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Post by Russ Greaves on Oct 16, 2022 13:46:11 GMT
A quite unremarkable game of football. We were a bit too predictable in the final third and never really had them worried. That doesn’t sound like the kind of thing that would offer much encouragement, and maybe it doesn’t, but I’m certainly not too discouraged after seeing that. The difference that one win will make in terms of confidence will be huge. I still don’t see this as a team that will be involved in a relegation battle come the end of the season. Cajones grandes. We’ll finish no lower than 15th and I’m willing to stake your reputation on it. Wouldn’t even hesitate to, in fact.
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Post by El Goodo on Oct 16, 2022 15:25:18 GMT
Some encouraging signs yesterday, some not so.
First the good: Simper looks like the real deal & could well be pushing May for a starting place by the end of the season. Him being so comfortable on the ball adds a totally different dimension to the midfield that none of the other 3 in there offer. His play is always positive & progressive, & his height & the fact that he's left-footed are added bonuses.
Nice to see us try something different in terms of the formation, although it's clear there's work needed if it's going to be something we do regularly. I'm not the biggest fan of 3/5 at the back personally as I think it often leaves you with far too much space in the channels, and it requires some quite specialised defensive roles for it to be effective. However, the extra men in the second third meant we had a much better grip of midfield than in many other games this season, which has generally been quite a big problem. Brophy had a good game but I do think him being in that position did limit his attacking freedom a little more than I'd have liked.
In general, it was a half-decent performance & hearing Bonner talk about it was, as ever, quite comforting. He can see exactly what's wrong & knows the players need a bit of nurturing rather than tough love at the minute.
The negatives: Well, those two goals... The biggest issue with the first is being caught out by the quick turnover & Taylor playing Gregory onside, rather than failing to deal with the ball itself. Immensely frustrating to again concede first, again concede an early goal & again it come from an individual error. The simple fact is we are too easy to score against at the moment & that makes us too easy to beat. Only 2 teams have conceded more than us now, & that is a very troubling statistic.
Surprised at the venom coming Mitov's way for the second; perhaps it wasn't obvious from most angles, but that finish took a massive deflection off Taylor which made for a hugely deceptive flight of the ball. Mitov had stepped and jumped anticipating exactly where it was going, but the nick off Taylor took all of the pace off it and sent it looping. It's a very unfortunate goal (yes, another one...) but we are in the habit of conceding both crap & also very unlucky goals at the moment. More pressure on the cross might have helped but there's not that much you can do with a deflection like that.
I agree that the 3 picked for the middle weren't the ones I'd have chosen, but I do understand why we did. Williams to wing-back and Okedina in on the right of the 3 would have made a lot more sense to me, personally, as would Jones being in the centre with Taylor on the left, but then I guess that lessens Jones' freedom to carry the ball forward. Long term if we're going to stick with that 3, I'd like to see Ibsen Rossi playing that central role. Lot to ask of a callow centre-back though.
Tracey had another shocker. I'll cut him a little slack because often he was left 2 on 1 & just expected to take on & beat 2 defenders by himself, as well as playing in a position he almost certainly hasn't played before... but he looked out of sorts in general & wasn't ever really in the game properly. As someone said above, I can understand why he was in there because he's capable of being an exciting and dangerous player, but he was well off it yesterday.
I don't think Knibbs was what we needed in the hole yesterday. At a time when we're clearly struggling creatively, we needed someone with better vision, passing and dribbling ability. Lankester really is well up for the scrap too so I don't think it's about his work ethic or the defensive part of his game. We were desperate for a bit more guile, control & nous in that part of the pitch. Ironside is having a tough time of things at the moment & given Bonner's comments yesterday I expect we'll see Okenabirhie start his first league game for us before October's out, & likely become a regular in the first XI by December, which can only be a good thing. Have said it elsewhere but he's a much better player than Ironside (with no disrespect for Joe & what he's achieved with us or can offer) & that different dimension is going to be important for us this season, increasingly so too.
