Viking Supporters Co-operative
Viking Chat => Viking Chat => Topic started by: selby on March 14, 2021, 11:30:05 am
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After what must have been a war of attrition v Northampton according to reports, a game I have yet to catch up with confidence in our ability to get into the playoffs seems to be slipping away from some of our supporters quickly.
This game might be a distinct pointer, always a hard place to go and get a result, and a rearranged game that should have been played when we were in something of much better form at the time.
Looking on the bright side we didn't actually lose on Saturday, and many a little unbeaten run has been started by a somewhat inglorious draw somewhere, I live in hope.
Oxford also ended on the wrong end of a 2-0 result at Hull although dominating the game possession wise with stats very similar to ours in our game, the difference being the popular opinion being they played well while we were awful, we gained a point they got none the only stat that counts.
Comparing the seasons results of both sides, and the expectations at the start of the season I would argue that Oxford have been the more disappointing being well fancied by many to be one of the top two at the start of the season.
Form is the hardest thing in football to pin down, as Liverpool's fall off from grace has proven, Can we regain ours?
This little run of away games could prove pivotal to our hopes for the season, can we get back on track?
Every team in the division apart from one or two are now picking up injuries or showing indifferent form because of the number of games being played over a short period, can we regain our form?
Do you consider us capable of getting a result at Oxford?
Some have been quick (very quick) to question Butlers ability to lead us on to better things, Why?
Lots of things to discuss about this game,Please have your say.
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I can only see a defeat.
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I’m not confident going into Tuesday as we always struggle at Oxford. Hopefully the clean sheet will give confidence to the defence and we can go onto keep more towards the end of the season because with all the injuries piling up I can’t see us scoring 3+ goals in many games. According to AB Bogle, Sims and Bostock will all miss Tuesday and probably Saturday aswell and also Robertson is gonna be a doubt which leaves our squad at a bare minimum so gonna have to rely on Butler pulling something out of his magic hat.
The team I would go for:
Jones
Halliday Wright Anderson Amos
Smith James
Lokilo Richards Copps
Fej
Think it will be a 1-0 defeat unfortunately but like I said above hopefully Butler can use his magic hat to good effect.
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I would go with
Jones
Halliday Wright Anderson Amos
Greaves James
Smith Richards Copps
Fej
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Looking at what was expected of them which was Top 2/Play-offs, they are behind Rovers who no pundits really rated, but until about a month ago they were the team with momentum. Until November they struggled and were in the bottom 4, but after winning at Peterborough in the FA Cup they had quite a surge.
The question is how much their current dip in form is related to a real drop in quality? As you imply though they must have done a lot of things right at Hull. I think this game would be a test even if we were doing well because we only won the home game narrowly when our confidence was high.
So we need to rise higher over current form than Oxford. The individuals available who have featured recently will have to up their games or, dare I suggest giving AJ Greaves, Amos, Hasani and Ravenhill opportunities? Quite a few of Saturday’s team could hardly grumble if they got dropped. The rather weak “tiredness” excuse could not be used again.
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I’d settle for a draw if offered it now, can’t see us getting anything there, it’s a horrible trip in the week and we are missing too many players
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I'd give Greaves and Amos a run out. Put James in midfield and give Smith a rest for an hour at least.
I can't see how John or Lokilo could keep their place after Saturday, both seem better off the bench. Gomes just seems better out the team, don't know what's happened with him but probably looked better than he is playing alongside Whiteman.
A point would be a good return given our record there and the way they played at the Keepmoat.
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I can see 3-0 defeat
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I can see 3-0 defeat
In that case we might as well not get on the Bus, give them the 3pts and let our lads have a mid week rest. :lol:
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If we play well we have every chance of getting a result, the players are more than capable of doing so as they have shown in previous games.
It will take organisation, total effort, and crucially confidence in their own ability to pull it off and probably a little bit of stardust luck,but to write anyone off in a game of football before a ball has been kicked can be foolish.
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I hope the team has not suffered as much of a drop in confidence than some fans .I think it is the right time to give Amos a chance to show on the left flank and I would keep both James and Cameron in the side too.None of that trio lacks in belief nor in self confidence .
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You would think we were about to play Man City reading some of these posts.
Unbelievable Jeff.
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According to IFollow on DROS the next match available to buy video match pass is Gillingham on Saturday.
Now changed to Oxford game
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Is it 4 away defeats in a row now? Next 3 games are away, we seriously need to pick up form now.
