Jim Jefferies

[Diego10]

In recent weeks, JJ has taken a power of abuse on this site, some of it fair comment, a lot of it nonsense. It is my opinion that a lot of this is down to him having been manager here before, so not being given the credit he deserves for what he's got right this time around.

 

Ask yourself this. If a completely new manager had come in when JJ did and inherited what he had, then produced this season despite having had fairly serious injury problems to contend with, would anyone seriously be questioning him or the performances? I sincerely doubt it.

 

Although his past performance played a large part in getting him this job in the first place, let's not be unappreciative of what he has done this time round. He's brought in players who've had an impact, got more out of those who were here when he arrived and he knows the areas that still need improved. In short he's done everything we'd have wanted from a 'new' manager.

[Craig Herbertson]

In recent weeks, JJ has taken a power of abuse on this site, some of it fair comment, a lot of it nonsense. It is my opinion that a lot of this is down to him having been manager here before, so not being given the credit he deserves for what he's got right this time around.

 

Ask yourself this. If a completely new manager had come in when JJ did and inherited what he had, then produced this season despite having had fairly serious injury problems to contend with, would anyone seriously be questioning him or the performances? I sincerely doubt it.

 

Although his past performance played a large part in getting him this job in the first place, let's not be unappreciative of what he has done this time round. He's brought in players who've had an impact, got more out of those who were here when he arrived and he knows the areas that still need improved. In short he's done everything we'd have wanted from a 'new' manager.

 

 

The bottom line in football for the fan is winning but there are wider issues. There are so many good things JJ has brought to the club it would take ages to list them.

 

I feel that I'm watching Hearts again rather than some anonymous boring side. Although we've faded a bit we had a tremendous run. A decent bit of luck here and there and who knows what could have happened. JJ has brought some passion, commitment,sense of being a team, some commonsense, better discipline. We're third in the league - where we should be in real terms - and not only that, there is a real sense that we can take it further. Let's face it we would all have settled for this position last season.

 

I think next season will be the real test of whether JJ can take it further but even if he didn't there's no doubt he'll be fully committed to the job. He's a Hearts man through and through and if he's not the best manager in the world he's a bloody good one.

[Coco]

Laszlo was a disaster and was dragging us downwards.

 

JJ and his team have stabilised the situation and look likely to continue to improve us. Not sure anyone can really ask for more.

[Drylaw Hearts]

While being far from perfect - JJ is the best man for Hearts during this current period of transition.

 

I'd like him to show a bit more faith in players like Scott Robinson but overall he's done a pretty good job imo.

 

If you offered me a 9 point cushion in 3rd place going into the split I'd have bitten your hand off.

[rye1874]

People forget how bad we were last season. To finish 3rd place this season wpould be a fantastic achievement considering where we were a year ago. Fair enough our cup runs were poor but I think JJ deserves alot of praise for how he has turned us around and got the players playing for the jersey.

 

He is also still stuck with some of Laszlo's deadwood like Kucharski, Obua etc. Unless we can get rid of players like this JJ won't have the funds available to take us forward. It's going to be a case of 1 player in one player out in the summer I think.

[amadjambo]

I am a huge JJ fan, however, I am becoming frustrated and concerned by the increasing number of lacklustre and poor 1st half performances where we only seem to start playing 2nd half after JJ has given them the hair drier treatment at half time.

 

Why can he not have the team fighting from the 1st minute?

 

Also, as in his previous reign, there is no Plan B. It is big guy up front even when we don't have 1, lol. How any manager can think Obua is a viable option up front is a mystery to me, and Stevenson might have worked vs Hibs, but again he should not be playing there.

[jambonian]

We've been hearing for weeks now that JJ is screaming at them at half-time so for me, the problems are simple... the players are not putting in enough effort, as far as they're concerned, they're in 3rd and they don't think they'll be caught but also, as much as JJ has done good things this season, his tactics when one or two players are out are a joke at times, this is down to two things, he can't change systems to suit the personnel and Romanov needs to loosen the purse strings, debt or no debt. We've no decent fullbacks except Wallace so this should be a priority during the summer, there's no point in qualifying for Europe if we get knocked out...AGAIN because we're short of players in certain positions, for me, it defeats the purpose of getting there in the first place. With one or two solid, reliable signings in the summer, we would have a better chance of getting to the group stages, that's when Romanov will make his money back again and instead of moving players about fit the team, players will be far better and more confident playing in their natural positions.

[Getintaethem]

JJ has taken a team that was struggling to make the top six and transformed them into a side that is well clear in third place and almost sure of European football.

 

He's gave us a more exciting brand of attacking football and has produced our best league finish since 05/06.

 

He's also put us back where we belong in Edinburgh derbies i.e Dominating hibs.

 

 

Give him a chance to build on what he has started and hopefully there will be many more happy seasons ahead.

[Tiberius Stinkfinger]

All good managers and all good players show what they are made off when things aren't going well and the pressure is on.

 

I don't think the players believed they could get anything from the last encounters with either cheek of the shitty arse.

 

I don't think JJ believed we could either.

 

Are we ever going to be destined for greater things ??

Not with JJ in charge, all IMO of course.

[wright1989]

Zander Diamond brought in as a replacement for Bouzid.

 

I bet we're going to do a Csaba Laszlo next season and finish around Fifth. Feel free to bring this thread back up next season.

 

I was wrong as I thought Csaba was going to be a great manager for us. In Csaba's first season though he was a breath of fresh air to this boring league that's stuck in the past. Styles of football has changed and we're a century behind. Until Scottish football changes we will continue to get pumped out of Europe. Csaba was right about that.

 

Mixu came to tynie with Killie and gave JJ a lesson on how to play football. Twice.

[rossthejambo]

Zander Diamond brought in as a replacement for Bouzid.

 

I bet we're going to do a Csaba Laszlo next season and finish around Fifth. Feel free to bring this thread back up next season.

