I think Wilson's a player still developing. When he was first with us he was all pace and not a lot else and his release wasn't that much of a surprise, even though it disappointed me at the time. Since then he's had a lot of time to try and develop his game at a much lower level, and now I think he'll benefit from a higher standard of coaching. He's worked very hard to get to this point and I think over the course of the season we'll see a more confident and complete player. All the natural attributes are there, the facilities are there and he seems to have the right attitude towards hard work and improving so I reckon we'll be very pleased with him by the end of te season, assuming he continues to get a decent amount of game time
Could agree with that. He does come across as a hard working professional. I was very critical of him on the post palace thread and I still stand by the fact he isn't champ standard RB and may even struggle as a L1 RB. If pushed into midfield we may see a better player and the one tht done so well at stevenage. I can only see him as a squad player for the next couple of seasons personally, altho cant complain too much with hard working back ups.
Sorry to have the raise the issue of the football match as opposed to bashing our right back, numbers of posts and personal vendettas but two questions for those that were there....
How did Stephens perform in a 2 man midfield? Will we get overrun by stronger teams like Blackburn and Blackpool (or any other B teams) with two wingers and no hitmen in the middle?
Sorry to have the raise the issue of the football match as opposed to bashing our right back, numbers of posts and personal vendettas but two questions for those that were there....
How did Stephens perform in a 2 man midfield? Will we get overrun by stronger teams like Blackburn and Blackpool (or any other B teams) with two wingers and no hitmen in the middle?
Stephens did very well. He and JJ won the ball repeatedly in midfield and moved it quickly. Stephens also showed great energy in supporting the front wo. He always seemed to be available and willing to receive the ball.
I think we may struggle against Blackpool but Blackurn, well it depends which Blackburn show up. Dale & JJ make a good duo and having wingers gives them a better outlet than the more narrow formation.
I always give new players a chance and really want them to succeed. I want Wilson to do well, but in the second half yesterday, when he was right in front of us, I was concerned whenever a Town player ran at him. Some players will give him a torrid time this season.
Wilson had a dodgy start. Ipswich started with Lee Martin on their left, and obviously targeted him as a weakness. Martin beat him for pace and cut inside him on a couple of occasions and he was struggling. But as always with Martin, all speed and no end product. The service to Martin then dried up as we got on top in midfield and for some reason, Jewell switched Martin to the right against Solly, after which he disappeared, nicely contained.
Wilson then settled down and got better as the game went on.
Wilson is obviously better going forward than defending. He is now playing at a higher level than he has ever done before and is probably still adjusting. At the moment he looks half-a-yard short of pace, looks weak on his left foot and often has a poor starting position in his positional play. However, he may improve with experience at this level and don't forget he is essentially a squad player filling-in.
Reverting to a standard 4-4-2 gave him protection in front, from Green and Pritchard late on, an obvious weakness in the diamond system. He benefitted from that and also got forward to join in the build-up on a number of occasions with late supporting runs outside the right midfielder.
Sorry to have the raise the issue of the football match as opposed to bashing our right back, numbers of posts and personal vendettas but two questions for those that were there....
How did Stephens perform in a 2 man midfield? Will we get overrun by stronger teams like Blackburn and Blackpool (or any other B teams) with two wingers and no hitmen in the middle?
Stephens and Jackson lack balance as a central midfield partnership. They are very similar in style, good passing ability and very good in possession. However both have "slow feet" and are not particularly quick around midfield. They will struggle against quick nippy opponents who pick up the second ball. They will need to dominate possession to be effective, which they did for long spells of the game yesterday, allowing them to dictate the tempo & pattern of the play.
Blackburn played 4-2-3-1 the other night, with Murphy & Etuhu as the central partnership. They play in a similar style to Stephens/Jackson, so I wouldn't expect them to be overrun, although picking up Nuno Gomes in behind Rhodes might be a problem. We'll have a look at Blackpool tomorrow night on Sky.
