New Captain? (Gary Sawyer - confirmed)

[Martyn]

Hope it is Fox

 

[Tugboat]

One of the CB’s would be my guess

 

[Gary Wills]

A corrupt brain exercise to surmise about who might be most capable captain? Would seem no different from selecting any Criteria XI.

As for Keane: Not in cliques, nor Class of '92, one man hate island, all fine. Self-appointed fairness resource, universal respect farmer, open-minded confidant: he certainly has hidden all of those attributes extremely well, what a guy!

 

[The Doctor]

One of the CB’s would be my guess

A centre-back captain would be my preference but it is FAR from obvious which pair of centre-backs Derek Adams sees as being his first choice selections (it may be obvious to him but it's not yet obvious to us). Given that we have two lefties (Canavan and Grant) and two righties (Edwards and Wootton) it seems like that the pairing will be either C&E, C&W, G&E or G&W. Personally I think it is more likely that C will be the leftie but I have no idea who Derek prefers as the rightie. I don't think Canavan will be captain and I am not sure that Edwards or Wootton are yet certain of their place in the team.

So, given the amount of change and uncertainty about the back-line, I reckon that Adams will start with Gary Sawyer at left-back and that will mean that he continues as captain...

 

[JannerinCardiff]

I don’t know the starting eleven but for me it would have to be a definite starter.. so for me that discludes Wotton and Sawyer as I don’t see either being a 1st eleven player in 2-3 months.. I would have Fox, Ness or Carey.

 

[Tugboat]

Defiantly not Carey. He plays best with his head firmly concentrating on attacking not organising.

 

[Bonehead]

Sarcevic for me, I’m baffled why but people for some reason don’t seem to see what a good leader he is.

It would have been nice if you had shared with us all the leadership criteria you see in Sarcevic, that so many others have failed to spot. I actually think it is, in most instances, very difficult for fans to identify who is the natural leader within a group.

The easiest thing for fans to spot is whether a player is vocal. Fans like a captain who is vocal (Paul Wotton an obvious example), because being loud is seen as being passionate - though it's often not the same thing. It's pointless shouting a lot, however, if your teammates don't take any notice of you. You have to have respect.

Respect is gained in all sorts of ways. There's respect for playing ability, respect for how you handle yourself amongst your peers on and off the field, respect for how you live your life away from the club. One aspect of gaining respect is how you cope with adversity - I'm sure Ryan Edwards has enormous respect from his teammates (as well of course the fanbase) in terms of coping with his illness. I also think Luke McCormick was respected for overcoming adversity, even though his adversity was of his own making.

Captain's can be senior pros, experienced men who have seen it all in lengthy careers who have gained their respect through longevity (McCormick, Sawyer, Fox perhaps). These men should certainly be leaders, but they are not automatically captain material, and don't necessarily want the armband. Captains can also be the best/most inspirational player (Carey within the current group), certainly respected for their ability, but sometimes it's better to let these guys do their stuff without being burdened with the extra responsibility. Captains can also be younger men, who the manager can see are respected despite their youth. I don't remember either Conor Hourihane or Curtis Nelson being particularly vocal at the start of their captaincy, but both grew into the job, and both captained their next club as well.

I don't know who will be our next captain. I don't even know if we need one - it may be that GA sticks with Sawyer for the moment and only makes a permanent decision when it's clear that Gary is no longer first choice. I'm sure however that DA will be studying the playing group on and off the field, and will recognise when potential leaders emerge.

As a final point, I think captaincy can be overrated. Most managers would say that they need several leaders on the field, and the more players you have that take responsibility the less important it is who actually wears the armband.

Superb post. Nothing irritates me more than reading fans from the stands decide who should be next captain. Unless you are in and around the players, you will not know who the natural leaders are. Anyone can point, shout and be vocal. I've played in teams before when a new player shows up and does the Graeme Sounness act yelling at others what to do with the ball and looking the confident alpha character they want to appear as, yet no-one else in the team respects them, likes them, or appreciates being yelled at by a new face. As the above post mentions, respect has to be earned and then held.

Andy Cole said Roy Keane was a superb captain. Not because he was aggressive, stuck up for his teammates in confrontations, wanted to fight Patrick Vieira or any of the nonsense that fans react to. He said Keane would offer to sit in on contract negotiations with the young players, make sure the senior players were happy with their terms and bonuses, and had every player's back when in hot water with Ferguson or in contract discussions with the club. He wasn't involved in the cliques, in the Class of '92, his hair, advertising deals, media image, and didn't have a gang of sidekicks who influenced him. He was fair to everyone in the dressing room and respected by all. And the first person any of them confided in or turned to when they had a problem.

There's a lot more to being a captain than shouting at the back line to get up, or telling who is marking who at a corner. Any muppet or poser can do that, a captain of true pedigree is harder to spot.

Best pre season post , excellent.

 

[Bonehead]

Jamie Ness for me though

 

[Welwyn Pilgrim]

Think it'll be Fox

 

[Tugboat]

Think it'll be Fox

I keep thinking the same.

He’s a decent player in a good outfield position and knows how we shape up.

Would be a good choice

 

[DartPilgrim]

Think Sawyer will be captain , with Ness or Edwards next in line

 

[cheshiregreen]

Think it'll be Fox

Interesting and surprising to note that if Fox plays 10 more games for us, he will have played more games for Argyle than any of his other teams.

 

[Welwyn Pilgrim]

Reason I say Fox is that he's quite vocal and always chipping away at the referees. Think with his experience he'll have the respect of the other players and I form the opinion with someone like Fox he'll be able to rally the troops when the chips are down. Only sticking point is how many games he'll play or will he last 90 minutes or be the regular player who gets subbed. ??

 

[Army green]

I want it to be Graham Carey but I think it will be Garry Sawyer again.

 

[Frank Butcher]

I'd see Ness as a natural leader in midfield, so he'd be my choice (when fit).