Player Ratings

[Sir Quinny 0]

Green - Not that bad despite conceding 4 - two great saves - 6

Colin - One of his better games - reasonably solid - 6

Fleming - Old slow and out of position - 4

The Doc - filling in the gaps for Fleming - 6

Drury - poor - 3

Charlton - cannot make a killer pass in midfield - needlesley booked - 4

Etuthu - Great when he has the ball going forward - poor first touch cost him a goal in the first half - however poor at breaking up attacks and holding the midfield together - 6.5

Huckerby - Poor - good chance at end of first half - woke up towards end - 5

Hughes - Very good at running - very very good - ran full width of pitch and lost ball - lots of heart but minimal direction - 5

Thorne - To slow - left Mcveigh Isolated - 4

Mcveigh - Heart and sole of the team - full of running and passion and creatativity wise move to save him for next game - MOM 7

Subs

Jarret - I know he was on the pitch as the stadium announcer told us all at the start of the second half - 2

Henderson - I do like this guy - but he blew his chances should have had 2 goals - massive could do better - 4

Johanssson - Great flicks - good close control - please please please do well - 6

What we all have to remember is that Reading were class - absolutly brillant - but we did mainly through Ethtuth and Mcveigh have themon the ropes - not a totally bad 4 nil defeat.

I was sitting there in the second half with the reading fans around me (I was in corporate hospitality) head in hands trying to look for positves - I suppose in esence next game we have 4 new players - maybe we should draw a line after today - the play off push starts tomorrow - COME ON CITY.

[ZLF 335]

What an awful awful game - nobody came out of it with any credit and this persistance with charlie in midfield now there are fit midfelders beggars belief.  4-4-2 deployed - best players taken off,  strikers with no service changed when its a midfield problem..

Green - prevented a landslide and no chance with the goals - 6 MOTM

Colin - not the worst 5

Flem - worst performance from him in years - 4 (blazing, finger pointing row with Charlie after flem lost Doyle and left him with a free header centre goal area highlighted problems)

Doc - off the pace - 5

Drury - injured I assume? was overexposed by hux again and flem not tracking his man wide, probably best defender 5

Hux - 4  Disinterested but did not get the ball enough

Hughes - 3 woeful,  disinterested, left Colin exposed by not tracking runners, even worse with the ball, gave possession away continually

Etuhu 6 - poor first half but better second half  and was our main attcking threat with several good runs forward

Charlie - 4  Outpaced in midfield, worse than Drury at l/back, poor passing & crossing.

Thorne ?  Worked the line but with no service at all - how can you rate a performance when he is excluded from the game by the poor service he gets from his own team?

WLY ? See thorne, came deep to get the ball but still not found, dangerous when he did get the ball

JJ 5 - better shape with him than Charlie in midfield, got forward, woeful shooting and passing 

Hend - 5 work rate, some attempted flicks but poor.

Johansen 5 - not a target man, good movement but again needs the ball to succeed.

[shropshire canary 0]

Not sure I can bring myself to give any ratings on last night: most amusement was watching the paper aeroplanes flying onto the pitch in the second half: they get an 8 and MOM award from me!!

Other than that:

Green 6 (could have done better on a couple of the goals imo, but made some cracking saves too)

Colin 5 (as solid as he could hope for, and Hughes played him a few hospital passes)

Doc 5 (lack of pace exposed big style I''m afraid: reminiscent of last season in that respect)

Flem 4 (ditto)

Drury 5 (caught exposed a few times but solid enough for his 45 mins: assume his back played up again)

Hucks 4 (dis-interested when this should have been his stage)

Etuhu 6 (would have been 5 but good forward momentum in 2nd half and a wicked snap-volley just wide)

Hughes 4 (endeavour but no brain/skill to be seen: when the Redaing fans called for him to take our edge-of the box free-kick it summed up their views on our £500k investment)

Charlton 4 (never again in midfield - please!!) 

