Mcnee Article from sunday paper

[Northfield Quine]

CALDERWOOD MUST CARRY CAN

 

ABERDEEN’S season will be over next weekend when Celtic come calling in the Scottish Cup.

 

Not even home advantage will save the dismal Dons. Dismal? The word doesn’t even begin to explain how bad this Pittodrie squad is.

 

Twenty-three goals shipped in seven games during February certainly give a clue. It began with the 4-1 League Cup semi-final defeat by Dundee United followed days later by a 5-1 Pittodrie thrashing by Celtic. The 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich restored a bit of pride.

 

But it also posed the question as to why the level of first-half performance that night is seldom in evidence and was certainly missing days later when they lost 3-1 to Hibs at Easter Road.

 

The 5-1 battering in Munich was not unexpected and that was followed by a dreadful performance at Rugby Park where Kilmarnock ended their own poor run with an easy 3-1 victory.

 

There were five Aberdeen players in the penalty box all marking fresh air at Killie’s first goal.

You wonder how effective the manager and coaches are on the training ground when you witness something like that.

 

February ended with the defence unable to protect a lead in the 1-1 draw with Motherwell. When some misguided souls recently waxed lyrical about Aberdeen still competing in three cup competitions and having a chance of third place in the SPL I forecast that in the blink of an eye they could be out of them all and in the bottom half of the League.

 

Five bad defeats and two draws in a month backed my judgement that all is not well with this club. When manager Jimmy Calderwood, above, took the reins Aberdeen had been in the doldrums. He gave them an initial lift but they are sinking again.

 

It was a blunder to recently award him a new three-year contract. The alarm bells were already ringing. What was Stewart Milne and his board thinking about?

 

Calderwood’s post-match interviews invariably include comments like: “This cannot go on†and “this is unacceptableâ€. But it has and he must take a huge part of the blame.

 

Refuge

 

After defeat by Killie he said he would have to get rid of an entire team and build from scratch. What does it say about his judgement of players? He signed them and still selects them. The latest comment is his final refuge. He has nowhere else to hide.

 

The board, saddled with Calderwood’s deal, will attempt to batten down the hatches and hope to escape the ire of long-suffering fans till summer. Even then, is Calderwood the man to lead them forward?

 

The answer has to be no. When young players see him walk into the dressing room what do you imagine they think? Is he a figure to inspire? Again, no.

 

The same applies to director of football Willie Miller, a magnificent defender who must look in horror at the likes of the Rugby Park fiasco.

 

But he is miscast in this role. He’s not the inspiring skipper of old and after an unsuccessful spell as manager at Pittodrie he too cuts the figure of a loser. His backing of Calderwood’s new deal merely emphasised poor judgement.

 

The board now find themselves between a rock and a hard place. Can they afford to bite the bullet and pay the compensation required if the club is to change direction?

 

Surely they must look at what Craig Levein has achieved at Dundee United, Mark McGhee at Motherwell, John Hughes at Falkirk and the early impact by Mixu Paatelainen at Hibs. I fear the mob will soon be at the door.

 

PS: Hang this up in the dressing room Jimmy — it’s your only chance against Celtic!

 

Saw this in the paper on sunday and i actually dont like Mcnee but think he not far wrong with what he is saying.  What does everyone else think? 

[Cowie]

The word doesn’t even begin to explain how bad this Pittodrie squad is.

 

After defeat by Killie he said he would have to get rid of an entire team and build from scratch. What does it say about his judgement of players? He signed them and still selects them. The latest comment is his final refuge. He has nowhere else to hide.

 

 

 

In the most part agree.

 

With the exception of Anderson the squad was virtually the same as last season until Hart and Clark departed in Jan; since then we have leaked a horrendous amount of goals.

 

As far as replacements go, personally i think that Maybury is a better full back than Hart.  still unsure about Walker and Clark.

Anderson has not been replaced. As such we have not had a settled back 4 all season - reflected by the goals lost column - a situation made worse by ditching hart.

Dont even get me started on mair or duff.

 

So, with the back four all over the place & coupled with some bad man management by JC, we have the clusterfuck that is happening now.  Both problems have been brewing for a while and on their own they probably would not have resulted in the results that we have had since the turn of the year.

 

As they say, the buck stops with the manager...

 

You have to wonder what sort of motivational skills he has??  Killi have been pish for the whole season yet we dont turn up and get pumped 3-1.  If we'd played like we had against bayern at home or hibs away we would have shat on them!!!

 

 

I'm stopping now before i get upset.

 

 

 

[Harcus]

100% agree with McNee, much as I hate to say it.

[Edinburghdon]

I'll admit i never actually read that but i've learned enough from my short time on this planet to learn that McNee is a prick and should be discarded immediately

 

 

 

[BrownyBrown]

He is an utter cunt. But I find it hard to find much that I disagree with in his article.

 

The thing is that there was a large section of our support during our UEFA cup run who realised what a shite squad we had, and predicted it would all fall flat on its face. I'd be interested in McNee's opinion of us during that period when we were still in with a shout on four fronts.

 

I'd hazard a guess that he'd toe the Glasgow press line and say that Jimmy was doing 'wonderful things' up in Aberdeen and that the supporters were unappreciative and demanding too much of him.

 

It doesn't take Stephen Hawking and an abacus to work out that a team that ships 23 goals in seven games is fucking shite.

[Kowalski]

Surely they must look at what Craig Levein has achieved at Dundee United, Mark McGhee at Motherwell, John Hughes at Falkirk and the early impact by Mixu Paatelainen at Hibs.

