Wallace.

[Woodwardfan]

Wallace looked a class above when he came on yesterday. OK the game had opened up and there were gaps but boy did he look the part. He has a presence, plays with his head up and looks to move the ball forward and quickly

I can't wait for the "Wallace and Baxter Show" to get on the road and to entertain and excite us for years to come.

The lad picked up another injury near the end of the game and I pray for it not being another setback for the lad. We need him desperately.

The Basham/ Doyle duo is so, so sterile going forward. Surely if we are playing four at the back we do not need two holding players in central midfield. In fact, I'm not sure Basham really is that good a midfield player.

 

[Punk Blade]

I thought we looked like a different team when Wallace came on, more urgency and far more decisive when moving the ball forward.

I'm a big advocate of Doyle's experience and defensive work at the moment, but I'm wondering how devastating Wallace/Scougall/Baxter could be through the middle when all fit and firing.

 

[sitwell]

Basham doesn't play as a holding midfielder ,he attacks quite well and gets in good positions ,he will be a real asset when we start finding him. Baxter played further back than him for much of the game. Agree on Wallace ,he does look the part but looked to me like another muscle injury ,which could be a nightmare.

 

[ScoobBlade]

From what I've seen Wallace does look to be quality at this level but it is a worry to see how injury prone he appears to be, fingers crossed it's just bad luck

 

[Woodwardfan]

Basham doesn't play as a holding midfielder ,he attacks quite well and gets in good positions ,he will be a real asset when we start finding him. Baxter played further back than him for much of the game. Agree on Wallace ,he does look the part but looked to me like another muscle injury ,which could be a nightmare.

Good point Sitwell. What I was really meaning, but didn't say, was that I think Basham is a midfield holding player at best. In fact I think he is just a defender who prefers midfield. I don't see these positions you talk about. When the substitutions were made yesterday I reckon Basham was told to push up more but he just disappeared because his confidence has dissipated.

What worries me is whether Clough attracted Basham to the club with promises of a midfield spot.

 

[sheffielder]

I think I had mentioned Wallace in every transfer window for the last 2 years. Certainly the best signing of the summer for me and we just need to be patient and let him get over his injuries. He is a leader and he was directing the show when he came on.

He also looked to have a good understanding with both Baxter and Doyle so hopefully we can put Basham out of his misery. Asking for goals from a guy who has scored 6 in his whole career is lunacy in my humble opinion.

 

[Deadly_D'Jaffo]

Basham = the new Paul Thirlwell. You only notice he is playing if you really look hard for him.

 

[Harry's Game]

Wallace's injury situation is really frustrating, he looked for the 15 or so minutes he was on as the midfielder we have been looking for for ten years... But he also looks like is he hardly ever going to be fit.

Doyle has been our most consistent midfielder since about February but still keeps getting stick from our 'knowledgable' support presumably because he isn't as good as Tony Currie.

Basham looks lost in the Role he is playing at the moment, he is being asked to play attacking CM which he clearly is not.

 

[Silent Blade]

Basham doesn't play as a holding midfielder ,he attacks quite well and gets in good positions ,he will be a real asset when we start finding him. Baxter played further back than him for much of the game. Agree on Wallace ,he does look the part but looked to me like another muscle injury ,which could be a nightmare.

Not long before he was subbed, he had a scoring chance when he ran onto a through ball but his awkward lanky running style let him down

 

[B.Lade]

Has there been any word from the club on Wallace injury-wise. I know clough mentioned nothing of it in his post match interview..

 

[Fulwood Blade]

Basham doesn't play as a holding midfielder ,he attacks quite well and gets in good positions ,he will be a real asset when we start finding him. Baxter played further back than him for much of the game. Agree on Wallace ,he does look the part but looked to me like another muscle injury ,which could be a nightmare.

It is pleasing that at least some other Blades can see the benefit of Basham. The chasing down / closing down and late runs by Basham is missed by some of our supporters. For all the irony, Basham will be 2nd name on the team sheet on Tuesday, especially away from home. Could very well be false no 9 yet again.

Would really like Wallace to start - looks class at this level.

UTB

 

[Wards]

Wallace looks nowhere near fit enough to start yet. I'd say we'd be looking at least another few weeks before he's close to starting.

