David Preece: Whatever Joey Barton's ire is towards Sunderland his 'hoofball' comments smack of disrespect towards Phil Parkinson

One of Brian Wake’s (you’ll remember him from last week’s column) mantras is to “Control the controllables” and he’s right.

Of course you prepare for the problems the opposition is going to pose you but giving too much time to them, before and after the game, can be wasted energy. Particularly post game.

And even more so when you’re using them to push your personal agenda as Joey Barton did on Tuesday night.

Perhaps his comments will have endeared him to those who admire him for “telling it like it is” and “speaking his mind” but we all know people like that and rarely do you actually get reasoned debate from them.

“I say what I think and if you don’t like it, that’s your problem” – is the slogan they espouse, when in reality it’s their own biggest fault.

We know exactly how it will be explained, that it’s some home truths delivered as “banter” but a more honest reflection on the game was how most people saw it. A side happy to hang on to a goal advantage for eighty plus minutes and eventually succumbing to an equaliser scored in the time added on for time-wasting tactics.

This is all typical Joey though. I saw his team play at the SOL last season and was impressed by them but just when you think you can begin to give him credit for doing a good job and his team playing good football then the mask slips again and you lose interest.

Regardless of what we all think about the style of football employed at the moment and whatever his ire towards Sunderland as an ex-Newcastle United player his “hoofball” comments smack of disrespect towards a fellow manager.

Not only that, his comments are soaked in irony as the stats show, his team played more long balls than Parkinson’s Sunderland side.

I don’t even have a any criticisms of his tactics to sit back, frustrate by any means and try and hit Sunderland on the break but if that’s what you do then there’s no need to put a false moustache on it and dress it up when most watching it can see it for what it really was. Fleetwood were seconds away from, as Joey himself likened it to, the slaying of Goliath by David.

And when your team loses a late goal because your team didn’t want to keep the ball in play then you take it on the chin and move on.

There’s a classic line that we all live by, that we’re in the game to win and not to make friends, but if you make the headlines about yourself and the opposition, you’ve missed a chance to shine a light on your players and their performance.

Maybe that was the purpose of it all but for someone who professes to be unaffected by what others think of him, Sunderland seems to be his Kryptonite because he just can’t help himself from frothing over.

Sunderland as a fanbase is desperate for its team to do well and the reaction to rescuing a dramatic equaliser, no matter the opposition, would be celebrated the world over, so perhaps Joey’s comments on them means he wouldn’t allow such an exhibition of relief and joy as was on show.

As far as I’ve experienced, his interview has only drawn eye-rolls from everyone who watched it, momentarily turning the room in to zombies.

From what I have learnt, respect is a two way street.

To be received, it has to be given as well and like everything else in life, there are two sides to every narrative. The flip side of accusing another manager of adopting hoofball style tactics is a team not able to cope with such a basic approach.

As the season approaches the final strait, that Max Power goal was about more than just saving a point.

After a run of one win in twelve, Sunderland have now only one defeat in fifteen games, keeping Fleetwood three places below them and only three points to top spot.

No matter the size of your club, that’s something worth celebrating, I think. Here’s hoping we reach promotion by that one point then.