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I’m not confident going into Tuesday as we always struggle at Oxford. Hopefully the clean sheet will give confidence to the defence and we can go onto keep more towards the end of the season because with all the injuries piling up I can’t see us scoring 3+ goals in many games. According to AB Bogle, Sims and Bostock will all miss Tuesday and probably Saturday aswell and also Robertson is gonna be a doubt which leaves our squad at a bare minimum so gonna have to rely on Butler pulling something out of his magic hat.
The team I would go for:
Jones
Halliday Wright Anderson Amos
Smith James
Lokilo Richards Copps
Fej
Think it will be a 1-0 defeat unfortunately but like I said above hopefully Butler can use his magic hat to good effect.
That team would give me some hope that Oxford won't have it their own way. Given simoes supposedly did ok on sat and better than lokilo I'd swop them around.
In a nutshell need to be much better and stronger with and without the ball including passing. More energy as well to create that spark that's been missing
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I see that their Talisman James Henry didn't play against Hull , he always runs the show against us and either scores or assists .
I can't be bothered to look if he was injured , because you just know he will be available on Tuesday to torment us.
Hope i'm wrong. :(
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I see that everyone's sticking to the tried and trusted 4 2 3 1 formation when picking the team.
As its not working why don't we change it.
4 4 2 ?
As we're struggling up front why not make us hard to beat?
If we stop Oxford getting 3 points its a great result for us.
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I see that everyone's sticking to the tried and trusted 4 2 3 1 formation when picking the team.
As its not working why don't we change it.
4 4 2 ?
As we're struggling up front why not make us hard to beat?
If we stop Oxford getting 3 points its a great result for us.
Agree a draw isn’t a bad result on a ground we have had limited success. But stopping Oxford from getting 1 point is even better.
What makes you think 4-4-2 would make us more solid than our present system of 4-2-3-1 which is designed to be flexible enough to have numbers defending when we don’t have the ball and numbers attacking when we do.
If you play 4-4-2 where would you play Copps or TR, just a question as i am not sure they would fit into that system.
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We don't have the players for 4-4-2 tomorrow either, do we? Without Bogle, Okenabirhie is the only striker and realistically we haven't got the wingers who can do the most damage in a conventional 4-4-2 - that would be Sims and Taylor.
4-2-3-1 is a much more protective set-up, particularly when you're likely to have both Richards and Coppinger on the pitch.
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I see that everyone's sticking to the tried and trusted 4 2 3 1 formation when picking the team.
As its not working why don't we change it.
4 4 2 ?
As we're struggling up front why not make us hard to beat?
If we stop Oxford getting 3 points its a great result for us.
Agree a draw isn’t a bad result on a ground we have had limited success. But stopping Oxford from getting 1 point is even better.
What makes you think 4-4-2 would make us more solid than our present system of 4-2-3-1 which is designed to be flexible enough to have numbers defending when we don’t have the ball and numbers attacking when we do.
If you play 4-4-2 where would you play Copps or TR, just a question as i am not sure they would fit into that system.
2 banks of 4 is the traditional way of keeping teams out. Filling up the spaces and not letting teams play through us.
I'd play all our fit defenders (Cam John :unsure: ) even Danny Amos, even the lad from Maidstone or wherever he's been, and just shut up shop. Plenty of teams have done it to us. We don't always have to play football. 95 minutes of clearing it into the stand will suit us just fine tomorrow night.
(Copps and Richards on the bench, to come on after 5 mins when we concede from their first corner.)
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I cannot remember last time we ‘shut up shop’ or played for a draw. Under Ferguson?
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CBcb yep against Crewe, we needed to win.
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I cannot remember last time we ‘shut up shop’ or played for a draw. Under Ferguson?
Blackburn, this year in the Cup. Halliday & James in midfield.
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We are looking like a group of players at the end of their luck.....
If the defenders stop defending .......we will lose
If the midfield is overrun by much better players ......we will lose
If Smith gives the ball away more than he succeeds to deliver...we will lose
If the support act to Fej just goes through the motions.... we will lose
If Fej can’t score a goal or two...we will lose!
This team has to go out with a game plan, whether it be attack or defend they need a plan...
They need everyone to be playing to that plan....... the defenders need support when we are under the cosh, the striker needs support when we are attacking...
Yes...I know this is all very obvious............................yet we don’t implement it !
Oxford 4-0
Could be wrong tho!
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You would think we were about to play Man City reading some of these posts.
Unbelievable Jeff.
Mmmmm, and some others might see that we are not playing too well and are about to play a very good Oxford side on a ground we don’t usually do too well on.
Perhaps some supporters are just wondering whether we can get something from the game.
