Team for Next Season

Liviforever wrote:Hopkin did better than Burchill but neither one of them was good enough. Both played players out of position and employed bewildering tactics. Though I think we'd have struggled with any manager at the start of the season due to the signing embargo only being lifted a few week before the season started. It wasn't an ideal pre season. Burchill wasn't improving any by the time we got to December though, the Alloa and Dumbarton games were the final nails in his managerial coffin.

Burchill got 12 points, Hopkin got 19 points, neither of them were going to have us comfortably mid table. Sticking with Hopkin and his tactics is going to have us mid table in League One, or worse, really wouldn't be an appointment from a Board with any aspirations of getting back to the Championship.

If Hopkin or Martindale are announced as our manager for next season then I think i'll have to dig out my Roaring Back scarf, we'll be heading back to the 4th tier of the SPFL.

Your last paragraph fills me with dread. That would finish a lot of fans and we've got hellish few as it is.

A bold appointment is needed to get the club back on track. Someone like Billy Reid if he's available who battled through the leagues with Hamilton and managed to keep them up in the SPL against all the odds.

Hopkin and his sidekick taking over is asking for trouble and would be the nightmare appointment imo.

The lack of news from yesterday's board meeting suggests nothing major happened, which probably means Hopkin and Martindale will be in charge of the team next season.

Must be hard to decide your own future as the assistant manager when you're acting as the chairman, chief executive, chief administrator and director...

Board meeting put back to Saturday!!!!

Thought there'd be interest for White, at least Buchanan is under contract for another season, though i'd have liked us to have kept big Shags. He'd be up there with Russell for Livi's top scorer in League One.

ianlivi wrote:Board meeting put back to Saturday!!!!

Just seen that, there's hope for Hopkindale to be punted yet...

fanfromday1 wrote:

Liviforever wrote:Hopkin did better than Burchill but neither one of them was good enough. Both played players out of position and employed bewildering tactics. Though I think we'd have struggled with any manager at the start of the season due to the signing embargo only being lifted a few week before the season started. It wasn't an ideal pre season. Burchill wasn't improving any by the time we got to December though, the Alloa and Dumbarton games were the final nails in his managerial coffin.

Burchill got 12 points, Hopkin got 19 points, neither of them were going to have us comfortably mid table. Sticking with Hopkin and his tactics is going to have us mid table in League One, or worse, really wouldn't be an appointment from a Board with any aspirations of getting back to the Championship.

If Hopkin or Martindale are announced as our manager for next season then I think i'll have to dig out my Roaring Back scarf, we'll be heading back to the 4th tier of the SPFL.

Your last paragraph fills me with dread. That would finish a lot of fans and we've got hellish few as it is.

A bold appointment is needed to get the club back on track. Someone like Billy Reid if he's available who battled through the leagues with Hamilton and managed to keep them up in the SPL against all the odds.

Hopkin and his sidekick taking over is asking for trouble and would be the nightmare appointment imo.

Yep, Hopkin was the sticking plaster appointment till you get to the A&E and someone can stitch up the wound. Keeping him on is like getting fed up waiting in the A&E and going back home hoping the sticking plaster will heal the now gaping wound up.

I'd love Billy Reid as our next manager, we've had enough managers breaking their newbie managerial teeth on Livi, Reid, McCall, an old style manager with plenty experience and success with other clubs.

Agree with the points re: bringing in someone experienced as manager. Part of me says we've had enough with blooding managers in for the first time, but I'm also torn as to the potential expenses in of bringing in someone more experienced. Suppose it's an exercise in itself calculating if it'd be worth it in the long-run.

Billy Reid wouldn't be half bad, actually. My only concern is that he's been out of Scottish football for a while, and I'm not quite sure what he's up to at the moment. IIRC he's assistant manager of some team in the Swedish second tier (maybe).

If the club is actually gutted out this summer (which I am doubtful of), I wouldn't be opposed to someone like Reid taking on a DoF role to oversee everything football-related, and have someone like Barry Robson as the coach. Win-win in a sense; Reid gets the youth setup going again whilst supporting Robson at first-team level. If it goes Pete Tong, Reid takes over as manager. I doubt the finances are there for such a move, though.

Anyway, the squad for next season looks like...

Goalkeeper

Darren Jamieson - May 2017

Defenders

Jackson Longridge - May 2017
Morgyn Neill - May 2017

Midfielders

Matthew Knox - May 2018
Josh Mullin - May 2018
Spas Georgiev - May 2018
Liam Watt - ?

Forwards

Liam Buchanan - May 2017
Danny Mullen - May 2017
Jordyn Sheerin - May 2017
Kieran Sommerville - May 2017

11 players exactly, who could line up in a similar formation to how we finished Saturday's game.

Afro wrote:Billy Reid wouldn't be half bad, actually. My only concern is that he's been out of Scottish football for a while, and I'm not quite sure what he's up to at the moment. IIRC he's assistant manager of some team in the Swedish second tier (maybe).

