Lets talk about the Harrogate game

[Thorney]

It amazes me the amount of professional footballers who can't pass a ball back to the thrower from a throwing successfully

We must be one of the worst, if not the worst teams in the league for either giving the ball away, or having no idea of finding space to receive a throw. Absolutely clueless & needs sorting on the training ground.

Think every team are just as bad with throw ins as we are in this league. It is just a poor standard of football with league 2 quality players. Its just that we see it more from rovers because thats the team we watch every week.

Only time we could retain ball from a throw, in recent times was when we had Tomlin on the pitch, he had the class and vision to pick a player out without even looking. But skill and vision he was championship class, just a shame his body wasnt.

[Lesonthewest]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

[GazLaz]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

That probably sums up this whole situation Les. A player that had been a bit of an X Factor, talisman for the best part of 20 years retires and we didn’t even have a plan in place to either nurture his replacement prior to retiring or hunt down a player of the same ilk to replace him and fill the (potential) black hole he would leave. If that’s not the biggest indication of all that the club is pretty clueless I don’t know what is. We had years to prepare! A decent wage off the books when he left. Zero excuse for that shit show. More interested in making a documentary about him (what ever happened to that!!) than finding someone to fill the footballing void.   

[Chris Black come back]

It's gone way past just been unlucky with appointed a few duff managers now. You look around at so many other clubs who have a clear plan and structure, and they are light years ahead of us. Ferguson did the media ahead of their Leeds game today and they reckon they have a £5m player in one of their centre backs. McAnthony has less cash than Terry but they are a million miles in front of us in signing young talent and monetising this, time and time again.

We did I think manage to outspend a lot of clubs for a while but the last 10 years that has withered away and we're still stuck in the dark ages as a club with a plan. Are Rotherham, Barnsley or Peterborough any bigger than we are? Maybe a bit but nothing that justifies our position scraping barrel of the 92 and with a long hill back to credibility let alone promotion.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

That probably sums up this whole situation Les. A player that had been a bit of an X Factor, talisman for the best part of 20 years retires and we didn’t even have a plan in place to either nurture his replacement prior to retiring or hunt down a player of the same ilk to replace him and fill the (potential) black hole he would leave. If that’s not the biggest indication of all that the club is pretty clueless I don’t know what is. We had years to prepare! A decent wage off the books when he left. Zero excuse for that shit show. More interested in making a documentary about him (what ever happened to that!!) than finding someone to fill the footballing void.   

Please tell us how you go about 'planning' to replace a player who developed over time under a number of different managers?

The Coppinger who signed wasn't anywhere near the player, the man, he became and nobody could ever say he would fulfil what he became, particularly in those early seasons when at times he was like a little boy lost on the wing, barely contributing, ellegedly on the verge of being loaned out to Rotherham.

Years to prepare? How many scouts, managers, coaches  are currently trying to identify and recruit teenagers who could  become club legends? 

[pib]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

That probably sums up this whole situation Les. A player that had been a bit of an X Factor, talisman for the best part of 20 years retires and we didn’t even have a plan in place to either nurture his replacement prior to retiring or hunt down a player of the same ilk to replace him and fill the (potential) black hole he would leave. If that’s not the biggest indication of all that the club is pretty clueless I don’t know what is. We had years to prepare! A decent wage off the books when he left. Zero excuse for that shit show. More interested in making a documentary about him (what ever happened to that!!) than finding someone to fill the footballing void.   

Please tell us how you go about 'planning' to replace a player who developed over time under a number of different managers?

The Coppinger who signed wasn't anywhere near the player, the man, he became and nobody could ever say he would fulfil what he became, particularly in those early seasons when at times he was like a little boy lost on the wing, barely contributing, ellegedly on the verge of being loaned out to Rotherham.

Years to prepare? How many scouts, managers, coaches  are currently trying to identify and recruit teenagers who could  become club legends?

I don't think it's about scouting someone who can become a club legend. That's not really an output you look for. It's about scouting someone who can play a similar role on the pitch - being a technically good footballer who can create. It's not as if Coppinger is the only player ever who can do so.

