Doesn't matter whether you are playing left wing, centre forward, central midfield or right back, your given job can still be to the guard the post at an opponent's set piece. Whether you're playing your natural position or not has absolutely no bearing on how well you do your job of guarding the post. Jim O'Brien playing central midfield and right back had nothing to do with how well he cleared the ball after guarding the post. If he'd been playing right wing it wouldn't have improved his post guarding abilities. Wilson's coming in for some stick for playing O'Brien and Dawson in central midfield. I thought they both played well there. We were winning 2-0 with that combination. We weathered a storm in the second half but restricted Ipswich to very few chances, and like all proper teams do, came out of the other side of that and scored. It wasn't until we brought on so called proper midfield players that we conceded 2 goals. One of those was due to a gaff by Jim, but as I said in the first paragraph, that's got nothing to do with him playing in an unfamiliar position. We made another mistake and it cost us another game. I don't know how a manager can legislate for that. Particularly as the change around was due to an Ipswich player leaving their foot in on Hunt, not his lack of fitness. He was limping all the while after that challenge. Usually such a challenge is an automatic yellow card. Did we even get a foul? I'm not convinced the free kick for the leveller should have been given either. Maybe on the balance of play Ipswich deserved something from the game, like Wednesday last week they had plenty of the ball, but for my money we're extremely unlucky at the moment.
Dunno. We've recently got a new manager, so I'm not sure what everyone's role is yet. Particularly as we haven't fielded a settled side yet due to injuries, suspensions and Wilson still trying to work out his best team. Jim hasn't been a regular starter under Danny so I don't know what his usual role is.
I don't usually pay much attention to who's on our posts at corners, but I'm sure it was Hunt today. And then Jim after Hunt went off.
said exactly that already, but don't agree we were unlucky today. Thought we were extremely lucky to be 2-0 up. And then we looked the gift horse straight in the mouth.
Kinel. That post of mine makes it sound like Hunt (then Jim) were on both posts at corners. Some ******* feat that.
Same things being said now that were said abart Flicker unlucky, cant do owt abart player mistakes etc.
At 2 nil up it seemed a sensible move. And one I agreed with. Put more bodies in the middle of the park. I dont think it cost us in its own right but if you are winning 2 nil and can't see a game out you aren't going to go far. I want Wilson to save us. If he doesn't I still want him here. My dad thinks we will get out of it. I wish I had his optimism cos I don't think we will. But my dad always gets things more right than me. So I'm clutching onto his straw for now....
I still think we will, but unfortunately I have no track record of being right. I defended Flitcroft to the end, I never asked for his head and personally I wouldn't have sacked him, but that was all about loyalty. Last season he did something very special and I didn't feel it was right to just give up on him so soon after all he did. As far as the future of the club was concerned, I think I was backing the wrong man, but it seemed like the proper thing to do. However, there was something fundamentally wrong and I wasn't blind to that. To put it bluntly, we were ****. I don't think we are any more. One point from the last two games isn't very good, we need a lot more, but I can't remember us looking so tight at the back. We've conceded 3 goals, two from terrible individual errors and the other from a free kick that seemed to take a wicked deflection to me. I think we'll put a stop to those individual errors. I think the quality of the likes of O'Grady and Jennings will see us score goals. I think we look twice the side we did before Christmas even if the results aren't there. I think as players get back to full fitness we'll get even better. I think we'll do it. Or maybe my admiration of Danny Wilson is clouding my judgement. We'll see.
I hope your right and what you have put I can see. I'm just on a downer. Last week and this just see us have no real luck and I'm fed up of it. My dad is rarely wrong and you have put a decent point across. I'm probably being a bit harsh but we have some big games coming up. We shall see in a few weeks and hopefully I have reason to be more optimistic....
I usually have a lot of time for your views Jay, but defending Dawson and JOB in central midfield is defending the indefensible IMHO.
Dawson's not my favourite player by a long way. I just don't think he's got the quality. However, today I didn't think he did too bad, neither, in my opinion, did O'Brien, until that botched clearance. Just my opinion like. Are you specifically referring to today when they were poor, or do you just think they're poor players?
Think we missed a midfielder today who could keep ball and help team keep ball ie mellis , digby or bobby . All through game we couldn't string any passes together or keep possession
O'Brien is scared of putting his head in, shirks tackles and loses runners but he buzzes around a lot, can someimes puts a decent ball through,us is great at wearing his Braveheheart on his sleeve and pointing. Wasn't he signed by Robns?
O'Brien is a poor mans Brendan O'Connell runs around like a puppy chasing his tail. Time to ship him and Dawson out.
I believe that football matches are, more often than not, won in central midfield. You can have the best wide midfielders, strikers and defenders in the world, but the hub of the team is the middle of the park. In my opinion Dawson is just not up to Championship standard, and whilst I have a lot of time for JOB and concede he did OK in that position against a very poor Blackpool side, playing him in a pair with Dawson is just perverse.
