[Archived] Rovers 1 -0 Liverpool

[joey_big_nose]

4. Defending corner kicks is not our strength. A man on each post never happens and it should because time and again the opposition win free headers against us. Maybe if we had a Terry / Hendry / Adams type centre half to win most of the corners then fine but we haven't.

All the above are simple basics, cost nothing and they certainly don't require world class players to carry them out.

Good points Drog, although I would say we do have a Terry/Hendry/Adams player in Nelsen. I have little doubt that if he had been available then we would have conceded at least 5 fewer goals this term and be at least three or four points higher in the table. Our defence has been shocking sometimes but we will be playing most of the rest of the season with a new look back four. Hopefully it will provide better concentration.

Nesmachnyi Ooijer Nelsen Emerton

Looks half decent to me at least, especially with Reid coming in to add some strength to our midfield. With Emerton and the Ukranian fellow (seems like he is coming anyway) bursting down the wings it could be quite an attacking back line too. Freidal is hitting top form as well... I can't wait for January.

[FourLaneBlue]

Yes I understand people feel lied to and let down, on the other hand contrast this with Lucas Neill's position. He tells the club and the support exactly how he feels and, despite being a model professional all season, he has been booed by his own supporters and every miskick or poor pass is interpreted as an attempt to get Rovers relegated. If I found myself in the sdame position as Neill or Bellamy, please God, I know which example I would follow. Ninety minutes of grief or a whole season? Like Bellamy said, many fans don't understand modern football.

It doesn't matter which route they take...fans still feel let down. If they want to boo then it's their prerogative (I actually used to spell that incorrectly until Bob Fleming set me right)...don't know why other fans think they shouldn't...they feel he treated the club without the respect it deserves. Most players do...but since when can't football fans be fickle?

Who ever said football fans were fair?

Like Bellamy said, many fans don't understand modern football.

Absolute rubbish. They understand what he did and didn't like it. Hell hath no fury like a Rover scorned.

[den]

The poor defending is down to more than the front two. The make up of the side lends itself to the problem.

Yes the front two don't close down the oppositions back four as they should. Look past them though. Out of the entire midfield there's no-one with a tackle in them - savage included. That's the front two plus the four midfielders.

Oh for a side with the bite of, Shearer, Sutton, Sherwood, Atkins, Ripley, Wilcox [OK, maybe not a great tackler, but definately a great worker] or Batty. There's a big reason why we won the title.

[Flopsy]

Which is why Dickov is so missed. He might have been useless in front of goal, but dear god he didnt half work the defence

[FourLaneBlue]

3. Covering for team mates. When a winger is 1 on 1 with our full back our current wingers Bentley and MGP do not 'drop' far enough to be able to cover the possibility of the fb's getting skinned.

4. Defending corner kicks is not our strength. A man on each post never happens and it should because time and again the opposition win free headers against us. Maybe if we had a Terry / Hendry / Adams type centre half to win most of the corners then fine but we haven't.

3. Agree completely that they need to drop back more...it is particularly apparent whenever Gray comes up against a speedy winger. If he gets skinned then invariably the winger is almost through on goal. MGP can track back well but I feel he hasn't been doing it as much this season. I'd like to see his stats...last season he covered a ridiculously large amount of space in a game. This season he has seemed more static.

4. Yep...it's said time and time again but nothing happens. Hughes should have laid down the law on this one if it has been up to Brad until now. We look vulnerable for all set-pieces and while a man on each post wouldn't solve the problem on its own it would have saved more than a couple of goals this season.

Oh and Nonda seems to get worse as the season goes along...it doesn't help that he scored two against Arsenal...one a penalty and one a goal high in agility (but still from tap-in range) when Derbyshire should have finished...but I'd much rather see Jeffers or Derbyshire play far more. Shanbani seems to lack any kind of spark whatever - at least Jeffers is good at bringing other players into the action and Derbyshire has a bit of pace. From what we have seen so far there is little reason to consider turning his loan into a permanent move and that's not even taken into consideration the large wages he is supposedly presently on at AS Roma which we would most likely at least have to approach matching.

[RevidgeBlue]

I do agree with what you are both saying, but at the same time when Bellamy says things like he isn't at Rover for the short haul and that there is no clause in the contract for him to leave, you can understand it when people feel let down by him. If he hadn't said anything at all, then I doubt people would have the same feelings for him.

Given the benefit of hindsight with the Neill saga, Bellamy probably did the right thing when the question was directly put to him. I don't think anyone could say now that they want to KNOW a player isn't committed to the Club and is leaving.

If Bellamy had said "I've no intention of staying here more than 12 months, I forced the Club into agreeing to a clause allowing me to leave on the cheap, so it's really no more than a glorified loan deal" then no-one would have felt able to get behind him and I think results would undoubtedly have been a lot poorer.

