Comment from campaign group
Well that was the dampest of damp squibs! Admittedly, Coventry City have had worst last days to a Transfer Window but January 31st 2017 – indeed the whole of January – did not bring what Sky Blues fans had hoped for, or what we had been led to expect by Tim Fisher, club chairman.
There are some positives, at least we didn’t witness a repeat of the previous January, when James Maddison was sold in the final knockings. Fears that many shared, that Stevenson or Willis or Harries or Haynes, would by now be eligible for the Former Players’ Association, did not materialise. How close that came to happening is open to speculation: some reports suggest that Jordan Willis was almost a done deal, except for personal terms. After the deadline had passed, news emerged of Michael Folivi’s signing from Watford. The 18 year-old striker has recently made his debut for the Hornet’s first team; Sky Blues fans must pray that he has a similar impact to when Adam Armstrong joined in August 2015.
The expectation that City would bring in a proven goal-scorer and a midfield commander has not been realised. After what initially appeared to be a good start to this Transfer Window, the final assessment is that the current squad is probably no better than the one that finished 2016, ie short on the quality, depth and determination to avoid relegation to League Two.
Rather than making emotive evaluations, let’s look at the results over the past month. Four league games played, 1 draw followed by 3 defeats = 1 point from a possible 12. The last of those defeats, at Northampton, was the most decisive and came against a side whose recent form was almost as poor as Coventry’s. Those stats don’t suggest that Russell Slade’s transfer dealings have been immediately successful and 2 points from his 6 games in charge from Boxing Day, don’t instill much confidence that he can turn this desperate situation around. While some fans have lost faith in Slade already, I think he should be given a few more games before we rush to judgement on his capability.
Talking of judgements though, what about Tim Fisher? Did he not say: “Judge me at the end of the January transfer window?” Well Tim, fans have been taking to social media to give their verdict and it is very clear (though not unanimous: there are those who blindly defend you and Sisu, however bad things become). Guilty on all counts!
• Lack of serious investment in the squad;
• Little communication with supporters regarding the ingrained problems at CCFC (Academy, no ground, breakdown of Ricoh talks etc.);
• Five years of continuing decline under your directorship, nine years in the case of Sisu;
• Blaming fans for the problems rather than accepting personal responsibility and recognising that the protests are the response to, not the cause of these catastrophes.
The only feature of your management that you have been able to claim as a success is that Coventry City is “breaking-even”, though you admit that the books have only been balanced by the sale of players. One then has to question whether even that minor virtue has been threatened by not selling any of our assets this January; to the best of my recollection, the only sale in August was that of Romain Vincelot, fee undisclosed but reportedly not more than £100,000.
Rather than cost-cutting and disinvesting in the playing squad, a shrewd business manager would have concentrated on growing the revenue. Instead of constantly whining about the lack of revenues from the stadium arrangements, why have you not realised that the biggest revenue opportunity is to get fans through the turnstiles?
In order to do that, the product on the park needs to be better and performing to a level that brings supporters back to the club. You and Joy Seppala have done exactly the opposite: a squad that had potential to push for promotion from last January, given relatively modest investment, is now the worst group assembled at Coventry City in living memory.
The chances of avoiding relegation are wafer-thin. 30 points from the remaining 18 games would probably be enough: but that is the form required, across a whole season, to reach the play-offs. As City have not achieved a top 6 position in any league since the early 1970s, such a turnaround with current resources would be almost miraculous.
It really is Time to Go, Mr Fisher. You have shown no capability or capacity to resolve the multitude of challenges that face Coventry City, most of which are directly of your making, at least in good measure. The clock is ticking fast towards the potential oblivion of our club, at least as we once knew it. You said during the Sky Blues Phone-In (16/12/16) that you love this football club. If that is the case, please do the right thing and walkaway now.
It is impossible to imagine anyone doing a worse job as Chairman.
PUSB
David Johnson