My thoughts on Mansfield Town

Given that I spent three-and-a-half years working at Mansfield Town with many of the directors who are still at the club right now, I feel qualified enough to comment on the crisis (for want of a better word) which has engulfed the club since that penalty shoot-out defeat to Newport County.

Following the disastrous events at the end of last season which rightly cost David Flitcroft his job, John Dempster is now first team manager.

In my time at Field Mill, he was a decent enough, albeit not outstanding, centre-back at League Two/Football Conference level. He was popular within the dressing room and a decent bloke; human, humorous at times, personable and everyone out there who has worked alongside him will say the same thing. He'll treat players with respect and won't 'f**k them over' like some managers would do - an example being Flitcroft's treatment of Paul Anderson.

Anyone who has played or worked alongside JD will say the same thing! He's a good guy!

However, after a poor start to the season which has seen the team register nine points from as many games - and four defeats; the latest being a 4-0 home hammering by Cambridge United, the natives are whinging and whining and there's negativity everywhere.

For me, the biggest issue lies in the aftermath of what happened following Flitcroft's dismissal.

First things first, it was the correct decision to sack him!

In my view, had Steve Evans not done a midnight flit to Peterborough United, the team would have got promoted in 2017/18. Instead, Flitcroft came in and messed things up, before the bigger screw up at the tail end of last season. Ultimately, if you can't get promoted with a £2.8M playing budget (which is absolutely excessive for League Two), then you have to go - specifically for the reasons mentioned!

Instead, I suspect the reason he went was because of his poor relationships with certain directors at the club; namely Paul Broughton and Steve Hymas. Had he been 'popular' within the boardroom then it's quite possible he may have been given a stay of execution.

Broughton is a nightmare to walk alongside; difficult, always interfering, always looking for new ways to penny-pinch and impress his brother-in-law, who happens to be the chairman. Any experienced manager will be able to see straight through him. He doesn't actually understand well, or know an awful lot about football, either, compared to many directors around the place.

Hymas does understand football (to an extent), however, it was clear he had a poor and deteriorating relationship with Flitcroft following his ridiculous outburst on Stagsnet where he chastised the manager for not picking youth team graduate Zayn Hakeem (now at Bradford Park Avenue) over Tyler Walker (now in League One at Lincoln City)

With the team challenging for promotion, it was unprofessional (being polite) and plain stupid (not being so polite) for Hymas to publicly have a dig at the manager. It should have been done behind-closed-doors or, given how ridiculous his comments were, not at all.

Then, last season, there was also the farce over the new 'Woburn Lane' training facility which, to my understanding, the team trained at before Flitcroft decided he wanted to train elsewhere as the 'new' facilities weren't good enough for his standards.

That won't have gone down well in the boardroom and then there's other stuff which will have occurred behind closed doors that probably led to one of the three camps (players. management staff and the boardroom) resenting another.

So what was needed when Flitcroft was sacked was a proper, thorough recruitment process. Candidates should have been invited to apply, a shortlist should have been drawn up, and managers interviewed. It didn't happen though and instead JD was appointed straight away in the same club statement that announced Flitcroft's departure!

Not yet mentioned is John and Carolyn Radford's involvement which has led to the current debacle.

They've 'banged the drum' for the last few years, spent money, seen experienced managers come in and not deliver promotion and, clearly, they've made the decision to slash the budget (which has happened because at £2.8M it was ridiculously too high and close to breaking FFP rules) and they've sought a 'cheaper option' in JD.

Nobody can fault JD for taking the job because, as a young manager, the opportunity may never arise again. He might have wanted the job under different circumstances, but it's not altogether that dissimilar to the Frank Lampard appointment at Chelsea.

However, after successive near misses and finishing high up in League Two, expectations have gone through the roof and Mansfield fans display a mentally that is a 'sense of entitlement'. It was evident in the early years of Paul Cox's reign when the club were in the Conference Premier and it's evident again now. It's utterly ridiculous!

The Radfords, together, did absolutely nothing in the summer to quell expectations, having publicly stated they expect/want promotion this season.

Ultimately, they're giving fans reason to be excited, but the inadvertent issue is that, if/when things go wrong, fans then feel they have reasons to have a go at JD, and beat him with the 'rookie youth team boss' stick following any defeat.

And of course, football fans notoriously thrive off negativity - none more so than at Mansfield!

So right now, all things considered, it'd be very easy for a 'normal' football club to usher JD out the door or back into a youth coaching role and bring in someone more experienced.

However, this is Mansfield - and, having had two experienced managers who've messed up and spent a fortune in the process, JD will surprisingly still be popular where it matters.

Broughton will probably like JD and the fact he may believe he can manipulate him into not having overnight stays or pre-match meals. Hymas, likewise, will be happy with JD, given he feels it probably offers a pathway for young players into the first team - something which Hymas will then ultimately want to take all the glory for, if it ever happens!

The Radfords (specifically Carolyn) probably care more about the sunshine in Portugal, being showered with expensive presents, and poncing around trying to be a pretend celebrity on social media with animals to get likes/retweets, etc.

In all honesty, even though it's a dysfunctional set-up behind the scenes (and always has been) and JD deserves much better, I hope he does stay for the long haul.

However, he needs support from his directors - not to be dictated to regarding football matters such as the overnight stays or pre-match meals (which are crucial in pre-match preparation) or being told that he should be picking youth team players!

Footballers will use anything and everything as an excuse. Therefore, if a manager wants an overnight stay for somewhere of a moderate distance (i.e. two hours or more, one-way travelling), then it should happen. It allows a boss to 'contain' the players the night before a match and removes one excuse from their list of potential excuses if they subsequently play sh*te.

Furthermore, JD needs time to assemble his own squad, gain experience and build something. The budget being slashed to a sensible level for League Two is fine, but he needs expectations reigning in - and that stems from the very top. He also needs time to ship out expensive signings, probably including a few money grabbers who've been signed by his predecessors on lucrative and juicy contracts. After that, he needs time to assemble his own squad - his own characters and personalities which make up a good dressing room.

Irrespective of whatever he achieved as a youth team manager, as a player, JD achieved five promotions so he'll have seen plenty of characters and will have a damn good insight and knowledge into what makes a successful dressing room.

But like everything, it will take time; maybe two or three seasons, and patience is required from everybody involved - especially the fans on matchdays who, whilst they are entitled to air their views, aren't going to achieve anything positive with over the top, nasty or personal criticisms of the players out on the pitch.

Inheriting the specific dressing room which he has, there's no doubt it contains some 'toxic' characters with their own agendas, and definitely players who probably aren't in JD’s plans for the long-term. Moving them on won't be so easy though, given that not every other club will be as keen to offer the same amount in wages to tempt them elsewhere.

Finally, if you look at the current League Two table, Exeter City are the league leaders.

They may or may not stay in the promotion places but what the Grecians are is a well-run football club who know their place, have recruited well and built up a decent, hard-working squad without spending a fortune or shouting from the rooftops that they want to get promoted.

That is what Mansfield should aspire to be like but until the ridiculous 'sense of entitlement' and demands of promotion cease from the supporters or there's a change in mindset at boardroom level, then I fear for JD.

What's worse is that with just one relegation spot in League Two this season because of Bury's demise (and that won't be filled by Mansfield, by the way) this is the perfect season for a young boss to make his errors, learn from it, and change what he needs to ahead of brighter times in the long-term.