United 2 Plymouth 0 - report/ratings

[Deadbat]

The Blades returned to the top of the league and took advantage of Leeds dropping points in the lunchtime fixture, as the saw off lowly Plymouth Argyle at the Lane. A 2-0 result gives the impression of an easy afternoon, but it was far from that as Wayne Rooney’s men had a real go and gave a good account of themselves. Indeed, they had more possession and efforts on goal and on another day better finishing or without facing former keeper Michael Cooper, they would have definitely taken something back to Devon. In the end, Gus Hamer’s impressive long-range strike gave the Blades the lead and after a sluggish performance throughout, it was only sealed late on when Tom Davies was felled and Kieffer Moore buried the penalty. It is now 9 wins on the bounce at home and no goals conceded still for Cooper at Bramall Lane and 10 games unbeaten in total in the league.



United opted to give young striker Ryan One his first league start opting not to risk Brewster and Moore, who of course were both coming back from injuries. There was also no place for Vini Souza, Anel Ahmedhodzic, Tyrese Campbell or Femi Seriki in the match day squad as Wilder went with a cautions approach with so many fixtures to come over the Christmas period. Rooney, with Mike Phelan now by his side, was looking for a surprise result after their recent poor form but they too were without a key man, Morgan Whittaker. They started with loanee Michael Obafemi supporting Ryan Hardie.



The game started slowly with United not really forcing the pace as they kicked towards the Kop with Argyle turning them round. The away side actually showed some attacking promise but could not really fashion any clear chances. Slowly Hamer and O’Hare started to link up and a few pieces of enterprising play nearly saw the home side get in. Plymouth had a half chance when the ball came across but it was fired well over before Hamer at the other end started to get on the ball and show his class. The opening goal came on 19 minutes and it came from the Dutch midfielder. Burrows took a corner that was only half cleared and as it dropped, HAMER hit it beautifully on the half volley and it flashed past Grimshaw.



United had another chance when Rak Sakyi, who had been quiet, found the busy O’Hare and his shot nicked a defender and Grimshaw scrambled across to make the save. After this better spell, it seemed like United might take over but the opposite happened and Plymouth started to come out and create a flurry of chances. There was a shot into the stanchion after patient passing saw them move it through United too easily with the lack of a midfield enforcer starting to tell. Bundu forced a save from Cooper as the crowd were beginning to get frustrated with the lack of intensity and poor ball retention from the home side.



Obafemi got the better of Gilchrist and cut in and his cross was turned goalwards and Cooper managed to save at the near post denying Al Haji. They created an even better chance soon after and it again originated down the right as Gilchrist and Rak Sakyi could not stop the combination play and Hardie’s first effort had been blocked, it was cleared by Gilchrist but only straight to Gyabi. The Plymouth man fired over with the goat at his mercy. It was a great chance to level for Argyle who had been well in the game despite trailing. Just before the break One was sent clear but he took too long and allowed defenders to get back and the chance was gone although referee



The second half began with more sloppy and slow play and United could not get hold of the ball or any control in midfield. As Plymouth won an early corner, Wilder had seen enough and replaced One, Rak Sakyi and Burrows with Moore, McCallum and Shackleton with only 10 minutes of the second half played. The visitors continued to force the play and Szucs had a header off the outside of the post as the Blades saw the woodwork save them for the third time this week.



United seemed stuck in mud and could not get any fluency to their play and Plymouth thought they had scored as Hardie deftly flicked his header on and Cooper had to make a tremendous save diving low to his right to keep it out. United had seemingly switched to a 5 at the back at times, when out of possession with Gilchrist coming inside to be employed as another centre back.



The Blades started to find some gaps on the break and Hamer and O’Hare again looked the main threats but twice Moore took too long to get his shot away and was blocked on both occasions. United did have opportunities on the break but made the wrong decision preventing any clear cut chance ensuing. McCallum’s excellent ball was cut out as Moore looked to pounce but Plymouth continued to throw men forward and made changes of their own with the experienced Gray and Forshaw coming on for Hardie and Gyabi. Two more subs were incoming for Argyle when Issaka and Wright replaced Bundu and Obafemi. United also made a late change of their own with Brewster on for O’Hare.



The sub got involved with one early run before his play helped create a chance as United had men over. Moore sent the ball in and as it dropped to Davies, Galloway took his legs from under him and the penalty award seemed fairly clear cut although the visitors felt the ball had skipped up and hit Jack Robinson on the hand as the attack commenced. With both Brewster and Moore missing penalties this season, Hamer at first took the ball but it was passed to the experienced frontman. MOORE made no mistake this time going centrally but with power and Grimshaw was already committed to going to his right.



There was 6 minutes of extra time but the Blades saw this out with no real concerns and after it had been a real slog all afternoon, the result was all important and ensure United continued their excellent season and returned to the Championship summit.

 

[Deadbat]

United – It seems like I keep writing that it has been another less than convincing performance but another win and clean sheet. It continued today but it was a surprise how hard it was today and in the end Plymouth will feel they should have took at least a point and the result really flattered United. Plymouth had 63% possession which is incredible for one of the bottom sides who have not won away from home and did have the better chances over the game, hitting the post, another sitter missed and Cooper making two big saves. Outside of the goals, not sure their keeper had any really meaningful saves of note (one from O’Hare?) and other than a few blocked shots, we did not really have any other chances? I thought as Wilder said, it was a tough watch and we never got going. We had spells of good play but it was only small pockets. We did not control midfield and too much of the second ball/loose stuff they got to with Souza a big loss. I thought that it was too open and we ended up being got through quite easy at times with a big gap between the defence and midfield and then the midfield and One up top.



We looked disjointed today and thought we lacked intensity off the ball to press and harry and recover it back but also when we had it, we were sloppy with it and rarely kept it more than a few passes most of the game. We just never got going and a better side probably would have made us pay. They will feel very hard done to, for it to be a 2-0 reverse. The positive are that we won again by playing poorly again. We did not look like a top of the table side but that is where we are, so you have to be delighted. No one really outstanding individually. The two centre backs were ok and Hamer at times showed his class. O’Hare worked hard too and thought McCallum and Brewster did ok when they came on. However, we saw that when we are missing key men and the lack of depth we have (the bench was inexperienced today and we lacked game changers). Davies and Peck seemed a bit similar and thought we did not keep or get enough of the ball in this area. Rak Sakyi continues to disappoint in recent games and we had little up front, even when Moore came on. Hamer and O’Hare did show their class at times though in fleeting moments. I thought we looked a tired group today and did not have the extra burst we have seen in other games (Plymouth did have an extra day of rest).