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You would think we were about to play Man City reading some of these posts.
Unbelievable Jeff.
Mmmmm, and some others might see that we are not playing too well and are about to play a very good Oxford side on a ground we don’t usually do too well on.
Perhaps some supporters are just wondering whether we can get something from the game.
Maybe hound but some are talking about us as if we are a lost cause. We are a long way from that.
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You would think we were about to play Man City reading some of these posts.
Unbelievable Jeff.
Mmmmm, and some others might see that we are not playing too well and are about to play a very good Oxford side on a ground we don’t usually do too well on.
Perhaps some supporters are just wondering whether we can get something from the game.
Maybe hound but some are talking about us as if we are a lost cause. We are a long way from that.
Well, to be fair, they are entitled to have an opinion.
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Bang on Hound, these threads are for people to express their opinions whatever they are and to discuss the up coming game, it wouldn't do for us all to think the same things, have the same favourite line ups and players.
Keep the discussions going the more the merrier.
.+
00. opinions of
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You would think we were about to play Man City reading some of these posts.
Unbelievable Jeff.
Mmmmm, and some others might see that we are not playing too well and are about to play a very good Oxford side on a ground we don’t usually do too well on.
Perhaps some supporters are just wondering whether we can get something from the game.
Maybe hound but some are talking about us as if we are a lost cause. We are a long way from that.
Well, to be fair, they are entitled to have an opinion.
hound did i say they were not?
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Just a thought does anyone have knowledge of how travel to away games works currently for the team.
I’m thinking of things like pre match meals etc can’t imagine the coach being welcome at a drive through
If staying over do we need twice as many rooms are because of the bubble is it possible to share (twin room not Eric and Ernie style)
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I don't know, but I wouldn't be surprised if the club didn't prefer (wherever possible) for them to travel straight back after games. Not ideal, but at least they would get back to their own homes/beds without unnecessary exposure in hotels... Maybe SM can enlighten us
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One problem is how many rooms are required now, and the number of Hotels that can provide the required number, because players cannot share rooms quite a few of the Hotels we used couldn't do it.
I think the number of overnight stops have been cut to a minimum.
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Exactly Selby I was wondering if the bubble mitigated the room numbers. Even then most hotels are not offering meals where they are they are to be eaten back in the room
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You would think we were about to play Man City reading some of these posts.
Unbelievable Jeff.
Mmmmm, and some others might see that we are not playing too well and are about to play a very good Oxford side on a ground we don’t usually do too well on.
Perhaps some supporters are just wondering whether we can get something from the game.
Maybe hound but some are talking about us as if we are a lost cause. We are a long way from that.
Well, to be fair, they are entitled to have an opinion.
hound did i say they were not?
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No mate, of course not, but your first post (about Man City) kind of indicated that maybe it was a poor opinion to have.
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I guess the team is the best we can call on but the bench is the worst I have seen in a long time, but that is no one’s fault just injured players
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It’s going to be another game where if points are gained then it’s going to be through hard work and perhaps a little luck .
I’m sure also that our end of seasons games against Peterborough will decide whether we have any say on who is the automatic places yet it could be games like this against Oxford that has to be seen as any point gained will be welcome !!
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I can see 3-0 defeat
In that case we might as well not get on the Bus, give them the 3pts and let our lads have a mid week rest. :lol:
As it turns out, this might have been the best option.
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Someone is missing with a half time summary.
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I guess the team is the best we can call on but the bench is the worst I have seen in a long time, but that is no one’s fault just injured players
Two weeks ago when we beat Portsmouth easily, we had Taylor, Bogle, James, Bostock, Robertson and Simms all playing. None are available tonight and we haven’t got the strength in depth to replace so many being out at one time.
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Fortunately I missed the 1st half.
2nd half we huffed and puffed but never really looked like scoring.
No one wants to get the ball into the box early. We always seem to take the extra pass and are too slow in our decision making.
Must admit it is looking very worrying now. We have lost our way, confidence is seeping away. We need injured bodies back quick.
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It's pretty bad and is repeat of the problems that have dogged us all season.
First, this is a poor defensive unit that concedes goals too easily. Anderson carried them all for a long time but has dropped off in recent weeks. We are a very soft touch for a goal and we nearly almost lose when we concede first. As a unit, is it the least convincing since the Dickov and McKenzie era? Feels like it.
Second, it is absolutely pointless playing the ball to Okenbirhie with his back to goal. He always loses possession. Not sometimes, not most times, not almost always, not pretty much always. He always loses possession. Totally pointless yet we keep playing to him in this position.
