imo.
Gaz was very good when I played for him, his training was interesting and at a high tempo which is what the players need. He actually understands football which helps.......
Keeping Jim on board is great as well, great for the club and I know from speaking to him he wanted to stay and be a part of the new management team.

Haven't checked but I'm pretty sure the spine or foundation of the side that Rello/Adie are given much of the credit for was put together by Gaz.

Reading all this, it sounds to me like we are now a shoe-in for promotion....
<this is sarcasm btw>