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I don't think you should mock brian laws, he has a good point. What state of mind would YOU be in if you showed up somewhere 7 hours late? Yeah, thought so.

Brian Laws certainly has a good point, but when you're playing a team as testing and potentially devastating as Reading, why didn't Wednesday stay over the night before?

Stan Ternent springs to mind this week - after he branded the Huddersfield players "spineless". Stan is funny and one of the characters of football... until he's wreaking havoc at your own club!

I agree with Hot Butter. A 7 hour journey would not be ideal for a team to play another team full of Premiership quality players like Doyle and Bikey.

A cheap dig for a laugh has certainly failed Mr. Fletcher!

Quality journalism, simply take one of Laws quotes in isolation and then make it appear as if he is excusing the entire performance.

Never let the truth get in the way of a good story right?

7 Hours sitting restless isn't fun for anyone. I can see it affecting their game. Yeah a trip down to reading maybe should've warranted a stay over night, then they could've been fresh for the match and the result maybe would have been different. 7 hours travelling and sitting still does tire anyone out.

You haven't read in to anything they have said, you have simply read what they have said, offering no further insight than anyone else with the ability to read English could.

Doesn't the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ sports site already have a section on Quotes of the Week? Oh wait in that they generally use amusing or interesting quotes, I understand the difference now.

This is a complete non-article, it would have been more useful just printing out the offside rule, and no less entertaining.

What a poor article. Laws merely stated that the 7 hour bus journey "summed up" there day.

His post-match reaction was quite good in my opinion because he is simply moving on from it. It was a very bad day at the office, what's the point in dwelling on it?

Also, what was the point in this article?

Oh. My. God. The ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ is pathetic!

I tried to post a comment that said:

"What can we learn from this article? Nothing."

And it got rejected...

I agree with Dr Horse - this IS a complete non-article. Strange that my comment didn't get approved. This probably won't either.

I always presumed that the comments that got removed from this forum were ones that would be deemed offensive by the readership. The only person who could be offended by my (attempted!) comment would be the author.

Pathetic.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

have to agree with most of the other posts here... what's the point of this article? clearly none. mr fletcher i reckon has a midweek hangover, deadline looming and rushed to put this meaningless piece together.

still, it's the way of the bbc site these days it seems... pad it out with piffle, and then pad it out further with comments from dullards like us. hey ho.

Bit harsh everybody.
I'm sure it would have been more entertaining if Mr Fletcher had done a little more research and quoted us some inspiring wisdom from all time or at least last season. If he'd had a bit more material to choose from I'm sure this could have been funny and informative, the basic problem seems to be that last week in the Championship nobody said anything remotely entertaining.
No need to be quite so vitriolic though all. Sometimes it seems that only people who have never been listened to before write comments on this site, as if they are taking out a lifetime of isolation and loneliness on the author of the blog.
Lets face it, blaming the traffic for getting whipped 6 - 0 is akin to blaming Fletcher for all the sadness in your life.

I think the issue is that he started he article with "What can be read into a manager's post-match reaction?"and then just proceeded to quote statements without actually analysing anything.

To me it's akin to saying "What can be read into a households shopping habits" and then just posting a shopping list! Pointless.

I don't normally post negative comments, normally as I don't have enough information to hand to sensibly challenge them. Here though, I have to say Paul, what utter drivel you write. Do you actually do any research or check your facts? Or do you just float around on the memories of the season before.

Preston the surprise package? Really? So you don't actually follow the championship then. Rather than start with the last season i'll go over the last oh lets say 8. How many times have Preston been in and around the play offs. Looking like less of a surprise package?

As for last season yeah it was pretty terrible at first. Yeah we spent a long time at the bottom of the table. But how many of those players were in the squad during previous successful seasons. And low and behold, one poor manager sacked and a good one brought in, and the players remember how to play, tactics actually start to have a shape and things work, with Preston being one of the form sides at the end of last season. Still surprised Paul?

P.S. I don't expect you to answer any of the questions, you might have to do some research to do that, and those of us in Preston know the answers anyway.

Errr... I believe Fletch is a PNE fan so I dare say he knows a fair bit. Preston have outperformed their bigger rivals in recent years thanks to some excellent managers (David Moyes, Billy Davies), but the fact remains that they're a relatively small club. Wolves, Birmingham, QPR etc will always be the bookies favourites due to the large amounts of money they have at their disposal and it's hard to see how a club like Preston can compete. Thankfully they can and surely it's in their interest to retain the tag of underdogs.

Sometimes you have to love the nonsense of the "non-article" as some seem to call it. Why attack Mr Fletcher for blogging his observations? Rather than looking at the words it may help some to actually read it. Upbeat becomes downbeat and pragmatic as quotes come from further down the table.

So, what can we learn?

