I'll be honest. I never really loved the style of play the Revs played with under Nicol, even when they were good. I did, however, respect the hard work, and results they found on the pitch. To deny that Nicol was a successful coach here, who brought this team to heights higher than they've ever seen, would just be spitting in the wind. We all know the recent history of this club, and what they had done under Nicol. We know the players who have come and gone. We know some of the coaches who have come and gone as well. Through it all, there have been a few key moments, turning points. It's not hard to look back at when the decline started. You can easily see the point where the decline in quality began. It's been debated time and time again as to the level of involvement Nicol had in player selection. It can also be stated that maybe the MLS game has evolved beyond Nicol's style of play. Those are all just conjectures on our part. However, it is impossible to deny that Nicol was around and involved in a time when this team was arguably one of the most talented teams in the league for a number of years. There were changes in FO structure that happened in the latter part of the last decade, which seem to be noncoincidental in relation to the teams decline. As soon as a few people were hired, and other elevated to higher positions of power within this franchise, the team began a steep decline that took just a few years to dismantle of of the leagues best teams. Had the league passed him by? Maybe. Was it time to let Nicol go? Probably. Was Nicol involved in building the current squad bereft of talent? Assuredly. Nicol has been made the scapegoat of this team, however. Even if they do shuffle some deck chairs in the front office, it is clear that they wanted to send a message to the fans and the press (what little they have of both), that Nicol was the major reason for their current woes. By firing him first, and by himself, they deflect all of the attention his way. It is pathetic, and a move of cowardice by this franchise and it's leaders at the top. It is time for some people to look in the mirror.
While I agree with the sentiment, I think we have to at least consider the possibility that Nicol's departure was Nicol's idea. If true, the Burns name-dropping, the two month coach search, etc, might be the reaction of an organization that was caught flat-footed (surprise!) by his departure.
I agree that Nicol leaving could have been his own choice. If it was, and they were caught flat-footed, that just further proves how inept the people running this franchise really are. They cannot even see the forest through the trees.
If the only move this team makes is to fire Nicol, then he's definitely being made a scapegoat. If this is the first step ... that's a different matter.
I disagree. It's clear that there were people involved with the building of this team, in higher positions of power than Nicol, without Nicol's success, who should have been let go long ago, and certainly before Nicol. If Brian is right, and Nicol left on his own accord, then that is understandable. It still doesn't excuse the facts that Billelo and Burns still have their jobs, 72 hours after the season ended. Those are decisions which should have been made long ago, and should have been executed as soon as the season ended. They clearly cannot do what is necessary to build a successful team and franchise.
FWIW, in the Nicol is gone thread ... someone said that Jonathan Kraft apparently mentioned somewhere that they had decided mid-season to let go of Nicol ... So ... I don't know. I'd love a nice thorough piece by one of the writers including a solid interview with Nicol right about ... now.
That is even more damming. How could they possibly decide mid-season, to let Nicol go, and not have decided to let the useless VP's and team executives go?
I agree, but if the truth is as unflattering as I think it might be, I don't think we can reasonably expect Kyle or FDA to light that fuse. Maybe Grant Wahl or Goff...
That's not accurate.... What Jonathan said was that had Stevie never have achieved what he had with the team and never had his overall track record, then, they probably would have, so, they gave him one more chance -down the stretch- to come out of the nosedive. But, but Jon only said that when pressed. He never offered it.
Burns: I agree 101% Bilello: I'm no fan, and I know many, many supporters and observers are still steamed about his duplicity in Fortgate, but he has nothing to do with the on-field product. If you're making changes to improve the quality of the team, he probably doesn't belong in that particular conversation.
The off-field product is just as, if not more pathetic than the on-field one. This franchise needs changes everywhere. It's a failure in almost all aspects of professional sports management.
Never mind. I'm catching up this morning, and just read the JK ("Just Kidding, I won a soccer team?") interview with DA ... Yep, they've completely scapegoated Nicol. Fantastic.
You guys are too much. Everyone agreed that it was time for Nicol to go, that he had a good tenure, but a decade was long enough. Nicol is shown the door and now there is sympathy as a scapegoat. Again, the Revs last game was Saturday. Perhaps Burns and Billelo should have been fired years ago, but this season just ended on Saturday. If God created Revs fans on day 1, they inevitably would be complaining about something by day 3.
We all agreed that it was time. Stop trolling, and start reading. The decision to let them go should have been made before the season ended. There is enough evidence that they can't do an effective job. There has been enough evidence for years. Each day that passes, is another day this team falls behind the rest of the league. Took me about 15 years to lose faith in this franchise. Sorry, but you're wrong.
Most of those guys don't have the scrotum to really nail this organization the way it should. All of a sudden out of nowhere, I don't read SI except for following Wahl on Twitter, Chenn writes a quasi scathing piece on the help that Nicol didn't get. I want to believe Stevie left on his own, finally joining the ranks of the dissatisfied. Granted, he's not going to blow his foot off by bad mouthing the morons. But, if he did indeed decide enough was enough, then all the power to him.
The same way fans don't have the scrotum to make personal sacrifices to show the organization that you are pissed off.
I wish I knew the truth of the Nicol situation. Did the team decide that they did not want to offer Steve a new contract, or did Steve walk away? Regardless of what is said in the media, I wonder if we'll ever know the truth. If Steve wanted to stay for any reason it raises lots of questions about him. If the Revs wanted to re-sign Steve then the FO just doesn't get it. The only way that both parties look good is if this was truly a mutual decision. If that's even possible.
Our problem isn't that they fired Nicol, it's that they only fired Nicol. If Burns is going to replace Nicol, we're weary of the choice he will make because his choices have always sucked. The problem isn't that we're complaining on Day 3. The problem is that we're complaining on day 6,000
I understand that you guys have been suffering for a long time. But the specific news is that the coach was fired, which is what everyone wanted. Be happy. You guys got what you wanted. If Burns and Billelo were fired, you guys would then complain that you wouldnt have confidence in the Krafts to hire a competent replacement. You guys would also complain that the upheaval would also delay the hiring of a new coach which is needed in time for the draft and pre-season.
Thank you for hypothetically putting words in our mouths. That's a productive use of your time. We have complaints, a lot of them. Things we'd like to see changed. I'm fairly new to Revs fandom and the complaints I've heard in my fandom can really be boiled down to 4 points (from easiest to fix to hardest): 1. We need a jersey sponsor 2. We need a stadium 3. The gameday experience sucks (see #2) 4. The on-the-field product blows When they solved #1, no one complained, no one bitched. Everyone had a round of "Nice work, Revs" (especially because it was around the same time as Benny and Lekic). Getting rid of Nicol was part of #4, but it's unlikely that it'll be enough. Identify and solve the problems, that's all we're asking anyone to do
If Burns and Billelo were fired we would have a solid reason to not have confidence in the Krafts to hire a competent replacement. If we had faith and trusted the Krafts then it would be a different story.. we would wait and see how they played their cards. Fact is, 99.9% of supporters don't have faith or trust in the Krafts due to the fact they ripped it away from us then curb stomped the sh*t out of it. We know their past and judge their future decisions off it.