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Leaving Plymouth "for personal reasons".  Another lucky escape for us?

The city of Plymouth was always going to bore him eventually. I know that feeling.

I think so. I don't ever recall watching him and being in awe of his ability.

When Sturrock couldn't get him for us, i said at the time he had 1 lucky season. I stand by that comment as smarmily as KGB36 when ("Bang") talking about the youth team.

I missed that first time around - what thread was that on? The phrase has become a regular fixture on here since!

I think this is the one, but may not be, because i remember it being funnier. :(

http://thetownend.com/index.php/topic,29278.msg561571.html#msg561571

The words incredibly and overrated come to mind when I think of Easter

Sturrocks got big problems down there.

Plymouth to be relegated for me.

Their fans have less motivation than ours - and they haven't had the same woeful recent history as us.

My observation through living there is that after a spell where they went up twice they assembled a significantly new fanbase which was used to a level of success. You should have seen the amount of Plymouth merchandise wearing folk swaning around the city between 2003-2007.

Since Holloway left it's all gone down hill - dull football has emerged, their best players left and were replaced by the likes of Easter of Wycombe and Mackie of Exeter, hardly inspiring. They're not looking good, their goalkeeper had his contract terminated because of the car crash, and their manager seems totally down-and-out and those new fans I mentioned have rekindled their love affairs with Liverpool, Manchester United et al.

Big problems indeed.

When they didnt play the pre season friendly their fans were saying that Sturrock was desperate and didnt want another morale sapping defeat pre season so chose not to play the game at all.

They only got 9,000 on saturday. 2,000 more than us in a league above. Think you are exactly right, their new age fans are deserting them fast. New stadium fans. Novelty wearing off fast. They were getting about 4,000 10-15 years ago.

Got upset when Blair Sturrock was waxing lyrical a while back in the Adver at how good the atmosphere was down there at Home Park. We went down there in the run in to 2003-04 season when they won the title and we outsung them. Blair played in that Mansfield game which was the second best atmosphere Ive seen anywhere home or away in the last 10 years. Dont rate them.

I wonder if Sturrock regrets going back now?

Not likely, bigger salary etc.. He will get another club when he gets sacked. Holloway to replace?

I've never heard, what I would consider, an adequate atmosphere at Home Park.

I have a feeling that this is Sturrock's last hurrah as a manager... He'll retire down there.

It does stick in the throat that Sturrock is the manager that we accepted and got behind most in the last 10 years, but he still doesnt seem to have any sort of sentimentality for us at all.

We werent paying him at all when he left. But I think he might have another look at us in a years time after he has been relegated and his reputation at Plymouth is in ruins.

Funny that, I thought we were quite poor that day and they did alright for a home team.

Agree about the crowds, I know a few plymouth and they're not happy at the moment.  According to a friend of a friend(always tenuous but there you go), Sturrock was moaning to them at a wedding the other day about not being able to compete when it came to wages.  Surely he'd of know the score on that before he went down there, or was he just hoping that the 'messiah' returning would be enough.  

Taking them over when they were 4th in the Championship was always going to be a slippery slope IMHO.

Yeah, the atmosphere wasnt bad.

But it wasnt mental. Thats what it should have been for them. They were on their way to a second title in 3 years. That was a great league as well, because the top 4 teams (Plymouth, QPR, City and us) were all southern, all on the GWR.

Remember that game,was juicy outside after....sorry Spence dont agree,think the way he stayed with us with all that shit off field did show he liked the club,also if it wasnt for the youths he braught to the club lucas and tozer we would be seriously more worse off than we are now..Sturrock will get Plymouth in the top half no probs.

He didn't bring in Jutkiewicz and Byrne brought the Plymouth kiddies up - although it was Sturrock's appointment.

We were a job to Sturrock - nothing more, nothing less.

I'm not fussed if Sturrock does a good or bad job elsewhere. If he ever wanted to come back I wouldn't want him here though.

I would love him back here....and yes Rich Sturrock did appoint Byrne and thats why the youths came here....funny none are coming here now Sturrock has left?

Or maybe Byrne's been here for nigh on a couple of years now so he's taken what he can from his "crop". They were Budgie's boys, make no mistake.

 Best atmosphere I've known at Home Park was the week after winning the LC, absolutely mental...20,000+ in, which was about twice their average.

 Difficult to estimate how many town fans, but 2 special trains went. They had a large terrace the Devonport End...which had to be evacuated to accomodate Town fans...and we still fucking lost.

 Some docker called Mike Bickle bagged a brace.