 

[s10blade]

It is pleasing that at least some other Blades can see the benefit of Basham. The chasing down / closing down and late runs by Basham is missed by some of our supporters. For all the irony, Basham will be 2nd name on the team sheet on Tuesday, especially away from home. Could very well be false no 9 yet again.

Would really like Wallace to start - looks class at this level.

UTB

Agree about Wallace - liked his presence, head was up looking for things and looking to make things happen.

Re. Basham - whilst I won't lay into him, I do think we've just about had enough of players coming here and clocking up a few years by making tepid sideways and backwards passes and going missing. By no means an awful player but so far definitely a passenger.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

Agree about Wallace - liked his presence, head was up looking for things and looking to make things happen.

Re. Basham - whilst I won't lay into him, I do think we've just about had enough of players coming here and clocking up a few years by making tepid sideways and backwards passes and going missing. By no means an awful player but so far definitely a passenger.

I have to disagree about Basham going missing - he gets forward to support who ever is up top (and before Mcnulty came on it was false nine time again) There were times yesterday, in the second half when Basham was the one closing down the Rochdale centre half's hardly a player who goes missing - or if he does it is for reasons like that. Basham is the only midfield player who actually gets beyond who ever is playing up top. OK, so he is no exciting wonder kid like Scougall or Baxter, but players like Basham puts in the yards for the team.

As for Clough - our manager rates him, which is why after Davies, Basham is 2nd name on the team sheet.

Clough's original plan was to partner Wallace and Basham in centre midfield - what it has resulted in, is Doyle again playing quite well considering his poor first two years with us. This seems to be Cloughs style - real competition for places and if you have the shirt, and you play half decent then you remain in the team.

My ideal dream team at the moment would not contain Basham, but it is all about results and style will come a distant second.

UTB

 

[s10blade]

I have to disagree about Basham going missing - he gets forward to support who ever is up top (and before Mcnulty came on it was false nine time again) There were times yesterday, in the second half when Basham was the one closing down the Rochdale centre half's hardly a player who goes missing - or if he does it is for reasons like that. Basham is the only midfield player who actually gets beyond who ever is playing up top. OK, so he is no exciting wonder kid like Scougall or Baxter, but players like Basham puts in the yards for the team.

UTB

We'll agree to disagree. For me, Basham reminds me of Michael Tonge's latter years with us. Always around the ball and seemingly interested but never actually getting his foot in or making a decent pass. I'd be interested to see exactly how many interceptions or completed passes Basham made yesterday. It's ok being near the ball but he has to make more happen for me.

 

[JohnDenver]

We'll agree to disagree. For me, Basham reminds me of Michael Tonge's latter years with us. Always around the ball and seemingly interested but never actually getting his foot in or making a decent pass. I'd be interested to see exactly how many interceptions or completed passes Basham made yesterday. It's ok being near the ball but he has to make more happen for me.

He reminds me of Jagielka when he was played in midfield. Good for winning headers, good athlete, but doesn't suit the position.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

I don't know whether we ever get to see the "yardage stats (or kilometres as I am supposed to use these days), but I reckon Basham will be no 1 in those.

I am not disagreeing about Basham's ability - it is lacking, but he gives NC what he wants in this type of team.

We are still in effect playing with 6 midfield players and emphasis is on not conceding - hence Basham's role in breaking forward. Personally I wouldn't play Basham, but our manager rates him very highly in the team, so for all the ironic cheers that saluted Basham's substitution yesterday, the player is and may well remain very high on NC's team sheet.

UTB

 

[alcoblade]

Basham doesn't play as a holding midfielder ,he attacks quite well and gets in good positions ,he will be a real asset when we start finding him. Baxter played further back than him for much of the game. Agree on Wallace ,he does look the part but looked to me like another muscle injury ,which could be a nightmare.

I'll have to take your word for that. Quite a few of our players took half a season to get going last year, so I wouldn't write him off yet - but I've seen nothing yet to suggest he offers us much

UTB

 

[itsinyerblood]

I have to disagree about Basham going missing - he gets forward to support who ever is up top (and before Mcnulty came on it was false nine time again) There were times yesterday, in the second half when Basham was the one closing down the Rochdale centre half's hardly a player who goes missing - or if he does it is for reasons like that. Basham is the only midfield player who actually gets beyond who ever is playing up top. OK, so he is no exciting wonder kid like Scougall or Baxter, but players like Basham puts in the yards for the team.

