Tepid, bland and predictable.

We have seen the same performance at home most games. It has gained some positive results - but it is largely uninspiring in the extreme. This after starting so thrillingly v Port Vale.

Sideways passing between the back three, until one of them or roberts lumps it long.

Slow play when the above doesn’t apply, get the ball wide, but rarely get an early ball into the box.

No pace or urgency in the final third. No bravery or risk taking to make something happen.

Wasteful of territory and possession.

Substitutions made that make little or no change to the setup - personnel changes but no change in shape. Rigidly sticking to the back three when it was clear we needed to try something different.

Poor goal after poor goal conceded - no measurable improvement from the centre halves individually or as a collective, unable to grasp the basics at times, despite the head coach being a centre back of some distinction at football league level.

Our away record is pretty outstanding. But we are distinctly average at home. We barely have a winning record at home. Barely top half when considering home form alone. Home form dictates to an extent how many season tickets are sold and how many match tickets are sold outside of those.

Given the performances have been largely flat even when we win, given we have won fewer than half of our home games in the third division - if, say, this led to a reduction in the number of ticket sales; might this be a consideration regarding the ongoing tenure of the manager should we not go up?

I’d argue that from a purely footballing point of view there is an argument the Neill Collins isn’t the answer for another go at league one. I don’t think the board agree.

But if his football ends up keeping fans at home, as let’s face it we’ve seen little on the pitch to warrant a rise in renewal prices (though it was probably inevitable economically speaking) - would that not force the issue?

 

Thought this today. Should we miss out via the play offs which seems likely all things considered next season unless our form is much better at home and about the same away I think the fans will turn quite quickly.

 

Watters,Shaw and Dallas with none of them having an impact and on 3 year deals i think the recruitment department have a lot to answer for.

 

Of course this is true.

I make no attempt to suggest the problems of this season all lie with Collins. He hasn’t had the strongest hand dealt - but that doesn’t mean that he couldn’t have played that hand better at times.

At centre back in particular (but in other ways as well) he has been hampered.

I’m not personally convinced that the best way to get results with such issues is to play slow, risk averse football with little to no originality or invention. A rigid ‘painting by numbers’ approach. We invariably concede regardless (ok, today aside). We might as well have gone out cavalier and looked to blast teams off the park. Our better players are further up the field.

Would that approach likely have delivered less than the 45% wins in our home games we have achieved this season? I’m not advocating that by the way - just pointing out the flaw in being quite defensive and allegedly structured when our main weakness is clearly defending.

The point of my thread though wasn’t suggesting he’d caused all or most issues at the club - it was whether his somewhat turgid approach, which is already getting plenty of dissenting noise, might end up losing him his job through the loss of fan numbers. The motivation of the board always has the financial bottom line front and centre. If the punters aren’t paying up as much, it may precipitate change.

 

If it's this bad in the playoff positions, how bad must it be to be in the bottom six.

 

I think that's a pretty fair analysis. We have been a grim watch this season at Oakwell.

I've a lot of sympathy for any Coach who comes here. We've been dysfunctional on and off the field for a few years with little sign of improvement - though the propaganda has improved. Even with the terrible hand he has been dealt, I've seen enough to believe Collins could have done better. There are some good players in that squad but they have only performed in fits and snatches over the season.

The defence? Well, there aren't really words. It's worse now than it was at the start of the season. That's a bit odd because individually, they all have their strengths but when they come together as a collective, it's like watching a cross between the Keystone Cops and Benny Hill.

I can see why, to many, all of this might seem nonsense as we're in the top 6 and unless we spectacularly implode we should get a Play Off spot. But in the nearly 50 seasons I've been watching the Reds I can't think of a season where we have been battling for promotion that has felt as flat, disjointed and ultimately doomed as this one. There's no life oy joy (or discernable pattern) in our play.

I hope all of these words are rammed down my throat and we win all our remaining games and go up automatically, or even make it through the Play Offs; but I don't think there are many who watched us regularly this season who think that is a likelihood.

 

Yeah exactly, and I made this point on here several times last season as well. We were trying for automatic promotion then, just like we are now, and some of the match day criticisms were/are just ridiculous and way over the top.
I dread to think then, of what the comments would be like if we were in (today's opponents) Cheltenham's position!!.

 

If early in the summer Collins sees Williams, Kane, Cole, maybe even Connell, if a big offer comes in, depart, with murmurings from the board that youth is to be trusted as replacements...........
then I'm sure he'll have his agent on overtime and the board won't need to make a decision on his future.

 

Couldn't agree more.
I accept that our present hierarchy are trying to alter things (its early days) but we are paying the price for incompetent management....consistently losing our better players (I accept that) only to replace with hopefuls from God knows where. Then we have the debacle of sponsorship issue, the fielding of ineligible players etc etc.
Collins has a very poor hand to deal with and we can put out a decent 11 at this level....but I actually dread our subs coming on! The style of play, I think has been kind of forced with his options but we are just soooo easy to score against as dalestyke claimed we have individuals who have some good attributes to their game but collectively cannot defend....thank God we have Roberts, who is probably the only incoming player that we have up graded from last season.
Of course I want us to go up but I just keep thinking what will happen if we do....recruitment in January was good, I'm not saying that Earl and Pines aren't exactly what we needed...they are....at last we have identified good players, who can come in straight away.
We definitely lack pace going forward and in transition.....so whatever happens in the summer, please let's have an up grade and get us off our seats.....errrr imho.

 

Personally I think the poor hand thing is overstated. We have numerous players who would walk into any other L1 side. Yes he had a defence to sort out but given his background to get them playing as a unit should have been possible.

the dullness of the games at Oakwell cannot be overstated. The performances just suck the life out of everything

 

Out of interest, why does everyone think its so different at home than when we are away?

 

The way Collins sets up teams is to counter attack. It works better away from home. At Oakwell teams will sit back and defend. Our rigid pattern fails to break them down. In fairness some of the wins have been just as dull as our performances at Oakwelll

 

I don't think it has. Performance wise we have been absolutely horrendous to watch away from home for the vast majority of the season. Difference is we've had a hell of a lot of luck away from home

 

When was the last time we scored a early goal in a home game because yesterday if we had gone in front in that first 15 minutes then we probably go on and win that comfortably

 

Said that myself. We needed an early goal, but it wasn’t to be

 

Increasing season ticket prices off the back of a poor home record season is cheeky.

 

Whether we are poor or good at home doesn’t alter the fact that there has to be increased prices, fail to see how you can’t see that

 

We are in the entertainment business. The money wasted on Dallas, Shaw, Watters etc would have more than covered a price freeze. Our home form this season will see a decrease in season ticket sales next season if we don't go up.

 

Thanks, saved me the time