Swindon v Crawley pre match chat and match day thread

[normy]

What annoyed and depressed me most was the awful quality of our passing. It seemed that nearly every pass was either overhit, underhit, or given to an opponent.  This is so basic that I couldn't believe it.The worst game I've watched this season, even versus Carlisle.

[ronnie21]

What annoyed and depressed me most was the awful quality of our passing. It seemed that nearly every pass was either overhit, underhit, or given to an opponent.  This is so basic that I couldn't believe it.The worst game I've watched this season, even versus Carlisle.

Agree with that, when we did pass it went behind our player who had to check his run and turn to collect it.  Tendency to argue amongst themselves on the pitch also which doesn't exactly fit the stories we are told about how much the dressing room is together and wonderful team spirit in the squad.  And don't get me started on how bad we are with our throw-ins!!

[Reg Smeeton]

Reg - we are where we belong and Wellens is right to build for next season.   There isn't a player in the team , maybe Dunne aside, who couldn't do a job in a team in the play offs - they were just put together poorly.

Now you say the players are good enough for PO's yet 3 weeks ago when we won a key game..... this was your analysis of them......

What an absolute farce of a game.  We will not play a worse team in a league game in my lifetime again I doubt.  We were "better" second half but that could have been Macclesfield getting worse to be honest.

Iandolo was awful today, switches off so often.
Conroy turned our defence back into the one we started the season with at times.
Midfield was too slow in possession, pourous out of it.
Woolery can run but falls over the ball, runs into players and generally looks to have the composure of a kid in Catholic Priest Convention
Anderson is all over the shop, meaning we never seem to have much shape
Richards missed a sitter, scored a goal and did jack shit besides
House - not enough to judge, did well for the goal

Overall, you take those points and pray we get some more players in quickly.  The performance today was one that Flitcroft at his worse would have been proud of.

I don't get it.... there's less consistency in your views than Town performances.   The only constant is the Flitcroft obsession, when all the evidence is that he's at least a competent Div 4 gaffer. I'm sure he'd have been proud of the win at Macc, a clutch game, against an outfit who've revived somewhat under Campbell.

[RobertT]

I was talking about performance, not potential or ability.  Just like today.  It's what makes it more frustrating, because individually most of our players have something about them for this level.  It's the fact that we dithered for 20 odd games and got ourselves into a bit of a mess.  Doughty is a great example - he is better than this league, yet he goes and has a game like today, lacking intelligence - something you know he has in abundance.  I think you'll find my views are pretty consistent, but not fixed, they can be changed as our team evolves, or doesn't.   I still think that not reaching the play offs will be a failure this season and Brown can saddle most of the blame for that.  You think we are a smidge off being relegation fodder, which is fine.

I don't dislike Flitcroft based on his win ratio, or points per game or anything sensible like that.  I dislike him because he created a team that played the worse football I have seen (not your life, mine) from a Swindon Town by design.  I consistently didn't like King, through good and bad and I wasn't keen on Brown before he came, but Flitcroft's football just happens to be something I hate about the game.

[Wobbly Bob]

Oh well, finishing top of the bottom half sounds better than finishing bottom of the top half.  

For every glimmer of hope there is yet another low point to endure.

A word on Carroll, a one man wrecking machine at right back.
He mentioned that he likes a tackle, but forgot to add the bit about it being a red card waiting to happen.  
If the selection is a kind of try before you buy experiment to see what he's like as a backup right back (with a view to squad building for next season?) then that's fine.
If he is genuinely seen as a better option than Knoyle then that's a bit worrying.

It's all about salvaging something for next season now.
Aiming to go unbeaten at home for the remainder of the season would be a start.
Looking at the contract situation of the current squad then another major rebuild looks likely over the summer.

I've had enough, for the next 6 days anyway.
Hopefully the prospect of a ferocious local derby will warm the cockles of the hardy 6,000 next Saturday.

For those that play Football Manager regularly, has anyone ever managed to sweep all before them using a 4-2-3-1 formation?