Third, we are perennially way too ponderous. Passing out slowly from the back, passing slowly through midfield, slowly getting it wide, and what's this..? Lo and behold we are facing two banks of four at the edge of the box and we can't play through them, so lose possession. We almost never get behind sides. We almost never connect with crosses into the box. We almost never have more than one player in the box at the same time.
We may or may not make the play offs. I'd be happy if we could start correcting some of these persistent failures, wherever we end up.
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In mitigation, I should say that Jones looks a decent bet longer term. If he can iron out some of his silly passes and step up to command his box more, we could have a good keeper on our hands.
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The only positive from tonight is I don't have to drive from Oxford to Donny with 4 drunk passengers , at least it only cost me £10 on ifollow and a 8 pack of beer
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It's pretty bad and is repeat of the problems that have dogged us all season.
First, this is a poor defensive unit that concedes goals too easily. Anderson carried them all for a long time but has dropped off in recent weeks. We are a very soft touch for a goal and we nearly almost lose when we concede first. As a unit, is it the least convincing since the Dickov and McKenzie era? Feels like it.
Second, it is absolutely pointless playing the ball to Okenbirhie with his back to goal. He always loses possession. Not sometimes, not most times, not almost always, not pretty much always. He always loses possession. Totally pointless yet we keep playing to him in this position.
Third, we are perennially way too ponderous. Passing out slowly from the back, passing slowly through midfield, slowly getting it wide, and what's this..? Lo and behold we are facing two banks of four at the edge of the box and we can't play through them, so lose possession. We almost never get behind sides. We almost never connect with crosses into the box. We almost never have more than one player in the box at the same time.
We may or may not make the play offs. I'd be happy if we could start correcting some of these persistent failures, wherever we end up.
Yep. And what is our “identity” as a team this season? We pass it out short from goal kicks and then... what else? Wait for a moment of brilliance from Richards or James?
Whoever the manager is next season, I hope they can bring some substance because I am struggling to see what we are all about as a team this season, especially since Whiteman went.
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We seem to specialise in wide players that can't deliver. They are all too lightweight and easily bullied. Just never pose a threat.
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This is a general thought and not an excuse for yet another performance lacking any kind of spark but this schedule could potentially ruin some of these players. It looked like Greaves has picked up an injury tonight and we've already lost half of our best XI.
I'm convinced the authorities really haven't thought out the long-term implications of two games every week, especially as the players barely had a pre-season after a six-month lay-off.
Look at Lincoln, they are falling apart and their only out-and-out striker Hopper has apparently done a hamstring tonight. They are as knackered as we are and making Portsmouth play on that mud patch that Peterborough call a pitch 72 hours after 120 minutes at Wembley is just plain cruel.
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It's definitely an odd season, but our problem was as apparent in the first couple of games of the season as it has been for the last 20. Defensively way too weak, far too slow and ponderous going forward, no razor edge in attack.
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Donny were out played by Oxford at home and won 3-2. Cracks were being papered over then. Promotion won’t happen.
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Did aj throw a strop after realising he was being subbed, or was he injured do we know?
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I guess the team is the best we can call on but the bench is the worst I have seen in a long time, but that is no one’s fault just injured players
Two weeks ago when we beat Portsmouth easily, we had Taylor, Bogle, James, Bostock, Robertson and Simms all playing. None are available tonight and we haven’t got the strength in depth to replace so many being out at one time.
Sometimes folk wont accept any mitigation when our team loses a game......... injuries don't count.
However the point you make is having the same effect at Lincoln City. They have had major players out also and their form has been on the slide as a result... their last 7 games have resulted in 4 losses, 2 draws and one win. Our last seven have resulted in 3 losses, 2 draws and 2 wins
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Did aj throw a strop after realising he was being subbed, or was he injured do we know?
He was limping then went down, the physio came on to look at him for about a min then walked off the pitch with him. Pretty standard really.
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Third, we are perennially way too ponderous. Passing out slowly from the back, passing slowly through midfield, slowly getting it wide, and what's this..? Lo and behold we are facing two banks of four at the edge of the box and we can't play through them, so lose possession. We almost never get behind sides. We almost never connect with crosses into the box. We almost never have more than one player in the box at the same time.
We may or may not make the play offs. I'd be happy if we could start correcting some of these persistent failures, wherever we end up.
All three of your points are valid CBCB, but this one hits the nail on the head for me.
This frustrates the life out of me.
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We get to the half-way line, sometimes beyond it then turn around and pass it back to our back line - sometimes keeper, so we then have their whole team to try to play through. And some on here think that's smart football.