On occasions, I've had articles that I've wanted to write but not had the platform (or so I thought) to construct them on. Through a combination of lack of time, pure laziness and a fear of being judged; a lot of ideas that I'd had in the past never saw the light of day. A lot of these potential articles weren't with the mindset of getting views or any particular publicity goal but more just a case of being able to create a log of thoughts that I can look back on. Forums are great but your post soon disappears into the abyss and you forget that you ever produced an opinion on a matter. If you do take the time to read my musings today, and with any future articles I write, then thank you. I do really appreciate it.
Should Peter Taylor be the Dagenham and Redbridge manager next season?
I remember when I found out the news that Peter Taylor had succeeded John Still as the Daggers manager. In the way that I find out most club news, I browsed down my Twitter newsfeed until I noticed fellow supporters commenting on an issue that I was not aware of. Very quickly, I then began typing Dagenham into the search bar before a quick click took me to the club's official Twitter page. My immediate reaction when I saw the name Peter Taylor was an unsure 'hmmmm'. My first thoughts were a mixture of 'he doesn't know the league' and 'why does he want to manage us?'. These thoughts were tempered with 'Terry Harris is back!', 'Terry knows the league' and 'Together, they should have the experience to guide us through a tough spell'.
Straight away, I forgot everything else that I was meant to be doing and began scouring Wikipedia and other websites on Taylor's career to familiarise myself with him. A few Google searches also took me to club forums where other fans had previously posted about him. It was a mixture of opinion. On one hand, here was a manager well known to most casual football supporters; therefore he must have something about him. Alternatively, supporters of previous clubs weren't overly keen on his negative style of play.
Looking back at his career, Peter Taylor has achieved a lot. I have a 5 year rule though when looking back at managers and players. The game changes so quickly these days that I often discount most achievements that were obtained more than five years prior. Rightly or wrongly, in my mind, players and managers are judged short-term. For example, anybody turning up to Dagenham vs Bromley the other week and hoping to see the Birmingham colossus version of Roger Johnson (we all remember the 2011 League Cup final!) would have been sadly disappointed. The game has left him behind. Point being, Peter Taylor had achieved very little in the past ten years, let alone the last five. My one overriding memory of him was being in charge of Wycombe. The reason this stood out was because this coincided with our second season in the Football League and us very narrowly missing out on the play offs. It also stood out because I remember their results seemed to pop up as 0-0 and 1-0 every single week as they ground their way to promotion. A quick google said everything I needed to know about a Peter Taylor team. Wycombe were promoted in 3rd place with just 54 goals scored all season. The Daggers finished 8th that season and scored 77 times...
Any assets the club had at the end of last season were moved on over the summer. It was goodbye to Cousins, Cheek, Robson, Boucaud, Fejiri, Sparkes and more. Then many unfamiliar names started to trickle in: Harfield, Davey, Goodliffe, Phipps, Reynolds, Wright, Blanchfield et al. What first worried me in the summer was that the majority of these players had very little experience of professional football. These were the sort of players John Still would loan in from an academy to add a bit of squad depth and who would inevitably sit on the bench through most of the loan. Yet Taylor was bringing these 'boys' in as starters. In an ideal world, the club would have kept with tradition and bought players with appearances behind them and a point to prove from the divisions below. However, most of these players would inevitably have commanded a fee. Something that couldn't be offered at that time. Saying all this, without the mid-season investment we acquired, we would have been relegated. Therefore, fingers do need to be pointed at that early season recruitment. I'm sure that there were better, available players out there. Can Peter Taylor be trusted with an increased budget for this upcoming summer?
Up until Christmas, I don't think there would have been too many noticeable complaints about the manager. Yes, the odd grumble here and there but nothing substantial. Early defeats had a sense of inevitability about them yet the majority appreciated that the players were doing everything that they possibly could in difficult circumstances. Once the new owners arrived and better players such as Balanta, Wilkinson, Munns, Clark, Manny and Smith were bought, the football and results picked up. At times, it was brilliant to watch. Balanta and Wilkinson up front were an immediate threat. However, the foundations for this success came from the midfield. Transitions between defence and attack were fluid. Phipps and Robinson started to dominate the central area and were well supported by Munns and Mcqueen; both of whom added quality on the ball. Seemingly the players were learning Taylor's structure but were playing with confidence and freedom. Most importantly, the team was settled. A regular eleven that understands one another and has quality in key areas is the bedrock for any success in football. It got to the point around mid December that even talk of the play offs surfaced. Sadly, this proved to be a honeymoon period rather than the norm.
The last four months has produced a lot of confusion amongst Daggers fans. I am sure that supporters would like to ask Peter Taylor the following questions:
Why have you not started Harry Phipps since December 29th?
