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

[Butty]

Well February is never a good month for us we all know that. Luckily for us we’ve already got plenty of points on the board so hopefully once we get this month out the way we can finish the season strong and stay in the top six and go into the playoffs bang in form which is always crucial. Keep the faith for now ladies and gents 👍🏻

[Mercer]

7 minutes ago, tomphil said:

Secondly and even more infuriating the officials !!!  Absolutely dire how many times does this have to happen ?  Sadly i think we have a bit of a reputation now for being fiesty and shithousery. They are all too quick to blow the whistle against Rovers every time there is a coming together on the pitch. We don't help this though as we do give away far far too many needless niggles being competitive is one thing but stupid is another.

You reap what you sow!

Think you are right, we are making a rod for our own backs.

IMO, Lenihan's feigning to get the Swansea lad sent off was unforgiveable - referees will have duly noted.

To me, Travis always seems like he's after a fight, goading opponents and trying to get them to retaliate and get sent off.  The lad needs to concentrate on his own game only.

I also think we have too many theatricals with our players going down far too easily trying to win fouls, penalties and even getting opponents booked or sent off.

All unnecessary and it just comes back and bites you on the bum.

 

[Mercer]

12 minutes ago, Exiled_Rover said:

The Swansea lad karate kicked him in the torso. Nothing unfair about that second yellow card. 

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. 

[den]

The effort and sheer work rate of the players in the second half tonight was absolutely tremendous. We have to say that.

The weakness though - and it’s a huge weakness, is that there’s a big gaping hole where a centre forward should be. So while we run at them and get players out wide, their centre halves just aren’t tested. They really aren’t put under pressure. All our play is in areas that don’t hurt the opposition. 
 

Mowbray somehow has to address that otherwise the season is going to end under a depression.

[Butty]

8 minutes ago, Mercer said:

You reap what you sow!

Think you are right, we are making a rod for our own backs.

IMO, Lenihan's feigning to get the Swansea lad sent off was unforgiveable - referees will have duly noted.

To me, Travis always seems like he's after a fight, goading opponents and trying to get them to retaliate and get sent off.  The lad needs to concentrate on his own game only.

I also think we have too many theatricals with our players going down far too easily trying to win fouls, penalties and even getting opponents booked or sent off.

All unnecessary and it just comes back and bites you on the bum.

 

Speaking of coming back and biting you on the arse Merce nice to see you jinxed another Rovers win with your raging gambling problem. 😉 Win it back against the Baggies. 

[G Somerset Rover]

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

[roverblue]

The poor run continues, not sure if it’s due to a drop in our own performances or other teams just working us out. Probably a bit of both!

Time for Buckley to have a rest looked really off it last few games. Same with Brereton and Khadra just but nobody to really come in for them.

Think we will ultimately slide into mid table which is where the squad belongs. There is still some slim hope if we can string a couple of wins together but needs a massive turnaround in form we haven’t looked like scoring since the Huddersfield game at Xmas.

[garnersfags]

37 minutes ago, Miller11 said:

Not surprised Mowbray dropped Nyambe, called it. Not surprised it cost us either.

Lenihan completely lost his head long before he picked up that stupid second yellow. At one point he was screaming at Zeefuik in front of the Jack Walker stand and I wouldn’t have been surprised to see him leather him if he’d been stood closer. 

Travis was decent until he decided to basically give up on anything to do with the ball and focus all his efforts in trying to get their players sent off and commit sneaky fouls.

That miss from Buckley is a fucking disgrace.

Really pissed off with that tonight. For the second game in a row, Mowbray has hamstrung us by making unenforced changes.

Hoping Dack can come back and rescue our season at this point.

I agree with all of this, however whilst TM insists on destabilising our brilliant back 5, it doesn't matter who plays further forward. 

Usually I can see some hope from somewhere, but we are just sooooo ineffective in the final third, it's painful to watch, tho I suppose I could see the creative interplay between Dack, Rothwell and Buckley unlocking a few stubborn defences. 

In fact, yes, that is cause for cautious optimism, on a dark, disappointing night.

Sleep now, tomorrow's another day....

[tomphil]

9 minutes ago, Mercer said:

You reap what you sow!

