[Archived] Rovers 0 Spurs 1

[bazza]

Am I the only one who thought that Spurs played really well. Rovers were the poorer side except for the opening period of the second half up to when Spurs scored. We tried our best but lost to a much better side.

[92er]

I thought at times Spurs looked much better than us but they really didn't create much.I also thought we didn't work hard enough-centre midfield and down the wings etc.The people who thought Todd played well will perhaps remember his lack of a tackle in the lead-up to the goal.

[Scotty]

The people who thought Todd played well will perhaps remember his lack of a tackle in the lead-up to the goal.

Similarly, you could remember that Short came nowhere near tackling anyone in the lead-up to the goal.

Todd makes the odd mistake but, just like most of last season, he's come in and looked our most solid, consistent defender.

[Paul Mellelieu]

For a team in our position we have to expect games like this. However the overall verdict on the team compared to under Souness is positive. Spurs got their tactics dead on and marked the two wide men out of the game for long periods. Tugay played well leaving Barry in his wake for most of the game.

It's how we respond to this setback that will be the critical factor in charting the season ahead.

[John]

I had a week or so break away from the UK and this board. However while I was in the US I made sure I had to see the Spurs match live in a bar. Thought I would treat some of my friends who wanted to see a soccer game. The thought that dawned on me during and after the match was what the hell has gone on at our club in recent times.

It seems like we are trying to teach the squad them to play football again. Basic traits of being any midfielder is to track your opposite man however this has been a problem with our team for a while. That is just one example of basic things we do consistently wrong but I have come to the sad conclusion the club had deep rooted problems which will take a long time to eradicate.

[thenodrog]

imo so many are bitterly criticising the Rovers but very few on this board appear willing to give Spurs any credit for what I thought was a very professional performance. I was very impressed with their work rate and commitment......... something that Spurs are not really known for. They set out to contain and frustrate us comfortable in the knowledge that they have 2 of the best strikers in the Prem and that sometime during the 90 mins those two would be likely to grab a goal against the worst defence in the Prem. And so it proved. As soon as they went 1-0 up on came Gardner and they played 5 at the back and stopped our attacks from the wing completely. Job done!

I do feel that we would have had a better chance 3 weeks ago when they appeared to be playing to get Santini removed. Now Jols in like most new managers he's got em 'up for it'. I doubt that he'll make many fans from the Spurs traditionalists who like to see good football but he'll certainly get em closer to Arsenal in the Prem.

We are a poor team, Spurs do have more talented players in important areas, we only got beat 1-0. Lets all try to keep things in context.

So many still refer to the Rovers performance against Spurs as being awful but its obvious now that they have won 4 on the bounce and annhialated Soton that they were playing earlier this season to get Santini sacked.

Our biggest problem was timing, if we had played em 2 wks earlier we would prob have had 3 more points. It'll be interesting to see where they finish and a lot will depend on them keeping King and Defoe away from Arse and Chelsea and Keane away from Everton in January.

[joey_big_nose]

imo so many are bitterly criticising the Rovers but very few on this board appear willing to give Spurs any credit for what I thought was a very professional performance.  I was very impressed with their work rate and commitment......... something that Spurs are not really known for.  They set out to contain and frustrate us comfortable in the knowledge that they have 2 of the best strikers in the Prem and that sometime during the 90 mins those two would be likely to grab a goal against the worst defence in the Prem.  And so it proved.  As soon as they went 1-0 up on came Gardner and they played 5 at the back and stopped our attacks from the wing completely.  Job done!

I do feel that we would have had a better chance 3 weeks ago when they appeared to be playing to get Santini removed.  Now Jols in like most new managers he's got em 'up for it'.  I doubt that he'll make many fans from the Spurs traditionalists who like to see good football but he'll certainly get em closer to Arsenal in the Prem. 

We are a poor team, Spurs do have more talented players in important areas, we only got beat 1-0.  Lets all try to keep things in context.

So many still refer to the Rovers performance against Spurs as being awful but its obvious now that they have won 4 on the bounce and annhialated Soton that they were playing earlier this season to get Santini sacked.

Our biggest problem was timing, if we had played em 2 wks earlier we would prob have had 3 more points. It'll be interesting to see where they finish and a lot will depend on them keeping King and Defoe away from Arse and Chelsea and Keane away from Everton in January.

Never shy of your own trumpet TND.....

Seriously while i agree that we lack strikers which come anywhere near the quality of Spurs' strikeforce we are decent i most other areas. I would stick my neck out and say that, Ledley King aside, the rest of the Spurs squad is much of a muchness with ours (Carrick, Davis,Brown etc promise much but are not really firing yet). Indeed I would say that Ferguson would walk into their team and I reckon they would give Emerton a crack at their left side (he was actually connected with them recently) and their full backs seemed as bad as ours, in fact Niell was the best FB on the pitch by a distance.

The idea that we are poor all over the pitch in the way that Southampton, West Brom and Palace are is a myth. We have some great players, especially in midfield, while the likes of Todd and Reid have really come good.

Gallagher promises alot, Dickov works hard but frankly we lack confidence and power up front.

Hughes will be licking his lips. Two or three quality signings and the injection of some belief in the side and we have the potential to rocket up the table. He has, as you said yourself, made us hard to beat and will now look at the attacking side of the game.

Can people give the "oh God, we are so awful" a rest....... it is just not true.

[Eddie]

spot on

[thenodrog]

Never shy of your own trumpet TND.....

Well nobody else'll blow it will they?

Crap midfield / defence or not they were damned well organised and Robinson was protected well enough to only have to make one save all afternoon.

All the same I hope Sky never make Spurs v Everton a live match.

[thenodrog]

a successful partnership simply MUST be found between any combination of the more technically gifted forwards at the club Boothroyd/Gallagher/Stead/Jansen.

You criticise Dickovs performance Rev but the worst player on the park and by a considerable distance (much worse even than NEJ) was Gallagher. I may be proven wrong in the fullness of time but imo he is out of his depth in the Prem. Sure he pulled the save of the match out of Robinson but that apart he contributed next to FA. The thing that endears him to the fans can only be the fact that he lived in Shad. Which in itself provides a strange contradiction....... how does a lad from Shad manage to shirk and duck out of so many 50:50 situations? Dickov was finding it tough enough against the Tottenham 'Globetrotters' but the task became impossible once he had been booked.

imo so many are bitterly criticising the Rovers but very few on this board appear willing to give Spurs any credit for what I thought was a very professional performance. I was very impressed with their work rate and commitment......... something that Spurs are not really known for. They set out to contain and frustrate us comfortable in the knowledge that they have 2 of the best strikers in the Prem and that sometime during the 90 mins those two would be likely to grab a goal against the worst defence in the Prem. And so it proved. As soon as they went 1-0 up on came Gardner and they played 5 at the back and stopped our attacks from the wing completely. Job done!

I do feel that we would have had a better chance 3 weeks ago when they appeared to be playing to get Santini removed. Now Jols in like most new managers he's got em 'up for it'. I doubt that he'll make many fans from the Spurs traditionalists who like to see good football but he'll certainly get em closer to Arsenal in the Prem.

We are a poor team, Spurs do have more talented players in important areas, we only got beat 1-0. Lets all try to keep things in context.

See I told ya so...........Spuds up to 7th.

Edited April 11, 2005 by thenodrog

[Eddie]

Won't stay there for long, we are on the way up as well, and our recent form is better.

Bet a drink that next season we finish above them?

[inhuman]

how was the atmosphere