Best we have played in the past four games, including the wins against Hartlepool and Wycombe. There is just something missing though. A touch of class in midfield, a striker creating their own chances - just something.
Didnt miss Semedo in my opinion but by the same token Racon and Bailey did not do enough in the middle to dominate and dictate the play like the should. Wagstaff and especially Reid were big positives to me and although I'd give Reid the MOM - he had 4 chances to make a slide rule pass and went for glory himself instead.
Not a great point in the grand scheme or things and we will really need to pull out something special to go up automatically now. We just lack the cutting edge - everything up to that last 5% is there in my opinion.
[quote][cite]Posted By: Oggy Red[/cite][quote][cite]Posted By: Scoham[/cite]So do we need Semedo in the middle? Can we win without him there, or did we miss him?[/quote]
I think it's Clive Mendonca and Darren Bent that we miss.[/quote]
I think it's our current strikeforce that miss.....
just got back and am knackered, so just a short pioece now......longer to follow tomorrow.
Reid is class - been waiting ages for a player to run at defenders with the ball &shoot - unlucky not to score.
Midfield better with racon in it - again a player who can create something out of nothing and always willing to put his foot on it.
Bailey went misssig tonight - maybe had to sit a bit deeper to let racon play,
All we need now is a striker who knows where the goal is - don't belive Burton has scored in open play since xmas also-so prefer Sodje to Mooney......the ahgain I'd prefer Leaburn to Mooney !
Flipping dreadful that we can't just put the ball in the net, nothing wrong with the balls in the box and the build up, at times tonight we just needed a centre forward to gamble, were a couple of tap-ins that went begging. Walsall were there for the taking.
Dunno how Bailey went missing, couple of his scything passes second half to set up attacks out wide were Premiership class, Reid is class but unfortunately he knows it and has very little intention to give a simple ball. Wants to do everything himself (and probably will manage it sooner or later he's that good on the ball).
Awful pitch, but no excuses - it's the playoffs for us now. We are just not good enough in front of goal. Good game for Reid, fair game for Solly, another non-event for Leon.
What Ledge said. Without a goalscorer in our side, we're going to struggle.
The problem is :
Colchester have Lisbie Millwall have Harris and Morrison Swindon have Paynter and Austin Southampton have Lambert
etc etc
Whoever we play in the play offs, becauase WE WILL NOT GO UP IN AUTOMATIC PROMOTION (and you can quote me whenever you like), will have a goalscorer, that over the two legs, will be the difference between us and them
we've scored more than leeds,millwall,swindon and southampton.these clubs are probably all moaning that they are too reliant on just one player. i think only norwich have scored more than us
9 games without a clean sheet means there's too much burden on our strike force anyway ....
it's not working at the moment but we have a good buffer points wise between us and 7th spot and WE WILL BE IN THE PLAY-OFFS (and you can quote me whenever you like)
we've got time on our side to sort it out .... parky can juggle the pack and get us playing better as a team cos at the moment it isn't working
just seen the snippet on sky and apko was unlucky with a couple of chances ... who won the penalty apko or racon , looked a bit of a tame decision to me thankfully and i think robbie might have done better in stopping walsalls header instead of going down in instalments to it
Was theatrical but an utterly stupid tackle by their defender. If Akpo can get the intensity he starts the game with lasting for 75-80 minutes then he can be a threat. Not a big enough threat for automatics but a threat all the same.
We need a striker who can create a chance for themselves or one out of nothing.
Looking down the table rather than up now.
if we don't get enough points at millwall, huddersfield, mk dons and swindon, then by the time we entertain colchester, leeds and norwich, we may need to win them to stay in the play off positions.
Could be a massive boo fest.
Commentator ( not HER! ) said he had been looking forward to seeing Bailey but was disappointed and Baileys set piece kicks came in for some critiscism, wasted opportunities etc. Were these comments correct?
I felt Akpo offered very little last night but then thinking back on the game during on the drive home, the service offered to ur front 2 was a hopefull punt down the throat of a 6 ft 8 centre half. Reid looks good can beat a man just needs to think a little more on his final decesions. i.e dont always shoot!!
