v Sheffield Utd (a) - 23/2/22 - Match Preview

[Mattyblue]

4 minutes ago, Gav said:

Best season in the championship since Venkys took over.

Great young side.

We’ll see if that’s the case by May as there’s every chance we’ll finish in a Bowyer-esque position by the end.

[Bethnal]

All manner of justifiable emotions on here in the wake of that. I’m pretty devastated, mainly because of the bigger picture/golden opportunity we’d forged for ourselves in the first half of the season but also because it feels much worse losing on Sky, for some reason.

Trav, the back 3, Nyambe, Rothwell and Khadra impressed. Rothwell can go unnoticed but he’s so often in exactly the right place at the right time, giving an option and making the small passes that open up space for the team. He’s such an important player for us.

Pickering is a solid option but at some point, people will wake up to how easily he can be outpaced, which is difficult to cover at this level and higher. I don’t understand why Khadra’s the set piece taker now, when we signed Pickering for that/with that in mind.

Buckley looked like a recent academy graduate tonight, which he is, but which you can’t afford to carry if you want to be in the playoff mix or higher. Needs regular bollockings on the pitch, doesn’t seem to get them.

Gallagher seems a very mardy player and I don’t think he’s a natural to lead a line. Doesn’t want to take responsibility and put himself in amongst it. If you’re at his ability level, I think you need to gamble and graft. Ideas somewhat above his station.

Kaminski kept us above water in the first half and it’s unfair to judge him for the mistake because it’s so out of character for him. He made an error but the way we defended that corner was poor all-round.

ultimately, Tony’s out of contract at the end of the year and he’s earned the right to finish the season, after the first half. We’re still way above where we thought we’d be, even if it feels like the writing is beginning to appear on the wall. I’d expect how we finish the season dictates whether a contract offered.

I’m awful at predictions but I expect a tough game on Saturday and probably a loss before a potential hammering away to Fulham. If things carry on as they have been elsewhere, that will leave us in a poor position for playoffs and on the wrong trajectory. Honestly? Sounds about right for Rovers’ recent history, sad as that is.

[Leonard Venkhater]

2 minutes ago, K-Hod said:

One of the only occasions I hate being right!

Yeah, we said the same.

And I even said Davies would score. My lads hate me. I hate my fcking self!

Why this is Hell, nor am  out of it....I

[DE.]

1 minute ago, Mattyblue said:

We’ll see if that’s the case by May as there’s every chance we’ll finish in a Bowyer-esque position by the end.

8th and 70 points in 13/14 is the best we've managed, if memory serves. You don't win any awards for half a season.

[Hasta]

1 minute ago, LDRover said:

Have to admit, as I've got older I don't hurt as much after a defeat as I used to.

However I live the game through my son and daughter who have had previous little from Rovers all of their supporting life unlike their Dad. It's bloody awful watching my 19 year old lad so gutted after a game. He's had his hopes raised for the first time in over a decade and he can see it all just fading away in front of him

What a bloody shame.

The problem is nowadays they’re not educated right at an early age. It’s all mid-table nothingness or lower league success. By the time I was leaving school I’d gone through 3 play off defeats and the Atkins OG to prepare me for realities of football.

[Darrenbot]

Can we petition SKY to stay the F away from our matches for the rest of the season,we might win one if they do,our record on SKY the last few years must be abysmal.

[riverholmes]

12 minutes ago, deanives said:

I can't get my head around the hedges signing, tried to sign him last year, signed him on a pre contract and then pushed that through to get him before the end of the season, then doesn't play him when we're looking for a goal with Buckley and Gallagher completely ineffective in the last 5 games 

Hedges was a major January signing. The biggest behind Markanday. A lot rests on him and his success will also reflect on Mowbray who has placed a lot of faith on the player, even spending money on him when he was attainable on a free at the end of the campaign.

[Gav]

1 minute ago, Darrenbot said:

Can we petition SKY to stay the F away from our matches for the rest of the season,we might win one if they do,our record on SKY the last few years must be abysmal.

