.COM's overview on the sacking

[Craig 6700]

If it puts an end to the indifference, the rancour, the disillusionment and the division that has debilitated the fans and the players, then the departure of Souness is good news at any price.

 

There has to be an end to fans going to games out of a sense of duty, not enjoyment.

 

The negativity in the stands is matched by that on the field - a genuine feel-bad factor has engulfed this club in the last six weeks.

 

Something had to give. 

 

It's been mentioned that recent late goals and incidents in home games have conjured up a range of mixed emotions among fans of long- standing.

 

Be it Villa's penalty miss, Clark's leveller against the smoggies or Shearer's winner versus Mansfield - those events weren't always celebrated as wholeheartedly as they would have been in other circumstances.

 

And having written that we couldn't ever reconcile going to a game hoping we lost, it has to be recorded that that 0-3 on Wednesday night our mindset was geared to conceding further goals, if it had the necessary effect on Freddie's trigger finger.

 

We've been suffering from the stands for too long to believe that this is the worst, but by the same token the miserablism of  some seasons past has been revisited in recent weeks.

 

Some newer converts who don't recall NUFC BK (before Keegan) have never seen us in quite this plight, but from those who have there are echoes of previous times - most recently the Jim Smith era, where we were a beaten team once we conceded a goal.

 

Consecutive losses at Liverpool, Spurs, Fulham and Man City were characterised by a mostly muted response from the away support - people just couldn't feel anything for the man who was making them turn against their much-loved club.

 

Optimism had been replaced by resignation and indifference.

 

The action of ousting Souness has to be taken as a rallying point for all and sundry, starting with some positive response from the stands on Saturday.

 

It's hard to feel that a weight hasn't been lifted from our shoulders, but it will only be a fleeting relief if things don't improve on the field.

 

Owen's metatarsal and Boumsong's positioning won't instantly improve, but in terms of unity, tactics and motivation things could scarcely get any worse.

 

Souness said after the Manchester City game that he was getting everything he could out of his squad.

 

For that statement alone he deserved to go and it's up to those players to ram that statement down his throat by their actions on the pitch. The fightback begins here.

 

Howay the lads.

[David Kelly 1260]

I think it sums up a lot of what most of us have been thinking.

[Papa Lazaru 0]

Completely agree with that. One of the worst things Souness did in his time here was kill all hope and enjoyment and leave many fans (myself included) unable to ever truly enjoy wins when you knew it allowed him to stay longer and further fuck the club up.

[donaldstott 0]

Nice article.

 

Say what you like about nufc.com but they are on the pulse the majority of the time.

[Renton 22001]

Best thing they've written for some time and spot on.

 

Personally, I thought that site was far too supportive of Souness for far too long, but bygones now I guess.

[Holden McGroin 6783]

Agree with most of that apart from "6 weeks"... hopefully they meant "6 months"