Delia’s LunchBox

Confirmed News

A busy day for Neil Doncaster and Glenn Roeder it seems. Mo Camara is here to stay until the end of the season and Tommy Wright of Ballymena United is the new GK coach, wrapping up the done deals for the morning. As for the afternoon, a never ending press conference seems to be wrapping up at Carrow Road and the word is that a permanent deal has been done for Matty Pattison (3 year contract) while Ryan Bertrand has come in on loan from Chelsea for the rest of the season. To the former, brilliant news. Patty has been fantastic in his loan spell and a permanent deal is exactly what we and he needed. As ever, the price is undisclosed.

For Bertrand, I have to admit I don’t know too much about the player. He has had previous loan spells at Bournmouth and Oldham and must have impressed for Roeder to want him in for the rest of the season. The official website calls him a left-sided defender, which would suggest cover for Camara, but his Wiki calls him an attacking fullback converted from a winger, so is Roeder giving Huckerby a kick up the arse here? Are we expecting a little more competition for Darren, who was on the bench against Crystal Palace, or are the rumours of a move to the USA true?

Also, I wonder if they were signed in time to play tomorrow..

The Goalkeeping Coach Situation

The situation with the Goalkeeping Coach is interesting, with rumours flying around message boards and word of mouth like lightning. I first heard about it last week, a friend of mine commenting that Bryan Gunn was warming up the keepers and taking Hollman’s usual place on the sidelines for the last couple of home games. Aside from the Bryan Gunn lottery of ‘Which job will he have next?’, it is interesting to see such an influential and seemingly successful coach sidelined. The only factual source I can find is on the EDP website, a quote from a News Conference at the end of last year, in which Roeder says:

“When we have something more definite to say we will.

“Gunny is helping out because he has got great experience in that position. I think he enjoyed himself this past week or so where he has helped Marshy and the other goalkeepers.

“When we can say something official we will do and then get on with things.”

Nothing has since been said, though with the new appointment it becomes pretty clear that he does indeed not have a future at the club, and personally I think this is a great shame. He is the coach mainly responsible (along with the academy kings) for the development of Robert Green, Joe Lewis and now England U-17 and U-16 stars Steven Arnold and Declan Rudd.

What I find more interesting is the manner in which the whole thing seems to have been done. No press statement, no news to the EDP or Evening News, nothing on the club website apart from the announcement of the new coach, not a word. It all seems hushed and rushed, like he’s being quietly escorted out of the back door with minimal fuss while the Old Boy’s Club gets together to find a replacement. When Roeder first came in, Duffy was let go and a statement made. When Martin Hunter left, we knew about it. When we have lost coaches in the past like Boothroyd, we have known about it. Why not now? It does a disservice to James Hollman, and makes people like myself become mistrustful of the powers that run the club.

Other Stuff

Hearts are apparently after another yes-man to be Romanov’s puppet. I didn’t even realise they were managerless, but of course, if you want an inexperienced Scottish coach, Peter Grant is your man. Shock candidate indeed.

It looks like Joe Lewis is definitely off. I can’t blame him for wanting first team football and Posh are on the way up (at least one rung), but I don’t think the bid should have been accepted in the first place.

By the looks of my stats page (which you can’t see), a lot of people came here yesterday and today from Wrath of the Barclay, and to you, hello. I’d encourage you to bookmark or favourite this site. I probably won’t be breaking any stories quicker than you guys, but my analysis is a damn sight better than any of the three-toed mouth breathers you find on most internet forums.