It does sound like I am being overly critical and maybe I am. The three points is all important and Leeds of course dropped points too today but probably played much better than us, so clearly we have that winning mentality and determination not to concede continues. I do feel like we cannot keep playing like this and getting away with it though so need to hopefully get past Cardiff and then get some of the important players back and hopefully we can strengthen in January, if we actually get the ownership situation sorted out.



It is a game that will not be remembered for long. It was cold, the crowd was down a bit, on the eve of Xmas and we a long way from our best and credit to Plymouth, who did have a go but in the end we had the big moments and this has been the blueprint for a lot of our success this season. The Hamer goal was maybe the only real big piece of quality all game for both teams – the Cooper save might be the other.



We now have a decent little gap, albeit with some tough games to come and it is fantastic we keep winning and keep the momentum going. Wilder will just file this game as done, chance to rest some of the injured lads a bit longer and move onto Cardiff next week.



Ratings:



Cooper 7.5/10 – Made a stunning save second half which was such good reflexes and also made another decent one from the flick. Another clean sheet and another very good performance where he was busier than he should have been. Only negative was his kicking which was not the best today.



Gilchrist 5/10 - Think he has really struggled recently, not helped by Rak Sakyi’s total non performances. His touch and passing was loose again and got skinned three times first half by Obafemi and then on one chance after getting beat, he put it on a plate for the lad who fired over. Did improve after the break, as United seemed to go to a 5 but he is not tight enough to his man and getting beat too much and sloppy with the ball.



Burrows 5/10 – Quieter game today and not really in their half much at all. We did not seem to really attack much at all down the left. Few bits and pieces of play and his corner was cleared for the goal. Went off not long after the half time break. McCallum gave us more energy down this side.



Robinson 6/10 – Nothing remarkable. He did what he had to. Felt that the centre backs were not helped by those in front and they came through us all a bit easy at times for a side top of the league. He did step out a few times when he could – including on the goal when it seemed to flick up and hit his hand?



Souttar 6.5/10 – He was our best defender in term of just being more determined to win his battles and challenges. Got in a bit of a skirmish towards the end of first half. A great slide tackles second half to deny a forward running through.



Peck 5/10 – Both midfielders marks are down to the fact we did not recover enough possession and when we had it, we gave it away cheaply. They did not really get a foothold and felt both stood to much and they passed it through us. He did a few ok pieces of play with the ball but thought he started to wander and lose his position too much.



Davies 5/10 – As above. Thought he was excellent in the week but today he looked like it was maybe too much for back-to-back games and he was not able to influence the game in terms of winning the tackles/breaking up play or getting on the ball. He got better towards the end and did win the penalty as he got into the box. We did miss Souza just dominating and imposing himself in this area.



Rak Sakyi 3/10 – Continues his recent decline sadly. When he had it, he did not run at his man at all, he came backwards or played poor passes/touches. He also was not helping Gilchrist who was left one on one too much again. Looks like his confidence is a bit shot at the moment. Sadly, Brooks has done little when he has played so it will be interesting if Wilder takes him out for a bit? Not surprised he went off.



O’Hare 6.5/10 – Worked hard all game he was one of the few pressing and working to try and put them under pressure. Had a few moments with the ball first half and one shot but then second half when he had it, he took too many touches or made the wrong decisions. He has put so much in this season so maybe another, that at some point will need a rest.



Hamer 7.5/10 – Our best outfield player in the sense he scored a superb goal and looked the main threat to create or make things happen. Some lovely touches and he also worked hard to get back and defend and his work rate was very good. Second half he got into some good areas and maybe made the wrong decisions or rather telegraphed a few passes.



One 4/10 – Thought it was a struggle for him. He started with one determined run down the right-hand side, as he got took out. A few other moments where he chased another ball and got a free kick but then he became less and less involved. He was slow to react to situations and thought he got harried out of it. He was not really able to give us a presence or link up at all and the ball came off him a few times. The pace and intensity looked a bit much for him. The chance on half time summed up his performance as he ran through, took too long and then came inside and the defenders came back and made the block. Looked frustrated when he came off, as he was given a chance today and probably did not take it.



Subs -



McCallum 6.5/10 – Thought he did well again when he came on as he showed his leaping ability and also got forward well and put a few decent crosses in. Has been playing well recently.



Moore 5/10 – Despite the goal, thought it was a struggle again and like in the week, the ball bounced off him or he took too long to do things. Had 2 or 3 good chances but was blocked or was quite selfish. The ball was not sticking to him, although he did get fouled a few times and was not always helped by the referee. Did put the cross in that led to the penalty to be fair but just looked very rusty at the moment.



Shackleton 5/10 – Did not really do much at all and got knocked off the ball a few times when he did have it. Defensively he was ok with what he had to do but seemed quite limited.



Brewster – Actually looked lively and more mobile than One and Moore – albeit in limited time. Had one driving run and then involved in the set up for the penalty.



Norrington Davies – Not really involved but it was right at the end when he was introduced.





Manager: Wilder 6/10 – It was a win and a clean sheet and we are top. They are the facts. The performance was quite poor though and we got away with it really as they had more of the ball and the better chances. They were better than we probably thought they might be but then the players did not show the same intensity on and off the ball. He looked really frustrated when I kept looking down at him and the fact after a poor first half, he would have had words but we jus continued to play poorly – so he made three quick changes. He did have several players not available but will still be disappointed we did not have much control against such a lowly team and just had the big moments to get the goals and the Cooper save to ensure it was another win. Will hope to get some players back and see us improve in terms of the cohesion of the side. Today it just seemed very fragmented – we were not able to really hurt them and build up sustained pressure but we also allowed them way too much time on the ball, both down the middle and the sides. He looked annoyed with a lot of things today but will not be annoyed with the win.







