v Nottingham Forest (h) - 9/2/22

[RevidgeBlue]

1 hour ago, arbitro said:

The story is that Nyambe and his agent met with the Rovers hierarchy on Monday and the impasse continued with regard to the new contract so Mowbray dropped him. That is from an impeccable source. That in my view is nothing short of scandalous from Mowbray who weakened us before a ball was kicked. And to bring Hedges on ahead of Nyambe to play right back in a four told me everything about good guy Mowbray. 

Whilst we were on the good run we had eight or nine players playing well which was enough to get us over the line. Now we only have a handful playing well and it's really showing. Khadra, Buckley, Brereton, Rothwell, Giles, Lenihan, Van Hecke and Zeefuik were mediocre tonight. I really think we should have pushed the boat out in the recent window to kick on but we only improved the squad marginally and now I fear that we won't even make the playoffs. 

Best Post of the night imo.

I really don't see why there's a distinction in Mowbray's head between Nyambe and Zeefuick. So what if Nyambe has declined to sign a new deal thus far? You're not telling me there's the slightest chance Zeefuik will still be here next season either if we don't go up. There's no way imo we'd spend €3m on a RB when we don't even seem prepared to invest that on a goalscorer. And that's even assuming he'd be worth 3m. On what we've seen so far you'd struggle to pay 300k for him.

Secondly, if I were the owners I'd be fuming. They've generously agreed to forgo the chance of any fees for the 3 amigos so that Mowbray could have them at his disposal for the last 18 games to give us the best possible chance of promotion. Then, the manager won't play him! You simply couldn't make it up.

It's breaking my heart to see Mowbray wrecking our promotion chances by refusing to put our best eleven players out on the pitch - Khedra and Brereton last Saturday, Nyambe tonight. We will never get a better chance of automatic promotion than the one we've seemingly spurned due to a really poor window and the managers idiosyncrasies. And who knows when we'll be in a position to even challenge for the play offs again if a stream of our best players are constantly allowed to walk out for nothing.

Like Moyes last night it's Mowbray's job to put the best team possible out on the pitch for the football Club and leave personal feelings aside. I thought Moyes on balance was wrong but then again Nyambe hasn't really done anything wrong off the pitch and has always been impeccable on it so there's no comparison.

[USABlue]

2 hours ago, jim mk2 said:

Predicted a 2-0 defeat, only wish I'd put some money on.

 

ME TOO!

[Ghost7]

Our defenders are chasing opposition players deep into their half to commit fouls and pick up yellow cards. Is that discussed in training? Seems bizarre when there is no threat. It was happening a lot against Swansea too leaving the back line all over the place at times. Surely this is an alarm bell that something isn't working on the day and an extra tackler is needed in the middle i.e. Davenport or Johnson... or perhaps... a change in shape during a game Tony?

[yankfan]

In the end we are more of a challenger for playoffs than automatic promotion. We always knew it but we’re all hopeful we could be more. 

[Nuttall is lost]

Really poor performance.  Created nothing.  Sloppy passing. 

Looks like teams have worked Blackburn out.    Forest sat back tonight which stopped counter attacks knowing Rovers weren't going to break them down.  In fact it was Forest who played the counter attacks.

 

[Fraserkirky]

Need to change something. 
Both Giles and Zeefuik where terrible tonight, you need your wing backs to get further up the pitch but the three Centre halfs tonight were sleeping and couldn’t get close to Davis in particular. Don’t even get me started about the space between the forwards and Travis and Rothwell, acres tonight. 
Buckley and Khadra are both playing out of position. A 4-4-2 and flinging balls into Gallagher and Brereton is a better plan than what we are seeing right now.

Imagine if we had signed that Kieran Davis lad they’ve got, I thought he was terrific, and exactly the type of player we needed in Jan.

Edited February 10, 2022 by Fraserkirky

[martonrover]

5 hours ago, garnersfags said:

Not sure it's that simple, we had 2 centre forwards on for the last 20 min, and still didn't trouble the keeper...

