“Rightly or wrongly, decisions have been made and we need to move on”

Dear Roker Report,

I’d like the readers of the website who send in letters to comment on other issues apart from going over the same ones each day, such as Tony Mowbray being sacked as well as Alex Pritchard and Danny Batth being sold when we could’ve used their experience.

These things have happened. It’s pointless going over the same things continuously and it’s time to concentrate on the future.

Pritchard wanted to leave earlier in the season but a move never materialised. He then refused to play so was always going to be sold, and it’s ironic that he went to Birmingham City when Mowbray hardly played him.

In Batth’s case, he wasn’t getting game time this season as Mowbray said that Luke O’Nien was more adept at playing the style he wanted, so maybe Batth thought he could break into the Norwich team rather than just warming our bench.

I’m always amazed that fans who comment on social media seem to think they know the exact reasons why certain things have happened, such as Kristjaan Speakman allegedly picking the team. If he was doing that, why does he not get the praise for our sixth-place finish last season?

For those who read Roker Report and go to the matches, please get behind the Lads from the first second on Saturday and don’t groan when a pass or chance goes astray.

Let’s try to support them and hopefully help them to regain their confidence and skill.

We need the next head coach to look at our support and think, ‘I want to be part of that’, instead of Michael Beale’s first match and the way the fans responded to us losing, as that was a total embarrassment and a potential new head coach may think, ‘I don’t want to coach in front of those toxic fans’.

Peter Welsh

Ed’s Note [Phil]: Hi, Peter. Thank you for your letter.

I think we’ve probably all spent a good deal of time reflecting on the decisions that have been made in recent months, and as the season has gradually turned sour, the ‘what ifs?’ seem to be as plentiful as the injuries we’re currently dealing with.

Personally, I would’ve been happy for both Pritchard and Batth to stay (more so in the case of Pritchard, it must be said) because I did feel they could’ve added value to the squad for one final season.

However, as you say, the decision was made- as it was to part ways with Tony Mowbray- and they’ll either stand or fall by it.

Maybe there’ll be a time for a proper analysis of what’s gone on, but now isn’t that time, and all focus needs to be on ensuring that we’re not embroiled in a relegation battle during the final months of the season.

Dear Roker Report,

I don’t blame the players, and I don’t blame Mike Dodds up to a point, although it made me scream when he selected Mason Burstow ahead of Nazariy Rusyn, which was a bad mistake.

Instead, I blame Kristjaan Speakman and Kyril Louis-Dreyfus for not bringing in a permanent head coach to guide us through the last few games, which would allow him to get to know the players ahead of next season.

If we don’t get relegated, we need a few experienced players to survive in this league.

We can and we have beaten most of the top ten and we can do it again with the right guidance, but it means the man at the top needs to spend, or we’ll playing the likes of Rotherham once again.

Bill Calvert

Ed’s Note [Phil]: Hi, Bill. Thank you for getting in touch.

When it comes to Mike Dodds, it’s become abundantly clear during recent games that he shouldn’t be in this position, but at the same time, the man he succeeded shouldn’t have been in the head coach’s role either, so it’s been a domino effect ever since Tony Mowbray departed.

If we were to lose against QPR today, the club would surely have a decision to make regarding Dodds, because seven losses in a row would be catastrophic.

We can’t afford to even flirt with the possibility of relegation this season, and if it got to the stage where we needed to bring in a ‘proper’ head coach to see out the remainder of the campaign, so be it, and then we can reassess things in the summer.

The stakes are very high, without a doubt.