This morning Bryan Gunn, the former Norwich City goalkeeper was unveiled as the new manager until the end of the season. Gunn has been associated with the Canaries for twenty two years, and once applied for the same job ten years ago without success.
Gunn is to be assisted by the former Canaries midfielder Ian Crook, who flew in today from Australia. Crook had been working there as the performance manager of Newcastle Jets, but is now back on home turf in his first job in English football. Crook was perhaps one of Norwich’s finest players, and if he can transfer some of his skills onto the training pitch, then things may start to look brighter at the Norfolk club.
The other new appointment is John Deehan, Norwich’s former player and manager, to the position of Head Scout. It’s believed that Gunn will utilise Deehan’s long experience in the game, as this is of course Gunn’s first management role. This has worried some fans, but as Glenn Roeder showed, experience is never a given for success. Gunn certainly has the club in his blood, and the 4-0 result on Saturday shows that the players respond well to him.
This is undoubtedly a popular appointment, but one must also be realistic. Things are unlikely to turn round overnight, and fans shouldn’t expect the second half of the season to be much easier than the first. The objective now appears to be avoiding relegation, and anything else will be a bonus. Expectations will be high for Gunn and his team, but fans must be patient. He will after all, probably not be able to bring in many more new players, due to the limited finances at his disposal.
Amongst the cynics, some have suggested that Gunn’s appointment is merely a way to save money, instead of signing a high profile manager who would demand higher wages. There may be some truth in this, but I also believe that Bryan Gunn was always in the mix to be manager. There has also been a rumour going round that Paul Ince was interviewed for the job, and even offered it, but whether this is true or not is now immaterial. Gunn would definitely have been the fans’ choice had they had a vote, and we wish him all the best. Let’s hope that his legend status is not tarnished by his time at the helm.
First up for the Gunn club is Southampton on Tuesday night. Norwich fans will hope to see a repeat performance of Saturday’s excellent win, but I’m sure a 1-0 win would be just as good.
Congratulations to Bryan Gunn!
Will Sargent.
