Where's Billy ?

[Benny and the Blades]

Didn't go only heard it on RS and watched: highlights on ch5, but can't remember hearing Billy's name mentioned. How did he play ?

 

[Barney]

Barely touched ball, came off for Ched.

 

[Gavlar]

Didn't go only heard it on RS and watched: highlights on ch5, but can't remember hearing Billy's name mentioned. How did he play ?

Not great by the sounds. But then who did?

 

[Stretch]

Never got a sniff. Clarke put himself about but very little came into the box for either to attack.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

ALL our forwards are going to have to realise you don't get as many chances at this level and the ones you do get, then forwards have to be clinical and faster thinking. Billy had an off day, Clark at least put himself about a bit - but the chance Clark had on 10 minutes, he decide to dilly and dally with it, allowing a defender to block the tame shot. From last season he actually knows how to hit them first time......perhaps a bit early in the season.

It's an area our management team should be emphasising. They'll be all right............as for Jordan Rhodes........again........oh dear.

UTB

 

[Lard_Lad]

They have a very good defence, concede very little and you can see why, kept our strikers very quite, not many teams will have a defence as good as theres.

 

[TJB.]

Going to be a funny season for him.

Not going to get anywhere near as much of the ball as he did in L1. But as with the Brentford game, he'll pop up at the right time and stick it in the net when he's given an inch.

Absolutely deserves to be starting after last year and all he's done for us, but we need to get the service right and we need to make sure we're not expecting him to do similar work to what he did last season.

 

[wizadry]

Our hold up play and our first touches were not very good at all yesterday from Billy or Leon, Evans did more in the small time he was on the pitch than the both of them put together.

Hopefully a kick up the arse will suffice but I think we could do with another striker in before the end of August, in fact it's a must.

When you're not playing very well you need a striker to take a bit of the pressure of by winning a free kick or a corner or anything, it barely happened at all yesterday and I know the opposition have spent a lot of money but I don't think they looked any great shakes at all.

It's still early days and I think it will be a roller coaster of a season that we should sit back and enjoy as much as we can, Billy will win us some matches if he manages to touch the ball.

 

[Fulwood Blade]

Our hold up play and our first touches were not very good at all yesterday from Billy or Leon, Evans did more in the small time he was on the pitch than the both of them put together.

Very true - at times it was poor. Noticed numerous times, we were rushed into passing as we were closed down quickly resulting in hurried football that we weren't used to last season. Players didn't know what to do at times as there wasn't an easy pass on. It was also noticeable how we had to go backwards with passes. Boro gave us a lesson in how to close down effectively without busting a gut and it is something we will have to learn.

UTB

 

[coolhandluke]

Billys on his knees praying for Hanson to get fit sooner as opposed to later

 

[Sheffsteel]

Don't be too harsh on Sharp.

He didn't do much against Brentford either, but scored 1 goal and had another one disallowed
But I've said several times that is Sharps game, he has a bit of the Keith Edwards about him.

Sharp is the type that can be having a poor game doing nothing, then he pops up with a goal out of the blue.
He's a goal scorer/ predator type NOT an all round centre forward.
Goal scorers are worth their weight in goal.

 

[GrayBlade]

I've just looked through the game again (I think we did a lot better then some are giving us credit for BTW and I recon we had the clearest chances), but Billy didn't look right even before the game started to me. He looked pale and was blowing even when they were having their pictures taken with the mascots. Either way he played very deep, Caruthers was further forward than Billy.

On another note after looking back, I'd forgotten that the linesman got it totally wrong 15 minutes earlier when he flagged Freeman offside. The twat wants sacking!

 

[GrayBlade]

Don't be too harsh on Sharp.

He didn't do much against Brentford either, but scored 1 goal and had another one disallowed
But I've said several times that is Sharps game, he has a bit of the Keith Edwards about him.

Sharp is the type that can be having a poor game doing nothing, then he pops up with a goal out of the blue.
He's a goal scorer/ predator type NOT an all round centre forward.
Goal scorers are worth their weight in goal.

Exactly what Hasselbank said.

 

[pommpey]

I think that the main outlets of supply were either occupied (Freeman and Stevens) playing too deep to nullify players like Bamford and Clayton (Coutts and Fleck) or simply had a poor game (Carruthers).

In the last instance in the second half, Carruthers planted a cross diagonally into the box which simply ran out of play for a goal kick with no one within 30 yards of it. Wilder was fucking livid and took him off five minutes later.

Sharp didn't have a bad game - he just had nothing to feed from. As we know, give him half a yard on his defender, a loose ball in the box or a sight of goal and its in the back of the net. Nothing fell for him or to him. Clarkey spent a lot of the game harrying and chasing down defenders, and when Ched came on the pair of them worked to get Boros back four to get rid rather that walk it toward the halfway line.

pommpey

 

[FriethBlade]

I think one of the differences this year will be the wing backs won't be nearly as effective as last year as championship defenders are so much better and faster than league one defenders. Therefore unless we upgrade our wide players (is Baldock better than Freeman?) a lot of the service our front boys will get is going to be into their feet with their backs to goal.

