Reflections on an evening with Régis Le Bris and Kristjaan Speakman
Head coach Le Bris and sporting director Speakman made a joint appearance at a fans’ forum on Thursday night. What was said?
There was no sense of mutiny in the air as we took our seats in Quinn’s Bar on Thursday evening. There were no rumblings of discontent or a sense that tempers were about to fray.
Instead, as we awaited the arrival of Kristjaan Speakman and newly-appointed head coach Régis Le Bris in front of a packed house at the Stadium of Light’s red and white-themed watering hole, intrigue seemed be the order of the day.
How would Le Bris come across? Would he offer some insights into what we can expect under his stewardship, and would Speakman be willing to confront the issues that have dogged the club for some time?
As we filed out just over an hour later, in some ways we’d received our answers, and in other ways, we hadn’t.
Overall, I felt Le Bris came across extremely well, even if he’s still adjusting to life in the Sunderland spotlight and as such, is keeping his cards close to his chest. Personally, I feel that he’ll be far more comfortable on the training ground and in the dugout than in front of press packs and TV cameras, but he certainly came across as a very charming man.
The Frenchman spoke of his excitement at landing such a role, his wish to ‘connect with English football and with the Championship’, and how he hopes to create an atmosphere in which the players can thrive and their talent can come to the fore.
Despite English still being a new language and an expectant crowd hanging on his every word, every answer from Le Bris was classy, thoughtful, and well-phrased, suggesting that in the former Lorient coach, we’ve hired a deep thinker about the game; someone who has a vision of how he’d like football to be played and the determination and ability to implement it.
As for Speakman? It’s hard to deny that in such a situation he’s an extremely effective operator, and on this occasion he was on good form, offering well-constructed and often persuasive answers to the questions that were asked.
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Reflections on an evening with Régis Le Bris and Kristjaan Speakman
The former Birmingham City academy director divides opinion in terms of his methods of communication, and judging from some of the responses to the impromptu Roker Report live rolling Twitter feed, he’s never going to be trusted by every Sunderland fan.
On the other hand, away from the hazardous world of social media, and on a night where the mood was generally upbeat and the questions fair but probing, he certainly didn’t shy away from providing insights and updates within reason.
