So what happens to Bowler?

Nuttalls Mint Toes

Nuttalls Mint Toes

Well-known member
Anyone else wondering if Forest have ruined his career? Clearly a shadow of the player he was. Lacking confidence and even general football awareness for me. So what happens to him at the end of the season?
 
Nuttalls Mint Toes said:
Anyone else wondering if Forest have ruined his career? Clearly a shadow of the player he was. Lacking confidence and even general football awareness for me. So what happens to him at the end of the season?
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If Forest stay up, I think he'll be loaned to a championship club (assuming the rules allow because it's a new season?).

With game time, and under the right manager for his strengths (which isn't a manager like MM), I'm sure he'll recover his form.

Agree with you about him looking a shadow of his former self, which is why he needs to be playing for the right sort of manager for him.
 
To get the best out of Bowler he needs to be released from his defensive duties. Something whicn McCarthy doesn't or won't allow and something he's publicly stated he wants from him, I find it hard to believe that some on here fail to grasp that point when realising why he's "this so called shadow" of his former self. Play to his strengths not his weaknesses. And that will apply to any club he's at.
 
To be honest I am not sure any of the Blackpool players have played to their full potential under Mick McCarthy, certainly none of the attack minded or flair players have performed consistently well. The likes of Poveda and Bowler have been marginalised, Rogers and Patino have only played fleetingly whilst both Carey and CJ have been regular starters.
 
Like @20togo says, he probably needs to drop down to a level where his limitations are not quite as exposed.

If we drop down to L1, then perhaps a season long loan might be the way to go… If not, then perhaps a smaller L1 Club like Oxford or Peterborough (who will want to have a push for possible promotion) might be a decent shout👍
 
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BFC_BFC_BFC said:
Like @20togo says, he probably needs to drop down to a level where his limitations are not quite as exposed.

If we drop down to L1, then perhaps a season long loan might be the way to go… If not, then perhaps a smaller L1 Club like Oxford or Peterborough (who will want to have a push for possible promotion, might be a decent shout)👍
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seems you've read another of my posts then Not that I said anything like that contrary mary.
 
Nuttalls Mint Toes said:
Anyone else wondering if Forest have ruined his career? Clearly a shadow of the player he was. Lacking confidence and even general football awareness for me. So what happens to him at the end of the season?
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There is nothing wrong with him except our stupid manager playing him about 20 yards too deep in a negative system

He will go back to Forest on his 30k a week and will probably get loaned out again

Waste of a wage and a squad place for us to he honest and was always going to be the case when McCarthy got the gig

God awful manager who simply doesn't rate flair players
 
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If Forest get relegated he will probably be around their match day squad, if they stay up he will probably be loaned out again to a championship club.

As others have said Bowler needs to receiving the ball within 15 yards of the opposition box to run at defenders and we are very rarely, QPR game aside, that far up the pitch on a regular basis.
 
clappers said:
I imagine Forest will be thinking they’ve wasted their money on Bowler. New manager and a season long loan next year in the Championship as we slog it out in league one.
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The biggest problem he has is that he’s now had two ‘relatively’ big money transfers and found himself unable to make an impact.

In truth, even Critchley spent a good deal of the season last year not knowing quite what to do with Bowler.

There’s no question he can produce moments of magic, but he’s also very inconsistent, wastes a lot of good opportunities and is weak defensively..

He needs to be played regularly to gain the confidence to perform optimally and his performances overall simply don’t justify him being included (chicken an egg situation).

I think a loan to L1 might suit him better as I can’t see anyone wanting to give him regular game time at Championship Level..
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
The biggest problem he has is that he’s now had two ‘relatively’ big money transfers and found himself unable to make an impact.

In truth, even Critchley spent a good deal of the season last year not knowing quite what to do with Bowler.

There’s no question he can produce moments of magic, but he’s also very inconsistent, wastes a lot of good opportunities and is weak defensively..

He needs to be played regularly to gain the confidence to perform optimally and his performances overall simply don’t justify him being included (chicken an egg situation).

I think a loan to L1 might suit him better as I can’t see anyone wanting to give him regular game time at Championship Level..
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You making things up again contrary mary. Bowler made over 42 appearances for us last season, so there was no "in truth" like you claim.