 

I was wrong as I thought Csaba was going to be a great manager for us. In Csaba's first season though he was a breath of fresh air to this boring league that's stuck in the past. Styles of football has changed and we're a century behind. Until Scottish football changes we will continue to get pumped out of Europe. Csaba was right about that.

 

Mixu came to tynie with Killie and gave JJ a lesson on how to play football. Twice.

 

I must have missed Zander Diamond actually signing, never mind Bouzid announcing he was leaving.

 

And with regards to Csaba, the only thing that changed between season 1 and 2 was the players at his disposal. The system/style of football never changed.

[Jamhammer]

As I see it do we want a manager who has no fear of the old firm and sets a team up to not get beat off them in the hope we can nick a goal or a manager who has an inferiority complex when playing them and just has his team play their regular game, especially at home.

I personally would rather watch a JJ team than a Lazlo team but would rather watch a Lazlo press conference than a JJ one.

JJ isn't using Hearts to further his career. He knows what playing for Hearts should mean, even if some of his players don't. Admittedly we don't have the "Plan B" so popular with some on here but, IMO of course our falling away this season has been, as it usually is with Hearts a failure to strengthen when we are in a position of strength. Had we spent a modest sum during the transfer window I firmly believe we would have split the Fuglies this season. We never do and probably never will. Our first XI is as good as them. Our squad just aint. I'm looking forward to next season for sure.

[bn jambo]

All good managers and all good players show what they are made off when things aren't going well and the pressure is on.

 

I don't think the players believed they could get anything from the last encounters with either cheek of the shitty arse.

 

I don't think JJ believed we could either.

 

Are we ever going to be destined for greater things ??

Not with JJ in charge, all IMO of course.

 

Really ? You don't think JJ BB and GL can motivate the players on to bigger and better things?

last season was a mare, this season we have done a hell of alot better, this is the management teams first full season in charge (this time round) and in comparison to last season it's night and day, It took JJ time to build a squad last time and in his first full season this time some believed we could challenge the old firm, If he progresses next season, I'll take that

 

BN

[wright1989]

You only need to look at Rafa Benitez to realise that managers can lose their way. Just because JJ done well last time don't expect him to do it again.

[redm]

I'd like him to pre-empt this lacklustre first half thing we have going on and start giving them a bollocking before kick off for the next few weeks, other than that I have no complaints whatsoever. He's done a fine job of getting us back where we need to be and has, for the most part, managed to get a whole lot more out of players that were previously either under-performing or being poorly utilised. His signings have been pretty decent too.

 

I'm looking forward to seeing what he does over the summer and how things go next season and I'm delighted that he's the man at the helm of our little maroon ship.

[Rudy T]

IMO JJ knows how to get 3rd place, he knows how to beat the rest, I've never been convinced he's had the know how or the tactical brain to get the better of the OF on a consistent basis. As highly as I regard Locke perhaps bringing in a different coach who hadn't played or coached in the SPL might have added a new dimension ?

 

Our season ended, after the two defeats in Glasgow or so we thought the drop in form since means we need to continue to play for another 2/3 games to get 3rd and I wouldn't want anyone else in charge right now to get us over the line.

 

Next season he needs to find another Cameron or Hartley, a decent right back, certainly cover for Kyle (Sutton) and bring in some of the youngsters.

[Only a Game]

IMO JJ knows how to get 3rd place, he knows how to beat the rest, I've never been convinced he's had the know how or the tactical brain to get the better of the OF on a consistent basis. As highly as I regard Locke perhaps bringing in a different coach who hadn't played or coached in the SPL might have added a new dimension ?

 

Our season ended, after the two defeats in Glasgow or so we thought the drop in form since means we need to continue to play for another 2/3 games to get 3rd and I wouldn't want anyone else in charge right now to get us over the line.

 

Next season he needs to find another Cameron or Hartley, a decent right back, certainly cover for Kyle (Sutton) and bring in some of the youngsters.

 

As a Jefferies critic, I actually think if he finishes third he's done a pretty good job, considering its effectively year 1.

 

But there is room for improvement for next season and if he doesnt improve in some way. i.e. getting closer to the Old Firm and/or having decent runs in both cups then IMO his limitations will have been soundly proven and to all intents and purposes he will be a lame duck manager. Never going to get us in trouble but never going to exploit the potential and the opportunity there is just now to do better. He's a safe but unambitious appointment and Ive said so since day 1. If there isnt a measurable improvement next season we should really be looking elsewhere for the season after.

 

I'd rather see us make the effort to identify and employ a young up and coming manager who would stay with us for 2-3 years working his ticket to a higher place. Someone in the same sort of category as Stuart McCall who I think has done pretty well in a short space of time and although he's playing with Broon's squad he's done well to stabilise them of late. They were quite impressive at the weekend there. Either that or we need to identify someone (not Garry Locke) who can work alongside Jefferies with a view to taking over in a year or two and having some continuity from that.

 

He does need to strengthen the squad a bit. Hopefully he'll be allowed to do that, but next season IMO is a biggy for him and he'll also have to find a way of raising his own game because although third is "pretty good" we've had some shocking performances either side of the good run. We've been shocking in the cups and pretty miserable against the Old Firm so far. We havent always looked like we know what we're about tactically. The balance of the team has often been wrong because he was playing favourites and shoehorning players into the team and he's persisted too long with out of form players/ unfit players and players simply not good enough. Appreciate he's tied to the budget etc etc but he COULD have tried other things that he seemed very reluctant to do.

[shaun.lawson]

As a Jefferies critic, I actually think if he finishes third he's done a pretty good job, considering its effectively year 1.

 

But there is room for improvement for next season and if he doesnt improve in some way. i.e. getting closer to the Old Firm and/or having decent runs in both cups then IMO his limitations will have been soundly proven and to all intents and purposes he will be a lame duck manager. Never going to get us in trouble but never going to exploit the potential and the opportunity there is just now to do better. He's a safe but unambitious appointment and Ive said so since day 1. If there isnt a measurable improvement next season we should really be looking elsewhere for the season after.

