v Nottingham Forest (a) 18/8/21

[islander200]

2 minutes ago, CambridgeRover said:

As other posters have said, a small squad and consistency might be key. Didn't the dingles get promoted whilst doing something similar 

Yes but we would be reliant on not facing the injury issues we had last season.

Don't think all the 12 that departed need replacing be we do need another 4 or 5 being brought in.

[Polky]

A great three points!

Fair play to this group of players, they seem to really be together. I’m glad that Daniel Ayala is proving me and most of our fanbase wrong, just hope he bloody stays fit! 
 

Roll on Saturday…COYB! 

[Stonesrick]

On 16/08/2021 at 22:36, Stonesrick said:

Feel we may nick this one 2-1, Ayala and Gallagher.

Well I was pretty close. 9/10 seems about right?

[RevidgeBlue]

Great win, especially seeing as I thought the three that started up front were all fairly poor.

Carter, Ayala, Rothwell and Buckley were all very good I thought. Chapman also impressive after coming on as sub. A wide man in his natural position posing a threat and providing an outlet. Fancy that

Carter in particular did all that could be asked of him and yet again when we've asked one of our own youngsters to step up the world hasn't caved in and he's shown he's up to the job. No way whatsoever should he be going out on loan.

At this stage of the season, before injuries bite, we seem to be benefitting from Mowbray only having 11 or 12 outfield players to choose from.

Still think we badly need a decent permanent replacement for Armstrong though.

[Dolly blue]

Couldn’t stand Mowbray before tonight….still can’t ….but that’s 3 great points for our club …well done the boys in the shirts, and well done all who travelled.

[Fraserkirky]

Same back four for Saturday.

Nice to have proper couple of blokes in the middle of defense. 

Rothwell, Travis and Buckley seem to be getting results. 

Up top Dolan has to come off, either new signing or Butterworth/Chappers to get a start.

[CambridgeRover]

3 minutes ago, islander200 said:

Yes but we would be reliant on not facing the injury issues we had last season.

Don't think all the 12 that departed need replacing be we do need another 4 or 5 being brought in.

4 or 5? I could see a striker and a winger and a fullback but no more than that

[Wood26]

22 minutes ago, JPTSwindon said:

Ground out a good win 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Some really good performances from a number of players benefiting from a run of games, and fair play to Chapman who took his chance tonight.

As I’ve mentioned before I think in part the smaller squad has helped on two fronts:

• Less squad rotation so players have settled into their respective roles
• Less reliance on loan players who aren’t as invested in the club

A positive start to the season.

Two potential hurdles:

• TM might put Ayala and Lenihan upfront on Saturday.
• WBA look very good.

I know it’s light hearted, but this forum would be more enjoyable with out the constant digs at Mowbray.

I was ready for him to go after last season, because with the squad we had the final position wasn’t good enough.

Bit give the man his credit when it’s due. He was ridiculed for saying we need our goals to come from elsewhere like our CB now Armstrong gone, and what happened tonight? They both scored.

Ayala his signing who is ridiculed because he’s from Boro, has been Superb first 3 games. It was frustrating he was out last season, and he’s prone to it, but if managed and kept fit is one of best defenders in league.

A surprise win, especially when it went 1-1. WBA look so good I don’t expect much from that Saturday but let’s give it a go!

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

7 points away from relegation. Taking nothing away from the effort the team are putting in - we have beaten 2 average teams, and got out of jail with our only shot on target in the other. 

Having said that, confidence is a huge thing in football - just need a bit of luck at the weekend.

[islander200]

10 minutes ago, CambridgeRover said:

4 or 5? I could see a striker and a winger and a fullback but no more than that

We will use our loans and a permanent striker will be brought in imo 

We need a left sided centre half if we are going to be playing 3 at the back at times this season

 

Edited August 18, 2021 by islander200

[IrelandsRover]

7 minutes ago, Wood26 said:

I know it’s light hearted, but this forum would be more enjoyable with out the constant digs at Mowbray.

I was ready for him to go after last season, because with the squad we had the final position wasn’t good enough.

Bit give the man his credit when it’s due. He was ridiculed for saying we need our goals to come from elsewhere like our CB now Armstrong gone, and what happened tonight? They both scored.

Ayala his signing who is ridiculed because he’s from Boro, has been Superb first 3 games. It was frustrating he was out last season, and he’s prone to it, but if managed and kept fit is one of best defenders in league.

A surprise win, especially when it went 1-1. WBA look so good I don’t expect much from that Saturday but let’s give it a go!

Agree with this, the constant berating of Mowbray isnt enjoyable

[RoverDom]

Hope they've stocked up tissues, that puts us in 6th, we're going to be having mass nosebleeds tomorrow. 

[Riversider28]

Carry On Cruising boys. 

[Miller11]

Well deserved three points which we fought hard for. Can’t fault anyone’s efforts tonight, though the centre backs and Travis deserve special praise. We weren’t ever really seriously troubled after we’d settled, disappointing goal conceded aside.

Chapman with an impressive display, and maybe he can be a worthwhile part of the team going forward. Really enjoyed seeing us actually attack the ball from set pieces.

I’ve got a slight worry that a massive influx of loanees might disrupt things a bit. This core of players are good, and most have room to improve and develop too. We’ve also got some quality to come back from injuries.

