The sputtering start

[Salopian 1]

Apart from about two brief periods when we played good football, the team has failed very largely. Most people are ready to make the manager a scapegoat, but is it that simple?In some ways the last two away games should be ignored - Wolves and Charlton are massive teams, with money, who will be thereabouts at the end of the season. We never honestly expected to win either, although undeservingly we came close to a point at Charlton.More worrying was the home defeat by Cardiff, when we should arguably have won, and at Hull were the general consensus was that we deserved a point, whatever that means. Southampton we just beat.I take some comfort from the fact that we were lacking the services of  Smith and Fozzy, who had been expected to create more than we have been creating without them, and that Brellier through injury and Dave through acclimitisation would need time.We know that at least one defender loses position or concentration and thus gives away goals, but so far in the Championship we have not shipped many goals in any match no matter how badly we have played. For me the problem has been in creating chances and, when we have, in taking them. All strikers miss chances - even Earnie was regarded as converting no more than one in four when he played at West Brom.Where has the lack of creativity arisen?-Partly because Hux has been fighting his way back to full fitness. We have not scored many since he returned full time.-Partly because the manager has persevered with a target man, usually Brown, who has not himself scored. The policy continues from Brown''s signing to provide "knock-downs" for Earnie before he was injured, and perhaps also from the lack of effective passing in the midfield caused by the absence of Fozzy in particular. I don''t like the policy, as it can cause the punting of long hopeful balls in the air, but it is a method which with our personnel has not worked.-Partly from under-performing players - Chadwick has been disappointing, Russell has ben busy but..., Lappin has been excellent at dead balls but has not contributed much else.-Partly from a drop in confidence in passing and moving. They apparently perform well in training but cannot do this for the full 90 minutes on the field. This is not a new problem, but rather has been with us even since our time in the Premiership. The personnel are largely different, but the problem persists. Peter Grant seems not to be able to explain it, and I certainly can''t, but if players are like this, why not try some of the hungry youngsters in their place - Spillane, Rossi, Martin, Smart, in particular - they have everything to play for, with no fear, and may buck up the present position holders.

[ricky knight 0]

oh well thats easy we will just ignore the games we play utter garbage in. Be honest we have probably played an hours exceptable football all season, we are dire, the manager is useless, the board are a waste of space except it, dont keep making excuses or developing scenarios.

[blahblahblah 2]

Smith will be back in the first 10 days of October, which gives us another 3 or 4 games with our main creative outlet being an unhappy veteran who is losing his pace, and apparently his influence in the team, at least that''s how I translate his pining for Etuhu and Safri.  Smith and Fotheringhams'' injuries have probably hurt us most, as Russell and Brellier seem to be players who break up play, not create it.If you had to have 3 teams to play against to save your managerial career, I''d take Sheffield Wednesday, QPR and Scunthorpe any day of the week.

[walks on water 0]

[quote user="Salopian"]This is not a new problem, but rather has been with us even since our time in the Premiership. The personnel are largely different, but the problem persists. Peter Grant seems not to be able to explain it, and I certainly can''t, but if players are like this, why not try some of the hungry youngsters in their place - Spillane, Rossi, Martin, Smart, in particular - they have everything to play for, with no fear, and may buck up the present position holders.

[/quote]

 

! 100% with u

[Barclay_Boy 0]

thats the same wolves and charlton who get smaller home attendances than us then? another post enforcing the "little norwich" myth! if you consider them to be massive clubs what word do you use for arsenal and man utd? By the way Arsenal and Man U were clubs that we were beating round about the time the prem came into being and before total incompetant management of the club brought us to where we are now.