McVeigh 6 (no service, boos when substituted: hope it was a resting ploy as he still looks our most creative option)

Thorne 6 (gameful effort given no support, service quality of pass etc etc...what on earth earnshaw thought god only knows)

Subs:

Jarrett: 5 (effort, no skill/touch. Along with Green only one top applaud the fans at the end though, so I guess he''s trying now he knows he''s staying)

Johannson 6 (good opening touches, but reached our level quickly enough with his screwed shot

Hendo 5 (why can''t he just do the simple things rather than seeking glory all the time: should have made one and scored one if he''d done that)

VERY nervous about Sunday now.

[sheded 0]

[quote user="ZippersLeftFoot"]

What an awful awful game - nobody came out of it with any credit and this persistance with charlie in midfield now there are fit midfelders beggars belief.  4-4-2 deployed - best players taken off,  strikers with no service changed when its a midfield problem..

Green - prevented a landslide and no chance with the goals - 6 MOTM

Colin - not the worst 5

Flem - worst performance from him in years - 4 (blazing, finger pointing row with Charlie after flem lost Doyle and left him with a free header centre goal area highlighted problems)

Doc - off the pace - 5

Drury - injured I assume? was overexposed by hux again and flem not tracking his man wide, probably best defender 5

Hux - 4  Disinterested but did not get the ball enough

Hughes - 3 woeful,  disinterested, left Colin exposed by not tracking runners, even worse with the ball, gave possession away continually

Etuhu 6 - poor first half but better second half  and was our main attcking threat with several good runs forward

Charlie - 4  Outpaced in midfield, worse than Drury at l/back, poor passing & crossing.

Thorne ?  Worked the line but with no service at all - how can you rate a performance when he is excluded from the game by the poor service he gets from his own team?

WLY ? See thorne, came deep to get the ball but still not found, dangerous when he did get the ball

JJ 5 - better shape with him than Charlie in midfield, got forward, woeful shooting and passing 

Hend - 5 work rate, some attempted flicks but poor.

Johansen 5 - not a target man, good movement but again needs the ball to succeed.

[/quote]

About  right ZLF ,     as I predicted  earlier , if we went on the defensive , we would be spanked ,    and we came away with smarting arses !   4-4-2   against a rampant Reading   was never  going to work .

Our team IS demoralised  , of that there is no doubt ,    which brings up the role of Nigel  ....  is it SOLEY   down to him ?    frankly  I doubt it ,   there are many reasons  why a bunch of players  cannot operate as a team ,  and having a witchhunt  against the manager  is the , all too easy , option !    much has been spouted about Nigels  lack of tactics    ,  but I`m of the opinion that  , even if a player  isn`t  in this , supposed , ideal position , he should  STILL  aquit himself  as the professional he`s supposed to be ! 

 

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="sheded"][quote user="ZippersLeftFoot"]

What an awful awful game - nobody came out of it with any credit and this persistance with charlie in midfield now there are fit midfelders beggars belief.  4-4-2 deployed - best players taken off,  strikers with no service changed when its a midfield problem..

Green - prevented a landslide and no chance with the goals - 6 MOTM

Colin - not the worst 5

Flem - worst performance from him in years - 4 (blazing, finger pointing row with Charlie after flem lost Doyle and left him with a free header centre goal area highlighted problems)

Doc - off the pace - 5

Drury - injured I assume? was overexposed by hux again and flem not tracking his man wide, probably best defender 5

Hux - 4  Disinterested but did not get the ball enough

Hughes - 3 woeful,  disinterested, left Colin exposed by not tracking runners, even worse with the ball, gave possession away continually

Etuhu 6 - poor first half but better second half  and was our main attcking threat with several good runs forward

Charlie - 4  Outpaced in midfield, worse than Drury at l/back, poor passing & crossing.

Thorne ?  Worked the line but with no service at all - how can you rate a performance when he is excluded from the game by the poor service he gets from his own team?

WLY ? See thorne, came deep to get the ball but still not found, dangerous when he did get the ball

JJ 5 - better shape with him than Charlie in midfield, got forward, woeful shooting and passing 

Hend - 5 work rate, some attempted flicks but poor.

Johansen 5 - not a target man, good movement but again needs the ball to succeed.

[/quote]

About  right ZLF ,     as I predicted  earlier , if we went on the defensive , we would be spanked ,    and we came away with smarting arses !   4-4-2   against a rampant Reading   was never  going to work .

