My take ...

[Melbourne Blade]

We were gash, they were mildly less gash. What irked me were needless free kicks given away and losing possession in their half to allow counters then more free kicks given away. They're a set piece team ffs.

Hecky's worst game in charge to date (covid for Derby?) and complete wrong team picked. Maybe a hangover from the Blackburn game but onwards & upwards and still confident of play offs.

 

[Nagima]

I think that was our first loss with those two playing together?

Hi Roy.
I know that but I think it covers over the fact that both drop very deep and are not athletic enough to get forward quickly which then can lead to too much of a gap between midfield and more forward players. Playing Berge and Fleck with one of Norwood or Hourihane offers more balance and options in how we attack.

This becomes more evident where we play the better teams in the division. Even though we have won games with Norwood and Hourihane in the middle we have struggled to create good chances to kill off some very poor teams that have turned up to the lane.

We are getting to the crunch time now and while I understand we need to rotate we also need to have good balance in midfield to keep getting results.

 

[Geordie Blade]

Hi Roy.
I know that but I think it covers over the fact that both drop very deep and are not athletic enough to get forward quickly which then can lead to too much of a gap between midfield and more forward players. Playing Berge and Fleck with one of Norwood or Hourihane offers more balance and options in how we attack.

This becomes more evident where we play the better teams in the division. Even though we have won games with Norwood and Hourihane in the middle we have struggled to create good chances to kill off some very poor teams that have turned up to the lane.

We are getting to the crunch time now and while I understand we need to rotate we also need to have good balance in midfield to keep getting results.

To counter that, I think Heckingbottom’s argument would be that Norwood (on his own) becomes much less effective when teams push tight on him - I think we all agree on that (reference: the whole of 2020). By having two pivots (Norwood and Hourihane), teams struggle to pin down both. If they do go tight on both, then Egan has an easy pass through the middle to MGW or Ndiaye setting us up with the ball high up the pitch. In Hecky’s defence, it’s worked fairly well so far.

More problematic for me is the Sharp McBurnie pairing. It has never ever worked out. Never. The lack of pace in a front two is unacceptable at this level. If he wants to pick McBurnie as a starter then fine (I would disagree personally, but I would respect the decision). But please, please never pick McBurnie alongside Sharp.

 

[Keen Blade]

We need to have enough players for the play offs. Aiming for the play offs is more realistic than aiming for the automatic spot so we need to be careful that we could be running on empty before the end of the season

Berge is MoM on Wed night + dropped today - just stupid to be so cowardly Hecky.
Faint heart never ...

 

[Keen Blade]

We need to have enough players for the play offs. Aiming for the play offs is more realistic than aiming for the automatic spot so we need to be careful that we could be running on empty before the end of the season

We won't make the POs with a lineup like that

 

[Keen Blade]

Just a suggestion but now we’ve got into an advantageous position albeit not a perfect position then perhaps we could all support our club in a positive way with constructive criticism

Yeh , play Jebbo instead of McKnob

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

Pretty much spot n pommps, it’s still passing me off the amount of stupid, needless free kicks we manage to give away. As soon as an opposition player wriggles past us we seem to nudge, tussle or pull them back when there’s no danger whatsoever. RND for their goal is a prime example. Add to that the number of needless yellows and suspensions could also become a factor towards the end of the season.

UTB !

Worryingly , this has become all too common in recent matches .

The players have obviously been urged to become more combative in their approach which in itself is no bad thing , but there are ways and means adopting this wihout giving away blatantly obvious and often unnecessary free kicks like we have been doing and expect to keep on getting away with it .

 

[Silent Blade]

Berge is MoM on Wed night + dropped today - just stupid to be so cowardly Hecky.
Faint heart never ...

Berge isnt 100% fit, same with MGW. We need to manage them right

 

[Silent Blade]

We won't make the POs with a lineup like that

It wont be same line up for the rest of the season!

