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Reply | Rochdale must act on Ian Watson either way
at 20:45 6 Nov 2026
In all fairness, it’s only this season that the manager has started doing pre-match interviews regularly again. McNulty rarely did them last season over much of the campaign and it was often a player. |
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Reply | Rochdale must act on Ian Watson either way
at 23:02 4 Nov 2026
That’s a good call. The similarities between how the two set up and identified a way to win games was obvious. The difference in the two sides was that York’s greater potency in attack meant they could get the ball into the box earlier having two targets rather than one. That Maynard has visible evidence of that way of playing converting successfully further up the pyramid may indeed influence his next choice of club. |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 22:27 4 Nov 2026
It could be argued that Watson has not got “lucky” with the injury situation though. It’s all guesswork, but who knows how things would have turned out had he been able to play his strongest team each week.
There were plenty who believed in his ability to come good up to recently with the injuries being cited as a reason we’d not progressed further.
On paper, his appointment made a lot of sense, it just hasn’t worked out as we stand today. Why? Because he hasn’t got results often enough and even when we did the issues remained and were not being addressed.
Parkin was brought in from outside the club, is generally seen to have been a good appointment that took the club forward. However at this exact same time in his first season we had played seven home games and scored only twice - in the first game of that sequence. There was a lot of noise about whether it was the right appointment. Then Tony Ellis became available and everything changed.
It’s not totally down to luck of course, but it’s certainly dependent on circumstances and moments. Same with Hill and that equaliser against Wrexham. [Post edited 4 Nov 22:29]
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 19:10 4 Nov 2026
Very true about the football. It was industrial at best and designed to get a goal and defend it. He did improve results though and we were competitive.
Yeah, fans weren’t that bothered when he left, and to be fair Sutton came in and did quite well for a while - another “lucky” appointment that worked out ok. |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 13:57 4 Nov 2026
No I agree, that’s the “luck” element of it all.
We could have had Andy Ritchie at the end of 2006 had things gone to plan and who knows where we’d be today.
Terry Dolan wasn’t a bad appointment! |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 13:44 4 Nov 2026
Much in the same way we got managers right (Hill) and wrong (Eyre) during the most successful era in the club’s history, it’s a case of looking at what goes right/wrong this time around. Without knowing the exact details of the decision making process, we can only go off things like the forum/the podcast interview with Cameron Ogden/info on the OS.
The luck element is huge when making a choice (Hill getting on a run when he wasn’t the no.1 choice/the injury situation this time around) but it’s what can be established as requiring improvement when looking at managers.
As we saw with McNulty, some fans can turn very quickly dependent on results anyway. Sometimes patience is required when it’s obvious that despite setbacks, the bigger picture points to real progress - as proven by the return to the EFL ahead of schedule. The problem now is that the bigger picture doesn’t seem to be clear. We can’t point to controlling games within a recognisable structure for example.
Can Watson achieve this? If not, is there a manager who can?
One thing we have learnt is that expansive football does not suit the players we have, as reflected in the results and stats. |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 22:28 3 Nov 2026
The one thing I will agree with in Watson’s interview is the abuse Sherring is receiving goes far beyond thinking a player isn’t good enough. Seeing people trying to justify it is so poor too.
There have been others worse than him in recent games yet they (rightly) don’t get similar abuse. It needs to stop because it reflects poorly on the entire club. |
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Reply | Jim McNulty
at 21:56 3 Nov 2026
Yeah, was fully aware of the approach. There was much discussion at the time including on here.
I’m believing what evidence is presented.
At present, this thread contains a link with information stating he turned them down. Cheers for posting it.
Edit: Gary Bowyer was appointed Burton boss 24 days after the article that states McNulty turned them down.
https://www.burtonalbionfc.co.
[Post edited 3 Nov 22:01]
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Reply | Jim McNulty
at 21:38 3 Nov 2026
Can’t read full article as it’s behind a paywall. The opening paragraph says he turned them down after they approached the club for permission to speak to him.
Is there something else in the article that contradicts that and supports the statement “ He would've left in 2024 had Burton wanted him.”? |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 21:21 3 Nov 2026
I agree. Really feel for Watson, he’s obviously doing his best whilst trying to stick to his processes. It’s also worth noting that some players could be doing a lot more too. |
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Reply | Rochdale must act on Ian Watson either way
at 21:17 3 Nov 2026
That second half was so alarming that you’d have to think the board are considering their options.
Whoever our manager is, we’ve learnt that having a clear, recognisable structure where all the players know their roles is a must. Talk of playing expansive, quick football that’s exciting to watch is secondary to getting results in a manner that makes sense.
Getting back to controlling the football will lead to controlling games. We know what works. |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 21:00 3 Nov 2026
Unfortunately a game many would have written off as being pretty meaningless in the bigger picture has managed to have a bigger negative impact than any could have predicted.
We played the second 45 with our current keeper, 3 of the back 4, 3 first team midfielders and Hayes.
Despite that we were not only beaten comprehensively, it was in a manner that was very alarming. |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 20:31 3 Nov 2026
Like EEL, I’m now of the belief he can only be used in a three. Hasn’t got the legs to deal with situations like that second goal.
Can’t believe we didn’t try the back three and wingbacks in a game like this. As it is, all we’ve done is confirm how we leave so much space all over the pitch with players too wide or too high. |
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers (EFL Trophy)
at 20:11 3 Nov 2026
It’ll be interesting to see what the outcome of their analysis of the situation is.
It’s clear Beckwith hasn’t been ready to contribute for long periods of time and offers some explanation for his absence from the starting line up despite being back in the squad.
Never known a season like it, and it’s led to a squad that’s far too large just to cover for injuries. |
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