Match Ratings?

[Tom NCFC 0]

Great win, any match ratings?

How did the new two do?

[Gingerpele 0]

Marshall-6- Didnt make the right decision for the goal but made a couple of good catches.Colin-6- His attacks were poor and only time he did a good pass was backwards but a couple of tacklesLappin-8-very good debut he put a few blls down the wing and played well with fotheringham in second halfDublin  -9- Made some good clearances and scored a well taken goal Doherty-6- only a couple of good sighs of defence but rest was poor/avarageFotheringham-7- Brighter in the second half linkng with lappin and hux, a good passer of the ballSafri-6- some good tackles and passes but faded at times.Etuhu-6- was not that bright but tried a bitCroft-6- Effort was all he had One good cross the rest was avarageHux-9-MOM-he made brilliant runs and terified the leeds defence and could of haved a nother two goalsBrown-6- avarage fall over to easy and loese the ball not to brightSUBsHughes-7- Good defender had a good run and looks a 100% better player in defenceMartin-6- didnt have to much to do in 15minsMcVeigh-NA- only on pitch a few mins too bad pasess

[Rudolph Hucker 0]

This was a real six pointer.

City began brightly but really went into their shells when Leeds scored with no one willing to make runs or offer themselves. I was amazed to see us begin with a 4-5-1 (although some might try to tell you it was 4-3-3) in a game we had to win and an eventual switch to 4-4-2 was better in many respects: we looked more solid and Huckerby revelled in the forward role having looked jaded in the first half (I wondered if he was fit). Once we scored Leeds let their heads drop which tells you all you need to know about the psychological effects of losing games and the trap we really must not fall into.

Next week is another six-pointer and not losing is vital.

Marshall: I had my doubts about his prescence on the pitch but I have to say it is a long time since I saw a Norwich keeper kick so cleanly and distribute the ball so well: especially from quick throws. He took crosses well and came off his line decisively. I didn''t see if he was at fault with the goal so will ignore it. he looked quietly competent and might turn out to be a decent player. 7.5

Colin: Poor defensively and unless injured this is why I believe Hughes replaced him. Colin did well on Tuesday but isn''t perhaps yet consistent enough. He did have a good positive shot and pass in the first half but is not yet the proper article. I think next season will see him come of age. 6

Lappin: Looked part of the team from the off as if he had played for us for a year. He has a good cross on him and should take more of the set pieces. Lappin in front of Drury will be interesting and Lappin''s left foot might be something we all sing the praises of in the future. Simon just seems to be a good, solid player to begin with and if he can consistently show what appear to be quality passes and crosses he would make the left midfield his own with Hucks having to move up front. 8

Dublin: Wore the Captains armband today and in the pre-match hudde was clearly laying it down. Won all his headers, led the defence, marshalled the line impressively to keep Leeds well away from our goal towards the end and was a model of composure. He was the difference today. The goal looked good but I wonder if it was better than it looked from The Barclay as he had to quickly adjust his feet, get power and keep the ball down. Great technique. 9.5 MoM.

Doherty: Doc Oc is still switching off but did have a good last half hour to redeem himself somewhat. No where near the player of last season but gives his all. 6

Fotheringham: To be honest I didn''t notice him any more than I had Robinson but I keep hearing he had a good game. He seems to be composed but it''s too early to say. I didn''t see him do too much wrong. 6.5

Safri: Got better as the game went on and in the last 20 minutes was the star man with his fighting football (almost literally) and excellent aggresive breaking up of play. His passing didn''t stand out and some of his set pieces were woeful. 7

Etuhu: Another player who improved as the game went on. You occasionally see flashes of a powerful and dominating player and understand why managers take a chance on him but in the first half he looked lightweight and had the body language of a moody teenager in a hoodie. Once he got a couple of good tackles in mid-second half he kept going and this makes you wonder if his confidence really is that fragile. 6

Croft: Puts great effort in but will never keep Chadwick out of the team when fit. Croft needs to lose weight and get fitter to match his aggression and aspirations. 6

Huckerby: I wondered if he was fit in the first half and after one heavy tackle looked done in. I have always hated Huckerby being in left midfield and felt vindicated when he went up front in a 4-4-2 and was twice the player. Scored a vintage Huckerby goal and had an excellent second half. great pro. 8.5

Brown: I am going to put my neck on the line and say I believe in Brown. He was alone up front first half but battled well and holds the ball up well. He occasionally linked well with Hucks but needs to improve this aspect of his game. I saw brief flashes of Iwan Roberts in Brown''s play today. It''s up to him if he wants to make it but personally, if he makes the effort I believe he will be a good centre forward in this league. 7.5

SUBS:

Hughes: For me right back has always been his best position as he has great stamina, tackles ferociously and crosses well. In midfield he can''t play without space in front of him. he shored up the right back berth today. 7

Martin: Good movement, sharp passing and a bit of aggression. He deserves to stay in the squad as he looks strong enough to cope. 7.