Plymouth – Fair play to them. Came and had a go and I felt were much better than I expected and better than a number of other sides that have come down here such as Stoke, Derby, Swansea and Oxford – that is just off the top of my head. They had 3 or 4 really good chances as they hit the outside of the post, Cooper made one great save and they blazed a bad miss over before half time. They moved it around nicely and played it down the wings and got in some good areas. They just could not apply the finish and on the goal were beaten by a superb strike. The penalty gives it a look of an easy win for United but it was not. They will be so frustrated as played probably about as well as they could do, restricted us to very little and had a lot of the ball but come away with nothing. That is football I suppose but Rooney will be encouraged by this display. Bringing in Phelan will help but I am not sure Rooney will be there much longer, despite today being a better performance. They are losing most weeks and seem to be set to go down unless something is changed. Will it save them? Not sure but in football if a team keeps losing regardless of the financial situation and lack of quality they can invest in to improve themselves, the manager normally carries the can.





Opponent Man of the Match – Thought that they competed well and not sure anyone was awful. They all put a shift in and Bundu and Obafemi were really lively with the latter creating quite a few chances. Gibson the centre back was also solid and helped limit us.



Opponent Weak link – Galloway’s tackle was poor and decided the game. Gray did not really make much of an impact when he came on which surprised me. They got worse after the subs not better.



Referee/Officials – Farai Hallam. A young and new ref that hasn’t done too many Championship games. He started ok in that he let things flow and was not blowing his whistle but it got a bit daft as he was letting really obvious fouls go both ways! Hamer and O’Hare both taken out and no booking which I was ok with as don’t like refs who go to the book too early. Then second half he booked a few of their players for innocuous decisions and then started blowing his whistle and penalising little contact yet let Moore get wrestled to the ground often! The penalty seemed quite obvious- maybe he did miss Robinson handballing it but it sort of skidded up and hit his arm after he controlled and a lot happened after that. The O’Hare one where he went down I thought he was looking for. Not awful but he just sort of changes the way he reffed halfway thought which was odd!





Crowd – Flat and quiet. Maybe it just being before Xmas. Maybe the cold. Maybe the opponent. Their hardy 1,000+ fans who travelled supported them and sang all game (even if it was the usual library stuff mostly). I did enjoy their chant after 20 seconds, ‘how sh*t must you be, we are drawing away!’ United’s fans were frustrated today as it was not quite what we expected in terms of the level of performance and the game itself was really drab. Just important to get the three points and move on.





*Be good if someone can do some reports the next 3 or 4 as I doubt I will see Cardiff as travelling down to London next Saturday and then in the USA for Xmas (2 weeks in New York and Boston), so even if I catch any of the games on my phone or in a pub, I will not write a report as family might find that slightly annoying! So sorry, you will have to make do without my ramblings for the next 4 games probably. I won’t be at the Lane now for a league game till mid January.

 

[10p]

First

 

[Ceasefire]

Happy Christmas Deadbat , thanks for your hard work in producing these excellent reports.

 

[CharnockBlade]

Absolutely spot on with all of that except I’d give Shackleton a 6.5, actually thought he did relatively well today when he came on, was the one player who showed genuine hunger and fight. Ral-Sakyi infuriates me atm, he and we know what he’s capable of yet he’s flattering to deceive week on week, at first I put it down to being doubled/tripled up on, but now he’s just taking the convenient route. A left sided winger takes the pressure off him somewhat yet I have massive issue with regard to his conviction, not sold by any stretch of the imagination so far

 

[metalblade]

Not a great performance today but I'm not going to be too critical of the players who due to TV schedules etc have had a run of fixtures with little time to rest between games. Suspensions and injuries haven't helped either so no wonder half the squad looked like they were running on empty. I'm finding it strange that young Brooks hasn't got on the pitch in light of JRS being in poor form and looking as if he would rather be elsewhere, at least Brooks keeps the ball better and tracks back. Gilchrist is doing the work of two men and is being overloaded never mind left one on one.

 

[Numpty's Dusty Ruts.]

United – It seems like I keep writing that it has been another less than convincing performance but another win and clean sheet. It continued today but it was a surprise how hard it was today and in the end Plymouth will feel they should have took at least a point and the result really flattered United. Plymouth had 63% possession which is incredible for one of the bottom sides who have not won away from home and did have the better chances over the game, hitting the post, another sitter missed and Cooper making two big saves. Outside of the goals, not sure their keeper had any really meaningful saves of note (one from O’Hare?) and other than a few blocked shots, we did not really have any other chances? I thought as Wilder said, it was a tough watch and we never got going. We had spells of good play but it was only small pockets. We did not control midfield and too much of the second ball/loose stuff they got to with Souza a big loss. I thought that it was too open and we ended up being got through quite easy at times with a big gap between the defence and midfield and then the midfield and One up top.



We looked disjointed today and thought we lacked intensity off the ball to press and harry and recover it back but also when we had it, we were sloppy with it and rarely kept it more than a few passes most of the game. We just never got going and a better side probably would have made us pay. They will feel very hard done to, for it to be a 2-0 reverse. The positive are that we won again by playing poorly again. We did not look like a top of the table side but that is where we are, so you have to be delighted. No one really outstanding individually. The two centre backs were ok and Hamer at times showed his class. O’Hare worked hard too and thought McCallum and Brewster did ok when they came on. However, we saw that when we are missing key men and the lack of depth we have (the bench was inexperienced today and we lacked game changers). Davies and Peck seemed a bit similar and thought we did not keep or get enough of the ball in this area. Rak Sakyi continues to disappoint in recent games and we had little up front, even when Moore came on. Hamer and O’Hare did show their class at times though in fleeting moments. I thought we looked a tired group today and did not have the extra burst we have seen in other games (Plymouth did have an extra day of rest).



It does sound like I am being overly critical and maybe I am. The three points is all important and Leeds of course dropped points too today but probably played much better than us, so clearly we have that winning mentality and determination not to concede continues. I do feel like we cannot keep playing like this and getting away with it though so need to hopefully get past Cardiff and then get some of the important players back and hopefully we can strengthen in January, if we actually get the ownership situation sorted out.