Sorry to have the raise the issue of the football match as opposed to bashing our right back, numbers of posts and personal vendettas but two questions for those that were there....
How did Stephens perform in a 2 man midfield? Will we get overrun by stronger teams like Blackburn and Blackpool (or any other B teams) with two wingers and no hitmen in the middle?
Stephens and Jackson lack balance as a central midfield partnership. They are very similar in style, good passing ability and very good in possession. However both have "slow feet" and are not particularly quick around midfield. They will struggle against quick nippy opponents who pick up the second ball. They will need to dominate possession to be effective, which they did for long spells of the game yesterday, allowing them to dictate the tempo & pattern of the play.
Blackburn played 4-2-3-1 the other night, with Murphy & Etuhu as the central partnership. They play in a similar style to Stephens/Jackson, so I wouldn't expect them to be overrun, although picking up Nuno Gomes in behind Rhodes might be a problem. We'll have a look at Blackpool tomorrow night on Sky.
Rare sober game for me as I was the designated driver.
We all got in on kids tickets easily, so glad we didn't pay £34.
Can't believe we had more misfortune go our way, with that deflected goal. I think we would have been a lot more comfortable, rather than the nail biting hanging on we had to endure.
Morrisson was standout and Fuller was a big difference. Took his goal well and always seemed to have time and calm things down. Good that he managed 90mins too.
Midfield much improved and we looked a more balanced team as a result.
Wish our players would carry the ball more when in possession, rather than always looking for an immediate pass, they should move into the space with it, thus pulling opposition players out of position a bit more.
Lastly that was actually my first visit to Ipswich. Decent easy away day and probably the friendliest stewards and ob I've come accross. Decent away end where you can make some decent noise, even with a small ageing away support like ours
I see Henry is trying to promote negative thinking by bumping the Derby thread ! lol Seriously though, look at the language on both... let's be thankful we picked up three points ... and that I didn't go to Derby... Can't wait for next game ... hopefully Kermorgant back but will he start?
I see Henry is trying to promote negative thinking by bumping the Derby thread ! lol Seriously though, look at the language on both... let's be thankful we picked up three points ... and that I didn't go to Derby... Can't wait for next game ... hopefully Kermorgant back but will he start?
Do not want to burst any ones bubble, but I was there and we beat a rubbish team, with the exception of there numbers 14 and 18 up front who gave us a lot of problems. If we play football as poor as that against Blackburn then the team will loose 3 nil. But at least we got 3pts and found a team worst than us, now need to find two others.
We should celebrate our victories as much as we smother ourselves in doom and gloom. Having read most if the thread I don't think any one is suggesting we have become world beaters over night but some including me were wondering where the next point was to come from and a good performance against any team is something to celebrate. We can get back to the usual doom and gloom if things don't turn out positive next week. Meanwhile LLLH
But - and I'm certainly one who celebrated yesterday's victory and felt we fully deserved to win - msomerton has a point - Ipswich were poor and for long periods in the game (particularly first half) we were not tight enough when not in possession with Scotland, in particular, being given too much space to turn and shoot - a better forward would have taken one of the many chances he had.
Do not want to burst any ones bubble, but I was there and we beat a rubbish team, with the exception of there numbers 14 and 18 up front who gave us a lot of problems. If we play football as poor as that against Blackburn then the team will loose 3 nil. But at least we got 3pts and found a team worst than us, now need to find two others.
We should celebrate our victories as much as we smother ourselves in doom and gloom. Having read most if the thread I don't think any one is suggesting we have become world beaters over night but some including me were wondering where the next point was to come from and a good performance against any team is something to celebrate. We can get back to the usual doom and gloom if things don't turn out positive next week. Meanwhile LLLH
But - and I'm certainly one who celebrated yesterday's victory and felt we fully deserved to win - msomerton has a point - Ipswich were poor and for long periods in the game (particularly first half) we were not tight enough when not in possession with Scotland, in particular, being given too much space to turn and shoot - a better forward would have taken one of the many chances he had.