Think you are right, we are making a rod for our own backs.

IMO, Lenihan's feigning to get the Swansea lad sent off was unforgiveable - referees will have duly noted.

To me, Travis always seems like he's after a fight, goading opponents and trying to get them to retaliate and get sent off.  The lad needs to concentrate on his own game only.

I also think we have too many theatricals with our players going down far too easily trying to win fouls, penalties and even getting opponents booked or sent off.

All unnecessary and it just comes back and bites you on the bum.

 

Yes the manager needs to reel them in a bit from all that stuff it's getting out of hand. We can be competitive without being so blatantly pushing the rules all the time. 

On the other side of the coin refs need to also accept the youth of this side and expect them to be a bit raw so a few early tellings off might help. Instead they are running around with whistle permanently in lips looking to blow against us.

[jim mk2]

4 minutes ago, Gavlar Somerset Rover! said:

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

 

Tony's seasonally-depressed Rovers. It's certainly depressing me

I'm dreading the West Brom match and Steve Bruce's first win at home

Anyone want 3 free tickets?  

I don't see why fans are pinning their hopes on Dack. He's hardly played in 3 years, he'll never be as good again. 

Edited February 9, 2022 by jim mk2

[garnersfags]

3 minutes ago, den said:

The effort and sheer work rate of the players in the second half tonight was absolutely tremendous. We have to say that.

The weakness though - and it’s a huge weakness, is that there’s a big gaping hole where a centre forward should be. So while we run at them and get players out wide, their centre halves just aren’t tested. They really aren’t put under pressure. All our play is in areas that don’t hurt the opposition.

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

[garnersfags]

17 minutes ago, Butty said:

Well February is never a good month for us we all know that. Luckily for us we’ve already got plenty of points on the board so hopefully once we get this month out the way we can finish the season strong and stay in the top six and go into the playoffs bang in form which is always crucial. Keep the faith for now ladies and gents 👍🏻

This is the only way to look at it, but v difficult at the mo, although thanks for making me smile and start to put the frustration into perspective. 

[Mercer]

5 minutes ago, Butty said:

Speaking of coming back and biting you on the arse Merce nice to see you jinxed another Rovers win with your raging gambling problem. 😉 Win it back against the Baggies. 

Good job I won a bob or two when Rovers were rocking!

WBA are a mess.  We go there, get an early goal and they could fold.  Bruce not a popular appointment and their fans could implode.

Will keep my powder dry until I see who's fit and what team comes out of Tony's tombola!

[tomphil]

5 minutes ago, Gavlar Somerset Rover! said:

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

It just cannot all be coincidence at all i think the constant failure to address the real weaknesses in Jan windows is a big issue with this manager. Yes we don't have a lot of money but we do usually have backing to do something but it's that something that isn't usually the right thing.

We are over achieving but that doesn't create a god given free pass to blow it we got there on merit in the first place. Failure to kick on having been able to bring in 4 and not lose any is just failure and the end of the day.

[Butty]

Just now, Mercer said:

Good job I won a bob or two when Rovers were rocking!

WBA are a mess.  We go there, get an early goal and they could fold.  Bruce not a popular appointment and their fans could implode.

Will keep my powder dry until I see who's fit and what team comes out of Tony's tombola!

Nyambe back in for Zeefuik will help. He’s definitely the better of the two from what I’ve seen. Ayala in for Darragh isn’t something that concerns me and I’d be tempted to start both Gally and Diaz up top and go a bit more direct. The quality of Giles’ deliveries are wasted without anyone on the end of them! A trip to the Hawthorns is nothing to fear. 

Buckley has been struggling recently, with the advanced role he plays in that midfield three I think Dack will be in that spot when he’s back fit. If the injuries haven’t taken to much of his ability away he will be a big boost for us. 

[Mercer]

9 minutes ago, tomphil said:

Yes the manager needs to reel them in a bit from all that stuff it's getting out of hand. We can be competitive without being so blatantly pushing the rules all the time. 

On the other side of the coin refs need to also accept the youth of this side and expect them to be a bit raw so a few early tellings off might help. Instead they are running around with whistle permanently in lips looking to blow against us.

IMO, a misconception.

This is not a youthful side.