 

I'd rather see us make the effort to identify and employ a young up and coming manager who would stay with us for 2-3 years working his ticket to a higher place. Someone in the same sort of category as Stuart McCall who I think has done pretty well in a short space of time and although he's playing with Broon's squad he's done well to stabilise them of late. They were quite impressive at the weekend there. Either that or we need to identify someone (not Garry Locke) who can work alongside Jefferies with a view to taking over in a year or two and having some continuity from that.

 

He does need to strengthen the squad a bit. Hopefully he'll be allowed to do that, but next season IMO is a biggy for him and he'll also have to find a way of raising his own game because although third is "pretty good" we've had some shocking performances either side of the good run. We've been shocking in the cups and pretty miserable against the Old Firm so far. We havent always looked like we know what we're about tactically. The balance of the team has often been wrong because he was playing favourites and shoehorning players into the team and he's persisted too long with out of form players/ unfit players and players simply not good enough. Appreciate he's tied to the budget etc etc but he COULD have tried other things that he seemed very reluctant to do.

 

Demanding JJ either improve next season or be sacked is asking him to achieve what only one Hearts manager since 1960 has: to finish top three two seasons on the bounce. So if we don't, you'd get rid, and bring in Stuart McCall on the strength of about half a dozen games?

 

Watch what happens to Motherwell next season. They'll go backwards, whether they win the Cup or not. Meanwhile, JJ failed with Bradford in the Premier League; McCall failed with them in League 2.

 

Could a young, up and coming manager smash the dominance of the OF with us? Only if they were a genius, which McCall assuredly isn't. And in all probability, only someone so good that they wouldn't touch any non-OF club with a bargepole.

[I.T.K]

People forget how bad we were last season. To finish 3rd place this season wpould be a fantastic achievement considering where we were a year ago. Fair enough our cup runs were poor but I think JJ deserves alot of praise for how he has turned us around and got the players playing for the jersey.

 

He is also still stuck with some of Laszlo's deadwood like Kucharski, Obua etc. Unless we can get rid of players like this JJ won't have the funds available to take us forward. It's going to be a case of 1 player in one player out in the summer I think.

 

I agree with this.

 

I would also say we are missing something up front since Kyle has been injured. Sadly Obua is not a target man.

[Only a Game]

Demanding JJ either improve next season or be sacked is asking him to achieve what only one Hearts manager since 1960 has: to finish top three two seasons on the bounce. So if we don't, you'd get rid, and bring in Stuart McCall on the strength of about half a dozen games?

 

 

Could a young, up and coming manager smash the dominance of the OF with us? Only if they were a genius, which McCall assuredly isn't. And in all probability, only someone so good that they wouldn't touch any non-OF club with a bargepole.

 

Shaun. Where in my post does it say sack him ? Where in my post does it say appoint Stuart McCall on the basis of half a dozen games. You know that I didnt so if your going to debate and reflect on what I'm posting, lets at least be accurate.

 

I'll save you scrolling up a bit.

 

I said he'll need to improve in certain areas. I gave cup runs as an example. I think we've got the profile as a club to expect to be doing better than he did in the cups this season. I said he should get closer to the Old Firm. I didnt say smash their dominance. I didnt say sack him. I said "looking elsewhere" that means exploring the options. If there really isnt a better option than Jefferies going around at the time, then of course you dont sack him.

 

He wasnt my preferred choice as manager. He wasnt YOUR preferred choice at the time as I noticed from another thread that someone drudged up recently. In fact you built a convincing case against him. At least I'm consistent

 

My point is, standing still and not improving in the state that the SPL is just now, is akin to going backwards when it was a better league. I'm not saying we should win it. I'm not even saying we should finish second. There is room for improvement in our standing in the league though. There is scope to skate easily to third and there is scope to get closer to the OF bit by bit.

 

Last thing, how do you know that Mccall ISNT a genius on the strength of six games.(Not that I even claimed he was) Get back to me after cup final day on that one if you want. Thats the tournament he's just taken them to the final of. Of course they wont have an earthly of winning it because its never been done before and their race is clearly run when they won their"final" the other day.

 

You can quote all the stats you like about it never having been done before. Thats no barrier to it being done and it certainly shouldnt be a barrier to trying your damndest. I'd hate to think we're restricted by Jefferies thinking the way you think "Ach its never been done before so no pressure"

[shaun.lawson]

Shaun. Where in my post does it say sack him ? Where in my post does it say appoint Stuart McCall on the basis of half a dozen games. You know that I didnt so if your going to debate and reflect on what I'm posting, lets at least be accurate.

 

I'll save you scrolling up a bit.

 

I said he'll need to improve in certain areas. I gave cup runs as an example. I think we've got the profile as a club to expect to be doing better than he did in the cups this season. I said he should get closer to the Old Firm. I didnt say smash their dominance. I didnt say sack him. I said "looking elsewhere" that means exploring the options. If there really isnt a better option than Jefferies going around at the time, then of course you dont sack him.

 

He wasnt my preferred choice as manager. He wasnt YOUR preferred choice at the time as I noticed from another thread that someone drudged up recently. In fact you built a convincing case against him. At least I'm consistent

 

My point is, standing still and not improving in the state that the SPL is just now, is akin to going backwards when it was a better league. I'm not saying we should win it. I'm not even saying we should finish second. There is room for improvement in our standing in the league though. There is scope to skate easily to third and there is scope to get closer to the OF bit by bit.

 

Last thing, how do you know that Mccall ISNT a genius on the strength of six games.(Not that I even claimed he was) Get back to me after cup final day on that one if you want. Thats the tournament he's just taken them to the final of. Of course they wont have an earthly of winning it because its never been done before and their race is clearly run when they won their"final" the other day.

