Moving forward

[Mapperleypie]

This is why I get a bit frustrated with the way people have a go at Doyle and JOB. With the exception of maybe DKE and Rawlinson there aren't many others in the squad show the fight and spirit these guys do. I don't care what anyone says about JOB he would start every game for me, yes his final pass and decision making can sometimes let him down but he is 100% fcommitted in everything he does, get's stuck in and always looks for the forward pass, never back or sideways.

I have no problem with JOB and Doyle individually. I just think the insistence of playing them together in the middle of the park is both ineffective and dull. When you added Rose and now Reeves to that mix it offers very little. I really don't understand why Ardley persists with it.

[ncfcog]

I have no problem with JOB and Doyle individually. I just think the insistence of playing them together in the middle of the park is both ineffective and dull. When you added Rose and now Reeves to that mix it offers very little. I really don't understand why Ardley persists with it.

Agree it's not been particularly productive in a 3 with Reeves.

[nw6pie]

I thought we had been testing the squad regularly for months. Is he saying that 75% of them have returned a positive result?

We know 7 players had it in the latest outbreak. The uncertainty, I’m guessing, comes from not knowing how many caught it in March-June, which was when Ardley himself had it. They did the antibodies test recently, which I guess is where the 75 percent figure came from.

[KCNotts]

Agree it's not been particularly productive in a 3 with Reeves.

Doyle and JOB has never been effective for us. First it got us relegated, then it got us beaten in the playoffs and now it's getting us beaten by Boreham Wood at home.

I also question this 'battler' and 'leader' tag they both have for the same reasons listed above. Doyle has had a very good career, but he has done absolutely nothing for us. If he is our big influence in the dressing room he's not done a good job has he?

It's time for them both to move on. No manager other than Ardley would allow Doyle to play every minute when the midfield is so obviously lacking in mobility. It's madness i tell you. Madness.

[crazyfists]

That's alot of players affected though in the squad, I didn't know that and has certainly changed my opinion on some games if true.

[nw6pie]

Doyle and JOB has never been effective for us. First it got us relegated, then it got us beaten in the playoffs and now it's getting us beaten by Boreham Wood at home.

I also question this 'battler' and 'leader' tag they both have for the same reasons listed above. Doyle has had a very good career, but he has done absolutely nothing for us. If he is our big influence in the dressing room he's not done a good job has he?

It's time for them both to move on. No manager other than Ardley would allow Doyle to play every minute when the midfield is so obviously lacking in mobility. It's madness i tell you. Madness.

As soon as we offered Doyle a new contract and didn’t offer Crawford one, it felt like compounding a poor decision. When Sloth signed, maybe the plan was that Doyle wouldn’t be a regular starter. Of course, once the Dane threw his rattle out of the pram, we were one short in midfield - which Wolfe’s arrival hasn’t fixed (yet, at least) - and Doyle’s played every second.

Ardley recently referred to Doyle and Reeves as the team’s “engine” - which explains why we’re not dominating in the middle of the park. I think Reeves has done OK overall, but for me, him and Doyle together aren’t big or strong enough to play together in this league. In my more surreal moments, given the lack of options in the centre of the park, I wonder if we should maybe experiment with Alex Lacey in there. Seems like a lifetime ago now, but I remember Brisley playing a few times for us there in the relegation season. Even DKE would bring a bit of sorely lacking bite to the midfield.

[i961pie]

Doyle would be ok playing in front of the back four if you have young legs and a bit of creativity in front or beside him.

[Elite_Pie]

I think the best way for us to move forward is.................... to MOVE FORWARD. We always seem to concentrate far more on not conceding than we do on scoring. The game against Boreham Wood was a perfect example, I noticed a few times that we would clear the ball from our penalty area and we wouldn't have a single player in the attacking two thirds of the pitch to challenge for it. This was in the first half of a home game against Boreham Wood FFS! The result was that it allowed them plenty of time to build another attack, and we all know the end result. Neal Ardley is so determined not to lose that it inhibits our chance of winning.

[drillerpie]

In my more surreal moments, given the lack of options in the centre of the park, I wonder if we should maybe experiment with Alex Lacey in there. Seems like a lifetime ago now, but I remember Brisley playing a few times for us there in the relegation season. Even DKE would bring a bit of sorely lacking bite to the midfield.

Not a bad shout at all, although I am biased in that I love a good positional switch.

I used to wonder why Krystian Pearce was never played as a marauding, Viera style DM.

[maddogslater]

I think its a stupid idea, remember Ian Bolton switch?
One goal scored in the last three games, win a couple draw a couple lose, rinse and repeat, at least Ardley's consistent.