[Archived] Rovers V Cardiff

[ace]

Cardiff were a better team than us last night, with a little more luck , and better finishing , they could have obliterated our somewhat lucky lead.

Our midfield looked absolutely useless and until NEJ came on the defence lacked any organisation. If Toddy is to become captain he needs to improve his " Communication" skills!

[Dan Furness]

Neill is a liability

complete liability

[CAPT KAYOS]

What can we say? Possibly our worst performance under Hughes, or certainly since he started to truely manage and influence the team. At 3-1 this was the chance to go for the jugular and stuff a tidy but average Cardiff team with another 3 or 4. Overall very disappointed with the performance, those who opted to save their £19-24 and watch Exeter made a good decision. Without harping back to the ticket debate this performance clearly demonstarted why full price was not reasonable.

MGP - very pleased to see he continues to take his chance in the team. Thought he defended and challenged more than one might have expected from previous reports. Certainly looks much stronger than against Bournemouth.

Mokoena - just have to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being but there was nothing to suggest he is a PL player. I don't think he actaully collected/cleared a ball all night.

Dickov - more like @#/?. He's going to cost us dearly soon. All the energetic, pain in the bum rumming around is fine BUT he should have been sent off for wrestling the Cardiff lad to the ground with both arms around his head. This behaviour from a so-called professional footballer is indefensible. I'm happy with his contribution, value-for-money etc. but his on-pitch behaviour deteriorates with every game, he'll be sent off against Bolton if he carries on like this. He should go in the summer if he can't learn to control himself.

Good post Paul but as Alan K says he is suspended for the Notlob game - agree wuth everything you said especially Mokewena as he was absolutely diabolical (Scotty now I know that pint I saw you have in the Moorings was one too many if you thought he played well )

As mentioned to Ste B I suppose we have to give him the benfit of the doubt and as Ste says he has played rather well in the previous 2.

T4E - take note - as Alan K says some of us have been highlighting previously the 'problems' of Dickov and not just last night.

On another note I personally thought Matteo was better than Neil last night but that's not saying much - thought only MGP and maybe Thompion (but only because of his goals and the freekick) and Friedal could be given recognition for their efforts.

Cardiff deserved at least extra time last night if not more, and if they had been a little more compose in their fibnishing we could have easily seen us humbled once again at home by lower league opposition to which Rovers would ahve had no argument.

Fair do's to the Cardiff fans that travelled and backed their side- shame we couldn't really give them an atmosphere in return. Was very difficult at times to determine who was the higher division team, and if they could get some consistency in their game in the Championship they might be challenging at the top end rather than at the bottom.

After last night I have said I am not going to the Colchester game - why should I bother when it is quite clear that most of the players aren't after last night (that feeling will probably change nearer the time dependent upon ticket prices of course)

[Alan75]

Capt , please stop confusing me with AlanK.

Im better looking.

[1864roverite]

my views on a seriously cold and wet night against a poor team (still shivering from leaving 29 deg of pure sunshine)

the performance was poor, the result was the required win and we are safely through the round with a game against Colchester.

Negatives were the perfromances of tugay and mokoena, the poor keeping of Brad and a lack of defensive cover.

Positives

Thommo scoring twice

MGP notching another

The result

oh yes and finally...

did anyone witness the performance of the wheelchair bound numpty at the bottom of the Blackburn End ? Please dont slate me for this but really, his manoeverability with his disablement was pure class. He showed far more movement than Tugay, even when reversing madly along the walkway ! The guy was pure entertainment and I cannnot understand what his gripe with the youngsters who mobbed MGP was about.

Cant wait for Monday

[CAPT KAYOS]

Capt , please stop confusing me with AlanK.

Im better looking.

Whoops .....!!

Sorry Alan 75

[Hughesy]

Neill is a liability

complete liability

I agree. Thought he looks the weak link in that defence and to be honest i think it nocks the confidence of other defenders when he plays.

Hughes should put Nelsen back in for theBolton game

[mrsjansen]

Do you think Hughes knows that the draw for the FA cup took place over a week ago? Watched an interview with him after the game and he goes at times it didn't look like we would get Robbie and at times it didn't look like we would be in the hat fro the next round, but today we got Robbie and tonight we are in the hat.................... Er.

