Phil Brown

[davewebbsbrain]

That maybe so, but for getting us out of that league there is no one better. Notice we have been in constant decline since he left. Coincidence? Maybe but not likely.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and I did think it was the right time for him to go, I did think Powell was the right man to replace him. Looking back now I think we should’ve given Brown more of a chance. Maybe we wouldn’t be where we are now. He obviously had control of those billy big bollocks players causing issues in the dressing room. Maybe he would’ve had the balls to ship them out and keep the dressing room happy. The players under Brown were fit and played with passion. Something we haven’t had since he left!

We were in massive decline before he was sacked. Powell started a resurgence but injuries put paid to that

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

Brown had most definitely lost the dressing room and was talking himself out of a job. Ron had just had enough. He was happy to let him go and so were most fans at the time. Sol is dealing with the fall out, two years on.

People also forget some of our performances at the tail end of the PB era, Bristol away springs to mind. The players downed tools and Brown didn’t seem to have the answer. He had his time.
I’m not anti PB and say cheers Phil for Wycombe and promotion, but I’d not want him back, personally.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

Phil Brown was one of those Managers that was happy and bubbly and easy to talk to when the team was winning. On a losing streak he was the opposite, and would throw his players under the bus. In public and the dressing room. He would say things in a rage he shouldn't have said. This would make the losing streak worse. This is why players turned against him.

 

[rigsby]

Phil Brown was one of those Managers that was happy and bubbly and easy to talk to when the team was winning. On a losing streak he was the opposite, and would throw his players under the bus. In public and the dressing room. He would s.ay things in a rage he shouldn't have said This would make the losing streak worse. This is why players turned against him.

I agree in general with your post but he turned out to be right.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

I agree in general with your post but he turned out to be right.

Oh, I'm not saying the players didn't deserve it, but to be a good man manager, you have to know what and how to say or shout things to different personalities of players. Allegedly, he wasn't good at that, and had a no holds barred approach that didn't work with some of the players.

 

[rigsby]

Oh, I'm not saying the players didn't deserve it, but to be a good man manager, you have to know what and how to say or shout things to different personalities of players. Allegedly, he wasn't good at that, and had a no holds barred approach that didn't work with some of the players.

PB told me he never picked on the weaker ones first (unlike certain senior players) One time he launched into AB after a match......AB wasn't even playing or on the bench but PB felt he wasn't doing his job in the dressing room.

Since then we have had some mangers where players have no idea what their job is.....One glance at the league table tells us all we need to know.

 

[Brett Angle]

Phil Brown was one of those Managers that was happy and bubbly and easy to talk to when the team was winning. On a losing streak he was the opposite, and would throw his players under the bus. In public and the dressing room. He would say things in a rage he shouldn't have said. This would make the losing streak worse. This is why players turned against him.

I think, based on what has happened since he left the PB haters really need to keep quiet. This 'insight' they supposedly have around the dressing room at the time has always made me laugh - it was something they used simply to justify their narrative at the time and I see it still gets wheeled out from time to time to justify their argument. I'm afraid in the fullness of time you have LOST the argument and we are significantly worse off (in a number of ways) than we were with PB at the helm. End of.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

I think, based on what has happened since he left the PB haters really need to keep quiet. This 'insight' they supposedly have around the dressing room at the time has always made me laugh - it was something they used simply to justify their narrative at the time and I see it still gets wheeled out from time to time to justify their argument. I'm afraid in the fullness of time you have LOST the argument and we are significantly worse off (in a number of ways) than we were with PB at the helm. End of.

I'm not a Phil Brown hater, I spoke to him during a good period of results, and really liked him. When the Brown out thing started, I stuck up for him, and was one of the very last to say it was time. So I'm not coming at this as a PB hater, I'm only explaining things I heard as to why he lost a lot of the players in the dressing room. Yes, it's turned out that we would probably have been better off if we stuck with him, and maybe got rid of the players that didn't want to work with him anymore.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

The trouble is it wasn’t confined to the dressing room, it was confirmed in his post match rants. He wore his heart on his sleeve, was passionate but sometimes I think he just needed to keep quiet. Yes I get where we are now but form reversed under Powell initially. Had we not had the injuries I doubt last season would’ve unravelled the way it did. Anyway pointless going over the same old ground. I liked Brown, but in the end Ron decided to let him go rather than back him to the end with rooting out the troublemakers and I expect his public statements helped.

As much as I appreciate the good days I wouldn’t want him back. Best of luck in future Phil.

 

[Kris]

I think, based on what has happened since he left the PB haters really need to keep quiet. This 'insight' they supposedly have around the dressing room at the time has always made me laugh - it was something they used simply to justify their narrative at the time and I see it still gets wheeled out from time to time to justify their argument. I'm afraid in the fullness of time you have LOST the argument and we are significantly worse off (in a number of ways) than we were with PB at the helm. End of.

I'd agree with you if we had been coasting in and around the top 10 and people had the sort of 'Brown's taken us as far as we can' mentality, which tends to bite these people in the backside (West Brom fans under Tony Pulis in the Premier League, for example, or further back Charlton fans under Alan Curbishley, when Charlton were high in the Premier League), but come on, Brown had to go; he didn't even want to be here anymore. Without the change of management we'd have gone down two seasons ago and be back where Brown had started from.

And that's the thing, most managerial periods end in tears - look at Arsene Wenger, one of the best and influential managers in football history, hounded out of the club; Pocchetino at Spurs; Gerard Houllier at Liverpool; even Alex Ferguson was criticised by some for not leaving David Moyes with anything to work with.

