United 4 Port Vale 0 - report

[Deadbat]

The Blades unbeaten run continued as they made it eight games without a defeat as they saw off high flying Port Vale at the Lane. United dominated the game from start to finish and scored four goals and had another four disallowed in a comprehensive victory. Centre back Ethan Ebanks Landell scored a first half brace and further opportunistic finishes followed from Mark Duffy and Stefan Scougall. In truth it was as one sided a game as you could wish to see. United won every battle individually and collectively were far superior.


United went into the game with an unchanged line up from the last game with just one change on the bench with Caolan Lavery back from injury. Vale had numerous Blades links with manager Bruno Ribeiro and his assistant Michael Brown joined on the side-line by former striker Andy Smith who is part of the coaching set up. Ben Purkiss who came through the Academy at Shirecliffe captained the visitors.


The game began amidst some bright October sunshine with United on top and forcing Vale back. The first chance came from a twice taken free kick and Duffy’s delivery should have been converted by O’Connell but he headed wide on the stretch. Coutts then came inside and shot wide before Foley had an effort well off target for Vale. Fleck was industrious early and Sharp and Done were leading the line well as United played some neat stuff without creating too many clear chances.


A rare Vale opening saw Grant almost in but as he shaped to shoot after getting into the box, Freeman made a great recovering tackle. At the other end excellent work from Duffy saw the ball come over but as Sharp flicked the ball home, the linesman’s flag rightly came up denying him the opening goal.


With just over 20 minutes gone, the Blades promising start was rewarded when they took the lead. Fleck’s corner was met on the full by EBANKS LANDELL who was relatively unchallenged. His header bounced down and Alnwick could not keep it out despite getting a hand to it.


United continued to dominate winning loose balls all over the field and thought they had doubled their lead when a shot from Fleck deflected under the despairing dive from Alnwick. It hit a United player, seemingly Done on the way through who was definitely in an offside position. As the players went back to the centre circle, the Vale players surrounded the officials and eventually referee Heywood after consulting his assistant, who at the time had given nothing, opted to disallow the goal. It seemed the right decision but took way too long for the officials to get this call right.


Undeterred, United came again and Fleck had a shot that bounced just in front of Alnwick who scrambled down to his left to flick it away. United were in complete control and needed the second goal that their ascendancy deserved and it came just before half time.


A corner came over, this time from Coutts, and after Vale could not clear the ball on three occasions, Sharp did well to hook it back and EBANKS LANDELL was able to hook it home from close range for his second goal.


The half time whistle came and saw a standing ovation from most of the crowd who recognised an excellent first half performance from the home side.


The second half saw United continue to dominate and they had another goal disallowed. This time it was from a Duffy cross and Done swept home but was adjudged to be just in front of his man and deemed offside.


Vale had offered little threat and a Paterson shot deflected wide was a rare effort for a side that had been completely outplayed.


On the hour United effectively sealed the game. It came from a Vale opening that was cleared and suddenly United had four on two and Fleck raced clear running fully 50 yards before unselfishly squaring the ball to Sharp. The Blades captain drove his shot goal wards but Purkiss stopped the ball on the line; but it fell to DUFFY who smashed home from close range.


Hussey came on for the stricken Lafferty and soon after Chapman replaced Duffy.


United incredibly then had another goal disallowed, their fourth, when Sharp converted from close range from O’Connell’s knock down.


Scougall came on for the hard working Done as the Blades rotated their squad mindful of two away trips to come this week.


Moore had been largely unemployed but a rare opening saw Vale get through and as O’Connell felled Foley the ball broke to Jones who hit a ferocious shot but Moore made a brilliant save. He managed to smother the ball and dive onto the rebound in a great reaction stop. After Foley went off injured, Untied surged to the other end and were celebrating their fourth soon after.


Hussey played in Chapman who in turn knocked the ball over, Sharp should have scored but his header was blocked and SCOUGALL from close range nodded home to give United their fourth goal.


Chapman then came inside and hit a long range effort that Alnwick tipped over as United looked for more goals as Vale looked a side that was just waiting for the full time whistle. It came after four minutes of stoppage time played exclusively in the Vale half as the home side continued to not let up in a complete domination of a performance.

