Hull give Brown heave-ho
Reuters - Monday 15 March 2010, 11:48
Phil Brown, the colourful
manager who led Hull City to the top flight of English football
for the first time, was relieved of his duties on Monday as the
club fights to hang on to their Premier League status.
A statement on the club's website said
Brown had been "relieved of his managerial duties and placed on
gardening leave with immediate effect. Brian Horton and Steve
Parkin will take charge of first-team duties until further
notice".
The statement continued: "We would like to place on record
our sincere thanks to Phil for the major success achieved during
a period of four seasons in charge at the club and wish him
every success for the future.
"Promotion to the Premier League in 2008 and retention of
our status on the last day of the 2009 season are unique events
in the history of Hull City and both were achieved under Phil's
stewardship during a period which will never be forgotten by all
connected with the club.
"However, the retention of Premier League status is
paramount and the board believes that a change in managerial
direction is the correct option at this time."
Hull, close to going out of business 20 years ago and
languishing in League Two only six years ago,
were taken into the Premier League by Brown in one of the great
fairytales of the modern game.
Having gone up they defied the odds and stayed up last
season, clinging on at the end after a dizzying start to Premier
League life that brought wins over Arsenal, Fulham and Tottenham
Hotspur, a draw at Liverpool and a memorable day at Old Trafford
when they pushed Manchester United all the way before losing
4-3.
Brown, outspoken and sometimes controversial - he kept his
players on the pitch for their half-time team talk after a
woeful first-half display against Manchester City last season -
has had a rougher ride this season as Hull's performances on the
pitch have mirrored on-going problems in the boardroom.
It has been a struggle from the beginning though and, with
nine games remaining, Hull are second-last on 24 points, three
points adrift of safety.
Last Saturday's injury-time 2-1 home defeat by Arsenal
appears to have been the final straw for the board and Horton
and Parkin will take over for next weekend's game against bottom
side Portsmouth.
Brown issued a statement, through the League Managers' Association (LMA), saying:
“I am obviously very disappointed with the club’s decision and the fact that I will now not have the opportunity to secure Hull City’s status in the Barclays Premier League for a third consecutive season.
"Although I am extremely sad to be leaving Hull City, I am very proud of my achievements during my time as manager, especially having led the team into the top flight of football for the first time in the club’s 104 year history and ahead of schedule.
"It has been a fantastic experience and I would like to offer my sincere thanks to all of the players, past and present, and also to my staff. Finally, I would like to thank the fans for their support and wish the club every success in the future.”
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