Steve Whitton says he has no fear of being given the sack as Colchester United's manager.
The U's boss said yesterday: "I'm sure it could happen, but I don't fear it. If you start worrying about things like that your mind is taken off the things you should be worried about.
"If I am going to be given the sack I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.
"But right now I'm concentrating solely on keeping Colchester United in the Second Division."
The first worrying signs that all might not be well for the U's manager came near the end of Saturday's shambolic defeat at Peterborough United.
A small group of his staunchest fans - the travelling away day U's supporters - unbelievably started chanting 'Whitton out' towards the end of the game.
It is the first time since Whitton took over from Mick Wadsworth in August 1999 that he has experienced any negative public support for his handling of team affairs.
In fact, the majority of fans' support is still firmly behind their manager who has done an unbelievable job in keeping the U's in the Second Division against all the odds playing against many other clubs who clearly have far more riches at their disposal.
Whitton said: "I'm sure there are some fans who would like to see me sacked. But I can rest my head on my pillow every night knowing that I've done the best job I can.
"A run which shows only one win in 13 games is of course very worrying and nobody worries about it more than me.
"Fans only want to see their team winning all the time and I fully understand that."
U's chief executive Marie Partner insisted the club has no intentions of sacking the manager.
She said: "The chairman and the board of directors fully support the job Steve is doing for the club. It's at times like this that we all rally round and help each other."
Whitton said that his attempts to sign West Ham's Norwegian defender Ragnvald Soma on loan have fallen on stony ground.
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Published Friday, March 15, 2002
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