After a seemingly never-ending period of prolonged misery in which there have been precious few things to cheer, the surprising yet long overdue news of Peter Taylor's sacking would've sparked rapturous celebrations amongst the fanbase when the news filtered through on Sunday afternoon. Supporters had been left long disillusioned by his lifeless interviews and painfully negative football, and the Bromley game which proved the last nail in his coffin rather epitomised his ill-fated reign: lots of initial promise that ultimately alluded to shambolic frustration. Despite being handed a healthy budget with the task of sustaining a promotion challenge, Taylor contrived to guide the club closer to the relegation places and a change was desperately needed. For all the infrastructural improvements orchestrated by our American owners, the dreadful football being served up on the pitch simply didn't match our ambition off it, and with more and more supporters pledging to stay away until Taylor was offloaded it's no shock that we've reached this conclusion. That said, a sacking on a Sunday, especially given Taylor's popularity with the Dagenham hierarchy, was quite surprising but also a welcome reinforcement of the Americans' desire to build a positive club. However now they are faced with a second big decision in a short space of time - selecting the man to be the figurehead of their plans for the club, a man who reflects what we're trying to achieve as a collective. The general consensus is that we need a young manager with fresh, modern ideologies, of the Luke Garrard or Daryl McMahon ilk, however as usual there have been a few 'safe bets' banded around in the form of Garry Hill or John Still. I've taken a look at a few of the usual suspects, alongside some outsiders, to fill the vacant manager's position, offering my opinion as to whether they're suited to the club and vice-versa:
A hugely-popular candidate amongst the Dagenham fanbase, though the chances of it happening are unlikely given his deep-rooted ties to Boreham Wood and the compensation we'd need to pay in order to lure him to Victoria Road. However, we can only hope he'd be tempted by the promise of a big budget to fulfil his own dreams of managing in the Football League. Garrard is astoundingly only 34 years old but already speaks and manages like an experienced pro in the game, managing to work wonders with the Wood almost every season. Just a couple of years ago he guided them to a Play-Off Final at Wembley, and will be looking to emulate that play-off campaign this time out as his side sits eighth with a game in hand.
From someone ideal to someone more realistic, Hill's appointment would make logistical sense but wouldn't be hugely welcomed by supporters. He has good ties with the club and lives locally, but is another traditional manager cut from the same cloth as Taylor in regard to style of football and tactics. He would be a quick-fix, steady-the-ship type boss, but surely we want to implement somebody with a view to the long-term?
An outside bet, it would be surprising to see Nolan rock up at Victoria Road but it would also have the potential to be an excellent appointment. With him having made tons of money at Bolton, Newcastle and West Ham over the past twelve or so years, it's guaranteed he'd be an ex-pro with the passion to have a crack at management rather than somebody after a decent wage. He also knows the modern game inside out, lives locally and has done well in his stints as manager at both Leyton Orient and Notts County so far. A risk no doubt, but sometimes you have to take risks and this would be one I'd be well up for us gambling on.
Was frequently seen at games before being appointed at Macclesfield, and strikes a good balance between being a good appointment and also a relatively plausible one. Though he is currently employed, Macclesfield are in peril and, still living locally, McMahon would probably jump at the opportunity for a solid budget and job security. Just a couple of years ago, he worked wonders to guide Ebbsfleet into the play-offs in their first season at this level, demonstrating his ability to work with a decent budget.
Would certainly be an underwhelming decision, but it's not inconceivable to think that the club may go down the appoint-from-within route and upgrade Jody Brown to manager. He was reportedly in contention for the job which Peter Taylor eventually got, and did do very well at Heybridge Swifts, but supporters will be expecting someone of a higher calibre.
When Ian Culverhouse left his post as Daggers' assistant manager in February 2017 to take charge of then Southern Premier Division outfit Kings Lynn, not many of our supporters would've envisaged his new team being top of the National League North less than three years later. Infact, such is the amazing project going on at Kings Lynn, who are on a ridiculous run of fifteen months unbeaten at home, that Culverhouse would possibly reject the job anyway to continue the excellent work he's doing for the Linnets. He's not been talked about that much as a potential replacement for Taylor, but you simply can't ignore what he's achieving. CLUB STATEMENT | It is with disappointment that the Board of Dagenham & Redbridge announce that Peter Taylor has left the club with immediate effect. The club would firstly like to place on record its sincere thanks to Peter, who stepped in as manager in June 2018 when the club was under extreme pressure, and with his extensive expertise was able to assemble and guide the team. With that said, a change is required based on recent results in order to both enable sufficient time for the Board to select a replacement, and for the new manager to start and achieve the aspirations set forth by our investment group. Work has commenced on the search process for a new manager, but for the immediate future, day to day team affairs will be handled by Terry Harris and Jody Brown. It's a relieving end to what has been a nightmare period for the club, but this next appointment will be vital. Until then, we need to get well behind Terry Harris and Jody Brown to ensure that, by the time a new manager takes the reins, we're in a healthier position than we are now.
5 Comments
Peter king
30/12/2019 09:31:54 pm
Well written article as always Joel. They always say dont go back but given budgets that have been spent and pay offs for Taylor, Garry Hill could be the answer on a short term fix! Lets face it with his budget before he worked miracles in the past not just in the league but FA cup as well.
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Joel
30/12/2019 10:11:50 pm
Appreciate your comments as always. I agree Garry Hill would be a good short-term fix but no more, and I personally don't think we can afford to waste another six months (or longer if he does well and gets an extra year) on a manager whose better days are behind him, and who isn't someone that is going to realistically take us up. My opinion is go for Nolan, he's a big name and would get supporters fired up.
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Malc White
31/12/2019 11:48:11 am
Well written. Why dont you and Keane combine efforts? Having said that it's good to read two articles about the Dags.
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Joel Page
31/12/2019 03:01:16 pm
Much appreciated comments. To be honest I wouldn't be interested in combining efforts as I've run my site independently for over 5 years now and wouldn't want to change things.
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Steve Playford
1/1/2020 07:46:52 pm
Some good names in there. Culverhouse has obviously done very well at Kings Lynn and also has his own game on Talk Sport nowadays so he could be a very interesting appointment! Hadn't even thought about him as an option.
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