[RedRag]

I thought the windy conditions were quite a factor in the poor standard of play by both sides.  That should usually be an advantage for us in terms of familiarity and how to adapt.  Perhaps we had, relatively a few too many new players as well as a new manager?  There was also a wet, skiddy top in the first half which also hampered execution.  I thought we were the better side in the first half, even though it had evened out by half time, with Doughty man marked and Richards and the Wellens' "press" out of puff.  To concede at the death gave the opposition a rather lucky boost.  The second half was never going to be pretty but I thought we were out fought and out muscled.  The ref was lax on blatant two handed pushing but then we just had to get stuck in similarly.  When it came to calm thinking and precise execution, we just lost it.  Carrol, who had looked mediocre against 9 man Lincoln repeatedly turned counter attack into defence and should've been subbed for his own protection.  I was pleased for him personally when he earned us the penalty before wondering who would take it.  No 11th goal for our top  striker.  The likes of Knoyle, McGlashan  and Taylor along with Doughty should, if fit, have been on.  They are familiar with the vagaries of the CG swirls.  I wonder if Rose may turn out to be the foot on the ball, controlling midfielder we so lack?  Woolf meanwhile, although implicated in their goal, had a great game and has really matured and with Broadbent alongside, I thought we looked sound in the heart of defence.  I shared the sponsors' mom choice of Woolf.

Similar result next week and I'll reluctantly be joining the playoff naysayers  .

[RedRag]

…. I dislike him [Flitcroft] because he created a team that played the worse football I have seen … by design. 

not relevant to yesterday but I so agree with you there.

[Anteater]

Got that one completely wrong (again).
Totally inept performance with both players and manager to blame.
Only our centre backs come out with any credit.
Terrible perfomances already highlighted. Subs were either poor or too late or both.
Agree with the sentiment that we have individuals totally capable of better at this level.
God it knocks the stuffing out of a fan.

[Peter Venkman]

For those that play Football Manager regularly, has anyone ever managed to sweep all before them using a 4-2-3-1 formation?

Weirldy yes I have, a season totally unbeaten using that formation.

One of the problems was that using that system our main focus of play uses Doughty, Anderson and Woolery as outlets for fast breaks, all 3 players were almost marked out of the game yesterday by Crawley who had done their research on us, also they did play the Italian way of keeping it tight at the back and offer little going forwards, again which they did well.

Our only other form of attack was a long ball hoofed to Richards who won nothing all game against a huge centre back who mopped up all the long balls played up to Richards.

We didn't use either fullback either until the last 10 mins, Carroll who is totally reluctant to cross the half way line it seems and Koiki who looked better in defence but offered little going forwards, which is his strength, we didn't get the ball to him often enough again until the last 10 mins.

You shouldnt be playing Dunne and McCourt as 2 defensive midfielders at home against a side that wanted to shut up shop early doors and aim to grab a goal on the break.

That works in away games where teams pressure us and we can hit them on the break, at home it won't and didn't work and hasn't all season at home when we have played it.

Rose looks very good from a dead ball, his free kicks and corners when he came on were placed perfect for us to attack the ball but we don't have a striker currently that will do that and thats not a strong part of Broadbent or Woolfs game either.

I would rather Rose got game time rather than Dunne or McCourt, drop either in home games as they both had a poor game yesterday and offer little going forwards, I still hope Toums will get fit and play in that role as he is better than both those players put together.

Basically we played too defensively in our tactics set up to create much and Crawley killed the game and marked our dangerous players out of the game, job done, it wasn't pretty but it got them the points (fortunate or not).

For the away game at FGR next week I would prefer us to play a pressing game and line up with

               Vigs
Knoyle Woolf Broadbent Koiki
              Carroll
       Doughty  Rose
Anderson           Woolery
              House

I think House showed enough to start ahead of a totally innefective Richards, Carroll must play midfield and not RB and Knoyle must return.