He played for us all through his 30s, we must have known that he would retire at some point, yet the closest we ever came to replacing him was Taylor Richards, who was on loan and never likely to sign permanently unless we got in the Championship.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

That probably sums up this whole situation Les. A player that had been a bit of an X Factor, talisman for the best part of 20 years retires and we didn’t even have a plan in place to either nurture his replacement prior to retiring or hunt down a player of the same ilk to replace him and fill the (potential) black hole he would leave. If that’s not the biggest indication of all that the club is pretty clueless I don’t know what is. We had years to prepare! A decent wage off the books when he left. Zero excuse for that shit show. More interested in making a documentary about him (what ever happened to that!!) than finding someone to fill the footballing void.   

Please tell us how you go about 'planning' to replace a player who developed over time under a number of different managers?

The Coppinger who signed wasn't anywhere near the player, the man, he became and nobody could ever say he would fulfil what he became, particularly in those early seasons when at times he was like a little boy lost on the wing, barely contributing, ellegedly on the verge of being loaned out to Rotherham.

Years to prepare? How many scouts, managers, coaches  are currently trying to identify and recruit teenagers who could  become club legends?

I don't think it's about scouting someone who can become a club legend. That's not really an output you look for. It's about scouting someone who can play a similar role on the pitch - being a technically good footballer who can create. It's not as if Coppinger is the only player ever who can do so.

He played for us all through his 30s, we must have known that he would retire at some point, yet the closest we ever came to replacing him was Taylor Richards, who was on loan and never likely to sign permanently unless we got in the Championship.

Precisely. Nobody recruits 'potential legends' so it comes down to very basic footballing qualities, which everyone involved in recruiting young talent will be looking for that potential.

Maybe GazLaz should be posing that conundrum to the man himself. Who better to ask?

[Upton Rover]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

You could also say we’ve been woeful since cops took up his new role.

[drfchound]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

You could also say we’ve been woeful since cops took up his new role.

TBF that is hard to disagree with.

[GazLaz]

We have been absolutely woefull since Coppinger hung up his boots, to be honest I have never since then seen a side concede possession as bad as us from throw ins. It improved slightly recently when Westbrook played. Think it's more a responsibility thing.

That probably sums up this whole situation Les. A player that had been a bit of an X Factor, talisman for the best part of 20 years retires and we didn’t even have a plan in place to either nurture his replacement prior to retiring or hunt down a player of the same ilk to replace him and fill the (potential) black hole he would leave. If that’s not the biggest indication of all that the club is pretty clueless I don’t know what is. We had years to prepare! A decent wage off the books when he left. Zero excuse for that shit show. More interested in making a documentary about him (what ever happened to that!!) than finding someone to fill the footballing void.   

Please tell us how you go about 'planning' to replace a player who developed over time under a number of different managers?

The Coppinger who signed wasn't anywhere near the player, the man, he became and nobody could ever say he would fulfil what he became, particularly in those early seasons when at times he was like a little boy lost on the wing, barely contributing, ellegedly on the verge of being loaned out to Rotherham.

Years to prepare? How many scouts, managers, coaches  are currently trying to identify and recruit teenagers who could  become club legends?

I don't think it's about scouting someone who can become a club legend. That's not really an output you look for. It's about scouting someone who can play a similar role on the pitch - being a technically good footballer who can create. It's not as if Coppinger is the only player ever who can do so.

He played for us all through his 30s, we must have known that he would retire at some point, yet the closest we ever came to replacing him was Taylor Richards, who was on loan and never likely to sign permanently unless we got in the Championship.

Precisely. Nobody recruits 'potential legends' so it comes down to very basic footballing qualities, which everyone involved in recruiting young talent will be looking for that potential.

Maybe GazLaz should be posing that conundrum to the man himself. Who better to ask?

If you are losing an influential player that provides x, y and z specifically to your team. Look for a player that provides the same specifics and matches the same profile. It’s common sense. Players really can be broken down into what they bring to the team.

[TheFunk]

Copps was playing for little more than petrol expenses for the last couple of years of his career.