[Archived] Previous Game: Bristol City Easter Monday

[roversfan99]

Just now, chaddyrovers said:

We did mate. suggest you look at Mowbray post match comments on Rovers player. talk about the new system we play. Plus I have an excellent knowledge and experience of formations and tactics during my 25 years of watching football.

 

Based on recent matches, maybe you need to be in charge then, can't do much worse.

[RevidgeBlue]

Just now, chaddyrovers said:

really?

suggest you come to a game listen for yourselves. Fans get behind the team at times but not all the time.

Maybe come and sat next to me, I was shouting encouragement comments and few shouts of swearing during today game. My passion was there.

I aint going to listened to the quiet Bristol City fans who were silent all game apart from when they scored

well suggest you listened to Mowbray and what he says. Sensible and very calm comments

I thought the atmosphere was exceptionally flat today chaddy I don't blame the fans for that one bit bearing in mind we did exactly the same as we did against Barnsley and conceded a catastrophic early goal.

After Gallagher scored out of absolutely nowhere it was obviously very good for the last 15 mins atmosphere wise.

[Waggy76]

1 hour ago, Tom said:

Zola just quit so that may see Brum over the line 

Oh dear !

[G Somerset Rover]

Just now, chaddyrovers said:

We did mate. suggest you look at Mowbray post match comments on Rovers player. talk about the new system we play. Plus I have an excellent knowledge and experience of formations and tactics during my 25 years of watching football.

 

Another one in a long line of talkers is Tony. If he was half as good as many say on here, he wouldn't have to change formations and personnel every week at half time. God knows what was going through his head given the way he set us up today.

Huge improvement needed for Wolves; he should have gone with today's line up for this match. We should have been going 'for the throat' from the off today.

[RV Blue]

Just now, chaddyrovers said:

Plus I have an excellent knowledge and experience of formations and tactics during my 25 years of watching football.

 

Chaddy for manager?

[Mike Graham]

Just now, RV Blue said:

Chaddy for manager?

Actually I prefer Chaddy to TM, Coyley and Bowyer,

[RV Blue]

Just now, preston blue said:

Actually I prefer Chaddy to TM, Coyley and Bowyer,

Can't disagree.

[Stuart]

Just now, RevidgeBlue said:

So just out of interest were you simoly drunk the night you unfairly kicked off about Mowbray when he only got a point away at Burton in his first match? Lol.

Not unfairly at all. Those two points dropped - in what I still believe was a must win game - would see our future in our hands right now.

Mowbray has been a positive influence on this club simply by not being Coyle. If you look at it objectively, he hasn't done enough but I do think that over all it was a positive appointment. Would he have been my first choice? No.

His insistence on keeping Lowe - almost certainly due to the self-fulfilling 'experience' or at least games under his belt that Bowyer gave him. In part, I believe, out of his own self-interest and a need to demonstrate the fruits of his own labour. To overlook his own stable completely would have been bad for him.

But much as I don't rate Bowyer as a manager, I would not call him our worst manager since Kean. Likewise with Mowbray.

Does your eagerness to defend RV's utterly ridiculous assertion mean that you agree with him, or just wanted to take a shot at me?

[RevidgeBlue]

Just now, chaddyrovers said:

We did mate. suggest you look at Mowbray post match comments on Rovers player. talk about the new system we play. Plus I have an excellent knowledge and experience of formations and tactics during my 25 years of watching football.

 

Blimey chaddy you do leave yourself open to ridicule at times.

Tactics can sometimes make a difference but I don't think it really matters what fancy formation you play if you're not up for it.

And for 75 mins today we weren't.

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, tugayislegend said:

I think after the shambles of the barnsley game, TM wanted to pick players who were at least bothered for the cause, players that would put a shift in, hence why he dropped Guthrie and emnes for forest game, which was understandable, but for this home game both guthrie n emnes should have started.

Can't agree with that, and you're only speaking with hindsight.

If TM gave a few hungrier players a chance last time out, and it worked, what message does it send to them if he just drops them again? If players earn a shot in the starting XI, then they deserve to have it.