And funny how it was top end Championship clubs that were interested in him last season and why a PL club paid 4 million for him. Because he's only good enough for L1 in your warped opinion. I think you're pretty clueless when it comes to appreciating flair players and what they can bring to a team. Seems you're a football dinosaur like McCarthy. Is football the right sport for you as your views belong in a bygone age. I suggest you find another sport to get interested in. Maybe you could attach yourself to fencing. After all, that's what you like t do.
 
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Phil_bfc deux said:
He went for relative peanuts

The 2 million we got upfront for him is fuck all compared to relegation
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True. But on Mansfords all important balance sheet it looks like we are making returns on players…which is what he probably thinks is a key part of him staying in his well paid job.
 
20togo said:
You making things up again contrary mary. Bowler made over 42 appearances for us last season, so there was no "in truth" like you claim.

And funny how it was top end Championship clubs that were interested in him last season and why a PL club paid 4 million for him. Because he's only good enough for L1 in your warped opinion. I think you're pretty clueless when it comes to appreciating flair players and what they can bring to a team. Seems you're a football dinosaur like McCarthy. Is football the right sport for you as your views belong in a bygone age. I suggest you find another sport to get interested in. Maybe you could attach yourself to fencing. After all, that's what you like t do.
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I’m talking about whether to start him or use as an impact sub.

I’m saying the fact he has failed to kick on following his brief ‘form’ spell with us last season coupled with him flopping at Everton will likely put a lot of sides off.

It’s one thing watching a highlights reel from an Agent, but he’s shown himself to be very inconsistent… couple that with his one dimensional style and additional flaws in his game and right now he’s only heading in one direction.
 
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If Forest go down they will probably sell Brennan Johnson who is much coveted by Prem clubs. Bowler will be given a chance to show what he can do and good luck to him. On his day he is exciting to watch though needs to work hard on improving his finishing.
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
I’m talking about whether to start him or use as an impact sub.

I’m saying the fact he has failed to kick on following his brief ‘form’ spell with us last season coupled with him flopping at Everton will likely put a lot of sides off.

It’s one thing watching a highlights reel from an Agent, but he’s shown himself to be very inconsistent… couple that with his one dimensional style and additional flaws in his game and right now he’s only heading in one direction.
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Bowler needs to play high either in a front 3 or wide in a more attacking set up

Absolutely no point him standing on our right backs toes and getting the ball on the edge of our box

Pointless and no wonder he looks half the player he did in such a negative system

It's on McCarthy as he doesn't like flair players and wants players to fit into his way of playing
 
Phil_bfc deux said:
Bowler needs to play high either in a front 3 or wide in a more attacking set up

Absolutely no point him standing on our right backs toes and getting the ball on the edge of our box

Pointless and no wonder he looks half the player he did in such a negative system

It's on McCarthy as he doesn't like flair players and wants players to fit into his way of playing
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You’re right, he just gets under Andy Lyons feet and he’s nowhere near as direct or effective.

He’s probably lost his mojo after not getting any game time in Greece and then struggling to make an impact back here.

As I’ve said before McCarthy has managed far more gifted players than Josh in his career. He’s the manager and he’s the man you need to impress….

We’ve all seen these players before .. I describe them as all fur coat and no knickers… All the tricks and flicks, but largely ineffective.

I’m sure he’ll get more opportunities before the season is done…It’s up to him if he takes them… Ultimately it’s his limitations, lack of versatility and ‘one dimensional’ nature that are currently costing him… You can’t blame the manager for that I’m afraid!!

Too many people keep making excuses…

“He’s too central, too far back, not given enough freedom, forced to focus on defensive duties…. blah blah blah blah… “

Basically he’s actually not that ** good a good deal of the time when it boils down to it!
 
Phil_bfc deux said:
He went for relative peanuts

The 2 million we got upfront for him is fuck all compared to relegation
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But then there's always the possibility that the reputed £30000 was a tad more than we could afford to pay him .
We kept him probably half a season longer than we expected to anyway
 
mull said:
But then there's always the possibility that the reputed £30000 was a tad more than we could afford to pay him .
We kept him probably half a season longer than we expected to anyway
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He was under contract the wage offered is irrelevant
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
You’re right, he just gets under Andy Lyons feet and he’s nowhere near as direct or effective.

He’s probably lost his mojo after not getting any game time in Greece and then struggling to make an impact back here.

As I’ve said before McCarthy has managed far more gifted players than Josh in his career. He’s the manager and he’s the man you need to impress….

We’ve all seen these players before .. I describe them as all fur coat and no knickers… All the tricks and flicks, but largely ineffective.

