Missed Opportunities

[blademark]

2 we should have and could have won against potential promotion rivals and we’ve ended up with 1 point. Especially with Boro slipping up at home to Rotherham.

Keeper shouldnt get beat at his near post but it was coming if it wasn’t then it would’ve come after.

Sitting back when we’re in the lead time and time again, trying our best to throw away points - is it complacency, tactics or just panic? How many times have we been hanging on at the end at Bramall Lane this year?

We can’t put teams to bed and the better teams make you pay.

The 'better teams' are also missing their opportunities, it seems.

 

[Eric Cartman]

The 'better teams' are also missing their opportunities, it seems.

And thats the most annoying thing.

 

[SwissBlade]

2 we should have and could have won against potential promotion rivals and we’ve ended up with 1 point. Especially with Boro slipping up at home to Rotherham.

Keeper shouldnt get beat at his near post but it was coming if it wasn’t then it would’ve come after.

Sitting back when we’re in the lead time and time again, trying our best to throw away points - is it complacency, tactics or just panic? How many times have we been hanging on at the end at Bramall Lane this year?

We can’t put teams to bed and the better teams make you pay.

When you look at the results on Saturday and also the results last night, its a key point to note that everyone is dropping points.

We could indeed be several points clear, but so could WBA, Boro, Leeds

To put things in perspective, just a few weeks ago, Brentford were above us and doing well. They're now 8 points behind us and down to 15th.

Last night was 2 points dropped and Saturday was 1 point dropped.

Were in a tough run of games at the moment and whilst the way we finished the last two games is disappointing, we're performing very well for the most part, creating chances and we're picking up points, if only to hang in there...

 

[Mumbo]

I called the free kick as well,which made make even sicker when it went in.
I was in Westfield upper and had a good view the direct shot was always on.
It was’nt a clever free kick at all it.....we invited it.

 

[blademark]

And thats the most annoying thing.

Don't beat yourself up Eric, it's the nature of the division, and it's very entertaining.

 

[Eric Cartman]

Don't beat yourself up Eric, it's the nature of the division, and it's very entertaining.

You can’t argue that but I want us to be the best, and we can be. We need to do more

 

[bornablade]

You could probably go on a Middlesbro' board and find their fans saying they could be 2 points clear today after bossing the game against Rotherham with 65% possession.

We cannot just take our results and performances in isolation.

 

[blademark]

You can’t argue that but I want us to be the best, and we can be. We need to do more

We have no right to expect or be the best. We don't have the best players, don't even come close. We have an outstanding Manager who has managed to raise some people's expectations by forging a super little team with meagre resources, and for me that's as much as I can ask, at least until we receive some significant investment to allow us to shop in Waitrose instead of Aldi.

 

[Eric Cartman]

We have no right to expect or be the best. We don't have the best players, don't even come close. We have an outstanding Manager who has managed to raise some people's expectations by forging a super little team with meagre resources, and for me that's as much as I can ask, at least until we receive some significant investment to allow us to shop in Waitrose instead of Aldi.

Whether we have the best players we can still have the best team.

 

[Nicolaus_Copernicus]

Oh well get the fucking razor blades out then

It's not a question of that, but it is a question of the spurious arguments and excuses people on here bring up to defend our results & elements of our performance. We fell apart against Derby 2nd half and we get the usual excuses, and again last night we've walked off the pitch drawing a game we should've won 3-1. I don't really give a flying monkey's where we were 504 days ago, what their wage bill is compared to ours or what Leon Clarke's inside leg measurement is. It's like Carlito's Way, Benny Blanco from the Bronx has to be dealt with at the time, regardless of how unpleasant it is and regardless of your history and desire to change. Because he wasn't and he gets more powerful and he kills you. There's two dogs, 1 fight. Simple as that.