On another note maybe Jansen was being rested because he might be starting on Mon in place of Dickov.

[Paul]

Im better looking.

I thought the MB was all about opinions?

[Dan Furness]

Neill is a liability

complete liability

I agree. Thought he looks the weak link in that defence and to be honest i think it nocks the confidence of other defenders when he plays.

Hughes should put Nelsen back in for theBolton game

Most annoying of all was when he and Reid tried to play their way out of trouble right on the touchline, and both didnt want responsibility, subsequently passing the ball to McAnuff (I think) who was then hacked down by Neill. He got skinned for pace a few times.

[DaveyB]

Agree with most of what has been said already by people at the game.

On Dickov - being sat in the DE I personally thought he was quite lucky to get away with only a booking for his first offence. He looked to have deliberately just kicked out at the defender in retaliation for a bit of pushing. You could argue he was going for the ball, but if he had connected with it he would only have sent it into the crowd.

I don't think any one of the players last night came out with any credit. Thompson took the first goal well and got lucky for the 2nd, but didn't really influence the game at all other than that.

Tugay - well it wasn't really his kind of game. We saw against Celtic at Ewood a few years ago that if there is someone big and strong on him he disappears.

Emerton and Pedersen did well - but not up to the standards of recent weeks imo.

Ditto for Todd.

The rest were poor - special mentions for Matteo (can't believe Johannson was dropped for this numpty!), Neill and Reid (who managed in the short time he was on to give the worst performance I have ever seen from a rovers player!)

But at least we're through and at the end of the day that's what really matters. And as a side-thought, maybe it's difficult for the players to raise themselves when the atmosphere around them feels like a reserve match - perhaps they fall into the reserve/friendly game kind of mentality. Not sure if that is the case, just thought I'd throw it out there.

On another completely different note - did anyone see the metal bar fall from the top of the big screen. It missed a guy by inches - that could have been a nasty one - from the height it fell it would almost certainly have been a fatality.

[Dan Furness]

I have been telling people at work today all about that, the guy nearly followed through and rightly so. That would definately have been messy. Thank heaven it wasnt

[Tony Diamond Inc]

I think Neill was too scared to go anywhere near the touchline in the second half incase another one of those advertising toblerones crashed down on him from the big telly!

[MCMC1875]

I'm beggining to get the impression that MGP is by far the most popular Norwegian footballer. His fans are everywhere.

Still 3 goals in 3 games - fair play to him!

Perhaps Rovers could relocate to Norway. Attendance problem solved at a stroke!

PS What price Rovers to win FA Cup now?

[CAPT KAYOS]

So it looks like Jumbovision is falling a apart - what with the pixels missing ( Think NulclearSox has something to do with this) and now the trimmings falling off.

Could do with taking a look at - including the crap they put on it

[Nuclearsox]

So it looks like Jumbovision is falling a apart - what with the pixels missing ( Think NulclearSox has something to do with this) and now the trimmings falling off.

Could do with taking a look at - including the crap they put on it

I only took a handful of pixels Capt! They've got so many, I didn't think they'd notice if a few went missing.

Likewise with the handful of 6-inch screws I took to fix up my garden gates which blew off in the storms. They'll never notice.

[rover6]

Dickov - more like @#/?. He's going to cost us dearly soon. All the energetic, pain in the bum rumming around is fine BUT he should have been sent off for wrestling the Cardiff lad to the ground with both arms around his head. This behaviour from a so-called professional footballer is indefensible. I'm happy with his contribution, value-for-money etc. but his on-pitch behaviour deteriorates with every game, he'll be sent off against Bolton if he carries on like this. He should go in the summer if he can't learn to control himself.

Sadly, I think that sort of behaviour might be part of the course at Rovers with Mr Robbie Savage set to become a regular.

I have to say, it was a bizarre decision to move MGP up front. Surely, it'd have made more sense, if we were looking for more defensive solidarity, to sub MGP for Reid.

Anyways, we live to fight another day. Which is the good thing.

[James No. 7]

I'm beggining to get the impression that MGP is by far the most popular Norwegian footballer. His fans are everywhere.

Still 3 goals in 3 games - fair play to him!