We needed to bring one in who could hit the ground running and take the pressure off Diaz.

There isn't enough goals in the rest of the team, for sure, which is becoming a huge problem.

[JohnD]

We certainly didn't play well but I thought Forest looked good and perhaps the best team I've seen apart from Fulham.

I don't see that as an excuse for our utterly undisciplined performance.

[davulsukur]

7 hours ago, Gavlar Somerset Rover! said:

February record since promotion from League One is: P20 W2 D6 L12

Jesus.

4 more losses coming up then. Just the right amount to see us drop out of the playoffs altogether.

[neophox]

Cant say I was Impressed by Giles or Zeefuick. Hopefully both Pickering and Nyambe are back on monday. Ayala should come in for Lenihan and maybe I´d put Rothwell in the 9 role with Buckley and Travis in the middle and a start for Gally with Brereton.

 

Kaminski

Nyambe, Van Hecke, Ayala, Wharton, Pickering

Travis, Buckley

Rothwell

Gallagher, Brereton

 

[arbitro]

I have just seen the Lenihan sending off again and how stupid was he. A complete dereliction of duty by a captain. And how easily were he and Travis for their first goal? Davies is a big, strong lad but how he outmuscled them both and left them in his wake was embarrassing. 

When we went on that really good run confidence was high but over the last few games that has ebbed away and I'm afraid Mowbray just isn't a manager to restore that.

[arealbrfcfan]

We've been off since just before Christmas. The Wigan game was the warning alarm and we carried that perfomance on. We've had countless chances to put away goals and not taken them, right on centre stage for sky.

Probably punching being 2nd but we're still having the best season in about 10 years. If we have a slump so what, so did AFC Bournmouth. He's squandered the best chance he's had in years with the autos and we could've strengthened in a good way and bought a striker but guess what? everyone else strengthened and Stoke bought the striker we had eyes on. Poor. But let's snooze and see what March onwards brings.

[arealbrfcfan]

What's Lenihan doing lately? so wreckless

[1864roverite]

First half was abysmal at best, Rovers were just not in the game.

My observations - defeat is costly.

Mowbray got the team selection totally wrong from the off.

Buckley - as good as he is/can be has cost us 6 points over two games with lazy finishing and a laid back attitude. His frustration is a worry as he ends up getting booked, costing us possession where invariably we concede.

Captain numb nuts - stupid challenge and again, a costly sending off.

Cant fault the second half efforts with 10 men, but what it showed was Forest carved through us with ease, even with 11 on the pitch and emphasised the short fall in Mowbrays selection. Injuries are now taking its toll and the season is ending in a whimper of this carries on.

Finally - Ref? what a fooking joke of a ref, unfit and did not control the game.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

The whole match revolved around Buckley's missed chance - score and Forest have to come out of their defensive shell (and stop time wasting).

I would love to see the stats for other teams in the Championship - but I do get the impression that the first goal is absolutely crucial - it definitely is for Rovers. As many have said, years after being in the job and moulding this team, TM still doesn't have an effective option when we concede first, other than chucking on forwards (which to be honest isn't always effective - as sometimes building in the pressure on the opposition by keeping them penned in can be just as effective rather than going gung ho (which seems to be TM Plan B).

[Guest]

Don’t care if he’s on one leg, get Dack in from the off Monday.

[superniko]

9 hours ago, Exiled_Rover said:

I don't know what a stonewall penalty is anymore as we simply don't get them regardless. 

In fairness, that’s the first penalty we’ve conceded all season, whereas we’ve been given 4 ourselves. 

[alcd]

Rovers are a mid-table team which had a purple patch - against some of the weakest teams such as Pboro/Brum- and is now "reverting to the mean". Time is up for Mowbray. 

[Bigdoggsteel]

Tough one. Small margins and you can't miss a chance like Buckley and complain if you lose. He has to be hitting the back of the net there. 

The wing backs were dreadful. Compare and contrast with Pickering and Nyambe when we were doing well. They seemed very nervous. Strange Nyambe wasn't even brought on, that surprised me 

Khadra is a headless chicken. 99% flicks runs and tricks. 1% end product. Brereton was poor, more complaining than playing. 

