Marc Skinner - United Women's team manager

edcunited1878

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Very qualified and has a strong track record in England, however the Club still have to get their house in order to support the women's team overall. It's very clear that the foundational support for the women's team has been lacking far too long, which was a massive factor in Casey leaving.
 

kundalini

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I wish we had gone for the best female coach/manager that was interested in the job, provided they play the right type of football etc. I'd be perfectly happy to accept a male manager as soon as Solskjaer appoints a woman as his assistant manager or one of his top coaches. I don't believe for one moment that all the best coaches and managers just happen to be male. Surely there is a young Emma Hayes out there somewhere, or another Casey Stoney for that matter !

As for Marc Skinner, I read the long articles that Rich Laverty wrote about him. https://www.ourgamemag.com/tag/marc-skinner/ He came across well. Results at Orlando have been beyond awful, finished bottom of the table in 2019, though better this season, currently 5th, having played a game more than some other sides. No idea how much that is down to Marc or circumstances beyond his control.

At least he has experience of coaching in the women's game, so that is something.
 
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Tomuś

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Doesn't he play for Inter? How is he supposed to both play in Italy and manage in England.
 

Grande

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I think the infrastructure around the women’s teams are different in the US compared to England. Interesting thatSkinner has experience with both (and it’s going to be interesting to see whar Stoney can do over there with San Diego).

What kind of job he can do, will depend greatly on what kind of attackers he’ll get to worh with. Anyone know how his teams were set up at Birmingham and Orlando?
 

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I think the infrastructure around the women’s teams are different in the US compared to England. Interesting thatSkinner has experience with both (and it’s going to be interesting to see whar Stoney can do over there with San Diego).

What kind of job he can do, will depend greatly on what kind of attackers he’ll get to worh with. Anyone know how his teams were set up at Birmingham and Orlando?
At Birmingham he took a bit to get going, but then things clicked and they worked really well. When he was a them they were 4/5th in the league and I think he's worked with a number of the current players (Ladd and Staniforth) likely signings (Mannion and Baggaley).

Orlando as a club have pretty much always been a shambles since they started even before he was the coach, until this season where they started really well. Orlando have loads of aging superstars (Marta, Morgan, Krieger and Harris) but they've never really been a team. Instead they were a group of individuals. NWSL also continues during NT competitions (the the Olympics right now) so you're regularly playing without those players. Leroux is playing great this year, but she's missed most of the last 2 because of pregnancy. They're also quite poor at the back when Pressley plays especially. Basically they're still a work in progress, but much improved now he actually has the players he wants.

I'm not gonna lie and say he's who I'd put at the top of the list. But he does have a lot of woso experience.

BTW if anyone remembers the 2015 world cup, when England scored that agonising own goal in the Semi Final against Japan, losing the game really late on? That was his wife/partner Laura Bassett.
 

TMS

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I wish we had gone for the best female coach/manager that was interested in the job, provided they play the right type of football etc. I'd be perfectly happy to accept a male manager as soon as Solskjaer appoints a woman as his assistant manager or one of his top coaches. I don't believe for one moment that all the best coaches and managers just happen to be male. Surely there is a young Emma Hayes out there somewhere, or another Casey Stoney for that matter !

As for Marc Skinner, I read the long articles that Rich Laverty wrote about him. https://www.ourgamemag.com/tag/marc-skinner/ He came across well. Results at Orlando have been beyond awful, finished bottom of the table in 2019, though better this season, currently 5th, having played a game more than some other sides. No idea how much that is down to Marc or circumstances beyond his control.

At least he has experience of coaching in the women's game, so that is something.
Honestly why does it matter? I think if a female coach had the qualifications or characteristics to be on Ole’s staff she‘d likely have a much higher role in the women’s game. Emma Hayes has said as much in the past hasn’t she saying she wouldn’t leave Chelsea to manage a lower league men’s team?