 

You can quote all the stats you like about it never having been done before. Thats no barrier to it being done and it certainly shouldnt be a barrier to trying your damndest. I'd hate to think we're restricted by Jefferies thinking the way you think "Ach its never been done before so no pressure"

 

Nothing in McCall's record suggests he'll be able to sustain it. He's a nice guy, but came across as a bumbling idiot on Sportscene last night (remarkable, considering even greater bumbling idiot Johan Mjallby was alongside him). All McCall's done so far is inherit a good side, mess it up for a time, then recover. At Bradford, his performance was shocking; and the test will come in the summer, when he has to start building his own team on very limited resources.

 

JJ wasn't my choice for manager in 2008, no. If you read through my contributions on that thread, I basically pointed out all the arguments for and against, then sat on the fence - and what's funny about his time at Hearts now is all those pros and cons are still just as valid. He'll always divide opinion: some of his signings are good but some aren't; he always oversees fantastic but also awful runs of form; he generally has the measure of the 'other nine' but never the OF; his relaxed perspicacity was exactly what we needed post-Csaba, but gets held against him as proof of 'lack of drive'; and of course, he's not getting any younger. It's because of his age as much as anything else that many fans are on the look-out for the slightest sign that he's lost it.

 

I agree with you completely about the Cups: next season, we must improve in those. But I say again: JJ suits this club so well because in so many ways, he is us. He finishes 3rd regularly, dominates Hibs, gets cuffed by the OF, and doesn't do as well in the Cups as he should - but that's not just him. That's Hearts, and has been for ages now. If we got really lucky, we might find someone in a year or two who'd do better; but in all likelihood, we wouldn't. Jim Jefferies has smashed into the same glass ceiling that any other non-OF manager faces; and his biggest crime this season is he did so in double quick time.

[Only a Game]

Nothing in McCall's record suggests he'll be able to sustain it. He's a nice guy, but came across as a bumbling idiot on Sportscene last night (remarkable, considering even greater bumbling idiot Johan Mjallby was alongside him). All McCall's done so far is inherit a good side, mess it up for a time, then recover. At Bradford, his performance was shocking; and the test will come in the summer, when he has to start building his own team on very limited resources.

 

JJ wasn't my choice for manager in 2008, no. If you read through my contributions on that thread, I basically pointed out all the arguments for and against, then sat on the fence - and what's funny about his time at Hearts now is all those pros and cons are still just as valid. He'll always divide opinion: some of his signings are good but some aren't; he always oversees fantastic but also awful runs of form; he generally has the measure of the 'other nine' but never the OF; his relaxed perspicacity was exactly what we needed post-Csaba, but gets held against him as proof of 'lack of drive'; and of course, he's not getting any younger. It's because of his age as much as anything else that many fans are on the look-out for the slightest sign that he's lost it.

 

I agree with you completely about the Cups: next season, we must improve in those. But I say again: JJ suits this club so well because in so many ways, he is us. He finishes 3rd regularly, dominates Hibs, gets cuffed by the OF, and doesn't do as well in the Cups as he should - but that's not just him. That's Hearts, and has been for ages now. If we got really lucky, we might find someone in a year or two who'd do better; but in all likelihood, we wouldn't. Jim Jefferies has smashed into the same glass ceiling that any other non-OF manager faces; and his biggest crime this season is he did so in double quick time.

 

Cant argue with much of that to be honest.

 

I'd split hairs on whether he has the measure of the other 9 because he hasnt done that well against the entire top six this season, not just the OF. The record against the bottom six is as it should be and probably a little better than previously. Its a bloody good job that it is.

 

McCall isnt really worth debating any further until he's had a bit more league time or won the cup.

 

At the very least, can we agree that Jefferies has a reasonably short shelf life left on him and it wont be long before we (Hearts) really should consider the long term future, whether that be developing someone from now to take over or setting achievable targets which mark improvement. Support him in achieving those targets and see how he does with them. Reviewing his position based on his actual achievement compared to his targets. At what point does an asset become a hurdle ?

[bighusref]

As a Jefferies critic, I actually think if he finishes third he's done a pretty good job, considering its effectively year 1.

 

But there is room for improvement for next season and if he doesnt improve in some way. i.e. getting closer to the Old Firm and/or having decent runs in both cups then IMO his limitations will have been soundly proven and to all intents and purposes he will be a lame duck manager. Never going to get us in trouble but never going to exploit the potential and the opportunity there is just now to do better. He's a safe but unambitious appointment and Ive said so since day 1. If there isnt a measurable improvement next season we should really be looking elsewhere for the season after.

 

I'd rather see us make the effort to identify and employ a young up and coming manager who would stay with us for 2-3 years working his ticket to a higher place. Someone in the same sort of category as Stuart McCall who I think has done pretty well in a short space of time and although he's playing with Broon's squad he's done well to stabilise them of late. They were quite impressive at the weekend there. Either that or we need to identify someone (not Garry Locke) who can work alongside Jefferies with a view to taking over in a year or two and having some continuity from that.

 

He does need to strengthen the squad a bit. Hopefully he'll be allowed to do that, but next season IMO is a biggy for him and he'll also have to find a way of raising his own game because although third is "pretty good" we've had some shocking performances either side of the good run. We've been shocking in the cups and pretty miserable against the Old Firm so far. We havent always looked like we know what we're about tactically. The balance of the team has often been wrong because he was playing favourites and shoehorning players into the team and he's persisted too long with out of form players/ unfit players and players simply not good enough. Appreciate he's tied to the budget etc etc but he COULD have tried other things that he seemed very reluctant to do.

 

A first class post IMO. Even though I disagree with parts of it.

 

"lame duck manager" - Whilst I absolutely agree that next season Jefferies cannot take us backwards, whether he takes us forward from third is down to two things; Funding and Jefferies' squad management.

 

I think we will see a departure of quite a few players this summer as those out of contract do not figure in Jefferies' master plan. The key will be replacement. I think that Jefferies will be certainly be given licence to make signings similar to Barr/Webster/Stevenson, low cost/out of contract, Scottish based players. Whether he will be allowed to speculate larger fees (lower to mid six figure fees) is entirely unknown. My feeling is that Romanov's trust in Jefferies is growing and I believe we have a greater chance of Jefferies being given the nod than the previous three or four incumbents. Romanov and Jefferies need to fully discuss their own ambitions and what they are willing to do to realise them.