McVeigh: I don''t want to talk about him.

Grant: Gave a good after match talk but for me seems to have begun with the wrong formation. His new signings have done him proud. 7

The crowd: Booed at half time and for the right reasons. In the second half the atmosphere was great and must have impressed the new boys. I didn''t like the presumptious comments to the Leeds fans as we are far from safe but overall: great support. 8.5

[WilliamG 0]

Marshall - 7 - Apart from the goal had very little to do. Distribution wasn''t bad, i like this guy.Colin - 6 - Not one of his better games. Good to see him get the shot in early on that could have gone anywhere. wasn''t helped by croft, but more of that laterLappin - 9 - Strong Debut, done everything right, keep it up and we''ll be laughingDublin - 9 - Very well taken goal, i''ve seen strikers miss similiar chances. No other comment to make, purely because he goes about his buisness so quietly you don''t notice until he isn''t thereDoherty - 5/6 - Has played better, but has also played worse. AverageFotheringham - 6/7 - Good passer, didn''t have much time on the ball though. Seemed a little lacking in match sharpness, but it will come. Fitness was good for someone who hasnt'' played games in so longSafri - 6 - Drifted in and out of the gameEtuhu - 3/4 - I don''t like kicking the guy, he could be good for Norwich, but today he was abysmal.I think in the end he was trying to hard, his shot at 2-1 was a perfect indication of this.Croft - 5 - No end product, too defensive and got in way of colin a bit too much.Huckerby - 9 - Last 15 minutes truly sublime, way to go Hux!Brown - 6- Made a nuisance of himself, even though offside should have put ball in the netSubsHughes - 7 - For once i''m going to praise the guy. Made some good tackles, and runs especially going the length of the pitch deep into Injury TimeMartin - 6 - Got stuck in, but didn''t do much reallyMcveigh - 6- Came on, one half decent almost -pass, but not really long enough to assess  

[ZLF 274]

Marshall - 7 did nothing wrong, strong on crosses, talked to defence and looked for an early ball out.  Just the job for the rest of the season

Colin 7 - was he injured?  Excellent in an otherwise poor first half from the canaries,  defended well and attacked with purpose looked like a motm candidate

Dion 5.5 Seemed to stand off Blake too long for the gaol too long, but redeemed himself with his own goal.  Not commanding against a poor leeds attack today and his passing was as woeful as Shax has been recently.

Doc 6 - in command and played well today.

Lappin 7  Did a good job at left back,  but I cant wait to see him and Drury combine - it will be excellent.  Impressed today.

Etuhu 5 better than tuesday but still shockingly poor.

Fozzy 7  Good debut,  clearly better in central midfield but did well on the left secodn half. Seems to spot a pass,  strong in the tackle and worked hard.  Clearly superior to Etuhu and will be a good central partner for Safri

Croft 6 Good partnership with Colin but some many crosses dont  find a man.  Continues to work hard for the team,  are you watching etuhu?

Safri 6  Strong in the tackle, all over the pitch,  superb vision but passing still not as good as it can be.

Hux 7  Our main danger,  wasted on the left in the first half, mesmeric in the second when finally sent to partner brown in a 4-4-2

Brown 6  Worked hard but 4-5-1 left him too remote too often.  Deserves another chance but has to be used better.

  

Martin - 6 some good touches and continues to impress

Hughes  5 At least his trademark effort returned today,  but colin was streets ahead both attacking and defending.

WLY     5 Very little time but too ambitious with his passes - too keen to impress?  

 Not a patch on Tuesday efforts yet we come away with three points,  long may hux revival continue. 

[Largey 0]

Marshall 7 - Caught well and kept pushing the defence up when Norwich cleared set-pieces which was good to see.

Colin 6 - Had a decent enough shot but was reluctant to venture too far along the wing as he seems to have the pace to beat players but is scared in case he looses the ball and is left exposed.

Dublin 9 - Won every header, nice goal, kept the new lads in order, they seemed to feed off his advice, and played his best!

