SOCCER: Leeds Utd sack Terry Venables: The appointment of Peter Reid, albeit in the short term, has only deepened the gloom among Leeds' fans.
John Boocock, chairman of the Leeds United Supporters' Trust, said: "I cannot see Reid as a popular choice with the fans. This will go down like a lead balloon. This is going from the frying pan into the fire.
"The club should have gone with Eddie Gray and Brian Kidd. They would have got a lot of support for that. The fans would have been right behind Eddie. Whoever comes in, it's all about Premiership survival and stability, and I think Eddie and Brian could have provided that. Hopefully, the board will look long and hard at the situation between now and the end of the season and won't make a knee-jerk reaction as they've done with Reid."
Many of the anti-Reid contingent expressed their anger on the ToEllandBack fanzine website. A supporter, Tim Couzens, was typical of many in saying: "What Reid will bring short-term is a bit of passion, but I hope he is only a short-term appointment. He's not the kind of manager who can offer Leeds anything special."
Local radio phone-in polls ran almost two to one against Reid and several supporters had posted "Reid out" chat-room messages even before the 46-year-old was appointed.
Simon Jose, co-founder of the Leeds United Independent Fans' Association, said the situation was "a big joke". He added: "It's the manner in which they are employing these people. David O'Leary was appointed and then sacked as results weren't good enough; Terry Venables was hailed as a saviour and now he has been sacked.
"Now they bring in Peter Reid, who was sacked by Sunderland for not taking them to where they want to go. We don't seem to have any strategy. We're like a rudderless ship."
Jose and Boocock were recently involved in a meeting with chairman Peter Ridsdale during which they demanded answers regarding the club's future and its direction. "Every time the board call upon the fans to get behind the team and show solidarity, they chuck another hand grenade into the mix," Jose said.
"We've seen players go, staff have been made redundant, but it's the board who is responsible for this chaos and yet they remain in charge. What road are they trying to lead us down? No matter what people think about Terry Venables, and he did get his tactics wrong on occasions, if he is culpable then so are the board - even more so."
Ray Fell, chairman of Leeds United Supporters Club, took a more sanguine view. "Some fans will feel the chairman and not the manager should have been the one to go, but, whatever the view, supporters should get behind the new man and save recriminations for the summer."
