Steve makes a run for it.....
It really has been hasn't it? And as the dust starts to settle on last weekends events, it's pretty safe to say that it's likely to be similarly turbulent in the short term at the very least.
A look at various betting sites will show you that consensus on a new manager is liable to change with the sort of volatility that would bring a stockbroker out in cold sweats.
Whilst last weekenders protesters are claiming a hollow victory, their underpinning hope - and prehaps the only goal that was ubiquitouse among all Forest fans - that of a more open and transparent club, seems to be even further from reach.
The club have closed ranks, letting little infomation in or out and this is a situation which is unlikely to change until some figurehead is in place.
We'd hope that some provisional plan had been put into place prior to this point. Whilst the protests of last weekend, combined with onfield performances may have been the straw that broke the camels back, it is surely unlikely they were the sole reasoning for Doughtys repositioning of his future with the club.
One suspects it had been on his mind for a while - 10 years is a long period of time for a businessman such as himself to be so heavily involved in any sort of project. The day to day underpinning of his business ventures is to help and cohearse underperforming business back to health before gradually leaving them to fend for themselves. Therefore his decision to wind down his involvement at Forest will not be a snap decision.
The question is now that of a chicken and egg type scenario for our foreseeable. Can a manager be attracted to the club while its ownership is also up for grabs. We've all seen stories like that of Manish's Football League buddy Leroy Rosenior, the televisual equivalent of an Alan Shearer Creosoting Audiobook. His glee at being appointed the new Torquay manager lasted just 10 minutes in 2007. At the same time as he was being installed as manager, the club was being bought by a local consortium.
The Consortium decided Leroy wasn't the man for them and he was on his way shortly after the press conference announcing his arrival.
No manager want to be the next to challenge this record, which would lead this observer to think more of a coach - the names of Pemberton, MacDonald, have been floating around - would be installed, rather than the bookies favourite Keane or a similar abrasive option who will polarise opinion.
Even before this consideration Billy wasn't an option but you do have to credit his publicist for the 'Billy would consider helping till the end of the season' comment. He looks good, club looks bad, both know it'll never happen and fans get in a tizzy.
Either way, expectations need to be lowered accordingly, as a Sheik Mansour is unlikely to pile in and purchase us Aguero, Kaka, Pratley and Whittingham.
This is a chance to have a proper clean sweep through the club and try to build and refocus. I, like many, have doubts on Mark Arthurs abilities in certain areas but rumours of further protests against him could just destabilise an already listing ship yet further. He may not have much track record with player aquisition but (believe it or not) he's pretty well respected by other clubs and managers. So for now, pack your green scarves away and reach for a red and white seatbelt instead. This could get pretty bumpy.........
U Reds!
The Panoptic Forest
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