Doc 7 - Won headers, didnt guff up like often, and cleared a few problem balls.

Lappin 8 - Looks as solid as Drury and he has the same physique as Drury. All in all it was as if Drury hadnt left, just this guy can take set-pieces aswell (minus the couple of loose ones)

Etuhu 6 - Won some challenges and headers, but gave ball away too many times.

Fozzy 7 - Played well for his debut, didnt do anything inspiring but looked a good passer of the ball. Played better in 2nd half.

Saffers 8 - Won lots of challenges, headers, switched play very well across wings.

Hucks 9 - Graet runs, finished very nicely with the goal, always posed a threat. Unlucky not to score more.

Croft 7 - Also a threat from the right but never seems to pose as such a threat as Hucks, something he shall wish to do.

Brown 7 - Didnt play fantastic yet did well..... He got a few good chances, lacks pace to finish them, but passes well. Should have finished it off when offside, but he did well to get into that position.

Subs:

Hughes 7 - Made a couple of trojan-style runs and actually looks a solid right-back.

Martin 7 - Not much time but impressive.

McVeigh 6 - Not a lot of time. Has a good passing eye, just needs to use it more.

[Stevie Wonder 0]

Marshall 7 - Very little to do but caught the ball well and his distribution was generally excellent.

Colin 6 - Did OK but didn''t make the best use of the space and the amount of ball he had in the 1st half.

Lappin 8 - Very good debut. Assured, wanted the ball and did a solid job at the back.

Dublin 6 - Great goal & leadership but not one his better games. Distribution was woeful at times.

Doc 7 - Barely put a foot wrong all game, more like the Doc of last year.

Safri 8 - In the last few games has looked back to his best. Was everywhere in the 2nd half. Only slight blackspot was his set pieces which weren''t up to standard.

Etuhu 6 - Not as bad as of late. Still times when the game seemed to pass him by but improved as the game went on.

Fotheringham 7 - Solid. Used the ball well and like Lappin was always looking to make himself available. Brings a bit of much needed passion to the team.

Croft 6 - The usual amount of effort but with the usual lack of end product.

Hux 9 - Vintage Hux. Did OK in the 1st half but was much better when he was moved up front. Absolutely unstoppable in the last 15 mins.

Brown 6 - Worked hard without ever looking like scoring.

Hughes 7 - Did well although Leeds barely attacked in the 2nd half. Couple of great surging runs towards the end of the game.

Martin 6 - Did OK, linked up play well on a couple of occasions.

McVeigh - Did seem to work harder in the 5 mins he was on than in most of his other appearances.

 

[BlyBlyBabes 0]

Thanks folks.

Interesting.

OTBC

[Crazy Eddie 0]

Marshall - Not a lot to do so cannot really rate higher, good distribution - 6Colin - Thought he had a very good game, looks the part this season, don''t know why he was substituted - 7Dublin - We are so much better with him in the side, assured as always and a great leader. Very good goal also, sat in upper Barclay didn''t have best view but saw it again on goals on Sunday - great technique. For the good of the team must stay in defence for rest of season- 9 (MOM)Docherty - Played better with Dublin next to him (as does Shacks) - 7Lappin - Very promising debut, great left foot, hungry and tidy on the ball, can''t wait to see him in front of Drury - 8Fothers - Again, hungry, but seemed less involved than his fellow debutant. Some loose balls and occasional heavy touches in a game where mostly peoples first touches were good. More to come I hope - 6Etuhu - Mr undroppable, no matter how badly he plays. Was marginally better in second half. Bad passing and heavy touch. Weak in the challenge first half esp. How did this guy ever break a Preston players leg??? If only he would run as fast towards the opposision goal as he does towards his own - 5Safri - Grew as game went on, spraying it about brilliantly in the latter part of second half. Agressive in the tackle. Not so good from set plays - 7Hux - Vintage stuff in second half when moved up front, if he''d have been there all game could have been my MOM. Could have easily had three - 8Croft - Not sure he''ll be in the side once Chadwick gets fit. His direct running is a plus but his delivery is so hit and miss. Lucky not to get subbed by infuriating Grant by losing possession with a backheel right in front of him when we were trying to protect our lead!! - 6Brown - Isolated and a bit clumsy, needs time to settle and needs a striker along side him - 6Subs:McVeigh - Don''t think Grant brought him on at the death so he could try ambitious crossfield balls and concede possession! - 3Hughes - Good right back, confussed that he replaced Colin, but he was every bit as good when he came on, some great surging runs to eat up the seconds - 7Martin - Showing promise, fairly big, fairly quick, good touch. Will he be challenging for a start before the seasons out? He should stick one away and give the manager a selection headache - 6Grant - Got the system wrong but realised and changed it for the better. His substitutions seemed to work but will Etuhu never be subbed? His signings have so far improved us on the whole - 7

