Gray moo-ans about facilities

Warrenpoint Town boss Barry Gray was a bit disrespectful – some might even say rude – towards fellow Championship clubs after his team was defeated 3-0 by Linfield in the fifth round of the Irish Cup last weekend.

While talking about his team’s ambitions to return to the Danske Bank Premiership, he said that this season his players had to change in facilities “that you wouldn’t put cows in.”

Many supporters of Championship clubs took umbrage to that line and responded by reminding Mr Gray that Milltown wasn’t exactly paradise either!

The point the Town manager was trying to make – badly – was that the facilties in the Premiership, in most cases, were so much more better than those in the second tier of local football. And he basically used the cup game at The National Stadium to remind his players what they were missing out on by not playing at the highest level. In a nutshell he was trying to motivate them to do better.

As things stand Warrenpoint are placed third in the Championship, eight points behind leaders Loughgall United and second placed Annagh United, albeit with a game in hand.

At the start of the season they were installed favourites for an immediate return to the top flight but so far they have struggled with that particular tag. Gray’s team has lost five and drawn five of their 21 games to date.

The reference to farm animals was bang out of order, despite the fact that there is some truth in it, but I guess it was designed to catch attention, perhaps even to shock, and I think the ‘Point boss achieved just that.

Perhaps the thing I found more shocking was his claim that fellow Championship sides put 11 men behind the ball against his team.

Here’s what he told Belfast Telegraph football writer Steven Beacom, “You are going out against teams that play 11 men behind the ball.

“You think to yourself why are you playing 11 men behind the ball? You are a mid-table Championship side. It doesn’t make any difference whether you win, lose or draw this game. Have you no aspirations to anything more than just not getting beat by Warrenpoint? That’s so sad.

“I have been at those levels in the past and never had a team set up like that. You can see it if you are at the bottom of the table and maybe even at the top of the table but for mid-tier teams that aren’t up or down, why are you setting up teams with 11 men behind the ball, just because it is Warrenpoint?”

I find those comments more than a little strange to say the least.

Is Gray saying that teams put 11 men behind the ball only against his team and not the likes of the top two of Loughgall and Annagh United. I would suggest that isn’t the case.

To be perfectly frank I’m not sure about the 11-men-behind-the-ball claim.

The clubs that I would consider mid-table at the minute are Ballyclare Comrades, Institute, Ballinamallard United and HW Welders and I know enough about those teams to suggest that if they do put 11 men behind the ball it’s not very often.

And what if they did? Surely it’s up to the other team to break the system down. Maybe what Barry Gray is actually trying to say is that he, as a coach, and his team are struggling to find ways to win games.

So the fact that Loughgall and Annagh currently occupy the top two spots, does that flag up the some shortcomings in his team.

Should he be asking questions of himself? If his team is struggling to break down the defensive set-up of an opposing team, is that the fault of his players or is Gray and his coaching staff the problem?

In fairness I have watched Warrenpoint Town once this season and on that occasion they looked like a team well capable of securing promotion.

But they have also been inconsistent and I don’t believe for one minute that ‘Point are getting special treatment when it comes to opposing teams putting men behind the ball.

Suffice to Barry and Town really do need to get their act together, because if they don’t, they’ll be changing in cow sheds for a little longer!

And one final thought; if a stable was good enough for the Baby Jesus himself, what’s all the fuss about!

PS: Some cow sheds are like five star hotels these days. The inhabitants can eat as much as they like, sleep as much as they like, their faeces can be dispensed with automatically without going to the toilet and if an animal feels like getting a good oul scratch they just stand under a mechanical brush. (see picture).