Our team IS demoralised  , of that there is no doubt ,    which brings up the role of Nigel  ....  is it SOLEY   down to him ?    frankly  I doubt it ,   there are many reasons  why a bunch of players  cannot operate as a team ,  and having a witchhunt  against the manager  is the , all too easy , option !    much has been spouted about Nigels  lack of tactics    ,  but I`m of the opinion that  , even if a player  isn`t  in this , supposed , ideal position , he should  STILL  aquit himself  as the professional he`s supposed to be ! 

 

[/quote]

"4-4-2   against a rampant Reading   was never  going to work ."

so why should 4-3-3 work, offering no-cover to our full backs??

"even if a player  isn`t  in this , supposed , ideal position , he should  STILL  aquit himself  as the professional he`s supposed to be !  "

Tony adams ws a great center back, put him on the right wing and he would be hopeless??  Simon Charlton, a left back all his career, how should he no how to play midfield properly, its an entirely different position requireing entirely different qualities

[Cantley 0]

[quote user="Sir Quinny"]

I was sitting there in the second half with the reading fans around me (I was in corporate hospitality) head in hands trying to look for positves - I suppose in esence next game we have 4 new players - maybe we should draw a line after today - the play off push starts tomorrow - COME ON CITY.

[/quote]

Abso-bleedin-lutely.   OTBC.

Fresh start from now, playoffs still within range.

[Meeky 0]

My turn.

The whole squad 1 out of 10 for managing to get on the team bus.

The management team 0 out of 10 for turning us from a team that nearly avoided relegation from the Premier, to a mediocre Championship team in 6 months.

I spent over a 100 quid on tickets, petrol, food, drink etc last night, to watch my team get totally outclassed and quite frankly it''s not good enough.

I am a true supporter and have followed this club through thick and thin for over 30 years, but at the moment I am truly despondent. Something has to be done and quick.

We are 10 points off the playoffs, but Palace have a game in hand and a far superior goal difference so that makes it effectively 14 points. We have no chance of making up that deficit.

This season is over and all we can do is hope that the ONE new signing can gel into this team, the loanees will be gone at the end of the season, so we need to be planning for the summer now.

WORTHY OUT

[sheded 0]

Your over complicating  a , basically , simple game Ranky !   whilst I concede that  players  have their favoured positions , it  shouldn`t  mean  that this is the ONLY position they`re any good at!     footballs  a fast flowing game   , where " positions "  often become meaningless , and forwards  become defenders   in a matter of seconds !      ANY player  should be able to read a game   , and put himself in  a position  best suited to the situation , be it defence or attack !   its called being a professional !!!! 

As to the 4-4-2  formation ,   it was always  going to be a backs to the wall  situation  against a team that are flying high  and cock-a-hoop !   and, lets face it ,  our defence are crap  right now ,  so , for us to go on the defensive  [ 4-4-2 ]   is tantamount  to  giving Reading  the match on a plate !    

IMHO   we should  have thrown caution to the wind  against Reading  , and  played a 3-3-4   with  Hucks, WLY , Thorne , Johannes    up front and centre  .....    forget the niceties   , keep booting  the ball   up there  !     bodies in the box will ALWAYS worry defences  !!  

Hucks deep on the left wing again   ........ for crists sakes show some imagination  Nigel  !   remember the  saying "  He who dares , wins ! " 

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="sheded"]

Your over complicating  a , basically , simple game Ranky !   whilst I concede that  players  have their favoured positions , it  shouldn`t  mean  that this is the ONLY position they`re any good at!     footballs  a fast flowing game   , where " positions "  often become meaningless , and forwards  become defenders   in a matter of seconds !      ANY player  should be able to read a game   , and put himself in  a position  best suited to the situation , be it defence or attack !   its called being a professional !!!! 

As to the 4-4-2  formation ,   it was always  going to be a backs to the wall  situation  against a team that are flying high  and cock-a-hoop !   and, lets face it ,  our defence are crap  right now ,  so , for us to go on the defensive  [ 4-4-2 ]   is tantamount  to  giving Reading  the match on a plate !    