Maybe we are still at a crossroads , rather than having turned a corner. Maybe 1 swallow doesn't make a summer, Maybe it is still 'Early days'
But I most certainly am not going to rain on our Bonfire.
As I said on the player marks, Stephens will give the ball away more than any other player, but that's because he is our play maker, and will be making the most passes in our team, so therefore he will give the ball away, it's expected
from the commentary I remember often hearing "Stephens gives the ball away" now if he does that against a good team we will get punished
This remains a major flaw in Stephens' game. It frustrates the hell out of me that he has good vision and technique but at least half a dozen times a game misplaces simple passes. There's no excuse for any player making some of the passing errors I've seen from him, let alone one whos passing is supposed to be his best asset. He remains a player with potential but I agree he could be a bit of a liability against the best teams.
I still hope we sign NRC and JJ can build on his performance yesterday.
Fair enough. I thought he played well. And as Greenie said, he gives the ball away more than say JJ because he's trying to create more. He is on the ball a lot though and completes a lot of passes.
from the commentary I remember often hearing "Stephens gives the ball away" now if he does that against a good team we will get punished
This remains a major flaw in Stephens' game. It frustrates the hell out of me that he has good vision and technique but at least half a dozen times a game misplaces simple passes. There's no excuse for any player making some of the passing errors I've seen from him, let alone one whos passing is supposed to be his best asset. He remains a player with potential but I agree he could be a bit of a liability against the best teams.
I still hope we sign NRC and JJ can build on his performance yesterday.
If he wasn't prone to these errors we wouldn't have been able to pick him up in league 1. A bigger club would have him.
from the commentary I remember often hearing "Stephens gives the ball away" now if he does that against a good team we will get punished
This remains a major flaw in Stephens' game. It frustrates the hell out of me that he has good vision and technique but at least half a dozen times a game misplaces simple passes. There's no excuse for any player making some of the passing errors I've seen from him, let alone one whos passing is supposed to be his best asset. He remains a player with potential but I agree he could be a bit of a liability against the best teams.
I still hope we sign NRC and JJ can build on his performance yesterday.
If he wasn't prone to these errors we wouldn't have been able to pick him up in league 1. A bigger club would have him.
And come January, as CP has already hinted, he may well be on his way. Chuffed that we won and the good news came as a welcome respite from the gloom.
from the commentary I remember often hearing "Stephens gives the ball away" now if he does that against a good team we will get punished
This remains a major flaw in Stephens' game. It frustrates the hell out of me that he has good vision and technique but at least half a dozen times a game misplaces simple passes. There's no excuse for any player making some of the passing errors I've seen from him, let alone one whos passing is supposed to be his best asset. He remains a player with potential but I agree he could be a bit of a liability against the best teams.
I still hope we sign NRC and JJ can build on his performance yesterday.
If he wasn't prone to these errors we wouldn't have been able to pick him up in league 1. A bigger club would have him.
True but we're in the Championship now and standards have risen. What was excusable last season isn't necessarily this year. I just see the sloppy passing as a serious flaw for the type of player he is. Not saying he's overall a poor player, just saying it's an area he should be tightening up on by now because I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a playmaker to nearly always find a teammate when making short passes.
If the majestic Kermorgant looks like losing his place to Fuller then Stephens definitely shouldn't be beyond being dropped.
Dale Stephens is 22 years old. He is only going to get better. There is no-one on the books who passes as well as him and to sign a decent replacemnent would cost money we don't have.
My first away game of the season, and how nice to be at 'decent ' clubs again, £34 was a ripoff though, and poor legroom, but a nice awayday in a proper town centre ground. Their programme was good, much larger than ours for the same money, and a decent interview with Lawrie Wilson in which he mentioned how longer term he wants to establish himself at RB, despite being more experienced in midfield.
