Non-League Football

Weymouth 0 - 3 Salisbury - 1 January 2008 - Jason Tindall makes his stand

I have a certain admiration for Weymouth manager Jason Tindall, he has definitely not had it easy in his first months as Weymouth boss. Today at the Wessex, player power exploded right on his doorstep - just another learning curve in the young man's career, but I have to admit, he dealt with it head on.

In fact that’s how Tindall seems to cope. He doesn’t shy away from a fight, or from the mic, even after the debacle against Salisbury when it would have been easy to have handed it over to Marcus Browning, out came Tindall, still standing proud and stating his case.

I for one hope he gets the time to win through, he wears his heart on his sleeve and while that can make a man vulnerable, honesty and integrity are without doubt two of the best watch words any of us can live by.

Tindall came to blows with striker Jefferson Louis over his first team place and all hell broke loose.

But the Terras boss stood his ground and refused to bow to player power, Louis was to later leave the Wessex by mutual consent and Weymouth would suffer one of their worse defeats at home to neighbours Salisbury 3-0.

The game itself started under the backdrop of that angst and it was clear to see that the players were rattled, they in truth never got off the starting blocks and when your down lady luck kicks you even harder, their first goal conceded was from a free kick, it was so off side that it made Ronald Reagan look like a left wing communist, but Tubbs wasn't going to complain.

After that the heart of the Terras was completely broken, shattered in an early Winter sunset that would see a small scrap break out to my left in the crowd.

Some fans threatening to rip up their season tickets and jeers and screams aimed at the under pressure boss of “Tindall out” to a chorus of boos echoing around the emptying stadium.

Brown and Tubbs would score two more goals and 3-0 at home was a thumping of massive proportions, one could only guess being in the results business, just how long could the young manager of Weymouth survive.

But wait! perhaps this is the moment where boys become men, where the players stand up and be counted, where the posing stops and the true grit of a real professional footballer comes to the fore.

Because Tindall stood proud against all that vitriol, I have a feeling that a respect is forming for the Weymouth boss like never before and I think that given time he can turn things around and become the success that the fans at the Wessex demand so much.

As Keats once said: "I was never afraid of failure, for I would sooner fail than not be among the best".

Man of the Match: Jason Tindall for standing up and being counted, now fans and players alike, this is your rallying call, support him and your club.

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