 

[Nagima]

To counter that, I think Heckingbottom’s argument would be that Norwood (on his own) becomes much less effective when teams push tight on him - I think we all agree on that (reference: the whole of 2020). By having two pivots (Norwood and Hourihane), teams struggle to pin down both. If they do go tight on both, then Egan has an easy pass through the middle to MGW or Ndiaye setting us up with the ball high up the pitch. In Hecky’s defence, it’s worked fairly well so far.

More problematic for me is the Sharp McBurnie pairing. It has never ever worked out. Never. The lack of pace in a front two is unacceptable at this level. If he wants to pick McBurnie as a starter then fine (I would disagree personally, but I would respect the decision). But please, please never pick McBurnie alongside Sharp.

Interesting points about a double pivot. I understand where you are coming from though I don't necessarily think that the strengths out weigh the weaknesses. I just prefer to see a little more dynamism in the middle of the park.

I agree whole heartedly on the Sharp McBurnie situation. Billy has always had a mobility and pace issue. He is though excellent at reading the game. Making good runs and also finishing.
To get the best from Billy you need either an out and out target man. Say Chris Wood type or an elusive creative player like MGW or an Eidur Gudjonsen type. Those who can create something out of nothing or who can see a run or pass that others can't.

McBurnie is neither. He in my view is average in most areas and poor in some. He has more pace and physical presence that Billy in certain situations but his vision, game reading, passing, shooting and precise heading are poor. With him in the team I think he requires a Mousset at his best type of player that by their pace, strength and ability leaves more room for McBurnie to operate in.

Hecky is doing a good job and is a decent manager but as fans its interesting to see the alternative views on what we can improve on.

 

[Keen Blade]

Berge isnt 100% fit, same with MGW. We need to manage them right

Berge isn't fit ?
He fooled me on Wed night with the most athletic performance I've ever seen from him.
He was literally flying down that right side.

 

[Silent Blade]

Berge isn't fit ?
He fooled me on Wed night with the most athletic performance I've ever seen from him.
He was literally flying down that right side.

He was holding his hamstring and hobbled for a few minutes just before half time. I thought he would be subbed at half time but he managed the full 90 minutes

 

[Keen Blade]

Worryingly , this has become all too common in recent matches .

The players have obviously been urged to become more combative in their approach which in itself is no bad thing , but there are ways and means adopting this wihout giving away blatantly obvious and often unnecessary free kicks like we have been doing and expect to keep on getting away with it .

I said at HT that Hecky needed to call for some discipline in our tackles & challenges - some of our off the ball stuff was disgusting.
So we keep giving away fouls and eventually they score from one of them.
McKnob is a shuffling foul-machine and some of the other players are too hotheaded.
We don't seem to have learned from the potentially season-ruining red for our newly loaned CB on Wed night.

 

[Keen Blade]

He was holding his hamstring and hobbled for a few minutes just before half time. I thought he would be subbed at half time but he managed the full 90 minutes

 

[Keen Blade]

Phone keyboard hiccup

 

[highgreeninjapan]

It all had to come to an end, didn't it? Shame it's against Millwall, because today they weren't much cop to be honest. I did expect us to come away from that game with at least a point from that if not overcome then, given the way we have been playing. But make a few changes to give players a rest and it shows how quickly we regress into a formation and style which is redolent of the disastrous Slav experiment. Bringing in the serially shit Hourihane and trying vainly to squeeze a fart out of McBurnie was always gonna be a tough one and Ndaiye playing on his own without Bogle and MGW shows that todays team was ready to be beaten.

The first half was uncontrolled chaos. Like two boxers slugging punch for punch we just couldn't dodge and jab. Whichever approach we tried it was always broken up by a poor pass or overplaying it and the midfield looked clueless with Hourihane in it. Their keeper only had one stop to make of note and that was Egan's header straight at him. I don't know what is more frustrating - us having chance after chance after chance and squandering them, or us just stopping any vestige of threat. The second half didn't improve things much until Hecky slowly fed us with MGW, Berge and Fleck but by the time that had happened, we'd gifted them a goal and were simply kicking the ball against the garages.