As for Clough - our manager rates him, which is why after Davies, Basham is 2nd name on the team sheet.

Clough's original plan was to partner Wallace and Basham in centre midfield - what it has resulted in, is Doyle again playing quite well considering his poor first two years with us. This seems to be Cloughs style - real competition for places and if you have the shirt, and you play half decent then you remain in the team.

My ideal dream team at the moment would not contain Basham, but it is all about results and style will come a distant second.

UTB

It's all about context Fulwood Blade, and with this in mind you are completely right, horse's for courses as the old maxim goes.

We're where we are, no point struggling with theories about styles of play when what's required is to make us hard to beat, then there is the not so small matter of where goals come from, but I imagine Clough is as aware of this as any of us lot are. The reassuring thing would appear to be the emergence of Wallace, that is if he, or the club's physio or medical team, can find a solution to the fact that he seems to be prone to injury. Good player nonetheless.

The position we're currently in means we're nicely situated to push on. JCR seems to have come good at just the right time and is making life hell for the opposition. My one, in fact my only wish for this season is for SUFC to be promoted. I actually think we have the frame of a half decent team that needs a bit of fleshing out, which brings us back to the question of a forward who has an eye for goal with pace to match, the player who I return to (although it's unlikely we'd secure his services at the moment) is Bournemouth's Wilson. Demonstrating that he's not a flash in the pan, his goalscoring form for B'mouth is as impressive as it was for Coventry, but he's exactly what we're missing, or at least someone of that type. UTB

 

[LSF]

Wallace - undoubtedly someone who makes stuff happen, a positive looking player with many attributes.
However.... Like many are pointing out, he is a walking injury crisis which leaves me to think he'll spend his time watching rather than playing.
His build is rather strange for a footballer, he looks more like a quarter back in American football with his wide shoulders. His body mechanics appear out of sync. Shame because he looks a real player....

 

[Fulwood Blade]

Wallace - undoubtedly someone who makes stuff happen, a positive looking player with many attributes.
However.... Like many are pointing out, he is a walking injury crisis which leaves me to think he'll spend his time watching rather than playing.
His build is rather strange for a footballer, he looks more like a quarter back in American football with his wide shoulders. His body mechanics appear out of sync. Shame because he looks a real player....

Your analogy of a likening to a quarterback is very good - we had a great vantage point low down in the South stand and he made a run at the Rochdale defence and players just seemed to brush off him - I think the Sheffield phrase is "built like a brick shit house"

UTB

 

[sitwell]

Wallace - undoubtedly someone who makes stuff happen, a positive looking player with many attributes.
However.... Like many are pointing out, he is a walking injury crisis which leaves me to think he'll spend his time watching rather than playing.
His build is rather strange for a footballer, he looks more like a quarter back in American football with his wide shoulders. His body mechanics appear out of sync. Shame because he looks a real player....

Whereas Baxter has the physique of a wrestler, scougall a jockey and Murphy a ballet dancer

 

[Silent Blade]

His build is rather strange for a footballer, he looks more like a quarter back in American football with his wide shoulders. His body mechanics appear out of sync. Shame because he looks a real player....

Noticed that too. Similar build to Jersey Joe Walcott

 

[Silent Blade]

Whereas Baxter has the physique of a wrestler, scougall a jockey and Murphy a ballet dancer

Ian Ormandroyd was nicknamed Rodney Trotter!

 

[sitwell]

Ian Ormandroyd was nicknamed Rodney Trotter!

We used to reckon Bradfords boys were named 'ointment' because they had Ormondroyds

 

[finlaytheblade]

why all this talk about Wallace and injury prone ! he was going well at tranmere picked up a season ending injury
which in many ways put paid to tranmere*s promotion hopes that season according to reports at the time.
Many players coming back from seriouse injuries struggle with niggles (diego garilamo is another), they have a
tendancy to try to get back too quickly especially young players thats why cloughi is being carefull with Wallace
and diego too.once Wallace and Diego get fully up to speed

 

[secretchief]

I watched him quite closely. I'm sorry, but he doesn't close down the opposition half as much as some people think he does. The part where he was doing this in the start of the second half was the wrong thing to do in any case, because we were trying to suck them onto us at that point in the game to develop the kind of space in their half denied to us in the first (hence Baxter standing off at that point). Equally there were some passages of play in the first half when Rochdale played through us and Doyle was on his own. I just don't see what he does offer - he isn't exactly snapping at heels in the middle third of the pitch, and he never comes out of a tackle with the ball. When he has it, he has this weird, languid style where he is constantly caught on the ball, doesn't release it quickly enough, and can't dribble (the part where he tried to carry it in his stride towards the end of the game was a bit embarrassing). He is a bit like Leigertwood but without the strength. I'm very surprised he's played in the premiership, because at the moment he is floundering in division three. I don't understand the argument that he is the one doing the 'dirty work'. At the moment the rest of the team seem to be making up for his deficiencies.