Of course, the match just gone will probably mean that the starting XI will now change for the next match!

[Stuart]

Just now, chaddyrovers said:

Plus I have an excellent knowledge and experience of formations and tactics during my 25 years of watching football.

No, what you have is the basis for an opinion. You do not have knowledge and experience unless you have studied and worked with them.

[Hasta]

Even after we scored we just huffed and puffed and tried to take advantage of a bit of Bristol City panic.

What  today confirmed to me is how bad a group of footballers we have.  Emnes aside, the squad is void of touch, technique and football intelligence.

[RevidgeBlue]

Just now, Stuart said:

Not unfairly at all. Those two points dropped - in what I still believe was a must win game - would see our future in our hands right now.

Mowbray has been a positive influence on this club simply by not being Coyle. If you look at it objectively, he hasn't done enough but I do think that over all it was a positive appointment. Would he have been my first choice? No.

His insistence on keeping Lowe - almost certainly due to the self-fulfilling 'experience' or at least games under his belt that Bowyer gave him. In part, I believe, out of his own self-interest and a need to demonstrate the fruits of his own labour. To overlook his own stable completely would have been bad for him.

But much as I don't rate Bowyer as a manager, I would not call him our worst manager since Kean. Likewise with Mowbray.

Does your eagerness to defend RV's utterly ridiculous assertion mean that you agree with him, or just wanted to take a shot at me?

Touchy. You were the one who laced into TM after one game not me .Now you seem to be performing a complete about turn and defending him.

I wouldn't go as far as RV that he's the worst manager we've had apart from Kean, neither do I see him as being progressice enough to take us forward next season either though.

[MarkBRFC71]

Just now, Stuart said:

No, what you have is the basis for an opinion. You do not have knowledge and experience unless you have studied and worked with them.

He has.  On FIFA

[Gav]

How anyone can blame the manager is beyond me, you've obviously never had any experience of managing people

If the players  are sh1t, they're sh1t, simple as that.

The only way to improve is to get rid of the players, been saying it for years now, its obviously taking time for a few to catch on.

[Mike Graham]

Just now, Hasta said:

Even after we scored we just huffed and puffed and tried to take advantage of a bit of Bristol City panic.

What  today confirmed to me is how bad a group of footballers we have.  Emnes aside, the squad is void of touch, technique and football intelligence.

Exactly Hasta.  Sadly spot on.

[blueboy3333]

Mowbray takes the blame for that debacle today. That 1st half was one of the most gutless 45 minutes I've ever seen from a Rovers side. We are at home, desperate for 3 points and Mowbray decides it would be a good idea to play nearly everybody out of position, 20 yards too deep and with no actual plan to get up the pitch. We essentially played like the away side...if we were playing Real Madrid. It had to be seen to be believed, Cowards football.

And what kind of formation was it? 5-4-1 when we didn't have the ball and some weird deformed Christmas tree when we did. Who plays Feeney in the no.10 role? Even worse who plays him on the left side of the two no.10's?  He can't play football, he hasn't the intelligence to play there and he's no left foot so when he did drift wide he couldn't cross it. And Mahoney was no better, he's not a no.10.

The worst crime of all was the play was so spread out Gally was totally isolated. Mowbray actually set up to play through the midfield...with Lowe and Akpan in charge of moving the ball round quickly  Frig me! Neither of em can pass a ball even when they've got time! Bristol City's manager must have been spent the 1st 45 minutes trying not to @#/? himself laughing. Their goal was just the icing on a very big piece of @#/? cake.

And all the while ToMo just wandered round the technical area with his hands in his pockets, staring at the floor. Apart from when he took them out to hold his head in abject despair. Inspiring stuff.

Second half we actually brought some footballers on and played in their half.,,although hilariously Mowbray initially put Conway central behind the striker in a brand new 4-2-3-1 formation. He thankfully went to left-back when Emnes came on and lo and behold he made some runs down the wing and we finally started getting in behind Brizzle.  Who'd have thought!? Emnes and Jaoa started running at their defence and surprise surprise one of the shitest teams away from home in the league started panicking. Gally finally had some support and should have had a nailed-on penalty. They killed the game in the last 10 by feigning injury at every turn and a dreadful ref just let them.   