No one is saying all the best coaches are male, I’d be very shocked if the entire shortlist was male. Skinner has experience and success in the women’s game so I’d hardly say him being male will have been a huge factor with no evidence. Also so reductive to say a young Emma Hayes is out there waiting to be hired considering the levels she’s achieved. Managers of that quality don’t grow on trees.
 
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buchansleftleg

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Well at least the club aren't just parachuting in an ex player with no experience in womens football.

If he was the best candidate available then fair enough. I just hope he can drive the club to support the team more.

He has immense shoes to fill as I believe Casey was one of the 5 best managers I've ever witnessed in charge of a team.
 

kidbob

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I hope that they get around to sorting out the conditions that made Casey step down as coach. If we are going to have a women's team then they deserve to have the same access to good facilities as the male team does.
 

elmo

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I hope that they get around to sorting out the conditions that made Casey step down as coach. If we are going to have a women's team then they deserve to have the same access to good facilities as the male team does.
Don't understand why the women's team can't share the facilities with the men's team. How big of a training facility would we need to fit everybody in?
 

Wixqaz

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Don't understand why the women's team can't share the facilities with the men's team. How big of a training facility would we need to fit everybody in?
So the reason states they can’t fully share is because of COVID. For example last season the men’s team took up 3 dressing rooms at Carrington cause of COVID. The youth teams were also effected.

Also originally they said Carrington was to small to accommodate the women’s team, which is still true.
Basically the club should start expanding Carrington now, things reported probably wouldn’t have been anywhere near as bad without COVID. But they’ve had 3 years to expand Carrington and hadn’t bothered.
 

Smudger92

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I am having great trouble in understanding why United have appointed Marc Sinner as their next Womens team manager. We are striving to be the best and unfortunately the statistics really don't flatter him. Whilst at Orlando Pride he had a 20% win rate over two seasons. Whilst at Birmingham, his win rate was 48%. Is this really the best we can do? He is not an ex professional, but an ex teacher who ran the academy football team at Solihull college. He may well be a very nice person but, I just can't see how that CV is good enough to manage a massive club such as ours? I am now beginning to see why Casey Stoney and several of our players have left for pastures new when they did. Do the board really want our women's team to succeed or did they just bow to pressure from within the game to reform? I am a women's season ticket holder and have been since they reformed, and am seriously worried now for this upcoming season. I just hope that the team can prove Marc Skinner's statistics wrong
 

Wixqaz

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I am having great trouble in understanding why United have appointed Marc Sinner as their next Womens team manager. We are striving to be the best and unfortunately the statistics really don't flatter him. Whilst at Orlando Pride he had a 20% win rate over two seasons. Whilst at Birmingham, his win rate was 48%. Is this really the best we can do? He is not an ex professional, but an ex teacher who ran the academy football team at Solihull college. He may well be a very nice person but, I just can't see how that CV is good enough to manage a massive club such as ours? I am now beginning to see why Casey Stoney and several of our players have left for pastures new when they did. Do the board really want our women's team to succeed or did they just bow to pressure from within the game to reform? I am a women's season ticket holder and have been since they reformed, and am seriously worried now for this upcoming season. I just hope that the team can prove Marc Skinner's statistics wrong
So the Skinner was very highly thought of while at BCWFC. Thats why he got the NWSL job. But NWSL hasn't been for him for various reasons.

He managed to bring back the team to their former heights after they'd been overtaken by the money clubs. He did that with a real lack of resources (seen again with their issues last season). He brought through a number of young players and played attacking football. for the 18 months before he left they were very good and challenging the City/Chelsea/Arsenal. They also reached a cup final. His % at Birmingham is taken down by his first season there and also I think they lost a couple of games after he said he was leaving (but I've not checked that).

