Never seen an interview quite like it. He will either get a great response now, or he is fooked. Or 4-5 players are about to be shown the door.

He alluded to something that a lot of us mentioned last season.

There is no angry leader on the pitch threatening to kick fook out of those that make mistakes.......too many mates together.........and soft ones at that......Cooper actually said that "some of the boys are close to tears in the changing room".

What the fook. Professional players close to tears because the manager tells them the truth?

I suspect this club needs a major overhaul of players if thats the case.

This worries me more than the result.

I'm getting bored of him saying it now tho, I've stopped reading it, after every defeat... Copper angry bla bla bla then nothing changes.

Well have Collins, Sweens n humps in the mail this week saying the players are hurting I'm sure

We've been talking about making wholesale changes to the team for ages now... but it never happens. I'm beginning to think that this seasons remit is ......please the fans at home (especially after last seasons record run) as they provide the income, and we dont care what happens away from home as only 5% of our fans regularly see that.
This makes for some dire viewing for our travelling fans and a half decent home record which will hopefully keep us up.

So expect this seasons final results to look something like... Home W.12.D.7.L.4. Away W.2.D.2.L.19. 51 points and safety.

Oh and my team for Saturday would be ...Flinders, Hartley(R.B), Holden, Collins, Baldwin, Murray, Walton, Luscombe,(yes 3 in the midfield),Franks, Howard, James.

thank fook you're not the manager!

[/quote] thank fook you're not the manager![/quote]

.....and your 11 would be Mastermind?......or haven't you an opinion?

I have an opinion, and to be honest it is something like, "thank fuck you're not the manager."

The left footed Peter Hartley was God-awful at left back as he is a centre half and nowt else. To suggest playing him at right back smacks of either stupidity or insanity.

We'll only an idiot would put Hartley at right back!

I'd do 4-3-3

usual back 5

Walton, monkhouse, murray

Poole...............Luscombe
..........Howard

Cooper really says it how it is. Lots of praise for Murray and I can see him definitely starting saturday.
Lays into Poole, Walton and obviously the defence.
I'll have a go at transferring the interview to here (sound only) its well worth a listen.

Time to do the talkin on the pitch, he's a very passionate manager who twice this season has blasted the players... Yet it's not transferring onto the pitch, so what's the problem?

Cooper has to take a look at himself.
His whole pre-season preparation was based on playing 4-4-2 with Murray on the bench. He hasnt brought the right players in to do that yet.

Basically said Walton and Poole were Shite and the lot of them are puffs.

Reading last night's Mail it did sound a bit like Hartley and Liddle are.

....virtually no changes there then....same old same old....Sweens out basically nowt else ......you are the Manager.

Based on what we have available there aren't many options!

Can anyone paraphrase the interview a little more?

Did he seem genuinely pissed off to the point of spite...frankly, just what is needed?

How did he surmise our midfield display?

Oh he was frank and basically said if they don't have the stomach for a fight they can get out.

hartley at right back? are you for real?

why stop there... get in goal luke james!

Have it on audio on my desktop but haven't a clue how to change it to video so that I can upload onto you tube and put it on here!!
Can anyone help in laymans terms ?

You could put it into a quickplayer file?

Luke James in goal...................what a good idea !!!
That would free Flinders to play up front..............what is Scotty's record of putting headers in the net from corners...............much better than James's..................and Nish's for that matter.
Yubey for Cooper's head coach..............wahey!!!!!!!!!!!

I thought after Cooper's rant following the Crewe game 'How many more times can he do this before it stops meaning anything?' Good coaches can change things around during or after a game. Guys who rely on motivation alone are on a sticky wicket as soon as they stop getting a reaction. I wasn't convinced that 0-0 at home was the reaction Coops was hoping for after Crewe, though he claimed it was. Now the next couple of games really are massive - for Cooper more than Pools.

His appointment was only ever going to work alongside decent coaching staff. Barron and Humphries haven't got the experience and so far haven't shown that they've got the ideas to be good coaches. But the buck stops with Cooper and IOR - and we all know what happens when a manager and a chairman are both under pressure.

He gives a similar interview on http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/19341998

Cooper: "There are too many boys that when it matters, hide."
Are these the same boys who we've been told week after week are a "great bunch"? Just not at winning football matches.

Im certainly hoping i dont hear "they are a great bunch of lads" for quite some time.

Flinders

Rowbatham/Richards (rb)
Holden (lb)
Baldwin (cb)
Hartley (cb)
Murray (dm)
Luscombe (cm)
Sweeney (cm)
Franks (rw)
James (lw)
Howard (cf) 4-1-4-1

We need more bodies in midfield. Hopefully well be able to create some chances for Howard to get on the end of.

I agree tbh, part of me would leave Sweeney out but then with that formation he wouldnt be as missed in the middle. Although with Franks and James and Luscombe all able to attack, maybe Walton in for Sweeney to shore it up at the back while the other 4 bomb forward.

I pray to God he doesnt stick to 4-4-2. Its clear to all we dont have the players for it.

I can't believe Walton needed a kick up the arse at half time on saturday.
It was his first home game of a new season,if you can't get motivated for that when can you ??
Thats 2 bollockings the teams had in the first 3 games, it doesn't bode well.

It's interesting that some of the criticism of Walton is that he keeps trying to hit 'Hollywood' passes. Well, if he gets his eye in and some of them start to come off, isn't that what we want to see? It would be dumb to turn him into the new hate figure after a couple of competitive games (and as of today there's a vacancy).

I think Cooper should persist with the new boy but get Murray in alongside him - Muzza's experience, defensive quality and short passing game might bring out the best in Walton. A lot of people on here have been saying for more than a season that Sweeney in a 4 man midfield is a luxury Pools can't afford - maybe the manager and coaches will see it one day. He still seems to be above criticism because he runs around a lot.

