Heard the same last night. I’ve really wanted it to work for Brett and have stuck up for him a good few times but no coming back from that yesterday.

Me too.



IF its true. Smith is the obvious and quick choice

Just hope If it is true that Purtill will be on his way too.

Sounds like a bit of a jinx, unless he's just unlucky.

As I said somewhere earlier. Next week could be interesting

Pretty sure Hodgson is not the main problem although we cant be sure he is up to the job till things improve with backroom staff and players. Both main assistant coaches do not seem capable. I am particularly disappointed with Gaz who has been great for our club but as a defence coach appears to be terrible. Attack is good on odd occasions but very slow and poor on others. Obviosly the injuries and bans dont help which also points the finger at the backroom setup. There is no communication with the fans and Pearson/Clarke just sit back and say bu??er all. Pearson (if he is still here next season needs to prepare for yet another massive financial hit). The fans forums dissapeared ages ago and this just creates loads of the moaners to putting forward their made up stories with nothing being refuted and many people believing their crap. I realise that Pearson and the club must be in a terrible financial position but they MUST COME FORWARD AND COMMUNICATE WITH THE FANS ON A REGULAR BASIS BE HONEST and fans will appreciate that and back you otherwise the situation will only get much worse and the fan base with dwindle substatially again next year. I would love to have the opportunity to air my views face to face but obviously theres no chance of that

From the outside looking in, all you need is a Rohan Smith type of appointment. Someone with clear ideas how you want to play, and immediate strong decisions on player recruitment and moving others out at all costs. Ruthlessness, and 3 year plan needed…
Some core quality players at you club next year (Connor, Hoy, Satae, Houghton, Savelio) lots of outs needed though…….
I know Houghton’s not popular in here, but I’d actually swap Leeming for Houghton if it were possible…..

I imagine this is what Hodgson sold himself as in the interview though, a plan to move players on, focus on youth, have a 3 year plan etc. We need a Shaun Wane character, someone the players will run through brick walls for and isn't too nice like Hodgson / Gentle came across

What FC needs is either a new owner or a new CEO with complete authority and with good sports club knowledge that can drive the organisation forward. Tinkering at lower levels rarely works in the long term.

We used to think that at Leeds, but we’ve now seen that we need to stop looking backwards with coaches who’ve been a legend at other clubs, and look at younger, fresher ideas, someone looking to really prove themselves. Someone like Hodgson I guess, maybe give him more time ? You’ve been decimated with injuries for as many years as I can remember!

If true, it’s a shame because Hodgson seems a good guy.
Still think he’s more of an ideas/pathways/admin guy rather than a head coach

Whoever is next, it can’t be an Assistant. Rohan Smith at Leeds has done very well, but he was a head coach of a reserve grade team, which is a good level.

I’d go for Tony Smith. Just think he’s the type to come into a club and give it an immediate lift.

Hodgson has good ideas and I appreciate the ethos he’s trying to set at the club but days like today just go to show he may be out of his depth doing it alone, put in a previous post he needs support in the form of a Head of Rugby.

From what I've heard changes are coming, likely Hodgson will still be here with complete new backroom staff and with nobody to hide behind on his last chance, from what I was told there's investment incoming whether or not its in return for shares in the club is unclear

Excellent post and nail on head honesty openness and accountability. We just want to understand what the club believe the issues are. The then marketing manager didn't like it but for 4 seasons the fans organisation almost demanded 2 fans forums a year and by and large got them, with 450 people able to quiz the owner coach and senior players and I think that the benefit was to both parties (both fans and club) because they could both see each others point of view. That then was reduced to one a year by the hierarchy and then the club decided that small regulate fans focus groups for invited season ticket holders were the best idea, but in the last two season (no doubt because of Covid) they have dissapeared as well and as you so rightly say that just leads to fans making it up following their own agendas or as is the case now offering some obtuse crumbs of hope.

The problem with just replacing Hodgson (if that's what will happen) is that it's simply a knee jerk response to losing a derby in humiliating fashion in an effort to persuade wavering fans to renew. This is not the right circumstance to make such a decision, whether it's the right one or not.

We need a full reset IMO. Acknowledgment that the momentum of success in 16/17 has been squandered, transparency on the financial status of the club and a non-bull articulation of plans on and off the pitch over the next couple of years including lease renewal. You have to face the truth to tackle the issues, or be clear how difficult it is to do so effectively, in order to carry the club's only asset (its fans) with you. Making this about replacing the coach alone and everything else is fine and we're aiming for top 4 in 2023 would be insulting.
.

I don’t think it is a knee jerk reaction to one result.
It’s a culmination of heavy beatings at home from bang average teams on a regular basis.

There are no green shoots of recovery, no identity on how he wants the team to play. Just faint hope that a handful of new players (a couple in their early 20’s) will transform how we play.

The fans made their feelings known yesterday, and there’s no way back from that. Jam tomorrow and in any kind of weather has been exhausted.

Change has to come now, good or bad.

Replacing Hodgson would not be a knee jerk reaction though solely based on yesterday but based rather on the steady decay set in at the club over the last 2 seasons.
We could have won yesterday and my feelings towards the coach and club currently would not change.
I'm so disillusioned right now that losing to Rovers didn't in the slightest bother me, I'm just glad another disappointing season has ended.

You constantly make financial assumptions on the club and Pearson and whilst acknowledging COVID and team performance will have a bearing on pass sales, we have no idea on running costs, Pearson's wealth or that of anyone else involved.
Financially we are no better or worse off then many clubs but what we do is fail to invest wisely in the club's infrastructure ie backroom staff.
Salford, a fan owned club with less fans and resources are again spectacularly out performing us this season.

This is not all about finance but poor choices, misplaced loyalty, wrong appointments and a distinct lack of communication from the club.

I've heard the same

All yesterday did was reach the tipping point.

Changes are good, and very sorely needed.
The worry is that if Hodgson is still here it will be one almighty challenge to sell season passes, and by the time his last chance is up our season could be over by Easter and another year absolutely wasted. That would leave season passes even harder to sell the following year.
Changes to backroom staff, no matter how badly needed and important it is, unfortunately aren't the changes that excite fans and convince them to spend their money.

All I know is I wouldn't like to be Pearson right now. He has some of the biggest and toughest decisions of his career ahead of him.

I'd heard change was afoot before yesterday but if yesterday firms up plans or ideas and speeds up change then I'm glad it happened.

Excellent post



However, could you not join the VP’s society?

Not sure exactly what involvement they have but think they are open to receiving new members and get to question representatives of the club?

There are many problems associated with the club not just Hodgson but the one that can be addressed straightaway is replacing him with an experienced respected coach.

As you say he has been here 2 years and we are in a worse position than the final days of the Radford era. Even if they were a glimmer of hope I would willingly give him a chance to address it but there's no evidence that's going to happen. We are falling behind the likes of Salford, Cas, Huddersfield and Leeds.

I worry about next season. Relegation is a possibility. Rovers have got rid of the dead wood and have strengthened. Warrington cannot be as bad. Leigh are spending big and Wakey have beaten us twice this season.

I’ve heard a few people saying the same.
We could be in real trouble next year. We’ll be keeping an eye on Wakey’s recruitment as much as our own.

Salford have adopted a plan that suits their circumstances. That might not be best for Hull (or Rovers), whose circumstances are different. But imo both clubs need to reflect more on what will most likely work for them, rather than trying to off-the-peg the Wigan or Leeds or Saints model.