Thoughts on the match v Derby

Whisper it low, but I'd rather have Mepham than S.Cook. Big Cook is a legend but let's face it he has a cockup in him as much as Mepham has and was pretty average in the last 2 seasons.
I'm not convinced either of them are PL class but Mepham seems to be be this year's go-to person to blame
 
There is a good reaso fo
Whisper it low, but I'd rather have Mepham than S.Cook. Big Cook is a legend but let's face it he has a cockup in him as much as Mepham has and was pretty average in the last 2 seasons.
I'm not convinced either of them are PL class but Mepham seems to be be this year's go-to person to blame
There is a good reason for that...
 
I want to love Meps, I really do. He's a lovely lad, and obviously a capable footballer. However, he has made quite a few boo-boos, so the onus is on him to reassure & convince me he is safe..... and to be honest, I'm not there yet. Simple misplaced passes from the back, and just that little bit too slow in decision making at the back sometimes - unnerving. Its crossed my mind that actually he doesnt suit our style - I could see him blossoming in a more traditional defence with one of the dinosaur managers. Here's hoping it all works out.
 
I want to love Meps, I really do. He's a lovely lad, and obviously a capable footballer. However, he has made quite a few boo-boos, so the onus is on him to reassure & convince me he is safe..... and to be honest, I'm not there yet. Simple misplaced passes from the back, and just that little bit too slow in decision making at the back sometimes - unnerving. Its crossed my mind that actually he doesnt suit our style - I could see him blossoming in a more traditional defence with one of the dinosaur managers. Here's hoping it all works out.
Totally agree. People always think if fans are nervous of a player it’s some sort of scapegoat or vendetta. There’s normally a reason behind this though…not all fans are stupid. It’s not a hangover from the play offs to me, mistakes like that happen and fans accept that , Steve Cook is a prime example. It’s just how nervous and tentative Meps is and the ability for teams to play in behind him. Davis makes me nervous for a similar reason. It’s not a personal assessment they both seem smashing lads but I don’t pay 100 quid and get up at the crack of dawn to enjoy their company.
 
A match that could personify football cliché. Bottom of the table, points deductions, negative points plays (until the earlier matches) top of the table. Unless the obvious candidates for a win are ruthless, football dictates there will only be one possible result. That was what was lacking there. We should have looked to dominate them from first minute and stayed on it until the game was put to bed. Instead, we were tentative and let them know there was a game to be had if they wanted to chase it.

Despite all that, we still had plenty of opportunities to finish the match when in front, or equalise when behind. Chances where we didn't even work the keeper.

You won't win every game when you win a title but, usually, title winning sides win matches that are in the balance where they have chances fall their way.

The first half was alright, even if the lead was probably undeserved. The second half was terrible.

I know Parker had to shuffle the pack today but it didn't really work. They didn't look psyched up for the match. The defence didn't looked as organised. I know that there were two, maybe three changes from the first choice defensive four but the defending on the corner was comical.

It looked like a midtable outfit playing against a team fighting for their lives. It wasn't pretty. Still, the games come thick and fast now so there's an early chance to put it right in midweek.

Positives:
Davis - When we looked threatening it was often due to runs he was making on or off the ball. Shaky at the back sometimes but also good at making a recovery tackle. Plus, you can be more forgiving of defensive errors if the full back is a threat at the other end.

Room for improvement:
Stacey - Forget the goals a moment (Kilkenny's ball didn't help him on one), until the final few minutes he was so passive going forward it was a huge disappointment.

Billing - his lung busting run aside, this was the other Billing on show today.

Rogers - I know he's only had minutes here and there which is always a tricky ask, and its harsh to single him out in that performance. However, we can't keep bringing him on if he isn't going to have any impact at all. It feels like every time he gets the ball he gives it away. I'm sure there's a player in there but I'm not sure if he's a player for us right now. I'd love to be proved wrong though.

Scraping the barrel I know with finding a positive, for me, it would have been Lewis Cook getting another hour under his belt. Other than that, I'm struggling.

Leif Davis definitely should be in the room for improvement category alongside Stacey.
 
My thoughts.

Three main faults today in order of importance
1) Midfield energy. Lerma jet lagged, Billing having one of those 2020 form games he occasionally has, Cook trying to cover an acre of space behind them without the legs Kilkenny or Pearson has. How many times do we have to drop Gav and learn what he actually gives us, all our best performances have come with him. Anyway those three cost us as Derby got a grip and everything came from their midfield. Think sometimes we should play the two holding midfielders. It’s weird JT always did, SP never does… both in my opinion are wrong as theres a call for both systems with some opposition.

I think the midfield triangle under Parker is often the weaker area of the team. It's very difficult to get that balance right between offering enough cover defensively and offering another support in attack.