Raya - 8 -played well, looked assured, one excellent reflex save in the 2nd half. Not seen the goal again so not sure if he made it too easy for Colonel Abraham.

Nyambe - 5 - Looked a bit lost and got bullied off the ball on a couple of occasions. No worse than the other two CB's. Subbed on 45 when we went to a flat back four.

Ward - 6 - Slow and unfit but held the makeshift defence together. Won a lot of headers 2nd half.

Hoban - 6 - Didn't really look comfortable in a back three and kept giving needless fouls away.Looked better Like Ward he looked better 2nd half.

Williams - 5 - Not a wing-back so offered nothing going forward. Why play him as one? Poor passing. Defended ok.

Bennett - 7 - passed one straight out of play in front of the Riverside which caused some howls of anguish but one of the better outfield players overall. Again, not a wing-back but stuck to his task and got us out of the shyte a few times in the 2nd half when they threatened on the counter. Think it was his cross for the goal. Should have played further forward.

Mahoney - 6 - Improved in the 2nd half when he was hugging the touchline. Kept losing ball 1st half and looked lost and weak in the middle of the park. Worked hard and did a lot of tracking back 2nd half but Mowbray ruined him in the first 45. 

Lowe - 6 - No worse than anyone else but he's just limited. Put a lot of effort in and was one of the few to whom it looked like it meant something. Did a bit of Savage-esque harrying in the 2nd half and kept the ball moving out wide. Nearly scored with a decent effort. Singled out for abuse by the usual numpties when he got MotM but in truth he was one of the better performers. Which says a lot about the quality of the team/performance.   

Akpan - 5 - Again, very limited. Like Lowe was asked to do a job he just can't do i.e, move the ball about quickly and find angles with his passes. Mowbray set up like Barca with a League 1 standard central midfield. Improved 2nd half when we got the ball forward quicker. 

Feeney - 4 - played out of position and rightly only lasted till HT. Utterlk stupid decision to play him left-central, like playing Windy Miller there. Feeney has pace and a half decent right foot cross. That's it. Only a numpty would put him where Deli Ali/ Coutinho normally play  

Gallagher - 7 - completely isolated first half with zero service. Improved 2nd half when he had people round him and scored a cracking header. Not sure why he's called lazy cos he always seems to work hard. Should have had a penalty.

Subs 

Emnes, Joao & Conway changed the game, simply because they can play football. We started overloading the left side and getting in behind their defence. It also gave Mahoney more room on the other side. 

The ref - absolute shocker and wouldn't be surprised if his dad was in The Wurzels. 

Mowbray - On a par with the ref. Too defensive and too clever by half, playing a nonsense complicated system with players who hadn't a clue what they were doing, and others who couldn't do what he was asking. 

Brizzle - Poor. Had a few midfielders who were comfortable on the ball and played a few nice triangles, and Abraham up front who can play a bit, but they were there for the taking. They went into panic mode when we actually decided to apply some pressure for a ten minute spell in the 2nd half.  They'll stay up because they've actually showed some balls at home and attacked teams and won so fair play to them.   

Decent crowd, bored to tears for 70 minutes. 

@#/? off

[roverandout]

4 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

We did mate. suggest you look at Mowbray post match comments on Rovers player. talk about the new system we play. Plus I have an excellent knowledge and experience of formations and tactics during my 25 years of watching football.

 

I have been watching porn for the last 25 years.. doesnt make me a porn magnate

[Bigdoggsteel]

They seem incapable of handling the pressure and winning when needed, particularly at home. 

I'm worried. Time is running out. Two wins would see us scrape it I think. Can we get them? So many lost opportunities this season. Today included. 

[Stuart]

Just now, RevidgeBlue said:

Touchy. You were the one who laced into TM after one game not me .Now you seem to be performing a complete about turn and defending him.

I wouldn't go as far as RV that he's the worst manager we've had apart from Kean, neither do I see him as being progressice enough to take us forward next season either though.