We've done well - but we've dropped points we needn't - 2 versus Hull and three today and that may be the critical difference come judgement day. The elation of Blackburn is quickly forgotten when we make hard work of a shit side like Millwall and come away with fucking nowt. I just hope this honeymoon period isn't over because games are becoming fewer and the window of vague opportunity is closing.

Foderingham 6/10: One dodgy save but there when we needed him for the crosses
Baldock 6/10: Usual Furious George stuff. A decent outing if at some times still shithousy and clumsy
Gordon 7/10: Very impressed. Composed and gets himself about the defence. Has potential
Egan 6/10: Marshalled well, but lost Cooper in the melee
Robinson 7.5/10: Still impressing me with his improved demeanour and footballing capability
Norwood 4/10: Largely ineffective today. A fucking pathetic attempt at lobbing a penalty area full of players. Fucking drop your shoulder, pivot on your hip, get your knee over the ball and volley through the centreline, for fuck's sake. I don't think he's had a shot on target for many seasons now
Hourihane 4/10: Positionally and affectively crap from start to when he was thankfully subbed
Ndaiye 3/10: Missing Bogle and MGW. He simply had no one to play his game with
McBurnie 2.5/10: Simply not good enough as an attacker. I have no fucking idea what he thinks he can do out of the box and as a playmaker. And he was static, caught under the ball with his feet still on the deck for Cooper's header
Sharp 4/10: Had nowt, as usual

MGW 7/10: We looked entirely a different team when he came on but why the fuck not keep Ndaiye on and have him and MGW as inside left/right attackers wih Billy as striker? Surely getting shut of the ineffective and never looking like scoring McBurnie was the better option?
Berge 6/10: Looked capable but nothing he did actually produced
Fleck on for a few minutes

Hecky/Lester/McCall: 4/10: Must do better

pommpey

Looks like you missed RND from your rating. Would be interested in your score, as I thought he was poor, rarely tried to get a cross in, and his foul that led to the goal was extremely unintelligent.

On Norwood, agree that he was largely ineffective, but also feel he was much better than Hourihane in that he made tackles, interceptions, and he often tried to move it on quickly, which was a problem for us today. It didn’t come off a lot, though, granted. He looked a lot better when MGW and Berge were on.

Cheers for the report! UTB

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

I said at HT that Hecky needed to call for some discipline in our tackles & challenges - some of our off the ball stuff was disgusting.
So we keep giving away fouls and eventually they score from one of them.
McKnob is a shuffling foul-machine and some of the other players are too hotheaded.
We don't seem to have learned from the potentially season-ruining red for our newly loaned CB on Wed night.

Quite right , and whilst many have said that the Blackburn ref was crap , a number of his crap decisions were in our favour .

We could easily have had at least three more yellow cards , one of which would have been a double resulting in another red .

Whilst on that topic , I felt that what can only be described as the vicious assault on their player by Goode was as bad as any I’ve ever seen by a Blades player . The fact that some sections of the crowd subsequently booed the victim of that assault which , had he had his leg planted could have ended his career , was quite disgraceful .

 

[pommpey]

Looks like you missed RND from your rating. Would be interested in your score, as I thought he was poor, rarely tried to get a cross in, and his foul that led to the goal was extremely unintelligent.

On Norwood, agree that he was largely ineffective, but also feel he was much better than Hourihane in that he made tackles, interceptions, and he often tried to move it on quickly, which was a problem for us today. It didn’t come off a lot, though, granted. He looked a lot better when MGW and Berge were on.

