Bowyer became a hero after his four game stint following Henning Berg's dismissal in December, securing three wins and a draw for the club. His temporary reign was praised, and there were calls to quit the manager hunt and simply appoint him.
Micheal Appleton succeeded Bowyer, but achieved few successes (bar the glorious victory at the Emirates stadium). After Appleton's sacking, Bowyer once again came to the rescue. Despite a rocky start, he found his feet and secured vital points ensuring that Rovers avoided spiraling down the football league.
While Bowyer has proven himself twice now, there are still reservations held by some based on the grounds that he lacks 'experience'. Arguably though, experience means nothing unless the club is getting results, points and ultimately - promotion.
One of the key contributions to the club that Bowyer has made, is the reinstatement of motivation and passion into the team. During the last season, there were multiple times where some players were guilty of gross negligence with regard to fans feelings and commitment to the club. Obviously not all players were guilty of this but nonetheless it is a critical problem which needs addressing.
Bowyer's first task is to endure the transfer period. His priorities should include shifting deadwood, negotiating reasonable and fair financial agreements if any valuable players hand in transfer requests, and then find suitable replacements for those with key roles who leave. After the transfer season, he bears another tremendous task; he must get results, ensure the players are motivated and essentially achieve promotion.
Gary Bowyer has the potential to accomplish these tasks, provided that he is given time, money and backing from the owners. Last season was a farce; the managerial merry go round made a mockery of the club, the behind doors political power struggle between Derek Shaw, Paul Agnew and Shebby Singh left fans confused and embarrassed but primarily the naivety of the owners is to blame.
To ensure success, Mrs Desai must cleanse the club of incapable candidates (primarily the three aforementioned names) and employ sensible, efficient and effective workers. If they do not choose to go down this route they must instead simply ignore the conflicting advice of the 'global advisor', managing director, and operations manager and focus on match results and fan feelings.
For Bowyer to strive it is imperative that he avoids slipping into 'puppet mode', however given his passion for the club it is probable that he will maintain authority to prevent unnecessary interference to protect both the interests of the fans and the traditional values of the club. Obviously for this to happen, the owners have an obligation to allow him to manage the club how he sees fit. The power of other roles within the club need diminishing, while the role of manager needs to hold more significance.
The appointment of Gary Bowyer as manager is an appointment that has been very much embraced by the fans of the club. Despite his lack of experience, he has proven twice that he is a more than capable candidate for the job. It is fundamental that he obtains the backing of the fans, and is given the time to settle in, incorporate his way of football into the club and succeed.
