Re: Stortford v City

by Beau Nash Sat Nov 07, 2015 4:37 pm

BenE wrote:double @rse 3-2

You can report the bad news Evil or Very Mad

by BenE Sat Nov 07, 2015 4:40 pm

I've stopped looking for a sander. I'm doing a crossword instead.

by BenE Sat Nov 07, 2015 4:48 pm

into extra time come on lads

by BenE Sat Nov 07, 2015 4:51 pm

oh well.

by Beau Nash Sat Nov 07, 2015 4:56 pm

Many thanks to @BathCity_FC @BathCityRadio for updates #sorefingers Wink

by the demon headmaster Sat Nov 07, 2015 6:24 pm

A frustrating afternoon in the end. We showed in periods of the game some lovely flowing football and were only prevented from scoring a third goal by three outstanding last ditch challenges. In truth BS played very well and defended stoutly on a tricky pitch. Our main failing, for those that say we only play hoof-ball, was that we tried to play too much football in our own half. Their winner resulted from a lucky break in the box as the ball fell to a home player following a good save from Phillips. We got no run of the ball luck as it pinged around the home area and ended on a rather lacklustre note as both sides struggled to put any kind of passing move together as the game wound down. My verdict was that any result was possible and for 80 minutes it was a really entertaining game. However I would probably have preferred a boring win.

by Luton Roman Sat Nov 07, 2015 7:20 pm

Yep gd review Keith. Thought Stortford were a decent side. Good interplay going forward. Got behind us numerous times and again centre halves must have headaches from all the headers they won. We needed to crack on at 2-1 but we let them have too much territory. 2nd balls rarely won. Pratt back in the goals best thing of the day along with Frankie warming up and indicating he is near a return.

by kermit Sat Nov 07, 2015 8:06 pm

Despite losing, I felt we played well and didn't get any luck in front of goal in the 2nd half. Good to see Dave Pratt looking more confident and Ashley Kington had a great game IMO. Kaid was lively 1st half but fairly ineffective 2nd. We may have a difficult time against Oxford City but hopefully Artis will be back.

by comrade powell Sat Nov 07, 2015 10:22 pm

Afraid I can't be as generous in my praise. Yes, we had a very good half hour after being given the run around in the opening ten minutes. As mentioned above, a great pity we couldn't press home our advantage with further goals but Pratt can't do it all. I really think Watkins deserves another chance to be in the starting line up - playing McCootie for an hour is not working and he contributed very little again. The turning point was their second goal - rather fortunate and a real killer just before the break. The second half was one way traffic and a single goal defeat rather flattered us in the end.
A great shame after the promise of last Saturday, but Bish were a stronger outfit than Chelmsford.

by Marc Monitor Sat Nov 07, 2015 10:25 pm

I wasn't there, obviously, but a 3-2 loss away to a decent outfit isn't the disaster of our recent disastrous run. We have had an unbelievable start followed by a woeful run but having good home wins, battling away defeats and the odd draw her or there is fairly standard fare.

by comrade powell Sat Nov 07, 2015 11:24 pm

Yes, they were a decent outfit but had gone five home matches without a win, scoring a solitary goal.

by the demon headmaster Sat Nov 07, 2015 11:42 pm

Well form is temporary as they say. I think Comrade is being a bit harsh on our second half performance, because we worked the ball beautifully at times. I really don't think Phillips had so much to do that would warrant a heavier defeat, but I do agree that McCootie looked leaden all match.

by Marc Monitor Sat Nov 07, 2015 11:50 pm

Look, last Saturday, our defence and, especially, Phillips were superb. This week, we scored two goals and still lost. I am afraid that looks like the defence were at fault. I appreciate that there is always an element of defending from the front needed, closing down players, providing an outlet for defence but 3 goals is surely the defence's fault.

by Midsomer-steve Sun Nov 08, 2015 1:51 am

Yes, it is. I can stomach a 0-1 defeat against a team that is about the same standard as us, but I am disappointed that we lost today despite scoring twice.
I agree that Watkins should start matches in preference to McCootie, especially on wet pitches!

by the demon headmaster Sun Nov 08, 2015 8:40 am

As I say we tried to play too much football in our own half and invited pressure with some poor passing in bad areas. Often matters are decided by fine margins in matches. Last week it served us well, this week it didn't. Phillips appeared to be no busier yesterday than against Chelmo (although I only listened to that on the radio), so the fact that we were 3 goals worse off can't just be down to faults at the back. I still think we waste too many opportunities to shoot by trying to create the perfect opening and it doesn't help when you are effectively carrying one of your forwards, as has already been noted.

by BenE Sun Nov 08, 2015 10:04 am

When Nick plays well he is unplayable but those games seem to come far and between. I thought at the start of the season he had got over that indifference evident last season but it appears not. Agree we cannot carry someone who has frequent anonymous games.

by Marc Monitor Sun Nov 08, 2015 11:06 am

In the first 10 minutes against Chelmsford, Phillips had to save us from it being a 2-2 draw but, after that, wasn't really troubled and our defence looked supremely confident. I am sorry but you can't expect your forwards to score 3 or 4 away to make up for a 3 goal deficit.