We also still have players from Brown's era at the club - Oxley, Kiernan, Demi and Macca all started yesterday and Cox would be there or thereabouts if he was available - and we've only won one match all season with them all in the side. And it's 'the worst Southend team ever', according to many on here.

We're Southend United, a smallish rollercoaster club that has ups and downs - the key is to enjoy the ups while we can; despite the massive successes under Tilly, even he left us in a worse position than when he started, albeit mostly not his fault. We had good times with Brown but he left us plunging back towards League 2. He's as much to blame as anyone.

 

[Brett Angle]

And so it continues sorry guys it doesn't wash. I reckon if Ron could turn the clock back he would shut out all the noise from the minority shouting loudest - and backed rather than sacked. Not only did Brown go a year or two early but so did the succession plan around replacing him from within. Yes it's history I accept but shouldn't be glossed over - clubs (supporters too) like ours need to realise our limitations and when we are relatively well off.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

And so it continues sorry guys it doesn't wash. I reckon if Ron could turn the clock back he would shut out all the noise from the minority shouting loudest - and backed rather than sacked. Not only did Brown go a year or two early but so did the succession plan around replacing him from within. Yes it's history I accept but shouldn't be glossed over - clubs (supporters too) like ours need to realise our limitations and when we are relatively well off.

Do you agree maybe PB contributed to his own exit, with his public slating of players and basically saying he wanted to go? Ron maybe should’ve backed him more, yes, but I don’t think for a second he listened to fans’ opinions or that swayed his decision.

 

[Shrimpers are Magic]

Do you agree maybe PB contributed to his own exit, with his public slating of players and basically saying he wanted to go? Ron maybe should’ve backed him more, yes, but I don’t think for a second he listened to fans’ opinions or that swayed his decision.

I think he listens to the fans who are utterly clueless in running a football club as a business and even more clueless in managing professional football players far too often

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Because he was the man who got us out of league two!

And he’d do so again if we reappointed him.

I’d rather not derbies against Concord though.

 

[rigsby]

Whatever you think of PB, he is someone people like to talk about. We are pushing on for 500 posts after he has left. At times there would be at least 3 different threads about PB when he was here. Not to mention nearly every other thread hi-jacked to mention the man.

I rather miss the days of getting back fro an away trip to find abusive PMs for being a Brown- -nose. Its good to see the Zone myths of job hunting whilst with us continue. When in fact he turned down Sunderland and I bet most of you don't know this....Forrest.

The time was right when he left. Perhaps a few weeks to late ad despite at the time a home record we could only dream of these days.

It was a chicken and egg scenario with who lost who first when come to him, the players and Ron. He hadn't been able to sign the players he needed and he knew what would happen in January. Sadly CP found out the same, then throw in your worst injury run in history and we have ended up where we are.

We are Southend United we love to make a drama into a crisis or is it a crisis into a drama....I can never work it out.

 

[southendkid]

We also still have players from Brown's era at the club - Oxley, Kiernan, Demi and Macca all started yesterday and Cox would be there or thereabouts if he was available - and we've only won one match all season with them all in the side. And it's 'the worst Southend team ever', according to many on here.

I agree that Brown had lost the squad and so needed to go but Kiernan aside those players were all good whilst he was here so that's not really a mark against PB, Macca declined under PB towards the end but I don't think any of the others did. Oxley has always been a confidence player (he was awful when he first arrived) but Brown turned him into our player of the season, it's not his fault other managers haven't figured out how to get his form back. Cox was great until this season. Demitriou is now 32, and full backs tend to decline early since they are expected to contribute both going forwards and at the back these days (although since Sol converted him to a midfielder he's looked decent).

 

[SUFCfan44]

Really, if sol walked (wouldn’t massively shock me) , then would PB even be on RM’s radar. Personally, I wouldn’t mind it as I think he’s a top manager when it comes to getting us back up ASAP, although that can hardly be our priority atm surely? Adam Barrett would be the man id say.

 

[Brett Angle]

Do you agree maybe PB contributed to his own exit, with his public slating of players and basically saying he wanted to go? Ron maybe should’ve backed him more, yes, but I don’t think for a second he listened to fans’ opinions or that swayed his decision.

No, sorry I don't agree. As someone else said I don't think it's wrong for a senior player or two to take the wrap from time to time privately or publically following a poor performance - and frankly if it doesn't get the subsequent reaction on the field that the manager is trying to garner then it tells you more about the player than the manager imho. I'd also refute the suggestion he wanted to go necessarily too. I remember that coming up on here before following a Tv appearance one evening and again some supporters heard what they wanted to hear. Remember when he left his contract had around 6 months to run with no suggestion it was going to be renewed - not sure many members on here wouldn't have started tentatively exploring other avenues if that was the case for them.

 

[OldBlueLady]

I really liked Phil Brown, there's no doubting that he did have a nasty habit though, of blaming players after defeats or bad performances. Or that that upset some of their precious egos.

Equally, I know that there were plenty of those players who had respect for him in other ways that made them put up with those less enjoyable aspects of his personality.

From a personal point of view, he's the best manager that I've had to work with where the Junior Blues are concerned, and yes, that includes Tilson.

 

[Mad Cyril]

Can you imagine the conversation between him and Ron....

View attachment 10691

What a man!

He looks like he was poured into that suit.