It is a game that will not be remembered for long. It was cold, the crowd was down a bit, on the eve of Xmas and we a long way from our best and credit to Plymouth, who did have a go but in the end we had the big moments and this has been the blueprint for a lot of our success this season. The Hamer goal was maybe the only real big piece of quality all game for both teams – the Cooper save might be the other.



We now have a decent little gap, albeit with some tough games to come and it is fantastic we keep winning and keep the momentum going. Wilder will just file this game as done, chance to rest some of the injured lads a bit longer and move onto Cardiff next week.



Ratings:



Cooper 7.5/10 – Made a stunning save second half which was such good reflexes and also made another decent one from the flick. Another clean sheet and another very good performance where he was busier than he should have been. Only negative was his kicking which was not the best today.



Gilchrist 5/10 - Think he has really struggled recently, not helped by Rak Sakyi’s total non performances. His touch and passing was loose again and got skinned three times first half by Obafemi and then on one chance after getting beat, he put it on a plate for the lad who fired over. Did improve after the break, as United seemed to go to a 5 but he is not tight enough to his man and getting beat too much and sloppy with the ball.



Burrows 5/10 – Quieter game today and not really in their half much at all. We did not seem to really attack much at all down the left. Few bits and pieces of play and his corner was cleared for the goal. Went off not long after the half time break. McCallum gave us more energy down this side.



Robinson 6/10 – Nothing remarkable. He did what he had to. Felt that the centre backs were not helped by those in front and they came through us all a bit easy at times for a side top of the league. He did step out a few times when he could – including on the goal when it seemed to flick up and hit his hand?



Souttar 6.5/10 – He was our best defender in term of just being more determined to win his battles and challenges. Got in a bit of a skirmish towards the end of first half. A great slide tackles second half to deny a forward running through.



Peck 5/10 – Both midfielders marks are down to the fact we did not recover enough possession and when we had it, we gave it away cheaply. They did not really get a foothold and felt both stood to much and they passed it through us. He did a few ok pieces of play with the ball but thought he started to wander and lose his position too much.



Davies 5/10 – As above. Thought he was excellent in the week but today he looked like it was maybe too much for back-to-back games and he was not able to influence the game in terms of winning the tackles/breaking up play or getting on the ball. He got better towards the end and did win the penalty as he got into the box. We did miss Souza just dominating and imposing himself in this area.



Rak Sakyi 3/10 – Continues his recent decline sadly. When he had it, he did not run at his man at all, he came backwards or played poor passes/touches. He also was not helping Gilchrist who was left one on one too much again. Looks like his confidence is a bit shot at the moment. Sadly, Brooks has done little when he has played so it will be interesting if Wilder takes him out for a bit? Not surprised he went off.



O’Hare 6.5/10 – Worked hard all game he was one of the few pressing and working to try and put them under pressure. Had a few moments with the ball first half and one shot but then second half when he had it, he took too many touches or made the wrong decisions. He has put so much in this season so maybe another, that at some point will need a rest.



Hamer 7.5/10 – Our best outfield player in the sense he scored a superb goal and looked the main threat to create or make things happen. Some lovely touches and he also worked hard to get back and defend and his work rate was very good. Second half he got into some good areas and maybe made the wrong decisions or rather telegraphed a few passes.



One 4/10 – Thought it was a struggle for him. He started with one determined run down the right-hand side, as he got took out. A few other moments where he chased another ball and got a free kick but then he became less and less involved. He was slow to react to situations and thought he got harried out of it. He was not really able to give us a presence or link up at all and the ball came off him a few times. The pace and intensity looked a bit much for him. The chance on half time summed up his performance as he ran through, took too long and then came inside and the defenders came back and made the block. Looked frustrated when he came off, as he was given a chance today and probably did not take it.



Subs -



McCallum 6.5/10 – Thought he did well again when he came on as he showed his leaping ability and also got forward well and put a few decent crosses in. Has been playing well recently.



Moore 5/10 – Despite the goal, thought it was a struggle again and like in the week, the ball bounced off him or he took too long to do things. Had 2 or 3 good chances but was blocked or was quite selfish. The ball was not sticking to him, although he did get fouled a few times and was not always helped by the referee. Did put the cross in that led to the penalty to be fair but just looked very rusty at the moment.



Shackleton 5/10 – Did not really do much at all and got knocked off the ball a few times when he did have it. Defensively he was ok with what he had to do but seemed quite limited.



Brewster – Actually looked lively and more mobile than One and Moore – albeit in limited time. Had one driving run and then involved in the set up for the penalty.



Norrington Davies – Not really involved but it was right at the end when he was introduced.





Manager: Wilder 6/10 – It was a win and a clean sheet and we are top. They are the facts. The performance was quite poor though and we got away with it really as they had more of the ball and the better chances. They were better than we probably thought they might be but then the players did not show the same intensity on and off the ball. He looked really frustrated when I kept looking down at him and the fact after a poor first half, he would have had words but we jus continued to play poorly – so he made three quick changes. He did have several players not available but will still be disappointed we did not have much control against such a lowly team and just had the big moments to get the goals and the Cooper save to ensure it was another win. Will hope to get some players back and see us improve in terms of the cohesion of the side. Today it just seemed very fragmented – we were not able to really hurt them and build up sustained pressure but we also allowed them way too much time on the ball, both down the middle and the sides. He looked annoyed with a lot of things today but will not be annoyed with the win.







Plymouth – Fair play to them. Came and had a go and I felt were much better than I expected and better than a number of other sides that have come down here such as Stoke, Derby, Swansea and Oxford – that is just off the top of my head. They had 3 or 4 really good chances as they hit the outside of the post, Cooper made one great save and they blazed a bad miss over before half time. They moved it around nicely and played it down the wings and got in some good areas. They just could not apply the finish and on the goal were beaten by a superb strike. The penalty gives it a look of an easy win for United but it was not. They will be so frustrated as played probably about as well as they could do, restricted us to very little and had a lot of the ball but come away with nothing. That is football I suppose but Rooney will be encouraged by this display. Bringing in Phelan will help but I am not sure Rooney will be there much longer, despite today being a better performance. They are losing most weeks and seem to be set to go down unless something is changed. Will it save them? Not sure but in football if a team keeps losing regardless of the financial situation and lack of quality they can invest in to improve themselves, the manager normally carries the can.