That's why I think we need a forward who can receive it and turn quickly and take the centre halves on. At this level we are going to need forwards who create their own chances as well as get on the end of crosses and they aren't cheap or easy to find.

 

[snootyfenooty]

Absolutely deserves to be starting after last year and all he's done for us, but we need to get the service right and we need to make sure we're not expecting him to do similar work to what he did last season.

Absolutely disagree. The team should be picked on current form and tactics determined by the job in hand. If we pick our team based upon sentiment we will get relegated.

 

[PokerBlade]

Wasn't really involved in the game, but that doesn't often bother me with Sharp. If we'd put a lot of balls in the box or made a lot of chances and he'd not been sniffing, that's when I worry about Sharp having a bad game.

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

They have a very good defence, concede very little and you can see why, kept our strikers very quite, not many teams will have a defence as good as theres.

That wasn't why our strikers barely got a kick. We completely lost the midfield battle for large spells.

Any striker would struggle to touch the ball when that happens.

 

[Alfreton14Blade]

Exactly what Hasselbank said.

A predator's admiration, which says a lot.

Billy had a fair few "poor" games last season, and plenty more the season before, but ... fact is, he's scored 50+ across the two seasons.

He was totally anonymous yesterday. Meh. It's nothing new. He'll bag at least 20 again this season (so long as he stays fit), I'm sure of it.

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

Don't be too harsh on Sharp.

He didn't do much against Brentford either, but scored 1 goal and had another one disallowed
But I've said several times that is Sharps game, he has a bit of the Keith Edwards about him.

Sharp is the type that can be having a poor game doing nothing, then he pops up with a goal out of the blue.
He's a goal scorer/ predator type NOT an all round centre forward.
Goal scorers are worth their weight in goal.

Something some supporters don't seem to understand.

 

[TJB.]

Absolutely disagree. The team should be picked on current form and tactics determined by the job in hand. If we pick our team based upon sentiment we will get relegated.

We're two games into the season off the back of him getting 30 goals last season. And scoring our only goal of the season so far.

That's not sentiment. That's form. And acknowledgement of the fact that he's our best striker.

Wilder has said himself that he's loyal, but he's not sentimental.

I don't think he's being particularly shit, but I think he's struggling to adapt to the higher level. If he's playing shit, he'll be dropped.

 

[Benny and the Blades]

"Still not convinced about Carruthers and it sounded like Freeman took a lot of stick, after one tackle they said they could see a big lump on his head. That's two bad head knocks in two games (Billy last Saturday), I thought there would be less of this kind of thing happening but it seems worse or were we just lucky last season.

 

[snootyfenooty]

We're two games into the season off the back of him getting 30 goals last season. And scoring our only goal of the season so far.

That's not sentiment. That's form. And acknowledgement of the fact that he's our best striker.

Wilder has said himself that he's loyal, but he's not sentimental.

I don't think he's being particularly shit, but I think he's struggling to adapt to the higher level. If he's playing shit, he'll be dropped.

You said players should be picked on last season's efforts. That is sentiment. They should be picked on this seasons form. This is not only applicable to Sharp but the rest of the team as well. I don't think I'm being radical there.

 

[Fanny magnet]

"Still not convinced about Carruthers and it sounded like Freeman took a lot of stick, after one tackle they said they could see a big lump on his head. That's two bad head knocks in two games (Billy last Saturday), I thought there would be less of this kind of thing happening but it seems worse or were we just lucky last season.

Freeman did get some rough treatment but im afraid a lot of it was down to his own nervousness and hesitancy

Hope he gets some belief and makes the step up or it's brayford or baldock in there for me

 

[TJB.]

You said players should be picked on last season's efforts. That is sentiment.

No I didn't.

I said Billy should be picked because of last season's tally AND the fact he's our best goalscorer. I didn't say players should be picked on last season's efforts. If they were, Duffy would be starting. As would Jake Wright.

Sentiment for me is picking players because of what they've done for you previously. Dean Hammond, for example. I can't see sentiment with Sharp. He's doing it right now.

 

[DronnieBlade]

Billys on his knees praying for Hanson to get fit sooner as opposed to later

Are you WHF in disguise ?

The parallels of defending what is indefensible are uncanny !

UTB

 

[coolhandluke]

Are you WHF in disguise ?

The parallels of defending what is indefensible are uncanny !

UTB

WHF ?

 

[DronnieBlade]

WHF ?

William Henry Foulke.

Board famous poster of hilariously wide of the mark defenses of the mighty Sammon

UTB

 

[snootyfenooty]

No I didn't.

I said Billy should be picked because of last season's tally AND the fact he's our best goalscorer. I didn't say players should be picked on last season's efforts. If they were, Duffy would be starting. As would Jake Wright.

Sentiment for me is picking players because of what they've done for you previously. Dean Hammond, for example. I can't see sentiment with Sharp. He's doing it right now.

Oh yes you did. What's this supposed to mean:

Absolutely deserves to be starting after last year and all he's done for us,

 

[coolhandluke]

William Henry Foulke.

Board famous poster of hilariously wide of the mark defenses of the mighty Sammon

UTB

I've absolutely no idea who WFH is/was and I've also no idea what it is that you're suggesting .