View From The Town End - on Nigel Adkins

Chris Rann, George Weah's Cousin, a Southampton fansite

Well what can I say. When a manager departs it is more often than not on the back of poor results and a loss of crowd support, but that certainly wasn't the case with Adkins at Saints.

To say Adkins was popular amongst the supporters would be an understatement. When Alan Pardew was sacked many were vocally disappointed, but when his replacement was ousted the reaction was incredible.

You see Nigel wasn't just a good manager (his record at St. Mary's speaks for itself), but he was also a thoroughly likeable chap. He was one of us and his dismissal cut deep.

What can you expect at Reading? Nice football, lots of goals, a dazzling smile and a man you would follow anywhere. Does he have any faults? Of course he does, his substitutions will baffle you at times, and his inability to say anything negative, no matter how poor a performance can be frustrating.

As much as I am converted to the MoPo era at Southampton will it hurt me to see Nigel in the opposition dugout in a couple of weeks? You bet it will, but I wish him every success (If that could be at Redknapp's expense and not ours, all the better). Look after him, even if you go down you've arguably got the best man around to bounce straight back.

Adam Fothergill, Scunthorpe United fan

29th July 2012. Today is the testimonial game of Scunthorpe United legend Cliff Bryne, the game itself is between a team made up of recent Scunthorpe legends such as Chris Hope, Alex Calvo-Garcia and Cleveland Taylor, managed by Brian Laws. The other team is the 2009 team which won promotion to the championship after beating Millwall 3-2 at Wembley. The manager of that team? Nigel Adkins, Reading's new manager, replacing the man that won them the Championship last season, Brian McDermott. (Personally, I quite like Brian and thought his sacking was unjust, but I suppose that questionable managerial sackings is just a part of the game nowadays.)

Nigel Adkins is regarded by nearly all Scunthorpe fans as a legend, and when you consider his achievements it's easy to understand why. He took over in December of 2006, and lead the team to the League One title the following May. Despite the team being relegated after our first season in the 2nd tier for over 40 years, Adkins guided them into the play offs, and then after a season that included wins over teams such as Newcastle United, kept The Iron up. When you consider the small resources he was working with, that's quite an achievement. However, as it always is when a manager works wonders with a small club, Southampton came calling and in October 2010 Adkins left the club he had given some of the best years in its history.

My personal opinion of Nigel Adkins is that not only is he a fantastic manager, but a top bloke. I've met him twice, and both times he was the calm, approachable and genuine guy he often seems to be when you see him being interviewed. He has a very good understanding of the game, and the playing style he tries to employ is a brilliant mix of attacking flair and confident defending, the style which won our Scunthorpe side many admirers during his time at the club. He is also regarded very highly by his former players, which just goes on to prove that he has a great character as well as a great style of management.

In my opinion, Adkins is the perfect man for a club like Reading. It may be too late for him to keep you up this year, but if given the time, I'm certain that he'll get Reading back into the Premiership, and do it while playing good football and keeping the fans happy.

Rave reviews from our Southampton and Scunthorpe bloggers - let's hope he lives up to the hype! Our thanks again to Adam and Chris for their input.