Opponent Man of the Match – Thought that they competed well and not sure anyone was awful. They all put a shift in and Bundu and Obafemi were really lively with the latter creating quite a few chances. Gibson the centre back was also solid and helped limit us.



Opponent Weak link – Galloway’s tackle was poor and decided the game. Gray did not really make much of an impact when he came on which surprised me. They got worse after the subs not better.



Referee/Officials – Farai Hallam. A young and new ref that hasn’t done too many Championship games. He started ok in that he let things flow and was not blowing his whistle but it got a bit daft as he was letting really obvious fouls go both ways! Hamer and O’Hare both taken out and no booking which I was ok with as don’t like refs who go to the book too early. Then second half he booked a few of their players for innocuous decisions and then started blowing his whistle and penalising little contact yet let Moore get wrestled to the ground often! The penalty seemed quite obvious- maybe he did miss Robinson handballing it but it sort of skidded up and hit his arm after he controlled and a lot happened after that. The O’Hare one where he went down I thought he was looking for. Not awful but he just sort of changes the way he reffed halfway thought which was odd!





Crowd – Flat and quiet. Maybe it just being before Xmas. Maybe the cold. Maybe the opponent. Their hardy 1,000+ fans who travelled supported them and sang all game (even if it was the usual library stuff mostly). I did enjoy their chant after 20 seconds, ‘how sh*t must you be, we are drawing away!’ United’s fans were frustrated today as it was not quite what we expected in terms of the level of performance and the game itself was really drab. Just important to get the three points and move on.





*Be good if someone can do some reports the next 3 or 4 as I doubt I will see Cardiff as travelling down to London next Saturday and then in the USA for Xmas (2 weeks in New York and Boston), so even if I catch any of the games on my phone or in a pub, I will not write a report as family might find that slightly annoying! So sorry, you will have to make do without my ramblings for the next 4 games probably. I won’t be at the Lane now for a league game till mid January.

Good report Deadbat! I thought 2 or 3 individuals shone (Hamer and Cooper especially), but the team was disjointed. Onwards and upwards! Have a good Christmas!

 

[Addison]

Its a win 3 points after 3 games in 6 days. Agree with scoring. Cooper, Hamer, O'Hare and Souttar pulled us through a difficult fixture.

After watching the Blades for a number of years you just knew this was the one we would struggle in. We hardly won a second ball in the middle and that was the difference. Souza was a huge miss but so were Anel, Seriki and Campbell imo. Anels ability to bring the ball out of defence pushing the oppo forwards back, Serikis sheer pace to counter their wingers and Campbell's goal poaching instinct. Both our full backs were constantly beaten and credit to the manager for seeing this early in the second half and making the changes. The fact we went to 3-5-2 was indicative of our inability to win the ball in the middle and poor defending down the flanks. It had the effect of stopping Plymouths momentum but didn't put us back on the front foot. McCallum was an energetic plus but Moore was still way off the pace.

Can't be too critical of the midfield two. Peck is still learning and this was his third 90 minutes in 6 days. Davies is coming back from a long lay off and did well to last nearly 90 minutes. We were hustled out of the game and lacked sharpness but we struggled through. JRS needs a rest. We have to find alternatives. Brooks is the obvious choice but if he is not pulling up trees in training then playing McCallum down the left with Hamer on the right has to be an option.

We are creaking at the edges in terms of available players and eventually we will get caught out. Conundrum for the manager. Does he keep the gang of 4 Souza, Seriki, Anel and Campbell in reserve for the 3 key games after Cardiff to avoid exacerbating injuries or just go for it against the Bluebirds. Whatever the case the powers that be whoever they are must have incomings signed off for early January.

 

[1987]

Thanks for the report DB, always look for them.

Agree with the ratings, would probably have thrown Cal an extra 0.5. He was our entire press for most of the first half, and think he got us some timely freekicks and possession when we needed.

Thought Burrows looked fine, but I couldn't understand why we persisted with attacking down the right for almost the entire half. We got more joy (wasn't hard) whenever we went down the left.

 

[bakeblade]

United – It seems like I keep writing that it has been another less than convincing performance but another win and clean sheet. It continued today but it was a surprise how hard it was today and in the end Plymouth will feel they should have took at least a point and the result really flattered United. Plymouth had 63% possession which is incredible for one of the bottom sides who have not won away from home and did have the better chances over the game, hitting the post, another sitter missed and Cooper making two big saves. Outside of the goals, not sure their keeper had any really meaningful saves of note (one from O’Hare?) and other than a few blocked shots, we did not really have any other chances? I thought as Wilder said, it was a tough watch and we never got going. We had spells of good play but it was only small pockets. We did not control midfield and too much of the second ball/loose stuff they got to with Souza a big loss. I thought that it was too open and we ended up being got through quite easy at times with a big gap between the defence and midfield and then the midfield and One up top.



We looked disjointed today and thought we lacked intensity off the ball to press and harry and recover it back but also when we had it, we were sloppy with it and rarely kept it more than a few passes most of the game. We just never got going and a better side probably would have made us pay. They will feel very hard done to, for it to be a 2-0 reverse. The positive are that we won again by playing poorly again. We did not look like a top of the table side but that is where we are, so you have to be delighted. No one really outstanding individually. The two centre backs were ok and Hamer at times showed his class. O’Hare worked hard too and thought McCallum and Brewster did ok when they came on. However, we saw that when we are missing key men and the lack of depth we have (the bench was inexperienced today and we lacked game changers). Davies and Peck seemed a bit similar and thought we did not keep or get enough of the ball in this area. Rak Sakyi continues to disappoint in recent games and we had little up front, even when Moore came on. Hamer and O’Hare did show their class at times though in fleeting moments. I thought we looked a tired group today and did not have the extra burst we have seen in other games (Plymouth did have an extra day of rest).



It does sound like I am being overly critical and maybe I am. The three points is all important and Leeds of course dropped points too today but probably played much better than us, so clearly we have that winning mentality and determination not to concede continues. I do feel like we cannot keep playing like this and getting away with it though so need to hopefully get past Cardiff and then get some of the important players back and hopefully we can strengthen in January, if we actually get the ownership situation sorted out.