 

Linking nicely with that, is Jefferies squad management. It is my strong opinion that, to paraphrase Coca Cola, our kids are our future. I honestly believe that we should be "promoting" three or four to the first team squad annually, with one or two of them ascending to a relative regular. I honestly think that some players could have developed more with us had we included them on a regular basis. For all of the talk about our young players and the promise at Riccarton, has Jefferies given any young player their debut at Hearts? McGowan maybe? I'd far rather we gave a chance to Mulrooney, Robinson, Prychynenko, Smith, Ogleby etc, than go to the stage of playing players out of position. If we make signings that make Jefferies believe he has a suitable squad, then some of these guys will be marginalised. If the money isn't there, I'd like Jefferies to fully embrace our youth development and run with these players.

 

The point about our future manager is also a good one. I am not sure who it could be at the moment, but would like to think that the excellent job Jefferies has done steadying the ship will be taken forwards upon his departure, whenever that may be.

 

We have been shocking in the cups, something that Jefferies has done okay for us in the past, I'd expect that he will be demanding improvements next year. We don't need to (as much as I'd love to) win the cups, but we really need to be progressing to the latter stages of both cups. As for our performances against the Glasgow two, I don't think we have been that bad. We failed to compete in the two league title pivotal games but we have done okay against the hordes from Ibrox on home turf.

[Coco]

It is fair enough to ask for progress from JJ in the Cups next year.

 

He's been improving the squad in each transfer window, the next window should be about improving it further with the aim of 3rd (or better) once again in the League and hopefully at least one very good run in the Cups.

 

I think that he can do it assuming that the owner continues to provide the support he has so far.

[Only a Game]

A first class post IMO. Even though I disagree with parts of it.

 

"lame duck manager" - Whilst I absolutely agree that next season Jefferies cannot take us backwards, whether he takes us forward from third is down to two things; Funding and Jefferies' squad management.

 

I think we will see a departure of quite a few players this summer as those out of contract do not figure in Jefferies' master plan. The key will be replacement. I think that Jefferies will be certainly be given licence to make signings similar to Barr/Webster/Stevenson, low cost/out of contract, Scottish based players. Whether he will be allowed to speculate larger fees (lower to mid six figure fees) is entirely unknown. My feeling is that Romanov's trust in Jefferies is growing and I believe we have a greater chance of Jefferies being given the nod than the previous three or four incumbents. Romanov and Jefferies need to fully discuss their own ambitions and what they are willing to do to realise them.

 

Linking nicely with that, is Jefferies squad management. It is my strong opinion that, to paraphrase Coca Cola, our kids are our future. I honestly believe that we should be "promoting" three or four to the first team squad annually, with one or two of them ascending to a relative regular. I honestly think that some players could have developed more with us had we included them on a regular basis. For all of the talk about our young players and the promise at Riccarton, has Jefferies given any young player their debut at Hearts? McGowan maybe? I'd far rather we gave a chance to Mulrooney, Robinson, Prychynenko, Smith, Ogleby etc, than go to the stage of playing players out of position. If we make signings that make Jefferies believe he has a suitable squad, then some of these guys will be marginalised. If the money isn't there, I'd like Jefferies to fully embrace our youth development and run with these players.

 

The point about our future manager is also a good one. I am not sure who it could be at the moment, but would like to think that the excellent job Jefferies has done steadying the ship will be taken forwards upon his departure, whenever that may be.

 

We have been shocking in the cups, something that Jefferies has done okay for us in the past, I'd expect that he will be demanding improvements next year. We don't need to (as much as I'd love to) win the cups, but we really need to be progressing to the latter stages of both cups. As for our performances against the Glasgow two, I don't think we have been that bad. We failed to compete in the two league title pivotal games but we have done okay against the hordes from Ibrox on home turf.

 

Cant argue with most of that either.

 

If there's one thing we have to do on the park next season that is extra and would be termed an improvement its getting a grip of Kilmarnock, Dundee Utd and Motherwell at home. I think I am right in thinking we have only won one out of 5 against those teams at home this season

(and even that was due to a huge slice of luck at the end). I'm not saying we should always beat them, even at home, but by the same token, usually NOT beating them at HOME is a big No No. Theres an 8-10 point improvement potential right away. In fact by my reckoning if we had beaten Dundee Utd in the game we drew we'd be virtually uncatchable at this stage and probably wouldnt even be having this discussion.

[shaun.lawson]

 

 

At the very least, can we agree that Jefferies has a reasonably short shelf life left on him and it wont be long before we (Hearts) really should consider the long term future, whether that be developing someone from now to take over or setting achievable targets which mark improvement. Support him in achieving those targets and see how he does with them. Reviewing his position based on his actual achievement compared to his targets. At what point does an asset become a hurdle ?

 

Yes, definitely. I'd like JJ to leave a legacy which can be maintained and built upon by his successor - but that's dependent on how much Vlad trusts any successor. I think he trusts JJ implicitly, which is why I don't think he'll sack him even if we finish 4th.

 

I think it's 50-50 whether JJ will be here at the start of 2012/13; and suspect there's next to no chance of him still being in the job by August 2013. In an ideal world, it'd be good if the club started making preparations for an eventual succession - but that's difficult enough at the best of times, risks pissing JJ off, and is subject to the whims of form and where possible candidates end up. At this juncture, I assume either John McGlynn or Peter Houston (probably the former) will replace JJ - but who knows?

[Robbo27_22]

Q Does anyone think Jefferies sends his teams out to perform badly?

 

The reason I ask is that I think there are an overwhelming number of JKB users who don't have the first clue about football.