 

[Deadbat]

United – Cannot think of any negatives. We were excellent. Dominated the game from start to finish Scored four and had four border line offside goals disallowed. Had a number of other opportunities. Moore had one save of note to make all game. We absolutely hammered Vale. It was men against boys. We won tackles, loose balls, headers and then passed the ball well, played in triangles and got in and around them and could have scored even more goals. We played as a team with and without the ball. We worked so hard and were like packs when we tried to recover the ball, hounding Vale into submission. They tossed away the ball a lot, but this was down to our tracking, closing down and effort all over the field. We were superb at ensuring we won the ball and when we had it, we mostly used it really well and got into some superb positions. Only some slight over play or poor decisions/finishing in the last third stopped this game from being an absolute malling. If it had finished 6 or 7-0 you could not argue that it was not deserved.


The defence was solid backed by a dominating and loud keeper barking orders Moore and then the centre backs were commanding with Ebanks Landell scoring two but not losing a header/challenge all game. O’Connell also was strong in everything he did and Wright just swept up around them with good reading of the game. The wing backs were steady both ways and were able to get up and down. Midfield, Duffy got into good areas. His decisions with the ball was a bit mixed but he did see a lot of the ball and they struggled to pick him up. Centrally Fleck and Coutts were excellent. Chasing and harrying but when they had it they used it really well showing what good footballers they are. They ran with it well two. Basham will have to be patient in getting his place back as these two were really good today. We completely controlled midfield due to good industry but excellent skill and touch from the pair of them. Sharp and Done both had a pair of goals disallowed and will both wonder how they left the pitch without scoring. Sharp especially missed a few chances and should have scored at least one but they both worked really hard. They held it up well, ran the channels and worked the ball into good areas. Some of the crosses both put in were excellent and they made the Vale defenders work so hard. Even without the goals both played well.


It really was an excellent performance both in terms of winning ever single battle 1 to 11 but also each department of the side. We just outplayed Vale and they had no answer for our work rate and also ability when we had the ball. They had one decent shot all game and were well beaten.


It was as dominant performance as I have seen from the Blades for some time and we ran out easy winners. Vale are clearly no mugs as they had a decent start to the season and were 4th before the game but United simply blew them away.


I still feel United need more pace and also a bit more steel in the centre of the park but that is nitpicking. Today, United completely destroyed their visitors and seemed fitter, sharper, more skilful and better in every area. The key is for them to replicate this every week. If they do and can make a few additions in January then who knows? The division is wide open again. We have options off the bench (Lavery to me should have had half an hour today as he would have had a field day against a poor defence) with Lavery and Clarke coming back from injury and the lad Chapman also a decent option. We have two tough away games now and we need to try and make sure we keep the run going. Momemtum whether positive or negative is hard to change and we have the forward momentum now and need to keep it going. If we can come out of the next 2 or 3 games with another couple of wins we will go into November in and around the automatic promotion places.


For me the biggest compliment I can pay Wilder is that regardless of some decent football and goals, the team just simply are running around like they care. They are giving damn and putting a real shift in. A moment today summed it up. We were 4-0 up and three players surrounded their player, pressing him and he tossed the ball away and we had it back. Wilder has got the player really putting a shift in and they are playing as a team. The spirit seems good and a real togetherness seems to have developed.



Port Vale – They were awful but I think we made them look bad. A week ago they beat a very decent MK Dons side and have had some good results this season, including beating Scunthorpe so they are clearly no mugs. Today they were battered. From start to finish. United scored four goals and could have had a lot more. The goals that were offside were only off more due to luck than good defensive lines. They were all over the place and on corners despite having a biggish side, they could not handle Ebanks Landell.


In general play they could not cope with Coutts and Fleck who ran the game and Sharp and Done also caused them all sorts of problems. They seemed unable to keep the ball for more than a few passes and made mistake after mistake all over the field. They looked slow and languid and at the back mistakes happened frequently. At times they seemed unable to even control the ball or make simple passes and it seemed epidemic across the side. No-one really played well at all.


They did not look like scoring all game save for one shot from Jones when it was 3-0. They lacked organisation, work rate and ability. If I did not know they had done so well, I would have pegged them as a relegation side but results this season suggest they are better than this. Former Blades trio Riberio, Brown and Smith seemed clueless. They tweaked the formation, personnel and approach throughout the game but it mattered little as United continued to completely control the game. They have a mixture of young-ish lads mixed in with a few foreign imports and some older lads but I do not think they have the quality to be anywhere near the top. I would think they may be nearer the bottom than top when the table settles down. They lack an out and out goal scorer (I know the lad Jones in midfield has scored a fair few) and to me lack leadership and experience. They will ship a lot of goals on that performance too.