It is a game that will not be remembered for long. It was cold, the crowd was down a bit, on the eve of Xmas and we a long way from our best and credit to Plymouth, who did have a go but in the end we had the big moments and this has been the blueprint for a lot of our success this season. The Hamer goal was maybe the only real big piece of quality all game for both teams – the Cooper save might be the other.



We now have a decent little gap, albeit with some tough games to come and it is fantastic we keep winning and keep the momentum going. Wilder will just file this game as done, chance to rest some of the injured lads a bit longer and move onto Cardiff next week.



Ratings:



Cooper 7.5/10 – Made a stunning save second half which was such good reflexes and also made another decent one from the flick. Another clean sheet and another very good performance where he was busier than he should have been. Only negative was his kicking which was not the best today.



Gilchrist 5/10 - Think he has really struggled recently, not helped by Rak Sakyi’s total non performances. His touch and passing was loose again and got skinned three times first half by Obafemi and then on one chance after getting beat, he put it on a plate for the lad who fired over. Did improve after the break, as United seemed to go to a 5 but he is not tight enough to his man and getting beat too much and sloppy with the ball.



Burrows 5/10 – Quieter game today and not really in their half much at all. We did not seem to really attack much at all down the left. Few bits and pieces of play and his corner was cleared for the goal. Went off not long after the half time break. McCallum gave us more energy down this side.



Robinson 6/10 – Nothing remarkable. He did what he had to. Felt that the centre backs were not helped by those in front and they came through us all a bit easy at times for a side top of the league. He did step out a few times when he could – including on the goal when it seemed to flick up and hit his hand?



Souttar 6.5/10 – He was our best defender in term of just being more determined to win his battles and challenges. Got in a bit of a skirmish towards the end of first half. A great slide tackles second half to deny a forward running through.



Peck 5/10 – Both midfielders marks are down to the fact we did not recover enough possession and when we had it, we gave it away cheaply. They did not really get a foothold and felt both stood to much and they passed it through us. He did a few ok pieces of play with the ball but thought he started to wander and lose his position too much.



Davies 5/10 – As above. Thought he was excellent in the week but today he looked like it was maybe too much for back-to-back games and he was not able to influence the game in terms of winning the tackles/breaking up play or getting on the ball. He got better towards the end and did win the penalty as he got into the box. We did miss Souza just dominating and imposing himself in this area.



Rak Sakyi 3/10 – Continues his recent decline sadly. When he had it, he did not run at his man at all, he came backwards or played poor passes/touches. He also was not helping Gilchrist who was left one on one too much again. Looks like his confidence is a bit shot at the moment. Sadly, Brooks has done little when he has played so it will be interesting if Wilder takes him out for a bit? Not surprised he went off.



O’Hare 6.5/10 – Worked hard all game he was one of the few pressing and working to try and put them under pressure. Had a few moments with the ball first half and one shot but then second half when he had it, he took too many touches or made the wrong decisions. He has put so much in this season so maybe another, that at some point will need a rest.



Hamer 7.5/10 – Our best outfield player in the sense he scored a superb goal and looked the main threat to create or make things happen. Some lovely touches and he also worked hard to get back and defend and his work rate was very good. Second half he got into some good areas and maybe made the wrong decisions or rather telegraphed a few passes.



One 4/10 – Thought it was a struggle for him. He started with one determined run down the right-hand side, as he got took out. A few other moments where he chased another ball and got a free kick but then he became less and less involved. He was slow to react to situations and thought he got harried out of it. He was not really able to give us a presence or link up at all and the ball came off him a few times. The pace and intensity looked a bit much for him. The chance on half time summed up his performance as he ran through, took too long and then came inside and the defenders came back and made the block. Looked frustrated when he came off, as he was given a chance today and probably did not take it.



Subs -



McCallum 6.5/10 – Thought he did well again when he came on as he showed his leaping ability and also got forward well and put a few decent crosses in. Has been playing well recently.



Moore 5/10 – Despite the goal, thought it was a struggle again and like in the week, the ball bounced off him or he took too long to do things. Had 2 or 3 good chances but was blocked or was quite selfish. The ball was not sticking to him, although he did get fouled a few times and was not always helped by the referee. Did put the cross in that led to the penalty to be fair but just looked very rusty at the moment.



Shackleton 5/10 – Did not really do much at all and got knocked off the ball a few times when he did have it. Defensively he was ok with what he had to do but seemed quite limited.



Brewster – Actually looked lively and more mobile than One and Moore – albeit in limited time. Had one driving run and then involved in the set up for the penalty.



Norrington Davies – Not really involved but it was right at the end when he was introduced.





Manager: Wilder 6/10 – It was a win and a clean sheet and we are top. They are the facts. The performance was quite poor though and we got away with it really as they had more of the ball and the better chances. They were better than we probably thought they might be but then the players did not show the same intensity on and off the ball. He looked really frustrated when I kept looking down at him and the fact after a poor first half, he would have had words but we jus continued to play poorly – so he made three quick changes. He did have several players not available but will still be disappointed we did not have much control against such a lowly team and just had the big moments to get the goals and the Cooper save to ensure it was another win. Will hope to get some players back and see us improve in terms of the cohesion of the side. Today it just seemed very fragmented – we were not able to really hurt them and build up sustained pressure but we also allowed them way too much time on the ball, both down the middle and the sides. He looked annoyed with a lot of things today but will not be annoyed with the win.







Plymouth – Fair play to them. Came and had a go and I felt were much better than I expected and better than a number of other sides that have come down here such as Stoke, Derby, Swansea and Oxford – that is just off the top of my head. They had 3 or 4 really good chances as they hit the outside of the post, Cooper made one great save and they blazed a bad miss over before half time. They moved it around nicely and played it down the wings and got in some good areas. They just could not apply the finish and on the goal were beaten by a superb strike. The penalty gives it a look of an easy win for United but it was not. They will be so frustrated as played probably about as well as they could do, restricted us to very little and had a lot of the ball but come away with nothing. That is football I suppose but Rooney will be encouraged by this display. Bringing in Phelan will help but I am not sure Rooney will be there much longer, despite today being a better performance. They are losing most weeks and seem to be set to go down unless something is changed. Will it save them? Not sure but in football if a team keeps losing regardless of the financial situation and lack of quality they can invest in to improve themselves, the manager normally carries the can.