 

Which is what exactly?  Fair enough DUFC are in a final, but none of them have achieved anything yet.  Most of them are doing well in the league because us/Hearts/Hibs have struggled.

[Sharpie]

Which is what exactly?  Fair enough DUFC are in a final, but none of them have achieved anything yet.  Most of them are doing well in the league because us/Hearts/Hibs have struggled.

 

Totally. They are all much of a mediocre muchness. We are struggling to attain mediocraty.

[Jute]

Which is what exactly?  Fair enough DUFC are in a final, but none of them have achieved anything yet.  Most of them are doing well in the league because us/Hearts/Hibs have struggled.

 

Think he is referring to fact they seem to be able to pick up decent players for next to no cash while JC picks up duds.

 

Normally would never agree or read anything that Prick McNee writes but for once I have to agree with him which makes me feel unclean.

[stonefish100]

McNee is loving putting the boot into the Dons, but I find it hard to disagree with a lot of what he is saying. I dont think we should be looking to Falkirk or United as being example of what we should be acheiving,

 

BUT

 

Calderwood has year on year decreased the quality of the playing sqaud, his record in the transfer market this season has been appalling. The big decision is whether we give him another chance and trust him with the limited funds we have to reshape the squad, or do we admit Jimmy has done all he can here and go with a fresh approach. I honestly think it would be best for all concerned if he leaves in the summer and we build again. We need something to galvanise a seriously jaded squad and more importantly support.

[Guest BTR]

I think McNee is spot on.

 

When Calderwood comes out and says we defended well against Rangers but switched off 3 times, does that not say to you that he is completely contradicting himself?  Surely if you defend well, then you don't switch off at all, no?

[milners]

As much as i agree with most of the article, the bit i don't agree with is the bit about the 3-1 defeat at Easter Road which we battered Hibs in the first half.

[Guest ally s]

 

I agree with nearly everything he's written there which is a first for me.

 

Although as said above, I don't think it takes a genius to work out everything is not well at the club just now.

 

[BobbyBiscuit]

Willie Miller a loser?

 

I've read it all now.

 

Other than that, as has been said here, it's hard not to agree with the sanctimonious cunt of a fuckpig that he is.

[K-9]

Willie Miller a loser?

 

I've read it all now.

 

Other than that, as has been said here, it's hard not to agree with the sanctimonious cunt of a fuckpig that he is.

In a business sense most certainly a loser. 

 

On the pitch hard to find a bigger winner though.

[BobbyBiscuit]

In a business sense most certainly a loser. 

 

On the pitch hard to find a bigger winner though.

 

Is McNee commenting on his private businesses? He's saying he cuts the figure of a loser now. What the fuck has McNee achieved for him to have the right to be saying that about one of Scotlands greatest and most decorated players?

[K-9]

Is McNee commenting on his private businesses? He's saying he cuts the figure of a loser now. What the fuck has McNee achieved for him to have the right to be saying that about one of Scotlands greatest and most decorated players?

About the same as us discussing the same thing. 

 

Miller, despite a string of failed businesses, is basically running a football club now along with Duncan Fraser.

[BobbyBiscuit]

About the same as us discussing the same thing. 

 

Miller, despite a string of failed businesses, is basically running a football club now along with Duncan Fraser.

 

You may not have noticed, but none of us have our own newspaper column.

[K-9]

You may not have noticed, but none of us have our own newspaper column.

More folk read this than McNee's column in the NOTW though!!

[BobbyBiscuit]

More folk read this than McNee's column in the NOTW though!!

 

I'd certainly hope so.  McNee does have the distinction though of being perhaps the only person to have been punched by both Billy McNeill and Alex Ferguson (allegedly).

[TENEMENTFUNSTER]

I disagree with large parts of what he has said.

 

It's very very easy to look at the results in the league and fire off shit bombs in Calderwoods direction, it's lazy sensationalist journalism, of the type this particular nauseating cunt has specialised in since losing his TV  commentating gig. A particularly horrible cunt of a man too.

 

Calderwood gave us an initial lift? For fuck sake. Lasted a fair while didn't it and by all accounts we pummelled Hibs as we did Rangers and Motherwell in the first half, though the Killie performance was desperate in every way apparently.

 

The board do indeed need some scrutiny but not for securing Calderwood for 3 more seasons, but for not giving Calderwood the means to replace, to any kind of extent, players who have been allowed to leave.

 

McNee has never wasted an opportunity to deride anyone and anything about Scottish football yet conveniently forgets where he gets his living from. The man is so beneath contempt.

[Guest Caroline B]

I've never liked Mckneejerk. The problem with this article is that a blind man could have written it. Tell us something we don't know Gerry, you rotund excuse for a journo.

 

All the points made in the article have all been expressed by various folks on here before he sat down at his bontempi typewriter.

[BobbyBiscuit]

If you think his writing is bad, check out Chick Young on the BBC site... every week it's just cliche ridden garbage that makes you want to vomit, at the end of the day 

[Kowalski]

In a business sense most certainly a loser. 

 

Can't completely agree with that.  1 failed business out of about half a dozen(?) that he has run over the years.

[TENEMENTFUNSTER]

Can't completely agree with that.  1 failed business out of about half a dozen(?) that he has run over the years.

 

It was the customers fault for not coming out in big enough numbers to support his ambition for the companies concerned.

[Kowalski]

It was the customers fault for not coming out in big enough numbers to support his ambition for the companies concerned.

 

It was the poor quality haddock he signed during the transfer window.