You need to make hay while the sun shines and we're not. We're coming off the field needing to have made 100 bails, and we haven't and we're talking about how nice our 50 bails look, and how other farmers have been complimentary about the way we go about our bailing, and how the weather actually wasn't that warm as we're lead to believe, and the fact that this time last year we'd made 30 bails so we're actually improving and although the farmer in the next field has made his 100, it's because he's got a more expensive tractor and a better looking daughter. Bollocks. We had the workers in the field, the weather was good, we knew we needed to make 100 bails before day's end and we haven't.

There's the life lesson. Regardless of the other issues & points of fact, Derby have to beaten when we had the chance, Stoke had to be beaten when we had the chance. Because chances are come April next year, they'll be the ones in the mix, and we won't.

A competent professional footballer at this level should've put away the two changes that presented themselves 5 to 10 yards out last night in the 1st half, or at worst made the keeper make a save. We didn't.

A coaching set up as good as ours, after suffering the sucker punch on at least 10 occasions last year would've worked out a way of seeing out games in the last 10 to 20 minutes. We haven't and seem to be getting worse at it. In the 14 games so far; Swansea 2 goals in last 20 minutes, Bristol goal in the last 10 minutes, Preston 2 goals in the last 10 minutes, Derby last 13 minutes & last night last 2 minutes. CW can be as flippant as he wants.

At 65 mins on saturday and again last night we began to fade, at 70 mins in both games, we visible tired and our midfield was losing its potency, the opposition are playing higher up the pitch and the ball is coming back into the 3rd quarter of the pitch with alarming regularity. Due to this we start giving away free kicks, through tired fouls and last ditch tackles. Last nigh I had visions of us conceding a penalty late on.

The last 20 minute opposition surge is repeated game after game, after game. We do nothing to counter it. We seem unable or unwilling to radically change formation or style of play. Perhaps go 4-3-3, go direct and turn their defence, last night being an example of putting Johnson & Washington on wide either side and leaving either McG or LC in the middle, bring Duffy off and putting Coutts into a flat midfield 3 and hitting channels. Norwood was attempting to do that late last night, but didn't have the runners. The Stoke back 4 were running on fumes at the end, and it wasn't exploited. Williams at 34 looked like a boxer holding on in the last round.

If I was scouting our games, I'd say that we play the ball nicely without much threat, don't shoot from distance, don't have any pace upfront, don't have any real aerial threat and if the opposition are still in the game at 70 minutes they'll score. We'll have periods of 80% possession and not do anything with it.

 

[blademark]

Whether we have the best players we can still have the best team.

Pound for pound, we already have that.

 

[Sharrow Snuff Mill]

But when we finally edge ourselves ahead, we decide to handover the initiative.

Guy sitting near us called near post on the free kick n'all.

So did we. Hendo never went to his far post to check when setting the wall - all eyes on the beanpole.

 

[Sharrow Snuff Mill]

So did we. Hendo never went to his far post to check when setting the wall - all eyes on the beanpole.

Nearpost !

 

[Fanny magnet]

don't really give a flying monkey's where we were 504 days ago, what their wage bill is compared to ours or what Leon Clarke's inside leg

could have just saved yourself anf me a lot of time and just posted that

 

[Nicolaus_Copernicus]

could have just saved yourself anf me a lot of time and just posted that

You're right, I could've done. But I like to carefully craft and polish an appropriate post, putting the time & effort into expressing both myself and painting a written picture, drawing on the obvious & the abstract, that my fellow posters will hopefully appreciate. Either that or I try and roll my turds in glitter. Depends on your view point really.

 

[Iceybabey]

So did we. Hendo never went to his far post to check when setting the wall - all eyes on the beanpole.

There were also a few passages of play before this point where we sat back and when we did intercept the ball we just pumped it to nowhere and it kept coming back. We have improved this season no doubt, but we really need to become more 'streetwise'. Crouch comes on and we maybe afforded him maybe a little too much attention and then we allow him to use his 'streetwiseness' to win the free kick which led to their goal.

 

[DronnieBlade]

It is more than a small and annoying point to discuss that in a season and 1/4 in the Championship, our total points haul should be more.

We have performed better than our points suggest.

We have rarely nicked points we haven’t fully deserved. The opposite in fact.

