Newcastle Eagles supremo Paul Blake has revealed for the first time that head coach Fab Flournoy might wield the axe after the reigning championsâ€
sub-par start to the season.
The Tyneside outfit currently sit in a lowly seventh place in the BBL, having crashed out of the Cup in the semi-finals with a devastating reverse to Mersey Tigers last week.
The Liverpudlians will again start as hot favourites when the sides meet again in the forthcoming Trophy semi-finals, potentially heaping more misery on their rivals.
And with Flournoy declaring that his side hasnâ€
t “got out of the starting blocks yetâ€, Blake is preparing to take drastic action.
“If you look at the run-in we have up to Christmas, itâ€
s not horrendous and weâ€
re probably stuck with what weâ€
ve got,†he said.
“But there is potential for change after that. Weâ€
re seventh in the league and Iâ€
m certainly not happy with that.â€
It means under-performing players like Kadiri Richard and Joe Chapman, who has toiled to adapt to a new role, may be on notice with Blake hinting that addition can only be by subtraction.
“We could possibly reinforce but it could be an either/or situation,†he confirmed.
“Weâ€
ve set our budgets for this year and I donâ€
t want to eat into next yearâ€
s. Weâ€
re trying to run a business here. We still have one of the highest budgets in the league so there are no real excuses.â€
Richard, who was signed from Worthing in the summer, has suffered by comparison with the player he replaced, the Great Britain captain Drew Sullivan.
However Flournoy – who is targeting a return from a knee ligament injury within the next fortnight – has given the forward his backing, insisting his demotion to Newcastleâ€
s bench is not a rebuke.
“Iâ€
ve changed my starting line-up several times already,†he explained.
“But early in the season, there are always players who have problems acclimating to how we play. I think heâ€
s coming along fine. In the next couple of weeks, weâ€
ll start to see more of him and the things he can deliver.â€
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