Opponent man of the match : Struggling on this one. The lad Grant is a player I have always liked but he seemed to be carrying weight and despite getting on the ball a lot, he was slow and hesitant as Duffy and Fleck harangued him. Despite this I still felt he the only player who at least tried to carry it and make things happen.


Opponent Weak link : Take your pick. The back four were dreadful. The delightfully named Kjell Knops was horrific though. He miskicked, sliced, lost his man and generally did little right. It could have been any one though. The keeper looked jittery, the whole defence did not mark or watch runners, the midfield were overrun and the strikers outmuscled and totally ineffective.


SUFC Player Ratings –


Moore 7/10 – Had very little to do. Still heard him shouting and commanding. Made one great save as he smothered a fierce Jones shot. Other than that he had an easy game. One good punch first half. Been an excellent signing and relatively young


Freeman 7/10 – Steady game. He got up and down. First half he got into some great areas but his crossing was poor. He sent three over the goal. He kept plugging away and continued to show good energy and skill when on the ball. Made one great block when at 0-0.


Lafferty 7/10 – As above. Maybe not as involved. He also wasted a few early decent crosses but put a few good ones in after that. He does a lot of running and defensive work. Not flashy but maybe not a coincidence that since he came into the side it has coincided with our run. Nothing flash but functional.



Ebanks Landell 8.5/10 – Cannot really fault him. He maybe missed one tackle or made one foul but that is a stretch really. He dominated his marker all game, winning every header and tackle. He intimidated players, looked so commanding and also used the ball quite well when he had it. Topped it off with two well taken goals and looked a threat every time he went forward. A colossus and a player we need to sign permanently. Would he be good enough if we went up (not seen as by Wolves)? I am not sure but at this level he looks so imposing and has been a really good signing. Joint Man of the Match with Fleck.


O’Connell 7.5/10- Thought he was very good also and seems to be getting better each week. No nonsense but he also tried to go forward when he can; knowing in this formation he can move into advanced positions knowing there is cover. Decent in the air and in the tackle. He was able to ensure they had no real threats at all as he kicked/headed it away when he had to. He made one bad tackle which he was lucky not to get a card as the referee played on when Moore made the save


Wright 7.5/10 – Read the game really well. He is a smart player who senses danger and is alert on the cover to stop any players getting in. Not that fast or mobile but he has a good football brain. In a three he can just mop up behind the two bigger lads who attack the ball more than him. Just a steady eddy but what we have needed. Never lost in a Blades shirt so far.


Fleck 8.5/10 – Superb today. He was good on and off the ball. Looked class much of the game. He began the season well and then got a knock and then lost his place. He has got back in and today he was very good. I felt he used the ball well, tackles and carried it when he could. He had shots on goal, made some opportunities with assists and was busy throughout. Seems a really good footballer who knows the game and seems to be able to link defence to attack. Had some good runs all game and worked well with Coutts. Competing for man of the match with Ebanks Landell.


Coutts 8/10 – Excellent performance. He used the ball well, was able to make good passes both short and long and put a real shift in also. Saw him sprint back twice to rob opponents and he also helped out when we needed to win the ball back in our last third. One he ran 50 odd yards first half and sprinted beyond a Vale man to regain possession. Lost at least a stone since last year and looks more mobile, fitter and even more than that more interested. Has worked hard since getting back into the team and has a desire to keep his shirt. He looked a class above at times with some lovely touches and little jinks away from their players. Today was the first time for a long time we had two players in midfield who won the ball back and also used it well. They both looked like proper midfielders and proper footballers.


Duffy 7/10 – Mixed bag. Weird one to analyse as he actually got on the ball really well and got into some great positions in that area behind attack and midfield. He kept popping up and they could not pick him up. When the did get the ball his overall end product was lacking somewhat at times and I felt he made the wrong decision on occasions. However, he still had some decent balls and crosses and was involved in many good things we did. Scored a goal and assisted on another. A good ball player who can really hurt teams with his skill and running; I still think there is more to come from him.


