In a nutshell thats nigh on exactly what i think,its obvious to everyone something was badly wrong this year and better to sort it now than to let it linger week after week.

Don't agree, Royce as games progressed has "lost his team", the players look confused, short of ideas and don,t know which player they will be playing with the following week.
This rotation of players was shocking whilst trying to find form, it was causing confusion and dissallusioment, something that McManus has picked up on.
I have,nt seen any form of plan this season.............just 16 headless chickens. The team needs to get its Mojo back, when we do there is only one direction and that's upwards.

They were just the same at the start of last season too, or have you conveniently forgotten this? They couldn't attack or defend at first and then the defence began and the attack came later. Strangely enough we were adjusting to no Cunningham (leader) and a new stadium then as well.


So you didn't attend the pre-panic matches then? Against Catalans they certainly had a plan but it was their defence which let them down. The plan was there. Royce can't force them to stick to it once they are on the pitch though and they lack a leader up front to get them back on track when they go off the plan, so they panic. That isn't Royce's fault. That's the responsibility of the board for not recruiting a leader.

He can't walk on the pitch and tell them to get back on the plan!

16 headless chickens

You are reading the wrong thing into that comment completely. I follow Mike Appleton on Twitter and visit the Saints FB page too. That comment was a direct response to fans criticising the team for being lazy/no passion, etc. It has absolutely nothing to do with the coach. And that is a matter of fact.

There was an effect. We leaked fewer than half the number of points in the last two weeks than we had in the previous two weeks. So our defence had dramatically improved and but for Jamie Foster's lapses it would have been even better. Incidentally, the original plan was to drop Foster for four matches but injury to Gardner meant that Foster had to be played.

Defence righted itself first last season too. The attack would have come.

To be fair, you'd jumped on the Royce is great train just from one interview. I recall you saying you like him already from his very first interview.

But can't you see that if you change Potter in the above sentence this is exactly how the rest of us feel about Royce.

I have to agree with you. I think many people were suffering from premature speculation as far as Royce was concerned but I don't think there was a groundswell of opinion he should go so soon with the club not having much of a plan b.

Whilst we weren't looking world beaters, the only game we were really awful was against Hull and I thought we were unlucky against:

HKR (Foster missing 3 kicks)
Cats (we should have killed the game and took a sin binning and Foster had a mare)
Hudds (Brough goal rebounding off both uprights and the crossbar before it bounces over) and
Bradford (Foster brain fart- again, and TP knock on)

We are where we are but I'd personally adjusted to a season at mid-table.

I think SaintsFan replies are based on contradiction and supposition these days. I,m sure some of the truths will filter eventually on how we have ended up with such an unsaintlike team of individuals. Optimistically a temporary one.

To be honest id be also inclined to agree with that, me for one on their current performances, im not driving up from south and paying overnight hotels anymore till I see something worth travelling for, and that i can justify my espense. Very dissapointed.