Richardson looks a bit low on confidence since he came back and i think mr burton could do with a week or 2 off.
For me akpo and mckenzie saturday pace and power
That's a bunch of easier games that we've had: Milwall, Swindon (although they're on a good run now), Brentford, Leyton, Walsall, Hartlepool, Tranmere, Wycombe and we've managed only two shaky wins. There's much tougher games ahead. I don't doubt we've got the squad that could get an automatic place, but then again we had a squad that was easily good enough to stay up last year, so I've given up taken anything for granted. I think we need to keep an eye over our shoulder.
Would echo the thoughts of others who were there last night. We played quite well overall, restricting Walsall to a handful of chances and dominating posession. We got lots and lots of balls into the box - Solly and Reid were the main reason for this but Waggy played his part as did Sam late on. Richardson's radar was way out of calibration though, he barely played an accurate pass all night. Unfortunately, they scored with basically their one clear chance and we just couldn't get a clean connection on one of the many crosses we got in, partly due to strikers not being sharp enough and partly due to some resolute defending by Walsall.
Akpo struggled to make any real impact imo, his touch can be as bad as Dickson's at times, but he was being marked by an absolute monster in McDonald (incidently, I thought he was lucky not to go as well for a second bookable). I know not many will agree, but I actually think Mooney might have benefited last night, as I'd still say he's most likely to make that 'goalscorers' run and find that bit of space in the box. There was one absolute belter of a cross by Reid which arced across the edge of the 6 yard box and was just begging to be put away, but evaded everyone as no-one had anticipated it.
Credit to Walsall though, they worked extremely hard and always seemed to get a toe in or get a body in the way - they did make it hard for us. Encouragingly we worked very hard in return and I agree with Parky that the intensity was back in our play last night. The lack of goals is becoming a worry, but I think last night was a bit of 'one of those nights', trouble is we let ourselves down against Orient and Tranmere so we've put unecessary pressure on ourselves to get big points away from home.
Still, I would expect Swindon to open up against us a bit more than Walsall and if we replecate the work rate and get as many balls into dangerous areas, I'd expect there to be a bit more space for us to try and exploit. With Waggy, Reid, Racon and Akpo, we certainly have enough pace and ball carrying ability to be threat on the counter.
cant fault effort but our decision making is awful.Can someone please tell Bailey to feck off when we get a free kick outside the box,all he does is try to blast it,it hasn't worked for months now surely we have 1 player who could try and curl it round or over the wall.Disappointed when Sam came on as I thought waggy was doing very well,ditto with bourne on richardson,omusuzi looks a better bet for me at present.Very impressed with solly,found his substitution weird as Basey offered nothing.
[cite]Posted By: stilladdicted[/cite]Commentator ( not HER! ) said he had been looking forward to seeing Bailey but was disappointed and Baileys set piece kicks came in for some critiscism, wasted opportunities etc. Were these comments correct?
I thought Bailey was better than against Tranmere - seemed to be thinking a bit more about what he was doing. It wasn't vintage Bailey, but he didn't have an especially bad game either. The comment about the set pieces is probably a fair one though - he was over hitting a lot of them, but he wasn't alone in that.
Reid took a lot of the corners and they were generally fairly decent, although Basey still looks our best dead ball specialist - Solly looked a much better full back though. I was impressed with young Chris, actually, and he wasn't afraid to get to the byline and wrap his left foot around the ball, despite being a right footer naturally.
[cite]Posted By: northstandsteve[/cite]found his substitution weird as Basey offered nothing.
We were getting a lot of corners and free kicks at the time, I think Basey was chucked on in the hope he'd produce a killer dead ball.
That's what I guessed from listening to the commentary. With no Shelvey or Basey we have no obvious set
piece taker, though Reid might be decent. Apart from the occasional free kick I don't rate Bailey's set pieces.
Good to know Solly did well, especially out of his best position.
Feeling rather down today with the prospect of Swindon on the horizon.
I'm very much a " get behind the lads, they can do it " type of supporter but something's definitely missing at the moment out there on the pitch. Obvious answer is lack of a genuine striker, of course as others have rightly pointed out but for me, it's more than that.
