Let's talk about the Newport County game

[Chris Black come back]

That was only our fourth clean sheet of the league season. Oddly only one (Gillingham) has come at home. If we can keep a clean sheet we’ve got a basis to build from. We rarely do, but today showed that it doesn’t need many chances to nick something. Mitchell was good today and is as good as we’ve had for a while under the high ball.

[DearneValleyRover]

I thought  Mitchell commanded his box today, I hope he takes that performance into every game that’s left this season

[Campsall rover]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

[sedwardsdrfc]

Very weird line up. But good result all the same.

Wonder if it was illness meaning Long & Faulkner could only make the bench and not really be considered to start? I'm really confused if it's that Rowe and Knoyle are better centre halves....That said clean sheet today so maybe they are

[Chris Black come back]

It was an odd set up and Newport were very poor, but if it works that’s great. What frustrates people is continuing with something or someone that patently doesn’t work time and time again.

[wilts rover]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

That's just not true. Their main tactic was to launch it into the box, via a punt from the wing or a long throw and Williams lost very few headers that came his way.

Overall it was a very good defensive performance from all the team. They had very few clear chances and Mitchell only made one save.

Criticise people when they have done badly by all means. But to see a game that didn't happen except in your imagination? Well done to the whole team today for a solid performance - including R S Williams.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Decent performance today but it just reinforces what we all know.

If a team stands off us, we are better than them.

If a team gets in our faces, we are hopeless.

You don't need to know any more about our season than those two sentences.

[Lesonthewest]

I saw more of a team today than for quite a while. Good goal & a clean sheet aswell, can't ask for more. It's a start & hopefully that will give us confidence to put a run together. Well done to the players & supporters who made the journey.

[Plumbster]

The beauty of Tommy and Knowle in the middle is that our distribution from the back is much better; agree though that we might have struggled defensively against a better side

[selby]

  They were the easiest team to play against we have played against this season,  hardly ever during the game getting in our faces, and giving us room to play in mid field and carrying hardly any threat up front.
   But we put some good things together Millar would have scored if again he had not favoured his right foot and run around the ball to poke it forward, but he would be a very good player in a good side, his work rate across the pitch is very good. Biggins is growing in stature and strikes the ball cleanly, and the keeper is dominating his area.
   We now need to step up against better opposition.

[drfc1951]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

That's just not true. Their main tactic was to launch it into the box, via a punt from the wing or a long throw and Williams lost very few headers that came his way.

Overall it was a very good defensive performance from all the team. They had very few clear chances and Mitchell only made one save.

Criticise people when they have done badly by all means. But to see a game that didn't happen except in your imagination? Well done to the whole team today for a solid performance - including R S Williams.

Well said

[ForsolongaRover]

To resort to all-out defence allowing very poor quality opponents numerous opportunities to equalise, when we had shown the ability to penetrate their defence repeatedly in the first half created unnecessary risk. I suppose it reveals a very low level of confidence in the coach’s system. It was not an attractive spectacle.

[roversdude]

Schofield doesn't think Faulkner is any good then. This could be a shambles today. Watching our best attacking midfielder play lcb and Seaman pretend to be a footballer.

Prove us wrong please.

Yep they certainly did

[Donnywolf]

.... and a great minutes applause on 73 mins for John Barker

He would have enjoyed that and England v Pakistan with Yorkshire CCC players doing more than "their bit"

RIP fairly Big John

[roversdude]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

FFS Campsall give Williams a bit more credit he was pretty solid today and won his aerial battle with some decent headers

[scawsby steve]

To resort to all-out defence allowing very poor quality opponents numerous opportunities to equalise, when we had shown the ability to penetrate their defence repeatedly in the first half created unnecessary risk. I suppose it reveals a very low level of confidence in the coach’s system. It was not an attractive spectacle.

Numerous opportunities? I can only remember one, which Jonny saved.

At no point in the game did I think they'd score, and I think we had enough chances in the second half to win 3 or 4 nil.

[roversdude]

.... and a great minutes applause on 73 mins for John Barker

He would have enjoyed that and England v Pakistan with Yorkshire CCC players doing more than "their bit"

RIP fairly Big John

Quite moving that JT

[DearneValleyRover]

Williams misjudged only one ball that I can remember and not many teams go to Newport and come away with 3 points. Mitchell commanded his box better than I’ve ever seen him, Close had his best performance in a Rovers shirt and the whole team looked as though they have bought into what DS wants, God bless you John, I thought both the team and fans did you proud today

[Hickleton Rover]

i agree with Campsall i can't understand how williams plays every week he lets the ball get under his feet and generally loses the ball in very dangerous positions, generally leading to good chances for the opposition to score, he makes me nervous every time the ball goes near him

[Alickismyhero]

Just listen to Newport's managers honest opinion on Donny's performance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ-koTGJsmI

[Branton Red]

Decent performance in spite of the bizarre team selections at centre half wasting our best attacking players.

