So why the cries for Gareth's head? Well, it goes without saying that meekly accepting Stoke's record at the Britannia Stadium is not going to save us from relegation, and at this stage of the season if we're going to mimic the unlikely escapes of Fulham, West Ham or Portsmouth in recent seasons we need to start defying the form book. We're fast running out of time to do so, and we have had none of that badly needed momentum those teams had during the run-in.
So it was a bad result (although I'll talk about the performance later), but that's not the sole reason for calling for Southgate's sacking. A lot of fans seem to believe that replacing a manager gives you an instant "honeymoon effect" where a team, lifted by the change of management, racks up 7-10 points in the immediate aftermath of a new appointment. The argument goes that the current team are clearly jaded and uninspired under Southgate, and a change of management and perspective could galvanise them, see them put their woes behind them and play to their full potential. It might only last for three or four games but the points accrued would be enough to lift us out of the drop zone and, since we're playing many relegation rivals in the next few weeks, drop some of our competition into trouble at a vital stage.
The validity of this strategy depends massively on the truth of the "honeymoon effect", and as any number of detractors have pointed out, who could we possibly call on at this stage to replace Southgate? It would be a massive gamble and would fly in the face of Steve Gibson's policy of trust and patience in his managers, but many supporters see us as so close to the point of no return that a last throw of the dice is necessary, regardless of who or what it might leave us with after the honeymoon period.
This kind of thinking is what fuels the manager merry-go-round of many clubs, where managers are sacked for short-term boosts and in the long term the replacement is just as unsuited to the club, leading them into more trouble only to be promptly sacked so another manager can spark another four game winning streak. It's the kind of farcical state of affairs that sees Gareth Southgate as the fifth longest serving manager in the league after less than three years in the job.
The fact that the four longest serving managers, along with Martin O'Neil, who is level with Southgate, belong to five of the top six clubs is an argument for sticking with your managers. Defendants of the "sack first, ask questions second" policy would say Southgate more than bucks the trend. His record is three years in the job and a progressively lower league position each season, complete with a win rate of about 29%. The cynical Boro fans are quick to point out that this is Southgate's own team, with only Stewart Downing and Chris Riggott left from the McClaren era, and that it might well have been the residual chemistry of McClaren's UEFA Cup unit that has kept us in the league for the past two seasons.
All that said, the team didn't look particularly jaded on Saturday. They passed the ball with real flair at times, beginning with a good move down the left hand side that saw McMahon head straight at Sorenson. The move that finished with Tuncay curling a shot so narrowly over that half the stadium thought he had scored was even better. It was almost like watching Argentina. In an altogether less subtle build-up, Marlon King took advantage of a mistake at the back to surge through on the Stoke goal, but he pulled the trigger too early and missed the far post in beating the keeper from eighteen yards, while in the second half Gary O'Neil saw a smart strike from twenty yards saved by Sorenson.
At the other end we defended well for the most part. James Beattie notched the first chance by forcing a save from Jones with a header after a Rory Delap throw caused havoc in the box. After that, though, we battened down the hatches and repelled every subsequent Delap throw and Stoke set play. Right until the end, that is, when Ryan Shawcross (who had given warning signs earlier by getting a header on target from a free kick) lost his marker and headed home from another Delap throw. It was the only real slip-up the defence made, but it proved lethal.
So a decent performance, but quite clearly that isn't enough. We didn't take our chances, went down to yet another late goal and once again felt that disappointment when a match that was looking like at least a tough point well earned turned to dust and slipped through our fingers.
After the international break it will be Bolton away, and they're another tough, organised side who are happy to score ugly goals. Bolton away is a fixture we haven't lost in for a number of years, so let's hope that trend at least continues as another loss will put us under almost impossible pressure. I personally can't see Gareth Southgate being sacked at this juncture, but he's going to have to do something special and soon. He might not have lost his job, but he is certainly losing the fans.
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