Ipswich were very poor, you sense the feeling of decline we had in our relegation season 4 years ago, and looking at their team and squad I didn't see much quality. Scotland had lots of shots, but all off target, he needed a flukey deflection to get his goal.
Greenie is right. Stephens' job is to pass the ball both short and long, to make the play and take a few chances with his distribution. I sat right next to the Charlton dugout and was keeping a close ear and eye on what the management team were doing. Constantly telling the players to keep it simple and pass it simple. Lots of encouragement and cajoling. They were telling Stephens to mix it up. Play short passes but when he could to look for BWP in the channels and turn their centre backs.
Comments
Sorry to have the raise the issue of the football match as opposed to bashing our right back, numbers of posts and personal vendettas but two questions for those that were there....
How did Stephens perform in a 2 man midfield?
Will we get overrun by stronger teams like Blackburn and Blackpool (or any other B teams) with two wingers and no hitmen in the middle?
I think we may struggle against Blackpool but Blackurn, well it depends which Blackburn show up. Dale & JJ make a good duo and having wingers gives them a better outlet than the more narrow formation.
Wilson then settled down and got better as the game went on.
Wilson is obviously better going forward than defending. He is now playing at a higher level than he has ever done before and is probably still adjusting. At the moment he looks half-a-yard short of pace, looks weak on his left foot and often has a poor starting position in his positional play. However, he may improve with experience at this level and don't forget he is essentially a squad player filling-in.
Reverting to a standard 4-4-2 gave him protection in front, from Green and Pritchard late on, an obvious weakness in the diamond system. He benefitted from that and also got forward to join in the build-up on a number of occasions with late supporting runs outside the right midfielder.
Blackburn played 4-2-3-1 the other night, with Murphy & Etuhu as the central partnership. They play in a similar style to Stephens/Jackson, so I wouldn't expect them to be overrun, although picking up Nuno Gomes in behind Rhodes might be a problem. We'll have a look at Blackpool tomorrow night on Sky.
Rare sober game for me as I was the designated driver.
We all got in on kids tickets easily, so glad we didn't pay £34.
Can't believe we had more misfortune go our way, with that deflected goal. I think we would have been a lot more comfortable, rather than the nail biting hanging on we had to endure.
Morrisson was standout and Fuller was a big difference. Took his goal well and always seemed to have time and calm things down. Good that he managed 90mins too.
Midfield much improved and we looked a more balanced team as a result.
Wish our players would carry the ball more when in possession, rather than always looking for an immediate pass, they should move into the space with it, thus pulling opposition players out of position a bit more.
Lastly that was actually my first visit to Ipswich. Decent easy away day and probably the friendliest stewards and ob I've come accross. Decent away end where you can make some decent noise, even with a small ageing away support like ours
Seriously though, look at the language on both... let's be thankful we picked up three points ... and that I didn't go to Derby...
Can't wait for next game ... hopefully Kermorgant back but will he start?
Maybe 1 swallow doesn't make a summer,
Maybe it is still 'Early days'
But I most certainly am not going to rain on our Bonfire.
(How many more cliches can i fit in? ) :-0
I still hope we sign NRC and JJ can build on his performance yesterday.
If the majestic Kermorgant looks like losing his place to Fuller then Stephens definitely shouldn't be beyond being dropped.
My first away game of the season, and how nice to be at 'decent ' clubs again, £34 was a ripoff though, and poor legroom, but a nice awayday in a proper town centre ground. Their programme was good, much larger than ours for the same money, and a decent interview with Lawrie Wilson in which he mentioned how longer term he wants to establish himself at RB, despite being more experienced in midfield.
Ipswich were very poor, you sense the feeling of decline we had in our relegation season 4 years ago, and looking at their team and squad I didn't see much quality. Scotland had lots of shots, but all off target, he needed a flukey deflection to get his goal.