This is the only time I have seen him play (other than Fener), and I understand he is a master of the 'late arrive' in the box, but yesterday we got behind Dale a number of times and every single cutback from byline was cut out (the crossing was shocking yesterday). So I can't really comment on this aspect of his game. He should have scored with a header too, I suppose.

He won't start the next game in my opinion. I think Clough will try something else. In the long term you would hope that the honest competition for places would see Scougall and Wallace compete for his place, but at the moment it looks like Wallace will never be fit.

 

[wizadry]

I watched him quite closely. I'm sorry, but he doesn't close down the opposition half as much as some people think he does. The part where he was doing this in the start of the second half was the wrong thing to do in any case, because we were trying to suck them onto us at that point in the game to develop the kind of space in their half denied to us in the first (hence Baxter standing off at that point). Equally there were some passages of play in the first half when Rochdale played through us and Doyle was on his own. I just don't see what he does offer - he isn't exactly snapping at heels in the middle third of the pitch, and he never comes out of a tackle with the ball. When he has it, he has this weird, languid style where he is constantly caught on the ball, doesn't release it quickly enough, and can't dribble (the part where he tried to carry it in his stride towards the end of the game was a bit embarrassing). He is a bit like Leigertwood but without the strength. I'm very surprised he's played in the premiership, because at the moment he is floundering in division three. I don't understand the argument that he is the one doing the 'dirty work'. At the moment the rest of the team seem to be making up for his deficiencies.

This is the only time I have seen him play (other than Fener), and I understand he is a master of the 'late arrive' in the box, but yesterday we got behind Dale a number of times and every single cutback from byline was cut out (the crossing was shocking yesterday). So I can't really comment on this aspect of his game. He should have scored with a header too, I suppose.

He won't start the next game in my opinion. I think Clough will try something else. In the long term you would hope that the honest competition for places would see Scougall and Wallace compete for his place, but at the moment it looks like Wallace will never be fit.

So you've seen him once in the league,and you think he's not good enough,please see him play a few more games atleast before slating him.

 

[S5Blade]

Secretchief, post: 648939, member: 3144"]I watched him quite closely. I'm sorry, but he doesn't close down the opposition half as much as some people think he does. The part where he was doing this in the start of the second half was the wrong thing to do in any case, because we were trying to suck them onto us at that point in the game to develop the kind of space in their half denied to us in the first (hence Baxter standing off at that point). Equally there were some passages of play in the first half when Rochdale played through us and Doyle was on his own. I just don't see what he does offer - he isn't exactly snapping at heels in the middle third of the pitch, and he never comes out of a tackle with the ball. When he has it, he has this weird, languid style where he is constantly caught on the ball, doesn't release it quickly enough, and can't dribble (the part where he tried to carry it in his stride towards the end of the game was a bit embarrassing). He is a bit like Leigertwood but without the strength. I'm very surprised he's played in the premiership, because at the moment he is floundering in division three. I don't understand the argument that he is the one doing the 'dirty work'. At the moment the rest of the team seem to be making up for his deficiencies.

This is the only time I have seen him play (other than Fener), and I understand he is a master of the 'late arrive' in the box, but yesterday we got behind Dale a number of times and every single cutback from byline was cut out (the crossing was shocking yesterday). So I can't really comment on this aspect of his game. He should have scored with a header too, I suppose.

He won't start the next game in my opinion. I think Clough will try something else. In the long term you would hope that the honest competition for places would see Scougall and Wallace compete for his place, but at the moment it looks like Wallace will never be fit.[/QUOTE]
Obviously not watching that close.....

 

[secretchief]

So you've seen him once in the league,and you think he's not good enough,please see him play a few more games atleast before slating him.

I don't understand this point of view and never have, I'm sorry wizardry. He isn't going to become a better footballer than he is already.