Oh also, I've still not forgiven Smith for trying to score at the near post rather than squaring it to Ironside in the first half. Maybe I need to see it again, but at the time it looked an unbelievably selfish & a shockingly poor decision.
I don't think morale is an issue in this team, but it's clear this run has seen our confidence and belief ebb away somewhat, exacerbated by the nature (and timing) of the goals we're conceding. It's affecting how we defend as well as how we attack. We need the big players to stand up – Digby, Williams, Taylor, Jones, Ironside – and for the ones who are more comfortable on the ball to carry on showing it & being brave. That's Brophy, Simper (who it looks like we may see a fair amount of over the next month or 2), Lankester, Tracey & Smith.
The tide will turn, but even if that takes longer than we hope we simply have to dig in & make ourselves more difficult to beat. The soft goals put us on the back foot & change the complexion of the game. When you're struggling going forward, being required to force the issue makes things much harder.
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Post by mickbh on Oct 16, 2022 15:45:39 GMT
Take the rose tinted specs off. Can anyone honestly say that the quality of football/ entertainment/tactics in the last three home games has been better than Derry/ Calderwood ball?
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Post by El Goodo on Oct 16, 2022 15:47:04 GMT
I don't think anyone's arguing that we've been good, are they?
The quality of football is unquestionably higher in League 1 mind.
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nickpom
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Post by nickpom on Oct 16, 2022 15:50:02 GMT
Take the rose tinted specs off. Can anyone honestly say that the quality of football/ entertainment/tactics in the last three home games has been better than Derry/ Calderwood ball? Sorry, but that period was definitely worse - getting rinsed 4-0 at home by Stevenage and Salford is way worse than a pair of 2-0 defeats by Derby and Sheffield Wednesday. We were lucky to get nil in those days…
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laker
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Post by laker on Oct 16, 2022 15:50:38 GMT
Take the rose tinted specs off. Can anyone honestly say that the quality of football/ entertainment/tactics in the last three home games has been better than Derry/ Calderwood ball? No, but we weren’t playing Ipswich or Sheffield Wednesday when Derry or Calderwood were in charge.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2022 16:21:23 GMT
Take the rose tinted specs off. Can anyone honestly say that the quality of football/ entertainment/tactics in the last three home games has been better than Derry/ Calderwood ball? I'm absolutely NOT wearing rose-tinted specs but your comparison is nonsense. It's like judging a beautiful Palladian mansion by the two crap doors they've built into the back kitchen. I'll judge this season by our final league position, some really exciting matches to come, some really (more) tough matches to come and how Bonner reacts, adapts and shapes his approach. If you're really comparing our current period of disappointment to Derry/Calderwood then sorry, but with all respect, I really don't think you get how to support a football club.
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Dylan
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Post by Dylan on Oct 16, 2022 16:45:01 GMT
The biggest issue with the first is being caught out by the quick turnover & Taylor playing Gregory onside, rather than failing to deal with the ball itself. I do appreciate a poster who #reallyknowshisstuff. Of course he could have done far better with heading the ball, but I was starting to weight the quality of the ball into the Greg forgiveness column. Glad you have pointed out the root of the problem.
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imp566
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Post by imp566 on Oct 16, 2022 16:48:45 GMT
Cock up aside, Taylor has actually had a pretty solid game, and has made a couple of very important tackles to keep us in it. Don't go letting the facts ruin a bad reputation!
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vanni
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Post by vanni on Oct 16, 2022 17:07:05 GMT
Take the rose tinted specs off. Can anyone honestly say that the quality of football/ entertainment/tactics in the last three home games has been better than Derry/ Calderwood ball? No, but we weren’t playing Ipswich or Sheffield Wednesday when Derry or Calderwood were in charge. I believe it's my turn now to tell you to be fair No we weren't playing Weds and Ipswich but the League 1 squad we have these days is also of a higher standard than the L2 squads we had under D***y and Calderwood.