Opponent Man of the Match – Thought that they competed well and not sure anyone was awful. They all put a shift in and Bundu and Obafemi were really lively with the latter creating quite a few chances. Gibson the centre back was also solid and helped limit us.



Opponent Weak link – Galloway’s tackle was poor and decided the game. Gray did not really make much of an impact when he came on which surprised me. They got worse after the subs not better.



Referee/Officials – Farai Hallam. A young and new ref that hasn’t done too many Championship games. He started ok in that he let things flow and was not blowing his whistle but it got a bit daft as he was letting really obvious fouls go both ways! Hamer and O’Hare both taken out and no booking which I was ok with as don’t like refs who go to the book too early. Then second half he booked a few of their players for innocuous decisions and then started blowing his whistle and penalising little contact yet let Moore get wrestled to the ground often! The penalty seemed quite obvious- maybe he did miss Robinson handballing it but it sort of skidded up and hit his arm after he controlled and a lot happened after that. The O’Hare one where he went down I thought he was looking for. Not awful but he just sort of changes the way he reffed halfway thought which was odd!





Crowd – Flat and quiet. Maybe it just being before Xmas. Maybe the cold. Maybe the opponent. Their hardy 1,000+ fans who travelled supported them and sang all game (even if it was the usual library stuff mostly). I did enjoy their chant after 20 seconds, ‘how sh*t must you be, we are drawing away!’ United’s fans were frustrated today as it was not quite what we expected in terms of the level of performance and the game itself was really drab. Just important to get the three points and move on.





*Be good if someone can do some reports the next 3 or 4 as I doubt I will see Cardiff as travelling down to London next Saturday and then in the USA for Xmas (2 weeks in New York and Boston), so even if I catch any of the games on my phone or in a pub, I will not write a report as family might find that slightly annoying! So sorry, you will have to make do without my ramblings for the next 4 games probably. I won’t be at the Lane now for a league game till mid January.

Be good if someone can do some reports the next 3 or 4 as I doubt I will see Cardiff as travelling down to London next Saturday and then in the USA for Xmas (2 weeks in New York and Boston), so even if I catch any of the games on my phone or in a pub, I will not write a report as family might find that slightly annoying! So sorry, you will have to make do without my ramblings for the next 4 games probably. I won’t be at the Lane now for a league game till mid January.
Bring back Pompeey

 

[Wards]

Shackleton was decent when he came on

 

[robbiez666]

Our midfield has not dominated since before Arblaster got injured. Souza has covered up for much of that but started to look tired. Peck has been thrown in and the deep end and really needs help. Davies shows bit but always going to be rusty. The biggest issues we have are that the midfield is not protecting the defence and there's no one who is adequately holding the ball upfront to help us get forward.

It's mad our performances are so average and yet we just keep getting results.

 

[Bladey_blade]

O hares engine is unbelievable, if that was in my car I'd never worry about my MOT

 

[Silent Blade]

Most of Plymouth's possession were in the first third of the pitch. With 10 mins left I would have hurried the game up rather than carrying on passing at the back. At this time I said to my son "Just let them have the possession and dont bother defending from the front and we will create chances on the counter attack". We got the second goal soon after.

 

[Coolblade]

A few observations from the stats

- Robbo has his best stats for a while. Most aerial duels won, twice as many clearances and a pass completion rate over 90%. Burrows on the other hand had his lowest stats for a while with only two crosses, one tackle and one clearance.

- Hamer remains absolutely key. We had seven key passes of which Hamer played five, with more than double the number of crosses of anyone else. And the goal!

- Moore had twice as many shots as anyone else, and made a key pass, despite only coming on in the second half. One only attempted 4 passes, with just 2 successful. A tough game for him!

- Although Davies doesn’t have the defensive capabilities of Vini (no successful tackles, one aerial duels won), he did have a pass completion rate over 90%, compared to Peck at 58%. But Arb and Vini in mid are simply a mile ahead of a Peck/Davies midfield

But we’re top of the league. Enjoy!

 

[john Mathison]

I for one, would have gladly settled for where we are today, when the season started. Correct, we have been no where near our best as of late, think Leeds, Burnley, Sunderland would be very happy to be in our position today. Wilder must get some help from the board in the January window, whoever runs the club should see this as a priority.

 

[coaxingstar71]

Given the circumstances, the performance was not that surprising.
Both our first choice midfielders out and starting with a raw youngster up front. When I saw the line-up I thought Wilder was underestimating them but actually it was due to fitness. A midfield of a kid who would not have expected to play too much finding himself playing 3 full games in 6 days and a player who's played his first full game in about 2 years is not ideal. Credit to them for just getting through it.
If we are serious about promotion we desperately need reinforcements in January with a strong midfielder who can do a bit of everything a top priority and another striker as the minimum.
We're playing a lot of young players and we all know that levels are bound to dip from time to time.

 

[Revolution]

I think by common consensus it was our poorest performance of the season (certainly the poorest I’ve seen) so my main emotion at full time was relief.

Plymouth were better than they have been by all accounts, but they misplace passes a lot and make bad decisions. It’s easy to see why they are not doing well. Cooper (my MOTM) did well, but the pivotal point was that Gyabi miss. Should have buried that.

I have wished at times this season that we had Obafemi, but after that I’m on the fence. He seems to be carrying a lot of timber. Still, I was glad when he went off. Like Deadbat I rated Bundu, who was enterprising.

I thought Davies and Peck were decent (Davies is very calm on the ball) but we really missed Souza. Wow. If you’d told me in April I’d write that comment I’d have thought you were crazy.

One showed he is not ready, and JRS had a stinker, which in turn caused Glichrist to have a stinker. Too much space out wide. Shackleton and (especially) McCallum stopped that a bit. Both also helped us get up the pitch - as did Brewster, who might have been a bit unlucky not to get on earlier.

Moore was better than One but not quite at the races. Luckily their keeper had the decency to dive out of the way of the pen.

Super goal from Hamer. He and O’Hare were enterprising without too much coming off.