Another quick one on the game, I felt the ref that supposedly hates us was pretty generous for the free kick for our second, and I’d have been livid if one of ours had received a booking for that.

Credit to Mowbray tonight. Made some big calls and got them right… just switch Gallagher and Dolan round in future!

Edited August 18, 2021 by Miller11

[Guest]

23 minutes ago, islander200 said:

And some are hell bent on never giving him any credit .

Did you give him credit in the Swansea game?Any credit for the wonderful pass which led to our opening goal.

He played alright tonight notthing special but not awful either which you seem intent on making out , his finishing was poor but he isn't the first player in the world to miss a couple of chances.He is getting into good positions

Agreed. Buckley's never been billed by anyone as a goalscorer. He has his traits and his plus points, he also has his limitations, and in a rotation with Leighton Clarkson I think he can have a very solid season for us.

[Darrenbot]

I think the smaller squad has helped Mowbrays management style,much less players to mess with the starting lineup game after game and with subs back down to 3 a game instead of 5 he has to think about them more rather than just chucking 4 on all at once like he was doing last season.

[yankfan]

Hard not to get excited about this start as we’ve looked the better side in 2 of 3 and were well organized in the Millwall game. Ayala in the back is a difference maker for us. 
 

with that said we’ve take 7 of 9 against sides that only have taken 3 of 27.  The weekend will be a real test as WBA look to be the class of the division. 

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, yankfan said:

The weekend will be a real test as WBA look to be the class of the division. 

Just really hope everyone can be patient. West Brom will win this division at a canter this season so hopefully even if we do come away with 0 points we can still get behind the lads. 

They won't like our high pressing game though, and they'll want to play with the ball which suits us big time right now.

[jim mk2]

5 minutes ago, Darrenbot said:

I think the smaller squad has helped Mowbrays management style,much less players to mess with the starting lineup game after game and with subs back down to 3 a game instead of 5 he has to think about them more rather than just chucking 4 on all at once like he was doing last season.

There's something in this

The departure of so many players has forced Mowbray to pick and stick with the limited number players that are left. 

He still gets it wrong though. Dolan is not a centre forward and Gallagher needs to play in his natural position 

 

[Miller11]

4 minutes ago, JoeH said:

Agreed. Buckley's never been billed by anyone as a goalscorer. He has his traits and his plus points, he also has his limitations, and in a rotation with Leighton Clarkson I think he can have a very solid season for us.

Buckley should’ve scored today, but I’m encouraged by the fact he seems to get into decent shooting opportunities. If he keeps doing that, a goal will come. If he scores a single goal this season that’ll be more than Trybull, Downing, Travis and Evans managed between them last year. He’s clearly worked on the physical side of things lately, and you can see the difference.

The stick he gets from some is bizarre to me. 

[1864roverite]

28 minutes ago, DavidMailsTightPerm said:

7 points away from relegation. Taking nothing away from the effort the team are putting in - we have beaten 2 average teams, and got out of jail with our only shot on target in the other. 

Having said that, confidence is a huge thing in football - just need a bit of luck at the weekend.

You can only beat what’s in front of you.

Also 6 points from games that we lost last season shows improvement if you ask me.

Edited August 18, 2021 by 1864roverite

[magicalmortensleftpeg]

Great result. Travis, Carter and Ayala were very impressive. Buckley was everywhere and tidy in possession. Unconvinced by Dolan but he serves a purpose. As some have said, limited options seems to be working for us. We don’t have enough quality in the final third yet but there’s a grit about this team that we haven’t seen in a while. Important to get some set piece goals as well.

Cant fault this start, best in years. No expectations for WBA but this has been surprisingly positive. Let’s see how long it can last.

[Wood26]

2 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

There's something in this

The departure of so many players has forced Mowbray to pick and stick with the limited number players that are left. 

He still gets it wrong though. Dolan is not a centre forward and Gallagher needs to play in his natural position 

 

You would be correct about Dolan, if our plan was to have Dolan cross it in box and Gallagher just try head it in. But that’s not the tactics, cos Dolan can’t cross and Gallagher can’t head it.

The front free works the way it’s meant to for what we have. Dolan worked wonders against Swansea, not against Millwall so Was subbed.

So again, our lack of players isn’t why we have started well. The players playing are Mowbray players, and although some fans wrote off all these players (including Armstrong) they are now at the age and stage where Mowbray wanted them for.

If only we had Chris Houghton aye! We would be in Premier League.

[magicalmortensleftpeg]

27 minutes ago, DavidMailsTightPerm said:

7 points away from relegation. Taking nothing away from the effort the team are putting in - we have beaten 2 average teams, and got out of jail with our only shot on target in the other. 

Having said that, confidence is a huge thing in football - just need a bit of luck at the weekend.

 If we beat all the average teams, what does that make us..?

[jim mk2]

I was watching Brereton tonight. 

He's not going to play well every game but even he's not on form I wish he would gets the basics right, such as using his physique to keep possession of the ball with his back to goal and making simple passes to a Rovers player instead of the opposition

If he could get the basics right I'm sure the rest of his game would fall into place too

The lad has ability but he frustrates the life out of me