Let's hope we get automatic

[Yellowhammer 86]

I hope we get automatic promotion as think we would struggle in play offs due to the amount of goals we concede ,we have struggled against all of the top teams .also today subs were far too late .

[East Rider 548]

Agreed. Emi B tired and should have come off about 70mins for Cantwell. Rhodes on shortly after that would have been good.

 However DF said we looked in control at 2-1 and on the balance, at that point we did.

Hindsight eh?

 

[Surfer 1,547]

Yes but: we are missing our primary central defender, primary defensive midfield destroyer and primary defensive midfield playmaker. So it's to be expected that we are a bit fragile, however we get those guys back by the end of Feb and that coincides with a run of relatively easy games for the rest of the season, so I'm confident that we'll finish top two, or be back to top form for the playoffs. 

Edited January 27, 2019 by Surfer

[GenerationA47 750]

2 hours ago, Surfer said:

Yes but: we are missing our primary central defender, primary defensive midfield destroyer and primary defensive midfield playmaker. So it's to be expected that we are a bit fragile, however we get those guys back and by the end of Feb and that coincides with a run of relatively easy games for the rest of the reason, so I'm confident that we'll finish top two or be back to top form for the playoffs. 

Thanks for a positive interpretation. 

Hope you’re right, definitely getting a bit near the knuckle for all the recently mushrooming dreams of promotion. (To mix metaphors.. with an oddly culinary result)

[splendidrush 700]

2 hours ago, Yellowhammer said:

we have struggled against all of the top teams .also today subs were far too late .

Not sure that's accurate, West Brom got lucky at our place, Derby the same. Sheffield U. Beat us in the last minute,in fact the only top side that's given us a lesson is Spies United. 

[Sooty57 403]

Obviously automatic would be the better option, however, should we make it to a Wembley final, I think the larger pitch would help our style of play tremendously and make it much more difficult to close us down. The first goal today was a classic example of how our interplay can carve through defences, and the increased space afforded by a larger pitch can only enhance this.

[Ray 111]

A point well made Sooty57, but here's hoping we don't need to prove your point.

[Essjayess 307]

At xmas, with the likes of Derby, Forest, WBA, Sheff. Utd and Leeds ahead of us, it was always going to be an acid test of where we were in the division come end Jan / Start of Feb. Here we are then, with just Leeds  to go, and win , draw or lose there, fact is we will be in contention, not just plays offs, but automatic spot.

But i dont buy the "relative run of easy games" left, there will still be many awkward matches such as the likes of Villa, Boro, Stoke and others to face. But to come thru this last month, still up there, is testimony to a great, united team squad, and one awesome, yes, awesome, head coach in DF. Despite  a list of injuries that have taken out many  needed guys at many annoying moments, the squad, to a man, has covered the gaps and remained steadfast. Promotion is a real chance , if we do miss out, it wont be by much id wager.

[sgncfc 1,223]

5 hours ago, East Rider said:

Agreed. Emi B tired and should have come off about 70mins for Cantwell. Rhodes on shortly after that would have been good.

 However DF said we looked in control at 2-1 and on the balance, at that point we did.

Hindsight eh?

 

He was watching a different game to me then. We were never in control - unless you call time wasting in control. If we'd kept playing instead of trying to hold on we might have got control. When he did put the subs on he used the wrong ones, the game was crying out for Maclean to add some steel in the middle, and Hanley some order at the back. Farke has won us lots of points tactically this season but he got it wrong today.

[splendidrush 700]

50 minutes ago, sgncfc said:

. Farke has won us lots of points tactically this season but he got it wrong today.

.... but on balance you'd say he's not done a bad job. 

[westcoastcanary 173]

59 minutes ago, sgncfc said:

He was watching a different game to me then. We were never in control - unless you call time wasting in control. If we'd kept playing instead of trying to hold on we might have got control. When he did put the subs on he used the wrong ones, the game was crying out for Maclean to add some steel in the middle, and Hanley some order at the back. Farke has won us lots of points tactically this season but he got it wrong today.

Same game but in one case a coach’s eyes and in the other a fan’s. DF pointed out afterwards that Sharp’s second came from the only good chance they created after we went 2:1 up.  That’s a relevant measure of our degree of control irrespective of the goal. If you think we would have limited them to zero good chances and not conceded at all if we’d “continued to play”, I’d like to hear the rationale for that opinion. Arsenal under Wenger never stopped “continuing to play” yet in terms of the appropriate measures of control virtually never managed to control games against top class opponents (and often against quite modest opponents too).