IMHO   we should  have thrown caution to the wind  against Reading  , and  played a 3-3-4   with  Hucks, WLY , Thorne , Johannes    up front and centre  .....    forget the niceties   , keep booting  the ball   up there  !     bodies in the box will ALWAYS worry defences  !!  

Hucks deep on the left wing again   ........ for crists sakes show some imagination  Nigel  !   remember the  saying "  He who dares , wins ! " 

[/quote]

"ANY player  should be able to read a game   , and put himself in  a position  best suited to the situation , be it defence or attack !   its called being a professional !!!!  "

again you are missing the point we did HAVE a central midfielder fully fit on the bench??? after having 2 good games in the center charlie has been rubbish ever since and prior to those games in that position.  why not play the real central midfielder, whom is on a fair pay packet, to do that job.  I dont mind that we lost but the manner of defeat was the same as QPR, Luton and Preston.  None of whom are top of the league.

[Matt_1 0]

1) SPENT OVER A HUNDRED ON TICKETS, NOTHING TO CHEER, AND LOST MY BLOODY MOBILE PHONE IN THE CAR PARK!

2) STOP TALKING ABOUT PLAY-OFFS, YOU ARE THE LAST OF A DAFT BUNCH OF DREAMERS.  WE ARE CRAP.

3) WHY HAVE WE SPENT THE LARGEST CHUNK OF MONEY ON A STRIKER? IS HE GOING TO SCORE 5 EACH GAME? COS YOU CAN BET WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE LETTING PLENTY IN.  HE HASNT PLAYED YET AND I ALMOST FEEL SORRY FOR HIM.  DOES HE REALISE HE WONT SEE MUCH OF THE BALL?

4) IS MCVEIGH STILL NOT FIT ENOUGH TO PLAY 90 MINUTES?  OUR BEST PLAYER BY A COUNTRY MILE COMES OFF WITH NEARLY HALF HOUR LEFT. 

5) THE PAPER AEROPLANES WERE A GODSEND, FANTASTIC ENTERTAINMENT!  DID YOU SEE THE ONE THAT NEARLY WENT IN THE NET?  FELL SHORT BY INCHES!  GOT MY BIGGEST CHEER OF THE GAME!

ANYWAY....

Green...ok doesnt matter how good the keeper is you always have a chance of scoring if you beat the defender.  Could have done better with free kick??      5

Drury...Most attack in first half came at him on this side.  didnt cope well.   4

Docherty...not bad in the air  but still sometimes makes silly decisions in the tackle.  5

Fleming...thought at least he looked like he wanted to play and made the effort  6

Colin...ok. made more good challenges and balls than bad ones 5/6

Huckerby....Only did anything of note in the second half when he got a bit of space.  5...just

Charlton....did better when defensively required.  other than that anonymous    4/5

Hughes...thought he could take on the entire Reading team on his own whenever he got the ball.  Ran down the flank...into a tight spot...gaining nothing(that was the first half) second half, thought he could score from anywhere....Reading all know he cant so they just let him shoot...again..and again...and again.  Embaressing.   4

Thorne....must have got cold standing around so much.  Not his fault, the ball was up the other end so much.  Must be very frustrated. As mentioned - impossible to rate!

Mcveigh...looked the only player with the ability to make a good pass.  Good running, passing. crosses and effort. The only talent on show in yellow and green. 8 MOM.

Jarrett...As mentioned before....good job they mentioned he was on the pitch over the tannoy. couldnt see him! 3 (i presume he touched the ball?)

Henderson....2 massive chances. Opportunity not taken.  He must be gutted.  unfortunately you have to take them though.  5

Johansson...1 big chance.  1 big fluffed shot.  Hope he settles. 5

 

 

Matt

 

 

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

FWIW, the Foxtrot Report (Warning: DON''T read if you played for NCFC last night). by Ottoson Foxtrot

ROBERT GREEN: 5.
Made one or two decent saves, and closed the Reading forwards down well on a couple of occasions. Couldn''t be blamed for any of the goals (at least, he wasn''t primarily at fault) but he might have dived for some of them.

JURGEN COLIN: 4.
Crap, but he got forward more, meaning he was crap in more than one area of the pitch.

