Martin ling

[OllieGull]

BBC Sport have just posted about it now:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22330256

[Gullscorer]

I believe Martin Ling's abilities and record as a manager speak for themselves and I'd be happy to see him return to his duties as manager, and I wish him well. However, he may be fit again, but for how long? Will he still be based away from Devon? If so, could this be one of the factors which may result in a relapse of his problem? This surely must be one of the matters he will discuss with the club on Monday.

If that turns out to be the case, and if Ling continues to live upcountry, it's a pity we can't afford to keep both Knill and Brass, with Ling perhaps involved in some other capacity, even on a part-time basis.

Of course, we could all buy a lottery ticket and do a Bristow..

[AustrianAndyGull]

What concerns me is that Simon Baker says that Ling is 'better'. Well that's ok then, if he seriously believes someone can endure a problem like Lings and be 'better' in 4 months then the man is deluded. TUFC is not a medical experiment to see how long Martin can go before some 'issues' re-occur leaving us in the crap again. They might very well not re-occur and Martin will win us the league and bury all the tittle tattle once and for all but why take the risk? We should be moving forwards and not going backwards. A new summer a new beginning. Get the excitment and buzz back ready for the opening fixture instead of niggling worries in the back of our heads of if this decision going to implode around our ears week in week out. It must be something to do with employment law or something why we are keeping him on as it's football suicide IMO.

[Gullscorer]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22330799#asset

[gullintwoplaces]

All I hope is that this does not drag on and screw up the preparations for a new season. The rumours flying around just take the edge off a great weekend. I wish I could be confident that it will all be sorted out in a way that is best for the club, but employment lawyers (like Yuman Rights lawyers) can make organisations do things that the outside world see as daft. As a human being, I wish Martin the best, but not to the detriment of the club that I support.

[usagullmichigan]

So we lose a 4 hundred grand in funding if we had gone down. Surely investing a hundred grand on players makes sense?

[Jeff]

Might just be my interpretation, but the way Bakers tone of voice and mannerisms changed when asked about Ling suggests to me that Monday will see some uncomfortable conversations.

Might be nothing in it, but it just didn't seem like the sort of response you would see if there are no issues.

I've held my tongue on the whole situation, as all I want to see is something resolved ASAP. If its Ling then fine, he gets my backing 100% (even if its not my preferred choice) - where we have lost out in the last couple of years is seemingly starting work on our squad too late. It looks like regardless who is in charge we will have a big turnaround in playing staff this time, so I'd despair if we were to dilly-dally around with the Ling situation whilst all our rivals are bolstering their squads

[supergulls]

Didn't I say he would be back to work 23 pages ago ?

[usagullmichigan]

definately betting on us going down next season

That's the spirit

[divingbboy]

It's noteworthy that Baker stops short of saying that Ling will be returning as manager. Twice he says that Ling is coming down on Monday and that they'll be having talks with him. Doesn't sound like everything is cut and dried, by any means.

[Fonda]

Sometimes you have to go with what you have got, ling never had the forward options that knill had i.e Benyon so he was forced to play 4-5-1. Hopefully we get benyons signature and then we can continue to play a more attacking formation.

Remind me who assembled the squad last summer? Who was it that decided going into the season with Rene Howe and Ryan Jarvis as our only strikers was a good idea?

[taunton_gull]

Going on the BBC Sport video, Baker says they will 'sort things out.' As a previous poster suggested I don't think it's as completely sewn up as some believe. ML has taken time out to recover and I am glad he is on the mend. It must be remembered however that he has had a significant period away now and to just step back in as if nothing has happened is far from easy. Baker and co have made some very poor decisions this year and one glance at this forum would suggest they need to get their act together quickly because this will not be accepted by the fans again next year. There is the possibility of several legal/financial implications I'm sure but my biggest fear is ML coming back and us starting slowly next season. The fact given what has happened he will not have the luxury of time afforded to a new manager, bearing in mind the reasons behind his illness I cannot see how it can end well. Just a case of waiting and hoping, but I hope for the best outcome for all parties concerned.

[Sunnysideup]

So how many of Leyton Orients matches did you watch then when they got promoted ??? Because I watched lots of them....

......I have seen various teams of martins play and I can assure you they have not all played this way.

The plot thickens, no wonder you are so defensive... Are you his agent ? Or a family member perhaps ? You certainly seem to be more of a "Ling fan" than a "Torquay fan".

[Scott Brehaut]

Or Ling himself

[brucie]

Yes your actual posts are tiresome. However Ling played at Leyton Orient he has produced some stifling boring football. So you told us 23 pages ago that he was coming back, maybe he is - so what?
I am probably also correct in saying that majority of supporters would prefer Knill to be in charge.
As Andy says the issue is that Ling maybe better but for how long? - the Plainmoor crowd didn't really give Ling much of a hard time when we were producing dire peformances but Ling's over the top reaction to the odd comment was really a pointer to how stressed he was.
What is for sure is that should Ling return and we start the season badly I can guarantee that the manager will get a much rougher ride.
Four months away with a serious stress related illness and now all of a sudden he is fit and raring to return to what is a really stressful job.
Far from rushing anything I would be more than happy for the board to take a bit of time to sort this out.
As for Knill - well I guess he couldn't really say anything else rather than that he is unemployed at the moment.