Perhaps Rovers could relocate to Norway. Attendance problem solved at a stroke!

We should do a tour of Norway... get a bit more cash than we would otherwise get.

[MCMC1875]

I'm beggining to get the impression that MGP is by far the most popular Norwegian footballer. His fans are everywhere.

Still 3 goals in 3 games - fair play to him!

Perhaps Rovers could relocate to Norway. Attendance problem solved at a stroke!

We should do a tour of Norway... get a bit more cash than we would otherwise get.

Oslo Blues?

[joey_big_nose]

Dickov - more like @#/?. He's going to cost us dearly soon. All the energetic, pain in the bum rumming around is fine BUT he should have been sent off for wrestling the Cardiff lad to the ground with both arms around his head. This behaviour from a so-called professional footballer is indefensible. I'm happy with his contribution, value-for-money etc. but his on-pitch behaviour deteriorates with every game, he'll be sent off against Bolton if he carries on like this. He should go in the summer if he can't learn to control himself.

Sadly, I think that sort of behaviour might be part of the course at Rovers with Mr Robbie Savage set to become a regular.

I have to say, it was a bizarre decision to move MGP up front. Surely, it'd have made more sense, if we were looking for more defensive solidarity, to sub MGP for Reid.

Anyways, we live to fight another day. Which is the good thing.

Well you seem to of seen sense and abandoned the Donelley soap box (I wanted to see him given a chance but frankly gave up a long time ago- two manager and a pelthora of different FL clubs have not taken him on loan) and I think it is about time you dropped the MGP stuff too.

Go on, delete it from your signature- it just looks silly.

[OnePost]

Watched Mokoena for the first time last night.

I have to say that on that performance he is no more a central defender than a fork is an implement for eating soup.

He improved marginally after Zombie came on and was pushed up in front of the back four, but his best contribution came after the final whistle when he managed to walk off the pitch in a straight line.

Not impressed.........how did he manage to make "Team of the Week" after the Pompey game ?

Edited January 20, 2005 by OnePost

[jim mk2]

Watched Mokoena for the first time last night.

I have to say that on that performance he is no more a central defender than a fork is an implement for eating soup.

He improved marginally after Zombie came on and was pushed up in front of the back four, but his best contribution came after the final whistle when he managed to walk off the pitch in a straight line.

Not impressed.........how did he mange to make "Team of the Week" after he Pompey game ?

I was waiting for someone else to aim the first barb at this player but I agree: on the evidence so far I have not been impressed.

[streakyb]

Watched Mokoena for the first time last night.

I have to say that on that performance he is no more a central defender than a fork is an implement for eating soup.

He improved marginally after Zombie came on and was pushed up in front of the back four, but his best contribution came after the final whistle when he managed to walk off the pitch in a straight line.

Not impressed.........how did he mange to make "Team of the Week" after he Pompey game ?

I was waiting for someone else to aim the first barb at this player but I agree: on the evidence so far I have not been impressed.

I was also waiting for people to launch into an attack on Mokeona. Not certain how fair it is to criticise him when th eother 10 players on his side were as poor as they were.

He must have done well against Portsmouth as Yakubu and LualLua are a pacy and good attacking force that did nothing all game (apart from head butt Todd).

Last night was not a night when you can at all fairly criticise a new player still aclimitising to the team and the country. If he looke bad and the rest of the team was ok, fair enough criticise him. But is show ittle patience or willingness to accept him if you launch into criticisms of his performance last night.

Rant over.

[streakyb]

Not impressed.........how did he manage to make "Team of the Week" after the Pompey game ?

Perhaps he played well. As you said, that the first time you watched him so from last night performance you assume he is poor yet he was in a team of the week and got good reports in the papers. Its totaly unfai to judge him on last night match, yet people will.

One bad match -> Must be a badplayer

10 good matches -> Undecided, waiting for his bad match so I can call him a bad player.

[Ste B]

I was waiting for someone else to aim the first barb at this player but I agree: on the evidence so far I have not been impressed.

Not stopped you in the past Jim

Admittedly if yesterdays game was your only form of evidence, then you would be worried, but he has put in 2 decent performances away to Cardiff and Portsmouth so I wouldn't rush to judge either way at this moment.