West Coaching Controversy

That was a curious hiring situation for the West boy's varsity basketball position as reported by the UL today. Something went wrong in communication between the West athletic department and the Manchester School Board. Dan Bryson is the new coach. One week ago he was told he wasn't being nominated. Chris Gaudreau, the head coach of Bow, was told last week the job was his. Last Thursday Gaudreau was given a set of the keys to the West gym and met with returning players to go over summer schedules. Gaudreau then steps down from his Bow coaching job.

This is where it gets interesting. Something political happened between last Friday and yesterday. Gaudreau receives a call at 2 pm yesterday from the West AD informing him he wasn't getting the West job. The West AD calls Bryson to see if he's still interested in the job, which he was. The next thing you know the MSB is unanimously nominating Bryson for the job.

I'm not going to comment on whether Bryson or Gaudreau should be the West coach. The way the situation was handled was very questionable. The Manchester School District hasn't exactly had the best year for public relations with the Hillside situations, the Grace Sullivan pay out etc. It seems controversy leaves a constant trail in the MSD. The hiring situation of the new West coach just adds to the omnipresent controversy in the MSD. It's unfortunate that 2 viable candidates in Bryson and Gaudreau were put through the ringer in this hiring process. It's not fair to either one of them.

Well said, T&F

So.....does Gaudreau get an opportunity to go back to Bow???

I guess that depends on Bow, now.

That should be interesting to see how the Bow coaching scenario plays out. I'm still trying to understand who and on what grounds Gaudreau was "verbally" given the job if the MSB hadn't voted on the candidates yet. Someone seems to have not followed protocol in making Gaudreau comfortable that he had the West position sewn up. You should read a scathing comment just posted in the reader comment section of the story in the UL. Now you have family members and colleagues taking sides in the comment section of the UL for the 2 West coaching candidates. This is the residual effect of a royal screw up and again it's not fair to either coach.

I think that 88% of the time a committee's candidate is approved by a board.

Now, Manchester being Manchester ... I have NO idea why they wouldn't see that twelve percent as GLARING.

Tully, why do I have the same feeling of Manchester being Manchester as in Manny being Manny?

intersting...because Bow is returning a very good core group and will be considered one of the two or three favorites to win Class M next year, but a coaching change could gum the works up a bit.