UTB

 

[Trigger Blade]

Last night was 2 points dropped and Saturday was 1 point dropped.

I think that’s more realistic than five points dropped as others have argued. We didn’t deserve to beat Derby, we should have beaten the clay heads.

Looking on the bright side, one point from six puts us one point further ahead of the oinkers, whose goal difference has worsened by 3 more than ours in those two games

 

[NotFallowfieldBlade]

2 we should have and could have won against potential promotion rivals and we’ve ended up with 1 point. Especially with Boro slipping up at home to Rotherham.

Keeper shouldnt get beat at his near post but it was coming if it wasn’t then it would’ve come after.

Sitting back when we’re in the lead time and time again, trying our best to throw away points - is it complacency, tactics or just panic? How many times have we been hanging on at the end at Bramall Lane this year?

We can’t put teams to bed and the better teams make you pay.

It was coming ? They created literally nothing just cause we sad back doesn’t mean it was coming

 

[Eric Cartman]

It was coming ? They created literally nothing just cause we sad back doesn’t mean it was coming

We retreated to the edge of our 18 yard line and started punting it up to no one. We were far too deep.

 

[Jan Age]

It’s a question of mindset and if we don’t change it we will finish outside the top 6 again. It’s the difference between our club and say The Middlesbrough’s of this league. We are still of the mindset that we should be grateful to be in the top 6 and happy with our lot. But a team such as Middlesbrough expect to be there, stay there and put teams to bed. Some people call it ‘self entitled’ but if you’ve got hardwork and talent then that should be your mindset. I firmly believe we have both those attributes.

*however a striker or to in Jan will help!

 

[NotFallowfieldBlade]

We retreated to the edge of our 18 yard line and started punting it up to no one. We were far too deep.

Agreed but every team in the league who’s one up does that

 

[Sean Thornton]

We retreated to the edge of our 18 yard line and started punting it up to no one. We were far too deep.

Is it the game plan or do they players do it themselves? It's an ongoing issue.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Agreed but every team in the league who’s one up does that

Do they all surrender the midfield completely though? If we get a bit of relief, the midfield hardly move forward.

Some of the clearances last night were dreadful, not even reaching halfway. There were a couple of swazzes that Paul Beesley would have been embarrassed by.

 

[NotFallowfieldBlade]

Do they all surrender the midfield completely though? If we get a bit of relief, the midfield hardly move forward.

Some of the clearances last night were dreadful, not even reaching halfway. There were a couple of swazzes that Paul Beesley would have been embarrassed by.

Yes the majority of teams teams who are 1 up have to sit back as the team chasing have to come forward . Hence why most goals are scored in the last few minutes of games.
Watch any game where the teams are of similar level this will happen

 

[PeterNdlovu081]

You could probably go on a Middlesbro' board and find their fans saying they could be 2 points clear today after bossing the game against Rotherham with 65% possession.

We cannot just take our results and performances in isolation.

Boro were booed off last night.

 

[Eric Cartman]

Is it the game plan or do they players do it themselves? It's an ongoing issue.

I think it’s a mental thing having watched Chris on the touchline. Saw Fleck boot it up and he was going mental telling him to calm down

 

[Eric Cartman]

Yes the majority of teams teams who are 1 up have to sit back as the team chasing have to come forward . Hence why most goals are scored in the last few minutes of games.
Watch any game where the teams are of similar level this will happen

No they don’t. Not at all

And when we don’t we are capable of hammering teams, ala Villa

 

[Sean Thornton]

I think it’s a mental thing having watched Chris on the touchline. Saw Fleck boot it up and he was going mental telling him to calm down

I saw that as well. Fleck hit a huge fade into touch., went further right than it did forward.

 

[grafikhaus]

He used all his experience and we were frightened to death of him in fairness.

A radical thought, maybe. But when the opponents get a free-kick just outside the area towards the goalkeeper's 'near' post - with a speed of 60 mph+ - isn't it unrealistic to expect a goalie to cover both posts? Walls help - but they can also block the goalie's view. I'd always have a defender on that post in situations like last night.