Top scorers in title winning seasons

[jackal2]

4-2-3-1 worked great for a couple of games but opposing teams soon sussed that one out. We are still creating enough chances to score the required goals, just need to be a bit more clinical.

The thing most annoying me at present is Ardley's constant formation changes. Many managers, probably including him, will tell you it's players who win games, not formations. I'll throw that argument right back and say maybe that's right, but if so, then Notts have arguably the best squad of players in this league, so why not settle on a formation and stick with it? Give the lads a consistent identity and formation they can believe in.

I try to put myself in the mindset of a Notts player and what I repeatedly hear from my manager is how strong this league is, how good the (even lowly) opposition are, and that we often pick our formation and style to counter what he has seen the opposition do on various video tapes. We're giving the initiative away before the game even starts. How about concentrating on what WE want to do, and how WE'RE going to impose the way WE want to play on the opposition irrespective of what they do, because if our players are confident in what they're going, they're man for man better than virtually every team in this league?

I'm pretty sure that was the essence of the message Steve Cotterill gave his players when he took over at Notts in 2009/10, and it was impressive how readily they accepted it and believed it, because the confidence and expectation level of the manager was infectious. He's having much the same effect with comparatively far fewer resources at Shrewsbury.

I don't necessarily agree with those who say Ardley's tactics are negative. They vary too much to be categorised under one label. But I think his mindset and messaging to the players is not positive enough, hence why we seem to begin on a good run and then stumble. We should be able to reel off strings of wins in this league, and he needs to tell them that's what he expects from them, irrespective of who the opposition are or how they play.

[BigFatPie]

The thing most annoying me at present is Ardley's constant formation changes. Many managers, probably including him, will tell you it's players who win games, not formations. I'll throw that argument right back and say maybe that's right, but if so, then Notts have arguably the best squad of players in this league, so why not settle on a formation and stick with it? Give the lads a consistent identity and formation they can believe in.

I try to put myself in the mindset of a Notts player and what I repeatedly hear from my manager is how strong this league is, how good the (even lowly) opposition are, and that we often pick our formation and style to counter what he has seen the opposition do on various video tapes. We're giving the initiative away before the game even starts. How about concentrating on what WE want to do, and how WE'RE going to impose the way WE want to play on the opposition irrespective of what they do, because if our players are confident in what they're going, they're man for man better than virtually every team in this league?

I don’t know the bloke, but does he come across as that sort of manager to you?

He always comes across to me as a nice man who lets strong characters dominate him, plans his match tactics according to what the other team (no matter how sh!t) might do, can’t get his players up for anything other than a big game, and falls back on poor excuses when his team loses.

The evidence seems to back that up.

[durhampie]

We had a goal scorer but Ardley seldomly played him.. We have potentially another one who when he comes on scores, but Ardley never starts him.. Thats where the problems lie..

[durhampie]

Tommy Johnson was much younger, but we had a manager who was prepared to play him..And the rest is history..

[laddo]

You've had to go all the way back to 1989/90 for your example.... Magic lol.

Oi Misery you've got just over 25 hours to post something positive about current Notts in 2020.

[ncfcog]

The thing most annoying me at present is Ardley's constant formation changes. Many managers, probably including him, will tell you it's players who win games, not formations. I'll throw that argument right back and say maybe that's right, but if so, then Notts have arguably the best squad of players in this league, so why not settle on a formation and stick with it? Give the lads a consistent identity and formation they can believe in.

I try to put myself in the mindset of a Notts player and what I repeatedly hear from my manager is how strong this league is, how good the (even lowly) opposition are, and that we often pick our formation and style to counter what he has seen the opposition do on various video tapes. We're giving the initiative away before the game even starts. How about concentrating on what WE want to do, and how WE'RE going to impose the way WE want to play on the opposition irrespective of what they do, because if our players are confident in what they're going, they're man for man better than virtually every team in this league?

I'm pretty sure that was the essence of the message Steve Cotterill gave his players when he took over at Notts in 2009/10, and it was impressive how readily they accepted it and believed it, because the confidence and expectation level of the manager was infectious. He's having much the same effect with comparatively far fewer resources at Shrewsbury.

I don't necessarily agree with those who say Ardley's tactics are negative. They vary too much to be categorised under one label. But I think his mindset and messaging to the players is not positive enough, hence why we seem to begin on a good run and then stumble. We should be able to reel off strings of wins in this league, and he needs to tell them that's what he expects from them, irrespective of who the opposition are or how they play.

I would echo those sentiments. Mind you, regarding Cotterill, he had the opposite problem to Ardley. When he took over at Notts we were by far the best squad in the league and capable of scoring goals at will, but we were letting too many in and drawing/losing games we should have won. The three games prior to him joining … Aldershot 1-1, Grimsby 1-1, Bournemouth 1-2. In his first interview he pretty much said we have to stop the opposition scoring and the rest will take care of itself, to be fair to Ardley, he has achieved that, he just doesn’t have Lee Hughes, Luke Rogers, Ben Davies, Craig Westcarr …

[i961pie]

I would echo those sentiments. Mind you, regarding Cotterill, he had the opposite problem to Ardley. When he took over at Notts we were by far the best squad in the league and capable of scoring goals at will, but we were letting too many in and drawing/losing games we should have won. The three games prior to him joining … Aldershot 1-1, Grimsby 1-1, Bournemouth 1-2. In his first interview he pretty much said we have to stop the opposition scoring and the rest will take care of itself, to be fair to Ardley, he has achieved that, he just doesn’t have Lee Hughes, Luke Rogers, Ben Davies, Craig Westcarr …

Cotterill isn't doing a bad job at present with a Shrewsbury squad that were in the relegation places when he took over.
Now up to 16th and unbeaten I think since he came in and beating top 4 sides.

[laddo]

He's a talented manager as the club's he's managed to date shows

[durhampie]

He's a talented manager as the club's he's managed to date shows

Yes i agree, He is a talented manager and one that we could now do with... Thats my positive contribution for the year. Happy New Year Guys..

[slack_pie]

Something magical seems to happen in title winning seasons. Who would have expected Gary Jones to bag 28 goals for us in 1997/98? how much cash would clubs splash out if that number of goals from a player was guaranteed in a single season?

For sure. Even if you are one of the best teams in the division, you really need all the stars to align if you want to win it. That means top players avoiding injury, big decisions going in your favour, winning tight games, and having a couple of players who have freak seasons and perform at their very best, at least one being a striker (like Jones in 97/98). You also need momentum, so that means either getting off to a great start or going on an epic run at some point.

While some of those factors are out of your control (like injuries and key decisions), others are mostly down to attitude. Teams that have a win-at-all-costs attitude instilled in them by the manager are the ones that turn draws into wins or get last-minute equalisers. If you have a manager who is happy to play for a draw or set up in a way that is naturally cautious, you'll never be the type of ruthless machine that finishes top.

I just can't see us winning this league unless something fundamental changes in the way we approach games. We're just too easy to beat. If we play badly, we're almost guaranteed to lose. But if we play well, we aren't at all guaranteed to win.