Joey Barton has made a huge move this week stripping star striker Aaron Collins of the Bristol Rovers captaincy.
Speaking with the Bristol Post Barton, shared some more detail on why he has made the decision. It all stems from the striker’s recent performances as well as a moment in the week against Wycombe which left the Gas boss completely outraged.
It’s been a pretty good season for the 25 year old goal scorer. He is currently the top scorer for Rovers this season, seemingly drawing interest for the clubs above and even in with a shout of representing his country Wales.
Barton was left bemused by his star man after he ducked out of a header against Wycombe on Tuesday evening.
Bristol Post have reported that since having the capacity stripped from him, the striker has sat down with Barton and watched a video showing exactly what it is that’s got him into his managers bad books to which he has apologised for and accepted he is at fault. Barton is also quoted in saying:
“He’s captain of our football team and he jumps for a head, thinks he’s going to get clattered and ducks and there’s nobody behind him. Unfortunately, it’s not acceptable. Sometimes you have to put your body on the line”
Collins didn’t train on Thursday as he was carrying a few knocks from the game on Tuesday evening however, Barton has confirmed he should be available for selection this weekend:
“I think he’ll be fine (For the weekend)”
“It’s just whether I pick him, that’s the reality of it he certainly won’t be captaining the team because he’s lost that privilege and I think it’s a real privilege to lead the club, and he’ll learn the hard way that’s it’s not just something that lands on your arm in somebody’s absence”
Harsh words from Barton but he wasn’t done there he goes on to talk more about the commitment that should given on the pitch when representing the club:
“There is a level of performance and a level of commitment that you owe to the history of this football club when you take on that leadership role on a matchday. For Aaron, hopefully he puts himself in a position that he learns a lesson from it and we never have to tell him again.”
“Knowing the type of lad he is, it’ll have hurt him because he is somebody who give it his all and you can see the amount of times he ends up on his backside, his commitment to the he group. But I just feel these last two games he’s let maybe the noise and the outside world affect his performance and I’ve got to make sure very, very quickly that is stopped”
Barton also handed the striker his first “Effort Error” this is a system that Premiership Rugby side Saracens have used and Rovers have taken on.
In short, this basically means you have to give nothing but 100% for the badge and your teammates that’s the bare minimum, if you’re seen not giving this you’ll get an “Effort Error” this covers both the training ground and a match day.
Barton goes on to discuss these “Effort Errors” in his interview:
“That’s his first one, For me, you get three of them. Second one, is your final warning. Third one, you’re leaving the building and I don’t care who you are. If you don’t commit 100 per cent to the jersey, no man for me is bigger than the badge on the front of the jersey l, no matter how big the name on the back is and how much smoke is blown up it’s backside”
“The badge on the front of the jersey is way more important than the name on the back. All we ask is you give 100 per cent effort. The skills stuff, making mistakes, we’re with you on that. But ducking when there’s an aerial challenge, I think it’s insulting and Aaron’s aware of that and assured me it won’t happen again”
Barton was also sure to make it known he doesn’t care who you are no one is exempt stating “A mistake of effort, you start to get really concerned about that because when they occasionally arise in your culture you have to be very, very quick to stamp it out because that can be contagious. We can’t just leave out top scorer as immune to it, which I think has happened in the past here”
A harsh review from Barton who seems keen to ensure that his players know that nobody is bigger than the team and the goals they have for the rest of this season.
You can find the full interview here on the Bristol Post.
Writers View
Having had the pleasure of working with Barton first hand albeit not for very long, this doesn’t surprise me at all. The minimum you can give with him is 100% this should be a given but in the modern game that effort can lacking.
Personally, I love this from the gaffer it shows that he is in charge and he will not be managed by anyone in the squad. Not only that it send the message to Collins that’s yes he might have interest from other clubs and the international stage he still has to remain focused on seeing how the season with his current club!
It also comes at a time where the striker is on a rare dry spell this season, so it could just be exactly what he needs to get back to the fine scoring form of earlier this season.
