That was...

[Houso]

... poor. Really poor.

No shape, no fluency, no movement.

Howard - generally solid

Davies - so so first half, very good second
Collins - good. Should start on Saturday.
Butler - grew into the game but a really shocking debut. Did well for goal.
Harris - a mixed bag akin to Bristol.

Baxter - he had around 3 different games depending on his position. Not a wide player,.but looked better inside
Doyle - Doyle
McGinn - meh. Unlucky to be the one taken off first though.
JCR - excellent throughout

Porter - Porter
McNulty - not great, but took his goal very well

Higdon - a big improvement on Porter, but not nearly the standard he set in the first half at the weekend.
Murphy - didn't really offer much.
Harrison - had a few minutes

Clough - baffling line up. Must do better.

 

[UnitedBlade]

He's still trying to work out his best line-up with so many new players. As he says, he's only been working with some of them for 5 or so weeks.

I think he may go with something like this on Saturday. Although he may pick Doyle against his old club.

Howard
Alcock Collins McGahey Harris or Davies
Flynn Reed Scougall Murphy
Baxter
Higdon

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

Were any cracks papered over Houso ?

 

[Houso]

Were any cracks papered over Houso ?

Butler and McNulty did lots of pampering.

 

[BeatleBlade]

I thought Howard wasn't great. He had a couple of iffy moments that could have gone wrong. Collins had a moment after a poor Davies pass but other than that both were alright. JCR was great, I just wish one of the strikers realised what he was trying to do throughout the game but I am sure that that will come with time.
We didn't play very well, it took us ages to get the ball on the floor in the first half but it was basically a mix of an A and B team. At least we won!

 

[alcoblade]

OK - I'll point out upfront that he wasn't along in his uselessness, but;

Can others confirm, those who often put up a case for him, that Chris Porter was a complete and utter waste of a shirt tonight?

I'm more bewildered by the appearance that we still have some who think he's a valuable squad member.

Plenty of other no shows again, thankfully / hopefully most others won't make a habit of it.

Davies was too keen to cross from deep, but his other general play was good. McNulty was invisible too, but hopefully a good goal will get his ball rolling.

UTB

 

[JOEYDEE]

Trouble is with us,is we have too many players of the same ilk,nobody who can change a game, everyone can interchange with everyone else..which is ok if you have good players ,which really we don't ...

 

[Silent Blade]

... poor. Really poor.

No shape, no fluency, no movement.

Howard - generally solid

Davies - so so first half, very good second
Collins - good. Should start on Saturday.
Butler - grew into the game but a really shocking debut. Did well for goal.
Harris - a mixed bag akin to Bristol.

Baxter - he had around 3 different games depending on his position. Not a wide player,.but looked better inside
Doyle - Doyle
McGinn - meh. Unlucky to be the one taken off first though.
JCR - excellent throughout

Porter - Porter
McNulty - not great, but took his goal very well

Higdon - a big improvement on Porter, but not nearly the standard he set in the first half at the weekend.
Murphy - didn't really offer much.
Harrison - had a few minutes

Clough - baffling line up. Must do better.

Agree with everything apart from the comment about Clough

 

[bartman]

He's still trying to work out his best line-up with so many new players. As he says, he's only been working with some of them for 5 or so weeks.

I think he may go with something like this on Saturday. Although he may pick Doyle against his old club.

Howard
Alcock Collins McGahey Harris or Davies
Flynn Reed Scougall Murphy
Baxter
Higdon

Doyle was one of the better players tonight. From your line up,Doyle for Scougill,Davies for Flynn

 

[wizadry]

OK - I'll point out upfront that he wasn't along in his uselessness, but;

Can others confirm, those who often put up a case for him, that Chris Porter was a complete and utter waste of a shirt tonight?

I'm more bewildered by the appearance that we still have some who think he's a valuable squad member.

Plenty of other no shows again, thankfully / hopefully most others won't make a habit of it.

Davies was too keen to cross from deep, but his other general play was good. McNulty was invisible too, but hopefully a good goal will get his ball rolling.

UTB

Chris fucking Porter,jeysus.We need another striker,because if we get any injury upfront what so ever,then we are in shit creek because he simply isn't good enough.

What the fuck was we thinking when re signing him,and before anyone mentions reduced terms and all that shit,i'm not buying it.He's categorically shite.

 

[alcoblade]

Chris fucking Porter,jeysus.We need another striker,because if we get any injury upfront what so ever,then we are in shit creek because he simply isn't good enough.

What the fuck was we thinking when re signing him,and before anyone mentions reduced terms and all that shit,i'm not buying it.He's categorically shite.

He could be paying us, that's not the point is it?. He takes up a shirt.

UTB

 

[wizadry]

He could be paying us, that's not the point is it?. He takes up a shirt.

UTB

Exactly alco.Higdon could have got more time,Diego could have started,anybody apart from Porter.What a complete and utter waste of space that lad is.

 

[Foxy]

Doyle was one of the better players tonight. From your line up,Doyle for Scougill,Davies for Flynn

He was, however, a lucky boy to stay on the pitch.

 

[LSF]

He was, however, a lucky boy to stay on the pitch.

Oh yes! My immediate reaction was, red, he's off. But no one, including the ref made too much fuss apart from a bit of verbals afterwards.
He's certainly perfected the art of stealth, that's for sure!
Other than that he did OK for me and showed what we lacked against Bristol City.