ADAM DRURY: 5.
Not particularly good. But got no protection from our "mid-field". Which apparently we had.

GARY DOHERTY: 4.
There''s been much talk of what a solid, commendable centre-back the Doc has become this season. Sadly, having not managed a match between Brighton (where he wasn''t particularly good) and last night, I haven''t seen it.

What we got last night was the Doc of old - manhandling centre-forwards who completely destroyed him (he should have been sent off at twice), being caught out of position, slow and muddled, the Doc had a nightmare.

Still our best defender on the night, though.

CRAIG FLEMING: 4.
Fleming reminds me of a much-loved family pet with a terminal illness that its owner refuses to have put out of its misery. The only thing I can say about him last night is at least he''s captain again, which gives me hope that the Clappy Clown is not undroppable.

SIMON ''NORFOLK MAKELELE'' CHARLTON: 2.
Simon Charlton is the Norfolk Makelele in much the same way as I''m the Surrey Arnold Schwarzenegger. Makelele is fast, intelligent, committed, has great positional sense, bags of energy and won the Champions League with Real Madrid.

Simon Charlton is fat, bald, slow and fat. He once played for Huddersfield Town. Who on earth told Worthington that this man could be a central midfielder? The same man who called up saying he had Matty Johnson, a hard-working right-midfield grafter from Burnley, perhaps. Has Aly Dia''s agent been seen in Norfolk?

DICKSON ETUHU: 6. Not bad at all - broke into the box a fair bit, looked pacey and alert, and even took the ball of an opposition player once or twice (I forget what that''s called). If this is part of an upward curve, he should definitely be in the team alongside Safri, as part of a 4-4-2. (More on this in a bit).

ANDY HUGHES: 3.
The last great Tactical Revolution in the global game was Total Football, invented by Rinus Michels in Holland in the early 1970s. Demanding players of enormous intelligence and technical skill, with the ball (nearly) always played to feet, it required constant movement from each player as one player would vacate a position to be replaced by another. Attackers had to be able to defend, and defenders to attack; above all, midfielders had to be complete players, able to perform in every position.

Tactically, nothing happened for thirty years or so, until Andy Hughes invented (perhaps unwittingly) Total Horses**t, a tactic he perfected against his former club, who pointed and laughed quite a bit.

Completely inept - yes! - in every position, Hughes proved himself incapable of tackling, passing, playing within even the most basic of systems, shooting, crossing (save for one half-decent ball for Hendo - more later), marking or even running. A performance of such staggering incompetence that the only time I can say I''ve seen it matched was at Fulham, but at least Francis and Bentley had the excuse that they weren''t trying. Total Horses**t.

I''d have got angrier about his typically patronising post-match clapping but I was watching his hands to see if they''d miss each other.

DARREN HUCKERBY: 4. Got into the game slightly more in the second half, but completely ineffectual. Reading had him licked.

PAUL MCVEIGH: 7. Otto''s Star Man. Looked lively, interested and dangerous, so Nige subbed him. Nice one.

PETER THORNE: 3. His own meaningful contribution was to fall over in front of a decent-looking McVeigh long shot, meaning that not only were his own attempts at goal entirely pathetic, but he stopped players who are less slow, old, unfit and just f**king crap from doing any better. There must be a way we can terminate this man''s contract, surely? And that of the idiot who thought he''d be better than Svensson?

SUBS:

JONATAN JOHANSSON: 6. Looked promising, should''ve scored.

IAN HENDERSON: 4. Let''s get this straight - I HATE Hendo-bashers. Especially those who boo him. But last night didn''t help his cause. Missed an absurdly easy chance from Hughes'' cross (which might also have made Hughes look slightly less s**t), virtually fell over having a shot at the end. Poor lad.

JASON JARRETT: 5. Gone from ''laughable'' to ''poor'' since returning from Home Park. One day he may make ''mediocre''. But I''m not holding my breath.

NIGEL WORTHINGTON: -4,000,003.
The system was a joke (4-3-3 against a team was pacey wingers! ) Charlton-Etuhu-Hughes. Thorne. Taking McVeigh off. The players didn''t look like they knew what they were supposed to be doing at all. Just appalling. I''d have given him -4,000,004, but he''s just signed Robert Earnshaw, who''s a player I like.

