Let's talk about the Chesterfield game

[dickos1]

I'd agree that we were no worse than them in general play, but at both ends of the pitch where it matters, we were comfortably second best.

Whatever the opposite of clinical is - that's us. We squander so many good positions with the ball due to lack of quality and decision making.

That's been the case all season, so I'm not expecting it to change. How many games have we won by a margin of more than 1 goal? Not many.

The real shocker was the defence. We've been quite solid recently, but tonight we were all over the place. Caught out far too many times.

33% of our victories have been by more than one goal

[EasyforDennis]

If you look at the stats from last night's game we was ahead in every case......and yet we lost 5-2.
We had enough chances to have won 2 or 3 games.
We just go to pieces when we get a sight of the oppositions goal. This wasn't just last night, we have been like this for some time.

[Cramby10]

Well what to make of that last night? Difficult one. At half time I couldn’t believe we were losing. But after scoring when we did I honestly thought there was only one winner. Us!!
But second half I thought we were desperately poor. Sadly we didn’t heed the warning of the ease of which they scored their first 2 goals. We just needed to tighten up a little and the goals would’ve come. We picked them apart with ease without the end product first half.
Sadly our defence, that includes gk and deep midfield, were playing in slippers. With a cigar on! They were very poor. And those in front of them were running back to their own goal in treacle. We have to realise that as good as our fullbacks are going foward, they really aren’t very good defenders. And need protection.
I honestly don’t think it’s anything to worry about though. Yet. One to put to bed and go again. Hopefully it will be a kick up the arse to sharpen their focus.

[DRFC_AjA]

Astonishing that some are saying we played well. Every single time Ches came forward they looked dangerous and like they'd score. Every single time we went forward we were lost of ideas and had to stop and sideways pass. Stats or no stats that was a shocker across the park. What these chances are in the 2nd that people are talking about  molly cutting in and having a shot blocked? A couple of poor crosses that we got nowhere near

[drfchound]

Olowu hit the post, Sharp put a very good chance over the bar………

[Michael Shaw]

I think some of you have missed the obvious. Grant told the guys to play awful so that Crystal Palace will send their weakest team. Grant has said he is worried what Palace will do to us. They might be in for a shock (but don't warn them!).

[NickDRFC]

I'd agree that we were no worse than them in general play, but at both ends of the pitch where it matters, we were comfortably second best.

Whatever the opposite of clinical is - that's us. We squander so many good positions with the ball due to lack of quality and decision making.

That's been the case all season, so I'm not expecting it to change. How many games have we won by a margin of more than 1 goal? Not many.

The real shocker was the defence. We've been quite solid recently, but tonight we were all over the place. Caught out far too many times.

33% of our victories have been by more than one goal

I think you’ve proven Pliskin’s point there. That’s a very small proportion for a team at the top end of the league. For context Walsall are 56% (10 from 18) and Notts County 64% (9 from 14). Even Forest and Burnley, whose games are built on tight defences and nicking goals, have won by more than one goal in 43 & 44% of their wins.

[Pliskin]

Yes, and when we finished 3rd under Darren Ferguson in 2016/17 more than half of our victories were by a margin of more than 1 goal.

[Chris Black come back]

You win some, you lose some. We are still at the top end of the league and looking good for promotion.

There is a bit of a nagging doubt that about how we’ve set ourselves up. By that I mean this huge turnover of players within the team. Players being bought in brand new and then barely getting a kick, or contracts renewed and then basically discarded.

Is that a sign of McCann not knowing even now his best set up and best players, or just sub-optimal recruitment? We seem to have a lot of players but not really a consistent tune out of them.

They are largely good players for this level so we are winning games by merit of just talent but the turnover and the chopping does leave a lingering doubt.

[Avsuptem]

Sterry looked culpable for at least 2 of their goals one of which was compounded by TSL impersonating a salmon. Nonetheless 2 nil up in the 1st half would have been a fairer reflection than 2 nil.down, shit happens. I agree that we seemed to suffer tactically in the 2nd half. Grant reacted in keeping with his core principals and threw the kitchen sink at them in all out attack. That did not work and the oppo exploited the gaps. On another day it would pay off and I would prefer Grant's go for it approach over the turgid style of previous managers any day.

[ForsolongaRover]

If you look at the stats from last night's game we was ahead in every case......and yet we lost 5-2.
We had enough chances to have won 2 or 3 games.
We just go to pieces when we get a sight of the oppositions goal. This wasn't just last night, we have been like this for some time.

Thank you for agreeing with me - I made precisely the same point earlier in the thread!

[Pancho Regan]

You win some, you lose some. We are still at the top end of the league and looking good for promotion.

There is a bit of a nagging doubt that about how we’ve set ourselves up. By that I mean this huge turnover of players within the team. Players being bought in brand new and then barely getting a kick, or contracts renewed and then basically discarded.

Is that a sign of McCann not knowing even now his best set up and best players, or just sub-optimal recruitment? We seem to have a lot of players but not really a consistent tune out of them.

They are largely good players for this level so we are winning games by merit of just talent but the turnover and the chopping does leave a lingering doubt.

Some good points there CBCB.

I also have had a niggling worry at the back of my mind about whether Grant truly knows his best starting X1. I know he favours setting the team up with consideration to the type of opposition, but that old cliche about a settled side yielding better results keeps coming into my mind.

It's more of a question than a criticism, because I have total faith in him.

[EasyforDennis]

If you look at the stats from last night's game we was ahead in every case......and yet we lost 5-2.
We had enough chances to have won 2 or 3 games.
We just go to pieces when we get a sight of the oppositions goal. This wasn't just last night, we have been like this for some time.

Thank you for agreeing with me - I made precisely the same point earlier in the thread!

