Notts County told to make big Stuart Maynard call after play-off defeat | OneFootball

FLW's Notts County fan pundit has given his verdict on whether head coach Stuart Maynard should keep his job.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Notts County head coach Stuart Maynard is under pressure after the club missed out on promotion from League Two.

Maynard endured a tough start to life at Meadow Lane after making the move from non-league Wealdstone to replace Luke Williams last January, and some Notts supporters had called for him to be sacked after a 14th-placed finish last season, but the club stuck with the 44-year-old.

The Magpies spent much of this season challenging at the top end of the table, but after falling short of automatic promotion on the final day, they eventually finished the campaign in sixth place, setting up a play-off semi-final tie against fifth-placed AFC Wimbledon.

Notts were beaten 1-0 in the first leg at Meadow Lane, with Riley Harbottle's second-half header giving the Dons an advantage, and to make matters worse for Maynard's men, top scorer Alassana Jatta was sent off in stoppage time.

The Magpies already had a mountain to climb ahead of the second leg at the Cherry Red Records Stadium on Saturday, but their task became even greater when Josh Neufville put Wimbledon ahead in the eighth minute, and, in truth, the visitors struggled to create anything meaningful throughout the game as their promotion dreams came to an end.

While Maynard admitted that the campaign represented a "missed opportunity" for his side, he insisted that he was "confident" he would be allowed to remain in charge next season, but with opinion split among the fan base, it remains to be seen whether he will be given a third opportunity to deliver promotion.

Notts County told to part company with Stuart Maynard

When asked if it is the right time to move on from Maynard this summer, FLW's Notts County fan pundit Jack Richardson urged owners Christoffer and Alexander Reedtz to make a managerial change.

"I believe he should go," Jack told FLW.

"He's only won 28 out of his 73 games in charge, and three of those were in cup competitions, so make of that what you will.

"I just don't think that's good enough for a team or a manager whose ambitions are to get the club back to League One.

"He's too focused on his philosophy of football, there's no plan B, we've not got enough strength in depth, and I just feel like having someone with no experience of the EFL has been really damaging for us this year.

"I feel like it's time for a change."

Notts County facing huge Stuart Maynard decision after play-off exit

It is fair to say that not all Notts supporters were impressed with the appointment of Maynard, with some holding reservations about his past as a telecommunications engineer and his lack of EFL experience, and his poor start to life at Meadow Lane did little to convince the doubters that he was the right man for the job.

Despite being under significant scrutiny coming into this season, Maynard had the Magpies among the automatic promotion contenders for much of the campaign, and while they were unable to achieve their goal, a play-off finish still represents decent progress.

However, given the strength of their squad, Notts were widely expected to win promotion this season, and with large sections of the fan base feeling that Maynard is perhaps holding the team back from reaching their full potential, the board are facing a big call about whether to remain loyal to him.