The Norwich fans were practically silent throughout (not that I blame them), the bar ran out of hot-dogs on the coldest night I''ve ever spent in a football ground, and the Reading PA constantly going ''Bring it on!'' was just embarrassing.

On the plus side, the Reading fans were great - all the ones I met were very friendly, apologised profusely for Hughes, were happy to talk about NCFC (and what''s gone wrong) and had a good sense of humour. They had some good chants, too - ''Ooh, John Oster'' and ''If Murty scores, we''re on the pitch''.

See you all soon for the annual nightmare that is Selhurst Park. If I can face it.

City Till I Die
Worthy Til I Cry

Posted By: Ottosson Foxtrot on February 1st 2006 at 11:16:42

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

I''ve calmed down a bit...here goes last night''s ratings... by Brandonia

Last Night Norwich crumbled to a 4-0 defeat; I think 7-1 would be a better reflection on the game. My feelings were summed up when Andy H*ghes tried the same tactic within the space of 2 minutes. This was run with the ball up the right hand side and run into a Reading player. Reading fans burst out laughing the 2nd time around and sang ‘How much did you pay for him?’ That hurt.

That hurt because we know how much we paid and he sums up everything that is wrong at the moment with Norwich City Football Club. No skill, creativity, goals, tactics and most of all…NO F***ING CLUE HOW TO PLAY FOOTBALL. Reading showed us up all over the park, they were good but we were bad, very very bad…

Green – 4 – Didn’t dive for the first goal, for the second he didn’t dive either merely fell to the floor, the 3rd I didn’t see, the 4th he had no help from the defence and midfield that opened up a clear run for Convey. Did make 2 saves of note.

Colin – 3 – He gets worst every time I see him, Is he Derveld in disguise?

Fleming – 4 – Best of the 4 defender but still shockingly s**t, charges out of position as per usual and gets caught and leaves Doherty…

Doherty – 2 – Terrible, it was a shame he was playing against Lita who was a class above anything we had out there but he strikes me at times as being really really thick. Easily turned, should have got sent off.

Drury – 3 – Weak, Little scared him s**tless.

Hughes – 0 – Good lord, what did I do to deserve watching this useless w**ker play for us? I left the ground when he performed a footballing crime of unfathomable depths, Worthington deserves to get sacked for signing him. If a new manager came in and played him for more than one game I doubt I could ever forgive him.

Etuhtututuh – 4 - Doesn’t deserve having his name spelt or pronounced right yet, so I won’t bother looking it up. Only played in the 2nd half and although he did put some effort in and showed the odd bit of intelligence it was too little, too late.

Charlton – 0 – S***! Shock! Horror! – How can Worthington justify playing him? I felt sorry for him.

Huckerby – 2 – Worst game ever for Norwich. Barely controlled the ball all game.

Thorne – 1 – This ladies and gentleman, boys and girls is not how to play football as a centre forward. Give him his own show.

McVeigh – 6 – Our best player – he tried really hard and didn’t deserve to be taken off. Disgusting. Did seem to have caught the clapping disease though.

Subs:

Jarrett – 4 – Nearly forgot him. Didn’t do much wrong but at the same didn’t do much right either.

Johansson – 6 – Showed some really nice touches, excellent movement and got in goal scoring positions…a shocking finish when he should have scored though.

Henderson – 3 – Tried hard, missed an open goal.

Posted By: Brandonio on February 1st 2006 at 12:39:13

[beelsie 0]

Sheded, I did''nt make the game and what you tell us makes a lot of sense, radio reception up here was woeful and it was impossible to make any sense of the game, apart from how much Reading were on top!!

Playing with a more attacking formation is more credible IMO. I''m afraid that we have been guilty over the last three seasons of not being able to take the game to the opposition, or able to get to the ball first so that we gain the initiative. 

