Ball Sup Blog... SUFC Academy U21 v Millwall (a)

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Lightsoot said:
There’s a lot of immaturity in Osula’s play. Long ball down field by Barrett. Osula gives chase but the Millwall defender gets there first. Osula then climbs all over him and gives away a needless free kick when the defender is on the edge of the box.

Full time. Extra time.
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Osula has been disappointing tonight. Very greedy.

Marsh has been very quiet which is a shame, but him and Osula really haven't clicked tonight.
 
94 mins. Potter injured (centre half) and is replaced by Pitan. Potter had been in the wars earlier and was wearing a headband after getting a gash to his head.

At the other end, Osula tries an audacious overhead kick which id deflected for a corner. The corner is met well by the head of sub Pitan, it looks destined for top corner but the keeper somehow claws it away. Unlucky!!

United dominant. Peck wide on the right flashes a cross in the box but no one is on the end of it.

99 mins.
 
Millwall forward wriggles clear of Sachdev on the left touchline, Sachdev drags him down and deservedly is booked. Dangerous free kick and is headed home by Milwall. 2-1, absolutely against the run of play.

Terrible, costly defending by Sachdev.
 
Lightsoot said:
Millwall forward wriggles clear of Sachdev on the left touchline, Sachdev drags him down and deservedly is booked. Dangerous free kick and is headed home by Milwall. 2-1, absolutely against the run of play.

Terrible, costly defending by Sachdev. 12 mins to go.
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Yep, it's been all United but they just couldn't find the back of the net.
 
Poor goal all round to concede. Millwall scorer got the run on Pitan and outmuscled him to head home.

Another injury replacement at the back. I think Barrett has gone off and Josh Smith is on.
 
Entering the second half of extra time. 2-1 Milwall. Harsh on United.

15 to go.
 
Lightsoot said:
Millwall forward wriggles clear of Sachdev on the left touchline, Sachdev drags him down and deservedly is booked. Dangerous free kick and is headed home by Milwall. 2-1, absolutely against the run of play.

Terrible, costly defending by Sachdev.
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I've not been impressed with him the last few times I've seen him. He does the Baldock turn inside going forward and has looked iffy at the back. Needs a decent loan really.
 
Peck has a go from 20 yards, well struck but at a comfortable height for the keeper who gathers first time.

Good urgency from Freckleton, he finds Osula who has two goes but he can only scuff an effort towards goal off balance.

10 mins to go.
 
Again Freckleton advances forward, he’s playing in midfield now. Finds Peck on the edge of the box but his cross come shot has no end product.
 
Frustrating night. United dominated possession in the final third, but carved out no clear cut chances and it always seems that we have a mistake in us at the back. Our U21 ‘big guns’ haven’t really stamped their authority.

Osula in particular has shown a poor touch and anticipation -makes me appreciate how far Jebbo has improved in comparison.

Only Brooks - who is such a positive, energetic player and Freckleton - who looks strong, mobile and decent with the ball at the back - have caught the eye.
 
We've certainly been the better team, Osula has not looked up and seen players in better positions
 

Bobby b said:
We've certainly been the better team, Osula has not looked up and seen players in better positions
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Both Jebbo and Osula make poor decisions. They're often unaware of what's around them. That can be taught but they need regular football at a good level.
 
Utd players were dropping like flies all over the pitch in extra time. Fitness and conditioning not only needing work at first team level then it seems..
Gutted for the lads. Better team from when I tuned in second half and ET.
'Wall looked bigger and fitter though. Maybe they are a bit older and more developed?
 
Yeah kids did well but poor choices in final third and sloppy goals given away. We looked better in general play but they actually had better chances and missed a sitter.

For us Brooks and Peck good. The former ran with the ball and looked a constant threat. He was very good and seems two footed. Peck also did well and looks a player who wants the ball and puts a tackle in too. Freckleton looks composed and a unit who can do a bit of everything.

Faxon made some decent saves.

Buyabu got up and down well too.

