Was the sacking of Allner harsh or justified? Well, looking at the increase in Cheltenham’s average home crowd since 1997, it is obvious that the vast majority of Robins fans have seen nothing but one success after another. Under Cotterill, Cheltenham went from strength to strength and rose from the obscurity of the Dr Martens League to the dizzy heights of Nationwide Division Two. Some Cheltenham fans, rather naively, expected to continue in this vein this season. This, however, was simply was not going to happen. Cheltenham were one of the smaller clubs in the Conference, let alone the Second Division. A glance at the Whaddon Road club’s record transfer fee paid or our wage bill will illustrate that, unless serious sums of money are pumped in from a wealthy backer, Cheltenham are operating at a level of football in which they are always going to be considered a ‘minnow’. Some would argue that clubs such as Colchester, Crewe, Rotherham and Walsall are all relatively small and spend very little money. They are efficiently run and continue to exceed expectations. In Allner’s defence though, evem these clubs are almost giants compared to Cheltenham Town and it is likely that even Steve Cotterill would have had a battle on his hands to keep Cheltenham away from the Division Two danger-zone.
Cheltenham fans turned against Allner en masse after a miserable Christmas period that saw the Robins lose 4-1 to fellow stugglers Perterborough, 4-0 twice at home to Crewe and at Sheffield United in the cup. They picked up two draws against Chesterfield (2-2), and Wycombe (0-0). Followers of Cheltenham simply ran out of patience and the FA Cup hammering suffered at Brammall Lane led to anti-Allner protests and banners.
Allner did not, in my opinion help his cause. He insisted in leaving out players who had been a huge part in Cheltenham’s rise from Division Three last season. Allner has undoubtedly been unlucky with injuries and Tony Naylor, such a vital part of last year’s success story has been sidelined since October with a series of niggling problems. Richard Walker, who had been in fine form in place of injured skipper Chris Banks has also been out,. Mike Duff has played alongside John Brough, Mike Simpkins and even his own brother Shane in what has been anything but a settled back four. But Allner has made some decisions that were not enforced.
Allner has also been unfortunate with Russell Milton struggling with injury and Grant McCann being recalled by West Ham just as it seemed the left midfield problem had been solved.
On the pitch, the team seems to have lost some of their fighting spirit. They have looked disorganised at times and lacking in fitness and work-rate. A team managed by Cotterill simply would not have stood for some of the humiliating defeats that Allner’s bewildered troops have suffered. They have been guilty of throwing in the towel and capitulations have become commonplace.
Summing up, Allner had a chance to impress, but he lost the faith of the fans with some of his actions. His team-selection, tactical awareness and discipline have all been criticised and it has been, at times, obvious why. I believe that if Allner had his side battling for every ball, fighting for every point and straining to win every challenge, then he may have been given more time - irrespective of results. However, the performances on the field have been worryingly lacklustre and this is why he had to go.
It is difficult not to feel sympathy for Graham Allner. He gave it his best shot, tried to do things his own way, but unfortunately he failed. Some argue that he should have remained closer to Cotterill’s way of operating. He had his own theories and styles and no-one can begrudge him a chance to try them. They have not worked though and it was the right time for someone else to be given a chance to save the Robins from relegation back to the Football League’s basement.