They got promoted last season, and their season's only started about a month ago so he might be wanting to see how they get on in the top tier. If we could get him I think it would be a decent appointment, definitely can't be worse than what we've seen the last few years anyway.

Another one in the McCall, Reid mould is Jimmy Calderwood but reading his wiki page I've gone off that idea, has bounced around managerial appointments in recent years chucking it after 5 mins falling out with Club's board decisions on players, nae chance he'd last at Livi then.

Anyone silly enough to think "Livingston? That'll be a good idea" probably isn't a great thinker anyway, so we're probably fucked either way.

I disagree, I think this club, managed properly in the boardroom and in the dressing room could be every bit as successful as ICT and RossCo. That alone could attract guys like Reid, doubt we'd get McCall though isn't he at Ayr?  Ian Murray is another that might work, he worked wonders with Dumbarton - okay it didn't work for him at St Mirren but at Dumbarton he had them playing for 90 mins

When were Livi ever managed properly in the boardroom?

We don't even know who is running the club, what financial backers we have, what our actual plans for the future are, how will we pay our 'soft loans' off, or a multitude of other questions that needs answering for us to even start to dream of being compared to Ross Co and ICT.

There are plenty of club comparable to Livi in fanbase (or our potential one), personally i'd look at Accies as an ideal model to follow, about the same amount of fans, bounces about 1st and 2nd tiers, has the odd talented youth player they make a bundle from, but actually make it work and stay away from financial problems.

What they prob have over us is the right folk in charge that are there for footballing reasons.

One of the good things is that Hopkins contract is due to expire I think, so shouldn't cost us anything to get rid.

Liviforever wrote:When were Livi ever managed properly in the boardroom?

We don't even know who is running the club, what financial backers we have, what our actual plans for the future are, how will we pay our 'soft loans' off, or a multitude of other questions that needs answering for us to even start to dream of being compared to Ross Co and ICT.

There are plenty of club comparable to Livi in fanbase (or our potential one), personally i'd look at Accies as an ideal model to follow, about the same amount of fans, bounces about 1st and 2nd tiers, has the odd talented youth player they make a bundle from, but actually make it work and stay away from financial problems.

What they prob have over us is the right folk in charge that are there for footballing reasons.

Have aliens swapped our DNA?

More to the point...I never suggested we have ever been managed well from the boardroom...I am saying with proper management there is potential. We saw the "glory years" ok they were financed by over extending ourselves but we ultimately got pulled up by a pot calling our kettle something other than white, while said pot got away with it for a number of years. I agree that Hamilton are also a good example.

Spas Georgiev leaves by mutual consent.

Afro wrote:Agree with the points re: bringing in someone experienced as manager. Part of me says we've had enough with blooding managers in for the first time, but I'm also torn as to the potential expenses in of bringing in someone more experienced. Suppose it's an exercise in itself calculating if it'd be worth it in the long-run.

Billy Reid wouldn't be half bad, actually. My only concern is that he's been out of Scottish football for a while, and I'm not quite sure what he's up to at the moment. IIRC he's assistant manager of some team in the Swedish second tier (maybe).

If the club is actually gutted out this summer (which I am doubtful of), I wouldn't be opposed to someone like Reid taking on a DoF role to oversee everything football-related, and have someone like Barry Robson as the coach. Win-win in a sense; Reid gets the youth setup going again whilst supporting Robson at first-team level. If it goes Pete Tong, Reid takes over as manager. I doubt the finances are there for such a move, though.

Anyway, the squad for next season looks like...

Goalkeeper

Darren Jamieson - May 2017

Defenders

Jackson Longridge - May 2017
Morgyn Neill - May 2017

Midfielders

Matthew Knox - May 2018
Josh Mullin - May 2018
Spas Georgiev - May 2018
Liam Watt - ?

Forwards

Liam Buchanan - May 2017
Danny Mullen - May 2017
Jordyn Sheerin - May 2017
Kieran Sommerville - May 2017

11 players exactly, who could line up in a similar formation to how we finished Saturday's game.

Need to get Gordon, Pittman & Halkett signed up then. Looks like White will be away if the stories are true, St Mirren, Hibs and some team down south are interested in him.

I thought Pittman and Halkett signed new deals a few weeks ago.

Good stuff, ffs get on the ball with your playing squad Afro.

Yep found it back in March: http://livingstonfc.co.uk/hallett-pittman-extend-stays/

Whoops! Schoolboy stuff from me there, apologies if I had tipped anyone over the edge with the news Pittman and Halkett were offski.

I also see that Spas Georgiev has left today. I have a feeling he will go down as an answer to some form of pub quiz question regarding obscure Bulgarians to play here in years to come.

Wonder how much money was wasted on Georgiev, Duckrell and Millen

Maybe enough to have employed a general manager to run the club professionally perhaps.

Callum Carson saying Jordan White is moving down to Wrexham.

Jordan Sinclair signs from Hibs.

Jordan White to Wrexham? Have we really slumped that much that he is choosing "non-league" football? Admittedly the NL in England will be a higher standard than 3rd tier SPFL but surely he'd be better off in the 2nd tier with Hibs than with Wrexham?