United 0 Birmingham 4 - report

[Micalijo]

BTW - Birmingham supporters = scum. West Midlands version of swfc. Horrible, horribile bastards.

Not nice being out sung in your own ground, but why this view Axel?[/QUOTE]

Quite a few bottles lobbed into H block and onto the pitch in second half.

Have to say the volume was as loud as I have ever heard from an away following BDTBL - cannot be faulted for that, but agree with Axel, a very large number of scumbags.

---------- Post added at 06:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:32 PM ----------

I agree that it's too late to change a lot in terms of signings now, but I think there should be more awareness and more debate concerning short vs long term decisions at this club. Short term success has been our only real priority the last few seasons.

Has this changed since the last managerial change?

But the short termism has been caused by finances hasn't it? We cannot offload Monty, Cresswell, Simmo, Quinn etc because of teh daft contracts they have been given. Therefore we have nowt to play with in terms of signings.

For me Bergs we have to go up. SUFC are big enough to build a squad in 2nd tier and if we can get rid of these players plenty of clubs (Barnsley, Watford) have shown what can be done a very small budget in the Championship.

 

[Bergen Blade]

But the short termism has been caused by finances hasn't it? We cannot offload Monty, Cresswell, Simmo, Quinn etc because of teh daft contracts they have been given. Therefore we have nowt to play with in terms of signings.

What if we go up and in the euphoria of promotion decide to reward the heros that got us up and therefore dish out new contracts for Simonsen, Williamson, Evans while letting clubs know that the likes of Doyle, Collins, Monty, Quinn and Cresswell are not for sale...

[video=youtube;pWa0dZMHYeE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWa0dZMHYeE[/video]

 

[yorkshirecoast]

I didn't go but see we had more attempts and more corners than them. How the hell did we lose 4-0?!

 

[axel smeets]

BTW - Birmingham supporters = scum. West Midlands version of swfc. Horrible, horribile bastards.

Not nice being out sung in your own ground, but why this view Axel?[/QUOTE]

Agree with those above, not nice to be outsung at home etc but that's got nowt to do with it. Just their general behaviour and actions throughout the day, coupled with the bottlethrowing etc. Plus it's not the first time they have behaved like this at Bramall Lane. I've seen them behave badly at the lane since I was a teenager.

---------- Post added at 07:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:22 PM ----------

I agree that it's too late to change a lot in terms of signings now, but I think there should be more awareness and more debate concerning short vs long term decisions at this club. Short term success has been our only real priority the last few seasons.

Has this changed since the last managerial change?[/QUOTE

Well I think that the club has learnt its lessons with regard to the transfer policy and frequent use of loans. Unfortunately that lesson has dropped us in Div Three, but we have used only 1 or 2 loan signings all season and with regard to short term success, we've only got one objective now: promotion.

I think that with regards to the wage bill and signings, this season McCabe has run us effectivley as a championship club in L1. Whilst that gives us a great chance to go straight back, if we do not, then there will be a wholesale clearout and the team this time next year will be unrecognisable.

 

[SUFC Handsworth]

Said at the start of the game that some of the players that are looking good this season would come up short against a team from a higher division and so it proved. Collins, Doyle and Evans are looking very good in the third tier but just like last season aren't good enough for the Championship.

The last time we went up from this level, in 1989, Bassett totally revamped the defence over that summer, let's hope that if we do go up this season, Wilson will do the same with the spine of the team for next season otherwise we'll be coming straight back down.

 

[Hodgyman]

I have to disagree that JFL was to blame for the Birmingham winger beating him down the flanks so often in the first half. Has anyone considered how difficult it is to hold the fort when faced by two players. Any fullback needs to face up to the man on the ball, even if it just to see what the opponent is going to do. If the opposing player plays a ball behind our full back, our man then has then to turn and start running to chase the ball,which takes a second or two to get up to full speed. In the meantime, the second opposing player, is already facing the direction of the ball behind the fullback and has already momentum to enable him to outpace our man. If the midfielder (Quinny as was the case on numerous occasions) doesn't get back to take on the first opponent, any fullback has all on to cope.

The same thing happened in the second half with Lowton and Williamson for the 4th goal, albeit it was Lowton who hadn't returned to his defencive duties.

I am as dissapointed as most other Blades with the outcome of the game, but can take the following positives from that display:

I assume that not many scouts present at the game will have been that impressed with our players that they recommend making a bid for them

Our Board and Management team will have had a chance to see the weekness in our playing staff and either refine coaching or recruit better players if we seriously want to challenge for promotion and keep up if we do.

We will not get involved in futher rounds of the cup and run the risk of injuries or suspensions through the extra games in a possible fixture pile-up.

It will save us the cost and embarassment of a mauling at Chelsea which could seriously reduce squad moral for the promotion push ahead.

 

[Grecian2000]

Strange game all in all.

Purely from an FA Cup perspective (i.e. because those are the games I've watched from the South Stand and therefore can group together easily), that, in my opinion, was the BEST we have played. We made just as many mistakes, took just as many wrong options etc. in the earlier rounds but were up against Shite. Saturday we were up against a team who were bigger, stronger and, most importantly, faster in both thought and deed. We weren't overrun in midfield, we were shown up on the flanks (both going forward and defending) and their CB's had our forwards just where they wanted them all afternoon, simply because they were better players than we usually play.
The scoreline flattered them but they deserved to win by a couple and if the gilt edged chance we spurned at 2-0, when they were on the back foot had gone in, it could have been very different.

The one thing it was, was a great barometer of where we really are as a team. I have seen us play worse than that and piss on clubs in this division. If we play like we did on Saturday against anyone in this division (except Charlton and Huddersfield) then we will beat them. We need to play differently against pure Hoof (i.e. Pigs/Stevenage) but the rest we have the beating of with no problem.
If we go up then the same players who found it too difficult last season (and Evans is the prime example for me), will do so again. This season we should be OK but we need pace, because the higher you go the more important it becomes, if we aren't going to struggle badly again at a higher level.

---------- Post added at 11:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:12 AM ----------

Proof that I am disrespected then! ;-)

Don't take it to heart Bergs, you'll always be my "go to" guy if naked pictures of Big Ryan are required.

 

[Sothall_Blade]

The uncontested drop ball?

Just a minor point from Saturday’s match but why didn’t we choose to contest the drop ball in the Second Half?
I’d much rather have a 50/50 chance of gaining possession in the final third than simply allowing them to thump the ball back into our own half.
Did the ref insist that we let them have a free clearance? If so, is he allowed to do that?
Or did it just not occur to our players to contest it?

 

[stannyblade]

Just a minor point from Saturday’s match but why didn’t we choose to contest the drop ball in the Second Half?
I’d much rather have a 50/50 chance of gaining possession in the final third than simply allowing them to thump the ball back into our own half.
Did the ref insist that we let them have a free clearance? If so, is he allowed to do that?
Or did it just not occur to our players to contest it?

very good point. That really was a terrible decision by the ref to even stop play