I’m sure he’ll get more opportunities before the season is done…It’s up to him if he takes them… Ultimately it’s his limitations, lack of versatility and ‘one dimensional’ nature that are currently costing him… You can’t blame the manager for that I’m afraid!!

Too many people keep making excuses…

“He’s too central, too far back, not given enough freedom, forced to focus on defensive duties…. blah blah blah blah… “

Basically he’s actually not that ** good a good deal of the time when it boils down to it!
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What gifted players has McCarthy managed?

I can only think of lumps and athletes
 
On loan to Rovers until New Year to see how he does, then depending how Forest feel, recall until end of season to bolster up their campaign or offloaded to Rovers as a cut-price deal.
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
I’m not spending my day listing Mad Mick’s illustrious list of players. It’s a given
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He doesn't play gifted, creative flair players
It's all about bodies on the line, win the second ball and hoof it

He's ** useless and is completely ** up any chance of survival by refusing to play our creative players
 
Phil_bfc deux said:
He doesn't play gifted, creative flair players
It's all about bodies on the line, win the second ball and hoof it

He's ** useless and is completely ** up any chance of survival by refusing to play our creative players
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He’s playing creative players… Just not the shit ones 👍
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
He’s playing creative players… Just not the shit ones 👍
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which creative players would they be then? If for once you can be honest with yourself, there isn't a single creative player in the team who he's not dropped. probably more than once. Carey,Fiorini,Rogers,Bowler, Patino,Poveda and you can even include CJ if you wish although he's sadly lacking in flair. So come on then, who are these creative players cementing a place in the team and playing?, That's McCarthy for you, knocking the confidence out of all our creative players by dropping them. Yet you back him.
 
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BFC_BFC_BFC said:
The biggest problem he has is that he’s now had two ‘relatively’ big money transfers and found himself unable to make an impact.

In truth, even Critchley spent a good deal of the season last year not knowing quite what to do with Bowler.

There’s no question he can produce moments of magic, but he’s also very inconsistent, wastes a lot of good opportunities and is weak defensively..

He needs to be played regularly to gain the confidence to perform optimally and his performances overall simply don’t justify him being included (chicken an egg situation).

I think a loan to L1 might suit him better as I can’t see anyone wanting to give him regular game time at Championship Level..
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The truth is that Bowler and Rogers came on loan to Blackpool because Appleton was the Manager, I don‘t believe either would have come if they had known McCarthy was going to be the Manager. I think Bowler will show he is a star next season, he will be very careful in selecting the Club and the Manager if he goes out on loan, Bournemouth are likely to be interested and several other Championship Clubs as well.
 
Phil_bfc deux said:
That proves nothing 2 bob journo in a crap local news platform
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OK…👍 2 bob journo that the Club went on to employ 😂

The deal was all over the place… We rejected bid of over £3M ffs.

Ball on Fire said:
The truth is that Bowler and Rogers came on loan to Blackpool because Appleton was the Manager, I don‘t believe either would have come if they had known McCarthy was going to be the Manager. I think Bowler will show he is a star next season, he will be very careful in selecting the Club and the Manager if he goes out on loan, Bournemouth are likely to be interested and several other Championship Clubs as well.
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I dunno about that….

Bowler had no other option, if he wanted game time. We r been sniffing around Rogers for ages with a view to a possible permanent deal.

McCarthy certainly isn’t the sort of manager you’d associate them with, but nonetheless Rogers has knuckled down, shown himself to be versatile and I’ve been impressed.

I think Bowler got very, very lucky with Blackpool and Neil Critchley. Very few Clubs / Managers would have invested so much effort and energy trying to get the most out of him.

There’s no questioning his ability to dribble the ball… He’s one of the best I’ve seen, but for a all of that skill, his end product is very much ‘bog standard’ and his overall game is limited.

The one thing going in his favour is his age…but I’d stick my neck out and say he’s probably gone as far as he’ll go already.
 
Don't you think we might be overlooking the obvious deficiency in the squad at present? Rogers, Bowler and Poveda are all exciting, wide players who thrive on delivery from centre-mid.
We've not had any consistency in that area all season, whether winning, or supplying our "flair" players
Oh, for the days of Ryan Wintle, a fit Stewart/ Bridcutt/ Trybull.
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
OK…👍 2 bob journo that the Club went on to employ 😂

The deal was all over the place… We rejected bid of over £3M ffs.


