let's talk about the Wycombe Wanderers game

[Chris Black come back]

It wasn't the best defensive performance and there were some fairly poor individual errors, but the work at the other end of the pitch was atrocious yesterday. We didn't have a single shot on target registered the whole game and managed 5 touches in their box the entire game. Their keeper statistically didn't have a save to make over the 96 minutes. We were terrible as an attacking force.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

With the mindset as it was yesterday, not sure what difference a couple of changes would have made.

Looking at the highlights and hearing Moly's comments, it's symptomatic of a lazy approach to defending as a team. The back line sits too deep and doesn't get out high enough or quick enough to support attacks, or just generally to get on the front foot.

The space we allow them to play in gives them time to pick their passes and we just ball watch while not marking anyone.


With Byrne at the back and seeing his debut, he seemed to have a positive effect plus doing plenty of shouting., but yesterday the back line was all over the shop

[ncRover]

With the mindset as it was yesterday, not sure what difference a couple of changes would have made.

Looking at the highlights and hearing Moly's comments, it's symptomatic of a lazy approach to defending as a team. The back line sits too deep and doesn't get out high enough or quick enough to support attacks, or just generally to get on the front foot.

The space we allow them to play in gives them time to pick their passes and we just ball watch while not marking anyone.


With Byrne at the back and seeing his debut, he seemed to have a positive effect plus doing plenty of shouting., but yesterday the back line was all over the shop

Do our central defenders have the recovery pace required to get away with a high line?

[mpc123]

Our wing backs do to cover, if required.

Rotherham got beat 3 nil against 10 men from 21 mins. Can you imagine the hell on if that happened to us.

[coventryrover]

I was most disappointed by our two wingers..particularly off the ball.   Losing runners, lack of effort.   

[Blue Green Algae]

Even Middleton, who's hardly played and was coming off the bench, couldn't be bothered. When Huggins hit the post, Middleton didn't go to him initially, then just let him go straight past him without tracking his run. Absolutely awful attitude.

[StocksArmy]

It’s frightening how mentally weak we are. When we lose the first goal you just fear the worst and 9 times out of 10 the game is taken away from us pretty quickly in games.

McCann has spoken recently about the group not communicating and being quiet, the group that he and his team have assembled over 6 windows now. A team who apparently dig deep into the character of a player and do their homework on them before signing. In a January relegation battle with a group of players with one of the worst defensive records in the league we bring one CB in. And that’s after losing our best performing defender in COR. You may defend McCann all you want but that is just pure ignorance and for me the reason that it baffles me that a lot involved with our club believe that we can’t do better.

[GazLaz]

Even Middleton, who's hardly played and was coming off the bench, couldn't be bothered. When Huggins hit the post, Middleton didn't go to him initially, then just let him go straight past him without tracking his run. Absolutely awful attitude.

Middleton is really poor out of possession. He’s a passenger. Gibson gets stick for that side of the game but he’s much better than Middleton at it.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

With the mindset as it was yesterday, not sure what difference a couple of changes would have made.

Looking at the highlights and hearing Moly's comments, it's symptomatic of a lazy approach to defending as a team. The back line sits too deep and doesn't get out high enough or quick enough to support attacks, or just generally to get on the front foot.

The space we allow them to play in gives them time to pick their passes and we just ball watch while not marking anyone.


With Byrne at the back and seeing his debut, he seemed to have a positive effect plus doing plenty of shouting., but yesterday the back line was all over the shop

Do our central defenders have the recovery pace required to get away with a high line?

They have enough to push out when we have possession, it's about keeping the distances so there's no big gaps from back to front. We xan do it, we have done it better but what seems to be lacking is communication and leadership to make sure games like yesterday don't happen.

Trouble is, I don't see McCann issuing instructions when we do drop too deep. .

[ForsolongaRover]

With the mindset as it was yesterday, not sure what difference a couple of changes would have made.

Looking at the highlights and hearing Moly's comments, it's symptomatic of a lazy approach to defending as a team. The back line sits too deep and doesn't get out high enough or quick enough to support attacks, or just generally to get on the front foot.

The space we allow them to play in gives them time to pick their passes and we just ball watch while not marking anyone.


With Byrne at the back and seeing his debut, he seemed to have a positive effect plus doing plenty of shouting., but yesterday the back line was all over the shop

Do our central defenders have the recovery pace required to get away with a high line?

They have enough to push out when we have possession, it's about keeping the distances so there's no big gaps from back to front. We xan do it, we have done it better but what seems to be lacking is communication and leadership to make sure games like yesterday don't happen.

Trouble is, I don't see McCann issuing instructions when we do drop too deep. .