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laker
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Post by laker on Oct 16, 2022 17:30:33 GMT
No, but we weren’t playing Ipswich or Sheffield Wednesday when Derry or Calderwood were in charge. I believe it's my turn now to tell you to be fair No we weren't playing Weds and Ipswich but the League 1 squad we have these days is also of a higher standard than the L2 squads we had under D***y and Calderwood. This is true. :-) But I’d hazard a guess that our budget was similar to Stevenage’s when they beat us 4-0 that time whereas Wednesday spend several times what we do. There’s a much bigger gulf we’re trying to bridge.
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Post by amberisbackdrink on Oct 16, 2022 17:46:36 GMT
Did someone just bring up Derry and Calderwood? They didnt manage in League One and play against Ipswich, Sheffield Wednesday, Derby or Barnsley.
Derryball was one of the most miserable times for me as a cambridge fan alongside Martin Lings Thwee year plan. Lets not get despondent yet.
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imp566
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Post by imp566 on Oct 16, 2022 17:54:52 GMT
I would imagine that Paul Barry is delighted with the progress we have made under Bonner in the last few years and is more than happy to defer first team selection to him. We have to stop living in the past! I’m sure that Barry is far from delighted right now. Do yourself a favour! I am sure Paul Barry is as frustrated as any of us fans are, but I would expect he has more realistic expectations than some on here, yourself included. He is not one for a knee jerk reaction, that I am sure of. Despite our bad run of late, which everyone seems to universally recognise is a tough run of games against teams with high budgets and realistic promotion expectations, had we surprised the world and gained 3 points yesterday, we would have 19 points by now and sit in 10th place in the division. While that may say we have had a satisfactory start to the season, I look on it more that it is another example of what Bonner has said many times, this is a division of 3 parts, we just need to remain comfortable in the second section of that, which I am quite confident we will do, despite the recent run of results.
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Wingco's Boy
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Post by Wingco's Boy on Oct 16, 2022 18:12:38 GMT
We have to stop living in the past! I’m sure that Barry is far from delighted right now. Do yourself a favour! I am sure Paul Barry is as frustrated as any of us fans are, but I would expect he has more realistic expectations than some on here, yourself included. He is not one for a knee jerk reaction, that I am sure of. Despite our bad run of late, which everyone seems to universally recognise is a tough run of games against teams with high budgets and realistic promotion expectations, had we surprised the world and gained 3 points yesterday, we would have 19 points by now and sit in 10th place in the division. While that may say we have had a satisfactory start to the season, I look on it more that it is another example of what Bonner has said many times, this is a division of 3 parts, we just need to remain comfortable in the second section of that, which I am quite confident we will do, despite the recent run of results. Well, as long as you’re confident, we have nothing to worry about.
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imp566
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Post by imp566 on Oct 16, 2022 18:21:36 GMT
Do yourself a favour! I am sure Paul Barry is as frustrated as any of us fans are, but I would expect he has more realistic expectations than some on here, yourself included. He is not one for a knee jerk reaction, that I am sure of. Despite our bad run of late, which everyone seems to universally recognise is a tough run of games against teams with high budgets and realistic promotion expectations, had we surprised the world and gained 3 points yesterday, we would have 19 points by now and sit in 10th place in the division. While that may say we have had a satisfactory start to the season, I look on it more that it is another example of what Bonner has said many times, this is a division of 3 parts, we just need to remain comfortable in the second section of that, which I am quite confident we will do, despite the recent run of results. Well, as long as you’re confident, we have nothing to worry about. As far as I am concerned, negativity breeds negativity. I prefer to look at the positives and accentuate them, they are there. We will have an easier run of games after this tough run, judge the team in that spell, rather than knee jerk to results against teams that realistically we can't be expected to consistently compete with financially. For example, how many of our players do you think Sheff Weds could afford with just the salary of Barry Bannan? Those games are the test, not games against Ipswich, Derby, Sheff Weds an d dare I say it, Posh in a couple of weeks.
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