(After all the expletives) is pedestrian. No pace, no energy, no sweat on the shirt. You have to question the fitness levels. We have a bunch of players who are pretty average and when you have that they have to work harder than the opposition to win. We’re just not doing that. In the first half Mansfield looked like world beaters, not a team chasing their first win in nine. At the end their was only going to be one winner. I sincerely want Hourihane to succeed because he has a definite affection for the club but the players have to do better and start dictating to the opposition. That means putting a shift in.
I honestly think we’d be better putting a team of local lads out - at least playing for the club means something to them and they’ll do what they can to win
I've noticed that everytime a team closes us down. We cannot compete. Cos the players struggle to keep a move going. Mansfield were not closed down. We gave em loads of space when they had the ball. A team that plays open football. We have a chance.
The first half was the worst I've seen in... well, jut really, really bad. Our players couldn't control or pass the ball. Like you said, it was like watching semi-professional football or even park football. Actually, it was a bit different as there's always a variety of body shapes when you go watch teams like Emley or Frickley. If you can play, you can also carry a bit of timber a that level. You don't have to be fast and capable of running a marathon. Our players all look like they should be able to play, they've all got the identikit physique, but I've seen more skill and better passing at the clubs mentioned above than I saw us manage on Saturday.
I sometimes get done to watch afc Wakefield in the tool station northern division one, tier 8 or 9? They are waaay more committed then this lot.
I was looking forward to a bit of "buzz" and new manager bounce...there was none...which kind of tells you a lot about our players.
There was a thread recently about our Premier League team and some old footage showing the movement and options the players had because everyone was working tirelessly. I'm not expecting premier league quality but energy should come for free as a result of hard training day in day out. I've just come back from the Surrey half marathon and clocked a time of 1:24:08. I challenge Humphrys to beat that. And I'm fecking 56.
This is why I have doubts about CH going forward he's been involved in the coaching of the first team alongside Clarke and the other coaches. So any lack of fitness and players knowing their roles and responsibilities is Partly down to him. I've also heard people who have watched the training session on a regular basis say that the three assistant coaches ran the majority of the training sessions so again you have to question the ability of CH, MD, and JS. I really hope CH succeeds and becomes the next Danny Wilson or Paul Heckingbottom but the club really can't afford another failed head coach appt.
That’s what disappointed me so much; only one team was trying to win it and working hard. We offered nothing at all.
There’s been a lot of talk about us playing a pressing game but absolutely zero evidence of its implementation. You only had to watch Portsmouth and Liverpool this past week to see how effective it is when done properly. You don’t even need good players to do it so it must be down to the coaching.