Done 8/10 – Worked so hard. He ran his socks/nuts off (or whatever else you can run off). Chased across the line, held it up when he could and linked with others. Had a few goals disallowed and got into some great areas. He will feel hard done by not to score but he pulled players around all game and allowed others to get into good positions. Put three great crosses in that were begging to be converted. On the ball at times he can be a bit sloppy but he does not half put a shift in and a really useful lad to have around.


Sharp 7/10 – As above. He worked very hard. Hold up play was mixed. Sometimes came off him but conversely at times he held his man off and held the ball up well playing others in. Led the line well and tried to link with others. He did a lot of good work off the ball too. Being critical he should have scored a few. Two of the goals we scored (second half) he ought to have converted initially and like Done will feel he ought to have got at least one goal.


Subs

Hussey – Brought on for Lafferty. He did ok in a game that was almost finished. He had a few decent passes going forward and no significant mistakes defensively. Ironic that we changed the formation and then he was dropped. I think he would have looked much better in a wing back role but Lafferty maybe is steadier and a bit more steady/lacking errors.


Chapman – Came on and looked lively. He was involved in our final goal and also had one good shot tipped over. Decent lad to come on when teams are tiring.


Scougall – Looked lively and chased/harried in general play. He then was in the right spot to nod home when the ball looped up to notch himself a goal.



Manager – Wilder 8.5/10 – Excellent performance. Side fought hard, won tackles, chased, ran and hassled all game. On the ball we were good too. We played neat and tidy passages of play and in little triangles managed to get into good areas. We created chances in both general and set play. We could and should have scored even more. We looked fit and energetic and completely out worked Vale. The change of formation has worked but Ebanks Landell and Moore have been two big additions. At the moment the side is working hard, looking more solid/organised and winning games. Long way to go but deserves a lot of credit that despite numerous changes, we seem to be looking a play off type side (at worst) and if we can keep building on this run, then who knows?


Ref – Mark Heywood. A bit mixed but not as bad as some fans felt I reckon. I felt he tried to keep the game flowing which was good but at times he played advantage too much but he was not helped by two poor assistants. The one that hit the United man inadvertently and went in was clearly offside and should not have seen the referee have to intervene. The ref let a lot of foul go and seemed like he never was going to book anyone until finally a cynical foul from Hart saw his one and only booking! A lot were criticising the referee but I feel we have seen a lot worse. He did try and keep thing flowing. As for the goals disallowed, I was not surprised all of them were wiped out as my immediate reaction on every one was to look to the assistant/s, so I must have had an inkling that they may have been offside.


Crowd – Nearly 20,000 again. They were really positive about an excellent United performance and applauded them half and full time. Everyone seemed to enjoy the efforts, skill and goals. It is rare you go away and everyone is very positive (almost surprised) by how good we were! Vale brought maybe 6-700 which was less than they have in previous years when they were nearer the bottom than top! They kept with the side but many had long gone before the end. Fair play to those that stayed that even applauded the side at the end (suppose they have done well up today this season).


The Ched Evans chants from the Kop were bizarre. Not sure he is anything to do with us anymore and why people would be chanting his name? He may not be guilty of rape but if he had not behaved so badly then we may have got promoted that season. I have no idea why he is seen as a hero still to some on the Kop?

 

[Deadbat]

Seems the deflection for the Fleck shot came off one of theirs and the ref has admitted he made a mistake. Fair dos. It was a hard one to call.

I felt the other three were definitely offside.

 

[Isar]

Thanks DB, much appreciated.

 

[Sneinton Blade 1952]

Excellent analysis as usual Deadbat, including your perspective on the Ched Evans chants - so puerile and irrelevant.

 

[fishpie]

Cheers DB. Appreciated, as always.
My report:
We were great, I loved it....UTB

 

[Slug]

What a thoroughly enjoyable read

 

[Sheffsteel]

Deadbats style is always to downplay how well we played.
It's always consistently a sober and level headed analysis.

So for anyone that didn't go to the match you can count yourself really unlucky.
If Deadbat sings our praises and can't find any fault then you know it must be something special.

Best I've seen us play since our first season down here when Danny Wilson was manager.
We simply outclassed Port Vale.

Agree with your comments about Jake Wright.
He's a real thinking mans centre back. Probably too slow and past it for a back 2 in the middle if a defence but with having 3 centre backs he lets EEL and O'Connell do most of the defending and Wright intelligently just waits in the wings mopping up any lose ends.