I agree that we should change around between playing 2 number 6's and 1 number 8 and vice versa, but disagree with Kilkenny being the golden ticket. Some games he has been just as ineffective as the others and like the idea that for some games one system is best suited over another, that's also the case for Kilkenny.

3) that strange formation at the end. 3-4-3 which becomes 5-2-3 with disjointed players, no combinations and wholesale positional changes. We’ve done it a few times now and always looked so much worse than we even were before. Wing backs never work for us particularly when one is Morgan Rogers who I’ve yet to see do anything that suggests he would be worth keeping.
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See, now this is what happens when you have a clear and obvious plan B that you change to rather than more subtle tweaks that other managers do...for what it's worth I agree.

I also note that on more than one occasion we've also reverted to Gary Cahill going up front, it's like reverting back to the third tier days under O'Driscoll at times...

I think we are seeing how key certain players are for us and Mepham and Davis looking after the left hand side of defence is a mile away from Kelly and JZ. Why would you not play Cook ahead of Meps. Two crucial games now to make sure we are right for Fulham.

Completely agree, Steve Cook alongside Cahill is obviously a better option than Mepham alongside Cahill. But it would seem politics are at play.
 
Stacey made a couple of mistakes and Christie and Billing should have scored with late headers. But the reason why we lost the game is because we lost control of midfield long before they scored their 2nd & 3rd goals. Billing was having his worst game of the season and should have been replaced early in the 2nd half by Gavin. We needed 3 in the centre of the park, particularly with it being Cook’s 1st start and Lerma being away with Columbia.
 
Hi all, here is the xG timeline, before I get into it though, in terms of league predictions, then I prefer 538, which still has us coming second. So not all doom and gloom.

538.JPG

In terms of the Derby game, it looks like a draw would have been a fairer reflection of the game.

Derby.JPG

There were few chances for each team, Derby scoring from a corner after their first real attempt (about 1 in 3 for their header). We equalised in the 19th min after shots from Christie and Anthony before Anthony finished well (3 in 5). A lovely flowing move made it 2-1 just before the break (again just over 1 in 3).

We didn't create a chance for over half an hour after the break, at which point we were 3-2 down. The first 15 minutes was subdued until their equaliser, which was a great finish from Lawrence (rated as 1 in 16) and then quickly followed by a penalty (78%). Derby had a chance to double their lead with a Kazim-Richards header (nearly 2 in 5) before they dropped deep to defend. The biggest chance we had after that was Billing's back post header (3 in 10) that he put wide.

Hopefully, just a bad day at the office.
 
Is Billing being suspended for Wednesday actually a good thing after that performance? I accept when players perform badly, but his blatant lack of application and energy and application today I find it really hard to swallow. He got knocked off of the ball a number of times simply because the opposition wanted in more than him, for me that is simply not good enough. As good as he can be on his day, the bare minimum I ask as a fan is that each player fights for the cause. Christie was also below par today (by his standards) but I am still pleased with his work because at least he fought like his life depended on it.

Billing has scored 6 goals, contributed 3 assists and put in a number of MOTM performances this season, and you think it’s a good thing that he’s banned because he put in 1 bad performance….? You’ve lost the plot!
 
For anyone watching on tele, the the Derby fans chant of f**k Sky TV come across or did they conveniently mute it?
 
Hi all, here is the xG timeline, before I get into it though, in terms of league predictions, then I prefer 538, which still has us coming second. So not all doom and gloom.

View attachment 6707

In terms of the Derby game, it looks like a draw would have been a fairer reflection of the game.

View attachment 6709

There were few chances for each team, Derby scoring from a corner after their first real attempt (about 1 in 3 for their header). We equalised in the 19th min after shots from Christie and Anthony before Anthony finished well (3 in 5). A lovely flowing move made it 2-1 just before the break (again just over 1 in 3).

We didn't create a chance for over half an hour after the break, at which point we were 3-2 down. The first 15 minutes was subdued until their equaliser, which was a great finish from Lawrence (rated as 1 in 16) and then quickly followed by a penalty (78%). Derby had a chance to double their lead with a Kazim-Richards header (nearly 2 in 5) before they dropped deep to defend. The biggest chance we had after that was Billing's back post header (3 in 10) that he put wide.

Hopefully, just a bad day at the office.
waz'll be all over this, you've got a new admirer! ;-)
 
Billing has scored 6 goals, contributed 3 assists and put in a number of MOTM performances this season, and you think it’s a good thing that he’s banned because he put in 1 bad performance….? You’ve lost the plot!
That's waz for you, thinks its better if players get sent off or suspended if he thinks they're having a bad game.
Yes billing didn't have his best game but he's won us games many times this season, so a big loss on Wednesday, especially with the injuries
 

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