There are no great quotes coming from football these days. It is a world of clichés and very few bon mots. Saturated media coverage doesn’t help matters, managers and players knowing that every word is recorded aren’t going to say things which they know will get them hauled up before the FA or offend players, the opposition or their own employer.

"I don't want to use too many excuses"

At least he is admitting to making excuses. It's a refreshing change from the usual "We have x number of players injured...but I'm not going to use that as an excuse."

Jamboandy, I don't dispute that Preston have outperformed their bigger spending rivals due to coaching and managers with an eye for talent, and i'm not goin to start any nonsensical rants about the size of the club as in all honesty Preston have punched above their weight. Currently the club just don't have the funds to go up against the big spenders, but thankfully (most of) our recent managers have avoiding wasting too much cash. Some will always go awry when a player you bring in doesn't perform as expected, but on the whole we have been reasonably lucky. (Luck or good judgement by the managers?)

My point was that given that the majority of the squad there was there in previously successful campaigns, and it isn't exactly an old squad, it shouldn't surprise anyone that a similar squad performs at a similar level. The only way that anyone could claim to be surprised would be to look at last season without taking into account previous performances by a similar squad and ignoring the change in manager.

As you said, Preston have performed well largely thanks to a serious of quality managers, and they once again have a manager of that caliber. Given the mess he had to sort out when he came in, he showed his quality last season, so a good start this year shouldn't be that much of a shock.

With regards to what Laws has said about travelling for 7 hours. This is something that the Plymouth Argyle players do on a frequent basis, and yet you never hear any of our managers blaming poor performances on it.

Face it Laws, your team was beaten by a much better side, and the reason for the high scoreline is that you can't defend for toffee.

"The post-match reaction to the 1-1 draw between Sheffield United and Coventry saw Blades boss Kevin Blackwell describe his team as "garbage" and insist they must learn to cope with expectation."

This blog was worth it to hear more foolishness from Kevin Blackwell, thank god he no longer manages Leeds

Hot Butter - you're completely wrong. They weren't seven hours late, the journey TOOK seven hours.

They arrived least 4 hours before kick off, so you'd think, bless their cotton socks, that well-paid, professional sportsmen would be able to cope with the RIGOURS of being stuck, sat down, on a coach for several hours longer than expected. My housemate's an avid Owls fan, and he laughed (cynically) at Laws's comments.

Also, Fletch isn't assuming Laws's point is excusing the performance - by all accounts it was shocking - but rather highlighting what a meagre argument the seven-hour journey thing is at all. At least, that's what I got out of it.

markjhope, Jose Mourinho was always good for a soundbite or two, and Ian Holloway seems to get away with it.

I think honesty from the managers is becoming more prevalent as they are starting to realise that good quotes get them airtime, exposure etc.

What I don't like is when a journo asks a player, fresh of the pitch, "What does it feel like to score the winner with only a minute to go?"
It feels bloody great of course, stop asking stupid questions (If Garth Crooks is reading this then I may have helped someone). Players are not required to have the interpersonal skills of managers, and accordingly many of them stick to the cliches and one word answers. Leave the players to playing football.

markjhope - Spot on there. I haven't heard anything other than a cliche from football coverage in an age. Every time someone tries to be honest (a la Bentley) they get crucified, so everyone takes the easy and boring option of speaking in wooly words and a chorus of 'Unbelievable!'. Really?! Lawro and Merson are the worst offenders.

If you want a good example of well constructed opinion from ex-pro's not afraid to speak their mind and back it up, watch Inside NFL on Sky Sports....if you like NFL that is!

Not an 'Unbelievable' in sight.

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neil warnock is the king of comedy post match rants. theres one on youtube where he rants about the ref not sending someone off but giving a foul throw, saying 'it makes me sick'. thats class.

Relating to the Brian Laws comments-

I may be wrong but I seem to remember an interview with Tommy Docherty when in charge of Man Utd when they were relegated in 74, when asked why his team were so poor away from home that season he blamed it on the team's bus driver.

He said something along the lines of 'The bus driver turned up so late to pick us up for away games, that he drove so fast to get us there, that we got there way too early so we were kicking our heels for a long time before the match, which spoilt our preparation.'

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

Paul I usually like your blogs and they make a good lunch time read but this is really scraping the barrel. Was it a slow news week?

Yes I'm a Wednesday fan, yes I think you've miss quoted Laws, yes I missed the funny side but to be honest if there hadn't been a picture of Laws at the start I'd have got bored and gone back to my brew long before I got to the end.

Although Ternent's comment is genius.

The short answer is nothing! My wish for the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ is if a manager has said nothing of interest don't use it.

The ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ seems to feel obliged to use the quotes of managers and players even though 95% of the time they are completely bland and tell us nothing.

Although by this criteria the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ would have to ditch a large percententage of its pundits and commentators too.