Cheers for the report! UTB

I did, apologies

RND 5/10: Struggled a lot with the threat of Wallace. Committed one too many fouls for me, the most crucial and avoidable gave Millwall the free kick they scored from

pommpey

 

[Roygbiv]

Hi Roy.
I know that but I think it covers over the fact that both drop very deep and are not athletic enough to get forward quickly which then can lead to too much of a gap between midfield and more forward players. Playing Berge and Fleck with one of Norwood or Hourihane offers more balance and options in how we attack.

This becomes more evident where we play the better teams in the division. Even though we have won games with Norwood and Hourihane in the middle we have struggled to create good chances to kill off some very poor teams that have turned up to the lane.

We are getting to the crunch time now and while I understand we need to rotate we also need to have good balance in midfield to keep getting results.

Its definitely a fair view and it's something I never thought would work. Your post just genuinely got me thinking if we had lost with those two in midfield

 

[Constantly Optimistic...]

Thanks again for a great summary with the usual incisive wit added. I might sound boring, but I always point out that when Mceffindonkey plays we don't score. Simple really, he destroys all forward momentum singlehandedly. Not that we had much anyway with that midfield.
It was a side bereft of attacking capability. Even missing the occasional marauding run from defence usually provided by Basham.
Wilder lost the plot when he became too negative, frightened to lose. This team was reminiscent of those days.
Don't get me wrong, Hecky and Co. have worked wonders to resurrect the team spirit that took us all the way to the prem, but I am becoming concerned about some team selections and certainly his substitution policy. Jebbo??? Even for 15 minutes after the donkey has proven totally ineffectual for 75.
We cannot win every game, well not yet! And after the euphoria of Wednesday, it is typical blades to kick us fans in the nuts 3 days later. Thanks Pommps, I hope this was just a hiccup.

 

[metalblade]

I feared the worst when I saw the team sheet contained Norwood and Hourihane in midfield. When you go to Millwall you expect to have a battle before you can play football we were never going to impose ourselves on the game with these two in midfield. They are good enough when teams give them time and space but time and time again they come up wanting when teams get at them. Wrong line up from Hecky, injuries and tiredness it was always a defeat waiting to happen. Probably the only positive being better to lose to Millwall than Blackburn.

 

[blade too long]

defeats happen often when least expected

ask Chris Wilder
I bet he was banking on 3 points at Barnsley

the flood of games with ever diminishing squad due to injuries caught up with us
we had 63 per cent of possession and more attempts but looked jaded throughout
Sharp was anything but , and Ndiayes effervescence was flat

 

[Espania blade]

It all had to come to an end, didn't it? Shame it's against Millwall, because today they weren't much cop to be honest. I did expect us to come away from that game with at least a point from that if not overcome then, given the way we have been playing. But make a few changes to give players a rest and it shows how quickly we regress into a formation and style which is redolent of the disastrous Slav experiment. Bringing in the serially shit Hourihane and trying vainly to squeeze a fart out of McBurnie was always gonna be a tough one and Ndaiye playing on his own without Bogle and MGW shows that todays team was ready to be beaten.

The first half was uncontrolled chaos. Like two boxers slugging punch for punch we just couldn't dodge and jab. Whichever approach we tried it was always broken up by a poor pass or overplaying it and the midfield looked clueless with Hourihane in it. Their keeper only had one stop to make of note and that was Egan's header straight at him. I don't know what is more frustrating - us having chance after chance after chance and squandering them, or us just stopping any vestige of threat. The second half didn't improve things much until Hecky slowly fed us with MGW, Berge and Fleck but by the time that had happened, we'd gifted them a goal and were simply kicking the ball against the garages.

We've done well - but we've dropped points we needn't - 2 versus Hull and three today and that may be the critical difference come judgement day. The elation of Blackburn is quickly forgotten when we make hard work of a shit side like Millwall and come away with fucking nowt. I just hope this honeymoon period isn't over because games are becoming fewer and the window of vague opportunity is closing.

