Fine margins

[Alan Southstand]

Simple facts are 1 point from a possible 9 with the last 3 home games.

[RedJ]

I wish Wilks would f**k off shooting at absolutely every available opportunity as well. I like a player who'll have a dig rather than fanny about on the ball and pass it backwards or something but Christ he needs to get his head up sometimes.

[Campsall rover]

They were just so solid, resilient, professionals etc.

I think we’re a top 10 side, nothing wrong with that but for me that’s what we are.

Who are the nine teams better than us?

[Filo]

They were just too good for us, closed us down, more energy, far quicker, stronger, won most second balls too. The chances near half time would have changed how we would have played second half, but after the goal they were much better than us, no shame in that, we had a go but just lack the quality they have.

I don,t think they were too good for us Les, we were the best side in the first half, we just didn’t come out for the second half

[Filo]

I wish Wilks would f**k off shooting at absolutely every available opportunity as well. I like a player who'll have a dig rather than fanny about on the ball and pass it backwards or something but Christ he needs to get his head up sometimes.

I think the lot of them need to practice how to hit a ball with power, they never seem to get hold of the ball when shooting

[RedJ]

I wish Wilks would f**k off shooting at absolutely every available opportunity as well. I like a player who'll have a dig rather than fanny about on the ball and pass it backwards or something but Christ he needs to get his head up sometimes.

I think the lot of them need to practice how to hit a ball with power, they never seem to get hold of the ball when shooting

Even Marquis was struggling in that respect tonight, every chance he got he seemed to scuff or not make proper contact with.

[Bentley Bullet]

I'd have them on the training pitch using goals with the crossbars three foot high. Their inability to keep the ball down when shooting is alarming.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

Have to agree with that BB. Particularly Danny Andrew, our free kick specialist, spacialises in Ooh, just over! Not good enough.

Likewise Wilks, who was dead eye dick at the start of the season is becoming Barn Door Billy. I even saw McCann gesture to him to keep them down.

Hard work needs to be put in to get back to doing what we were doing better earlier in the season.

[Barmby Rover]

Saturday 32 shots  3 goals today, 17 shots no goals. Defences are not that good at this level, the strikers are letting us down. End of story.

[RoversAlias]

Gooch was excellent tonight but he got very lucky with the first touch that took it beyond Andrew.

For me neither full back has been up to scratch recently. And are we missing Mason and Butler at the weekend through suspension now?

One more thing on Andrew, what has happened to his dead ball delivery? Cannot find a man with a free kick or corner at the moment.

[Bentley Bullet]

The build-up is usually too slow. By the time we get into a shooting position, the ball has to travel through a mass of bodies crammed in front of goal.

THAT'S what's wrong.

[RedJ]

The build-up is usually too slow. By the time we get into a shooting position, the ball has to travel through a mass of bodies crammed in front of goal.

THAT'S what's wrong.

Precisely.

It isn't a new problem, either. Thought we'd moved away from that but it's crept back in.

[PDX_Rover]

Have to give Sunderland credit having thought about it. They kept John very quiet. Then again they have the budget to allow that don't they? What is it? 42m last season and another 19m this from the parachute payments? Imagine if we had 61m to play with...

Agree about Wilks. He needs to get his head over the ball more - keep it down.  He also needs to play other players in, which he didn't do tonight, rather than shooting every time. He's not going to score a worldie every game.

What we did do tonight first half and Kane in the second is get the ball down and run at their defence. It's a nightmare to defend against at any level and Sunderland resorted to cynical fouls most of the time.

Some of our play at times tonight was lovely. The passing and movement especially first half was sublime.

I've said it earlier but Rovers kept 4000 Sunderland fans very very quiet tonight. That speaks volumes (shite pun intended).

Next!

[dickos1]

Saturday 32 shots  3 goals today, 17 shots no goals. Defences are not that good at this level, the strikers are letting us down. End of story.

Not just the strikers though, Blair had the best chance last night

[NickDRFC]

I wish Wilks would f**k off shooting at absolutely every available opportunity as well. I like a player who'll have a dig rather than fanny about on the ball and pass it backwards or something but Christ he needs to get his head up sometimes.