For professionals who are saying that they are as experienced as many of the football pundits say they are, is all hooey, and one of the first skills is concentration, this enables, IMO the player to read and be ahead of the game, and consequently first to the ball.  We make mistake after mistake, and in the 6 yard area it is just a disorganised pantomime where one would expect the opposing sides, whoever they are, to score.  Every tackle is a last ditch attempt and seems to have come as a surprise and is generally late.  I refuse to blame the Manager for what I see is a lack of player application.  I think they are taking the P***. The gaps left in defence on Druries side has been a problem, Huckerby has not helped here and the playing of Huckerby full match is a luxury we cannot afford in the present set up.   He would be far better deployed in the last half hour of the game when he has the energy to take on a flagging defence.  IMHO The off the ball running is woeful.  No one can tell me that the shows that we witness week in and week out are about what is practiced in training, if this were so the knowledgeable players that we are supposed to have would be out on strike or indeed we would be notified of it in the reporting media, that they are instructed to play bad football!!! 2end of Rant"!!!

[Reading_canary Rob<P><STRONG>How degrading is it to have to have an Ipswich fan as your head of year?!<STRONG><P> 0]

I live in Reading; I''m currently at school and to be honest, I haven''t received as much grief for last night as I originally expected. If there is any grief to be given out, then it should be firmly aimed in the direction of the so-called "footballers" we turned up to watch last night.

Green - Made a few decent saves, I suppose.

Colin - If we sell him on, the most Guus Hiddink will be getting for a sell-on clause will be £2.50 and a packet of pork scratchings. In fact, he''ll be exceedingly lucky to get that. Colin has the positional sense of a headless chicken.

Drury - Constantly skinned last night - I wonder if we''ll ever see the old Adam Drury

Fleming - Rubbish

Doherty - An absolute embarassment to say the least.

Hucks - Worst performance I''ve ever seen him give

Charlton - ***ing diabolical, get rid asap

Etuhu - Don''t get me started...

Hughes - There isn''t a derogatory word in the English language suitable enough to describe how much I hate him.

Thorne - Certainly not the "Thorne in the side". Oh, the irony...

McVeigh - I feel for him

Subs:

Hendo - I don''t think he''ll make it at Championship level and last night was instrumental in helping me make that decision

Jarrett - Send him back to Plymouth

Johansson - Promising

Management: Shambolic, atrocious, flippin'' appalling

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="beelsie"]

Sheded, I did''nt make the game and what you tell us makes a lot of sense, radio reception up here was woeful and it was impossible to make any sense of the game, apart from how much Reading were on top!!

Playing with a more attacking formation is more credible IMO. I''m afraid that we have been guilty over the last three seasons of not being able to take the game to the opposition, or able to get to the ball first so that we gain the initiative. 

For professionals who are saying that they are as experienced as many of the football pundits say they are, is all hooey, and one of the first skills is concentration, this enables, IMO the player to read and be ahead of the game, and consequently first to the ball.  We make mistake after mistake, and in the 6 yard area it is just a disorganised pantomime where one would expect the opposing sides, whoever they are, to score.  Every tackle is a last ditch attempt and seems to have come as a surprise and is generally late.  I refuse to blame the Manager for what I see is a lack of player application.  I think they are taking the P***. The gaps left in defence on Druries side has been a problem, Huckerby has not helped here and the playing of Huckerby full match is a luxury we cannot afford in the present set up.   He would be far better deployed in the last half hour of the game when he has the energy to take on a flagging defence.  IMHO The off the ball running is woeful.  No one can tell me that the shows that we witness week in and week out are about what is practiced in training, if this were so the knowledgeable players that we are supposed to have would be out on strike or indeed we would be notified of it in the reporting media, that they are instructed to play bad football!!! 2end of Rant"!!!

[/quote]

Do i have to repeat myself beelsie - If Nigel Worthington CANNOT get the players to play then sack him and get in someone who can, and because he hasnt signed these fools is willing to DROP them in an instant.......  Talk about the dead wood worthy cleared from the Hamilton regime, now we have far more expensive dead wood to be cleared from Worthy''s dismal end.

[ZLF 335]

What match was Chris Wise watching - we failed to get the goal our come back deserved?  Promising attacks petering outin the final third?

