They're so under appreciated. I think that's what we need, a Sheridan/Scowen type. Scowen was one of the most important signings at the time, overshadowed obviously by Hammill, but that anchor/settler in midfield is absolutely important. You can have as many number 10s as you like, but one consistent bulldog at the side of him is the difference.
Clarke had that type in Craig but didn't use him. Obviously wasn't perfect and made a few mistakes as he was a young lad but he was exactly that type.
We’ve got one, called Luca Connell. But for some reason he isn’t playing the battling midfielder role. He’s best deployed as a defensive midfielder, or in Football manager terms, a ball winning midfielder, shielding the back line, making simple passes to players in front of him.
We don't like them. Not had any since Little Lee and Danny were here under PC. We had Scowen Ben Pearson Connor and Josh Brownhill then Morsey and Matty James under Hecky.. The stats must say that tippy-tappy's reep the best rewards sell-on wise.. But of course they do have to be a reasonable standard to start with.. As little Lee said "in L1 you need a couple of ratas in center mid"..
I actually disagree with this. I think we signed Craig thinking he was a battling midfielder. But he didn’t actually do that job effectively enough. He was too weak in the tackle and didn’t break up play enough. Hence why he wasn’t played and sent back. I am disappointed we didn’t try and replace him with a “battling midfielder” in January though.
I was thinking exactly the same thing yesterday who is supposed to be our ball winner in the midfield, the guy who sythes down that free kick counter attack before it happens and takes a yellow
It's been said many times but it merits another airing - Glavin Banks and Parker thrived on the contribution of Ray McHale. In the best Barnsley team of my generation.
We have Luca Connell. And despite not totally suiting that role, Kelechi Nwakali does make tackles in there. The issue is, there’s nothing up top which becomes more evident as the match progresses. They don’t retain the ball. For comparison, look at Huddersfield yesterday. They couldn’t get a grip up front either. Until they took Charles off. Once Koroma was on, he gave them a foothold in the game. They retained the ball in the final third. Yesterday was even more of an issue, as we had just two playing in central midfield so they were spent, having to work back and forward. Bang on it first half. Knackered second. And we have a group of defenders who are slow, prone to errors and constantly under pressure in the second half. They’re bound to wilt. In and amongst all that, you’ve a coach who changes the shape every game. He calls it adaptability. I call it confusing. It’s up to the coaching staff led by Darrell to find and use a system that gets the best out of what they’ve got. I hate to be that guy, but it probably involves passing the ball a lot more. Square and back. Reserve energy. Less punting the ball forward. More careful. But Collins was sacked for that, so…
This is why i like 442. Every player knows their job, if you have the right players for it. Our 2016 team used it perfectly. Over lapping full backs with pacey wingers (who can cross and score), battling midfielder (Scowen) with a playmaker (Hourihane). Ball playing CB with a stopper CB (Roberts was top of the aerial battles table). A mobile striker (Armstrong/Bradshaw) and a finisher (Winnall). Bit long winded but that's what I think you need in League 1. In this division, if you over complicate it, you confuse - and lose - the dressing room.