Bellamy put the club over a barrel by insisting on the clause, Neill has put the club over a barrel by quite legitimately seeking to maximise his earning potential by refusing to sign a new contract.

Not a lot of difference in either case. Player power ruling the roost.

[blue phil]

Yes I understand people feel lied to and let down

You're only lied to and let down if you allow yourself to be

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

There was a premier league table in my paper the other day based solely on xmas time results- Rovers were very near the top- I can't remember many Boxing Day bad results, so maybe there's something in that. We're also top of the league for -

1 conceding in the last 15 minutes of a game.

2 concedeing from set pieces.

Great result but we need to follow it up, no point beating Liverpool to lose to either Boro or Wigan, we need 4 points from those two games.

[Eddie]

Saw the same thing, we were third, having only ever lost one game on boxing day (when we lost to Sunderland a few seasons back). I think we will now be second as Liverpool were one of the teams above us.

[only2garners]

Saw the same thing, we were third, having only ever lost one game on boxing day (when we lost to Sunderland a few seasons back). I think we will now be second as Liverpool were one of the teams above us.

If it was the one in the Independent yesterday, we were fourth and will still be fourth as Liverpool were too far ahead to catch. The table was for every season since the Premier League began, so for us includes two seasons in the Championship. That was why Sheffield United managed to be fifth as most of their matches were not in the Premiership. Nice to see us near the top of something though!

[Presty On Tour]

awsome game, friedel was a brick wall for us!!

our defence was nervous and all over the shop on some plays but fairplay didn't they show some heart, fight and most of all spirit!! what a victory.

tugay is just top class, even ronaldo would of been jelous of those step overs.

1-0 rovers

thankyou and goodnight

[Royal Fleet]

Just popped in to congratulate you on your great result yesterday. I know they are not really representative, but it looked as though you mugged then a bit (bit like you did to us at our place ) You really look to be having better results and pulling yourselves away from the dogfight.

As you can imagine the point from Stamford Bridge yesterday has been rather well received.

[sleepyjack]

Rob Styles wasnt it?

"FIVE MINUTES, STYLES? FIVE EFFING MINUTES?"

Yeah, rings a bell.

[Presty On Tour]

"FIVE MINUTES, STYLES? FIVE EFFING MINUTES?"

Yeah, rings a bell.

i think he added another minute after tugay done his legend walk off when he got subbed.

go over to the riverside, jog a little, shake a few hands, acknowledge the crowd and the hug for hughes was awsome, job well done.

[Bobby G]

Haha I love it when Tugay comes off and we are ahead! Classic.

And yesterday he gave Hughes some Turkish Delight with that hug! Loved it.

[stuwilky]

"FIVE MINUTES, STYLES? FIVE EFFING MINUTES?"

Yeah, rings a bell.

Surely I said more EFFINGS than that?

[bellamy11]

Haha I love it when Tugay comes off and we are ahead! Classic.

And yesterday he gave Hughes some Turkish Delight with that hug! Loved it.

He's the master of it. When another player gets subbed in the same position he walks over to the ref and distracts them to let them trudge off as slowly as possible.

I reckon by the time he retires we'll have seen a full 90 minutes worth of Tugay leaving the field at snail pace!

Stu, you don't swear do you?!?

[thenodrog]

i think he added another minute after tugay done his legend walk off when he got subbed.

Weird that cos imo he did not actually play an extra 5 minutes. Can anyone confirm this? However the fact that he did apparently punish us actually adds to his very good overall performance.

[Paul]

Weird that cos imo he did not actually play an extra 5 minutes. Can anyone confirm this?

The scoreboard clock said 4.46 when added time was announced and 4.50 at the final whistle. What I don't know is when the ref started counting added time, i.e did the second half KO at 4.00 exactly?

[Manchester Blue]

He played about 5.20 extra. Slightly extra for Tugay but not as much as he could have added seeing as it took Tugay some 45 seconds to come off.

[romax]

fantastic match vs Liverpool, I not watch unfortunately, but to be content for the result positive.

cheers

Max

[stuwilky]

The scoreboard clock said 4.46 when added time was announced and 4.50 at the final whistle. What I don't know is when the ref started counting added time, i.e did the second half KO at 4.00 exactly?

4.45 when the board was held up - which is alledgedly within the last 30 seconds.

[tchocky]

The TV timer showed about 95:20 when he blew the final whistle IIRC.

[92er]

Just popped in to congratulate you on your great result yesterday. I know they are not really representative, but it looked as though you mugged then a bit (bit like you did to us at our place ) You really look to be having better results and pulling yourselves away from the dogfight.

As you can imagine the point from Stamford Bridge yesterday has been rather well received.

Well done-what a great own goal; we also wish you well in the cup.

[thenodrog]

Whats all this seasonal goodwill about? Is this some sort of breakaway league where small clubs playing in blue and white with new grounds, millionaire owners and victims of press and media scorn can find shared entente? If so hadn';t we better invite a few pie munchers?