Foderingham 6/10: One dodgy save but there when we needed him for the crosses
Baldock 6/10: Usual Furious George stuff. A decent outing if at some times still shithousy and clumsy
Gordon 7/10: Very impressed. Composed and gets himself about the defence. Has potential
Egan 6/10: Marshalled well, but lost Cooper in the melee
Robinson 7.5/10: Still impressing me with his improved demeanour and footballing capability
Norwood 4/10: Largely ineffective today. A fucking pathetic attempt at lobbing a penalty area full of players. Fucking drop your shoulder, pivot on your hip, get your knee over the ball and volley through the centreline, for fuck's sake. I don't think he's had a shot on target for many seasons now
Hourihane 4/10: Positionally and affectively crap from start to when he was thankfully subbed
Ndaiye 3/10: Missing Bogle and MGW. He simply had no one to play his game with
McBurnie 2.5/10: Simply not good enough as an attacker. I have no fucking idea what he thinks he can do out of the box and as a playmaker. And he was static, caught under the ball with his feet still on the deck for Cooper's header
Sharp 4/10: Had nowt, as usual

MGW 7/10: We looked entirely a different team when he came on but why the fuck not keep Ndaiye on and have him and MGW as inside left/right attackers wih Billy as striker? Surely getting shut of the ineffective and never looking like scoring McBurnie was the better option?
Berge 6/10: Looked capable but nothing he did actually produced
Fleck on for a few minutes

Hecky/Lester/McCall: 4/10: Must do better

pommpey

Agree about McB - that's all I'm going to say about him!

A typical Rowett team performance, totally sterile, that's the way he sets his teams up, he will be one day a very rich man by getting payoffs from clubs that can't stand his type of football - it's just sterile - and they sucked us into it! we had zero quality and know how to counter their Oh so boring brand of football!
So I'm going to forgive Hecky' and the team for that one and blame Rowett & his boring tactics - I expect better next Friday!

I thought the young lad Gordon equipped himself very well, I also watched his interview this morning, he spoke very well and looks very assured, well done Lad!

 

[blade67]

Just watched 9 minutes of "highlights" of this one. What a shit game.

Neither team created anything other than the goal, which was one of those dirty/scrappy blocking set piece routines.

It happens. Hopefully we in better shape for Friday

 

[Bennyand the Blades]

Come on Hecky, get di finger out ,
we'll never get anywhere losing one every eleven games........

 

[MiserableBlader]

More problematic for me is the Sharp McBurnie pairing. It has never ever worked out. Never. The lack of pace in a front two is unacceptable at this level. If he wants to pick McBurnie as a starter then fine (I would disagree personally, but I would respect the decision). But please, please never pick McBurnie alongside Sharp.

Name a pairing with McBurnie that has worked!
It is McBurnie that is the problem.
Three good spells we had last season in a disastrous season. All when McBurnie was out injured.
The good end (3 wins in 5) was without Moose, Iliman and main striker Sharp. (And others)
Do the stats in the three seasons.
Results with McBurnie starting, results without McBurnie starting.
We were in a good run.
The three games we started with McBurnie, zero goals.
I used to say it was starting with 10 men.
It isn't.
It's worse than that.
His presence destroys everybody elses' game.

 

[pommpey]

Name a pairing with McBurnie that has worked!
It is McBurnie that is the problem.
Three good spells we had last season in a disastrous season. All when McBurnie was out injured.
The good end (3 wins in 5) was without Moose, Iliman and main striker Sharp. (And others)
Do the stats in the three seasons.
Results with McBurnie starting, results without McBurnie starting.
We were in a good run.
The three games we started with McBurnie, zero goals.
I used to say it was starting with 10 men.
It isn't.
It's worse than that.
His presence destroys everybody elses' game.

