Let's talk about the Sunderland game

[selby]

  The games are coming thick and fast again, with this one being probably the most attractive league game of the lot, and probably the largest crowd of the season.
   If we play well it could also be the best atmosphere of the season, with the Sunderland fans adding to the occasion travelling in their numbers.Lets hope it is just that, a great game, and an occasion we can look back on with fondness in future years.
  Hopefully Kane will be fit after looking like he picked up a knock against Gillingham, who like Fleetwood singled him out for some special attention.
   The game is now a 14 man game, the substitutes being as important as the starting 11, and with Crawford and Anderson we are looking better in that area, also I would expect Wright to come back in contention.
  Sunderland are now looking what they should be in this division, heading for the top two and promotion, and seem to be getting their act together and more consistent.
    Would you make any enforced changes?
     Can we prove our credentials and take the points against everyone's favourites for automatic promotion.
    Can our crowd rise to the occasion and make as much noise as the away fans will.
    Lots to discuss, please have your say.
   

[TheFunk]

Hopefully Marquis is ok. He came over to the bench at one point and appeared to be coughing up blood. The club doctor let him play on so probably he'll be ok.

[RedJ]

no
hopefully
probably not

[drfchound]

I hope Copps will be ok to feature in most of the game.

[roversdude]

Don’t forget Kane went off injured too

[drfchound]

I guess it depends on what Kanes injury is but he has three days recovery time so hopefully will be ok.

[dknward2]

Just hope we can start converting our chances or it will be a long night.

It will be a great atmosphere just hope we can thrive in it we need to get the first goal that will be the difference between winning and losing

[drfchound]

Just hope we can start converting our chances or it will be a long night.

It will be a great atmosphere just hope we can thrive in it we need to get the first goal that will be the difference between winning and losing

It will if we then keep a clean sheet. 

[Alan Southstand]

I can sum up Tuesday in one word:

Cattermole

If he doesn't cripple someone in our middle 3 before half time, then we'll be lucky. Got yet another yellow today at Shrewsbury. Let's hope, for once, we have a good ref.

Number of issues for me:
Will we start to take our chances?
Will we defend better, particularly from set pieces?
Will Copps find it one game too many?

Lose on Tuesday and we could drop out the top 6 and we could find it difficult getting back up there.
Win and it's a whole new ball game and morale booster.

[Rovers91]

I think we will lose Tuesday but will give them a good game. We are very dangerous going forward but conceding 9 goals in 3 games is a lot and a bit of a concern so I think Sunderland will have too much for us.

[sedwardsdrfc]

If copps can't do Saturday & Tuesday then for me Crawford in for him, obviously Wright back in and i'd maybe find a space for J.Anderson in midfield for Blair maybe just to make us a little more physical.

If we've got our shooting boots on we could get a massive result and even if we haven't we'll give them a close game with lots of goals i'm sure

[since-1969]

It’s starting to look more and more that our defence needs a cool head and not just brawn , Butler is looking tired and beaten up matches and ANDREWS is erratic with his passing and often slow to get back into position leaving Butler with too much to do . Whiteman is another who forgets his abilities are limited and gets caught in possession too often in games . Over all against  physical teams our defence or left floundering and weak . 7 goals at home in two games is plain enough to see.

[RoversAlias]

Tough test this, no shame if we lose really but I hope we don't of course. Wright has to come back in, Anderson wasn't good enough today for me. I hope Kane and Copps are both fit enough to play, otherwise I'd be bringing in Crawford and, if needs be, Taylor.

[godlike1]

Tough test this, no shame if we lose really but I hope we don't of course. Wright has to come back in, Anderson wasn't good enough today for me. I hope Kane and Copps are both fit enough to play, otherwise I'd be bringing in Crawford and, if needs be, Taylor.

If we lose it would be 4 points from a possible 15. Not exactly playoff form

[RoversAlias]

I didn't say anything about form though, I meant from the perspective of Sunderland being a very good side and easily a team you expect to see in the top 2/3 by the end of the season.

