Issue 153

Jackett gets his coat

26th February 2007

The proverbial black cloud which has seemingly entombed the Liberty Stadium for the last few weeks spectacularly burst following the resignation of manager Kenny Jackett.

Media and fan pressure were cited as the reasons for his sudden departure. Jackett leaves a side struggling for form in one of the most vital times of the season. The Swans currently lie in seventh place, agonisingly close but just outside the play-off places.

Jackett arrived at the Vetch as a relative unknown, having previously worked as Ian Holloway's assistant at Queens Park Rangers.

However, he didn't take long to find his feet, guiding the Swans to promotion in his first full season in charge with a dramatic last day victory at Bury. The Swans, now in the Liberty Stadium, underlined their intentions for glory the following season, and looked odds-on favourites for promotion at the mid-way point.

Unfortunately, poor form cost them dear, and the Swans were forced to settle for a play-off spot. A strong second leg display against Brentford in the play-off semi-final saw Swansea march into Cardiff as firm favourites to secure back-toback promotions. However, a resilient Barnsley side broke Welsh hearts, securing the elusive promotion to the Championship in a tense penalty shootout.

This season has been something of a frustrating anti-climax for the Swans supporters, with their side again failing to match their pre-season billing and instead letting valuable points slip through their grasp. Jackett's final game in charge, a home defeat to high-flying Oldham Athletic, was met with defiance by the Swans boss, who claimed he was the man to lead the club forward. Five days later, Kenny's tenure at Swansea was over.

Kenny Jackett's time in the hot-seat saw the Swans board invest a whopping £1.6 million of confidence into the squad, and saw the arrival of fan-favourites such as Darren Pratley, Dennis Lawrence, and Adebayo Akinfenwa. However, it was also over-shadowed by the departures of Sam Ricketts and Leon Knight, both of whom had relatively short spells at the club, before making bad-tempered exits for pastures new.

Jackett's movements in the market were often greeted with harsh criticism from supporters, pundits and players alike, suggesting that Jackett often overpaid for players, the most notable being the £225,000 shelled out for Kevin Amankwaah - Swansea recruited Dennis Lawrence, Darren Pratley and Adebayo Akinfenwa for the same price, all three of whom have proved better players.

However, Kenny repaid the boards trust with three trophies, in the shape of two FAW Cups and the LDV Vans trophy. Swansea enjoyed back-to-back victories over Wrexham in the FAW cup, as well as a fine win over Carlisle at the Millennium Stadium to secure the LDV vans trophy. However, his biggest triumph will always be securing the Swans return to League One football after a four year exile, and coming agonisingly close to Championship football.

His turbulent stay at the helm of the Swans is ironically one of the most successful times the club has enjoyed in recent periods, a fact many Swans fans tend to neglect.

They have been transformed from a club lost in the wilderness of League Two, to a side that is very much on course to challenge Cardiff as the premier club in Wales, and he has done this using the same resources that the managers before him had. Jackett should always be held in high regard by the Swansea faithful, and the criticism aimed at Jackett for recent results was harsh, a view shared by the club.

The statement released following Jackett's departure announced "Sometimes you only find out the true value of something when you no longer have it and only time will tell if this proves to be the case in this instance".

Chairman Huw Jenkins and the club said the news of Jackett's departure had been extremely difficult to accept and they wished him all the best for the future.

This is in stark contrast to recent media speculation that led supporters to believe there was a huge gap between board and manager, which had put a tremendous amount of stress on Kenny Jackett. Poor manager-player relationships were also rumoured to be a major factor in his sudden departure, but captain Gary Monk said the players were shocked and saddened by his decision, casting further doubt on the situation. But what can be said is that in Kenny Jackett, Swansea had a manager who not only shared their ambition, but had the ability to get the very best out of his players, and he will be sorely missed.

The only question that remains is who will be the next person to throw himself into the Liberty Stadium hotseat?

Sam Pettit