Think the average age of tonight's starting eleven was 24 with no teenagers and Khadra the youngest at 20. 

 

[JHRover]

Our appearances in recent weeks have reverted to the 'bad old days' of early this season and perhaps more accurately seasons past. 

Teams getting ahead of us early on or scoring with their first opportunities and then just seeing the game out whilst Rovers struggle and fail to get back into the game. Plenty of possession and spells of nice football but in terms of actual proper chances and testing the opposition goalkeeper - very little.

Possession stats creeping up but ineffective and results in very little.

Nobody can question the effort of the players but little idea or quality in getting back into games.

This has been a long term issue under Mowbray - all well and good if keeping clean sheets or getting ahead in games but when that goes we really struggle, always have, at recovering from losing positions. Sides will be working out that if they get the first goal they are going to get a result and probably the win. 

I have to say that the Nyambe situation appalls me. If it is true - and I firmly believe it is - that he has been dropped for non-footballing reasons - then it is clear that Mowbray is prepared to gamble a chance of promotion on making some sort of point. It interests me that Nyambe always seems to be the fall guy whereas other contract 'rebels' - i.e. want paying a wage reflective of their status - keep their place regardless. The insertion of Hedges to RB baffling but again suspect Mowbray will dress it up as needing a goal so putting an attack minded player there.

No doubt he will justify it in his head as giving a place in the team to someone focused/committed to the cause but I'm not having that. Nyambe has been half way out of the exit door since last season and yet he has continued to play an integral part in the side that has got us into this position.

I'm getting fed up with the number of comments online about how the top 2 has gone and we need to focus on staying in the top 6. I'm sorry but the top 2 are there for grabs - still - and fortunately for us tonight whilst we slipped there were also dropped points for QPR, Huddersfield, WBA and Middlesbrough. With 15 games to go I certainly hope none of these players or manager are content with the top 6 because they are in the wrong business if giving up on automatic in this position.

Do I think we will get it? No because I think a combination of a lack of depth/options and Mowbray's meddling will ultimately cost us but it has to remain the aim. 

If we fail to get at least 6th from the position we were in heading into February then heads will have to roll.

On to West Brom a side in horrendous form losing again tonight and will be nervous when we go there yet Bruce's first home game in charge - we know how this goes.

[G Somerset Rover]

Mowbray talked about us creating ‘loads of chances’ tonight. What on earth is he smoking?! Apart from Buckley’s howler and Trav’s follow up we created zip. Samba may as well have gone on holiday after that.

Edited February 9, 2022 by Gavlar Somerset Rover!

[tomphil]

7 minutes ago, Butty said:

Nyambe back in for Zeefuik will help. He’s definitely the better of the two from what I’ve seen. Ayala in for Darragh isn’t something that concerns me and I’d be tempted to start both Gally and Diaz up top and go a bit more direct. The quality of Giles’ deliveries are wasted without anyone on the end of them! A trip to the Hawthorns is nothing to fear. 

Buckley has been struggling recently, with the advanced role he plays in that midfield three I think Dack will be in that spot when he’s back fit. If the injuries haven’t taken to much of his ability away he will be a big boost for us. 

He won't do that though he'll just move Zeefuik to a round hole somewhere else in the team if he brings Ryan back.

We are at that point again with TM it was always going to happen it's just taken getting fresh blood in to give him the excuse this season.

[garnersfags]

5 minutes ago, JHRover said:

Our appearances in recent weeks have reverted to the 'bad old days' of early this season and perhaps more accurately seasons past. 

Teams getting ahead of us early on or scoring with their first opportunities and then just seeing the game out whilst Rovers struggle and fail to get back into the game. Plenty of possession and spells of nice football but in terms of actual proper chances and testing the opposition goalkeeper - very little.

Possession stats creeping up but ineffective and results in very little.

Nobody can question the effort of the players but little idea or quality in getting back into games.

This has been a long term issue under Mowbray - all well and good if keeping clean sheets or getting ahead in games but when that goes we really struggle, always have, at recovering from losing positions. Sides will be working out that if they get the first goal they are going to get a result and probably the win. 