Thought Bailey had a very quiet game and Richardson had a 'mare. But, for the second match running, Reidy was MOM for me and let's hope there's more to come from him. Pleased to see Solly in for Basey who worries me somewhat and Racon for Semedo , albeit on a heavy pitch which doesn't suit his style normally. But felt the midfield wasn't strong enough as a result...Lots of decisions for Parky to make before Saturday...
Solly probably got took off due to the fact he hasnt had a full 90 for god knows how long and with the pitch the way it was he may have been tiring. Having said that he gave a good account and put in some decent balls with his swinger
for me from the 45 mins i saw the best thing to emerge is Waggy gets more confident with every game he plays apart from Millwall he does done very well.And Solly looked very good to more youngsters to look forward to watching.I think whether people like it or not we are going to have to get used to the fact this is where we will be getting our players from and this is our level as I feel we are going to come up a little short.Dailly seems tired to me and is getting caught for pace more and more often,and this is not a critisms as i really admired his attitude.
Frustrating night but couldn't knock their commitment.
Bumped into Reid at the Bexleyheath Marriot when we got home. Had a quick chat and he seemed like a decent bloke (fit bird too!) Said how frustrated they were not too win but happy overall with the performance.
[cite]Posted By: northstandsteve[/cite]cant fault effort but our decision making is awful.Can someone please tell Bailey to feck off when we get a free kick outside the box,all he does is try to blast it,it hasn't worked for months now surely we have 1 player who could try and curl it round or over the wall.Disappointed when Sam came on as I thought waggy was doing very well,ditto with bourne on richardson,omusuzi looks a better bet for me at present.Very impressed with solly,found his substitution weird as Basey offered nothing.
Waggy got a crunching tackle which made him limp around. He went off 3 minutes after that.
If we had played on a decent pitch last night, we would have scored more in my opinion. Passes and shots were being over hit because of the bad pitch. Ok, it is the same for both sides however Walsall have the advantage that they play on pitches like these every week. I really do think that's part of the reason why it is so hard for a club our size and pedigree to get out of this division, hence you see EPL teams often stuggle in cup matches away at these places. Very surprised that only 3,100 turned up at Walsall as 450 + were our support.
Comments
Best we have played in the past four games, including the wins against Hartlepool and Wycombe. There is just something missing though. A touch of class in midfield, a striker creating their own chances - just something.
Didnt miss Semedo in my opinion but by the same token Racon and Bailey did not do enough in the middle to dominate and dictate the play like the should. Wagstaff and especially Reid were big positives to me and although I'd give Reid the MOM - he had 4 chances to make a slide rule pass and went for glory himself instead.
Not a great point in the grand scheme or things and we will really need to pull out something special to go up automatically now. We just lack the cutting edge - everything up to that last 5% is there in my opinion.
I think it's Clive Mendonca and Darren Bent that we miss.[/quote]
I think it's our current strikeforce that miss.....
Reid is class - been waiting ages for a player to run at defenders with the ball &shoot - unlucky not to score.
Midfield better with racon in it - again a player who can create something out of nothing and always willing to put his foot on it.
Bailey went misssig tonight - maybe had to sit a bit deeper to let racon play,
All we need now is a striker who knows where the goal is - don't belive Burton has scored in open play since xmas also-so prefer Sodje to Mooney......the ahgain I'd prefer Leaburn to Mooney !
Dunno how Bailey went missing, couple of his scything passes second half to set up attacks out wide were Premiership class, Reid is class but unfortunately he knows it and has very little intention to give a simple ball. Wants to do everything himself (and probably will manage it sooner or later he's that good on the ball).
Good game for Reid, fair game for Solly, another non-event for Leon.
norwich have holt
both over 20 goals therein lies the problem simple AS THAT.
The problem is :
Colchester have Lisbie
Millwall have Harris and Morrison
Swindon have Paynter and Austin
Southampton have Lambert
etc etc
Whoever we play in the play offs, becauase WE WILL NOT GO UP IN AUTOMATIC PROMOTION (and you can quote me whenever you like), will have a goalscorer, that over the two legs, will be the difference between us and them
how many clean sheets have we had lately?
it's not working at the moment but we have a good buffer points wise between us and 7th spot and WE WILL BE IN THE PLAY-OFFS (and you can quote me whenever you like)
we've got time on our side to sort it out .... parky can juggle the pack and get us playing better as a team cos at the moment it isn't working
looking more and more likely the play offs now though, 3 games without a win against average/poor sides.
