Beating the first man......

[Blade56]

Why oh why are our corners and free kicks so bad?

Forget just last nights collection of failures to get crosses, corners and free kick high enough to get the ball to our attackers it's endemic in out game. We moan about our quality up front and lack of goals but you can't bake a cake without the ingredients being delivered to you.

Don't know if this is tactical for fear of losing possession, lack of skill or just bad luck but we need to work on it on the training ground.

 

[IdLiketoRogerMoore]

Why oh why are our corners and free kicks so bad?

Forget just last nights collection of failures to get crosses, corners and free kick high enough to get the ball to our attackers it's endemic in out game. We moan about our quality up front and lack of goals but you can't bake a cake without the ingredients being delivered to you.

Don't know if this is tactical for fear of losing possession, lack of skill or just bad luck but we need to work on it on the training ground.

Totally agree. We've been poor at set pieces this season.

I always lump £5 on JOC to score at anytime and the odds are usually between 12/1 and 18/1. Made some decent beer money last season but this season it's been a barren run....

 

[Houso]

It's overstated how many goals go in from set pieces, throughout the game. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see us score more from corners, but I'd say we're actually fairly effective from set pieces when you look at this graph...

 

[SwissBlade]

Why oh why are our corners and free kicks so bad?

Forget just last nights collection of failures to get crosses, corners and free kick high enough to get the ball to our attackers it's endemic in out game. We moan about our quality up front and lack of goals but you can't bake a cake without the ingredients being delivered to you.

Don't know if this is tactical for fear of losing possession, lack of skill or just bad luck but we need to work on it on the training ground.

Corner and freekick issues again!

Only saw the second half as I was out for a mixed grill in the first half and only made it back to stick CYTA Vision on in the second half.

I’d disagree slightly that we failed to beat the first man, most of the crosses were decent yesterday from what I saw. Free kicks and corners into dangerous areas and with pace. However we don’t attack the ball well.

I don’t like to single players out but Jack O’Connell needs to work on his attacking headers. He’s there and makes a great target. He’s strong in the air, but he always seems to time his jump so that he’s meeting the ball when he’s on the way down, meaning the ball is always going to go higher. Get above the ball JOC and make yourself a real danger in there

 

[sheffielder]

I would just like to see more players running across the front post. Clarke and O’Connell bring our best headers should be considering our corners are more or less designed to go across the 6 yard box.

Without looking at the statnny perception is half our corners get dealt with by the opposition at the near post

 

[S64 Blade]

It's overstated how many goals go in from set pieces, throughout the game. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see us score more from corners, but I'd say we're actually fairly effective from set pieces when you look at this graph...

Perhaps it is overstated, but we are still below the average conversion ratio meaning that we are missing out on goals. I think I heard on the Blades Pod, that we are averaging more corners a game than most teams in the League. If we had scored say two more all season from corners, we could potentially be 6 points from where we are now.

My main gripe with corners is that the delivery is often poor. As someone who is mediocre at best at football, I am confident I could put a corner in a dangerous zone 8/10 times.

 

[Blade56]

It's overstated how many goals go in from set pieces, throughout the game. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see us score more from corners, but I'd say we're actually fairly effective from set pieces when you look at this graph...

I love a giraffe as grafikhaus knows but we're not on this one so how does it help analyse our performance?

 

[Houso]

I love a giraffe as grafikhaus knows but we're not on this one so how does it help analyse our performance?

Well, like I say, it just shows that it's very difficult to score from a corner.

Unless I'm reading it wrong, the best in the Premier League that season was 0.7 goals from every 100 corners taken. That's a staggering statistic.

And last season we were excellent.

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

I love a giraffe as grafikhaus knows but we're not on this one so how does it help analyse our performance?

It has zero relevance.
We're in 2017/18, that's from 2010/11 and Premier League.

What it does show though, which clubs are now in Divisions 2, 1 and The Championship. Eight from the twenty.

 

[jamie_blade]

I don’t think Lee Evans has delivered a bad one yet? Maybe wrong.

 

[metalblade]

Every corner seems to be a wrestling match around the penalty spot I'd prefer to see our big lads on the edge of the area and then running in to attack the ball, you jump far higher when running.

 

[Houso]

It has zero relevance.

So it doesn't provide an example of how it's difficult to score from corners?

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

So it doesn't provide an example of how it's difficult to score from corners?

Yes, it does provide that.
You may as well pull out statistics from 1946/47 season...

What is it's relevance to SUFC and this season?

 

[bromtom]

We are shite at traditional corners and free kicks. Everyone can see this and it's backed up by the fact I can only remember us scoring 1 free kick and 1 corner in the league this season, I might be missing some but even if I am, it won't be many.

Think it was Derby away where we had 20 corners and did shit all with them.

Fleck and Evans can take decent corners but we never get to them, or we do but it's JOC heading back in from the far post which is then cleared.

