The Peterborough Evening Telegraph
Harsh words and a sacking in Star’s summer of discontent
Football - Another bizarre week at the Branch Bros Stadium
Peterborough Northern Star’s summer of discontent descended into recrimination and chaos this week.
First-team boss Scott Goodwin was sacked before he’d taken charge of a single competitive game after a massive falling out with club co-owner Scott Steward.
But Goodwin didn’t go quietly. Some angry text exchanges between a manager and his boss found their way onto social media via the Peterborough Northern Star official Twitter account, though Goodwin denies he posted the messages.
Amid an angry back-and -forth between the pair it was obvious Steward was unhappy with the strength of the squad his new manager had built, an opinion rejected by Goodwin.
It also emerged Goodwin had recorded phone calls between him and Steward and one of those found its way to the Peterborough Telegraph. The PT also has copies of the text messages which were quickly deleted from Star’s official Twitter account.
Goodwin said: “I’m relieved to be out of the club. I had a sense things were going on behind my back which is why I recorded the phone calls just to prove what I had to put up with.
“Mr Steward has accused me of things that just aren’t true.
“It takes time to build a new squad from scratch, but a strength of mine is working with young players and I am confident we would have succeeded.”
Steward did not want to comment directly on the messages, but confirmed his disappointment with how team building had progressed in the summer.
“We had to make a tough decision and we did,” Steward said in an official statement released by his club.
“The club will bounce back. We will have a manager and the players to be competitive next season,” he added when contacted by the PT.
Goodwin’s arrival at Star in May had been controversial as within 24 hours he’d told the existing squad – many of whom were expected to leave anyway –that they would all be released. He relayed this information via WhatsApp.
New signings didn’t arrive quickly. Only three were announced before a dozen were unveiled together earlier this month including United Counties League veteran Joe Braithwaite.
But many of those signings drew mocking comments on social media. Several appeared to be players who had been performing in the lower divisions of the Peterborough League in recent seasons.
Braithwaite then revealed he’d actually signed for UCL Premier Division rivals Holbeach United.
A 4-3 home defeat at the hands of a very youthful Kettering side in a friendly last Saturday appeared to be the final straw for Steward, although the club statement was more conciliatory than damning.
It read: “Peterborough Northern Star would like to inform our followers that in light of unforeseeen circumstances we have made the executive decision to release our first-team manager from his role within the club.
“We would like to wish him every success in his future.”