[Campsall rover]

It’s starting to look more and more that our defence needs a cool head and not just brawn , Butler is looking tired and beaten up matches and ANDREWS is erratic with his passing and often slow to get back into position leaving Butler with too much to do . Whiteman is another who forgets his abilities are limited and gets caught in possession too often in games . Over all against  physical teams our defence or left floundering and weak . 7 goals at home in two games is plain enough to see.

That’s why we need McCullough. I know most people don’t want or will like to hear that but with him in the holding role we would not iMO be conceding as many goals.
Whiteman has been a relevation this season but he is better with the ball than he is without it as are ALL our midfielders and there lies our problem.
Great to watch and we will score goals and be royally entertained but the price we will pay is VERY FEW IF ANY CLEAN SHEETS.

[WheatleyRover]

Surley the Barnsley game is the most attractive fixture to attend

[Filo]

It’s starting to look more and more that our defence needs a cool head and not just brawn , Butler is looking tired and beaten up matches and ANDREWS is erratic with his passing and often slow to get back into position leaving Butler with too much to do . Whiteman is another who forgets his abilities are limited and gets caught in possession too often in games . Over all against  physical teams our defence or left floundering and weak . 7 goals at home in two games is plain enough to see.

That’s why we need McCullough. I know most people don’t want or will like to hear that but with him in the holding role we would not iMO be conceding as many goals.
Whiteman has been a relevation this season but he is better with the ball than he is without it as are ALL our midfielders and there lies our problem.
Great to watch and we will score goals and be royally entertained but the price we will pay is VERY FEW IF ANY CLEAN SHEETS.

I like McCullough, but he doesn’t suit this system, Whiteman is much more dynamic in that position

[Campsall rover]

It’s starting to look more and more that our defence needs a cool head and not just brawn , Butler is looking tired and beaten up matches and ANDREWS is erratic with his passing and often slow to get back into position leaving Butler with too much to do . Whiteman is another who forgets his abilities are limited and gets caught in possession too often in games . Over all against  physical teams our defence or left floundering and weak . 7 goals at home in two games is plain enough to see.

That’s why we need McCullough. I know most people don’t want or will like to hear that but with him in the holding role we would not iMO be conceding as many goals.
Whiteman has been a relevation this season but he is better with the ball than he is without it as are ALL our midfielders and there lies our problem.
Great to watch and we will score goals and be royally entertained but the price we will pay is VERY FEW IF ANY CLEAN SHEETS.

I like McCullough, but he doesn’t suit this system, Whiteman is much more dynamic in that position

Agreed Filo but the point I am making is we a vulnerable without the ball.

[RedJ]

Surley the Barnsley game is the most attractive fixture to attend

Not much attractive about Barnsley tbh.

[Filo]

It’s starting to look more and more that our defence needs a cool head and not just brawn , Butler is looking tired and beaten up matches and ANDREWS is erratic with his passing and often slow to get back into position leaving Butler with too much to do . Whiteman is another who forgets his abilities are limited and gets caught in possession too often in games . Over all against  physical teams our defence or left floundering and weak . 7 goals at home in two games is plain enough to see.

That’s why we need McCullough. I know most people don’t want or will like to hear that but with him in the holding role we would not iMO be conceding as many goals.
Whiteman has been a relevation this season but he is better with the ball than he is without it as are ALL our midfielders and there lies our problem.
Great to watch and we will score goals and be royally entertained but the price we will pay is VERY FEW IF ANY CLEAN SHEETS.

I like McCullough, but he doesn’t suit this system, Whiteman is much more dynamic in that position

Agreed Filo but the point I am making is we a vulnerable without the ball.

Probably correct, but the downside it would hinder our attacking threat

[selby]

  Sixth in the league at this point in the season means we are not a bad side, and has been done with one of our best players missing (Rowe)who has the experience and skill to give us that little bit more ballance.
  I myself Cannot see why McCullough could not be able to play in the side, this sudden not being able to cover ground never being brought to the for by any of our supporters in the past when he has played as a defensive midfielder, a position he has been man of the match in picked by the supporters on more than a couple of occasions.
  His injury problems stopped him being a fixture here, but at Tranmere he looks over that and has not missed a game to my knowledge since he went there, and they have been solid, giving very few goals away since he signed for them.
 Whether he wants to be here, or the manager wants him here, I would not know. but to my mind he would give us more options, cover more than one defensive position, and because of that would strengthen our present squad, and I would happily welcome him back in January if he continues to show the form he is in at Tranmere.