[Baldyboy 0]

marshall 6 not much to do ut dealt with crosses well.

colin 7 good game surprised was taken off

lappin 8 seems to be a real gem. has a sweet left foot.

doherty 6 best game for a while but never really pressured

dublin 7 not as solid as usual but took his goal really well

croft 6 crossing leaves a lot to be desired.

safri 7 put his foot in and broke up attacks well.

etuhu 5 why oh why is he still in the team?

fotheringham 7 quiet first half but looked cultured when put wide second half

brown 6 did better when hux went forward and he had more support

huckerby 9 has to play up front. tore leeds back four to shreds just as he did wolves.

subs

hughes 7 did well.

martin 6 looked good but would like to see him given longer than 15 mins

mcveigh 5 gave the ball away twice instead of trying to just run clock down

grant 7 changed it when saw 451 wasnt working so deserved credit for doing something about it.

[Yellow Rages 0]

Just read a couple of newspaper reports on the game and one reported on hux as ''the much travelled'' The other called him ''the veteran''.

I personally wouldn''t call him either. Who do they get to report on football these days?

[Alex Harvey-Jones 0]

My match ratings would be:

Marshall - 7: Looks a good keeper. Didn''t have many saves to make but commanded his area and caught the ball very well from crosses which took the pressure off our defenders. So much more sure than Gallagher. Good signing!

Lappin - 9: Great debut. Looked strong in the tackle and very good going forward with the ball. Cut inside well or looked for the cutting pass and Leeds had no answer but to foul him a lot of the time. Can''t wait for Drury to return and for them to form a great defensive and attacking partnership on he left! Another great signing on this display!

Doherty - 7: I thought he had a very good game. Won some towering headers and his distribution to the flanks was pretty impressive. One of his better performances this season! keep it going Doc!

Dublin - 8: Great performance at the back when still suffering slightly from his injury. Fantastic finish for the goal and pure quality all round! One dreadful pass which let Leeds in but luckily they didn''t make it count!

Colin - 7: Is improving all the time and is looking a very good player now. Better going forward and almost scored with a good low shot. Strong in the tackle and works hard for the team. Was surprised he was taken off.

Fotheringham - 7: Quiet in the first half but began to show some of his skills and talent in the second half. Played some great passes and looks a good addition to the team.

Safri - 7: Played well. Always on the ball and picked up the loose scraps in midfield. Very talented and passing was crisp. Would like to see Safri and Fozzy play together in central midfield.

Etuhu - 4: Very poor game. Definitely carried in midfield by Safri. One or two glimpses of skill but went awol for large patches of the game. Should have scored at the end but hit it straight at the keeper! Not good enough on this showing.

Croft - 6: Looked good in the first half. Linked up well with Colin and made some good runs but often failed to beat the last defender. Also faded in the second half and once again failed to finish the full 90 minutes. Not performing to his full potential at the moment!

Huckerby - 8: Quiet in the first half and didn''t see too much of the ball. Looked much better once he moved up front. The team had a better shape and he threatened far more. Great finish for his goal and was very unlucky not to have another one or two. Class display!

Brown - 7: Showed some good skill and footwork. His hold up play was good and again he looks a useful signing. Disappointment for me was that he didn''t really look like scoring. Seems an ideal type of player to play up front with Earnie but not going to score nearly enough goals to replace him!

Subs:

Hughes - 6: Not a bad showing. Couple of good bursts forward and didn''t let anyone down.

Martin - 5: Didn''t really get into the game. Saw very little of the ball and when he did, gave it away too easily. Still it''s great to see him given a chance and the only way he will improve is by playing!

McVeigh - 5: Looked like we were 2-1 down by the way he was playing. He tried some very ambitious passes when we needed to keep the ball which wasn''t very responsible and passed it forward and long at every opportunity. Good to see him trying to be positive and attacking but chose the wrong time!

Thorne - 10: Gets the best score of the day for staying on the bench! We were so much improved without him!

[Rudolph Hucker 0]

Are you sure you wouldn''t like more time to think about it Alex?