TT BLOG

Thomas Kelly

@tommyktufc

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Tom discusses arguments for and against the manager

GARY JOHNSON IN

EXPERIENCE

Gary Johnson has been around football circles for a long time and his experience managing the game is a key reason for many that we should be careful what we wish for. Prior to Johnson’s arrival, Torquay had gone through two Gulls legends in Chris Hargreaves and Kevin Nicholson, the latter to be fair, worked absolute miracles in keeping Torquay United in the National League in 2016 & 2017 before being sacked just four games into the 17/18 season, with the club fighting for their existence.  

Our club was on a downhill trajectory until Johnson arrived. He was just the manager we needed at the time and he recruited well, using his contacts (well his son) at Bristol City to bring in players such as Jake Andrews & Saikou Janneh to name a few to seal promotion and a league title to Plainmoor. 

He turned us into a winning and competitive side and if not for some piss poor officiating in the play-off final, he would have taken us back into the EFL and become a true Torquay United club legend, like he is at Yeovil.  Sigh, I’ll never get over Ashton Gate. 

His experience should be an asset to us, especially at this level.  

PREVIOUS SUCCESS

“Well the promotion king has lead his side to the finals” Adam Summerton TNT commentator after Torquay’s 4-2 win over Notts County in the 2021 National League Play Off Semi Finals.  

Adam Summerton called Gary Johnson “The Promotion King” after our 4-2 victory over Notts County in the National League Semi Final, referencing his multiple promotions with Yeovil Town and Bristol City, taking the Glovers from non-league’s top flight to the Championship and guiding Bristol City to the Championship and a whisker away from England’s top flight, as well as our title winning season at this level in the 18/19 season. He’s also an FA Trophy winner with the Glovers in his first stint.   

Whether you believe the standard of the league is poorer then than it is now is another argument, but Gary Johnson knows what it’s like to win promotion in his time as a manager. 

We were in the bottom half of the NLS when Johnson first arrived and we won the league by ten points come seasons end. He knows the expectations of the fanbase this season and anything less than promotion will be considered a failure by all. He’s been there, done that and worn the T-shirt multiple times in his career.  

He should know what to expect and how to deal with the pressure from an increasingly frustrated fanbase, a fanbase who all want promotion and a team playing decent football, especially at the price we charge at Plainmoor. 

PLAYERS WANT TO PLAY FOR HIM

“As soon as I spoke to the gaffer and Downsey, everything they were saying was the perfect match for me” Brad Ash. 

“Knowing Downsey and the Gaffer like I do now, it was realistically a no brainer” Lewis Collins 

“I loved my time here last sason, the gaffer and Downsey and the lads made me feel so welcome so I’m happy to be back.” Dillon De Silva. 

When you look at the players we signed over the summer, Lewis Collins, Jack Stobbs, Kevin Dawson, De Silva and Brad Ash all referenced to some degree how Gary Johnson played a big part of their decision to sign for the club permanently, the first three referencing the comradery from the tail end of last season and the clubs ambitions to make an immediate return to the National League at the first time of asking. There was a real sense of togetherness towards the end of last season and despite falling short, whatever you think of Gary Johnson, he created an environment that made players wanted to play for him. Even at our poorest, you never got the sense that the players weren’t playing for him.  

GJ is still a big name for many in the National League system and the reaction of many supporters over the summer, myself included was that our recruitment ahead of our return to NLS football was promising. Gary did get his recruitment right towards the end of last season, but by that time it was too late to reverse the damage caused earlier in the season. To take it to the final game in itself was a miracle. He can bring in decent players, although I’m sure like most clubs, is down to how much the owners are willing to invest in the player budget. 

The signings of Dawson and Lawrence last season proved to be quality signings and those who have gone on to make a name for themselves higher up the ladder such as Jamie Reid, Armani Little, Connor Evans and Adam Randell all prove that Gary can unlock their potential when played correctly.  