[big fat yorkshire pudding]

The form of Whiteman is why. He's really kicked on in this team. He was excellent yesterday.  I've been critical of him but McCann has got a lot out of him.  Only grumble was him not getting a winner from his efforts late on.

Tough but a game this next one we are more than capable of winning. We are not a bad side.

[selby]

  BYP, I agree about Whiteman playing well, in my opinion he is the most improved player in the squad from last season along with Mason, and is becoming a very important player in the system we play.
 I am suggesting that Luke would strengthen the set up and give us a choice as a team, whether he, or the manager would want that is another question. But he is our player until the end of the season, and having watched us this season, I would have him back here in January.
  I am not suggesting he is better or should replace Whiteman, far from it, but could compliment him in some games, or part of games.

[NickDRFC]

I’d have McCullough back as well. I’m not his biggest fan but he is a very different player to the midfielders we have at the moment and is an option to tighten things up when we need to.

[Chris Black come back]

He is tailor made not to fit into the McCann 433 formation. The midfield three need to be highly mobile and able to get both up and down and out wide. Luke is many things but highly mobile is not one of them. His passing is also not strong enough to sit in the middle of that three.

[selby]

  Back to the Sunderland game, at Shrewsbury the game changed when Sunderland Made substitutions early in the second half, one being Lynden Gooch late of this parish, who provided the cross for the first goal.
  Their manager has tightened them up since arriving, and has recognised that they have had to be more streetwise in this division.
 We will be able to compare our star Marquis with Maja, who is tying at the top of the scoring charts for this division on 9 goals with John, so a little sideshow there.
   Adam Mcgeachy was given the star man status  in the FL paper, although substituted after 57 minutes, so whether injured or not he made an impression on the reporter.
  A good game is in prospect, one we will have to raise our game in to compete, and which we are well capable of doing.

[sedwardsdrfc]

I’d have McCullough back as well. I’m not his biggest fan but he is a very different player to the midfielders we have at the moment and is an option to tighten things up when we need to.

Are the midfielders we have now that bad though, defensively i mean? for all our attacking Gillingham had 4-5 shots. One of the goals our striker lost his man is, that isn't an issue with our defenders or midfielders. The other two (i didn't have the right angle for the 1st admittedly) look to be mistakes from a stand in centre half who's never really let us down before.

To limit the opposition to so few shots is good defending. Personally don't think we need LM to tighten things up at all and if he wants to be a midfielder he's found his level. A few decent games for us when we were struggling doesn't make him good enough for a playoff chasing side, which we are now

[NickDRFC]

I’d have McCullough back as well. I’m not his biggest fan but he is a very different player to the midfielders we have at the moment and is an option to tighten things up when we need to.

Are the midfielders we have now that bad though, defensively i mean? for all our attacking Gillingham had 4-5 shots. One of the goals our striker lost his man is, that isn't an issue with our defenders or midfielders. The other two (i didn't have the right angle for the 1st admittedly) look to be mistakes from a stand in centre half who's never really let us down before.

To limit the opposition to so few shots is good defending. Personally don't think we need LM to tighten things up at all and if he wants to be a midfielder he's found his level. A few decent games for us when we were struggling doesn't make him good enough for a playoff chasing side, which we are now

I'm not suggesting he was needed yesterday. I know we didn't concede many shots yesterday, but how about at Rochdale when it was wave after wave of attacks?

[Jonathan]

Whiteman is proving to be a cracking all round midfielder in my view. He’s not scared to get a foot in, but most impressive is what he does with the ball. The amount of incisive forward passes that cut out a number of the opposing players is becoming a big part of our play. Helped obviously by the good movement up top. It’s great to watch at the moment and they all seem to know what they’re doing.

Once again credit must go to McCann and the coaching staff for the work behind the scenes to get everyone so well drilled.