[Archived] Spurs Preview

[den]

He didn't withdraw his arm one jot until the ball hit his hand. As I said, it was unfortunate, but his hand was out at his side and it stopped a potentially dangerous ball going across our box, I'd scream for it had it been at the other end and I'd expect it to be given. As to where his arm should be, well there isn't much you can do, but unfortunately when you square up and have your arms out at the side you are going to be in trouble if a ball hits your hand.

Garbage Eddie. Players don't stand with their arms glued to their side all the game, do they? They use their arms for balance.

It has to be deliberate. Spreading your arms and body out in front of a player with the intention of stopping a shot, and the ball hitting your hand, is hand ball. He didn't do that, did he? Moving your hands with the intention of making contact with the ball is hand ball. He didn't do that either, did he?

If your rules were applied, then every time the ball brushed a hand or finger tips, or arm, it would be a free kick or penalty.

[Manchester Blue]

Garbage Eddie. Players don't stand with their arms glued to their side all the game, do they? They use their arms for balance.

It has to be deliberate. Spreading your arms and body out in front of a player with the intention of stopping a shot, and the ball hitting your hand, is hand ball. He didn't do that, did he? Moving your hands with the intention of making contact with the ball is hand ball. He didn't do that either, did he?

If your rules were applied, then every time the ball brushed a hand or finger tips, or arm, it would be a free kick or penalty.

Spot on agree completely. He still hasn't answered where he ask got this nonsense about deliberate doesn't matter if your are 'making yourself big'. It's a new additional to the rules that i've never heard of.

[broadsword]

It was ball to bloody arm, not vice versa, and was never a penalty in a million years.

I can't see why people are still debating it.

I think it was Corluka who handled at the other end, in the box, and the ref didn't give it. If you were going to give a penalty kick for the Givet incident, you have to give it for the Corluke one.

And then the ref missed a Spurs player swatting a Tugay pass down with his hand.

A criminal display of reffing.

[Amo]

I've never said Lennon is crap! I said he was yesterday. Every player has good and bad games, usually depending on their opponents. Rem Givet is some player and with Warnock doubling up Lennon was always going to be up against it. Arry should have had him switching wings.

Agreed. Lennon is a good little player, and would have injected our side with much needed pace. Who cares if his final ball is somewhat lacking. Are we expecting the complete winger to grace the blue & white?

But yesterday, he had a couple of glimpses and nothing more. I think we handled his threat well.

Disappointing to read Nicko's take on things. I don't think Spurs were really in cruise control. They only scored through a fortunate penalty, and I only remember Robbo making one proper save during the game.

[dave birch]

Garbage Eddie. Players don't stand with their arms glued to their side all the game, do they? They use their arms for balance.

It has to be deliberate. Spreading your arms and body out in front of a player with the intention of stopping a shot, and the ball hitting your hand, is hand ball. He didn't do that, did he? Moving your hands with the intention of making contact with the ball is hand ball. He didn't do that either, did he?

If your rules were applied, then every time the ball brushed a hand or finger tips, or arm, it would be a free kick or penalty.

Spot on agree completely. He still hasn't answered where he ask got this nonsense about deliberate doesn't matter if your are 'making yourself big'. It's a new additional to the rules that i've never heard of.

It was ball to bloody arm, not vice versa, and was never a penalty in a million years.

I can't see why people are still debating it.

I think it was Corluka who handled at the other end, in the box, and the ref didn't give it. If you were going to give a penalty kick for the Givet incident, you have to give it for the Corluke one.

And then the ref missed a Spurs player swatting a Tugay pass down with his hand.

A criminal display of reffing.

agreed, all three.

I'll leave it at that , eddie.

[thenodrog]

Disappointing to read Nicko's take on things. I don't think Spurs were really in cruise control. They only scored through a fortunate penalty, and I only remember Robbo making one proper save during the game.

Why? Until Tugay and Dunny got together and Palacios got sent off I couldn't see us scoring if we had been playing until now.

[Amo]

Why? Until Tugay and Dunny got together and Palacios got sent off I couldn't see us scoring if we had been playing until now.

Because it implies Tottenham played well, when both sides were pretty poor.

[dave birch]

not wrong there theno, I was glad I lost video and had to go to bed.

We looked stuffed at that point, and had no idea of how to score.

[nicko]

Disappointing to read Nicko's take on things. I don't think Spurs were really in cruise control. They only scored through a fortunate penalty, and I only remember Robbo making one proper save during the game.

Spurs were totally on top and came off the gas - they played some great stuff at times and ran the midfield for the first hour.

Rovers were as clueless as I have seen them for a long time. There are reasons for that, but Mokoena was shocking and was not alone.

But Spurs went slack and your players - Samba in particular - took their chance.

It's a funny old game.

Great result, but with the injury problems picked up I would say that this relegation battle is far from over.

Even Big Sam was ready to admit the performance was poor and the result remarkable.

Big weekend, but it is not over.