 

[Guesty]

Baxter - he had around 3 different games depending on his position. Not a wide player,.but looked better inside

I dunno, he looks pretty wide to me!


...I'm here all week, tip your waitresses, try the veal.

I thought of that last night but I couldn't post it because for some reason I can't post on my phone.

He was, however, a lucky boy to stay on the pitch.

What happened there? I saw him clear the ball cleanly, did he deliberately stamp down or put his foot in on the lad afterwards?

 

[Houso]

Oh yes! My immediate reaction was, red, he's off. But no one, including the ref made too much fuss apart from a bit of verbals afterwards.
He's certainly perfected the art of stealth, that's for sure!
Other than that he did OK for me and showed what we lacked against Bristol City.

Was this the studs up high boot? It looked brutal, but I don't think there was any intent... for once!

 

[LSF]

Yep, from my angle on the Kop (kind of back view of incident) it looked naughty and very Doylish, but as I said, no one kicked up too much fuss on the field.

 

[Houso]

I dunno, he looks pretty wide to me!

http://instantrimshot.com/

(but harsh, he's clearly shifted some timber!)

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

Prior to the York game, I posted about the worry that he hadn't played what looked like a 1st choice team and two games in, it still looks like he doesn't know what his 1st choice XI is. Wallace missing has obviously caused him a problem in the middle and the emergence of Reed has thrown a spanner in the works but it's worrying that he seems to be making a random draw for players.

To play Alcock ahead of 2 seasoned pro's on Saturday meaning someone had to fill in at RB. OK, he'd done well pre-season but at RB. Davies is a strange one as he's obviously one of the best dead ball / crossers in the team but do we randomly fit him in somewhere just to get him on the pitch ? Flynn obviously isn't fit, Baxter is, and will be, an enigma difficult to fit into a team and then there's the attack, do we play 2 up front, and if so, which 2. Add to that Basham who was preferred to his captain, Doyle and it just looks like he doesn't know who to pick.

I'm hoping things will settle down and he's used these 2 games to have a final look at everyone because part of the 'success' of last season was that you could pretty much name 9/10 players every week but it just looks like we're still in experimental pre-season mode and we can't afford to drop off the pace given we have some tricky games ahead.

 

[sheffielder]

I thought Howard wasn't great. He had a couple of iffy moments that could have gone wrong. Collins had a moment after a poor Davies pass but other than that both were alright. JCR was great, I just wish one of the strikers realised what he was trying to do throughout the game but I am sure that that will come with time.
We didn't play very well, it took us ages to get the ball on the floor in the first half but it was basically a mix of an A and B team. At least we won!

I didn't go last night, however the Howard I saw on Saturday seems to have grown in stature now the position is truly his own

 

[Guesty]

http://instantrimshot.com/

(but harsh, he's clearly shifted some timber!)

Ha, yes he has but I didn't want to pass up the opportunity!

 

[Houso]

On the subject of keepers, that was a world class save that initially prevented our first goal.

 

[SotonBlade]

What would be everybody's first choice team, if all players were fit?

Mine's below:

Howard
Alcock Collins McGahey Harris
Wallace
Flynn Reed Scougall Murphy
Higdon

Subs:
Willis, Butler, Davies, Basham, Cuvelier, JCR, McNulty​

 

[bartman]

He was, however, a lucky boy to stay on the pitch.

So did their keeper who landed a punch on Baxter late in the first half

 

[Foxy]

So did their keeper who landed a punch on Baxter late in the first half

Indeed

 

[Revolution]

Prior to the York game, I posted about the worry that he hadn't played what looked like a 1st choice team and two games in, it still looks like he doesn't know what his 1st choice XI is. Wallace missing has obviously caused him a problem in the middle and the emergence of Reed has thrown a spanner in the works but it's worrying that he seems to be making a random draw for players.

It is possible (though I hope it isn't the case) that Clough does know his first choice side - and we saw it against Bristol City...

After all, many teams started their first XIs on saturday and made wholesale changes for the cup game.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

What would be everybody's first choice team, if all players were fit?

Mine's below:

Howard
Alcock Collins McGahey Harris
Wallace
Flynn Reed Scougall Murphy
Higdon

Subs:
Willis, Butler, Davies, Basham, Cuvelier, JCR, McNulty​

I think if you swap Basham for Wallace and Wallace for Reed, that's what he was thinking about.

 

[Houso]

It is possible (though I hope it isn't the case) that Clough does know his first choice side - and we saw it against Bristol City...

I bloody hope not.

 

[LSF]

Howard​

Alcock Collins McGahey Harris​

Wallace​

Flynn Reed Scougall Murphy​

Higdon​

​

Subs:​

Willis, Butler, Davies, Basham, Cuvelier, JCR, McNulty​

[/QUOTE]
I don't like to get sucked into this is 'my team' stuff, fun for some, but my role is to support not pick the team
However, I'll limit myself to comment that your 'middle' four would get nil points for physical presence, a necessary ingredient in the lower leagues.

 

[Revolution]

What would be everybody's first choice team, if all players were fit?

Mine's below:

Howard
Alcock Collins McGahey Harris
Wallace
Flynn Reed Scougall Murphy
Higdon

Subs:
Willis, Butler, Davies, Basham, Cuvelier, JCR, McNulty​

Howard
Alcock Collins McGahey Harris
JCR Wallace One of the Midgets Murphy
Higdon McNulty or Baxter​