“Football’s all about opinions” is a term you’ll hear, especially when listening to BBC Radio Berkshire. Fans on Twitter – including in polls by some Reading fan groups (The Tilehurst End , RFC Latest)
– say (overwhelmingly) it’s time Noel Hunt was sacked. But apparently only “a tiny little minority” think so, says the ‘voice of Reading FC’ Tim Dellor – that’s despite numerous callers saying otherwise on his phone-ins…
So, let’s assess where things are right now as there’s an array of issues both for and against ending Noel Hunt’s time in the dugout.
First up, the case for sticking with Hunt.
There’s no shying away from the impact of losing the players we’ve lost, including three quarters of the backline deployed most of last season.
It’s obvious the defence we’ve seen for most of this season isn’t Hunt’s first pick either. Who would’ve known early summer recruit Paudie O’Connor wouldn’t make a competitive appearance until October, along with injuries to Derrick Williams and a return of Andy Yiadom’s fitness woes?
That said, it’s worth remembering Tyler Bindon and Amadou Mbengue took a bit of time to find their feet when they joined. Thus, our defence won’t look fully bedded-in for a while, not to mention the new dressing room dynamics. Which brings me onto the summer transfer window.
One thing stands out with the more senior players recently brought into RG2: timing. By senior I mean Paddy Lane, Jack Marriott, Matt Ritchie and Williams. Not only did they arrive after our last pre-season friendly, but they’ve all (except Marriott) needed time to build up their fitness.
Coming through the door with the season in full flow meant Hunt missed out on precious weeks of preparation, not to mention waiting for them to get up to speed. These are the players who will likely dictate the season, and I’d point the finger upstairs, asking why they weren’t here sooner.
Speaking of the boardroom, I’d argue Hunt doesn’t have the squad he envisaged when he first sat down with owner Rob Couhig and CEO Joe Jacobson. I’ll admit that’s speculative, but it looked obvious in the club’s bizarre video with Hunt and Jacobson when the transfer window closed.
Put simply, Hunt came across as frustrated, indicating he wanted more players than he got. Put it this way: Yiadom’s fitness has been an ongoing issue and is perhaps why Lewis Wing was made club captain. The fact Ashqar Ahmed impressed over the summer is more luck than judgement in my view, as I wouldn’t be surprised if full-back is an area Hunt wanted to strengthen.
Factoring in all the above, it’s no wonder we’ve started the season slowly, but with only one defeat in the last eight league games, we’ve certainly improved since late August too. Runs like these will happen and we only have to remember the turnaround seen under Hunt’s predecessor to see how sticking with it (whether through circumstance) does pay off.
Joel Pereira, O’Connor, Wing, Charlie Savage and Marriott: these are some of the best players in League One. Rome wasn’t built in a day and the game where everything clicks could just be the next one. As Todd Trosclair might say, “patience” may be all we need.
But maybe the time to make a change is now? Let’s examine the case for sacking Hunt.
When Nigel Gibbs left over the summer, it presented Hunt with an opportunity to show us a development in his vision as manager. But if anything, things on the pitch have become clouded and it doesn’t look as though Hunt learnt from last season’s play-off push, which begs the question: how much influence did Gibbo have?
Hunt’s second season should be about how he wants to play. We’re 11 league games in and I’m not too sure yet exactly what that is, nor do I think it’s been explained. If Hunt wants to play to the strengths of his players, that’s fine, but let’s look at something which defined recent Reading campaigns.
Reading scored 14 league goals from set-pieces last season and, given the talents of Wing and Savage, that feels like something which could be improved and built upon. Not to mention their penchant for a volley. This season’s set-pieces have been woeful and, if anything, we don’t try and win them at all. So how exactly are we utilising our midfielders this season?
Then there’s the simple game-management side of things: substitutions are either far too late or change our shape negatively when we’ve the ability to swap like-for-like. This brings what Hunt sees into question.
For example, Matty Jacob’s performances have been sub-par, to put it nicely. Meanwhile, players who adequately covered left-back last season are ignored, despite us having the depth to replace him. Why?
Admittedly the defence hasn’t been flush with seniors to date, but too many goals are conceded from runners into the box being unmarked and/or left for others to cover. Again, it’s a lesson that isn’t being learned and, with a young side, one would expect an ex-academy manager to be all over trying to rectify and improve players’ games.
This brings me to players such as Ben Elliott and Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan, who really should be pushing on this season, but in the limited time they’ve been given, don’t look as inspired as they once did.
The league table doesn’t lie and, with a quarter of the campaign gone, we’re in trouble. The ultimate excuse about the club’s ownership is also (thankfully) a memory, and while one could use the cliché about fine margins, the above issues are too glaringly obvious to be marginal.
On paper the current squad looks decent, with a few outstanding features. On grass, it plays to a style which has somehow lowered itself to be just about average overall. The ingredients are there, so perhaps Couhig and Jacobson need a new visionary?