Wreckless by lenihan. I could see it coming and said it to my friend at half time. They just couldn't handle Davies. Are his yellows reset now? Luckily we have Ayala who you could argue is a better player. 

Rothwell done my head in. Non existent for so much of the game when we needed him. The chance he tried to cross to Brereton, he had to be taking that on himself. Not far off Buckley's miss imo. 

Need to dig out a 0-1 win at the weekend 

Edited February 10, 2022 by Bigdoggsteel

[Bigdoggsteel]

Just now, alcd said:

Rovers are a mid-table team which had a purple patch - against some of the weakest teams such as Pboro/Brum- and is now "reverting to the mean". Time is up for Mowbray. 

This kind of throw in the towel nonsense is disappointing to see, but not surprising. 

We are on a bad run, but we can turn that around. A lot of players close to returning too 

[Bigdoggsteel]

12 hours ago, Dan said:

If he hadn't just missed the free kick I’d be thinking he’s still in sunny Bournemouth. 

Ya, he argued about taking it and then predictably hit it straight at the wall. 

Thinks he's better than he is. Then the one chance he should have scored he shirked the responsibility and crossed for Brereton 

[Exiled in Toronto]

So much to get frustrated about last night. Totally undisciplined at the back, though I suspect we should give some credit to Forest’s manager for that: suck Lenihan forward then you are only facing two kids. Lenihan’s two yellows were totally unnecessary yet he didn’t take the yellow he should’ve done when miles out of position for their first.

Buckleys two missed sitters were both side footers leaning back - maybe he can do those in training but most pros can’t and just focus on power on target. Do the basics before the Brazil stuff.

I don’t know what Rothwell thinks he’s doing keep taking it off the centre backs and making easy sideways passes to the wingbacks - that’s last year’s mode plus all three of our CBS can hit really good forward passes. Mind, when he gets forward he all too often makes a bad choice because he’s a head down player in the final third.

Brereton has had so few touches this year, Khadra hot and cold, Gallagher a willing workhorse but with more donkey than thoroughbred genes, all put to shame by Dolan’s directness and willingness to shoot.

And the manager’s choices beggared belief.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

9 hours ago, Mercer said:

Certainly no karate kick (Cantona on the Palace fan was a karate kick) and going for the ball.  IMO, Lenihan feigned a kick in the head and I doubt the ref would even have booked Manning if he hadn't, IMO, been 'conned' into thinking Lenihan had suffered a head injury - without Lenihan's theatrics, think ref would have seen it as a coming together of two players as they went for the ball. 

I think the lad would have got a second yellow card no matter what Lenihan did.. His foot was chest high. It was really embarrassing to see Lenihan make a meal of it though. I’d have a panel that reviewed all footage of games. In the event of faking an injury like that I’d suspend the player involved for a couple of games. You’d soon stop it then.

Edited February 10, 2022 by Tyrone Shoelaces

[Angry_Pirate]

Call me negative, but I put £10 on a Swansea - Forest - WBA treble. 

It is February afterall.

[Wheelton Blue]

1 hour ago, neophox said:

Cant say I was Impressed by Giles or Zeefuick. Hopefully both Pickering and Nyambe are back on monday. Ayala should come in for Lenihan and maybe I´d put Rothwell in the 9 role with Buckley and Travis in the middle and a start for Gally with Brereton.

 

Kaminski

Nyambe, Van Hecke, Ayala, Wharton, Pickering

Travis, Buckley

Rothwell

Gallagher, Brereton

 

I've thought on similar lines.

Ayalya will likely add stability and organisation to the back 3. We've certainly missed Pickering. Dropping Nyambe was unfathomable.

As for Buckley, I'm not sure what his natural position actually is. He's not got the scoring instinct needed as a forward player, he was poor as a wing/full back, and I think he's too weak to sit in the centre. So where does that leave him?

As good as he is on the eye at times with his passing, I currently don't see him stepping up.