So finally, the long wait is over. West Bromwich Albion have their new Head Coach. And the feeling of complete and utter dejection is tangible amongst the supporters.
Alan Irvine is the head-scratching appointment made by an owner and Board of Directors who are so far out of touch with the fan base that it would be absolutely laughable were it not for the fact that I love the club.
My initial response to the most underwhelming appointment in my lifetime, considering the club’s current standing, was that of relief that the new man wasn’t called Tim Sherwood. I couldn’t see any possible way that a marriage of Sherwood and Jeremy Peace could work, and so it proved before he ever even sat down in what is proving to be an extremely hot seat.
But Alan Irvine? Why? He has been sacked from his only two managerial posts which last saw him guide Sheffield Wednesday to relegation into League One, prior to a spell as Academy manager at Everton. He hasn’t been involved in first team affairs at Premier League level since his days as assistant to David Moyes in 2007 and even his link to the post once in the past while Albion were a mid-table Championship club is as tenuous as his appointment is cheap. If we are to believe that Irvine was one of two outstanding candidates (we don’t) then why has his appointment taken so long?
The end of season Chairman’s statement and subsequent appointment of the respected Terry Burton as Technical Director had given fans a glimmer of hope that things might change, but even that faint hope has now not so much been dampened but more been destroyed by a deluge. This is a loud and clear message to everyone that Jeremy Peace cares about Jeremy Peace and nothing else. Any hollow protestations that he does everything with the clubs best interest at heart should be treated with the same level of disdain that he shows the fans. His band of apologists have been conspicuous by their absence since the muted announcement, though finally I believe that many are now seeing him in his true light.
So now, despite the feelings of anger, bitterness and sheer disillusionment, all attentions must switch to assembling the playing squad; the most important part of any football club other than the supporters. That task has not been made any easier by the appointment of Irvine.
The club have lost more than enough players this pre-season, but losing supporters at such a rate would hurt the club so much more in the long run, and as much as decisions such as these hurt me, confuse me and even make me question the point of it all, I won’t let one man take my club away from me. I won’t be one of many who will be, completely understandably in their bewildered state, phoning the club for a refund on their season ticket on Monday morning.
As one tweet put it earlier today, this is the time that the club needs us most. Even if they really don’t deserve us.
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