Potential uses for Max Watters…

* Door stop
* Mannequin in Top Shop’’s clearance department
* decoy duck
* Sleeping Policeman
* wiping bird poo off seats
* lacing Stephen Humphrey’s boots…

 

Option 2….mannequin. Tailor made for it.

 

Humphrys abit meh, a few fancy step overs every game but hasn't scored in 12 or 13 games now. Watters was awful today.

 

To be fair, Watters hasn't scored for ten matches unless you count Crawleys goalkeeper inexplicably throwing a ball rolled gently into his midriff into his own net.

 

I love your description of the goal. It was powderpuff.

 

I don’t think he headed ball all game , would help if he jumped or challenged for ball though

 

Does a cracking duck though when the ball comes near him

 

It's the 'look at the man and not the ball as I half heartedly jump' maneuver that really annoys me. He's no intention of trying to win the ball and so play turns over every time it comes to him in the air. Paul Hayes and Cauley Woodrow both used to do it too. If only he'd face the ball and make some sort of effort to win it, we might pick up the second ball or force a defensive error. Instead, the defender mops up every single time as he has time to place a header wherever he wants.

And don't get me started on his inability to evade even the simplest offside traps.

 

His body language is terrible i think he plays like he knows he’s not very good.

 

He used to be at least a headless chicken, but it sounds like he's not even running about now.

 

Did anyone win a header. Under challenge. Not supporting him, but we didn't win one in their box that I can remember. The one in the first couple of minutes where Phillips inexplicably had weights in his boots was the worst example. just in front of us near the half way line.

 

He's certainly not one for the trenches and we live in hope that he sparks into life and his career takes off.
It's up to Clarke to decide whether we want him for the next 2 and half years or not.

 

Stevenage play a simple tactic. Press the life out of you in the hope you kick it under pressure. Then back themselves to win the high ball. Big Val had us doing similar.

To defy that is to show composure, good technique. Play one-touch football and move them around, create gaps.

We decided to go long instead. Again. Which failed. Again.

I know our fans don’t like it, but yesterday was crying out for control. Possession. Move the play. Patience.

 

A Sam Cosgrove impersonator.

 

It was crying out for players to actually run with the ball.

Slow passing to bore the opposition into a mistake doesn't work because our attacking players are statues. All of them. You can't find space if you refuse to run or attempt to move away from the defence.

What would have absolutely worked against Stevenage yesterday would have been if our players tried to take players on. If the players ahead of you aren't in space then run past someone, it's still allowed in football, yet at half time yesterday the TVs showed the stats "Barnsley: attempted dribbles: 1". One ******* attempt at running with the ball in 45 minutes.

Someone like Martin bullock would have destroyed Stevenage yesterday but our players, coaching staff and sporting director refuse to allow that kind of football at Barnsley football club and I'm ****** if I know why that is.

 

O’Keeffe dribbled beyond his man once, Farrugia a couple of times. But that was out wide and preceded a cross into the box that we’d never win. Humphrys did similar when he came on. It was never the answer. Their back line is so deep it renders it futile. At least Humphrys got to the byline. He should have cut the ball back though. Not float a cross to the ‘keeper.

Pass and move. Short, one touch if possible. Move them around and play in the spaces created.

Easy for me to say on a Sunday afternoon from the comfort of my iPhone.

I just couldn’t understand what I was seeing. I was already annoyed when seeing Roberts and Connell starting. Neither deserved to. Then to see us going direct at every opportunity just saddened me. Zero composure. Hoping for the best. Then we were treated to another round of poor changes in personnel and shape where yet again, in the final quarter of a home game, we’re there for the taking. And so it proved.

I mentioned that horrid drop-off in performance on here after the match last night. I then saw a post from Doug (Chronicle) which confirmed my suspicions. We’ve conceded 15 goals after the 75th minute of games. The most in the country.

Clarke keeps saying it’s because he’s going for victory. Yet all I see, even when we’ve won games (Wrexham, Crawley even) is us penned in our own box watching the other side hammer on the door.

Properly dismayed by the last couple of weekends.

 

The main reason that crosses into the box didn't work was that one striker was in one postcode and the other in a totally different one. They don't play as a partnership and it shows. Probably not their fault like when the strikers are chopped and changed every week. It's also because the quality of ball into the box is awful, O'Keeffe dribbled past his man and then, with attackers a few yards in front of him, proceeded to welly it was hard and high as he could straight to steward 318 stood in the west stand.

The other problem is like you say, the players who were picked. Connell is so out of form he shouldn't have started but even in form I don't think Connell and Nwakali work together just like Connell and Craig didn't because they're both the same player, nice passer of the ball and no movement. Should have played Russell and had him further up the pitch then Nwakali would have had someone to pass to. Instead he had Luca Connell stood so close to him that if he'd got a hard on his belly end would have touched.

Pass and move works but only when you have players willing to move. Absolutely sick of the style of play that doesn't allow running that someone in the background has dictated upon our team in recent years since they didn't get enough bids on our way to the championship playoffs.

 

Imho we needed to move and think quicker with the football.(mostly our passing)...our squad is not blessed with pace, so we needed to beat their press by doing that. Only Nwakali has the quick feet on the ball but everyone has the ability to quicken the passing....that would have beaten their press.
Unfortunately we didnt / couldn't do that and they smothered us very effectively.

 

He was awful yesterday I agree along with most of the rest of the team probably not who id single out as the worst though (Connell) too eager to jump on his back its asif we choose to ignore the fact that when we play well hes usually in the team and the one linking up all the play, runs the channels superbly admittedly yesterday was anonymous. even against Bristol Rovers i genuinely thought despite his finishing the rest of his game was really good which made it all the more frustrating his finishing was as bad as it was. Hard hat well and truly on throw your pelters at me but stop aiming them at players who are clearly lacking confidence yet I dont believe its a lack of effort as some people seem to think.