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Canavan's blog: Pool lift the gloom
THERE is still a bad taste in the mouth about the manner of Tony Parkes' departure.
But Blackpool have certainly been shrewd in their choice of new boss.
By appointing a manager with enough charisma to sink a battleship, they have gone some way to lifting the dark cloud hanging over the club over the last few days.
Let's tell it how it is – Parkes was treated badly. He is a thoroughly decent individual, a true football man who has acted with quiet dignity throughout his spell at the seaside (as well as being damned successful), but in the end it counted for very little.
For that Blackpool deserve no plaudits.
However, football is a fast-moving, fickle industry and much of the unrest and unhappiness of recent days dissipated the moment Holloway's arrival was confirmed.
Pool interviewed the likes of Alan Knill, Gary Brabin and Andy Ritchie. But none of those really set the pulse racing.
Holloway, with his one-liners and his bizarre antics, does. He will also raise the profile of the club, something chairman Karl Oyston and president Valery Belokon want.
Holloway is perhaps summed up best by the moment he recorded his first away win as Plymouth manager.
After a 3-2 success at Sunderland he offered to buy every one of the 700 fans who made the 805-mile round trip a pint.
"Anyone who travelled here, send me a letter," he said. "I would love to buy you a drink."
If Holloway makes a similar promise when Blackpool get their first away victory next season he could be seriously out of pocket.
But forget the zany stuff. Yes, it's very amusing but it's not so amusing if the team are losing most weeks.
Holloway isn't just a joker. He is also a very good manager and has proved it over a lengthy period of time.
Five years at Bristol Rovers; five years at QPR; 18 hugely successful months at Plymouth. Most of those 11 years were in the Championship – he is proven at this level.
The only fly in the ointment was his last job – eight disappointing months at Leicester City.
He arrived in the November, replacing the sacked Martin Allen, and endured a miserable time which ended in relegation to League One. He parted company with the club in the days after.
It's a major blot on his CV. But in a way it could be good news for Blackpool.
He is still hurt by that failure and desperate to put it right. The Seasiders should benefit from that.
It is the most high-profile managerial appointment since Steve McMahon in 2000 and it will be interesting to see whether it's a huge success or a disaster. I think it will be one or the other, not somewhere in between.
It's a shame for Steve Thompson, who had his own ambitions of taking over. But at least he is continuing as no.2 – important as he knows the players well and has their respect. Continuity is a good thing – look no further than Liverpool during the 1980s.
As for Tony Parkes, it's a case of thanks very much and you won't be forgotten. Neither will the way he was treated at the end.
However, it's the start of a new chapter now and that is what the club and the fans need to concentrate on. Holloway faces a big challenge.
It took the Seasiders 29 years to get back into the Championship.
They, and Holloway, must not throw it away.
>> Watch full Holloway press conference
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Weather for Blackpool
Wednesday 30 May 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 12 C to 20 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 12 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: West