Was theatrical but an utterly stupid tackle by their defender. If Akpo can get the intensity he starts the game with lasting for 75-80 minutes then he can be a threat. Not a big enough threat for automatics but a threat all the same.
We need a striker who can create a chance for themselves or one out of nothing.
Still think we look more dangerous away from home with a 4-5-1 system and Bailey pushing forward, didnt think he played well last night.
Reid is looking a good move, class above this level, one ball in the second half was perfect for someone to throw themselves at but nobody did.
Came away dissapointed.
if we don't get enough points at millwall, huddersfield, mk dons and swindon, then by the time we entertain colchester, leeds and norwich, we may need to win them to stay in the play off positions.
Could be a massive boo fest.
Richardson looks a bit low on confidence since he came back and i think mr burton could do with a week or 2 off.
For me akpo and mckenzie saturday pace and power
Akpo struggled to make any real impact imo, his touch can be as bad as Dickson's at times, but he was being marked by an absolute monster in McDonald (incidently, I thought he was lucky not to go as well for a second bookable). I know not many will agree, but I actually think Mooney might have benefited last night, as I'd still say he's most likely to make that 'goalscorers' run and find that bit of space in the box. There was one absolute belter of a cross by Reid which arced across the edge of the 6 yard box and was just begging to be put away, but evaded everyone as no-one had anticipated it.
Credit to Walsall though, they worked extremely hard and always seemed to get a toe in or get a body in the way - they did make it hard for us. Encouragingly we worked very hard in return and I agree with Parky that the intensity was back in our play last night. The lack of goals is becoming a worry, but I think last night was a bit of 'one of those nights', trouble is we let ourselves down against Orient and Tranmere so we've put unecessary pressure on ourselves to get big points away from home.
Still, I would expect Swindon to open up against us a bit more than Walsall and if we replecate the work rate and get as many balls into dangerous areas, I'd expect there to be a bit more space for us to try and exploit. With Waggy, Reid, Racon and Akpo, we certainly have enough pace and ball carrying ability to be threat on the counter.
I thought Bailey was better than against Tranmere - seemed to be thinking a bit more about what he was doing. It wasn't vintage Bailey, but he didn't have an especially bad game either. The comment about the set pieces is probably a fair one though - he was over hitting a lot of them, but he wasn't alone in that.
Reid took a lot of the corners and they were generally fairly decent, although Basey still looks our best dead ball specialist - Solly looked a much better full back though. I was impressed with young Chris, actually, and he wasn't afraid to get to the byline and wrap his left foot around the ball, despite being a right footer naturally.
We were getting a lot of corners and free kicks at the time, I think Basey was chucked on in the hope he'd produce a killer dead ball.
piece taker, though Reid might be decent. Apart from the occasional free kick I don't rate Bailey's set pieces.
Good to know Solly did well, especially out of his best position.
I'm very much a " get behind the lads, they can do it " type of supporter but something's definitely missing at the moment out there on the pitch. Obvious answer is lack of a genuine striker, of course as others have rightly pointed out but for me, it's more than that.
Thought Bailey had a very quiet game and Richardson had a 'mare. But, for the second match running, Reidy was MOM for me and let's hope there's more to come from him. Pleased to see Solly in for Basey who worries me somewhat and Racon for Semedo , albeit on a heavy pitch which doesn't suit his style normally. But felt the midfield wasn't strong enough as a result...Lots of decisions for Parky to make before Saturday...
Saw you going out before halftime...Did you miss our penalty ? If so, please can you make it a regular event ...!
Bumped into Reid at the Bexleyheath Marriot when we got home. Had a quick chat and he seemed like a decent bloke (fit bird too!) Said how frustrated they were not too win but happy overall with the performance.
Waggy got a crunching tackle which made him limp around. He went off 3 minutes after that.