Let's have it right. I was against Mowbray on hearing of his appointment. Right now we are still favourites for relegation 15 or so games later. A 'complete about turn' is again not true. He has been a positive influence. I was merely against the quite incredible assertion that TM is our worst manager since Kean.

Mowbray is coming to the end of his career. He will be the master to Dunn's apprentice. He's had a go with Oldham. He's cut his teeth with the U23s although I'm more inclined to credit Johnson. He's cutting his teeth now with a wise old manager and probably gaining great experience. I'm far from pleased with the idea but you never know. If Dunn was to prove to have something about him and learn from his mistakes and his tuition then he could be a good 'un. I guess the days of us picking up young managers who have served their time were over before they really began and had more failures than successes. A homegrown manager who cares about the club? Let's not rule it out completely just because he's happy to eat Venkys chicken and patronise us into getting real...

[RV Blue]

Just now, Gav said:

How anyone can blame the manager is beyond me, you've obviously never had any experience of managing people

If the players  are sh1t, they're sh1t, simple as that.

The only way to improve is to get rid of the players, been saying it for years now, its obviously taking time for a few to catch on.

Gav, you get every single thing wrong, you have the worst football knowledge I have ever seen. Did you go today? If you did, you will have seen that the way the manager set us up was embarrassing, and totally clueless. I said 10 minutes in that them scoring was only a matter of time, and lo and behold, they score minutes later. The team isn't any worse (or better) than the majority of teams in this division, the problem is that we've had 2 sh1t managers in charge. Do you really think we have a worse squad that Bristol City, because I definitely don't. They are safe now, we aren't.

[Bigdoggsteel]

Just now, roverandout said:

I have been watching porn for the last 25 years.. doesnt make me a porn magnate

No, but I know what it does make you

[grizfoot]

Bizarre that we started with what was effectively a 5-4-1 formation at home in a game we really needed to win. The first half was very sedate and we seemed to be playing it patiently around the back without ever really causing much of a threat going forward. To get that formation to work we really needed Feeney and Mahoney to link-up with Gallagher upfront to give him support. Instead he was left isolated and you have to say this tactical move by Mowbray totally back-fired. The goal conceded looked very poor to me as well. However we changed to a back four for the second half and things didn't improve at all, so maybe it more was the players performing badly rather than anything tactically. Although saying that the introduction of Emnes, and a complete turn around in formation to have effectively four upfront, with a quarter of the game to go did change things around and suddenly we caused a threat going forward. The subsequent equaliser from Gallagher with a Rudy-esque header did at least spark both the players and crowd into a little bit of an attacking surge towards the end of the game. On the balance of things though we should be grateful for the point, Bristol City will be kicking themselves for not taking all three points in a game in which they was clearly the better side. In a way I think the four points we've got in the last two games are more than we've merited and maybe we do deserve some credit for digging in and grinding out points in games when we haven't be on top in. For me we just have to play Emnes, whether it be upfront or out on the left wing he is by far our biggest attacking threat and couldn't understand why he didn't feature against Forest and wasn't brought on at half-time today. A draw isn't a calamity given how the other results have gone and does still keep us in touch with the other teams but you can't help thinking we blew a big chance today to lift ourselves out of the relegation zone. The worrying thing for me was the performance, keep playing like that and it's hard to see us getting the two wins we are likely going to need to stay up now.

[RevidgeBlue]

Just now, Gav said:

How anyone can blame the manager is beyond me, you've obviously never had any experience of managing people

If the players  are sh1t, they're sh1t, simple as that.

The only way to improve is to get rid of the players, been saying it for years now, its obviously taking time for a few to catch on.

We all know they're not the greatest players in the world Gav me old mucker.

All I expect is they look like they give a **** esapecially so when faced with an absolutely vital game. If they don't I place part of the responsibility for that at the managers door.

[den]

Just now, RevidgeBlue said:

We all know they're not the greatest players in the world Gav me old mucker.

All I expect is they look like they give a **** esapecially so when faced with an absolutely vital game. If they don't I place part of the responsibility for that at the managers door.

Yes, don't really disagree Rev, but a true pro wouldn't need any encouragement for these games. It's just another indication that they're not good enough IMO.