Swindon Town v Bolton Wanderers - official matchday thread

[Reg Smeeton]

why is it some people keep saying this league is full of dross and moaning that "how come we get beat by shit teams", fact is WE are shit and make up the so say dross, people need to realise we are not as big as some like to think we are

One of the frustrations is that when you're not much good playing a side that isn't much good it should be possible to at least pick up a dull point.
We've had a couple of games, today and Rovers spring to mind where we should have been able to see out the game for a draw, and fucked up near the end.  We just don't seem to have the required professionalism.

[Kinky Tom]

why is it some people keep saying this league is full of dross and moaning that "how come we get beat by shit teams", fact is WE are shit and make up the so say dross, people need to realise we are not as big as some like to think we are

Not sure anyone has asked why we get beat by shit teams, more observing that so far this season we've not seen a good side and the division seems to be made up of a load of shit teams this season.  

We are very much part of it, we have some good players, we also have some that aren't up to it really.  I don't think anyone thinks we're bigger than we are either.

It's frustrating, most games we're a mistake away from losing, we've not been outplayed at all but we don't have to be.  Looking at other teams we only need an extra 10 or 15% more from a performance to get over the line really but at the moment the team is so low on confidence we're almost wondering where the next goal is coming from let alone the next win.

I said very early in the season the rule change with loans will fuck a load of teams up and those able to keep their first choice 11-14 players fit will be the ones at the top end of the league.  It could all change at any moment for any number of teams, unfortunately without a goal scorer it isn't going to change for us any time soon.

Obviously we miss JSW, Jones and Doughty hugely but for me losing Jordan Stewart just when he was looking to kick on has been a big loss, he offers something completely different to the rest of our forwards with his intensity and his full bloodied desire to get goals, he puts defenders under pressure and he's fearless.  We need some of that right now.

[leftside]

why is it some people keep saying this league is full of dross and moaning that "how come we get beat by shit teams", fact is WE are shit and make up the so say dross, people need to realise we are not as big as some like to think we are

Because this league is full of dross, us included.

Show me a post that has said we are too big to go down, or where anyone says we are in a false position.

From what I've seen this season the standard of football has been poor. Even the teams that have beaten us have looked beatable. The teams that have been promoted from this division in the past couple of years or so were way better than anything we've come across so far this season. PDC's third division STFC team would have been at or near the top of the table by now.

[pauld]

I don't know if sometimes people deliberately ignore the point or are simply unable to comprehend. Fucking hell it can be hard work at times.

Thing is FH, it's all very well sitting looking at the bare facts from afar and just looking at the stats logically and going "Naah, way too early to be panicking" (and ordinarily I'd agree with you, I get just as frustrated with the doom mongers who declare we're down before August Bank Holiday) but we are pretty abject right now and have been for some time. And neither the players nor the management show any sign of being able to change it. In fact the management have declared they're not going to change it, pretty much come what may. So you start to look at what inevitably unfolds in front of you, you know how it's going to end and they still keep doing the same things, making the same mistakes, and about the only thing that changes is that we start to get worse not better and you think "Shit, it IS only October, but we could still be sitting here watching them deflate out of games in March and nothing will change". Like I say, not normally one to hit the panic button but this season, this team (at least the way it's currently structured), stinks already.

[Flashheart]

 In fact the management have declared they're not going to change it, pretty much come what may.

The management could be replaced though.

[Flashheart]

Incidentally, I've seen people mentioning that Power wont want to sack Williams because of his compensation for a 5 years contract. Which is fair enough....

Except he may not need to sack him to bring in a new manager. His job title is head coach, not manager. Think what you may of Lee Power, but he's no dummy. This was actually widely commented on at the time of Williams' appointment.

[FreddySTFC!]

Thing is FH, it's all very well sitting looking at the bare facts from afar and just looking at the stats logically and going "Naah, way too early to be panicking" (and ordinarily I'd agree with you, I get just as frustrated with the doom mongers who declare we're down before August Bank Holiday) but we are pretty abject right now and have been for some time. And neither the players nor the management show any sign of being able to change it. In fact the management have declared they're not going to change it, pretty much come what may. So you start to look at what inevitably unfolds in front of you, you know how it's going to end and they still keep doing the same things, making the same mistakes, and about the only thing that changes is that we start to get worse not better and you think "Shit, it IS only October, but we could still be sitting here watching them deflate out of games in March and nothing will change". Like I say, not normally one to hit the panic button but this season, this team (at least the way it's currently structured), stinks already.

This. A very good summary of CURRENT status. If people aren't concerned about what we're seeing at the moment then they need a reality check.

[pauld]

The management could be replaced though.

Yes, or "persuaded" (ordered) to change. Think the most likely outcome is bringing in a manager and Williams reverting to head coach as you suggest. But something does need to change -  as it stands, we're on a hiding to nothing.

[Sippo]

Incidentally, I've seen people mentioning that Power wont want to sack Williams because of his compensation for a 5 years contract. Which is fair enough....