Pride are a shambles of a club in general. They've never until this season been an actual team, Morgan has always been poor for her clubs compared with USWNT, Marta is past it tbh, Krieger the same and Harris is good but can only do so much (she's also the most invested player). Because they have these superstar players, the rest of their squad has never been up to it. Leroux was also pregnant his first year. That first year they were bad (they were bad before him though). Last year Morgan was pregnant and then they missed games when the younger players all went out and got Covid before the bubble so they had to pull out of the Challenge Cup. The team played like 4 games last year. This season they've been so much better, Leroux is properly back, Morgan was playing well, they've recruited better. BUT because NWSL continues during international windows they've now lost Morgan, Riley and Marta and their squad is bare. I think Moore's also been injured so they've had no proper DM for weeks.

I would much prefer to have a proper woso coach than an ex pro from the mens game (Fortune was linked). MS has worked in WSL before and knows the league (and several of the players), in some ways he accomplished more than Casey did with a lesser team. To me this signing was one of the better options, Cortés was kicked out by the players, Ward is well thought of but her % would be less than Skinners, Pye maybe but she aparently wants a break and it's a new league (+language?). I suppose there was obvious replacement to go for.

I'm not denying the Pride issues before this season, but NWSL is a very different league to WSL and trading for players isn't as transfers. I'm going back to what I saw in 2018 and what was accomplished at Birmingham. If it's that Skinner there's no issue to me.
 

Grande

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So the Skinner was very highly thought of while at BCWFC. Thats why he got the NWSL job. But NWSL hasn't been for him for various reasons.

He managed to bring back the team to their former heights after they'd been overtaken by the money clubs. He did that with a real lack of resources (seen again with their issues last season). He brought through a number of young players and played attacking football. for the 18 months before he left they were very good and challenging the City/Chelsea/Arsenal. They also reached a cup final. His % at Birmingham is taken down by his first season there and also I think they lost a couple of games after he said he was leaving (but I've not checked that).

Pride are a shambles of a club in general. They've never until this season been an actual team, Morgan has always been poor for her clubs compared with USWNT, Marta is past it tbh, Krieger the same and Harris is good but can only do so much (she's also the most invested player). Because they have these superstar players, the rest of their squad has never been up to it. Leroux was also pregnant his first year. That first year they were bad (they were bad before him though). Last year Morgan was pregnant and then they missed games when the younger players all went out and got Covid before the bubble so they had to pull out of the Challenge Cup. The team played like 4 games last year. This season they've been so much better, Leroux is properly back, Morgan was playing well, they've recruited better. BUT because NWSL continues during international windows they've now lost Morgan, Riley and Marta and their squad is bare. I think Moore's also been injured so they've had no proper DM for weeks.

I would much prefer to have a proper woso coach than an ex pro from the mens game (Fortune was linked). MS has worked in WSL before and knows the league (and several of the players), in some ways he accomplished more than Casey did with a lesser team. To me this signing was one of the better options, Cortés was kicked out by the players, Ward is well thought of but her % would be less than Skinners, Pye maybe but she aparently wants a break and it's a new league (+language?). I suppose there was obvious replacement to go for.

I'm not denying the Pride issues before this season, but NWSL is a very different league to WSL and trading for players isn't as transfers. I'm going back to what I saw in 2018 and what was accomplished at Birmingham. If it's that Skinner there's no issue to me.
Saw this now, good read-up and makes me more optimistic about Skinner. Losing Casey has been a major blow to my hopes for the women’s team, she has impressed me so much. The only salvaging point would be if her leaving will force the club to get on the ball and give the team a backing worthy of Man Utd. That doesn’t necessarily mean galactico signings, but it means that ambitions need to be first place ahead of City, not fourth place ahead of Birmingham.
 

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Saw this now, good read-up and makes me more optimistic about Skinner. Losing Casey has been a major blow to my hopes for the women’s team, she has impressed me so much. The only salvaging point would be if her leaving will force the club to get on the ball and give the team a backing worthy of Man Utd. That doesn’t necessarily mean galactico signings, but it means that ambitions need to be first place ahead of City, not fourth place ahead of Birmingham.
I do think we'll get an idea of what the club want if there's a couple more signings and they're a step above someone like Thomas (who's a good backup right now... but I think an experienced forward is needed). So if there's maybe 2 forwards/wingers signed that are who he's chosen and they're like Internationals then I think they're wanting to build. Cause I think the mid/def is better than last season now, but the forward line isn't.
 