 

[Reynoldo]

Great report, disagree regarding Duffy - I thought he was brilliant today, he never really put a foot wrong and turned them inside out and got on the score sheet - challenged for MOM with the big man and Fleck

Most complete Blades performance for sometime

 

[Sheffsteel]

Great report, disagree regarding Duffy - I thought he was brilliant today, he never really put a foot wrong and turned them inside out and got on the score sheet - challenged for MOM with the big man and Fleck

Most complete Blades performance for sometime

I also though Duffy was great today. His best performance of the season and a contender for MOTM.

 

[Racing Blade]

Thanks DB. Must have felt slightly odd to be able to wax lyrical about such a dominant performance.

"In truth it was as one sided a game as you could wish to see. United won every battle individually and collectively were far superior." When did you last have the chance to last say that?

Hopefully there will be a few more as the season gathers momentum.

Agree with one or two others about Duffy's performance. I thought he was up there with Coutts and Fleck in terms of affecting the outcome.

 

[coolhandluke]

Great report DB

But why oh why make yourself look like a complete prick with your " Ched chant " rant .

I personally never heard anything Ched related through out the game . But according to you the ground was alive with it .

Why try to throw a spanner in the works of what was a first rate performance ?

 

[Nick Jansky]

Great report DB

But why oh why make yourself look like a complete prick with your " Ched chant " rant .

I personally never heard anything Ched related through out the game . But according to you the ground was alive with it .

Why try to throw a spanner in the works of what was a first rate performance ?

He mentions that there was some Ched related chanting from the kop, not that the ground was alive with it. I don't think it is Deadbat looking like a complete prick here.

 

[coolhandluke]

He mentions that there was some Ched related chanting from the kop, not that the ground was alive with it. I don't think it is Deadbat looking like a complete prick here.

Did you hear the Ched related chants ? All I heard was a ground full of appreciative Blades applauding one of the best performances in a long time .

I guess some just aren't happy with that .

 

[s35blade]

• The deserve absolutely every plaudit possible it was truly an exceptional performance
• So many of the new signings seem to have settled in and come of age
• EEL is the best CB we've had here for many a year (not just the two goals talking)
• Actually the whole defence just looks transformed
• Billy Sharp will be punching his pillow tonight that he didn't manage to grab at least one goal, I think he had one disallowed and one offside
• On the offside didn't think the officials did bad, just handled that once incident when they disallowed Fleck's goal appallingly
• Only crticism of the report is that I think 7/10 is very harsh on Duffy

 

[Razor1967]

United – Cannot think of any negatives. We were excellent. Dominated the game from start to finish Scored four and had four border line offside goals disallowed. Had a number of other opportunities. Moore had one save of note to make all game. We absolutely hammered Vale. It was men against boys. We won tackles, loose balls, headers and then passed the ball well, played in triangles and got in and around them and could have scored even more goals. We played as a team with and without the ball. We worked so hard and were like packs when we tried to recover the ball, hounding Vale into submission. They tossed away the ball a lot, but this was down to our tracking, closing down and effort all over the field. We were superb at ensuring we won the ball and when we had it, we mostly used it really well and got into some superb positions. Only some slight over play or poor decisions/finishing in the last third stopped this game from being an absolute malling. If it had finished 6 or 7-0 you could not argue that it was not deserved.


The defence was solid backed by a dominating and loud keeper barking orders Moore and then the centre backs were commanding with Ebanks Landell scoring two but not losing a header/challenge all game. O’Connell also was strong in everything he did and Wright just swept up around them with good reading of the game. The wing backs were steady both ways and were able to get up and down. Midfield, Duffy got into good areas. His decisions with the ball was a bit mixed but he did see a lot of the ball and they struggled to pick him up. Centrally Fleck and Coutts were excellent. Chasing and harrying but when they had it they used it really well showing what good footballers they are. They ran with it well two. Basham will have to be patient in getting his place back as these two were really good today. We completely controlled midfield due to good industry but excellent skill and touch from the pair of them. Sharp and Done both had a pair of goals disallowed and will both wonder how they left the pitch without scoring. Sharp especially missed a few chances and should have scored at least one but they both worked really hard. They held it up well, ran the channels and worked the ball into good areas. Some of the crosses both put in were excellent and they made the Vale defenders work so hard. Even without the goals both played well.