We need to start doing something else, short or trick corners and free kicks, low and hard ones and hope for favourable ricochets, more set pieces like the one that got us a pen against Leeds, and more shots when we're in range, we have players who can hit the target, and we're susceptible to being hit on the counter so I personally would prefer it to either go in or go out of play, at least then the opposition can't break.

 

[Bladezz]

We had a left wing back taking corners (Who from my knowledge I’ve never seen him take them before).

And our 6th choice central midfielder.

It’s frustrating but not a big issue.

 

[Houso]

Yes, it does provide that.
You may as well pull out statistics from 1946/47 season...

What is it's relevance to SUFC and this season?

Nevermind, I can sense I'm going to be on my own with this one.

 

[1993]

Why oh why are our corners and free kicks so bad?

Forget just last nights collection of failures to get crosses, corners and free kick high enough to get the ball to our attackers it's endemic in out game. We moan about our quality up front and lack of goals but you can't bake a cake without the ingredients being delivered to you.

Don't know if this is tactical for fear of losing possession, lack of skill or just bad luck but we need to work on it on the training ground.

Carruthers beats the first man every time...unfortunately beats the last man as well. Garbage

 

[Cerberus Blade]

Why oh why are our corners and free kicks so bad?

Forget just last nights collection of failures to get crosses, corners and free kick high enough to get the ball to our attackers it's endemic in out game. We moan about our quality up front and lack of goals but you can't bake a cake without the ingredients being delivered to you.

Don't know if this is tactical for fear of losing possession, lack of skill or just bad luck but we need to work on it on the training ground.

I know what you mean. I'm afraid these are just badly struck corners in the main. Can't beat the first man. But there's also something tactically wrong as well. One of the most effective corners is when they are hit to a player on the near post whose job is to head it backwards across the goal. We used to score loads of goals from that move under various managers. I don't think I've seen us attempt it once in recent years. I don't know why?

 

[Cerberus Blade]

It's overstated how many goals go in from set pieces, throughout the game. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see us score more from corners, but I'd say we're actually fairly effective from set pieces when you look at this graph...

It is a fact that few corners lead to goals. The majority are completely unsuccessful. There's a very good book which completely destroys a lot of football myths, based on factual evidence and statistics, and this is one of the key findings in that book. Other myths that are imploded are about "the new manager honeymoon effect". There is no such thing when you study the statistics, although most football fans believe in it. Another myth is about "bogey sides" - ask a football fan who they think their "bogey side" is and the majority of them would be wrong based on evidence.

It's what makes the game interesting though eh? Arguments based on emotion rather than facts.

 

[Esablade]

Actually think the delivery has improved a bit on corners from earlier in the season, as mentioned above Evans puts a decent ball in...we’ve just not scored as many this season which may be down to the oppo and ‘luck’...

 

[Dalelane01]

Why oh why are our corners and free kicks so bad?

Forget just last nights collection of failures to get crosses, corners and free kick high enough to get the ball to our attackers it's endemic in out game. We moan about our quality up front and lack of goals but you can't bake a cake without the ingredients being delivered to you.
What you mean the flours missing !!!!!
Don't know if this is tactical for fear of losing possession, lack of skill or just bad luck but we need to work on it on the training ground.

 

[Jan Age]

We are terrible at set plays especially corners we may as well not bother.

 

[AWetFlannel]

For anyone who watches other football matches that aren't Blades games, this isn't something particular to us.

 

[jt64]

While it's frustrating, I'm sure many teams have done the research as to what area results in the most goals from corners, and as a result aim to just beat the first man. You'll probably find that if it was hit higher/deeper, it is headed clear/claimed or punched by the keeper/over everyone more often than current balls hit the first defender, and/or the chances created from a deeper cross are lower percentage

 

[Grizzly blade]

It’s actually a difficult skill to put a ball in to cause problems for defenders and keepers at this level and above. That’s why some players are considered specialists.

However, considering we have so many set plays most games our conversion rate is poor but essentially due to poor finishes. Lots of missed chances rather than less chances being created.

 

[Worksop II]

We were stood looking down the goaline last night, actually under the goaline tech camera

The balls comming in were all behind the players by the time it arrived in the box

Either the ball was being delivered too far out, or the players were making their runs too early

By the fact that we put two players in front of Schmiecal, preventing him comming out to collect,

I suspect the balls wern't arriving where they should have, in the 6 yard box .... all night it happened

 

[CarlMcBlade]

The customary initial excitement of winning ourselves a corner is severely tempered by our inability to gain any advantage from it.

 

[Tommoblade66]

It'll come right, don't worry ... be happy

 

[BushBlade]

Just watched the pigs beat Swansea 0-0. There were plenty of corners but no one scored from one.

 

[Pinchy]

Lee Evans takes an excellent corner. It’s just that he hasn’t played much yet.

The vast majority of clubs achieve little or nothing from corners. They’re not very good from throw-ins either.

We can, of course, carry on thinking these things are exclusive to us and that we are the very worstest team of all time at corners. It’s good for the Bladey Inferiority Complex.

We Saying Our Own Team is Gash.