The two other centre backs Potter and Barrett were slow and cumbersome. Sachdev also gave away a poor free kick and the sub Pitan lost his man.

I was disappointed with a few who have done well in the u21s...thought Marsh was not in it.amd Arblaster I'm not sure he's quite progressed as much as I'd have hoped. Think we saw him as next big thing when he was involved pre season. He's neat and tidy but not sure he excels in any one thing. Still has time though bit needs to pick what sort of player he is...is he a creator, a link or a breaker upper? Not sure.

Osula great shot for the goal apart, was really poor. He made poor decisions, he'd the ball too long and did not get his head up. On the evidence of tonight he is miles off a first teamer at even Champ level. He needs regular games at League 1 for a season and then we will see how he gets on...we forget that he barely played for Derby.
 
Andre Brooks looks a player... should have had more gametime this season imo.
 
vas borbokis said:
Utd players were dropping like flies all over the pitch in extra time. Fitness and conditioning not only needing work at first team level then it seems..
Gutted for the lads. Better team from when I tuned in second half and ET.
'Wall looked bigger and fitter though. Maybe they are a bit older and more developed?
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3 of our starters are U18s plus some of the subs.
 
As noted Brooks was the best player in a United shirt by far. He's so good to watch when he has licence to run the ball and in the mood for it. Peck was also decent and hopefully he'll kick on from his loan earlier this season as I think he has everything from a technical point of view.

Sadly the lads with first team experience, namely Osula, Arblaster and Buyabu never really stamped their authority.

A great season at this level nonetheless.
 
Thought United looked really good until they got close to the box and then delivered poor balls or made poor decisions. Was very disappointed in Osula, he came across as having a bit of a Charlie Big Time attitude compared to the others. Some really good performances though, plenty to offer encouragement re future first team players.
 
Deadbat said:
Yeah kids did well but poor choices in final third and sloppy goals given away. We looked better in general play but they actually had better chances and missed a sitter.

For us Brooks and Peck good. The former ran with the ball and looked a constant threat. He was very good and seems two footed. Peck also did well and looks a player who wants the ball and puts a tackle in too. Freckleton looks composed and a unit who can do a bit of everything.

Faxon made some decent saves.

Buyabu got up and down well too.

The two other centre backs Potter and Barrett were slow and cumbersome. Sachdev also gave away a poor free kick and the sub Pitan lost his man.

I was disappointed with a few who have done well in the u21s...thought Marsh was not in it.amd Arblaster I'm not sure he's quite progressed as much as I'd have hoped. Think we saw him as next big thing when he was involved pre season. He's neat and tidy but not sure he excels in any one thing. Still has time though bit needs to pick what sort of player he is...is he a creator, a link or a breaker upper? Not sure.

Osula great shot for the goal apart, was really poor. He made poor decisions, he'd the ball too long and did not get his head up. On the evidence of tonight he is miles off a first teamer at even Champ level. He needs regular games at League 1 for a season and then we will see how he gets on...we forget that he barely played for Derby.
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"...
The two other centre backs Potter and Barrett were slow and cumbersome.
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Was Potter the lad with his head bandaged?, if so, I wouldn't say he was slow at all, there were a couple of times where he raced back to cover for another player who was way out of position and made a slide tackle clearance.

Not saying he was Oli Burke/Khadra style of rapid, but certainly not slow.
 
Deadbat said:
Yeah kids did well but poor choices in final third and sloppy goals given away. We looked better in general play but they actually had better chances and missed a sitter.

For us Brooks and Peck good. The former ran with the ball and looked a constant threat. He was very good and seems two footed. Peck also did well and looks a player who wants the ball and puts a tackle in too. Freckleton looks composed and a unit who can do a bit of everything.

Faxon made some decent saves.

Buyabu got up and down well too.

The two other centre backs Potter and Barrett were slow and cumbersome. Sachdev also gave away a poor free kick and the sub Pitan lost his man.