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I do think we'll get an idea of what the club want if there's a couple more signings and they're a step above someone like Thomas (who's a good backup right now... but I think an experienced forward is needed). So if there's maybe 2 forwards/wingers signed that are who he's chosen and they're like Internationals then I think they're wanting to build. Cause I think the mid/def is better than last season now, but the forward line isn't.
Yes, this is how it seems to me as well,when looking at at least our midfield. In defense/keeper, maybe Chelsea/City seems to be somewhat better on paper in every single position, but we have a good back five with Earps - Batlle, Thorisdottir, Turner, Blundell. The midfield of Jackie Groenen, Katie Zelem, Hayley Ladd, Lucy Staniforth and Vilde Bøe Risa is stacked.
Leah Galton, Ella Toone and Kirsty Hanson have a lot to offer, but it’s thin when you look at the class and depth of the others.
 

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I thought we would suffer with the loss of Stoner. But it seems like Skinner's a massive upgrade.
 

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I thought we would suffer with the loss of Stoner. But it seems like Skinner's a massive upgrade.
Some United fans were calling for him to be fired only 2 months ago... I would not say he is an upgrade over Casey, but thats just my opinion :-)
 

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Some United fans were calling for him to be fired only 2 months ago... I would not say he is an upgrade over Casey, but thats just my opinion :-)
Then again a lot of United fans are calling EtH to get sacked too. Doesn’t mean both of them are not doing very well.

Breaking into the top 3, fighting for the title and being in a cup final shows Skinner is doing great.
 

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Then again a lot of United fans are calling EtH to get sacked too. Doesn’t mean both of them are not doing very well.

Breaking into the top 3, fighting for the title and being in a cup final shows Skinner is doing great.
Yeah, I was not saying it was right to call for him to be sacked nor that he is not doing good this season. I just rate Casey above Skinner.
 

top1whoisman

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Yeah, I was not saying it was right to call for him to be sacked nor that he is not doing good this season. I just rate Casey above Skinner.
Difficult to compare in my opinion. But yeah I remember last season him getting some stick with the odd poor result, some signings and team selection. But I think that was more or less the online "fan base" who thought we should win the title simply 'cause we're Manchester United.
 

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I don't mean to make this perverted. So i'm sorry in advance.

But genuinely, do you think he stays in the dressing room as the ladies are changing?

I'd have to leave personally, even if they didn't care
 

top1whoisman

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I don't mean to make this perverted. So i'm sorry in advance.

But genuinely, do you think he stays in the dressing room as the ladies are changing?

I'd have to leave personally, even if they didn't care
Of course not.

What a weird thing to think about.
 

LawCharltonBest

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Of course not.

What a weird thing to think about.
But how would he know when to come back in?

My moderate experience of changing rooms is that people walk around in states of nude. I've heard they do it in the female changing rooms of gyms too.

I wouldn't know when was appropriate to re-enter to give a post-match team talk etc. And if he isn't in there, where would he go? Especially at away matches where he won't have the option
 

top1whoisman

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But how would he know when to come back in?

My moderate experience of changing rooms is that people walk around in states of nude. I've heard they do it in the female changing rooms of gyms too.

I wouldn't know when was appropriate to re-enter to give a post-match team talk etc. And if he isn't in there, where would he go? Especially at away matches where he won't have the option
They have females in the coaching and other backroom staff who they probably check with whether it’s okay to come in. There’s this thing called knocking too.

During covid it was more or less mandatory to give two dressing rooms for away teams and that has most likely continued so. There’s one for the coaches and one for the team.