Finally got my £10 worth from a game on I player - after previously paying to see the Barrow, Hartlepool, Colchester, Walsall games.

[Campsall rover]

 

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

That's just not true. Their main tactic was to launch it into the box, via a punt from the wing or a long throw and Williams lost very few headers that came his way.

Overall it was a very good defensive performance from all the team. They had very few clear chances and Mitchell only made one save.

Criticise people when they have done badly by all means. But to see a game that didn't happen except in your imagination? Well done to the whole team today for a solid performance - including R S Williams.

You were watching a different game to me then Wilts.  Williams won only one 50/50 all game. I suggest you watch a re run of the game.
He even missed a couple of headers where he was not under pressure. Sorry he is really poor.
Thought early on in the season he had improved and played well in those 1st 6 games.

[Padge_DRFC]

Better, I think we'll beat Harrogate who are equally as bad as Newport we'll need to find an extra level further to get promoted still.

[Campsall rover]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

FFS Campsall give Williams a bit more credit he was pretty solid today and won his aerial battle with some decent headers

He wasn’t solid at all. If we had been playing a decent team he would have paid a very heavy price for all those missed headers. Newport were shocking. Clueless.
We really should have scored 3/4

Delighted with the win and Ben Close looked a player today.  Biggins could have had a hat trick.
We can only beat what’s in front of us and we did but that centre back trio is not going to be the answer in many games imo.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

From DS post match  comments it sounds like he intends to play  Rowe in a back 3 long term, so I guess we better get used to it.

Sounds like Knoyle had another good game too and chuffed he got his goal. Should be capable of more over the season so hopefully that's wetted his shooting appetite.

[Donnywolf]

KK won 29 votes for MOTM on Coach as well.

I would have voted for him even without the goal

[ncRover]

Don’t forget Olowu is to come back in. He’s good enough on the ball for Schofield.

[Chris Black come back]

Given Anderson and Olowu were out with illness not injury, our coming run is quite helpful. We have a full 7 days until next game next Saturday, then after that another 9 days until next game on Boxing Day. I think aside from Younger and Barlow everyone should be available next weekend if the illness bug abates.

[wilts rover]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

That's just not true. Their main tactic was to launch it into the box, via a punt from the wing or a long throw and Williams lost very few headers that came his way.

Overall it was a very good defensive performance from all the team. They had very few clear chances and Mitchell only made one save.

Criticise people when they have done badly by all means. But to see a game that didn't happen except in your imagination? Well done to the whole team today for a solid performance - including R S Williams.

You were watching a different game to me then Wilts.  Williams won only one 50/50 all game. I suggest you watch a re run of the game.
He even missed a couple of headers where he was not under pressure. Sorry he is really poor.
Thought early on in the season he had improved and played well in those 1st 6 games.

I was sitting level with the penalty box looking diagonally towards him in the first half and directly in line with him in the second half. I suggest you watch a re-run as you were watching a different game to the one we saw.

[Lesonthewest]

Mitchell has been consistent all season.

The problem is the lack of consistency of a few of the others imo.

Yes a clean sheet today but Williams in the air was awful again.
Newport looked a very poor team today & against a better team that back 3 would have been unlikely to have kept a clean sheet.
None of them are centre backs. Tommy Rowe didn’t look comfortable.
KK is a wing back all day long & Williams, well i have said all I need to say in previous posts.

That's just not true. Their main tactic was to launch it into the box, via a punt from the wing or a long throw and Williams lost very few headers that came his way.

Overall it was a very good defensive performance from all the team. They had very few clear chances and Mitchell only made one save.

Criticise people when they have done badly by all means. But to see a game that didn't happen except in your imagination? Well done to the whole team today for a solid performance - including R S Williams.

You were watching a different game to me then Wilts.  Williams won only one 50/50 all game. I suggest you watch a re run of the game.
He even missed a couple of headers where he was not under pressure. Sorry he is really poor.
Thought early on in the season he had improved and played well in those 1st 6 games.

I was sitting level with the penalty box looking diagonally towards him in the first half and directly in line with him in the second half. I suggest you watch a re-run as you were watching a different game to the one we saw.

I thought he was decent yesterday too, apart from where he totally misjudged a header, he won most headers thrown into the box.