There were no positive to take from the game and the fact we had any chances came from the fact reading sat back knowing the three points were in the bag - even then we were distinctloy second best.

When are the local reporters going to cover games as they are rather than how they are seen from the bench???

 

[Old Boy 0]

"Do i have to repeat myself beelsie - If Nigel Worthington CANNOT get the players to play then sack him and get in someone who can, and because he hasnt signed these fools is willing to DROP them in an instant.......  Talk about the dead wood worthy cleared from the Hamilton regime, now we have far more expensive dead wood to be cleared from Worthy''s dismal end."

Hard to argue with that.

[beelsie 0]

Paul!! I agree about the dead-wood, there were 11 of them IMHO.

Do I have to repeat my-self Paul" Who will come that will fit in with the Boards requirements, and that is the criteria that has to count, fortunately or not!! 

Did that lot out there look like tradesmen out there who just needed a few words of encouragement, and a pat on the back.  I would''nt like to have that lot fighting any battles for our country.

W''ed be waving the white flag before a shot was fired.

[Chip20 69]

Paul Rankin; your post was absolutely class. Had me in stitches. I needed something to cheer me up after last night''s abject diplay!!

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="Old Boy"]

"Do i have to repeat myself beelsie - If Nigel Worthington CANNOT get the players to play then sack him and get in someone who can, and because he hasnt signed these fools is willing to DROP them in an instant.......  Talk about the dead wood worthy cleared from the Hamilton regime, now we have far more expensive dead wood to be cleared from Worthy''s dismal end."

Hard to argue with that.

[/quote]

I have to say though oldboy, with

Earnshaw, Thorne

Hucks Robinson Safri Johanson

Drury Fleming Doherty Rehman

Green

or

Earnshaw, McVeigh

Hucks Robinson Safri Johanson

Drury Shackell Doherty Rehman

Green

or whatever, we look a far stronger side than the one put out last night.  I feel our season will improve, and may even save worthy his job (god forbid), you just get the impression we will always underacheive whilst he is manager.

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="beelsie"]

Paul!! I agree about the dead-wood, there were 11 of them IMHO.

Do I have to repeat my-self Paul" Who will come that will fit in with the Boards requirements, and that is the criteria that has to count, fortunately or not!! 

Did that lot out there look like tradesmen out there who just needed a few words of encouragement, and a pat on the back.  I would''nt like to have that lot fighting any battles for our country.

W''ed be waving the white flag before a shot was fired.

[/quote]

A good general, given a bit of time, can turn a ragbag band of peasants into a organised fighting force.....  A poor general will leave them having no idea what to do when the battle comes...

Lat night I got the impression if a white flag was being raised the general was the man doing it....  He had no explanation after the match for what happened.  He had no clue about tactics or picking the right players before it.

As for another general...  where can i start? Just down the road we have Phil Parkinson and Mike Newell.  And thats just a couple of local lads doing good!!  The club would turn around in an instant.. Hey Phil could raid his former club for Danns anmd Halford in the summer - Buy a Right Hand side in an instant.

The only problem is availability Parkinson needs his glory so wont go until the summer, Newell would be here tomorrow....

They are only two examples of targets.....

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

reading game player ratings by johnmcdowellshair

green 6
colin 3
fleming 4
doherty 5
drury 2
hughes 2
etuhu 5
charlton 2
huckerby 4
thorne 3
mcveigh 6

jarrett 3
johansson 5
henderson 3

Posted By: johnmcdowellshair on February 2nd 2006 at 10:59:27

[AP16 0]

The post by paul rankin "otto something or other" on page 1 is one of the funniest things I have read this week.

Simon "Norfolk Makelele" Charlton and That fleming is reminissent of a

terminally Ill family pet! LOLOLOLOL- I was nearly crying when I read

it. Cracking Read.

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="Safri15"]The post by paul rankin "otto something or other" on page 1 is one of the funniest things I have read this week.

Simon "Norfolk Makelele" Charlton and That fleming is reminissent of a terminally Ill family pet! LOLOLOLOL- I was nearly crying when I read it. Cracking Read.

[/quote]

copyed it off WOTB as noone was putting player ratings here... It was well funny!! I love a certain players new footballing style!!!