Get yourself to the match Darren, cut the middle man out.

I can’t stand another minute listening to those idiots in Sky.

Edited February 23, 2022 by Gav

[47er]

 During that superb run of success there were plenty saying. "if Tony gets the blame when things go wrong, he must receive the praise now its going right". 

I think that adage still applies.

I've often said "we will never get promoted with Mowbray" so if he gets an extension to his contract imo we'll know that promotion is not a priority at Rovers.

[JPTSwindon]

Another missed opportunity - felt like a play-off match, bits of quality, bits frantic, yellow cards flying.

Despite ref calls going our way, but the oddity of Buckley sort of in a centre forward role, Gallagher out wide (and playing) etc - it wasn’t really any surprise we couldn’t score again.

We could have had Vale on the bench, to at least have given us an option upfront.

Lets hope it clicks on Saturday, we can’t slip up against QPR.

[garnersfags]

36 minutes ago, ben_the_beast said:

That's just not fair. Will wait and let the dust settle before analysing. But my gut feeling is that was just bollox. No way did we deserve to lose that. Absolute salt rubbed in with the qpr and Huddersfield turn arounds. But that result was bollox

This.

I've not seen a single post saying how well we played tonight. 

We survived a difficult first 5 minutes, then progressively grew into the game with our slick passing, good pressing, and individual/collective skill.

They were so frustrated, they totally lost any professionalism, and should have had at least one more red card. But still we dominated.

The penalty decision was our downfall, ironically, as it proved we have ZERO COMPOSURE when it really matters. Only in the schoolyard do you let the boy who wins the pen actually take it. Where were the senior players putting Khadra in his box, and giving the ball to our chosen penalty taker? NO COMPOSURE when it matters. 

But still we retained the ball, and created chances. Khadra played well. I really think he is considerably better than Dolan, who people have been clamouring for. I'm worried TM isn't working with him to improve his final ball, or desperation to score at every half opportunity. 

The withdrawal of Nyambe cost us the game, I would have taken 'anyone' else off. We didn't need to sacrifice our defensive solidity to freshen the attack up. Dolan was a little boy lost, in a man's game. 

The fact remains that we played well for 80 minutes, created a number of good chances, and should have won the game. TM will always play his love child Sammy, but we need to learn to by-pass him in attack, and leave him to defend corners....

How Buckley gets more criticism than Gally is beyond me. If you watch that game back, Buckley gets 90% of things right, and Gally gets 90% of things wrong.

Before the penalty miss, I thought tonight was looking like the turning point in our bad run, and if we continue where we left off, on Saturday, I genuinely believe it will be.

At 5pm tonight I was worried, but now I'm optimistic.

Lots of pressure on Saturday, tho.

COYB!!!!

 

[G Somerset Rover]

30 minutes ago, Waggy76 said:

The die was cast in the FA Cup at Wigan ...

Couldn’t agree more. That was the day we reverted to type and welcomed the Rovers and Mowbray of old back.

[ChrisyG]

Can't fault the players effort, they're clearly a good group of honest lads.

Sheff Utd are a decent side, on a good run but we matched them and if that penalty had gone in, we'd could well have won. Fine margins.

Buckley needs a rest, maybe play Johnson with travis and push Rothwell further forward. Gallagher doesn't seem to know what he's doing, I don't if that's his fault or the coaching but it needs sorting out.

Tough one to take. Massive game on Saturday now.

[jim mk2]

After 50 years watching you should take it in your stride and usually I do but that was hard to take tonight. Rovers somehow found a way to blowing a match we should have won. 

Starting with the Wigan match, it's been an absolute classic Tony death spiral.  How does he do it? 

[New Jeru]

13 minutes ago, Gav said:

Best season in the championship since Venkys took over.

Great young side.

How much of the team will still be here next season?

[den]

We started nervously with little belief it looked to me. We were very fortunate not to be behind, hence out of the game after 20 mins. Fair do’s to the lads they slowly turned the game around and second half in particular played some excellent football. There was some real quality on show I thought.