 

Jefferies is the best manager Hearts have had in about 50 years. He's passionate - wants Hearts to win every game. His teams in the large part have been entertaining. He unearths some absolute gems and has brought through some of the best youngsters at the club since Robbo. Most of the time his teams fight to the death and win/draw games that look beyond them. He was the first manager to bring a trophy down Gorgie Road since the 60's and he's always been a great ambassador for the club during a time when it's been financially impossible to compete with the OF - add the closest finish to the OF in terms of the league since they flexed their financial muscle. This time around, he's quickly reformed a dying squad and injected a bit of excitement into our lives again.

 

I've got another question:- What the feck do his detractors want?

[ArthurAxident]

Q Does anyone think Jefferies sends his teams out to perform badly?

 

The reason I ask is that I think there are an overwhelming number of JKB users who don't have the first clue about football.

 

Jefferies is the best manager Hearts have had in about 50 years. He's passionate - wants Hearts to win every game. His teams in the large part have been entertaining. He unearths some absolute gems and has brought through some of the best youngsters at the club since Robbo. Most of the time his teams fight to the death and win/draw games that look beyond them. He was the first manager to bring a trophy down Gorgie Road since the 60's and he's always been a great ambassador for the club during a time when it's been financially impossible to compete with the OF - add the closest finish to the OF in terms of the league since they flexed their financial muscle. This time around, he's quickly reformed a dying squad and injected a bit of excitement into our lives again.

 

I've got another question:- What the feck do his detractors want?

 

 

:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[Only a Game]

Yes, definitely. I'd like JJ to leave a legacy which can be maintained and built upon by his successor - but that's dependent on how much Vlad trusts any successor. I think he trusts JJ implicitly, which is why I don't think he'll sack him even if we finish 4th.

 

I think it's 50-50 whether JJ will be here at the start of 2012/13; and suspect there's next to no chance of him still being in the job by August 2013. In an ideal world, it'd be good if the club started making preparations for an eventual succession - but that's difficult enough at the best of times, risks pissing JJ off, and is subject to the whims of form and where possible candidates end up. At this juncture, I assume either John McGlynn or Peter Houston (probably the former) will replace JJ - but who knows?

 

I think if he times his inevitable departure from the Scotland job right and hangs on for a bit (until we cant qualify for whatever tournament we're not qualifying for after we've failed to qualify for the one we're in at the moment) then Mr Levein might be a good bet (All about the timing obviously)

 

Thats a whole other can of worms waiting to be opened though.

[Only a Game]

Q Does anyone think Jefferies sends his teams out to perform badly?

 

The reason I ask is that I think there are an overwhelming number of JKB users who don't have the first clue about football.

 

Jefferies is the best manager Hearts have had in about 50 years. He's passionate - wants Hearts to win every game. His teams in the large part have been entertaining. He unearths some absolute gems and has brought through some of the best youngsters at the club since Robbo. Most of the time his teams fight to the death and win/draw games that look beyond them. He was the first manager to bring a trophy down Gorgie Road since the 60's and he's always been a great ambassador for the club during a time when it's been financially impossible to compete with the OF - add the closest finish to the OF in terms of the league since they flexed their financial muscle. This time around, he's quickly reformed a dying squad and injected a bit of excitement into our lives again.

 

I've got another question:- What the feck do his detractors want?

 

You cant keep hold of a manager just because he won the cup over 10 years ago and loves Hearts.

 

What do his detractors want ?

 

As one of those detractors, first and foremost I want HIM in the job doing the absolute best that the job can be done. When thats proving to be beyond him (jury out for me) then I want to dispense with the sentiment, thank him very much for his efforts and give the job to someone else who has a fair to middling chance of doing it better than he was doing.

[kennyblack'sshot]

Q Does anyone think Jefferies sends his teams out to perform badly?

 

The reason I ask is that I think there are an overwhelming number of JKB users who don't have the first clue about football.

 

Jefferies is the best manager Hearts have had in about 50 years. He's passionate - wants Hearts to win every game. His teams in the large part have been entertaining. He unearths some absolute gems and has brought through some of the best youngsters at the club since Robbo. Most of the time his teams fight to the death and win/draw games that look beyond them. He was the first manager to bring a trophy down Gorgie Road since the 60's and he's always been a great ambassador for the club during a time when it's been financially impossible to compete with the OF - add the closest finish to the OF in terms of the league since they flexed their financial muscle. This time around, he's quickly reformed a dying squad and injected a bit of excitement into our lives again.

 

I've got another question:- What the feck do his detractors want?

 

This. We are a proper football club again and that is down to JJ, BB and GL.

[shaun.lawson]

I think if he times his inevitable departure from the Scotland job right and hangs on for a bit (until we cant qualify for whatever tournament we're not qualifying for after we've failed to qualify for the one we're in at the moment) then Mr Levein might be a good bet (All about the timing obviously)

 

Thats a whole other can of worms waiting to be opened though.

 

I agree that Scotland won't qualify for Euro 2012 - but expect Levein to remain in the post until the end of the World Cup campaign. I also don't think he'd ever countenance a return to Hearts.

[Gigolo-Aunt]

I agree that Scotland won't qualify for Euro 2012 - but expect Levein to remain in the post until the end of the World Cup campaign. I also don't think he'd ever countenance a return to Hearts.

 

Do you believe he would jump ship if a lowly PL club or a Champ Club who are on the up came in for him?

[shaun.lawson]

Do you believe he would jump ship if a lowly PL club or a Champ Club who are on the up came in for him?

 

At present, that hardly looks like happening. If he survives, I certainly anticipate him seeing the World Cup campaign out: he'll firmly believe he can get Scotland to Brazil, and his career plan revolves around him doing this, then being snapped up by an EPL club.

[Only a Game]

I agree that Scotland won't qualify for Euro 2012 - but expect Levein to remain in the post until the end of the World Cup campaign. I also don't think he'd ever countenance a return to Hearts.

 

I didnt think for a minute that Andy Webster would return and now he's hot favourite for the captaincy next season( IMO)

 

I think a lot would depend on the manner of Jim Jefferies departure. Frankly I'm a bit meh about the departures of other managers under Romanov and the way they were handled.