I was disappointed with a few who have done well in the u21s...thought Marsh was not in it.amd Arblaster I'm not sure he's quite progressed as much as I'd have hoped. Think we saw him as next big thing when he was involved pre season. He's neat and tidy but not sure he excels in any one thing. Still has time though bit needs to pick what sort of player he is...is he a creator, a link or a breaker upper? Not sure.

Osula great shot for the goal apart, was really poor. He made poor decisions, he'd the ball too long and did not get his head up. On the evidence of tonight he is miles off a first teamer at even Champ level. He needs regular games at League 1 for a season and then we will see how he gets on...we forget that he barely played for Derby.
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I was impressed with Millwall's players individually, looking strong, quick and also good on the ball. Nevertheless we gradually took over possession and dominated most of that game with some good passing moves. Maybe it shows our emphasis on getting the youth team to play good football, and on occasions you tend to miss a powerhouse/enforcer, rather than the neat and tidy midfielders we tend to produce.

Faxon looks a modern keeper who is composed on the ball. Sachdev looked a bit reluctant to get at his man, maybe realising he'd struggle to beat him for pace and strength. But he needs to look for more positive passing options, there were players making runs into space when he instead chose to go backwards. I expected a bit more from Buyabu, but his opponent also looked quick and aggressive.

I agree Potter needs to work really hard at improving his pace. He is also composed on the ball and normally passes well, but it was his misplaced pass that lead to the first goal and he's been making some of those. Barrett isn't slow, but he faced some very quick Millwall players last night. He normally goes forward more. Freckleton looks really impressive to me. Some excellent threaded passes and I think he's looked better after his loan, which was very successful. Remember that Hecky planned on using him vs Tottenham. He couldn't stop the strike before the first goal though.

I see Arblaster as a deep holding midfielder who makes himself available and moves it on to players in more advanced areas. I think he's very good at keeping the ball under pressure. Often he's trusted with passes although he's marked and you go 'oh, he's in trouble', but he usually gets out of those tricky situations. On occasions he shows a bit of brilliance when turning and looking for forward passes. An example. He needs to keep doing that and never settle into just moving it on-mode. His weakness is physical, but hopefully that will improve.

Peck has had a mixed season, not quite reaching the levels that saw him head and shoulders above everyone at U18 level. His loan at Oldham wasn't hugely successful, but I agree he did well last night and I still have high hopes for him. Brooks made some brilliant driving runs. There are fine margins in his play though, and when he's stopped he can set the opposition up for a break. While his runs are impressive we need to realise there can be a risk involved if we're going to give him chances in the first team.

Really rate both our forwards, but thought it was a difficult game for them. Millwall had very strong centre halves and as the game went on they dropped deep and there was very little central room to play in.
 
Bergen Blade said:
I agree Potter needs to work really hard at improving his pace. He is also composed on the ball and normally passes well, but it was his misplaced pass that lead to the first goal and he's been making some of those. Barrett isn't slow, but he faced some very quick Millwall players last night. He normally goes forward more. Freckleton looks really impressive to me. Some excellent threaded passes and I think he's looked better after his loan, which was very successful. Remember that Hecky planned on using him vs Tottenham. He couldn't stop the strike before the first goal though.
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Yeah, there were some daft passes at times - that was the most frustrating thing for me.

Re Freckleton - Stones fans absolutely loved him. Went to watch them against Chesterfield and he looked very confident. I think that was the last game he played for them before being recalled.
 
Despite appearances, I think it's great that more fans can see Academy games via streams. It's a great way of "engaging" with a bit of the club otherwise inaccessible to many. All leading to some great insights & analysis on this thread. But, my bag, as many will know, is the enjoyment of attending games, sitting amongst other fans, finding bars and trying beers, generally getting at it...
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Millwall U21 2 v Sheffield United U21 1 (after extra time, 1-1 at 90 minutes) U21 Professional Development League National Final Monday 2...
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It was a disappointing result given the line up. Arguably full strength.

That said it does have an air of Play Offs about it, so perhaps they are just aligning to what the first team would do in that scenario!

Sometimes think they learn more with an impactful loss than an easy win.

I wonder if some have been told football at SUFC is not for them already?
 

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