Out of contract

[Dr Feelgood]

It was not a personal attack at all and am sorry you interpreted it as such. From your lengthy response I don’t think you really considered it as such. In any case please accept my apologies for any comments made!

[Dr Feelgood]

Theres still plenty of games left. I think we'll make the playoffs but Curlio will really need to learn from his mistakes and quickly.

[guest3264]

Absolute bollox, Curle will be gone by the end of the summer or we will have less than 2000 season ticket holders FACT.

I suggest you improve your spelling Manwork, the word 'fact' is spelt 'OPINION'!

[Melbourne Cobbler]

Absolute bollox, Curle will be gone by the end of the summer or we will have less than 2000 season ticket holders FACT.

I love it when you do this mate, fancy a wager on this as well? At this rate I'll be able to afford the club myself.

[Melbourne Cobbler]

Thats a tenner on this and double and or quits says you you attend enough games to make it better value to buy a season ticket. You're a man of honour so I trust you to tell me whether you have or not?

[Knockingonabit]

I know nine people who regularly attend and everyone dislikes the current style of play. Even when we were challenging for a top three place discussion normally focused on the hoofball rather than possible promotion. I expect Curle to be the manager next season come what may but if we are still in Division 2 then I am sure a fair few will be thinking long and hard about renewing their season tickets. As a matter of interest how many season ticket holders are there currently?

[Deepcut Cobbler]

If all of you don't renew your season tickets, what will you do on a Saturday/match day instead? 

[everbrite]

Theres still plenty of games left. I think we'll make the playoffs but Curlio will really need to learn from his mistakes and quickly.

 

[bungle]

Curle is manifestly a competent lower league manager. He can organise a defence, he knows how to grind out results, his signings have generally been successful and his teams generally finish in the top half of the division.

That might sound like a low bar of competence, but his immediate predecessors (Page, Austen, Hasselbaink) all failed to clear it. In this respect, I would say he is comfortably in the top 10% of the managers we have had during the Sixfields era (and I'm sure that his win percentage would bear this out). I would also go as far as saying that in the Sixfields era, only Wilder and Gray have been manifestly 'better' than Curle in terms of style of play.

We could do - and frequently have done - a lot worse than KC. Sacking him would be a risk because history suggests that the chances of us bringing in someone better are pretty low.

On the other hand, there are two big question marks over his future:

1. Can he deliver a promotion? and
2. Is he either willing or able to evolve the team into something more dynamic, unpredictable and attractive in terms of personnel and style of play?

I see Curle as very similar to Atkins and Boothroyd, both of whom had similar strengths and weaknesses and both of whom faced similar questions during their tenure. In the case of Boothroyd, the answer to both questions was no. In the case of Atkins, the answer to the first question was initially 'yes', but when he tried to evolve it failed miserably and ended ultimately in relegation, albeit from a higher division.

I think we'll have a fair idea on the promotion issue at the end of the season. Given our personnel and budget I would say that a play-off spot finish is a reasonable expectation. If we fail to make the play-offs it should raise alarm bells about Curle's capacity to maintain a sustained challenge at the top of the table. If we make the play-offs but lose out then it will at least be a tangible sign of progress.

The question of Curle's capacity for tactical evolution will take longer to answer, but if I were KT I would be asking him some tough questions about personnel and lack of a plan 'b'.

In short, if we make the play-offs then I would very much be in favour of keeping him but with the caveat that he should be asked some tough questions about his plans for tactical and personnel evolution. If we fail to make the play-offs then it might be time to consider some alternative options. 

[DrillingCobbler]

Pretty much agree with Bungle, word to word. Perhaps other than the last line; 8th,9th,10th would still show decent progress, however it depends on how its 'achieved' in during the busy end of the season. Lots of football still to be played and all that...

I still though, often look back at Chris Wilders promotion, Boothroyd's near miss as well as and even Carr's. All 3 started off pretty much in the same position, bottom 3 of the football league. I think its fair to say that all 3 had similar first 'part seasons', namely stabilising us. During their first full seasons, Carr finished 8th if memory serves me right, Wilder 11th. In Wilder's case the 2nd half of that season was a massive improvement, given we were just above the drop zone around Christmas time. He then made some game changer signings in the January window (Ricky being the main one) and we finished the season very strongly. Prior to that window, we were awful. Negative, and often very direct. He simply didn't have the right players to really get us entertaining, Id say KC still has that issue to a large extent. We still don't have a proven decent goal scoring striker, although the lad on loan from WBA is showing promise.