A forgettable game when all is said and done, but welcome points.

As I have said elsewhere, there is at least one longer run of home clean sheets (Cambridge in 1982-3, 12 games) so a lot to do to catch them.

Have a good holiday Deadbat. We will all miss your reports!

 

[Isar]

Thanks Deadbat. Having played 3 competitive games in 7 days it was good to get the right result.
Top of the league and with a two point deduction, some of our supporters need to align expectations. It was expected we would dominate the game, but Plymouth didn't see it that way.
It is now good for the squad to have a break and a rest before we go again.

 

[Woodwaaard]

Hamer's lung busting performance was wonderful
He knew we were "light" and responded accordingly
A solid nine out of ten for me

 

[SouthStandGBlock]

Thanks Deadbat, great report, marking spot on imo.

Hope you have a great holiday, sounds like a fantastic trip. Safe travels

 

[blader]

can’t say both full backs had an equal performance (5/10)? If burrows is a 5 (a fair score) then sadly Gilchrist deserves a 3 or 2.

Thought he was awful defensively and without the ball. He was so frustrating on the ball, did you notice he held on to it right until the very second only to just chip it down the channel to nothing every single time. It was so bloody frustrating!

 

[bakeblade]

can’t say both full backs had an equal performance (5/10)? If burrows is a 5 (a fair score) then sadly Gilchrist deserves a 3 or 2.

Thought he was awful defensively and without the ball. He was so frustrating on the ball, did you notice he held on to it right until the very second only to just chip it down the channel to nothing every single time. It was so bloody frustrating!

Gilchrist looks better as RCB in a back 5

 

[Bergen Blade]

One only attempted 4 passes, with just 2 successful. A tough game for him!

When One's reputation improves, teammates are not going to turn down the chance of giving it to him in situations like these:

 

[Snake]

When One's reputation improves, teammates are not going to turn down the chance of giving it to him in situations like these:

View attachment 199393

His reputation won't improve for a while yet mate - simply cos he's not ready yet. His team mates see this every day in training. At end of the first half when he had the one on one with the defender his rawness and inexperience showed...... just create yourself half a yard and drill it across the keeper.

Don't get me wrong I like him and I think he has lots of potential. However at the moment that's all it is. He's no where near ready to be starting (especially as a loan striker) in a team going for automatic promotion to the PL.

 

[McGrath]

Job Done yesterday

Given the circumstances of 3 games in 6 days with a small squad and a mounting injury list to key players and very tough Xmas period looming.... that game was never going to be the cakewalk some seem to think, but probably the perfect opposition in the circumstances.

A few thoughts...

Yes Hamer is our match winner.... But how many times does he give away possession unnecessarily. There's a right times and a wrong time for the back heals, blind passes, Cruyff turns and flicks. We'll be able to control games much better if he can learn that!

Oné is raw, but clearly has the physical attributes. He won the corner that got the first goal.

I thought Davies did good. Very neat and tidy, keeps us ticking and he makes things look so simple. I think he will frustrate a minority because he won't do amazing standout things all the time. But he's quietly very good and hopefully will become an important cog in the machine.

I thought Shackleton and MaCallum coming on at wing back in a changed formation did very well. I thought Shackleton was good and I loved the tactic of pinging long balls up to MaCullum instead of Moore to confuse their defence.

Brewster made a couple of good direct runs with the ball. The first of which started that led to the penalty. Hopefully there's much more to come there and he's finding his confidence

Plymouth were good on the ball but limited by the talent they had out there. They came and gave it a go and didn't just roll over like other teams have. Kudos to them

 

[Shawy24]

When One's reputation improves, teammates are not going to turn down the chance of giving it to him in situations like these:

View attachment 199393

Absolutely. The lad on at least three occasions was showing O’Hare and others where he wanted it playing in that first half intending to come in on the blind side of CH or between them. He’s got the strength to get there and hold them off. Yet they bottled on the pass and turned away.

 

[John Street West Terrace]

A scruffy win .. but a win all the same & one that’s keeps us top of the pile but we looked very very ordinary yesterday & certainly didn’t have a look if a team that’s top .. and other than them missing an open goal & cracking save from Coops we’d definitely have dropped points and we never looked entirely comfortable until the penalty sealed it
Other than Hamer & O’Hare we really lacked any sort of intensity & without a doubt missed the physical presence of Souza in the middle of the park .

We didn’t press the opposition until the 3 subs on the hour & as I said on another thread made a very average side look way better than what they actually were .
One up top didn’t work , won very little & was pretty much none existent other than one foray against their fullback ( shoulder charge & a cross off it ) . Rak Sakyi & Peck was very quiet too but I suppose your gonna get that with young players ? Also the two fullbacks never got forward / involved .
Plus points ..Cooper , Souttar , Robbo , Hamer & mentions in dispatches for O’Hare & Davies .

Off the subs we certainly improved on there introduction & looked more dangerous with s front 2 of Brewster & Moore . McCallum pushed on too & certainly helped us didn’t that left flank . Well need the missing faces back for that tough Christmas schedule

Cooper 8
Gilchrist 5
Souttar 6.5
Robbo 6.5
Burrows 5
Davies 6
Peck 5
Hamer 8
O’Hare 7
Rak Sakyi 4
One 3.5

Moore 6
Brewster 6
McCallum 6.5
Shackleton 5.5

 

[JOEYDEE]

Thanks Deadbat. Having played 3 competitive games in 7 days it was good to get the right result.
Top of the league and with a two point deduction, some of our supporters need to align expectations. It was expected we would dominate the game, but Plymouth didn't see it that way.
It is now good for the squad to have a break and a rest before we go again.

6 days....just saying '

 

[JohnDenver]

Absolutely spot on with all of that except I’d give Shackleton a 6.5, actually thought he did relatively well today when he came on,

He was brought on to shore up the right side, and did exactly that. He played like a grownup, which is his exact job.

Contrary to some opinions, JRS does actually get back, but he needs to learn how to defend with his fullback. Just being in the vicinity really doesn’t cut it.

This game showed it’s reasonable for Wilder to wang on about our squad’s age. That right hand side has no experience at this level and it shows when we’re not bossing games. And we’re much less likely to boss games without Souza.