I just think he's a Sheff Utd misfit. Not necessarily a shit player. Just he is a poor signing who will continually struggle to make his mark. Were we a bigger club he'd be loaned out and quietly contract terminated. As it is, I do believe still that the board are nudging Hecky to play him to shop window him in the vague hope he'll score a few and we can recoup something of the wasted cash we laid out for him. For him, and for Sheff Utd, it's been a fucking poor arrangement. At least Brewster started to show some fleeting potential before he was crocked (and that one will take an age to get back on the treadmill of playing and training again) and we've shipped out most of the rest of the sicknotes and duds. McBurnie is someone we do need some cash back on and when you think about it, what manager in his right mind would either wade in with a fee above a million or wait for his contract to expire over and above Division One?

It's just not worked out at all for player, club and supporters.

pommpey

 

[Grecian2000]

It all had to come to an end, didn't it? Shame it's against Millwall, because today they weren't much cop to be honest. I did expect us to come away from that game with at least a point from that if not overcome then, given the way we have been playing. But make a few changes to give players a rest and it shows how quickly we regress into a formation and style which is redolent of the disastrous Slav experiment. Bringing in the serially shit Hourihane and trying vainly to squeeze a fart out of McBurnie was always gonna be a tough one and Ndaiye playing on his own without Bogle and MGW shows that todays team was ready to be beaten.

The first half was uncontrolled chaos. Like two boxers slugging punch for punch we just couldn't dodge and jab. Whichever approach we tried it was always broken up by a poor pass or overplaying it and the midfield looked clueless with Hourihane in it. Their keeper only had one stop to make of note and that was Egan's header straight at him. I don't know what is more frustrating - us having chance after chance after chance and squandering them, or us just stopping any vestige of threat. The second half didn't improve things much until Hecky slowly fed us with MGW, Berge and Fleck but by the time that had happened, we'd gifted them a goal and were simply kicking the ball against the garages.

We've done well - but we've dropped points we needn't - 2 versus Hull and three today and that may be the critical difference come judgement day. The elation of Blackburn is quickly forgotten when we make hard work of a shit side like Millwall and come away with fucking nowt. I just hope this honeymoon period isn't over because games are becoming fewer and the window of vague opportunity is closing.

Foderingham 6/10: One dodgy save but there when we needed him for the crosses
Baldock 6/10: Usual Furious George stuff. A decent outing if at some times still shithousy and clumsy
Gordon 7/10: Very impressed. Composed and gets himself about the defence. Has potential
Egan 6/10: Marshalled well, but lost Cooper in the melee
Robinson 7.5/10: Still impressing me with his improved demeanour and footballing capability
Norwood 4/10: Largely ineffective today. A fucking pathetic attempt at lobbing a penalty area full of players. Fucking drop your shoulder, pivot on your hip, get your knee over the ball and volley through the centreline, for fuck's sake. I don't think he's had a shot on target for many seasons now
Hourihane 4/10: Positionally and affectively crap from start to when he was thankfully subbed
Ndaiye 3/10: Missing Bogle and MGW. He simply had no one to play his game with
McBurnie 2.5/10: Simply not good enough as an attacker. I have no fucking idea what he thinks he can do out of the box and as a playmaker. And he was static, caught under the ball with his feet still on the deck for Cooper's header
Sharp 4/10: Had nowt, as usual

MGW 7/10: We looked entirely a different team when he came on but why the fuck not keep Ndaiye on and have him and MGW as inside left/right attackers wih Billy as striker? Surely getting shut of the ineffective and never looking like scoring McBurnie was the better option?
Berge 6/10: Looked capable but nothing he did actually produced
Fleck on for a few minutes

Hecky/Lester/McCall: 4/10: Must do better

pommpey

pommpey 7/10.

Can't really comment on much of the content as didn't see a single minute of the game.
However, I'm taking 3 points off for the McBurnie mark. There is no way a player can get a 2.5 and NOT attract an hilarious new nickname at the same time.
Others in the thread have come up with McKnob and Mceffindonkey but I feel pommps should have set the tone right up front. Letting "secondary contributors" do the work is just a little bit shoddy.