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Graham Humphrey

Back from the game...

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A very different side put out tonight, looked more like a 4-3-3 than anything which was interesting.Thought first half we were well on top, played some great stuff at times - I was very impressed with Hughes in the middle, very good on the ball, and Adeyemi did really well I thought and nearly scored a remarkable goal from about 50 yards after Price messed up his kick. Should have been well clear long before Martin''s excellent strike in off the post, we had all the possession pretty much (apart from when Kabba hit the side-netting). They got more into it after that though and second half was pretty scrappy, Brentford were more dangerous but we had the odd chance ourselves.Was very impressed with Lappin at left-back, was very calm and composed and put some good balls in. Askou had a very good game, good tackles and used the ball well, and Nelson was solid enough too. Still have problems defending corners though. Spillane looked totally lost at right-back and was caught out of position a lot (almost very costly near the end when their guy got the whole left-hand side to himself where Spillane went AWOL) and totally failed to link up at all effectively with Whaley who neatly fits the ''headless chicken'' category. He looked no better than his previous matches.Russell made some decent challenges and tried to get involved but was pretty quiet most of the time; definitely lacking match fitness. Martin looked lively - showed some good touches and took his goal very well. Always looking to get on the ball and do something with it. He looks better playing on the left than up front, definitely.As for Maric... I''ll be kind and say he was obviously lacking match sharpness and has to adapt to the English game but he was shocking (apart from helping set up the goal). A touch like a baby elephant, constantly caught offside and really didn''t seem to fit into the team at all. Never knew what to do with the ball and lost it too often. McDonald replaced him but asking him to play a target-man like role was clearly beyond him, he won nothing in the air and the ball kept coming straight back at us. Daley also didn''t offer much when he came on.Also was a bit worried by Alnwick in goal, he made a very good save in the second half from a header but a few times he opted to punch rather than catch when he was under little pressure and that caused a few heart-in-mouth moments. Also flapped a bit at set pieces.Overall we just edged it thanks to a very good first half showing, and even second half we had a lot of the ball but didn''t do a lot, but Brentford definitely caused problems at corners in the second period and they certainly had their moments. The game should have been killed off by then in all honesty and we would have only ourselves to blame if we chucked it away. But we didn''t, we held on and into the next round we go, and that''s all that matters. But I''ve seen little from the ''fringe'' players to suggest they''ll be getting in the team anytime soon.Also a word for the fans - 12,500+ was a great turnout, a really good atmosphere and made it an enjoyable evening.Sorry if this is a bit all over the place, I''m kinda rushing it a bit, wanna go to bed as I''m knackered; but thought I''d get a few thoughts down here first.

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Pretty much as I saw the game.

Not sure where Maric goes from here unless he`s showing better touches in training.

Thought he was out of position and offside too many times.

 

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[quote user="Graham Humphrey"]A very different side put out tonight, looked more like a 4-3-3 than anything which was interesting.

Thought first half we were well on top, played some great stuff at times - I was very impressed with Hughes in the middle, very good on the ball, and Adeyemi did really well I thought and nearly scored a remarkable goal from about 50 yards after Price messed up his kick. Should have been well clear long before Martin''s excellent strike in off the post, we had all the possession pretty much (apart from when Kabba hit the side-netting). They got more into it after that though and second half was pretty scrappy, Brentford were more dangerous but we had the odd chance ourselves.

Was very impressed with Lappin at left-back, was very calm and composed and put some good balls in. Askou had a very good game, good tackles and used the ball well, and Nelson was solid enough too. Still have problems defending corners though. Spillane looked totally lost at right-back and was caught out of position a lot (almost very costly near the end when their guy got the whole left-hand side to himself where Spillane went AWOL) and totally failed to link up at all effectively with Whaley who neatly fits the ''headless chicken'' category. He looked no better than his previous matches.

Russell made some decent challenges and tried to get involved but was pretty quiet most of the time; definitely lacking match fitness. Martin looked lively - showed some good touches and took his goal very well. Always looking to get on the ball and do something with it. He looks better playing on the left than up front, definitely.

As for Maric... I''ll be kind and say he was obviously lacking match sharpness and has to adapt to the English game but he was shocking (apart from helping set up the goal). A touch like a baby elephant, constantly caught offside and really didn''t seem to fit into the team at all. Never knew what to do with the ball and lost it too often. McDonald replaced him but asking him to play a target-man like role was clearly beyond him, he won nothing in the air and the ball kept coming straight back at us. Daley also didn''t offer much when he came on.

Also was a bit worried by Alnwick in goal, he made a very good save in the second half from a header but a few times he opted to punch rather than catch when he was under little pressure and that caused a few heart-in-mouth moments. Also flapped a bit at set pieces.

Overall we just edged it thanks to a very good first half showing, and even second half we had a lot of the ball but didn''t do a lot, but Brentford definitely caused problems at corners in the second period and they certainly had their moments. The game should have been killed off by then in all honesty and we would have only ourselves to blame if we chucked it away. But we didn''t, we held on and into the next round we go, and that''s all that matters. But I''ve seen little from the ''fringe'' players to suggest they''ll be getting in the team anytime soon.

