Chris Mepham

Ken Baileys Ghost said:
I agree totally, however I think this is a case that is different.

I've no issue with giving players a bit of stick, but hours after he's probably cost us a place at Wembley?

I've made my feeling clear that there is little to like about many of the current squad but if any of them had done something similar I'd be asking for tolerance.

They may be spoilt and overpaid, but they're human.
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Yes, you'd have to be a right dick to lay into mepham right away if you were a player after that. He'd be fully aware of the mistake and the stage it was done on.
 
Ken Baileys Ghost said:
If that means having sympathy for a fellow human being in adversity, the yes, I'm happy to stick up for him.

I take it that at no time in your life you have accidentally bought down a deluge of shite upon yourself?

I know I have, and the last thing I needed was abuse and criticism from other people.
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I'm not a fan by any means BUT I don't think he is not giving 100% Nor is he disruptive in the dressing room or angling for a move away. And the people I know who have met him say he is a nice guy who does more than his fair share of community. Obviously that doesn't make him Mother Theresa but I'm not going to give him stick when I can get a ticket if he makes a cock up
 
Silent AFCB said:
I can't see CCV opening his mouth at all on the replay, granted it's not easy to tell though. He has to be absolutely screaming at Mepham to deal with it. Communication is a huge part of proffessional football and (unsurprisingly based on our defensive record over the last few years) it doesn't look like there was any. Smith is looking the other way as well, should be shouting.

I'm not letting Mepham off the hook, he should be able to tell just by the crowds reaction that he was being chased down, but Smith, CCV and Begovic have to take some responsibility as well, they should all be screaming at him.
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Exactly. A shout of "man on !" would have been sufficient for him not to think he had all the time in the world to play the ball. If he'd picked his option quicker there is no way he would have been caught on the ball like that. It definitely looked as though he was completely unaware that somebody was closing down on him from behind. Not having eyes in the back of his head, a warning shout would at least have been very useful ! The subsequent foul was his fault and his alone, but getting caught on the ball like that looked like it was a slight lack of communication and lack of somebody taking responsibility for it in the defensive unit IMO.

At the end of the day it was the sort of thing Steve Cook has done in the past, so the lad is not necessarily any worse than our captain and has plenty of time to improve. It was just unfortunate that this mistake happened in such an important match !

Good to see him in the Wales squad, a nice opportunity for him to reset his mind and maybe get back to enjoying playing football again.
 
I'm not sure about a shout and only those around him will know... He definitely was aware of something/someone and that in turn was the issue...

Without wanting to dissect this too much, as we need to probably move on, 'but'... You can clearly see at the point where he tried to control the ball on his thigh, he looks around, be that from his own awareness or a shout... who knows, but that quick look caused him to miss control the first touch... and we know the rest...

Before the game I said he needed to be 'physical when needed and sensible when in doubt'... That should have been a first time back pass to Begovic who would have lumped it upfield... But there you go.

I like the lad and he'll be in Red n Black next year... So time to put it down as just bad luck, just like Steve Cook saving a goal v Norwich, getting sent off and conceding a pen... You could argue that that game was a key point in us being relegated...?
 
SteveJonesLegend said:
I'm not sure about a shout and only those around him will know... He definitely was aware of something/someone and that in turn was the issue...

Without wanting to dissect this too much, as we need to probably move on, 'but'... You can clearly see at the point where he tried to control the ball on his thigh, he looks around, be that from his own awareness or a shout... who knows, but that quick look caused him to miss control the first touch... and we know the rest...

Before the game I said he needed to be 'physical when needed and sensible when in doubt'... That should have been a first time back pass to Begovic who would have lumped it upfield... But there you go.

I like the lad and he'll be in Red n Black next year... So time to put it down as just bad luck, just like Steve Cook saving a goal v Norwich, getting sent off and conceding a pen... You could argue that that game was a key point in us being relegated...?
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I'm sure he relives that moment time and again in his dreams right now. It really was an awful mistake. You can guarantee that if he could turn back time and try again, he would just help the ball straight back to Bego who, as you say, would then in all likelihood simply have hoofed it away from danger. Job done. We continue to dominate with our 11 men on the pitch and comfortably win the tie.

Never mind, it's only football at the end of the day ;)
 
Keep seeing people say they will forgive and support him etc, and aslong as he’s a Bournemouth player I will support.


But all this “I will come back stronger” nonsense is abit OTT. This has happened so many times , and he obviously doesn’t learn from his mistakes. The proof will be in the pudding next season but I’m not holding my breath.

This is a fans forum and if you can’t criticise (not abuse) a player for a repeated mistake in a play off semi final then when can you
 
wimborne cherries said:
Keep seeing people say they will forgive and support him etc, and aslong as he’s a Bournemouth player I will support.


But all this “I will come back stronger” nonsense is abit OTT. This has happened so many times , and he obviously doesn’t learn from his mistakes. The proof will be in the pudding next season but I’m not holding my breath.

This is a fans forum and if you can’t criticise (not abuse) a player for a repeated mistake in a play off semi final then when can you
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Nope sorry. Apparently you aren’t allowed to make these points because you too are not perfect and make mistakes. This forum is a very strange place.
 
If he'd had a clear call early he could have done half a dozen things, including just hoofing it up in the air. He didn't appear to hear one. Pulling the bloke down was definitely his error.

I still don't see how the Cook handball at Naaarch is in any way similar. Not one attack from us by then and the ball was going in. Save the pen, maybe get a point. Sadly it wasn't saved but we still didn't manage to attack even once after that!
 
Good to see him play and hopefully build up some confidence in himself which will have taken a nose dive last season with us.
I think he has the ability to be good for us next season but think he needs to be playing every week to get him operating at his best.

Just a couple of occasions in his last game for Wales where I thought there was a bit too much going on between the ears rather than focusing on what was going on in the match but in general a solid display that would surely stand up in the championship.

A good run at the euros would undoubtedly help him next season .

Come on Meps !:toot:
 
Garbo said:
FFS some comments fill me with despair...he is a young lad who made a mistake...football is like that!!! no point hammering the guy...to be an international in a decent side is testament to his abilities IMO
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Agreed... I don't see why he needs to be 'forgiven' either... yes it was a silly mistake and you could argue, except for that incident we might have seen the game out... But we didn't and as you say, that's football... Solanke misses an open goal, Danjuma fires wide, Lerma hits row z and Pearson passes to the opposition... Everyone makes mistakes and that's all it was...

He's a decent player and wouldn't be anywhere near a decent Wales squad if he wasn't. He's hardly had any game time of late and when he gets a good run in the side he always shows what a decent CB he is...
 
SteveJonesLegend said:
Agreed... I don't see why he needs to be 'forgiven' either... yes it was a silly mistake and you could argue, except for that incident we might have seen the game out... But we didn't and as you say, that's football... Solanke misses an open goal, Danjuma fires wide, Lerma hits row z and Pearson passes to the opposition... Everyone makes mistakes and that's all it was...

He's a decent player and wouldn't be anywhere near a decent Wales squad if he wasn't. He's hardly had any game time of late and when he gets a good run in the side he always shows what a decent CB he is...
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Quite right. With Mepham, it seems the more games he plays, the fewer mistakes he makes. I think one of the reasons some people think he always has a mistake in him is simply because for various reasons, whenever he plays, he is coming back into the side after a prolonged spell out.
The couple of times he has been able to hold down a spot in the starting eleven, his performances have been absolutely fine.
As I mentioned previously, when he comes back, he will have a point to prove and will be eager to make amends for his costly mistake. If the new manager picks him from the start, I'm confident we'll see a new Chris Mepham next season.
 
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