It really was an excellent performance both in terms of winning ever single battle 1 to 11 but also each department of the side. We just outplayed Vale and they had no answer for our work rate and also ability when we had the ball. They had one decent shot all game and were well beaten.


It was as dominant performance as I have seen from the Blades for some time and we ran out easy winners. Vale are clearly no mugs as they had a decent start to the season and were 4th before the game but United simply blew them away.


I still feel United need more pace and also a bit more steel in the centre of the park but that is nitpicking. Today, United completely destroyed their visitors and seemed fitter, sharper, more skilful and better in every area. The key is for them to replicate this every week. If they do and can make a few additions in January then who knows? The division is wide open again. We have options off the bench (Lavery to me should have had half an hour today as he would have had a field day against a poor defence) with Lavery and Clarke coming back from injury and the lad Chapman also a decent option. We have two tough away games now and we need to try and make sure we keep the run going. Momemtum whether positive or negative is hard to change and we have the forward momentum now and need to keep it going. If we can come out of the next 2 or 3 games with another couple of wins we will go into November in and around the automatic promotion places.


For me the biggest compliment I can pay Wilder is that regardless of some decent football and goals, the team just simply are running around like they care. They are giving damn and putting a real shift in. A moment today summed it up. We were 4-0 up and three players surrounded their player, pressing him and he tossed the ball away and we had it back. Wilder has got the player really putting a shift in and they are playing as a team. The spirit seems good and a real togetherness seems to have developed.



Port Vale – They were awful but I think we made them look bad. A week ago they beat a very decent MK Dons side and have had some good results this season, including beating Scunthorpe so they are clearly no mugs. Today they were battered. From start to finish. United scored four goals and could have had a lot more. The goals that were offside were only off more due to luck than good defensive lines. They were all over the place and on corners despite having a biggish side, they could not handle Ebanks Landell.


In general play they could not cope with Coutts and Fleck who ran the game and Sharp and Done also caused them all sorts of problems. They seemed unable to keep the ball for more than a few passes and made mistake after mistake all over the field. They looked slow and languid and at the back mistakes happened frequently. At times they seemed unable to even control the ball or make simple passes and it seemed epidemic across the side. No-one really played well at all.


They did not look like scoring all game save for one shot from Jones when it was 3-0. They lacked organisation, work rate and ability. If I did not know they had done so well, I would have pegged them as a relegation side but results this season suggest they are better than this. Former Blades trio Riberio, Brown and Smith seemed clueless. They tweaked the formation, personnel and approach throughout the game but it mattered little as United continued to completely control the game. They have a mixture of young-ish lads mixed in with a few foreign imports and some older lads but I do not think they have the quality to be anywhere near the top. I would think they may be nearer the bottom than top when the table settles down. They lack an out and out goal scorer (I know the lad Jones in midfield has scored a fair few) and to me lack leadership and experience. They will ship a lot of goals on that performance too.



Opponent man of the match : Struggling on this one. The lad Grant is a player I have always liked but he seemed to be carrying weight and despite getting on the ball a lot, he was slow and hesitant as Duffy and Fleck harangued him. Despite this I still felt he the only player who at least tried to carry it and make things happen.


Opponent Weak link : Take your pick. The back four were dreadful. The delightfully named Kjell Knops was horrific though. He miskicked, sliced, lost his man and generally did little right. It could have been any one though. The keeper looked jittery, the whole defence did not mark or watch runners, the midfield were overrun and the strikers outmuscled and totally ineffective.


SUFC Player Ratings –


Moore 7/10 – Had very little to do. Still heard him shouting and commanding. Made one great save as he smothered a fierce Jones shot. Other than that he had an easy game. One good punch first half. Been an excellent signing and relatively young


Freeman 7/10 – Steady game. He got up and down. First half he got into some great areas but his crossing was poor. He sent three over the goal. He kept plugging away and continued to show good energy and skill when on the ball. Made one great block when at 0-0.


Lafferty 7/10 – As above. Maybe not as involved. He also wasted a few early decent crosses but put a few good ones in after that. He does a lot of running and defensive work. Not flashy but maybe not a coincidence that since he came into the side it has coincided with our run. Nothing flash but functional.