 

Jim Jefferies, if nothing else, would absolutely deserve to be treated with respect, irrespective of what anyone thinks of his current management skills. For that reason I would agree that he'll get another season at least, even if disaster strikes and he loses 3rd ( He'll have hole below his waterline if that highly unlikely event happens though)

[Gigolo-Aunt]

At present, that hardly looks like happening. If he survives, I certainly anticipate him seeing the World Cup campaign out: he'll firmly believe he can get Scotland to Brazil, and his career plan revolves around him doing this, then being snapped up by an EPL club.

 

If we are going great gun's in the WC campaign, I suspect that a few clubs will have an interest in him.

 

Suppose that will test Levein - certain offers don't come up all the time.

 

Cant help feeling that Smith will inherit the baton from Levein, not sure of the circumstance though.

[Robbo27_22]

You cant keep hold of a manager just because he won the cup over 10 years ago and loves Hearts.

 

What do his detractors want ?

 

As one of those detractors, first and foremost I want HIM in the job doing the absolute best that the job can be done. When thats proving to be beyond him (jury out for me) then I want to dispense with the sentiment, thank him very much for his efforts and give the job to someone else who has a fair to middling chance of doing it better than he was doing.

 

Congratulations. It's better to have people to think you a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt.

 

9 points clear in third with only the closing games of the season to go is doing his job the best of his abilities given the aforementioned restrictions i.e. OF too financially strong.

[Chris Benoit]

At present, that hardly looks like happening. If he survives, I certainly anticipate him seeing the World Cup campaign out: he'll firmly believe he can get Scotland to Brazil, and his career plan revolves around him doing this, then being snapped up by an EPL club.

 

 

And he's got the ready made get out clause if that happens, he gives a lot of talk about implementing a change to coaching throughout Scotland all he has to say is he didn't receive the backing from the SFA he wanted blah blah blah

[shaun.lawson]

And he's got the ready made get out clause if that happens, he gives a lot of talk about implementing a change to coaching throughout Scotland all he has to say is he didn't receive the backing from the SFA he wanted blah blah blah

 

Which would actually be true. He's grappling with all sorts of endemic, institutionalised problems within the Scottish game, but he'd bloody love to get you to the World Cup. Levein's Scotland are improving, slowly.

[Only a Game]

Congratulations. It's better to have people to think you a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt.

 

9 points clear in third with only the closing games of the season to go is doing his job the best of his abilities given the aforementioned restrictions i.e. OF too financially strong.

 

I dont doubt he's doing the job to the best of HIS abilities. I'm questioning whether those abilities, as they stand, are actually up to the job. If you havent got that from my many posts on this thread then there's only one fool here chump.

[Only a Game]

At present, that hardly looks like happening. If he survives, I certainly anticipate him seeing the World Cup campaign out: he'll firmly believe he can get Scotland to Brazil, and his career plan revolves around him doing this, then being snapped up by an EPL club.

 

True. He's there to try and do a Mcleish. Trouble is he's taken a risk that paid off for Mcleish and isnt looking like working a second time.

[kennyblack'sshot]

You cant keep hold of a manager just because he won the cup over 10 years ago and loves Hearts.

 

What do his detractors want ?

 

As one of those detractors, first and foremost I want HIM in the job doing the absolute best that the job can be done. When thats proving to be beyond him (jury out for me) then I want to dispense with the sentiment, thank him very much for his efforts and give the job to someone else who has a fair to middling chance of doing it better than he was doing.

 

No, but you can keep him because he got third (probably), gave the OF a fright for a few weeks, brought stability to the squad and club, got us playing attacking football again, gained the confidence of Romanov, binned the likes of Nade and Kingston, brought three very good players in Kyle, Elliott and Webster to the club, managed the young players well, and coped well enough with the loss of Zali, Wallace, Driver, Suso and Kyle for long periods.

 

JJ has done a sterling job this season (apart from in the Cup) and anyone who thinks otherwise is, no offence, a plum of the highest order and/or a Hibby.

[Only a Game]

No, but you can keep him because he got third (probably), gave the OF a fright for a few weeks, brought stability to the squad and club, got us playing attacking football again, gained the confidence of Romanov, binned the likes of Nade and Kingston, brought three very good players in Kyle, Elliott and Webster to the club, managed the young players well, and coped well enough with the loss of Zali, Wallace, Driver, Suso and Kyle for long periods.

 

JJ has done a sterling job this season (apart from in the Cup) and anyone who thinks otherwise is, no offence, a plum of the highest order and/or a Hibby.

 

I refer you to the first sentence of my first post on this thread.

 

Thank you.

[Debut 4]

No, but you can keep him because he got third (probably), gave the OF a fright for a few weeks, brought stability to the squad and club, got us playing attacking football again, gained the confidence of Romanov, binned the likes of Nade and Kingston, brought three very good players in Kyle, Elliott and Webster to the club, managed the young players well, and coped well enough with the loss of Zali, Wallace, Driver, Suso and Kyle for long periods.

 

JJ has done a sterling job this season (apart from in the Cup) and anyone who thinks otherwise is, no offence, a plum of the highest order and/or a Hibby.

The grass isn`t always greener as they say, get rid of JJ and who is ready made to step in? Csaba was a leftfield appointment and done really well in his first season but there`s some on here who are obviously still hurting from him leaving because they thought he was this european expert going to bring an new angle to Hearts that`ll outfox anyone domestically or abroad, and now old humdrum Jim Jeff is back and it sticks in their throat.

 

Wrightyboy always spouts negative fish about JJ and this thread is right up his street. In a round about way he tries to point out the european angle...well, just look at the records of both managers in europe. Did JJ ever take a right royal humping?

