Is It Really That Bad?

Following two defeats against West Brom and Barnsley, it seems some fans have already started to panic about the season ahead.

When you think about it, it is ridiculous. Little over five days have passed since the Tigers kicked off their latest campaign yet some fans are already claiming new manager Phil Parkinson doesn`t have much time to turn it around. Are these people for real?

The opening day saw City turn in a good performance but lose to promotion favourites West Brom at the Hawthornes. The Tuesday night saw rivals Barnsley come to the KC but after a promising start which saw City lead two nil after only nine minutes, Barnsley fought back to win the game 3-2 as City stuttered – and on the back of that result has started a major crisis amongst some City supporters.

Walking back from the game, not many fans would have been happy with the end result but some comments you hear really make you wonder what some fans watched. The main problem about that game was the fact City found themselves in a commanding position only nine minutes into the game – no matter who we were playing (Chelsea or Torquay United) the opposition were always going to have chances with eighty-one minutes still left on the clock?so it wasn`t really that much of a shock a team came back (they didn`t score three goals in ten minutes at the end of the game, they did over a stretched out period of the match.)

Unfortunately, Hull City has acquired many fans that haven`t had to sit through what some of us have. Where were they when we were locked out the ground, when we played Cardiff City at Boothferry Park as we clapped our team off at the end of a 2-1 defeat wondering if we would ever see our beloved Tigers again? Peter Taylor changed all that as he won us promotion to the Championship and with it came a new breed of fan with unrealistic aims for a club they had only followed by the results in the paper previously.

The first season in the Championship saw City struggle to eighteenth – a position most of us were happy with but obviously not the 2,000 fans that didn`t renew their season passes, possibly unhappy at not having seen the club walk the league as they had expected. Now, with two defeats in a week, City fans are already in crisis as our position in the league looks under threat – we`ve only played two games!

Phil Parkinson has been with City for five and a half weeks and after a wave of optimism, it seems barmy that he and his team have come under pressure so early on in the season. The new tactics “Parky” has introduced into the club are starting to show but it will take time to gel – we can`t expect him to change two and a half year`s of Peter Taylor`s tactics into his own immediately. The player`s have played in a set way for three years and it will take time for them to alter their style of play – in which time we may lose the odd game but don`t get on their backs. City walked off the KC pitch after defeat against Barnsley to a chorus of boo`s from some sections of the KC crowd – unbelievable when you consider it.

Some fans called for Peter Taylor to some back already but after half an hour of the Barnsley fixture, City had attacked more than they had in the entirety of last season. The attacking play of the team was brilliant but it came as a cost as we lost the fixture. This time last season, City fans had watched an opening day draw with Queens Park Rangers followed by a 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday before an away trip to Molineux ended in a 1-0 defeat. If City manages to defeat Derby County in front of the Sky cameras on Saturday, City will be in a better position than they were last year – will the fans still be questioning Parkinson`s credentials then?

Some players have already come into question, including new signings Michael Turner and Sam Ricketts despite having only played two games at Championship level. Some fans have made their mind up based on a solitary performance – give them till the end of the month at least! Ben Burgess and Keith Andrews have also become the latest targets for the boo-boys following the likes of previous targets Justin Whittle, Aaron Wilbraham, Kevin Ellison?the list goes on. These player`s need our support – not our boo`s. Why does this club always have to have a scapegoat for the team`s performance? They play as a team – not individuals.

Phil Parkinson is a new manager who hasn`t been tested at this level before and it will take time for him to figure out this league. The player`s are adapting to a new style of play and it will take time before the team can fully adjust to playing a quick passing game. The team isn`t going to be able to turn around their current form by the fans getting on the manager`s and the team`s back – we must all gel together to support our team – after all that is why we go to the KC every fortnight. Let`s all get behind the team on Saturday and we may just get the result we all crave – a City victory and a lift of the Sky TV curse?Where will all the crisis boo-boy`s be then?