Irish Coach Mick McCarthy. AP Photo/John Cogill
The palaver surrounding Mick McCarthy’s decision to field a virtual reserves team for the match against Manchester United and the FA’s flogging of him with a proverbial lettuce leaf as punishment has raised an interesting issue that seems obvious but is rarely spoken about: what do clubs exist for?
McCarthy defended his axing of ten players from the side that had beaten Tottenham three days previously by suggesting it was the best possible line-up he could have selected because the nominal first XI were simply too fagged with exhaustion.
In reality, however, he was resting them because this weekend’s match against Burnley is considered winnable and crucial for Wolves’ “staying up”. He wants the same side that defeated Spurs 1-0 at White Hart Lane to be refreshed and raring to go at Molineux.
“Decisions I make to keep this club up will only be judged further down the line,” he said. “I would hope fans understand [what happened at Old Trafford, where Wolves were thrashed 3-0] because my decisions will judge whether we stay in the Premier League.”
And chief executive Jez Moxey has backed him, admitting he was “surprised by Mick’s team selection” but his manager “is very cognisant of what the fans want and I think what they want most is to stay in the Premier League.”
That, however, appears not to be the case, judging from the tenor of comments made by Wolves supporters. Arthur Williams, president of the North West Wolves fans’ group, told the BBC “there was something to be gained from that match on Tuesday” and that he and the other 3000 fans who made the trip to Old Trafford and forked out £42 each for a seat deserved much more from their club.
“My first reaction when I saw ten changes and players playing out of position was, I thought, grossly disrespectful.”
Many are now demanding refunds, which the club is refusing to pay.
So who’s right?
In my view, McCarthy and the club are in the wrong.
What is the point of Premiership survival if you also alienate your supporter base by giving up the idea of winning matches even before they’re played?
Much of what makes football fans so loyal and passionate, especially those who follow smaller clubs, is the promise that one day they’re going to live out their wildest dreams and see their clubs beat the Manchester Uniteds, Liverpools and Chelseas of this world. They want to see their spare-parts teams take it up to the very best and dare to dream.
That’s what McCarthy, Moxey and the rest of the Wolves hoi polloi just don’t appreciate.
While “staying up” is its own kind of title race for Wolves and other clubs in the drop zone, one just as transfixing and exciting as the battle between the Big Four and with its own attendant financial rewards, it should never take priority over the simple motivation of trying to win.
That should be the mindset all coaches and all players in the Premier League take into every match, no matter the opposition and no matter what’s at stake.
Otherwise what is the point of supporting a team?
Clubs exist because of people and for the people, nothing else. When they start acting like they exist for something else, like Wolves did this week, you know a little bit of football’s soul has been lost.
It’s very sad to see.
pimbo
Guest
Keane was the coward who put himself above his manager and his country and derailed any chance they had.
Dublin Dave
Guest
McCarthy may be many things: stubborn, bone headed, unsophisticated but NEVER call him a coward. He was right in 2002; Keane was wrong. But then most people, apart from Keane, seem to have moved on from then.
sittingbison
Guest
I believe his cowardly attitude also annoyed Roy Keane at 2002 World Cup...
Roger
Guest
Great post. The only reason a situation like this occurs is because of relegation and to a lesser extent the lack of a salary cap. In a true free market the smaller players will pull any (legal, most of the time) trick they can to survive and this is just another example. McCarthy is a smart, smart man and plans for the long term.
Gibbo
Guest
its an interesting debate, and i like to draw similarities to warfare... Jessie Fink would be your suicide bomber - This war is for the fighting, pride is on the line! Sure the enemy are better equipped and stronger and more fierce, but i'm going to strap these explosive to my chest and charge in and take as many out, regardless of my survival! This is war, stupid! Now charge! Mick McCarthy might be a gurrilla warfare exponent... He took one look at United and decided the best option would be to turn tail head for the jungles! Hide, lay low, and wait for them to pass on by. When they have passed the weaker forces of Burnley will follow. That is when he and his top troops will be rested and ready to ambush.
Lazza
Guest
Have you seen Burnleys' home record this season? Perhaps they should have tried to win at under performing Man Utd and given them a rest at Burnley.
Mick of Newie
Guest
What is interesting is why it doesn't happen more often. If they get 3 points at Burnley this weekend McCarthy will be a hero.
AndyRoo
Roar Guru
I wouldn’t have a problem if he was genuine in trying to win the game and thought this was a good plan. They were unlikely to out play United at home so perhaps play fresh legs and try and out run them. Or play some guys that haven’t lost to United X times in the past. But I doubt that has what has happened here because there is no need to sub all 10 outfield players and it was just a meek surrender. Can’t defend McCarthy at all, its gutless….but it does bring to the issue the Champions League money. A continuous 80m yearly advantage makes it nearly impossible for the teams not receiving that money to compete by organic means and requires a rich sugar daddy to close the gap. Anyway, here’s hoping for more of the same form the less wealthy clubs in the EPL ….. makes me appreciate the A league even more.
