The more things change, the more they stay the same...

[IdLiketoRogerMoore]

We started the season with Tufty saying we're playing well but just need to get better, sharper and more clinical in both final thirds.

Based on yesterday's game (and those of the last month), it's pretty clear that we're ending the season with the same issue and have real question marks about both our strikers (despite on paper being excellent) and our defence (who individually seem ok, but collectively seem to play like strangers).

Guess the question I'd have is that down to personnel, coaching or a mixture of both? You could also argue we've gotten worse as the season has gone on.

Watching the other teams challenging for the Play Offs got me thinking that we play by far the better football but are also by far the most naive. Again personnel or coaching or a mixture of both?

As I've said on another thread Baldock (and Basham for that matter) epitomise where we're at - plenty of energy, loads of endeavour, clueless in the final third and prone to fucking up defensively when it gets to squeaky bum time.

Certainly plenty to improve on for next year....

 

[hazzasufc_]

Wilder isn’t a perfect manager.

Our players are mostly average.

This is why we are not in the play offs, bit simple really.

 

[1066blade]

I'd like to condense your (quite accurate) post. Without significant investment in key areas, look forward to a season long struggle against relegation.

 

[Snowman]

We started the season with Tufty saying we're playing well but just need to get better, sharper and more clinical in both final thirds.

Based on yesterday's game (and those of the last month), it's pretty clear that we're ending the season with the same issue and have real question marks about both our strikers (despite on paper being excellent) and our defence (who individually seem ok, but collectively seem to play like strangers).

Guess the question I'd have is that down to personnel, coaching or a mixture of both? You could also argue we've gotten worse as the season has gone on.

Watching the other teams challenging for the Play Offs got me thinking that we play by far the better football but are also by far the most naive. Again personnel or coaching or a mixture of both?

As I've said on another thread Baldock (and Basham for that matter) epitomise where we're at - plenty of energy, loads of endeavour, clueless in the final third and prone to fucking up defensively when it gets to squeaky bum time.

Certainly plenty to improve on for next year....

As with any team, even the champions, you can pick up areas where you need improvement. Trying not to be too facetious its been a bit like Arsenal. We are great at going forward. However, we don't finish. At the back we aren't ugly enough.

Defending hasn't been that bad for me apart from a general impression that on the left hand side Enda gets caught with the ball over the top, fails to advance to block the 25 yarder and he and O'Connell don't "mesh" down that side. He is also less able at crossing and gets down the side less than Baldock on the other side.

Up front. Oh God. Lucky we scored a few early doors. We're simply not good enough. Billy too slow and doing nothing but running the channels lately. Don, just busting a gut to do nothing special, Leon looking to feed off scraps, Brooks, naive headless chicken until he's found a role and gets support. Wilson........

Midfield has promise. We can work on this. I just worry that the injury Coutts had will finish him at the standard we need.

 

[hazzasufc_]

Wilder is acting a bit of a nob in this situation. He had this toys out at Oxford and Northampton, blaming the owners, telling them to get their act together and sort things out.

Now 2 years with us, the same thing is beginning to happen. His targets that he had been chasing for months (Leonard, Holmes) are finally caught along with some surprises (Wilson, Evans). People start praising their board for backing the manager. Then, bar Evans, he hardly ever plays them. Why go through so much effort to acquire players to never play them? It’s daft.

Once the momentum of our team starts to slow down and our tactics start to fail we hit a dip in our form. Wilder then starts moaning at the board for their infighting and the lack of support he’s getting. Seriously?

After this we end up with an overloaded midfield with little quality, a dodgy defence and an aging and slowing strike force.

So suddenly after being praised for supporting Wilder in January the board is now at fault for our failure in 2018?

McCabe and HRH aren’t billionaires and they never will be. Unless some Nigerian warlord suddenly takes a liking to Sheffield United we can’t expect them to conjure up money they simply don’t have.

 

[Rodley]

We just look knackered. Run out of steam and ideas.

Get the ownership matter sorted now we know we’re in the Champ, 3 or 4 signings, we go again.

 

[JohnDenver]

We just look knackered. Run out of steam and ideas.

Get the ownership matter sorted now we know we’re in the Champ, 3 or 4 signings, we go again.

Aye, that about sums it all up. There’s a lot of overthinking and focus on the failures.

The board issue is a serious concern, but in terms of the football staff, I’ve got huge admiration for how they operate, recent results notwithstanding.

 

[Snowman]

Wilder is acting a bit of a nob in this situation. He had this toys out at Oxford and Northampton, blaming the owners, telling them to get their act together and sort things out.

Now 2 years with us, the same thing is beginning to happen. His targets that he had been chasing for months (Leonard, Holmes) are finally caught along with some surprises (Wilson, Evans). People start praising their board for backing the manager. Then, bar Evans, he hardly ever plays them. Why go through so much effort to acquire players to never play them? It’s daft.

Once the momentum of our team starts to slow down and our tactics start to fail we hit a dip in our form. Wilder then starts moaning at the board for their infighting and the lack of support he’s getting. Seriously?