McCootie's knackered, I am afraid. After getting a good 75 minutes out of him last week, you can't blame the management for starting him yesterday but I think we are going to have to come to terms with the fact that he needs to be an impact substitute at least every other game.

by comrade powell Sun Nov 08, 2015 11:48 am

Phillips was definitely busier yesterday! One of our well known fans insists that our defensive frailties are down to an over reliance on Coupe and 'his lack of pace'. Personally I think he is playing a crucial role with his aerial strength and motivation of the others. While our defence is not the strongest, the blame for our frequent leaking of goals must be shared by the midfield who offer little protection, especially away from home. One stat which is becoming increasingly alarming is our tendency to concede very early in games. Sutton, Maidstone and now Bish have opened their accounts before the 7th minute.

Yes, we did work the ball beautifully at times, but there are teams at every level who do this and yet fail to score sufficient goals when they are on top and concede possession which puts the defence under pressure. Admittedly Bish had the advantage of the swirling wind when the weather was at its worst in the opening period, but their policy of shooting when in position was not adopted by us.

To be fair, we had the worst of the conditions yesterday and yes, there was an element of luck about one of the goals conceded but we were too quick to find excuses during that poor run of winless games recently. As Luton Roman is fond of saying, we need to become more streetwise in games like yesterday's.

One other thought - did anyone get a clear view of the incident involving Gallinagh towards the end? As with most of his decisions, I thought the ref handled whatever happened very well - the 2nd excellent one in a week!

by stillmanjunior Sun Nov 08, 2015 11:54 am

We are missing the bigger issue here - did anyone pick up any injuries? Tuesday's game against Street is absolutely huge, we can't afford to miss on the tenner or so in prize money.

by the demon headmaster Sun Nov 08, 2015 12:01 pm

comrade powell wrote:Phillips was definitely busier yesterday! As someone who watched both games, fair enough. While our defence is not the strongest, the blame for our frequent leaking of goals must be shared by the midfield who offer little protection Agreed, especially through giving the ball away, rather than the lack of cover. One stat which is becoming increasingly alarming is our tendency to concede very early in games. Sutton, Maidstone and now Bish have opened their accounts before the 7th minute.

Yes, we did work the ball beautifully at times, but there are teams at every level who do this and yet fail to score sufficient goals when they are on top and concede possession which puts the defence under pressure. Admittedly Bish had the advantage of the swirling wind when the weather was at its worst in the opening period, but their policy of shooting when in position was not adopted by us. That is basically it.

To be fair, we had the worst of the conditions yesterday and yes, there was an element of luck about one of the goals conceded but we were too quick to find excuses during that poor run of winless games recently. As Luton Roman is fond of saying, we need to become more streetwise in games like yesterday's.

One other thought - did anyone get a clear view of the incident involving Gallinagh towards the end? As with most of his decisions, I thought the ref handled whatever happened very well - the 2nd excellent one in a week!

Agreed. He was calm, clear and the players seemed to respect his handling of the game.

by comrade powell Sun Nov 08, 2015 12:39 pm

stillmanjunior wrote:We are missing the bigger issue here - did anyone pick up any injuries? Tuesday's game against Street is absolutely huge, we can't afford to miss on the tenner or so in prize money.

Well, the game was stopped towards the end so that Pratt could receive treatment for what looked like a head injury. With Tuesday's huge game looming, I thought it was totally irresponsible that he wasn't taken off as a precaution. If we had the Special One in charge, I wouldn't fancy the prospects of our physio...

by Luton Roman Sun Nov 08, 2015 1:37 pm

Pratt took the ball full in the face or side. We're missing Frankie on the ball, his creativity, and desire - there, said it, have we got it elsewhere in the team? Some but perhaps not all. And finally, not being his greatest fan I thought Kington put in a gd shift 2nd half.

by Marc Monitor Sun Nov 08, 2015 5:57 pm

Yeah, sorry, I appear to be solely blaming the defence when what I mean is that it is the defending of the whole team that is at fault when you lose 3-2 not the forwards lack of scoring 2 more goals.

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