Shellshocked

[GrayBlade]

Building on that theme.
My observation is that we have to play at our peak to win a game of football. We dominate teams and get into really good areas but it's that final ball which is of too low a quality - it doesn't get to the striker, nor do we cut it back to a midfielder on the edge of the box to ram one home. Instead it hits the first defender or it goes way over everyone a d has to be collected by the opposite wing back - or we chip one in so it's catching practice for the keeper.

Contrast that with WBA first goal.
A mis placed pass creates a possession turnover in our defensive third.
Barnes gets half a yard on Basham and puts the ball in - not a measured pass - just a general cut across. It eludes defenders and strikers - all slashing at the ball and ends up with the one player you know is going to slot from that position, even before he strikes it. Parity.
After all that effort and dominance we succumb to one attack of no great quality - we are not opened up by a great passage of play - and we are back all square.
Contrast that with the amount of times we pressured them into giving the ball away in their defensive third that didn't lead to a goal. Must have been 3 or 4 times and we did not punish them.
It's that max effort that we need to score just one goal contrasted with the low quality chance that the opposition converts. I think its that which knocks the stuffing out of the players (and the fans).

It's as though the opposition, repeatedly, gets the rub of the green for doing absolutely nowt - whereas we utterly dominate 30-40 mins and end up with 1 or often no goals to show for it.

Exactly, we don’t get anything given easy that’s a fact, but the quality counts as well especially with our crosses. Philips got the rub of the green before their second goal but he then took time to look up and find Barns, he didn’t just lump it.

I don’t think anything will really change until we can improve the quality. WBA had 3 chances and scored from 2 of them. Even in the second half they weren’t creating much but you just knew that when a chance or two did come along they’d take it. The problem is that I suspect our players knew it as well, another game where a draw would have been a fair result but we ended up with nothing.

 

[Topplayersleave]

We make one bad pass the whole stadium changes it’s not a good place to play football.

Ahhhhh fans fault again
I wondered why we've won fuck all for 90 odd years and only played in the top division for 5 seasons in the last 40

Its because of the fans, thanks for letting us know.
Now that we know, we only have to shout and bawl and bang the corrugated metal at the back of the kop to be European Champions we'll all be sure to do it vigorously

 

[robbiez666]

That equaliser and the manner that it came, so much against the run of play, just seemed to knock us completely.

It was one casual misplaced pass from Norwood which led to the goal, but it happens. Following that, Norwood, Duffy and Fleck were giving the ball away all over the place.

We came out in the second half, or rather didn't and we'd lost it before the second half started.

We were incredibly deep at times, yet we'd left the back three exposed. Wing backs were neither pushing on, nor dropping in. Fleck/ Coutts, Norwood were so deep. Duffy was anonymous and the two strikers were isolated.

We can criticise individuals for errors, but errors happen, its how you deal with them that's the issue.

We looked shell shocked in that second half and seemed to be unable to compete. WBA really picked their game up and were unrecognisable from how they were in the first half, they have quality which we can't afford and i'm fine with that. But nobody was picking themselves up second half. We gave them too much respect.

After the equaliser they decided to start pressing us and that's when everyone started making mistakes.

 

[BushBlade]

After the equaliser they decided to start pressing us and that's when everyone started making mistakes.

Exactly. If we’re going to analyse the game we have to remember there’s another team out there and what they do, if they do it right, can affect what we do.

With the exception of their central defence (which are still pretty good for the championship) any of their players would walk into our first team. Their A game is better than our A game, and they brought their A game to the second half. It’s just a shame we couldn’t have gone in 2-0 up instead of 1-1, our general play deserved it.

 

[SwissBlade]

Not down to our fans. There’s hundreds of posts about how poor the atmosphere here is. It’s become venemous for some reason.

We lose the ball once the stadium is at its loudest.

Oh it must be that then if hundreds of posts about it.
Dan Burn was also supposed to be the next Sam Morsy if you believe everything on here.

There are much more venomous places than our home games where we have a really good record.

