Normally when a manager is appointed, his remit is primarily football-related, such as win the league, finish in the top four, secure European football, avoid relegation or earn promotion.
When Gary Bowyer was promoted to take over at Blackburn Rovers in May last year, after two months as caretaker, he said that “the main aim was to keep out of the papers because the headlines were for the wrong reasons”.
To put it bluntly, Blackburn were a laughing stock.
They had completed a season where five managers had a total of six spells in charge, while a global adviser went to war with the chief executive as competing factions fought to run the club.
The managing director, Derek Shaw, was presented by the club as an out-of-control figure in a court case that resulted in Rovers being ordered to pay £2.25 million (Dh12.5m) in compensation to a manager – Henning Berg – who won only one game.
Berg lasted 57 days in charge, and Michael Appleton lasted 67. Rovers had paid excessive wages to over-the-hill footballers, signed a random group of Portuguese players who were rarely heard of again, and went through a cast of 40 as, having aimed for promotion to the Premier League, they almost ended up in League One.
This was not a normal job and Blackburn were not a normal club. They are now, though, and for that, Bowyer deserves credit.
He has brought sanity where there was madness, quiet where there was noise, an understated approach to an overexposed club.
The less the owners – Indian poultry company Venky’s – do the better, and the running of the club has been left in the hands of Shaw (the man slighted by the club’s own lawyer) and Bowyer.
There are working-class towns where times are hard and the area’s identity revolves around its football club, and Blackburn is one such town.
Their supporters are able to have pride in their club again, even though they are not perfect and will not be under the ownership of Venky's. But at least the fans are no longer protesting about the Indian firm by releasing chickens on to the Ewood Park pitch. They focus on football, not farce.
Blackburn have been in the headlines three times in 2015. Their striker Rudy Gestede, signed for £200,000 by Bowyer and now rated at £5m after a dramatic improvement, was wanted by Crystal Palace in the January transfer window.
They then knocked out teams in the upper reaches of the Premier League, Swansea City and Stoke City, in the FA Cup.
Their fourth stint in the spotlight comes this weekend because they face Liverpool tomorrow.
Given the scale of the Merseysiders' renaissance, the chances are that Rovers will not claim a third famous victory.
Bowyer has cut costs, identified players who were undervalued elsewhere and imbued his side with spirit.
Gestede, Tom Cairney, Ben Marshall and Shane Duffy have been fine signings, but the resolutely down-to-earth Bowyer has few of the trappings of a managerial mastermind.
With Blackburn’s squad, they probably ought to be above 10th in the Championship, not 13 points off the play-offs.
Supporters wonder if Bowyer always picks the correct team or opts for the right tactics.
His cup triumphs have come with depleted teams, prompting questions why the supposedly full-strength sides have not been as adept.
Yet none of that detracts from the reality that he was the right man for Blackburn at a particularly troubled time.
Bowyer is reminiscent of the measured and understated Nigel Clough, who is in charge of Sheffield United.
Clough was appointed Derby County manager when the club, who had endured the worst season in Premier League history, appeared in meltdown and, with calm thoroughness, rebuilt a club from the bottom up. Bowyer has done something similar.
Bowyer’s other feat is to survive for two years at the helm of a club where predecessors were struggling to last two months.
He has brought common sense where there was chaos, and it is really quite remarkable.
sports@thenational.ae
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RESULTS
Cagliari 5-2 Fiorentina
Udinese 0-0 SPAL
Sampdoria 0-0 Atalanta
Lazio 4-2 Lecce
Parma 2-0 Roma
Juventus 1-0 AC Milan
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
About Takalam
Date started: early 2020
Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech and wellness
Number of staff: 4
Funding to date: Bootstrapped
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
All or Nothing
Amazon Prime
Four stars
Thor%3A%20Love%20and%20Thunder%20
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The%20specs
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CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
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Company%20Profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Racecard
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TOUCH RULES
Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.
Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.
Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.
A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.
After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.
At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.
A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.
The five pillars of Islam
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
Company%20profile%20
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Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
BELGIUM%20SQUAD
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THREE POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS
Khalfan Mubarak
The Al Jazira playmaker has for some time been tipped for stardom within UAE football, with Quique Sanchez Flores, his former manager at Al Ahli, once labelling him a “genius”. He was only 17. Now 23, Mubarak has developed into a crafty supplier of chances, evidenced by his seven assists in six league matches this season. Still to display his class at international level, though.
Rayan Yaslam
The Al Ain attacking midfielder has become a regular starter for his club in the past 15 months. Yaslam, 23, is a tidy and intelligent player, technically proficient with an eye for opening up defences. Developed while alongside Abdulrahman in the Al Ain first-team and has progressed well since manager Zoran Mamic’s arrival. However, made his UAE debut only last December.
Ismail Matar
The Al Wahda forward is revered by teammates and a key contributor to the squad. At 35, his best days are behind him, but Matar is incredibly experienced and an example to his colleagues. His ability to cope with tournament football is a concern, though, despite Matar beginning the season well. Not a like-for-like replacement, although the system could be adjusted to suit.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
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