In all fairness to Walton when he collects the ball Sweeney is nowhere near him. Same happened with Murray last season and he was criticised for being too defensive because his only options were the 'hollywood' pass or a pass backwards. Sweeneys positional play in a 442 is diabolical.

I am worried that if Cooper sticks with 4-4-2 then he will drop Walton for Murray and not for Sweeney. as we know the only way Sweeney works in the team is if we play a 5 man midfield were the previous two mentioned and sit and Walton accasionally coming forward allowing Sweeney to run onto the ball in the box.

We have said this for years why can we see it an others cant.

If Cooper thinks the problem is players hiding then surely he has to drop Sweeney.

......yes all the right-footed players on the left and all the left-footed players on the right...and the buffalo girls go around the outside and doesy doe your partners.

I'm not sure you could ever accuse Sweeney of hiding. I think his problem in a 4-4-2 is he almost covers too much ground he's like Forest Gump he never stops running but I think in that formation it needs a bit more discipline and nous at times. For a central midfielder he certainly doesn't touch the ball enough, he doesn't get into enough positions were he's actually showing for the ball and when he does get lets be honest he's not the most technically adept footballer in the World. That's not to say he's doesn't have strengths as a footballer and positive attributes. His strength is timing his forward runs and getting on the end of things, that's why a five man midfield suits us because we have someone who if slotted into that formation will score goals form midfield, currently in a 4-4-2 we don't look like we have anyone who'll score goals from any position.

you have said yourself that he doesnt show for the ball enough which to me is hiding if you are a central midfielder

Whatever, I can see a very interesting team selected on Friday/Saturday.

I would have hated to be on that bus on the way home last night.

Hiding is not wanting the ball.

I can see the same team, bar two changes, at the most.

All gas and no flint until I see it.

Tired of empty words.

not showing for the ball and not wanting the ball are surely the same thing if you are playing in midfield

Not necessarily.

A play can want the ball but run into the wrong positions to be able to get it / be found with it if he lacks the technical brainpower to know where he's supposed to be.

Not being in the position to show for the ball could be down to lack of a football brain/a little bit of nous/discipline rather than intentionally putting yourself in a position were you won't get the ball. Sweeney seems an honest lad who runs himself into the ground just about every time he put's on a Pools shirt, I don't think it's fair to accuse him of hiding.

It's about playing to your strengths, we aren't doing that and it's making everyone look bad.

Or he can run into the wrong position knowing that nobody will then pass to him.

Or he can run into the lavvy, lock the door and spend all his time splitting hairs.....

Walton looked like a show pony first half Saturday and improved slightly the second. By all accounts sh1te last night. Not looking to turn him into a hate figure or write him off already by any means but he he has all the makings off permanently being that show pony. He talks a good game but he needs to back it up.

James Poole. Don't care if he never plays for Pools again. Some good individual goals away from home last season isn't enough. Never contributes anything at home and it's quite clear to see why Man City didn't want to keep him.

These players (all of them - bar Murray) either don't care, are scared or just not good enough for league 1. I love Cooper's passion and he is a legend at Pools for his first stint but these players will end up getting him the sack and then carry on regardless.

An experienced coach is needed to support him and he should be allowed to bring one in. Barron and Humphs are two of my favourite Pools players of all time but are just not ready yet.

I know it's only 3 games played but we have not taken a game to anyone, really had a go at anyone and yet to score. Mentally weak as a team.

I'm slightly concerned at this point!!!!

The 3 performances so far have been utterly crap with no player doing what is necessary. The no goals scored , Howard taking corners, hardly any shots on or off target, poor defending & a slack midfield says it all. 3 games in & we're poor everywhere including the management & coaching.
It's early days but I've seen nothing yet that backs up a mid-table finish which is what I was expecting pre-season.
I'm not going to single anybody out because all the outfield players & the management team need to do better than this early season dross.
It's not time yet for wholesale changes but if we're this bad come late September we'll be propping up the rest.

Poole is an interesting one. I said to my mate on Saturday watch him for a couple of minutes more specifically his movement and workrate. It's pretty much non existent, he just saunters around the pitch. Surely a player of his build should be a nuisance never giving defenders a minutes peace hassling and fighting for every ball even the lost causes. Hate him or hate him Craig Bellamy has made a career out of it, the biggest feature of his game is work rate.

Then a few minutes later his number goes up and he gets a standing ovation, and another when he runs down the touch line to warm down. His impact on the game was nil, he barely touched the ball, imagine what it would be like if he did something!

By no means do I think the lad is shite, he has ability obviously but it takes more than that. I wasn't surprised at all to read Cooper after last night slate his work rate and how he 'jogged around the pitch' it was no better on Saturday! He has a lot to prove for me and needs to pull his finger out.

Let's not forget there are a high number of the squad on long term contracts and 2 coaches who appear to have jobs for life in the club. Cooper is a potential fall guy and have a think about which players are in the middle of nice 3 year deals on good money vs their relative performances.

Whether this is thought of as bollocks by many, human nature shows that we all perform better when under pressure. Most of the players know they will be there even if Cooper isn't as probably do Barron and Humps

High number on long term contract?
Howard 2 year, Franks 2 year, Walton 2 year, Baldwin 2 year, James 2 year.
Sweeney, Collins, Hartley, Austin, Horwood, Poole, Flinders, Monkhouse,luscombe and Humps all into their last year with Pools possibly having the option of exercising the extra year if they wish to!

It's the latter group I am referring to yes

Austin Baldwin Hartley Horwood

franks murray walton poole

Luscombe

Howard

Essentially a 4-5-1 / 4-4-1-1

I may be wrong but I thought a couple of those deals were 3 years, by Pools normal practice you are right they are probably 2+1 deals