I dunno about that….

Bowler had no other option, if he wanted game time. We r been sniffing around Rogers for ages with a view to a possible permanent deal.

McCarthy certainly isn’t the sort of manager you’d associate them with, but nonetheless Rogers has knuckled down, shown himself to be versatile and I’ve been impressed.

I think Bowler got very, very lucky with Blackpool and Neil Critchley. Very few Clubs / Managers would have invested so much effort and energy trying to get the most out of him.

There’s no questioning his ability to dribble the ball… He’s one of the best I’ve seen, but for a all of that skill, his end product is very much ‘bog standard’ and his overall game is limited.

The one thing going in his favour is his age…but I’d stick my neck out and say he’s probably gone as far as he’ll go already.
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Yes we will have to wait and see, we picked him up on a free from Everton and turned him into a very exciting and valuable player. Bowler was one of the very few Blackpool players who could get me off my seat. The BFC squad and team is loaded with hard working journeymen who take the field hoping to grind out results but Bowler can provide the spark that makes a difference. In our current predicament I would start Bowler every game, trust him, make him feel valued and give him a completely free attacking role and the licence to play wherever he wants In the final third. I wouldn’t want him to track back not even for free kicks or corners, our opponents would have to put two men on him and he would be our outlet ball. With the lack of Championship quality in our Squad it is inconceivable that Bowler, Rogers, Poveda and Patino are not starting every game.
 
Phil_bfc deux said:
He doesn't play gifted, creative flair players
It's all about bodies on the line, win the second ball and hoof it

He's ** useless and is completely ** up any chance of survival by refusing to play our creative players
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He played a few on Saturday, keeping an unchanged team from Tuesday - which was fair enough given they'd won 6-1.

A few played at Watford as well when Appleton made four changes from the previous week, a 4-1 win against Forest. Poveda didn't make the squad despite playing well in that win. I can't remember us having a shot in that game.

Maybe managing a professional team isn't as easy as some people make it out to be.

I can't be arsed trawling through Mick McCarthy's squads through the ages but given his successes, it's a fair bet that he has managed some creative players in his time. He's trying, as was Michael Appleton, to get the right blend from a bunch of players, low on confidence whilst coping with injuries that would test anyone.
 
Ball on Fire said:
Yes we will have to wait and see, we picked him up on a free from Everton and turned him into a very exciting and valuable player. Bowler was one of the very few Blackpool players who could get me off my seat. The BFC squad and team is loaded with hard working journeymen who take the field hoping to grind out results but Bowler can provide the spark that makes a difference. In our current predicament I would start Bowler every game, trust him, make him feel valued and give him a completely free attacking role and the licence to play wherever he wants In the final third. I wouldn’t want him to track back not even for free kicks or corners, our opponents would have to put two men on him and he would be our outlet ball. With the lack of Championship quality in our Squad it is inconceivable that Bowler, Rogers, Poveda and Patino are not starting every game.
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Ah well..unfortunately or fortunately (depending on your perspective) you’re not the manager and it’s down to Big Mick to Pick 👍

I’m not sure I’d be wasting too much anguish on whether Josh or Ian are playing for the remainder of this season….
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
The biggest problem he has is that he’s now had two ‘relatively’ big money transfers and found himself unable to make an impact.

In truth, even Critchley spent a good deal of the season last year not knowing quite what to do with Bowler.

There’s no question he can produce moments of magic, but he’s also very inconsistent, wastes a lot of good opportunities and is weak defensively..

He needs to be played regularly to gain the confidence to perform optimally and his performances overall simply don’t justify him being included (chicken an egg situation).

I think a loan to L1 might suit him better as I can’t see anyone wanting to give him regular game time at Championship Level..
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Bowler playing in league one is ridiculous
 
BFC_BFC_BFC said:
Ah well..unfortunately or fortunately (depending on your perspective) you’re not the manager and it’s down to Big Mick to Pick 👍

I’m not sure I’d be wasting too much anguish on whether Josh or Ian are playing for the remainder of this season….
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Yes I am aware that Mick and yourself are both on the same page regarding Bowler and Poveda, could be biting off your nose to spite your face. Just 8 games to go now, Mick & TC will come under ever increasing scrutiny and criticism if they they don‘t quickly put a run of results together. Two wins in 12 games and only 9 points in 11 League games is nowhere near good enough.
 
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