Source: Team_Talk
TEAMtalk Tirade: PNE mad to axe Al
Preston's decision to sack Irvine on Tuesday is almost as galling as Peterborough parting company with Darren Ferguson, who is now the hot favourite to take the managerial reins at Deepdale.[LNB]PNE chairman Derek Shaw insists the "decision was not taken lightly" and quite rightly pointed out that Irvine "did an extremely good job in keeping us in the Championship and taking us to the play-offs last season".[LNB]It's a shame those very achievements didn't earn Irvine some patience following a sticky patch in an incredibly competitive division.[LNB]Newcastle and West Brom are currently leading the race for automatic promotion - but even they have had blips and will continue to do so, such is the current strength of England's second tier.[LNB]To fire Irvine on the basis of Preston's recent run of form, which has seen them score just six goals and win one of their last 10 games, is both ridiculous and short-sighted.[LNB]Yes they are in 16th place, eight points off the relegation zone - but they're also only eight points off the play-off positions, and with league games against Doncaster (h), Bristol City (a), Peterborough (a) and Ipswich (h) following this weekend's FA Cup clash with Colchester, you'd fancy their chances of picking up a few vital victories over the coming weeks.[LNB]The Lilywhites have lost five of their last 10 games - but three of those were narrow 1-0 defeats to promotion-chasing trio Newcastle, Cardiff and Sheffield United, with the two latter losses on the road as well.[LNB]Irvine simply deserved more time and respect from the boardroom, who fought so hard last summer to keep him from the clutches of Albion following Tony Mowbray's move north of the border to take charge of Celtic.[LNB]Football has proved time and time again that continuity is the key to success, with the likes of Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest now being rewarded for standing by their managers when the going got tough.[LNB]The Blades, for instance, went on a similarly poor run of eight games without a win earlier this season - and that included four defeats on the spin.[LNB]They kept the faith with Kevin Blackwell, though, and have now won five of their last eight league games, drawing twice and losing just the one match to promotion rivals Leicester, to move into seventh place.[LNB]Forest are fighting Roberto Di Matteo's Baggies for second place after a stunning 16-game unbeaten run in the Championship, with 10 of those showdowns yielding maximum points.[LNB]But Billy Davies needed the club's hierarchy to hold their nerve after they won just one of their eight opening league games, five of which ended in defeat.[LNB]Albion themselves followed up a 5-0 demolition of Middlesbrough by scoring just four goals in their next six league games, in which they were beaten three times and drew twice.[LNB]This is going to be a season of highs and lows, with swings in momentum taking place throughout a division in which high-flying Cardiff can destroy Derby 6-1, lose to lowly Plymouth Argyle on home soil and throw away a 4-0 half-time lead against rock-bottom Posh.[LNB]Preston have pushed the panic button way too early, with only half of the campaign completed, and for that reason I think they're now more likely to be keeping an eye on the bottom six rather than chasing the promotion pack.[LNB][LNB] Next Permanent Preston Manager Next Permanent Manager: Ferguson D 4/1