You're welcome.

[selby]

  Ask yourself how many of our own players would be good players in Division1 and more than hold their own, with Olowu likely not to be here, it should frighten you.
  If the Crystal Palace forwards who play in the premiership and are playing  Monday, they could be losing sleep with excitement.

[Fal]

I'd agree that we were no worse than them in general play, but at both ends of the pitch where it matters, we were comfortably second best.

Whatever the opposite of clinical is - that's us. We squander so many good positions with the ball due to lack of quality and decision making.

That's been the case all season, so I'm not expecting it to change. How many games have we won by a margin of more than 1 goal? Not many.

The real shocker was the defence. We've been quite solid recently, but tonight we were all over the place. Caught out far too many times.

33% of our victories have been by more than one goal

I think you’ve proven Pliskin’s point there. That’s a very small proportion for a team at the top end of the league. For context Walsall are 56% (10 from 18) and Notts County 64% (9 from 14). Even Forest and Burnley, whose games are built on tight defences and nicking goals, have won by more than one goal in 43 & 44% of their wins.

Forest lost 5-0 to Bournemouth after looking unbeatable, then went and beat Brighton 7-0. Freak results happen and sometimes they have a off day which is all that happened

[Silkscarf]

The team is pretty settled now, so GM does know at least 9 of his first 11. Assuming we play 4-2-3-1 it’s only Bailey’s partner in the middle and the left side forward that changes much. It seems Ironside is now the starter and Billy does 30 minutes.

Whether that 11 is good enough with whoever fills those 2 places is another question.

[Pancho Regan]

The team is pretty settled now, so GM does know at least 9 of his first 11. Assuming we play 4-2-3-1 it’s only Bailey’s partner in the middle and the left side forward that changes much. It seems Ironside is now the starter and Billy does 30 minutes.

Whether that 11 is good enough with whoever fills those 2 places is another question.

Yeah, fair comment Silkscarf.
The performance against MK Dons was one of the best of the season and GM only made one change from that starting line-up, so it's probably incorrect of me to suggest he's not sure of his best starting X1.

In any case I don't think we should draw any profound conclusions from last night because it was a weird result in my opinion.

Some people will look to blame certain players but I think we just failed to get out of the traps quickly enough in the second half. We were the better team in the first half and we ended that period on top. If only we could have picked that momentum up immediately in the second half and really press the opposition, it could have been a very different outcome.

GM knows how to respond and once again I think he deserves credit for his post-match interview, which I've just watched.
I think he gave a good honest account of the game and I don't know how he manages to do that in the raw aftermath of a 2-5 defeat!

[ForsolongaRover]

Having watched the extended highlights, whatever the stats showed (and I’ve already made the point that ours were superior), they tell us nothing about quality.

Chesterfield fans will have come away filled with joy because despite what dickos thinks, it is skilful football that attracts most of us to watch the game. Spirerites will not be feeling unhappy about their position in the table today, they’ll be hoping for more performances like last night. Not only did their frontmen look good, but on the night there was a difference in class. It illustrated what seems clear in L2 this year that the football tends to be dour. When a club brings in one or two loanees, even some who are surplus from average clubs in the league above, the improvement in quality is marked. To illustrate this, mid table Lincoln gave us Adelukan last season and Street this and Chesterfield have just got Duffy from them.

It means that if we are to reach and then consolidate in L1 we are going to have to improve on the average quality of our players and in the meantime, hope we don’t come up against the sort that exposed our weakness last night.

[Alan Southstand]

Olowu hit the post, Sharp put a very good chance over the bar………

What about Street in the first half? Molyneux thought he’d scored before he actually did (why has nobody questioned whether it was over the line?)

[drfchound]

Olowu hit the post, Sharp put a very good chance over the bar………

What about Street in the first half? Molyneux thought he’d scored before he actually did (why has nobody questioned whether it was over the line?)

Alan, my answer was to a question about chances missed in the second half mate.
However, the one that Street put over the bar after that great run by Sterry was a bad miss.
And someone did mention the Moly double chance that ended with the keeper clawing the ball away, possibly he even put a link up but I didn’t get round to opening it.
Mols looked convinced that it had gone over the line didn’t he.

[Chris Black come back]

Olowu hit the post, Sharp put a very good chance over the bar………

What about Street in the first half? Molyneux thought he’d scored before he actually did (why has nobody questioned whether it was over the line?)

McCann did, in his post match interview.

[Prez]

The game for me was lost in the first 10 mins of the second half. I fully expected us to get right at them after Molz goal, however it was the total opposite and it was Chessie who did the attacking and were rewarded with the 3rd. From that moment we were just chasing it. I felt as well last night that we were a little bit gung ho overall and left ourselves suspectable to the counter attack. 21 shots is a positive that said only 4 on target 3 of them from Molz.

By the was im surprised Billy is immune from criticism, hes missed some right sitters in recent games.

[ForsolongaRover]

The game for me was lost in the first 10 mins of the second half. I fully expected us to get right at them after Molz goal, however it was the total opposite and it was Chessie who did the attacking and were rewarded with the 3rd. From that moment we were just chasing it. I felt as well last night that we were a little bit gung ho overall and left ourselves suspectable to the counter attack. 21 shots is a positive that said only 4 on target 3 of them from Molz.

By the was im surprised Billy is immune from criticism, hes missed some right sitters in recent games.

Even for Billy it’s hardly a “sitter”, but by his own standards it’s one he would be more likely to convert than anyone else in the squad!

When it comes to whether the Moly chance crosses the line, did anyone have a proper view and what purpose does angry discussion serve? If his body language suggested disbelief it might have been at the GK’s acrobatics rather than whether it crossed the line. If you’re right in front of the goal it’s not the best angle is it?