Monkey Tennis
Well-Known Member
I hated that FGR team - some of the worst matches at Holker Street saw you tippy tap it around for 90 mins at half pace and still come away with a 1-0. So frustrating to watch.I still find that bafflingly unbelievable.
At start of season FGR won the first nine games, which is still a Conference record, and were 2nd in table when Pennock was dismissed.
Rumours abounded that he had lost the dressing room. FGR had not had a win in last seven games of season.
But Pennock was playing the long game:- he knew title was out of reach and was preparing for the play-offs by resting our best players in league games.
FGR did not get promoted that season but one wonders did Pennock's sacking scupper our chances. He has since won a national title in some far eastern country, so not bad manager at all.
My opinion was and is that Pennock upset the chairman off-field in one way or another.
Pennock went public in a big way complaining about the state of the pitch and sat on a lawn mower for a photo shot. That was exactly same time the club was publicising MOWBOT.
And of course Pennock's style of football was not the most attractive to watch. He hated conceding goals and was happy with 1-0 wins.
I think at that time FGR had one of the worst disciplinary records in league. Since then it is one of the better ones.
Dale Vince has never offered a public explanation for Pennock's dismissal.
We had Pennock for six months and he kept us up (Luke James was mainly responsible), so he's quite a respected figure here.
Just saw it is a bit hypocritical of your fellow fan preaching stability - we'd all employ a manager for five years if he met the club's targets!