I think the lot of them need to practice how to hit a ball with power, they never seem to get hold of the ball when shooting

That wasn’t Wilkes’ issue at all. He blazed over two or three times when he focussed too much on power over precision.

[phil old leake]

Gooch got very lucky with his first touch for their goal.  He actually miscontrolled it. 
Thought we did ok last night   We’ve played a lot worse this season.  If only one of those 2 one on ones had gone in.  I think it was about sxxt finishing rather than good keeping

[IDM]

I thought Andrew slipped leading up to their goal, very unlucky..

Otherwise we were very good apart from
The shooting.!

[Pancho Regan]

Likewise Wilks, who was dead eye dick at the start of the season is becoming Barn Door Billy. I even saw McCann gesture to him to keep them down.

I noticed that aswell DBR.
Wilks opted for a curler towards the top corner instead of a low hard daisy-cutter which would have been a much better option.

But we played well tonight, especially first half, and certainly didn't let ourselves down. It's just frustrating we didn't convert at least one of our chances because we deserved something out of that.

 

[bobbymax]

Andrew has been poor recently. And he got left for dead before the goal. I saw it coming the moment he was beaten that a goal was coming.

Actually, I thought he had a decent game. The goal incident was just plain unlucky.
As for Sunderland, I thought tactics like that had disappeared with the end of the 70s. They targeted our creative players from minute one. The ref was a coward, the number eight should have walked for that early challenge on Copps which was late, high and vicious and that set the tone for him Cattermole and assorted other cloggers to assault players left, right and centre. I'm not surprised we took matters into our hands after that because we got no protection, the foul on Mason prior to his yellow card and the two-footed lunge on Marquis near the corner flag which wasn't punished just two examples.

[Bezza]

talking to some Sunderland fans in the Red Lion this morning, they thought their keeper was man of the match.

[Pancho Regan]

Simple facts are 1 point from a possible 9 with the last 3 home games.

No denying those facts Alan but it is only fair to see them with some background context.
In my opinion our performances deserved better than a return of only 1 point from those 3 home games, that has to be some cause for comfort.
It's not as if we have been totally outplayed, or failed to show any effort or ability.

As the thread title says, fine margins.

[Lesonthewest]

First half I thought was pretty even, before our double chance just before half time I thought they kept us at arms length, they also had 3 decent chances to take the lead with a couple of headers & one at the back post. Sunderland had better quality all over the pitch, no great surprise there, but what they did was to play like the underdog & got in our faces & worked very hard to stop us playing, both fair means & foul, also quicker to the ball & winning most second balls. Better side won in my opinion, the game showed me the difference between a top three side & a team that may flirt with the play offs. Just my honest opinion.

[drfchound]

First half, as well as the two one on ones, Butler had a header well saved.
Marquis had a header just wide of the post.
We also got some superb balls across the face of their goal which could have resulted in a goal.
Not really a barren half for us.

[dickos1]

Sunderland didn’t have better quality all over the pitch. Our midfield bossed it for long periods

[Lesonthewest]

They did in my opinion,  better than our midfield.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

There's no doubt we got at them and got through them at times however they stuck to their task and worked very hard for each other. They did what they had to do to stop us playing and prevent any momentum building up. I wouldn't say be bossed it.

Overall, despite their cynicism, there was plenty to admire about Sunderland, albeit they have more resources to call upon.

I want to see us get back to that pressing game and sustain it for longer periods. We just seemed to have dropped off it lately and have not been as committed to it. Although 32 shots in a game suggests otherwise. We can all see though the business end in terms of final ball, finishing,, quality of shooting seems to have dropped. Is that down to anxiety, may be trying too hard to force things and messing it up?

[Lesonthewest]

I was hoping they would come with the billy big bo--ox attitude, but far from it they did a job on us, got the goal, & were rarely troubled after it. Fair play to their manager, he's certainly got them at it.

[dickos1]

They did in my opinion,  better than our midfield.

Not sure what game you were watching, or if you’re just being negative for the sake of it. But Cattermole and his mate in the middle couldn’t live with Kane, whiteman and coppinger for much of the game.