After this we end up with an overloaded midfield with little quality, a dodgy defence and an aging and slowing strike force.

So suddenly after being praised for supporting Wilder in January the board is now at fault for our failure in 2018?

McCabe and HRH aren’t billionaires and they never will be. Unless some Nigerian warlord suddenly takes a liking to Sheffield United we can’t expect them to conjure up money they simply don’t have.

Nigerian Warlord? I'm free!

 

[hazzasufc_]

Nigerian Warlord? I'm free!

View attachment 38992

Here’s my bank number:

800008135

 

[The Crab]

Here’s my bank number:

800008135

No good without your expiry date and sort code

 

[metalblade]

We started the season with Tufty saying we're playing well but just need to get better, sharper and more clinical in both final thirds.

Based on yesterday's game (and those of the last month), it's pretty clear that we're ending the season with the same issue and have real question marks about both our strikers (despite on paper being excellent) and our defence (who individually seem ok, but collectively seem to play like strangers).

Guess the question I'd have is that down to personnel, coaching or a mixture of both? You could also argue we've gotten worse as the season has gone on.

Watching the other teams challenging for the Play Offs got me thinking that we play by far the better football but are also by far the most naive. Again personnel or coaching or a mixture of both?

As I've said on another thread Baldock (and Basham for that matter) epitomise where we're at - plenty of energy, loads of endeavour, clueless in the final third and prone to fucking up defensively when it gets to squeaky bum time.

Certainly plenty to improve on for next year....

GOTTEN ? FFS

 

[metalblade]

Nigerian Warlord? I'm free!

View attachment 38992

Is that Jacob ? Jacob Esan ?

 

[blade.i.am]

When you say: the more things change, the more they stay the same. Do you mean, same owd, same owd.?

 

[grafikhaus]

As we found under Bassett, Warnock and Clough, energy and committment will only take you so far.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

We just look knackered. Run out of steam and ideas.

Get the ownership matter sorted now we know we’re in the Champ, 3 or 4 signings, we go again.

I'm not sure about this tiredness excuse, never have been with professional footballers. It's true that we probably go at it with more intensity than some clubs but it didn't affect us last season and half the players were hungover for the last few games.

If this is the case, why haven't we seen more of Leonard, Holmes for example ?

 

[Gimli]

Whilst results have tailed off dramatically from the start of the season, I don't think we are too far off being play off contenders next season, maybe being optimistic, but - the last 10 games have included a lot of thrown away points - in general the performances have been good and we should actually have enough points to be in the play offs right now. We probably don't deserve that for throwing away so many leads, but clearly that's an area to work on, as is the aforementioned aging strike force.

 

[PaulHalfway]

Poor quality on delivery of the final ball, cross, corner, free kick into the box
Can’t shoot from outside the box
Don’t score late goals to win a game or nick a point
Don’t forget we have been the Dog and Duck in name all season being on one of the lower player and wage budgets
In the end this caught up with us, punching above our weight before Xmas etc
Hopefully release a few players and bring in a new centre half and a couple of quality forwards, certainly some pace is required up front
Learn from this season and progress, without doubt the form before Xmas raised everyone’s expectations, perhaps we all got a bit carried away

 

[IdLiketoRogerMoore]

I'm not sure about this tiredness excuse, never have been with professional footballers. It's true that we probably go at it with more intensity than some clubs but it didn't affect us last season and half the players were hungover for the last few games.

If this is the case, why haven't we seen more of Leonard, Holmes for example ?

I think it's more a tactical tiredness. We don't really have a Plan B other than stick some more strikers on and hope for the best.

It's not so much others have figured us out, it's more they realise if they can weather the storm we're open as a whores legs in the last 20 mins of games and/or the channel between our WB & CBs will furnish chances if you keep attacking it...

Hence the OP - we've not really evolved as a team as the season has gone on. I thought Evans playing as a DM would give us the solidity but all that seems to have done is stifle our creativity as defensively we're still vulnerable.

Lots for Mr Tufty to mull over whilst on his sun lounger in Aya Napa...

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

I think it's more a tactical tiredness. We don't really have a Plan B other than stick some more strikers on and hope for the best.

It's not so much others have figured us out, it's more they realise if they can weather the storm we're open as a whores legs in the last 20 mins of games and/or the channel between our WB & CBs will furnish chances if you keep attacking it...

Hence the OP - we've not really evolved as a team as the season has gone on. I thought Evans playing as a DM would give us the solidity but all that seems to have done is stifle our creativity as defensively we're still vulnerable.

Lots for Mr Tufty to mull over whilst on his sun lounger in Aya Napa...

True. We have been punished at a very high percentage rate since xmas but that's what happens the higher up you go. We need a new strike force to increase our own hit rate which in turn takes more pressure off the defence.

I'm hoping that it is just personnel rather than Tufty not being savvy enough but it is, of course, only his 1st season at this level and as he said at the weekend, him and his staff will also get better next season.