Why are we now setting up with a negative approach to home and away matches?
Why do you make 2 to 3 changes game to game when a consistent line up saw us excel before Christmas?
Why do you persist with playing three similar holding midfielders in away matches?
Why does Jack Munns, with his quality on the ball, rarely start away from home?
You can read between the lines with most of them questions to form a picture of the manager's intentions. Strategy appears to be along the lines of giving away as little as possible and hoping to nick a goal from the few chances that may be created. In terms of securing survival in this division, it has scraped the team over the line with 18 points from 16 games since New Year. In this period, a total of 17 goals were scored. 4 of them came from the memorable 4-4 draw with Boreham Wood. That's 13 goals from the other 15 games. It's starting to become clear why Taylor's Wycombe side only scored 54 goals during their promotion season. Taylor's following appointment at Bradford City in League Two yielded only 31 goals in 32 games during the 09/10 season before he was replaced. Sadly, this is building up a picture of a mid table manager. One who will keep you secure in a division but with very little threat of entertainment or progression.
Therefore, the Daggers hierarchy have a very important decision to make in the summer. On the surface, they have a man in charge who took on a very difficult job in the summer and achieved the primary objective of keeping the team in the division. Yet festering below are concerns that there are limitations to what can be achieved with Peter Taylor at the helm. It's fair to say that not all of the managers who applied for the job would have achieved what Taylor has this season. I am pretty sure that some would have fallen short and possibly lost their job along the way; maybe through a lack of experience. However, I think it's also fair to suggest that there will be managers out there who have a higher ceiling than what the current regime brings.
The decision becomes a case of stick or twist? It seems wise to keep the club in a pair of safe hands after a difficult couple of years. Nevertheless, such a decision doesn't match up to the owner's ambitious plans to renovate the club's brand and open it up to a bank of new supporters. Whilst plans to make the environment more aesthetically pleasing and attractive are important, the main selling point to a customer is the product on the pitch. When you are matching a ratio of a goal per game and your strategy is more about containment than creativity, then you have a problem. You only have to look at the recent game against Barrow that brought around a thousand extra people through the turnstiles. The day will be registered as a success because of this. Yet the match finished 0-0 and the home side barely tested the goalkeeper. How many of them supporters will be at the Eastleigh and Solihull matches? I think we all know the answer.
On the other hand, if the owners did twist and decide that a different person would be given a go, who would that man be? Everybody has seen the names thrown about. Darryl McMahon, Luke Garrard, Bobby Quinton and Jody Brown amongst others. It would be an enormous gamble to appoint either of the latter two due to their lack of experience at this level. McMahon and Garrard look to be the realistic options if a change was to be made. Neither of them scream out at you though in the same way that Danny Cowley did at Braintree. Missing out on Cowley has put a lot of supporters on high alert for the next managerial gem at non-league level. I'm not sure that there is one about that quite fits the bill at the moment. McMahon did well at Ebbsfleet and can be forgiven for a below par final season with the financial issues rumbling on there. Credit also has to be given to Garrard for assembling an excellent attacking trio of Andrade, Balanta and Ferrier who destroyed teams on many occasions. His Boreham Wood side have suffered this season with many of their top players leaving and a play-off hangover lingering. Both of them are mere babies in the grizzled world of football management at 35 and 33 years old respectively and could well develop into seasoned Football League managers. However, to sack a safe pair of hands and appoint them with a big budget would be a gamble.
Luke Garrard: Boreham Wood Manager
What I don't see available at the moment is that person available who screams 'winner'. We all know it when we see it. When Leyton Orient appointed Justin Edinburgh, I think the majority of Daggers fans would have grumbled 'good appointment'. This year, Chesterfield have hired John Sheridan. I would happily bet good money now that they will finish in the top three at least next season. Before he acquired the Torquay job, I would have happily had Gary Johnson here. Watch Torquay have a decent season next year. Sometimes, you just know when a manager fits.
All in all, it comes down to that 'stick or twist' phrase I mentioned earlier. Personally, I don't believe that the owners will change manager. There is no pressing reason to. What I foresee happening, is a decent looking squad assembled and a frustrating campaign around upper mid-table where the Daggers never really properly threaten the play off places. I can see fans becoming very frustrated with underwhelming results and performances that lack a goal threat. Holding my neck out, I will say that I think around this time next year; the club and Peter Taylor will part ways amicably by mutual consent. Perhaps this time next year, I will be writing about how the club has wasted a season and are looking for a young, driven manager to take the hot-seat. Hopefully, I am entirely wrong and this time next year, we are all celebrating a glorious season with 90+ points, 75+ goals and a statue of Peter Taylor being unveiled next to the new Bury Road stand equipped with roof and bar. Well, we can dream anyway...