FINDING A REPLACEMENT

This is the biggest argument I’ve heard from those in the ‘Gary In camp’ – who would you bring in to replace him? 

It’s a valid point that not many have a logical answer for. Gary Johnson is the safe bet for many. Going back to his experience as a manager and our past history at hiring managers with little experience. Be careful what you wish for and all that.  

I’d love to see someone such as Adam Hinschelwood at Worthing take over. I loved the way his Worthing side set up and play but would he be a feasible replacement if we ever sacked Gary? He’s settled over in Sussex and has ties to Brighton though so that’s probably not a viable replacement at the moment.  

It’s a difficult question to answer.  

For many, I’m sure Torquay will be a big attraction which makes it equally important that the owners, should they make the decision, pick the right candidate for the job. Gary Johnson was in my mind the most important signing the club has ever made from a managerial standpoint and it appears when he does finally depart that his replacement will also be as equally important.  

The way the NLS is at the moment with everyone being able to beat everyone, being just a few points off top spot and being in the top 7 is not a bad place to be at this stage of the season for many. I guess it depends on how full your glass is right now. Half full or half empty? Performances may not be stellar but do they need to be at this level?  

GARY JOHNSON OUT

TACTICS AND A LACK OF PLAN B

3-5-2. Do I need to say more? Gary favoured this formation for much of last season and began this season in the NLS in the same vein. The idea of the 3-5-2 was for the wingbacks to push forward, but this left United caught hideously short of numbers at the back on the overload. The manner of playing players not natural wingbacks also proved to be a hinderance.   

So many times we’ve conceded poor goals, gifting so much time and space to the opposition. We conceded 80 goals in the National League last season, an average of 1.739 a game. Clean sheets were hard to come by.  

There’s also a reluctance it seems from Gary to change things up when we do go a goal down. Worthing at home earlier in the season was a great example. You might argue that we don’t have the numbers or quality on the bench to make changes but when you lump the ball to Jarvis and don’t change the style of play to counteract, it does make you worry what his plan B is. I personally feel we are at our best when we pass to feet and move the ball around on the deck. It staggers me that I see the same hoofball approach time after time. We’ve seen already NLS sides have cottoned on our long ball approach. 

The loss of WJD is a big miss and Gary has yet to recruit properly to replace. With the secrecy over injuries such as Asa, Mox, De Silva and Dawson, it makes the fanbase hungry for decent replacements in the short time and the lack of replacements is a big concern, especially as pre-season favourites for the NLS title.  

POOR RECRUITMENT

‘My brother is chief scout – actually he’s our only scout’ The Times Dec 28th 2020 

It goes without saying, but ever since Ashton Gate, recruitment at TQ1 has been the biggest reason for our downfall back into regional football.  

You can perhaps give Johnson the benefit over the summer of 2021 with the short time between play off heartbreak and the start of the new National League Season that year, however with the likes of Armani Little, Connor Lemonheigh-Evans and Joe Lewis all (deservedly) leaving for EFL clubs in the summer of 2022 after a midtable finish, recruitment was always going to be key for Gary Johnson to build a side worthy of a play-off challenge for the following season. Sadly, for us recruitment in the summer of 2022 instead cost us our place as a National League side, despite a late rally from United.  

Of course, recruitment at TUFC mainly lies in the hands of Gary’s brother Pete, but Gary Johnson must make the final call when it comes to signings and overall, we are still suffering now. Just look at our options we had on the bench against Maidstone. On paper, we should have a decent starting XI at this level to compete for promotion but throw a couple of injuries in there and suddenly we look alarmingly threadbare.  

Gary has kept his faith in some who underperformed last season but it’s clear United seriously need new options and fast, especially at the back where we’ve looked the most vulnerable. Can someone explain why Pete Johnson is sat in the dugouts on a matchday instead of….well, watching other players who might improve us away from Plainmoor? I’m sure that doesn’t help. 