 

Same with OAG, don`t know what this guy wants? We all want a title or to challenge at a minimum but so much has to be right. And mentality? Maybe he should watch the 1998 cup final again, not to just remind himself of what we won back then, but look at the bottle and fight the team had while they held onto their 2-1 lead in the latter stages of the game....superb. Does that not come from the manager???

 

However, i wouldn`t say it solely does. Players need to stand up when they cross the white line. Look at Bolton on Sunday. Sometimes no matter what a manager does players can let you down and very RARELY this season certain players have....but still, JJ needs time to weed yet again any plauyers not up to the task.....but some wanted the magic dust sprinkled this season.

[mahgrassyshoes]

As a Jefferies critic, I actually think if he finishes third he's done a pretty good job, considering its effectively year 1.

 

But there is room for improvement for next season and if he doesnt improve in some way. i.e. getting closer to the Old Firm and/or having decent runs in both cups then IMO his limitations will have been soundly proven and to all intents and purposes he will be a lame duck manager. Never going to get us in trouble but never going to exploit the potential and the opportunity there is just now to do better. He's a safe but unambitious appointment and Ive said so since day 1. If there isnt a measurable improvement next season we should really be looking elsewhere for the season after.

 

I'd rather see us make the effort to identify and employ a young up and coming manager who would stay with us for 2-3 years working his ticket to a higher place. Someone in the same sort of category as Stuart McCall who I think has done pretty well in a short space of time and although he's playing with Broon's squad he's done well to stabilise them of late. They were quite impressive at the weekend there. Either that or we need to identify someone (not Garry Locke) who can work alongside Jefferies with a view to taking over in a year or two and having some continuity from that.

 

He does need to strengthen the squad a bit. Hopefully he'll be allowed to do that, but next season IMO is a biggy for him and he'll also have to find a way of raising his own game because although third is "pretty good" we've had some shocking performances either side of the good run. We've been shocking in the cups and pretty miserable against the Old Firm so far. We havent always looked like we know what we're about tactically. The balance of the team has often been wrong because he was playing favourites and shoehorning players into the team and he's persisted too long with out of form players/ unfit players and players simply not good enough. Appreciate he's tied to the budget etc etc but he COULD have tried other things that he seemed very reluctant to do.

 

 

Can I ask why not Gary Locke?

 

I'm not saying you're right or wrong, I don't know anything about his capabilities as a coach, genuinely just asking why you think not him.

[Rudy T]

He does need to strengthen the squad a bit. Hopefully he'll be allowed to do that, but next season IMO is a biggy for him and he'll also have to find a way of raising his own game because although third is "pretty good" we've had some shocking performances either side of the good run. We've been shocking in the cups and pretty miserable against the Old Firm so far. We havent always looked like we know what we're about tactically. The balance of the team has often been wrong because he was playing favourites and shoehorning players into the team and he's persisted too long with out of form players/ unfit players and players simply not good enough. Appreciate he's tied to the budget etc etc but he COULD have tried other things that he seemed very reluctant to do.

 

I'm not so sure this is a JJ failing, more a consequence of this hideous league set up we're exposed to.

 

If you look at our "run" we propelled ourselves from mid-table to clear favourites to land Europe, equally Utd are doing the same now. However if this goes the other way - see Hibs - you end up out of the running and a season which ends in November.

 

Which takes me to your point - if you find the winning formula (with a decent set of fixtures) you can't change it because it defines the season. Start to tinker and "try other things" and it doesn't go well you can hit a poor run and end up out of the top places.

 

I'm certain JJ's plan was to secure 3rd and then bring in youngsters/fringe players and try out different positions, however due to injuries to key players he's not been able to do that.

 

Again my only real criticism of JJ/BB/GL is they cannot find the winning formation consistently against the OF, and until that changes we cannot challenge for the league.

[Getintaethem]

 

Again my only real criticism of JJ/BB/GL is they cannot find the winning formation consistently against the OF, and until that changes we cannot challenge for the league.

 

We've not consistently won against the old-firm since the 50's, even Sir Alex Ferguson or Jose Mourinho would struggle to do that with the difference in budgets involved.

[Paolo]

We've not consistently won against the old-firm since the 50's, even Sir Alex Ferguson or Jose Mourinho would struggle to do that with the difference in budgets involved.

 

JJ was probably the correct appointment but just because he is a Jambo it does not mean he is faultless though he perhaps has less faults than other candidates.

 

One of his problems is, and he is not alone, is he respects the Old Firm too much and has this acceptance that we can not beat him. I feel that we tend to target 3rd place when we should be targeting 1st even if it is unlIkely. It is a whole lot more unlikely if the players and management accept it will not happen.

 

As for his tactics he does seem to use the same one too often even when it does not work, something Csaba got criticised for. Yes we miss Kyle, but JJ did pursue him despite his history of injuries so it was always a possibility and JJ needs to deal with it better.

 

I am sure he will wrap up 3rd place so it is a step forward but we should aim for higher next season and I hope JJ can take us there. He needs to be more ambitious though and nit accept 3rd is the best we can do. The coaches and the players need to respect the Old Firm a lot less.

[K1874M]

Zander Diamond brought in as a replacement for Bouzid.

 

I bet we're going to do a Csaba Laszlo next season and finish around Fifth. Feel free to bring this thread back up next season.

 

I was wrong as I thought Csaba was going to be a great manager for us. In Csaba's first season though he was a breath of fresh air to this boring league that's stuck in the past. Styles of football has changed and we're a century behind. Until Scottish football changes we will continue to get pumped out of Europe. Csaba was right about that.

 

Mixu came to tynie with Killie and gave JJ a lesson on how to play football. Twice.

You should have put your prediction of Csaba before everything you posted.... then I could have saved my time reading the rest.

 

I trust JJ to keep us challanging... we're a young side that was out on it's erse before the season even started... this season has been a success that I hope we can build on next season.

[Rudy T]

We've not consistently won against the old-firm since the 50's, even Sir Alex Ferguson or Jose Mourinho would struggle to do that with the difference in budgets involved.

 

 

I give you Aberdeen in the 80's......