[thenodrog]

Incidentally despite wanting to return to Holland it was good to see Ooijer's all around contribution and his obvious joy at scoring the winning goal. Obviously playing football comes before transfer politics to him.

I'd like to think the same applies to RSC.

[dave birch]

Because it implies Tottenham played well, when both sides were pretty poor.

Bloody hell topman, where do you get that from.

The game was crap, from both sides.

[dave birch]

Spurs were totally on top and came off the gas - they played some great stuff at times and ran the midfield for the first hour.

Rovers were as clueless as I have seen them for a long time. There are reasons for that, but Mokoena was shocking and was not alone.

But Spurs went slack and your players - Samba in particular - took their chance.

It's a funny old game.

Great result, but with the injury problems picked up I would say that this relegation battle is far from over.

Even Big Sam was ready to admit the performance was poor and the result remarkable.

Big weekend, but it is not over.

Nicko, spuds were ok til the final pass, then they had nothing.

They pushed it around and couldn't find an answer.

That's not saying the Rovers were good, they were worse than Spurs, but they hung in there.

My spuds mates were p'd off well and truly.

Could Bumley have provided a worse version of the English game than that last night.

For me, it was really the pits.

[Nate]

I had to laugh at Harry saying they played better yesterday than they did at Villa. How bad did Villa play then?

Sure, Spurs held possesion better and looked good on the counter attack, but I seem to remember Robinson making one decent save and that is it. Both teams were ordinary.

As for the penalty, by the rules of the game it wasn't a penalty, but can totally understand why it was given. Ref had a shocker all round I think.

[only2garners]

Nope Arry simply ignored the question! 23 seconds into this link.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/e...rem/7972756.stm

Bloody hilarious interview all round! Old 'Should have, would have could have?' Arry never even looked the interviewer in the eye.

Nope - it was selective editing. The link is to the full interview online. What MOTD showed was an edited version - just the bit in which Harry moaned about the sending-off.

[1864roverite]

Jesus wept ! Can we stop labouring the debate about the penalty,

fact - the ref gave it.

fact - they scored it.

fact - the linesman was right in front of the incident and held his arms down by his side to give an indication of PLAY ON.

fact - the ref didnt give the blatant penalty for handball by keane.

fact - he didnt give the corluka handball.

fact - Spurs ran the midfield for 80 minutes BECAUSE there ws NO opposition in that part of the field so what would you expect ?

fact - harry redknapp us a whingeing moaning bitch.

fact - wilson should have gone off earlier.

fact - the ultimate decision to send him off was the wrong one.

fact - Spurs had the game sewn up but Robbo had only made one save all game and in comparison Rovers had the most shots on target.

fact - Rovers got 2 goals in the net whereas spuds only managed the one.

fact - the referee was completely incompetent aided by his two linesmen or assitants.

Lets move on now. We are expected now to fall on our sword at Anfield for the early kick off on Saturday.

Lets hope that Rafa gets a kicking from Chelsea, Torres and Gerrard somehow manage to get injured and that lady luck follows us over the Liverpool and doesnt get her car nicked, her wheels removed or the window smashed.

Move on Rovers, 34 points in the bag, 6 points required. Remember, it could be much worse, we could be Boro fans

[gumboots]

Jesus wept ! Can we stop labouring the debate about the penalty,

fact - the ref gave it.

fact - they scored it.

fact - the linesman was right in front of the incident and held his arms down by his side to give an indication of PLAY ON.

fact - the ref didnt give the blatant penalty for handball by keane.

fact - he didnt give the corluka handball.

fact - Spurs ran the midfield for 80 minutes BECAUSE there ws NO opposition in that part of the field so what would you expect ?

fact - harry redknapp us a whingeing moaning bitch.

fact - wilson should have gone off earlier.

fact - the ultimate decision to send him off was the wrong one.

fact - Spurs had the game sewn up but Robbo had only made one save all game and in comparison Rovers had the most shots on target.

fact - Rovers got 2 goals in the net whereas spuds only managed the one.

fact - the referee was completely incompetent aided by his two linesmen or assitants.

Lets move on now. We are expected now to fall on our sword at Anfield for the early kick off on Saturday.

Lets hope that Rafa gets a kicking from Chelsea, Torres and Gerrard somehow manage to get injured and that lady luck follows us over the Liverpool and doesnt get her car nicked, her wheels removed or the window smashed.

Move on Rovers, 34 points in the bag, 6 points required. Remember, it could be much worse, we could be Boro fans

Problem is, if i wasn't a Rovers fan, I would be. It's dire watching the team you loved as a kid struggle so much. I want them down if it means we survive but if it could be Newcastle and Sunderland with West Brom I'd love it. Think I'm doomed to disappointment though.

[Tris]

Observer match report tells it like it was ...

[Presty On Tour]

TBH the penalty decision was a distant memory when Ooijer side footed it home in the 89th minute in what was an awful game of football.