Comments on here about failing strategies are either plain wrong (which I doubt) or are not observed by those on the background staff who are paid to study such things on a full-time basis. Does this not suggest that these technical people (“Analysts”) are failing in their jobs? Do we ever hear from them?

[Barmby Rover]

Watching "highlights" is not exactly the best way to analyse a game, but in midfield there seemed to be little challenge going on from Rovers. Everybody seemed to retreat to the penalty area and wait for the attack and leave the challenges to a few defenders, they were not backing each other up as we have seen in the last few matches. Fingers crossed they sort themselves out, apart from the Virtu game they have plenty of time to analyse and work out why they failed so badly and come back when we play Huddersfield at home in the league.

[Hickleton Rover]

For me as well to many players in the box at corners and free kicks they seem to get in each others way take Burton's goal from a corner Robbie Gotts trying to mark the goalscorer ( at least 6 to 8 inches taller ) and jay McGrath stood in the 6 yard box marking nobody and if we win the header or clearance it just comes straight back

[In the box]

Saw the teamsheet and expected the worst.

Not arguing about whether the starting XI chosen are the best players available or not.

But no changes from Tuesday - a tough game in tougher conditions - when Rovers are carrying such a big squad?!

Against a good side, at home who have had the week off and are fresh?!

Madness.

The manager has to take a lot of the blame for the performance and scale of defeat.

Let's hope it doesn't hit the team confidence which has grown so much in previous weeks.

Lets be honest though.

If grant changed the line up and we lost he would of got hammered for it.

Wycombe out played us and we had way too many players having their worst game for a long time

Grants complained that the players looked leggy .. yet he kept the same line up a Tuesday , where we got away with a win against a team in the bottom mix as us . So when we go up against a team challenging I would have thought altering the line up would have made more sense , as they will have had us watched !

[In the box]

Saw the teamsheet and expected the worst.

Not arguing about whether the starting XI chosen are the best players available or not.

But no changes from Tuesday - a tough game in tougher conditions - when Rovers are carrying such a big squad?!

Against a good side, at home who have had the week off and are fresh?!

Madness.

The manager has to take a lot of the blame for the performance and scale of defeat.

Let's hope it doesn't hit the team confidence which has grown so much in previous weeks.

Lets be honest though.

If grant changed the line up and we lost he would of got hammered for it.

Wycombe out played us and we had way too many players having their worst game for a long time

Grants complained that the players looked leggy .. yet he kept the same line up a Tuesday , where we got away with a win against a team in the bottom mix as us . So when we go up against a team challenging I would have thought altering the line up would have made more sense , as they will have had us watched !

[selby]

  Leggy or not for this game, repeatedly against teams in the top half of the division up to press this season  we have been found wanting.
  That points more to a distinct difference in the class of player at Grants disposal rather than a lack of fitness.
  A pointed question, how many of our team would get a regular game in Wycombe's first team? and there are six or seven teams in the division with more resources than them.

[Reg of the Rovers]

The poor recruitment means we can't make the changes we need - early in the season it was 'two players for every position', but bad recruitment meant that was rubbish, so every change we make means the team gets worse. We have one good starting 11 when everyone is fit, and apart from full-back cover which is very good, any thing else we do makes us worse - either in changes to starting line up or in subs in-game. And ironically, Sterry who's been on his arse for two games gets left in and has another shocker, when we have decent cover there.

So it's either a tired team who are decent at this level, or a fresh team of league 2 level players most of whom aren't strong enough - physically or mentally.

[Butchers Red]

I think anyone expecting we can rock up at a team like WW and compete without a proper centre forward is being a bit delusional. We've only seen Frankie for 3 or so games but certainly by the last outing he was occupying both centre backs and creating loads of space for Haks and one on ones for Mols and as a result we created havoc.

Elliott Lee is a great signing for sure but playing him as a false nine will never cut the mustard at this level.

So from about 10 minutes we had no outlet, and they just pressed us back and that enabled their two strong wide men to strut their stuff and kill us off, the result reflected the reality.

Now if we had suffered that with Frankie etc in the side it would be far more concerning to me.

[grayx]

I think anyone expecting we can rock up at a team like WW and compete without a proper centre forward is being a bit delusional. We've only seen Frankie for 3 or so games but certainly by the last outing he was occupying both centre backs and creating loads of space for Haks and one on ones for Mols and as a result we created havoc.

Elliott Lee is a great signing for sure but playing him as a false nine will never cut the mustard at this level.

So from about 10 minutes we had no outlet, and they just pressed us back and that enabled their two strong wide men to strut their stuff and kill us off, the result reflected the reality.

Now if we had suffered that with Frankie etc in the side it would be far more concerning to me.

Totally agree with all of this.