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Now Martin's Gone

Martin Foyle’s resignation. I don’t think anyone saw it coming.

Martin's gone... Martin's gone

Things will never be the same again

Now Martin's gone

Of all City’s manager’s, its hard to recall any who has divided opinion as much as Martin.

He arrived in November 2008 and departed in September 2010, I make that 22 months despite all the reports which started 20 months.

I didn’t warm to him at first, he went on about the poor players he’d inherited. That first season, he seemed to bring in half of Wrexham’s squad, so it wasn’t entirely an inherited team he was moaning about. The season ended at Wembley (abject performance aside) and we were successful in our bid to avoid relegation. Relegation that might have seen the end of the club.

In the summer of 2009, I wasn’t too impressed with his free transfer signings. Frees from elsewhere in the Conference didn’t seem to bode well. But, as it turned out, he had a plan. Players with solid non league experience were coming in, a much different philosophy to that employed by Colin Walker a year earlier when we’d brought in a squad of a youthful players from much bigger clubs. Players as it turned out who weren’t suited to the cut and thrust of non league football.

No one can argue that the 2009/10 season wasn’t successful. We went to Stoke in The FA Cup and we briefly lead on a Premiership ground. Although we lost, we weren't disgraced. A slow start and blip after the Stoke game meant that we were never quite on terms with the league leaders, but we were comfortably assured a play off place.

Not many so called pundits gave us much chance against Luton. Martin had a game plan, it worked as we won both legs 1-0. As a whole, the team never played up to its true abilities at Wembley.

Over his time with City, Martin’s tactics were frequently knocked. No width was the one of the main criticisms. Anyone who saw Adam Smith play will know that he couldn’t be relied upon to play to up to his ability every game. No one could argue with our defensive record last season. He set up the team, played to out strengths and we were generally more successful, more so than in recent seasons.

You’ve probably got to go back to John Ward to be able to name a City manager as successful as Martin Foyle.

If he did have a failing, it was probably that his PR left him down. Never one to ingratiate himself with the fans, sometimes his press statement came across more as riddles.

I don’t know what’s gone on in recent months. The Brodie debacle (was he pushed or did he jump?), rumours of redundancies at the club, cut backs to the scouting network and the ongoing saga around the Subway incident. They probably all took their toil on Martin Foyle, someone who has spent most of the last 22 months living away from his family home in a hotel.

To the very end, he played true to form by not revealing his real reasons for leaving the club.

Nowadays, with internet message boards, barely a day goes by without someone, almost certainly without the full facts to support them, posting bigoted personal opinion for all to read.

A man can only take so much.

A man who was touted for Valley Parade and Bradford City’s managerial vacancy in the spring. There were enough people the begging Martin not to go.

As Martin Foyle said in his resignation speech (and I’ve never read one so well put together), he’s left City in a stronger position than when we joined us. 2 Wembley trips, money from the sales of Brodie and Boyes and a squad which should be more than capable of taking us back into The Football League.

No-one ever had a manager like Martin

No-one ever had a manager like him

People get the wrong impression with Martin

I know he doesn't mix much but he's no snob.

No doubt, when he’s ready, there will be several clubs, both league and non league would be read to make him their next manager. Within a week of his departure, press speculation linked him to one of each.

PS 1990s readers of new frontiers will recall we had a regular poetry contribution, alas, he resigned his post, so now we’re having to resort to nabbing Tom Robinson song lyrics.

 

 

 

Disclaimer: The opinions and views stated in New Frontiers are solely those of New Frontiers and do not necessarily represent those of York City Football Club or York City South (a branch of The York City Football Club Supporters Club).

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