The most important thing was the 3 points and we should be celebrating that fact and not berating on about a incident which thankfully hasn't affected the full time result.

[jim mk2]

Could Bumley have provided a worse version of the English game than that last night.

For me, it was really the pits.

Stupid post for a supposed Rovers fan.

But only to be expected in view of the poster's other allegiances.

[only2garners]

Lennon outmanoeuvred and skinned Givet at will in the first half and his cross was handled by Givet for the penalty.

No matter what you think about the penalty decision what is clear is that managing to hit the only defender between you and the goal in all that space indicates a pretty crap cross. And that was virtually the sum total of Lennon's output yesterday.

[den]

The game yesterday was truly awful to watch. On Radio Rovers post match, even Dunny was saying that the tactics were, in his opinion, wrong. He thinks that there is a need to mix it up a bit more. By that he means that rovers should refrain from using the long ball all of the time. He thought that when he and Tugay moved central, it improved the team and gave Woodgate and company much more to think about. I totally agree with that. It's much more difficult to defend against sides who sometimes put it onto Samba's head and sometimes play it short. He did go on to say though, that if the current methods are working in terms of results, then that's how it will have to be this season. Look at the "style" of football next season.

That's the truth of the matter isn't it? Sam has done more in terms of results, that any rovers fan could realistically ask for [taking into account the position in the league, the run we were in at the time and the injuries we have suffered]. At this moment, any criticism of the style of football really has to be put to one side. Next season though, needs to be better. The fans wont put up with that kind of display next season IMO.

[RibbleValleyRover]

That's the truth of the matter isn't it? Sam has done more in terms of results, that any rovers fan could realistically ask for. At this moment, any criticism of the style of football really has to be put to one side. Next season though, needs to be better. The fans wont put up with that kind of display next season IMO.

Good point Den.

This season is all about the points, if we stay up then next season is the time to complain and be vocal about our playing style/tactics.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

I've only seen the match on MOTD but from all accounts we played our joker yesterday ( Samba ?) . Our midfield is probably the weakest we've had for years ( I can't remember a weaker one in the Prem ) and directly responsible for our plight. If we can't get the players we have in there to perform in some way we are far from out of the mire. I watched most of the Liverpool game on Sky and they are in awesome form, they could have beaten Fulham by 6. Normally I'd say send the reserves and write this one off but goal difference could be all important. I'd take a 1-0 loss now and gird our loins for the physical battle with Stoke.

Got to say I agree with Eddie, in todays game more of those pens get given than not. Same with the sending off, you've just got a well earned yellow card and you shape to take out the same player a minute later, he pulled out too late Dunny was already taking avoiding action. In those circumstances you're asking to go. Correct if I'm wrong but didn't Palacios do exactly the same thing last year for Wigan at Ewood with the same result ?

Given the injury speculation isn't it time we pulled back Judge and Gallagher from Plymouth ? If Roberts and Santa are out long term we're going to need experienced forward players to fill in - on the bench at least. The decision to let Derbyshire go to Greece is looking as crazy now as the decision not to strengthen the midfield. Playing you best centre half up front is rarely the answer long term, those with long memories will recall Mike England doing the same thing in 1966 . It worked for a game or two but other teams tumbled him and England was a lot better player than Samba.

[grizfoot]

That's got to go down as the worst performance since Big Sam took over in my opinion. Luckily for us we where playing against a very average Tottenham team, whom are vastly over-rated. An Arsenal or an Aston Villa would have been 3 or 4-0 up long before the sending off came. Tottenham's goal came from a dubious looking penalty decisions, although to be fair you have seen those sorts of penalties given before. Despite the fact the defender has no chance of getting their hand out of the way in time. Rovers lacked creativity and pace throughout the match and it was only when Palcaios was sent off that we injected any sort of urgency into our play. The injuries to Pedersen and Roberts meant we lacked any sort of ideas going forward. McCarthy looked like he moving in slow-motion and Mokoena was invisible. But overall the level of passing was terrible and like I said a better team would have had a hatful against us. But credit where it's due Robinson pulled off one world-class save to deny Bent, Nelsen had a terrific game I thought and would have been my MotM. Samba also put in a great shift both at the back and upfront as a makeshift striker. I've said in the past that he always looks dangerous whenever he's been put up front and again yesterday he did a great job hassling King and Woodgate whom I thought were in totally control of the game first half, but Samba managed to upset them a little in the second.

Worryingly our bench lacked any sort of quality attacking option. Big Sam obviously doesn't rate Villanueva, seems a bit pointless putting him on the bench to be fair. Thought yesterday was the perfect sort of game for Matt Derbyshire, we needed some pace upfront to mix it up a little, and surely he'll be called back from his loan spell in Greece now.

We got lucky yesterday overall a below par performance but three vital points I'd take that over playing like world beaters and getting a draw any day.

Oh yeah and another thing, Bentley, Bentley how's the bench?

[gumboots]

Don't know how many times it's been said but derbyshire can't be recalled!