Mr cheese
Guest
If Wolves survive, they will play there next season. Plus, you're seeing it from the wrong point of view. The players are too busy thinking about the £££££ to care about the football.
Ben
Guest
I wonder what the Wolves players who got 'dropped' or were 'rested' think about missing out on the rare chance to play at Old Trafford.
Darwin hammer
Roar Rookie
I agree Jesse .. and this issue has been festering for a few seasons now – Warnock did exactly the same thing with Sheffield Utd in the season they went down .. and then had the front to blast Man U for supposedly putting out a second string outfit against West Ham in the final game of that season - a game the hammers won to ensure survival .... Liverpool put out a 3rd string team against Fulham the previous weekend - which duly ensured Fulham’s survival when they got the vital win …. Now it’s happening again … it’s wrong and it makes a mockery of the PL and cheats the fans … the EPL should have set in place rules for the deduction of points if this occurs and Wolves should be deducted 6 points – that will stop all this occurring …. What’s McCarthy going to say if the circumstances outlined above occur again later in the season – if say Chelsea or Arsenal put out second string outfit against Portsmouth, West Ham, Bolton, Hull – when they’ve got a Champions league semi or final to play …
Juan Carlos
Guest
What's the point of having large squads of players if you're only going to use half of them? McCarthy has done the right thing. He's looking at the bigger picture and considering the survival of his side in the top flight. Let's face it; Wolves fans didn't go to the match to see their team; they went to see Manchester United, at Old Trafford, which is something they probably haven't been able to do too many times. Wolves' full strength side were unlikely to beat Man U at Old Trafford so this whole thing is just a stor in a tea cup. If McCarthy's men beat Burnley this weekend and this ensures sruvival at the end of the season I'm sure he'll feel vindicated.
Phutbol
Guest
As much as it grates on my sense of fair play, who can blame him for letting an almost unwinnable battle be lost in order to improve his chances of winning the war? I think most wolves supporters would even agree, except that perhaps they should've been warned via the clubs website or similar of the 'strategy' the manager was considering so that they could decide if they wanted to spend their $$$ on attending.
Roger Rational
Guest
Yes, he would. In fact, this very situation cropped up in May when Ferguson chose to rest players at Hull (an absolutely critical game for them and for the other relegation-threatened teams) because of United's Champions League Final. He took quite a lot of criticism pre-game and got rather hot under the collar about it. Sheffield United were relegated a few seasons ago when Fergie fielded a weakened team at home to West Ham. The Hammers duly won and Neil Warnock (ex-Sheff Utd boss) remains bitter about it to this day. It cuts both ways, I suppose, and really comes down to the luck of the draw.
The Truth
Guest
This is a bunch of idiots pretending there's no ridiculous disparity in European soccer. The integrity of competition was corrupted long before this. Don't blame the guy for being real and working with what he has. It's a legitimate action to rest players for winnable games. That is called strategy. His ultimate goal is to finish high on the table, not perform some one-off heroics against a club infinitely bigger than they are.
Brett McKay
Guest
I guess the real test for this scenario might be if it were Man Utd who ran out a reserves' team against Wolves and got beaten. Would Sir Alex Ferguson be copping the same level of scrutiny?? If the big clubs can pick and choose when to play their first team, I don't see why the smaller clubs can't do the same..
Nick S
Guest
But how come no body judges United or Liverpool when they field second string sides against weak opposition (like Wolves), to rest them up for the Champions League? I think you're being harsh on the coach here... Sure fans pay money to see their best team play week-in-week out, but guess what, if they get injured from playing to much, well then he's forced to play a second string team anyway. Not to mention that their best side would probably lose three-nil away against United. Maybe the real blame should lie with the ridiculous expectation that to play every game in the League is 38, plus any League Cup commitments, which for a Premier League side is almost always more than one match, plus FA Cup, so here you can easily add on two more, so that's four games for these two cups, bringing the total to 42. What if they experience success in the the Cups? Or what about if you're Everton right now? Gotta back up for Europa as well... Not easy without the giant squads of the big clubs. You're right, the beauty of supporting a small club is awaiting that magical moment a la Burnley when they beat United... But there is also beauty to be had in staying alive when much larger clubs like Middlesbourgh and Newcastle go down... Save the heroics for the Cup's, that's what they're there for. The League is about staying alive for Wolves et al.
Luke W
Guest
What would Wolves fans say if McCarthy fielded his strongest line-up against Manchester United, and then they failed to beat Burnley this week? Managers have been fielding reserves/weaker teams in mid-week and Cup matches for years, because no player at a top club in Europe could possible perform at their best week-in week-out for a whole season. I have no problems with McCarthy's line of thought, but making ten changes was a bit over the top.
sunshine
Guest
I understand where you are coming from but playing in the top tier is the goal for wolves. It is just as likely that the team would have lost 3-0 with the full compliment of players. The big 4 often rest players at home against lowly ranked teams, its just not as noticable when Rooney is high fiving Owen as his replacement...