Rose added some classy passing to midfield and can either play in a more attacking role alongside Doughty or in a more defensive role alongside Carroll if Wellens sticks by the 4231.

[donkey]

For those that play Football Manager regularly, has anyone ever managed to sweep all before them using a 4-2-3-1 formation?

Yep. AML & AMR overlapping and cutting in, AMC pushing on ahead of the striker, too.

[woolster]

For the away game at FGR next week I would prefer us to play a pressing game and line up with

       


[/quote
its at home PV

[Peter Venkman]

For the away game at FGR next week I would prefer us to play a pressing game and line up with

its at home PV

Its early and I am still pissed off with them! thats my excuse! TBH I had forgot we played them at home already

[Peter Venkman]

As normal I post a few comments from the opponents forums, this is from the Creepy forum.

Swindon were one of the worst teams I've seen this season, with the first half being complete dross from both teams. Second half and it was only crawley that looked like winning. We gave them a chance to get back in it but thank goodness for Morris!

Such a funny league that Stevenage and Swindon can be above us but both were such poor teams. Well deserved 3 points, let's keep it going!

A quick look on the Swindon forum shows some unhappy souls who mostly think Crawley are an awful side, I believe there must have been a more awful side on show today though .....

the std of the league is really poor probably the worst weve ever know. That helps us and is why its certain we wont be relegated. Its impossible not to when faced by such poor opponents.

[Pax Romana]

That was bizarrely shit. I'm not a fan of boos, but I think the players deserved it after that. What the fuck was that all about? We are capable of so, so much better yet today they couldn't complete even simple passes. Decision making was shot as well. Baffling. I'm angry at them after that. Were they nervous? Hungover? No idea.

I don't know how much you can blame Wellens for the players today, but what is it with playing Carrol at RB? It's clear he's not comfortable there and is so much better in midfield. We have a perfectly good RB in Knoyle.

Tossers

7 points adrift.

Read back on all the post match views and pretty much agree with everyone's comments (apart from Reg of course) but this one probably sums my thoughts up best of all.

Wouldn't have wanted to be sober watching that game.

[Reg Smeeton]

I was talking about performance, not potential or ability.  Just like today.  It's what makes it more frustrating, because individually most of our players have something about them for this level.  It's the fact that we dithered for 20 odd games and got ourselves into a bit of a mess.  Doughty is a great example - he is better than this league, yet he goes and has a game like today, lacking intelligence - something you know he has in abundance.  I think you'll find my views are pretty consistent, but not fixed, they can be changed as our team evolves, or doesn't.   I still think that not reaching the play offs will be a failure this season and Brown can saddle most of the blame for that.  You think we are a smidge off being relegation fodder, which is fine.

I don't dislike Flitcroft based on his win ratio, or points per game or anything sensible like that.  I dislike him because he created a team that played the worse football I have seen (not your life, mine) from a Swindon Town by design.  I consistently didn't like King, through good and bad and I wasn't keen on Brown before he came, but Flitcroft's football just happens to be something I hate about the game.

Thanks for the clarification.  I guess I'm more simple soul, I judge performance by winning and If not at least drawing.

Same with managers... how you play is optional, I'd rather something ugly which wins rather than something sexy which loses.

As regards players, most of them at this level are pretty similar.... insofar as they will have a certain amount of talent/natural ability, and the sieve which is the football struture will have shaken them to Div 4.  However within that will be some with potential for better, and some who are peaking at Div 4 and can fall away rapidly.  Of our own players, I'm not fully convinced that there's many with potential for much higher.... and that is a worry.

We've been on the cusp at times this season of something very unpleasant, but even though it's new to us (Div 4 nether regions) we haven't quite been bad enough for a full blown panic attack.  We've seen enough in recent years with Oxford, Rovers, Chesterfield and this season Notts, not to take anything for granted.   

We'll now be relying on the new management structure to sort out something from the remains of this season, and another rebuild for next season, whereby a proper tilt at autos will be the aim.