Neil Critchley...

[MikeSB]

My first car had no power steering, drum brakes, pathetic fuel consumption, pathetic headlights, 3 speed gear box, a choke button, no windscreen wash, no radio, crossply tyres, no sat nav, etc etc. And it was absolutely fine. Why? Because most other cars were like that. Would I go back to such a car...no way.
So I suspect with my very limited tactical knowledge, that if we handnt appointed DA and instead reverted to the Bill Nicholson model, we would be unique at this level and severely disadvantaged. We would be nearer to the bottom of National League North rather than the top of League 2

Well its all a matter of opinion isn't it. I agree that todays players are fitter only because they have fantastic facilities but doubt many and especially academy youngsters could play on the heavy pitches of yesteryear. You may have heard that we had players getting cramp after playing at Plymouth a couple of weeks ago and so fitter in some respects but stamina? I don't know. Just google Spurs vs Crewe in the FA cup replay of 1961 I think it was when we lost 13-2 LOL..

Lots of people still drive classic cars and its a strange thing but in all the cars I have had in the last 50 years, I have never had more than around 20 mpg around the town which is mostly what I have always done. And we know the mpg stats have been fiddled for years by the manufactures.

Its a moot point whether we would still have a professional league club at Crewe and it made me smile when I saw who is topping the National League at the mo and its Barrow! I bet most fans have never heard of that club but maybe I can give some advice if we get to play them in the league if we don't get promoted this season as the last time I was there was circa 1960 when we won 4-3 from memory but it was so foggy I never saw any of the goals and i never saw another Crewe fan there on the train or anywhere actually. I remember getting a train back and had to change at Preston and the next connection to Crewe was three hours later and I went to the pictures in Preston to while away the time...Such is the life of a Crewe fan hey....Yeh i know, what happened to Barrow over the next 60 years as think I was about 15 then and now 76 LOL....

I say again IF coaching was the answer, then most players would be of the same standard and we know that isn't true and so it HAS to be down to natural ability and why we have good and lean years at Crewe and so it all depends on what is coming through at any point in time.

Cheers and respect to all Crewe fans whatever their opinion!

[jimmyboldon]

[QUOTE=MikeSB;39449982]Well its all a matter of opinion isn't it. I agree that todays players are fitter only because they have fantastic facilities but doubt many and especially academy youngsters could play on the heavy pitches of yesteryear. You may have heard that we had players getting cramp after playing at Plymouth a couple of weeks ago and so fitter in some respects but stamina? I don't know. Just google Spurs vs Crewe in the FA cup replay of 1961 I think it was when we lost 13-2 LOL..

Lots of people still drive classic cars and its a strange thing but in all the cars I have had in the last 50 years, I have never had more than around 20 mpg around the town which is mostly what I have always done. And we know the mpg stats have been fiddled for years by the manufactures.

Its a moot point whether we would still have a professional league club at Crewe and it made me smile when I saw who is topping the National League at the mo and its Barrow! I bet most fans have never heard of that club but maybe I can give some advice if we get to play them in the league if we don't get promoted this season as the last time I was there was circa 1960 when we won 4-3 from memory but it was so foggy I never saw any of the goals and i never saw another Crewe fan there on the train or anywhere actually. I remember getting a train back and had to change at Preston and the next connection to Crewe was three hours later and I went to the pictures in Preston to while away the time...Such is the life of a Crewe fan hey....Yeh i know, what happened to Barrow over the next 60 years as think I was about 15 then and now 76 LOL....

I say again IF coaching was the answer, then most players would be of the same standard and we know that isn't true and so it HAS to be down to natural ability and why we have good and lean years at Crewe and so it all depends on what is coming through at any point in time.

Cheers and respect to all Crewe fans whatever their opinion![/QUOTE

Sorry Mike, I took your continual persistent criticism of footballers being coached related to tactics, systems etc. Not fitness, which is a very different argument. Silly me.

Why does the England cricket team, the best 15-20 players in the country, have bowling, batting, wicket keeper and fielding coaches, along with all other international teams? Because it works.

[AstonAlex]

It doesn’t really matter if the keeper catches or punches as long as he is decisive and his defenders know what he’s going to do. Will isn’t the biggest so expecting him to enter a crowd scene and catch the thing isn’t entirely realistic; if he was the size of Clayton Ince I might agree, but he isn’t and he’s a good shot stopper and has proved himself to be an upgrade on his predecessor.... or don’t you watch every week?

[jamesdad]

I must agree with Mike SB that coaches are not helping the naturally gifted players but taking it out of them to play system style football. When was the last time we saw a player doing some thing like Stan Bowles, Frank Worthington , George Best and many more from that era who were exciting players and did unexpected things. Our young players play well as a unit but individually they lack the skills of past players but this is the modern game and if we want to sell they have to fit into the system or no club will buy them.

[Zeco]

When was the last time we saw a player doing some thing like Stan Bowles, Frank Worthington , George Best and many more from that era who were exciting players and did unexpected things.

Well you have Messi, and Ronaldo who certainly produce special moments, and you could potentially add quite a few others to that list such as Hazzard, Bale (not so much in the last 2 seasons). Going back further you have Gerrard in the 2005 champions league for Liverpool, Zola at Chelsea. The AC Milan side featuring Marco van Basten, Maradona at Napoli

Each decade has it's own special group of players, your just not afforded the same time as space now with the fashionable high pressing game that a lot more teams now use. Also the game has moved on with the advancements in the atheism of the players thanks to sports science and nutrition.

Now I wouldn't say our current crop lack any of the skill of the past players, in fact generally think they are a lot better in some ways in terms of their first touch, receiving the ball under pressure, passing etc on average. I just wouldn't put them in the same league as some of our past outstanding players such as Ashton, Murphy, Lennon, Hulse etc (I know there are probably better players that have graced Gresty road down the years, but I can only judge them against those who I have seen play).


In short coaching benefits all players, of all abilities, it is system/tactics that restrict what they do to a certain extent on the pitch.