Player Ratings v Lincoln

[navypie]

Surely not Thicky Trees as well, Navy?

Riding on a wave but you never fail to disappoint .

[optipez]

Collin 7 Had little to do but is proficient and one goal conceded in five can't be all luck.

Tootle 7.5. Great goal , very good performance.

Jones 7. He may have had a mare at Cov, but hasn't a put a foot wrong since. Hope he isn't badly injured, he will be missed.

Brisley 7 he had a let off when he slipped first ten minutes but apart from that very, very steady.

Duffy 7 Good solid performance.

Hawkridge 7 Always puts a shift in and really pleased he scored, a well taken goal.

Grant 7 He was having a quiet game, but he does have the class to change games, which is priceless.

Yates 7 To be this consistent at nine**** takes some doing. He's integral to our fantastic start, hope he starts to look for the forward pass more often as that's all that's limiting him from playing at a higher level.

Milsom 7.5 Put a massive shift in, and played a bit too.

Stead 8. Lincoln are even bigger than us , and we're a big strong team this year. He led the line, scored in open play and generally grafted like the grizzled old pro he is.
I agree with Tarquin, he does go down looking for the free kick too often and it is frustrating at times but that's modern football.

Forte 7 A tough ,physical game for him today, second half he played better but he does run a lot of hard miles down the channels and offers us an outlet.

Subs

Dickenson 6.5 No faulting his effort, but he isn't as good a left back as Jones. A game here and there and we'll cope but if Jones is out for a while we may start to leak a few more.

Hewitt 6.5 Slotted in seamlessly and could easily be starting.

Smith N/ A

Lincoln where a sterner test than the scoreline suggests, at nil, nil and with eleven men, Lincoln were the better team.
Credit to us , when they equalised we stepped up a gear, and squashed Lincoln like a cider press. For me that's the mark of a good team, how many times have we seen it done to us by teams that don't look exceptional, but do a job, then get promoted.
Not saying we're going up, not by a long chalk , but we are bulldozing teams through physicality and moments of class.

Nolan deserves a huge amount of credit to turn what on paper is a mid table team and get them to the top of the league, and looking pretty good getting there.
Still think we are a striker short for cover but apart from that things are looking pretty good and there is a buzz around the club. Happy days.

[BigFatPie]

Wow, that could have been different if Matt Green had scored that sitter or the sending off hadn't happened. If the laws say that's a sending off, the laws need changing back again.

After their equaliser we took em to the cleaners to be fair. Showed real quality.

Collin 7 Don't really notice him nowadays which, like a ref, is a very good sign.

Tootle 8 Very good going forward and what a strike for the goal.

Jones 5 Didn't seem quite himself and very much played his part in the lacklustre first 30. Will be a big miss if he's out for a bit though.

Duffy and Brisley 6 All over the shop to start with and would have been punished by a team with a better strike force. Tightened up as the game went on.

Milsom 7 Did the simple things well and kept Woodyard quiet.

Yates 7 Doesn't look like he should be as hard as nails but clearly is. Looks like he's been playing the pro game about 10 years, and not just with his ability.

Hawkridge 9 (mom) Clearly on it today, never stopped running, never gave the ball away and topped it off with a goal straight from Ady Thorpe's back catalogue.

Grant 8 Quiet start, but what a free kick that was, we should be appreciating him for as long as we can cos I can't believe Forest won't be wanting him back as soon as. Quality every time he gets the ball.

Stead 8 Looked past it first half, goal worked wonders though and was a different player after that. Superb assist for Tootle's goal and led the line like a CF should. Some might say he conned the ref for Grant's free kick. Naughty Stead.

Forte 8 I think he's great, brings pace and persistence, would have scored at the end if wasn't for those lumps squashing him flat. The ref was obviously feeling sorry for em by that stage.

Subs All contributed but I thought Dickinson looked like a weak link.

Kevin Nolan 10 Is a football genius. TOP OF THE LEAGUE!!!

[navypie]

Just seen the highlights on Sky , never a sending off which I thought at the time and Tootle's control and finish , better than Grant's , just !!

[Frigiliana Pie 1]

IMO Hawkridge was our MOTM. Terrific workrate and effective in both attack and defence. When he was our first signing in the summer, a lot of people, me included, said "Who?" but he's proving a real find. Capped his performance with a cracking goal - let's hope it's the first of many.

Notts started slowly in both halves, but were totally dominant in the last halfhour .

[slack_pie]

Collin 7 - controlled his area well, kicked well.
Tootle 8 - solid at the back and decent going forward. Took his goal really well.
Duffy 7 - fairly comfortable against a physical Lincoln forward line
Brisley 7 - same as Duffy
Jones 7 - was having another good game until his injury
Grant 8 - as always, showed that he's a cut above.
Yates 8.5 - this guy is awesome. Tough in the tackle, never stops running, and always up for the battle. Fairly tidy on the ball, too.
Milsom 7 - looked after the ball well
Hawkridge 7 - excellent goal, but wasn't his best game
Stead 8 - scored one, made another, and battled throughout - can't ask for much more
Forte 7 - looked dangerous when in behind their defence, but we played too many long balls in his direction. Unbelievable that he didn't get a penalty in the last minute.

Great game, great atmosphere. As other have said, I thought Lincoln had the better of it until the red card. We dominated the second half though. I thought they were quiet a nasty side, but the ref let their CBs get away with murder. Blatant cheating from their goaly to feign injury so they could get two pitch-side team talks in. To be fair, their fans were excellent - until we shut them up. I left the ground buzzing!

[sidders]

Riding on a wave but you never fail to disappoint .

I do try...

[Carlton_Pie]

With 6 as an average performance:

Collin: 6-Didn't have much to do but seemed confident

Tootle: 8-Solid at the back and his goal to make it 2-1 was a crucial and quality strike. + half a point for that celebration too.

Duffy: 6- solid game, still looks weak in 1 on 1 physical battle but he is part of a solid unit

Brisley: 7-won everything in the air, calmly and confident

Jones: 6- Lincoln kept getting in down his side in the time he was on the pitch. Made a few decent runs forward. Went off injured

Grant: 7- didn't produce much in open play but scored a sublime free kick to seal victory. Played a lot more centrally in the 2nd half which allowed him to get on the ball a bit more.

Yates: 7- same as the last few weeks, strong, committed, never backs down. Thought his passing was good in 2nd half.

Milsom 6- he really struggled to pick up 2nd balls first half and was bullied by Bostwick in particular. Good cross for Steads goal. Improved second half as he got time on the ball

Hawkridge: 8- again worked hard but today there was an end product with his goal. Got bullied for the Lincoln goal but I can't hold being small against him. The best I've seen him carry the ball

Stead (MOM): 8-this score may surprise some but he was the main difference in our improved 2nd half performance. Played a lot deeper 2nd half and linked the play well, the pass to Tootle for the goal was genius and he got on the score sheet.

Forte: 6- struggled to get in the game against physical Lincoln defenders. Ran the channels well for lost causes but needs to be more aggressive when going up against defenders.

Subs

Dickinson: 6- struggle in position but made a few crucial headers. A more than able replacement for the injured Jones

Hewitt: 6- little time

Smith: n/a