As a fellow journalist 'Fletch' (nice name by the way....erm) I find your blog completely useless and boring. Making jest of Brian Laws must have tickled you pink, sat there on your 'high brow' stool typing away. Are there no ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ sec's who need tea bringing to their desks or anything? I'm just trying to think of a job for you to do. Or maybe clean the streets of the capital? Quite pathetic really.

We have heard many great comments from Stan the man in the past. After one Burnley game a Radio Lancashire reporter asked Stan was he disappointed how the game turned out. His reply was "Two prisoners behind bars, one sees mud the other stars" CLASSIC!!

Jeez, some people need to take a chill pill, it wasn't that bad a blog, okay it won't go down in history as one of the top ten ever blogs but it was a read.

If you want to read a bad blog check out Chic Young's blogs, now they are really bad.

I really can't see the point of post-match interviews. Why interview every manager after every game, just for the sake of it? Football is a simple game, which really doesn't need to be analysed to nth degree - especially when you think how many millions of matches have been played in the game's history. What's left to say that hasn't been said so many times before?

Why not just interview managers after games that contain real talking points? I.e. a red card, horrific tackle, blinding goal, poor refereeing decision, exceptionally bad performance...

Because really, what is the point of interviewing the manager of a top-of-the-table team that's just beaten the club in 20th place 3-0? Are you really going to hear anything original, insigntful, thought-provoking? No. You will almost certainly hear the same old tripe about how there are no easy games in the [insert name of competition], how the lads deserve credit, how we should just take it one game at a time, blah blah blah blah blah zzzzzzzzzz.

All this article proves is that we can read absolutely NOTHING into managers' post-match words. Unless you're somebody who enjoys sitting by the radio ticking off a checklist of football clichés, post-match interviews serve no purpose whatsoever. Much like this article, in fact...

@ BluesBluesBlues

Don't watch much Sky, prefer to get my NFL coverage from nfl.com - plenty of video from the NFL Network channel.

UK media could learn a lot from the Americans - whether pundits, commentators, coaches or players.

"I don't want to use any excuses"

Erm, Lawsy, you just did!!!

Even though they did arrive 'late', they still arrived at 3pm - which is almost 5 hours before kick-off and should still be plenty of time to get a 7hr journey out of the system!!!

I don't care what anybody says, a team could get stuck in traffic for 11 hours and get to a match 1 hour before kick-off and they still shouldn't get beaten 6-0!

6-0 is a complete drubbing, end of story, no excuses.

How can any of you suggest that the UK media could learn a thing or two from the US... Wash your mouth out and scrub the fingers that typed such sacrilege...

The last thing I want is the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ promoting incoherent drivelling and journalists caring more about appearances than what they write... (see Chic Young for proof that appearances are not important in the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳)

Admittedly not your best blog Fletch... push the boat out a bit next time, lest we get any more cries for 'soccer news'.

To be fair if anyone has read the article in full at no time at all did Brian Laws use being stuck in traffic as an excuse for losing.

We were well beaten from a very good Reading team.

Paul Fletcher "It occurred to me that it would be interesting to find out what the readers of this website thought about them, hence the piece above."

That is fair enough Paul. But the problem is that when you give an article a title such as "What we can learn from post-match reaction," it kind of suggests that we are actually going to get some kind of insight from the author. Am I wrong to think that?

All you have done is take a few run-of-the-mill post-match quotations and stuck them on the page, with little or no explanation. What does that teach us about post-match reaction? Well, apart from reinforcing the fact that it is all clichéd drivel that needs absolutely no explanation - not a lot.

People - the only thing wrong with this article is a misleading title heading. I think a lot of people - including myself - thought it might delve into certain managers' traits or pick up on what a coach really thinks after a game. For example, Wenger never seems to witness any negative incident from his team yet can quite clearly see any injustice against it - what does this tell you about the Frenchman's attitude?

Yes the the subject heading of this article deserves a more insightful write up rather than jotting down some amusing Championship quotes however, some of the comments coming back are way out of line.

The title and article don't match up - simple. Go easy on the criticism.

Just to follow on from my earlier point, I think the title of this particular article could be:

"Are Championship manager's more honest after a game?"

Or simply:

"Post match quotes from Tuesday night's Championship action"

It would be interesting to see how the comments would fare if you changed the title heading today and re-posted Paul.

Managing expectation has gone wrong here mate.

The late, and much missed, Billy Bremner had a policy of always waiting 24 hours before he commented on a game. I suspect because the FA fined him so many times when he didn't.

This would not work in the modern game, partly because interest has passed by the next day but mainly because the TV companies and papers need something to liven up dull matches - todays headlines are 'Benitez Furious at Penalty Decision' not 'Liverpool and Stoke play out mind numbingly tedious 0 - 0 draw'. This probably sells more papers.

Surely someone must remember ex-owls boss Chris Turners pearls of wisdom after losing 3-2....... "well you know when your 2-0 up at half time against a team like this its a nightmare lead....." Nightmare chris Nightmare.