 

[SwissBlade]

After the equaliser they decided to start pressing us and that's when everyone started making mistakes.

You're right, but we have had sides press us before and not make so many mistakes as we did in that five minute spell

 

[cahill]

That equaliser and the manner that it came, so much against the run of play, just seemed to knock us completely.

It was one casual misplaced pass from Norwood which led to the goal, but it happens. Following that, Norwood, Duffy and Fleck were giving the ball away all over the place.

We came out in the second half, or rather didn't and we'd lost it before the second half started.

We were incredibly deep at times, yet we'd left the back three exposed. Wing backs were neither pushing on, nor dropping in. Fleck/ Coutts, Norwood were so deep. Duffy was anonymous and the two strikers were isolated.

We can criticise individuals for errors, but errors happen, its how you deal with them that's the issue.

We looked shell shocked in that second half and seemed to be unable to compete. WBA really picked their game up and were unrecognisable from how they were in the first half, they have quality which we can't afford and i'm fine with that. But nobody was picking themselves up second half. We gave them too much respect.

Their first came from an aborted corner where Duff and someone else messed up. Root cause analysis

 

[SwissBlade]

Their first came from an aborted corner where Duff and someone else messed up. Root cause analysis

Norwood had the opportunity to play a much better ball, if he'd over hit it and it had gone out we could've regrouped at their thrown in. He gave it straight to their player

Not singling him out as some of the balls he played before that were sublime, it was just too casual all round

 

[BushBlade]

You're right, but we have had sides press us before and not make so many mistakes as we did in that five minute spell

They knew how to do it properly though. How many times did Barry take up a position where he knew we’d play the ball when pressed? How quick did Livermore react to loose balls and get onto them?

That club was probably too good to go down and if they’d given Moore the job a bit earlier they’d probably have stayed up. They’ve kept a lot of their players, I can see them kicking on for an automatic. They’ve got a very good coach in Graham Jones and Moore is becoming a good manager.

 

[SwissBlade]

They knew how to do it properly though. How many times did Barry take up a position where he knew we’d play the ball when pressed? How quick did Livermore react to loose balls and get onto them?

That club was probably too good to go down and if they’d given Moore the job a bit earlier they’d probably have stayed up. They’ve kept a lot of their players, I can see them kicking on for an automatic. They’ve got a very good coach in Graham Jones and Moore is becoming a good manager.

I agree, its weird just how good and how bad they were during the first half, but give them a sniff and they're back in the game and take control.

I didn't see the Frank Lampards Derby match, missed Leeds and Boro, but i've seen Forest, Swansea and WBA all manage to turn it up a notch and just win the game.

I think when you factor in Stoke and Villa, then that top 6 will start to squeeze out the sides that aren't able to do that, we're certainly not able to do it against those sides, so it makes games against Blackburn and Ipswich even more important.

 

[GRUMPY BLADE]

When your playing against quality players that’s what.can happen , you probably get away with that against the lower end teams .
The difference was that they had a front 3 that looked dangerous on the break on there in one previous foray into the box they created a good opportunity out of nothing , but that comes at a cost .
In a lot of respects it reminded me of Derby away bossed first 45 then a combination of us running out of steam & opposition changing tactics turned game on its head .
We’ve got to put teams to bed when we are on top or we will continue to come unstuck against the better sides in the division .
If we had their front 3 last night it would have been over by half time , I’m not knocking the lads there out there giving their all but with investment we’ve reached our peak at moment . We’ve come a long way in two years but I fear the ownership issues will kill the momentum, we could be so close yet so far this season unfortunately

Not being able to finish when on top is the problem, even leading to the pigs getting a point.

We need a dangerous striker along side Billy.

But we've got kids running around a field instead.

 

[SwissBlade]

Not being able to finish when on top is the problem, even leading to the pigs getting a point.

We need a dangerous striker along side Billy.

But we've got kids running around a field instead.

Wilder plays on this one a lot, we need to take our chances.

However, its possible to close a game out when we're 1 up