⚽Match Thread v Colchester 30.09.23 [EFL L2]

[60YearsAPie]

Scratch that, not true. Detective Gumpy is on the case.......

Being a typical old git, I avoid social media like the plague. This shows how easily things can get misinterpreted and false rumours started.

Yesterday was only our 5th defeat in the last 56 league games!!! And even though it was a bad day at the office, we almost pulled a draw out of the shambles. There'll be more hiccups along the way, but I wouldn't change our style of play one bit. The last 18 months have been up there with the most exciting times I've had in my 68 years of watching Notts.

[countygump]

From what I read there’s far more moaning about negative/abusive tweeting than there is actual negative/abusive tweeting.

Now where else have I noticed that before? Hmmmm.

[SaltySeaDog]

I imagine some supporters are just a little nervous after seeing how easy it was for Sutton, FGR & Colchester to carve us open and/or easy goals were given away. Especially when the signs were there last season, and we are yet to play some of the top teams in this league.

Still, I am thoroughly enjoying this roller coaster ride, and at least we always have something to talk about!

Looking forward to how we compete on Tuesday

[countygump]

Being a typical old git, I avoid social media like the plague.

Not ALL social media, just X for me. So many voices, so many opinions, so much hostility. It truly boils one's head. It must be horrible to be telepathic.

[SaltySeaDog]

Not ALL social media, just X for me. So many voices, so many opinions, so much hostility. It truly boils one's head. It must be horrible to be telepathic.

I use twitter only for work/educational purposes, and it's actually very good. I imagine like anything it just depends how you use it

[jackal2]

I don’t think the goalkeeper and back 3 can be blamed alone,the wing backs didn’t get forward in the first half and it didn’t work with Sam Austin in the more defensive central midfield role.
You have the 2nd and 3rd goal the wrong way round but the 2nd goal was firstly Jones being beat and then Austin ran past them with one of their players,he could have passed him on to Cameron and got closer to Jones so their wing back didn’t get a run on once he beat Jones
The 5th goal was again a midfield player JOB not closing the player down
Admittedly Baldwin and Stone made individual errors but you could blame our style of play because if we played hoof- ball none of the goals would happen(not that I want us too) apart from that mistake I thought Baldwin did well against two good forwards
Obviously we can’t keep conceding the amount of goals we have in the last 135 minutes but it is a team problem not just back 3 and keeper also the goals scored in the same time are not just down to the offensive 3 so we have to keep striving to get the balance.
We also ask far more from our keeper and defenders than any other team in the league with more possession and ask them to pass a ball like a midfield player
The system certainly needs 2 defensive midfield players as we were at least more controlled 2nd half but it is a conundrum that will keep being discussed until at least January

A player we've missed perhaps more than most in the past couple of games is Geraldo Bajrami, whose best position for me is defensive midfield. He's got physical presence and height, can mix it if necessary, but is also a capable ball player who fits into the way we play. Jim O'Brien is effectively being asked to play that role, but he hasn't got Bajrami's strength and physical presence, and it certainly isn't a natural role for Sam Austin, as versatile as Sam is.

The defensive weakness that comes from having two very attacking players as wing-backs was certainly evident yesterday. Teams at this level are more capable of exploiting that than was the case in the National League where our dominance of games covered such flaws. I do wonder whether Luke Williams at some point might conclude that we need more defensive ability in those wide positions, in which case a switch to a 4-2-3-1 might be an option in pursuit of the right balance. This could bring more defensively sound players like Chicksen back into the team and allow players like Jones and Nemane to concentrate more on what they do best.

[keldsyke]

A player we've missed perhaps more than most in the past couple of games is Geraldo Bajrami, whose best position for me is defensive midfield. He's got physical presence and height, can mix it if necessary, but is also a capable ball player who fits into the way we play. Jim O'Brien is effectively being asked to play that role, but he hasn't got Bajrami's strength and physical presence, and it certainly isn't a natural role for Sam Austin, as versatile as Sam is.

The defensive weakness that comes from having two very attacking players as wing-backs was certainly evident yesterday. Teams at this level are more capable of exploiting that than was the case in the National League where our dominance of games covered such flaws. I do wonder whether Luke Williams at some point might conclude that we need more defensive ability in those wide positions, in which case a switch to a 4-2-3-1 might be an option in pursuit of the right balance. This could bring more defensively sound players like Chicksen back into the team and allow players like Jones and Nemane to concentrate more on what they do best.

Spot on post, we are so vulnerable when teams break, and it’s becoming more apparent in this league than tbe National League.

[MAD_MAGPIE]

Being a typical old git, I avoid social media like the plague. This shows how easily things can get misinterpreted and false rumours started.

Yesterday was only our 5th defeat in the last 56 league games!!! And even though it was a bad day at the office, we almost pulled a draw out of the shambles. There'll be more hiccups along the way, but I wouldn't change our style of play one bit. The last 18 months have been up there with the most exciting times I've had in my 68 years of watching Notts.

/\/\/\ Every Notts fan should read this.

[jackal2]

Every game seems to be a barnstormer at the moment, and we win more than we lose. As 60YearsAPie says, the entertainment and excitement created by Luke William's style of play is outstanding. That doesn't mean we shouldn't try to plug some defensive gaps - the Head coach will certainly want to do that - but overall the quality of the football is fantastic, particularly for this level.

[cjpieman]

Spot on post, we are so vulnerable when teams break, and it’s becoming more apparent in this league than tbe National League.

Agree.

The most worrying thing is our lack of depth in midfield. With Bajrami out we really only have Jim (who looks out of his depth now) and it showed yesterday that we really only have Palmer and Bostock that we can trust.
BUT, Williams knew this when the transfer window closed ? Why not bring in midfield cover at that point ?