The Football This Season

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

Well, getting rid of Paul Warne would be throwing the baby out with the bath water.

However, things aren’t right and the recent spate of player injuries are papering over the cracks a bit.

The players signed and loaned are good ones but are currently underachieving, our play is predictable and team confidence is slowly ebbing away. As a result the fans are more subdued and criticism of the management team is growing.

Paul Warne has some good managerial qualities but he has some weaknesses too, for him and the team to develop these weaknesses need working on.

Personally, and it is a personal view that some will disagree with, I would like to see PW do this:-

1. Criticise the team when they’ve been crap. This “I was proud of the lads” routine is starting to look insincere and a reluctance to confront problems

2. Recognise that you can’t do it all, hire a defensive coach, yes I know I’ve pushed this ad nauseum but we’ve conceded too many soft goals that’s cost us points. PW himself is an ex forward so is Richie Barker so their knowledge of the dark art of defending is limited. For some reason it was acceptable to have a goalkeeping coach and Pollitt was quickly replaced when he left. So why not a defence coach?

3. Stop being nice, feed the team raw meat if necessary, get tough, get angry. Football is a rough, tough game, touch players get knocked over. Win ugly if necessary but expect to pick up scars.


Just three things but in my view important ones.

[PerigordMiller]

I understand what you are saying re defensive coach Grist , maybe you have mentioned it before, but also Warne & Barker weren't exactly prolific strikers. Do we need an attacking coach? A midfield coach?

Would we sacrifice a player's wages to employ an extra coach? I thought we had a decent squad by the end of August, but we have been unlucky with the amount of injuries so far.

I hope that we can either get McDonald right or bring in another experienced midfielder in January. That is not going to be easy.

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

I understand what you are saying re defensive coach Grist , maybe you have mentioned it before, but also Warne & Barker weren't exactly prolific strikers. Do we need an attacking coach? A midfield coach?

Would we sacrifice a player's wages to employ an extra coach? I thought we had a decent squad by the end of August, but we have been unlucky with the amount of injuries so far.

I hope that we can either get McDonald right or bring in another experienced midfielder in January. That is not going to be easy.

I think the finances are there to have one without sacrificing any players wages, but if we had to sacrifice something it would be the goal keeping coach. Particularly considering that our last two regular keepers weren’t ours and that our own keeper isn’t developing well enough to get a regular first team place.

[jakethemiller]

Well, getting rid of Paul Warne would be throwing the baby out with the bath water.

However, things aren’t right and the recent spate of player injuries are papering over the cracks a bit.

The players signed and loaned are good ones but are currently underachieving, our play is predictable and team confidence is slowly ebbing away. As a result the fans are more subdued and criticism of the management team is growing.

Paul Warne has some good managerial qualities but he has some weaknesses too, for him and the team to develop these weaknesses need working on.

Personally, and it is a personal view that some will disagree with, I would like to see PW do this:-

1. Criticise the team when they’ve been crap. This “I was proud of the lads” routine is starting to look insincere and a reluctance to confront problems

2. Recognise that you can’t do it all, hire a defensive coach, yes I know I’ve pushed this ad nauseum but we’ve conceded too many soft goals that’s cost us points. PW himself is an ex forward so is Richie Barker so their knowledge of the dark art of defending is limited. For some reason it was acceptable to have a goalkeeping coach and Pollitt was quickly replaced when he left. So why not a defence coach?

3. Stop being nice, feed the team raw meat if necessary, get tough, get angry. Football is a rough, tough game, touch players get knocked over. Win ugly if necessary but expect to pick up scars.


Just three things but in my view important ones.

Agreee with this but I'd add an experienced midfielder. Should have kept Potter for me.

[mikemiller]

Agreee with this but I'd add an experienced midfielder. Should have kept Potter for me.

That type of player -yes. Not Potter himself though, too old and injury prone... so we signed MacDonald instead! We never seem to learn much from previous mistakes

[mellowmiller]

What would people think about Richie Smallwood coming back? It has been rumoured.......

[frogmiller]

What would people think about Richie Smallwood coming back? It has been rumoured.......

He'd do for me

[mikemiller]

He'd do for me

If he's still fit, yes. Got to take into account that he'll hardly ever score though, so we would need others around him who can get goals regularly

[jakethemiller]

That type of player -yes. Not Potter himself though, too old and injury prone... so we signed MacDonald instead! We never seem to learn much from previous mistakes

Potter was not injury probe just had one bad injury at the wrong time, agree he getting on, but would have been better option than Mcdonald imo.

[mellowmiller]

If he's still fit, yes. Got to take into account that he'll hardly ever score though, so we would need others around him who can get goals regularly

Smallwood is the type who can win the ball in midfield and then give it to a creative player.
If he does come back we just need a Frecks type to compliment him. No harm in dreaming 🙂