STRUGGLING TO TURN THINGS AROUND

“We are gutted that we have gone down…but love me or hate me, you got me, and I promise you I will give you everything.” Gary Johnson to the Torbay Weekly after relegation against Wrexham.  

For all the success Gary Johnson has acquired in his time as a manager, there is a concern in his managerial record that as soon as things don’t go right for him, he struggles to turn fortunes around and leaves for another club. 

In his two year spell as Latvia manager, his time ended after drawing 1-1 at home to San Marino in a World Cup Qualifier in 2001, San Marino’s only point in their campaign. Gary Johnson won just 3 from 14 games in his time there. Am I being harsh? Possibly but with the greatest respect to San Marino, that will be one game he won’t want to reference on his CV! 

At Northampton Town, prior to his appointment, the Cobblers had lost just once but went on to only survive on the penultimate day of the season, going on a run of eleven games without a win at the start of his tenure. He left the Cobblers in November 2011 after winning just four games the following season.  

Despite being a club legend at Yeovil, their time in the Championship lasted just one season and the Glovers found themselves bottom of League One the following season come the time of Johnsons sacking in February 2015.  

Finally at Cheltenham, after guiding them back into the EFL at the first time of asking, Gary ended the 17/18 season with just one win in April and losing the other five. 

Gary was sacked just four games into the 18/19 season and we all know where he ended up next! 

Of course, Gary is not alone in this regard but it does go to show that even managers with such pedigree as Gary Johnson can fail to bring success and the worry at Torquay United is whether anyone has planned for Gary Johnson to fail at TQ1?  

Certainly not in our first stint in the NLS. In fact there never should have been thoughts at a second stint. We cannot afford for him to fail this season. 

NO FEAR OF THE SACK

“It’ll be great to keep the continuity because if we can keep enough of these players then we’ll be a force and we’ll have a bit of fun in coming back up. 

“I say we because I’ve had a chat with George (Edwards, chief executive officer) earlier in the week and he wants to keep the continuity and I want to keep the continuity.” Gary Johnson to the Torbay Weekly after relegation against Wrexham. 

For most in the ‘Gary Out’ camp, the main frustration is that no matter the failure from last season and the slow start to this season, Gary Johnson’s position at the club seem to be completely safe. Our distant owner Clarke Osborne is believed to be happy with the partnership of Gary and Aaron and it seems no matter what happens on and off the pitch, Gary is here as long as he wants to be. Comments such as “Love me or hate me, you’ve got me” comes across as arrogant to some and the line of questioning both from inside the club and the local press both fail to address the obvious issues and criticism of Gary appears to be off limits to all. 

Without question, many football clubs would have said their goodbyes after two years of dreadful recruitment and relegation into the regional leagues but it appears for now, Gary Johnson is here to stay. Torquay United should not set their sights as being a yo-yo NL/NLS side. I still have ambitions for us to return to the EFL but under our ownership and current managerial set up, I fear that this may never happen again until major changes are made.  

We all love Torquay United, just look at the numbers who watch us both home and away in the last couple of years. The potential of this club is massive and despite being 7^th after eleven games and only being four points off top spot, losing four games and playing a poor style of football isn’t good enough for some in the fanbase.

It speaks to the high standards that many United fans have set for this season. Anything other than promotion will be considered a failure. Should Gary even have had the opportunity to take us forward into this season? Myself, personally he should have gone after the last game. The football is dull to watch, we still have gaps to fill and part-time teams overall play better football than we do.  

Yes we’ve won six games but we’ve been fortunate in a few of those games and we really should be performing better. Four defeats in eleven is not good enough when you’re looking at winning the league.  

Thankfully the season is still young and I do believe Torquay will be up there come the end of the season, but we need to step it up big time. Anything other than promotion this season will be disastrous for our club. Do I trust in Gary to get us back up first time? Personally I do not. The NLS is a much tougher league than it was five years ago and I think we’ve become predictable and our recruitment at the back will hinder us for a while. 

What do you think Yellow Army?

COYY – THOMAS

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