However, and a BIG however.

Every supporter knew that without Breo we have no goal scorers at all in the club. Supporters knew it, the manager knew it and the owners should have known it. Rovers should have pulled out all the stops in this season of all seasons to address that problem, but they didn’t do it. 
 

The current situation isn’t down to injuries, individual mistakes, missed penalties, bad luck or just a bad run. It’s a result of a failure to address a glaring weakness in the squad and this, IMO, is why we are where we are.

Part of me is angry that it wasn’t addressed, part of me is just sad.

[47er]

3 minutes ago, riverholmes said:

Hedges was a major January signing. The biggest behind Markanday. A lot rests on him and his success will also reflect on Mowbray who has placed a lot of faith on the player, even spending money on him when he was attainable on a free at the end of the campaign.

You've lost me here I'm afraid.

[G Somerset Rover]

19 minutes ago, deanives said:

I can't get my head around the hedges signing, tried to sign him last year, signed him on a pre contract and then pushed that through to get him before the end of the season, then doesn't play him when we're looking for a goal with Buckley and Gallagher completely ineffective in the last 5 games 

Best player in training too according to Mowbray. Man chats constant b*llocks.

[Gav]

3 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

After 50 years watching you should take it in your stride and usually I do but that was hard to take tonight. Rovers somehow found a way to blowing a match we should have won. 

Starting with the Wigan match, it's been an absolute classic Tony death spiral.  How does he do it? 

You predicted a 0-4 Rovers loss on this very thread, you should be ecstatic at a 0-1 loss.

 

2 minutes ago, New Jeru said:

How much of the team will still be here next season?

Good point, nobody knows, the owners don’t care, but it’s been great watching them this season I’m sure you’ll agree. 

Edited February 23, 2022 by Gav

[Sparks Rover]

44 minutes ago, DavidMailsTightPerm said:

we aren't getting the rub of the green at the moment

Penalty and against 10 men? I'd say we did but fucked it up.

[A Northern Horde...]

Incredibly frustrating is this...I cant account for the horrible drop in form but then again did we really strengthen  enough in January?😖

As much as we would all like top flight football this side would be battered most games,lets be brutally honest.

[Leonard Venkhater]

4 minutes ago, 47er said:

 During that superb run of success there were plenty saying. "if Tony gets the blame when things go wrong, he must receive the praise now its going right". 

I think that adage still applies.

I've often said "we will never get promoted with Mowbray" so if he gets an extension to his contract imo we'll know that promotion is not a priority at Rovers.

I think we know that already. January told us everything.

[XLM]

12 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

No, but I dont think that replacing him and then a new manager would. I think Mowbray has us overachieving where we are.

Top 6 is not par for this team with these resources, it would be a brilliant achievement. If he doesnt manage it then change in the summer.

You're perfectly entitled to that opinion obviously. I just don't think the logic is sound. If you don't think he will get us promoted or we will be relegated without him, then we surely might as well take a free swing.

It won't happen, so it's not important. I just see this kind of thing said all over the place and I can't work it out. Normally as part of a "balance the books", "get behind the lads", "steady the ship" type comment.

11 minutes ago, rovers11 said:

They're good questions. Mowbray is a safe pair of hands and a real steady eddy. He probably won't get us promoted but its unlikely we'd go down him either. His successor could go either way, I don't have any faith in the decision makers at the club. 

I do think there will be a mutual parting of the ways in the summer..

I have no faith either. At any level. But I wouldn't be so sure about the mutual parting of ways. I can't help but feel we've got another few years of this yet.

[Darrenbot]

3 minutes ago, Gav said:

Get yourself to the match Darren, cut the middle man out.

I can’t stand another minute listening to those idiots in Sky.

I wish i was there tonight,watching it on SKY isn't the same as being able to tell the Sheff Utd players they're Dirty Bastards where they can hear me rather than shouting it at the TV 😀

[Guest]

2nd place in January and not one signing from the window got on the pitch tonight. That failure lands firmly on the shoulder of Waggott and Mowbray.