Except he may not need to sack him to bring in a new manager. His job title is head coach, not manager. Think what you may of Lee Power, but he's no dummy. This was actually widely commented on at the time of Williams' appointment.

People slag off power, but at the end of the day he saved this club.

[FreddySTFC!]

With regards to todays performance Vigouroux & Thompson were both outstanding. It's a real worry when, as well as being our best defender, NT is also one of our best attacking threats, his late surge in the 2nd half was largely borne out of his own frustration at our midfielders lack of attacking thrust & drive rather than a natural desire to drive forward himself. In all fairness Murray had a decent game & at least takes risks with forward passes that naturally don't always come off but the general build up is waaaaaay too pedestrian & allows sides to regroup & get back into their two lines of 4 or whatever system they operate on the day. Delfouneso & Norris both put a decent shift in but have no telepathy or general understanding. At the point of a goal kick in the 2nd half, when it was clear Vigs was going long, they were approx 25-30 yards away from each other!! Neither seems to have a specific role & I would much rather see Hylton alongside one of them (& I've been an advocate of giving him a run alongside a big man well in advance of his impressive couple of games at Guiseley). Final word must go to BOO who was fucking atrocious in the first half & should have been replaced by Brophy at h/t. I hope there was a genuine reason he started in front of him today (for example Brophy was still getting over his recent illness & wasn't fully fit) as they are poles apart in terms of footballing ability. His own goal really was the icing on a fucking shit cake.

[swindonmaniac]

People slag off power, but at the end of the day he saved this club.

He may have saved the club, but at this moment in time his attitude and management ideas is definately killing it, how much longer can this go on ?.

[ibelieveinmrreeves]

He may have saved the club, but at this moment in time his attitude and management ideas is definately killing it, how much longer can this go on ?.

A touch over dramatic - we're not looking down the barrel at AFC Swindon ffs.

[Wobbly Bob]

Not sure anyone has asked why we get beat by shit teams, more observing that so far this season we've not seen a good side and the division seems to be made up of a load of shit teams this season.  

We are very much part of it, we have some good players, we also have some that aren't up to it really.  I don't think anyone thinks we're bigger than we are either.

It's frustrating, most games we're a mistake away from losing, we've not been outplayed at all but we don't have to be.  Looking at other teams we only need an extra 10 or 15% more from a performance to get over the line really but at the moment the team is so low on confidence we're almost wondering where the next goal is coming from let alone the next win.

I said very early in the season the rule change with loans will fuck a load of teams up and those able to keep their first choice 11-14 players fit will be the ones at the top end of the league.  It could all change at any moment for any number of teams, unfortunately without a goal scorer it isn't going to change for us any time soon.

Obviously we miss JSW, Jones and Doughty hugely but for me losing Jordan Stewart just when he was looking to kick on has been a big loss, he offers something completely different to the rest of our forwards with his intensity and his full bloodied desire to get goals, he puts defenders under pressure and he's fearless.  We need some of that right now.

Agreed. It's a case of fine margins so far. In a sea of general crapness we're marginally more crap than most of the others at the moment. Looking at yesterday in isolation, it wasn't the worst performance and without the o.g. would have been a good point.

Hopefully there is some succession management plan in place if Williams needs to be moved sideways.
Loss of face / ego issues might make it difficult to revert back to previous role so maybe bringing someone in alongside might be the way forward.
Can't see a sacking as the model, at least in it's current form, would have to go out the window as well.

[THE FLASH]

I wouldn't say that would of been a good point wobbly but it would of meant three games on the bounce unbeaten and something to build on.

At half time I felt a bit of buzz...'Bolton are shit and we can do em' seemed to be the shared opinion.

We played very well in three minute bursts.....Boo was appalling and I was expecting him to be taken off at HT for his own sake. It didn't happen.

Tempo is something that needs to be looked at. We play risk free, keep the ball football and still fucking lose....
When we zip it about and commit it feels we might score. Then it seems we all get jittery at playing high risk and slow it all down again. Several times it happened yesterday....overplay saw us miss a number of shooting chances.

I feel Fonz hasn't clicked with the way we play. He's not a bad player but is making runs that a more direct team would gobble up....instead by the time we have taken six touches and looked up the pass usually is played behind him, it happened in the first half when he obviously wanted it played in front of him, so he could shoot across the keeper, there was a delay and it trickled a yard behind him.

Norris is trying and sarcastic whoops when he takes or makes a good touch and pass does not help.
I really want the poor fucker to notch.

Towards the end neither pushed up and the Bolton last man was four yards back and mopping every ball up.

The final third is shit at the minute and needs some real attention....I don't know where the next goal is coming from.

[THE FLASH]

Yes, or "persuaded" (ordered) to change. Think the most likely outcome is bringing in a manager and Williams reverting to head coach as you suggest. But something does need to change -  as it stands, we're on a hiding to nothing.

Who the fuck is going to come here and manage under this model?

Unproven, 'promising', desperate, jobless and cheap would be the criteria....