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Hockaday: Wrong man, wrong time!‏

29/8/2014

13 Comments

 
Picture
By Keith Ingham

I remember the first time I heard the name David Hockaday being mentioned as the possible replacement for Brian McDermott. When I looked on the Wikipedia site it gave details of his career as a right back at several lower league teams and some of the posts he had held in coaching roles at Watford and Southampton. His only managerial role was at Forest Green Rovers and that ended badly. He got the sack.

Surely this man wasn't going to take the seat of one of the most expectant teams in football, in June we found out he was and the outburst of negativity in his appointment was never seen on social media. Imagine if Twitter has been going when Clough replaced the late great Don Revie another appointment that was made by the club against public opinion. Clough at least had a league championship winning team in his last job. 

The owner Massimo Cellino had always said he'd do it his way and the press conference to announce the appointment of Hockaday and Lurch, sorry Lewis was more a PA vessel for Cellino as both Hock and Lewis sat nervously through it, occasionally smiling at the cameras and looking like children who had been lost at a supermarket. This is Massimo's way and to be certain we better get used to it. Captain of the ship and all that.

It started ok, in fact positive pre season but come the competitive games a lot of holes were shown in Hockaday's team. Beaten at Millwall, Watford and Bradford in the Capital One cup on their travels and a defeat at home to Brighton, the only two wins were Accrington Stanley in the cup and a late win versus Middlesborough. It may to outsiders seem that six games and seventy days is not a fair time to give anybody time to assess how they are doing, especially when the new players coming in have been picked by the President not by him.

I think the main thing against him was his lack of experience in one of the most competitive leagues in world football. There is no doubt in my mind that Cellino will have to relinquish control of the transfers into the club if he has any chance of recruiting a manager with that experience. I cannot see anybody in the English league that would allow the kind of control he had over Hockaday.

This season we really hoped that a move in the right direction could be achieved but it seems the club although financially on a better footing since GFH, the headlines are  still dominated by off field events. Mr Massimo Cellino I urge you to engage fans in your choice of the next inhabitant of one of the hardest jobs in football. Let's all hope the choice of the President is a far better one that has just left.

Lastly, the most sorry thing about all this is that Hockaday will now be mentioned in articles on Leeds United managers. Whatever we say he is now in the list that contains legends like Don Revie, Billy Bremner and Howard Wilkinson and can look back at his track suit top and say I did that.

Over to you Massimo.

On On On



13 Comments
Shabaz Ahmed
29/8/2014 01:57:23 am

The Hock was a strange appointment. But the thing which worries me the most is that we are importing players from Italy who have no pedigree even in that country. What about Mowatt, Cook. Dawson etc. As I have said previously we need a pedigree manager or coach and two or three recognisable talismanic players not at the end of their career. Sitting in Karachi, Pakistan we are a joke of a football team with a joke of a President, but I would love to be proved wrong.

Reply
Sprake
29/8/2014 02:02:06 am

Well never dull at Leeds Utd. I did read Johnny Giles thought about it was best for Cellino to take the manager job himself. Maybe not as stupid from Giles as it sounds. After all Cellino is the owner and as often have been pointed out a football man with good knowledge on the game. Remember when Don Revie was our manager in the golden years? I belive Les Cocker did most of the training along with his fitness expert, don´t remember his name at the moment, and then it was Maurice Lindley the assistant manager. Revie did oversee everything, making sure all was running nice and laying the foundation with players contracts and everything.
I can see Massimo Cellino in the old Revie shoes, a new top class coach in Cockers and top fitness coach to assist him. Then we have Cellino right hand man from Italy already at the Club to fill the job done Lindley used to do in the good old day´s. I think this would not be worse for the Club than something else.

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leeds oldie
29/8/2014 02:14:30 am

I said at the time DH should never have been appointed he was a fitness coach only the positive out of this is its the beginning of the season we need a manager who no tatics formations and players needed to get of of this league.
MC supposedly sold calgari but he seems to be rebuying it player wise under the name of LUFC we need steve clarke at this time or better still tony pulis but given the reasons they "left" there last jobs (player recruitment) i doubt it

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Leeds Mick link
29/8/2014 02:14:47 am

Well Cellino had better change his interfering ways. He may have got away with it at some Italian backwater but Leeds United is an entirely different kettle of sardines. There have been those who have recently used Don Revie,s appointment as manager with shockadays for some unknown reason. Personally i would use the appointment of Sgt Wilko as the yardstick for any Leeds manager. He cleared out ALL the dead wood,assembled the promotion winning squad in the close season and instilled discipline in such a way that even Vinny Jones only got carded once. The only available manager with such a strong personality is Tony Pulis. Mr Cellino,you're clearly a resounding success in business,not so in football management. Time to take a step back or Leeds United are going nowhere.

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Tim
29/8/2014 02:29:19 am

Lets all forget about what so and so did in the past and just concentrate on the future. Tony Pulis is not a visionary manager and Steve Clarke was a failure at West Brom. Cellino is a quick learner, takes action and will hopefully get this next appointment right.
The sooner we stop yearning for the past the sooner we can enjoy the new future.

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Luvmygrub
29/8/2014 03:33:13 am

Tim, if Cellino doesn't learn from this mistake we don't have a future, not in this division anyway!

Mr orange
29/8/2014 02:16:10 am

We all raised an eyebrow when hockaday was appointed and we all hoped cellino saw something we didn't , this is the worrying part now , if massimo didn't have some kind of wonder vision this time , on his first appointment , then it doesn't bode well and who knows what's in store for future appointments.. I think cellino has to get this next appointment spot on or a lot of faith will be lost on the terraces

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Martin
29/8/2014 02:49:45 am

Glad DH is gone, no offence but he was out of his depth and we knew this before a ball was kicked.

It's Redfearns turn (again) now so let's see the younger players step up and give us something to cheer against Bolton :)

Reply
JDC
29/8/2014 03:35:46 am

"Mr Massimo Cellino I urge you to engage fans in your choice of the next inhabitant of one of the hardest jobs in football".

When I look at some of the names put forward by some of my fellow supporters, I hope he consults other sources closer to those in the know ... too many of us have differing opinions and who knows who is right.

My choice would be Oscar Garcia.

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Mike Batley
29/8/2014 03:49:28 am

Glenn Hoddle as next manager...and Ray Wilkins as No 2...as he speaks Italian.

They would encourage the players to gel and bring in youth as well.

The football would be creative and exciting.

They would be brave to take on this challenge.....but who knows??

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Gordon link
29/8/2014 04:08:30 am

I not sure who would be successful , not enamoured with Steve Clark or pulis. Gary McAllister or Oscar Garcia would be my choice.

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Andy
29/8/2014 07:15:13 am

can't understand all the fans that are calling for gary mac to be appointed.. Legend of a player but a poor manager, we were useless under him. No way we should go back down that road.

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Leeds Mick link
29/8/2014 10:53:33 am

Tim. Cellino is a quick learner? You taking the piss?

Reply



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