Unlike KC's main critics, I try not to look at his previous record and be negative about it. To use an over used saying in football, its all about the fine margins. Curle was a penalty shoot out away from promotion at Mansfield. You cant get any closer than that! Then he'd be on a par with Carr, ie one promotion in the football league. Spin? Yes. But factually, still correct. On the flip side, he didn't deserve to get that chance, having robbed us in the semi finals!  But that simply enforces the fine margins argument here...

So for me, its all about what he does here. What happened before he showed up, is pretty irrelevant.

Like Bungle says, Id want (if I was chairman) reassurances about the evolvement of the playing style, personally though Im absolutely comfortable that he doesn't intend to hoof it for ever! I attended a sponsors evening a while back and sat on his table, and he talked about this in some depth. Remember last season, when we spent 2 or 3 games trying to play 'total football'? Yeah, we lost them. A gig joke was made of it but those results were the catalyst to going back to a direct style.

Personally, I think we now need to try and play the ball more. We are at a tipping point after the last run of results, and performances. It will be interesting to see how we set up tomorrow, but I've a feeling that we will try and play the ball through the middle a lot more than in recent times. Just a hunch. Happy to come back on here at 5pm tomorrow and be proved totally wrong though!! 

I do believe that his somewhat monotoned interview style gives people the complete wrong impression of him. Meet him, he's a top bloke, very intelligent, has a great sense of humour and has a presence that you'd hope a football manager would have. I don't think any of these attributes come across at all when he's on the wireless, or indeed in front of a camera. If they did, I believe many others would have a different view of him than they currently do.

[guest3264]

Drilling, you mention KC's monotone voice. To prove this I have never heard the second half of one of his interviews because I have drifted off in my concentration!

[Grove]

Bit ironic from you as the underlying feature of some of your posts is a drip by drip negativity. A reasonable example is your article on successful L1 clubs which was criticised by BBS for lack of balance . I think he is right but that is just my opinion. Rightly or wrongly to some you give the impression of having an agenda on KC and the Chairman for that matter. To me your best efforts relate to NTFC financial matters, attendance statistics and travel arrangements via BR. Most of these if not all are free from bias and make worthwhile read; IMO of course. Why you chose to follow or appear to follow the jaundiced views of a few on here is beyond me. Seems a waste of talent. Still each to his own.

Yeah do as you are told GPC, stick to what you do best 

Oh and Everbrite, you keep making things up and being condescending, that's your forte

[guest3086]

Evers***e condescending? You should be ashamed.

[Larry]

Curle is manifestly a competent lower league manager. He can organise a defence, he knows how to grind out results, his signings have generally been successful and his teams generally finish in the top half of the division.

Based on that view and considering our previous managers I'd sign him for life.

[Tabasco Kid]

Based on that view and considering our previous managers I'd sign him for life.

Really?
Why are you so pro Curle? Im very very curious. Please respond. Ta.xx

[GrangeParkCobbler]

Yeah do as you are told GPC, stick to what you do best 

Oh and Everbrite, you keep making things up and being condescending, that's your forte

No comment! 

[Manwork04]

Thats a tenner on this and double and or quits says you you attend enough games to make it better value to buy a season ticket. You're a man of honour so I trust you to tell me whether you have or not?

I can’t take the attending bet because your right, I am a sucker for NTFC. 👍

[Melbourne Cobbler]

I can’t take the attending bet because your right, I am a sucker for NTFC. 👍

Bugger. It was a long shot but I thought your frustration might get the better of you and you’d cover the bet? You have to get up very early in the morning to catch old Manny out.

[Larry]

Really?
Why are you so pro Curle? Im very very curious. Please respond. Ta.xx

Because I've learn't that managers aren't magicians and he's doing a decent job with the players and budget available. Constantly changing managers is the direct cause of our problems.

[Clarity]

https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/sport/football/chairman-thomas-says-cobblers-have-started-discussions-over-new-contract-curle-1890685