Ebanks Landell 8.5/10 – Cannot really fault him. He maybe missed one tackle or made one foul but that is a stretch really. He dominated his marker all game, winning every header and tackle. He intimidated players, looked so commanding and also used the ball quite well when he had it. Topped it off with two well taken goals and looked a threat every time he went forward. A colossus and a player we need to sign permanently. Would he be good enough if we went up (not seen as by Wolves)? I am not sure but at this level he looks so imposing and has been a really good signing. Joint Man of the Match with Fleck.


O’Connell 7.5/10- Thought he was very good also and seems to be getting better each week. No nonsense but he also tried to go forward when he can; knowing in this formation he can move into advanced positions knowing there is cover. Decent in the air and in the tackle. He was able to ensure they had no real threats at all as he kicked/headed it away when he had to. He made one bad tackle which he was lucky not to get a card as the referee played on when Moore made the save


Wright 7.5/10 – Read the game really well. He is a smart player who senses danger and is alert on the cover to stop any players getting in. Not that fast or mobile but he has a good football brain. In a three he can just mop up behind the two bigger lads who attack the ball more than him. Just a steady eddy but what we have needed. Never lost in a Blades shirt so far.


Fleck 8.5/10 – Superb today. He was good on and off the ball. Looked class much of the game. He began the season well and then got a knock and then lost his place. He has got back in and today he was very good. I felt he used the ball well, tackles and carried it when he could. He had shots on goal, made some opportunities with assists and was busy throughout. Seems a really good footballer who knows the game and seems to be able to link defence to attack. Had some good runs all game and worked well with Coutts. Competing for man of the match with Ebanks Landell.


Coutts 8/10 – Excellent performance. He used the ball well, was able to make good passes both short and long and put a real shift in also. Saw him sprint back twice to rob opponents and he also helped out when we needed to win the ball back in our last third. One he ran 50 odd yards first half and sprinted beyond a Vale man to regain possession. Lost at least a stone since last year and looks more mobile, fitter and even more than that more interested. Has worked hard since getting back into the team and has a desire to keep his shirt. He looked a class above at times with some lovely touches and little jinks away from their players. Today was the first time for a long time we had two players in midfield who won the ball back and also used it well. They both looked like proper midfielders and proper footballers.


Duffy 7/10 – Mixed bag. Weird one to analyse as he actually got on the ball really well and got into some great positions in that area behind attack and midfield. He kept popping up and they could not pick him up. When the did get the ball his overall end product was lacking somewhat at times and I felt he made the wrong decision on occasions. However, he still had some decent balls and crosses and was involved in many good things we did. Scored a goal and assisted on another. A good ball player who can really hurt teams with his skill and running; I still think there is more to come from him.


Done 8/10 – Worked so hard. He ran his socks/nuts off (or whatever else you can run off). Chased across the line, held it up when he could and linked with others. Had a few goals disallowed and got into some great areas. He will feel hard done by not to score but he pulled players around all game and allowed others to get into good positions. Put three great crosses in that were begging to be converted. On the ball at times he can be a bit sloppy but he does not half put a shift in and a really useful lad to have around.


Sharp 7/10 – As above. He worked very hard. Hold up play was mixed. Sometimes came off him but conversely at times he held his man off and held the ball up well playing others in. Led the line well and tried to link with others. He did a lot of good work off the ball too. Being critical he should have scored a few. Two of the goals we scored (second half) he ought to have converted initially and like Done will feel he ought to have got at least one goal.


Subs

Hussey – Brought on for Lafferty. He did ok in a game that was almost finished. He had a few decent passes going forward and no significant mistakes defensively. Ironic that we changed the formation and then he was dropped. I think he would have looked much better in a wing back role but Lafferty maybe is steadier and a bit more steady/lacking errors.


Chapman – Came on and looked lively. He was involved in our final goal and also had one good shot tipped over. Decent lad to come on when teams are tiring.


Scougall – Looked lively and chased/harried in general play. He then was in the right spot to nod home when the ball looped up to notch himself a goal.



Manager – Wilder 8.5/10 – Excellent performance. Side fought hard, won tackles, chased, ran and hassled all game. On the ball we were good too. We played neat and tidy passages of play and in little triangles managed to get into good areas. We created chances in both general and set play. We could and should have scored even more. We looked fit and energetic and completely out worked Vale. The change of formation has worked but Ebanks Landell and Moore have been two big additions. At the moment the side is working hard, looking more solid/organised and winning games. Long way to go but deserves a lot of credit that despite numerous changes, we seem to be looking a play off type side (at worst) and if we can keep building on this run, then who knows?


