Last updated 11:47, Wednesday, 15 October 2008

IT doesn’t take long for a halo to become a noose in football management. A manager can lead a team to a cup final and less than six months later end up as little more than a mug – just look at under-fire Spurs boss Juande Ramos.

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John Ward: He brought order and calm to United

They’re always 90 minutes away from disaster and their P45.

Four successive league defeats and then last night’s Johnstone’s Paint Trophy loss at Rochdale have made Carlisle United boss John Ward an easy target for the knee-jerk numpties who are currently calling for his head.

Pressure and being under constant scrutiny go with the territory and I doubt Ward will have lost a moment’s sleep over the sort of hysterical reaction his team’s mini-slump has generated on radio phone-ins.

Those who would like to see him replaced clearly have short memories about Ward’s achievements.

So let’s remind them: He brought order and calm to United in the aftermath of Neil McDonald’s shock sacking, which was so clumsily handled by a board of directors intent on keeping press and fans in the dark.

He quickly proved he is streets ahead of his predecessor when it comes to man-management, public relations and his respectful dealings with the media.

Sure, his first season in charge may have ended with the disappointment of them missing out on promotion after a dip in form – but let’s not forget that Ward got them into the shake-up, got them playing attacking football at home and kept the fans clicking through the turnstiles.

Teams are often characterised by the man in charge of them – and in the wider football world United, under Ward’s control, are both respected and feared by opponents.

It’s when heads go down, confidence is drained out of players and there is a serious lack of motivation that there is a serious problem and it’s time to worry about the man in charge.

It doesn’t mean to say that Ward and his team should be spared criticism.

There’s no point in pretending that everything in the garden is rosy because, after five defeats on the spin, it clearly isn’t.

Managers should also be judged on their signings – and the jury is still out on some of Ward’s arrivals like Cleveland Taylor, Ben Williams and Richard Keogh.

Supporters who pay their money are entitled to their say and suppressing healthy debate is a highly dangerous road to go down.

But there is a deep suspicion that Ward has never appealed to rank-and-file United fans, who seem to have seized their chance to knock him.

It’s as if he’s paying the price for not being a colourful character, who will whip fans up into a frenzy with grand promises of silverware and success. Ward is too experienced and sensible for that.

United haven’t hit rock bottom and nor have they lost too much ground in the promotion race.

Maybe Carlisle fans should look back to three years ago when the Blues were playing Ebbsfleet, Canvey Island and Forest Green if they think their team is currently in crisis.