I have to say that the Nyambe situation appalls me. If it is true - and I firmly believe it is - that he has been dropped for non-footballing reasons - then it is clear that Mowbray is prepared to gamble a chance of promotion on making some sort of point. It interests me that Nyambe always seems to be the fall guy whereas other contract 'rebels' - i.e. want paying a wage reflective of their status - keep their place regardless. The insertion of Hedges to RB baffling but again suspect Mowbray will dress it up as needing a goal so putting an attack minded player there.

No doubt he will justify it in his head as giving a place in the team to someone focused/committed to the cause but I'm not having that. Nyambe has been half way out of the exit door since last season and yet he has continued to play an integral part in the side that has got us into this position.

I'm getting fed up with the number of comments online about how the top 2 has gone and we need to focus on staying in the top 6. I'm sorry but the top 2 are there for grabs - still - and fortunately for us tonight whilst we slipped there were also dropped points for QPR, Huddersfield, WBA and Middlesbrough. With 15 games to go I certainly hope none of these players or manager are content with the top 6 because they are in the wrong business if giving up on automatic in this position.

Do I think we will get it? No because I think a combination of a lack of depth/options and Mowbray's meddling will ultimately cost us but it has to remain the aim. 

If we fail to get at least 6th from the position we were in heading into February then heads will have to roll.

On to West Brom a side in horrendous form losing again tonight and will be nervous when we go there yet Bruce's first home game in charge - we know how this goes.

Considered and realistic. We will hope TM has a road to Damascus moment, and starts to see what we see...

[Bbrovers2288]

Could see forest going up, if I could take anything from them it would be cooper, head and shoulders above dinosaur 

[G Somerset Rover]

18 minutes ago, tomphil said:

It just cannot all be coincidence at all i think the constant failure to address the real weaknesses in Jan windows is a big issue with this manager. Yes we don't have a lot of money but we do usually have backing to do something but it's that something that isn't usually the right thing.

Couldn’t agree more. Our February’s are too bad for there not to be substance behind it. Poor recruitment every January? TM shoehorning new signings in just because he bought them? Other teams doing better recruitment every January? Conditioning of the players an issue just over halfway into the season?

Take your pick - could well be a combination of all of them and then some others.

Edited February 10, 2022 by Gavlar Somerset Rover!

[Exiled_Rover]

25 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

 

Tony's seasonally-depressed Rovers. It's certainly depressing me

I'm dreading the West Brom match and Steve Bruce's first win at home

Anyone want 3 free tickets?  

I don't see why fans are pinning their hopes on Dack. He's hardly played in 3 years, he'll never be as good again. 

The Dack stuff is devastating really - gave him a fat new contract and he basically hasn't played since. 

[riverholmes]

42 minutes ago, den said:

The effort and sheer work rate of the players in the second half tonight was absolutely tremendous. We have to say that.

The weakness though - and it’s a huge weakness, is that there’s a big gaping hole where a centre forward should be. So while we run at them and get players out wide, their centre halves just aren’t tested. They really aren’t put under pressure. All our play is in areas that don’t hurt the opposition. 
 

Mowbray somehow has to address that otherwise the season is going to end under a depression.

Would agree with this. The No.10 Buckley experiment has run its course, especially, against the stronger and wilier sides, in my opinion. As good a midfielder as he is, he's being asked to be Matt Jansen, which isn't his game. Dolan harries a lot but I don't think putting him there will really solve much, though, it can pressure opposition into mistakes.

Based on just the highlights, Forest's forward, Keinan Davis rattled Lenihan by dropping deep and dragging him out of position, both for the first goal and the sending off. Lenihan, I suspect, went in for the rash challenge that got himself red-carded both out of frustration and concern because the opposition movement had opened the Rovers side up, again.

Dropping Buckley into CM, with Travis and Rothwell would add depth, so that a midfielder can track strikers that drop deep and/or, if defenders get turned, there's one extra body to protect the defence. The two man midfield is, I feel getting exposed and Buckley is being nullified as a threat.

It's a big call to change it, as the three pronged forward closing down tactic is a mainstay of Rovers game for seasons and has worked some results this season. However, I think the tactics getting found out and exposed, increasingly.

Edited February 10, 2022 by riverholmes

[Ulrich]

2nd half of the season syndrome strikes TM again, that was awful.