Ref – Mark Heywood. A bit mixed but not as bad as some fans felt I reckon. I felt he tried to keep the game flowing which was good but at times he played advantage too much but he was not helped by two poor assistants. The one that hit the United man inadvertently and went in was clearly offside and should not have seen the referee have to intervene. The ref let a lot of foul go and seemed like he never was going to book anyone until finally a cynical foul from Hart saw his one and only booking! A lot were criticising the referee but I feel we have seen a lot worse. He did try and keep thing flowing. As for the goals disallowed, I was not surprised all of them were wiped out as my immediate reaction on every one was to look to the assistant/s, so I must have had an inkling that they may have been offside.


Crowd – Nearly 20,000 again. They were really positive about an excellent United performance and applauded them half and full time. Everyone seemed to enjoy the efforts, skill and goals. It is rare you go away and everyone is very positive (almost surprised) by how good we were! Vale brought maybe 6-700 which was less than they have in previous years when they were nearer the bottom than top! They kept with the side but many had long gone before the end. Fair play to those that stayed that even applauded the side at the end (suppose they have done well up today this season).


The Ched Evans chants from the Kop were bizarre. Not sure he is anything to do with us anymore and why people would be chanting his name? He may not be guilty of rape but if he had not behaved so badly then we may have got promoted that season. I have no idea why he is seen as a hero still to some on the Kop?

Sorry, not reading all that

 

[RealMcCoy]

Did you hear the Ched related chants ? All I heard was a ground full of appreciative Blades applauding one of the best performances in a long time .

I guess some just aren't happy with that .

Yes, there was a Ched chant from the kop. DB is right to be perplexed by this.

 

[Nick Jansky]

Yes, there was a Ched chant from the kop. DB is right to be perplexed by this.

Deadbat mentioned it, briefly, as an aside in an otherwise glowing report of the performance. Only a complete prick would call him a complete prick for reporting that it happened.

 

[coolhandluke]

Yes, there was a Ched chant from the kop. DB is right to be perplexed by this.

Ah ok .

Sheffield united 4 port Vale 0

Ched chants ruined the day .

The end

Is that better ?

 

[1973Blade]

Another great report. I would give Freeman 8, on the basis of his fantastic block when their player was through on goal. It was 0-0 at the time and could have changed the match.

 

[RealMcCoy]

Ah ok .

Sheffield united 4 port Vale 0

Ched chants ruined the day .

The end

Is that better ?

You're not reading this thread very well are you?

 

[coolhandluke]

Deadbat mentioned it, briefly, as an aside in an otherwise glowing report of the performance. Only a complete prick would call him a complete prick for reporting that it happened.

Deadbat mentioned it, briefly, as an aside in an otherwise glowing report of the performance. Only a complete prick would call him a complete prick for reporting that it happened.

It's absolutely wank when we win like we dId today isn't it

 

[coolhandluke]

You're not reading this thread very well are you?

I wish I wasn't .

I thought we were great today . Clearly we weren't .

 

[Roygbiv]

Great report as always Deadbat. Love reading these

 

[seanbeenstattoo]

I was on the BLUT and didn`t hear any ched related songs so if they happened,which I accept they did,they didn`t carry or catch on. Anyone could have predicted some would ball some ched stuff out.
Probably BM posters eh.

 

[bladeinspaceandtime]

Great report DB

But why oh why make yourself look like a complete prick with your " Ched chant " rant .

I personally never heard anything Ched related through out the game . But according to you the ground was alive with it .

Why try to throw a spanner in the works of what was a first rate performance ?

You are bang out of order with that snide comment.

 

[coolhandluke]

You are bang out of order with that snide comment.

Really ? Why ?

 

[Esablade]

One of the best performances at BDTBL for years.
Just landed home after a good session with some very happy Blades.

In the Duffy MoM camp, he was excellent today, Particularly first half..took the piss and looked like he was really enjoying it.

Great day.

UTB!

 

[Tyler Durden]

Is this the bit where the curtain-twitchers get all teary about ONE Ched chant?

Oh dear, how sad.

 

[Revolution]

I'm starting to think Chris Wilder knows what he's doing.