Season after season of asset stripping and a managed decline have brought us to this. BFC is dying

I can't disagree with that but with our turnover of Head Coaches we bring in players the incumbent wants and then the following season, when we've a new gaffer, those players aren't wanted and we're swapping for other players but can't get rid of the players from the season before.

 

Yep set us up at Wrexham away every bit as much as treating them like utd at old Trafford - sorry but saw a real lack of intent on Tuesday night and that is why they got a reaction at the final whilste that they did. Neither wing back really pushed on even when there was an opportunity to do so - It took us 60+ mins to get a shot on target against their 3rd choice keeper he went for a point and got zero. Tell you what Wrexham had the right idea by letting us have possession till we mucked up or gave the ball away and then hit us quickly on the break it certainly created them more opportunities than our possession based building from the back.

 

We only had 53.1% of possession though. Earlier in the season, weren't there games where we only had 20-30% of possession? That was my point. I don't think we set up to get a point. The first 25 minutes, we were the team on the front foot and the only team in and around a box. After that we lost a foothold and didn't look like we knew what we were doing.

 

That’s what I mean Wrexham allowed us to have the ball in areas that didn’t hurt them they basically let us have it in our third till we turned over possession in midfield or pressed us till we kicked long via the keeper - which we did on numerous occasions. The wing backs rarely went beyond half way as they feared getting hit on the break as clearly been instructed to do so - If you look on average Wrexham tend to let the other team have possession a bit like we did at the start of the season when we where actually getting results.

 

Doesn't that suggest we're just not that good and our chances aren't especially clean when we get them?

Us launching it at an opponent isn't exactly winning football either (was it Wycombe we did that over and over, can't recall), and it looks even more horrible as we don't have a wide outlet or a target man.

I think there has to be some acceptance that until we can turn this squad over and get rid of some very average players, we aren't especially likely to be challenging the top 2, but given the league is so weak, the playoffs might be within tantalising reach for most of the season.

 

Don’t worry I’m well aware we won’t be even challenging for play offs this season we have so many limited players throughout the team.

The thing I find especially funny is the Connell chant I can’t recall the last time he actually put on a show - I actually watch more teams and wish we had some of their midfielders than ours.

 

I'm really confused about Connell. I'd heard lots of good things about him under Duff but I'd hardly seen anything of him til this season.

I'd actually like Hourihane to effectively shadow him like Johnson did with him, until the penny drops. There's definitely a player in there but his decision making is poor at times and I really don't understand why he shoots so much. He gets up and down ok but bizarrely he's often more advanced than Phillips. That just doesn't feel right, and if he's overextended, we have an empty midfield, which is exactly what happened against Wrexham.

I do actually think midfield is fixable with what we have. But there needs a huge amount of coaching and I'm not sure the current 3 is right. Defence I think needs a right sided centre half and despite so many right wing backs, I wouldn't be averse to losing any or all of them, though maybe its time Lofthouse was given a go in his natural position. Up front... Definitely not fixable with what we have.

 

Have you considered that Wrexham would have been happy with the draw? After all, they had healthy points advantage and a win wasn’t a ‘must’ for them, but at the death we gifted them an opportunity too good to pass up.

I don’t think we started the game like a team playing for a point, and Wrexham never really committed to much more than shots from around the edge of the box all game.

I just saw two very pedestrian teams on the night. I didn’t really see a Wrexham player that I’d want us to sign, and I’m frustrated because I know some of our players are better than they’re currently showing, and are hindering us by under performing.

 

Far too early to be talking like that, besides it was said under both Duff & Collins, certainly the latter - we had two sacking polls in his honour during last season.

 

Johnson said Hourihane couldn’t play in a midfield two. Not sure little Lee can take any credit for his spike in form.

 

Don't you recall, it was outlined on here quite a lot that Johnson had stepped into sessions and kept pausing play to walk through what he should be doing and thinking. He always had a shot on him, but as much as it might pain us to say, Johnson did play a part in Hourihanes improvement well before Hecky took over.

 

Nope, can’t remember that at all, but you’d expect it as he was coach. It’s pretty standard stuff.

 

Give or take 6 or 7.Soz

 

Hopefully a win tomorrow and all this will be put to bed at least until the next defeat.

 

Sorry mate but Johnson was rubbish, Cryne gave him more time than he ever deserved, it was only when Cryne coaxed Hammill back to play for us, (I think his first game was against York in Johnstone’s Paint,) that we went on a good run, I wouldn’t give little Lee any credit for Hourihane playing well, for god sake he would have been coached from an early age how to play in midfield, just a matter of time before he played well and showed his class. Hammill was catalyst to us getting promoted and Hourihane found his feet but not because of Lee Johnson imo.

 

Amen to that mate.

 

I think we definitely have some good enough players to at least be getting in the top 6. We've played pretty decent stuff at times but just can't put the ball in the back of the net. If we convert 2-3 of them chances in the last 3 games I think the sentiment would be very different around here. There's definitely some issues outside of football but I can't put us just missing chances on the board and manager.

Can't believe I am saying this but we are desperately missing Watters right now. It's a shame that Cosgrove hasn't stepped up I thought that was a great signing at the time. Humphreys is a good player but I don't think he plays as well as a 9. In the transfer window would like us to sign a proper 9 and maybe another CB

 

I agree with what you say we should sign mate, but how long have we been saying this, we will sign a striker I am sure of that, but it will be someone on last day of January who we won’t have heard of and we will all be pinning our hopes on and it will be pot luck as to whether he his the man!.....he will be our number one choice of course.

 

Valid points and I don't disagree with your points but post Ismael the club wanted to go down a path of a possession based game building from the back as they believed it would add value to the squad, the evidence of that slow turgid stuff was evident under Neil Collins, I thought Duff got the balance correct and played more to what you alluded mix up stuff.
It's comes as no surprise our record against teams that average less than 50% is appalling they sit off us and watch us toil
Reading Drew
Charlton Drew
Northampton Drew
Cambridge Drew
Wrexham Lost
Mansfield Lost
Stevenage Lost

 

Any free agents out there I wonder? I can't see us signing anyone else like the calibre of DKD either