Also a word for the fans - 12,500+ was a great turnout, a really good atmosphere and made it an enjoyable evening.

Sorry if this is a bit all over the place, I''m kinda rushing it a bit, wanna go to bed as I''m knackered; but thought I''d get a few thoughts down here first.
[/quote]

could''nt have put it better, other than a bit more blunt...

Whaley = SH*T

Maric = Unfit and a little fat

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Bit harsh on Maric, i thought he did ok, but was very isolated and each time he had to do to much to find a yellow shirt, he needs a second striker up alongside him. Think we could see more of him had he had a partner and we gave him some chances.

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[quote user="Barclayman your Carrow Road SuperHero"]Bit harsh on Maric, i thought he did ok, but was very isolated and each time he had to do to much to find a yellow shirt, he needs a second striker up alongside him. Think we could see more of him had he had a partner and we gave him some chances.
[/quote]

Maybe so.

But it''s difficult to see him getting much of a game at the minute. He certainly isn''t likely to put Grant Holts place in the team in danger.

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good report there.

One thought about Whaley, while I didnt think he was great, he had a lot to do down the right. Spillane looked out of place at on the right and as such gave Whaley no support so he had to pick up most of the work on the right side and therefore looked exposed. Lappin did much better a much better job down the left and impressed me tonight with his leadership - my MOM.

Overall I thought it was a poor quality game - particularly 2nd half - and we should have won it easily.

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Great report Graham [Y]

Are you Ricardo''s stand in? Did you stop for a pint or fall in the river on the way home [B][st][;)]

Agree with the points greenTshirt made too. Lappin was my MOM and looked every inch a captain. And Whaley got more support and looked more a threat previously when Otsemebor was right back.

 

 

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Yeah cheers for the report back.

Slightly worrying, it seems we only have a first team of decent players and the rest are crap. Lets hope we don''t get too many injuries this season then.

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I would have to agree with this match analyis.

Maric did have a feew glimpses of what he can offer, but I also think he needs a strike partner. He is not a target man, dont think he won any headers, flick ons really. First touch was very lacking IMO... but he had his moments. I think not only has he not played a competitive game, but a run in the reserves with Theo and we could see him feature more later in the season. I also noticed that there could still be a language barrier

Very impressed with Hughes last night, way better than Clingan IMO. Did all the donkey work Sammy used to do, but passed it forwards. Russell had a good game I thought. nothing spectacular, but solid and did his job with ease. would like to see him on the bench.

I am inclined to disagree slightly on the Spillane views on here. I felt that Hughes was covering for him when he went forward, but there were times he was out of position... agreed. It seemed that Whaley was only holding the ball up for Spillane to cross it for him... Can we show Whaley videos of Croft last season please!!

Alnwick was OK, I was sitting just over the aisle from the Toon keeper we have on loan... he is a monster!! Not sure of his official height but it must 6''3" at least! There were quite a few of the squad there atually, Drury had some serious bling on his wedding finger, and Jamie turned up a little late.

Great to see the snake pitt laying into some Brentford fan being cautioned by the stewards!!

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Thanks for the responses guys, glad you all found it useful.

@Nutty - I''m not in Ricardo''s league just yet - I can''t tell you about the stroll back to Trowse for starters [;)]

@Norwich - sponsors'' MOM was Chris Martin which was a bit surprising.

@Nexus - ratings just for you ''cos I''m nice like that:

Alnwick - 6
Spillane - 4
Askou - 7
Nelson - 7
Lappin - 8 (My MOM)
Whaley - 4
Adeyemi - 6
Hughes - 7
Russell - 5
Martin - 7
Maric - 4

McDonald - 5
Daley - 5

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I''m pretty chuffed after last night''s result. Brentford will be one of the teams in contention for a top 6 spot this year.

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Good report Graham and fairly accurate from where I was sitting tho'' I''ll add my t''pence worth if you don''t mind.

Lappin, Askou, Hughes and Chris Martin all had excellent games I thought.  We dominated the first half and could have had a few more, mainly thanks to Hughes pulling all the strings.  He looks every inch the playmaker we were so lacking last season. Lappin, another great game and the captaincy suited him well. Good comunication throughout and a pat on the back when needed. Askou, totally dominant in the air and on the ground, calm under pressure.  His best game yet and growing in stature. Chris Martin, worked very hard and won a lot in the air, admittedly against a shorter RB.  Took his goal very well but should have given Maric his opener with a simple 5 yard ball in front of goal but for some reason put it across the face for no one.  Should start with Holt on Saturday.

The also rans.  Nelson looked good alongside Askou, rarely troubled and strong in the air.  Spillane looked good too.  Can''t understand why you think he looked lost?  Their left winger was probably their biggest threat but Spillane did well to look after him.  Tom and Rusty did well in a 3 man midfield, Tom was very unlucky not to score after a defensive cock up with a superb curling 40 yard effort which the defender got to about a yard from the line.  Rusty looked a little, well, rusty.  Competed well and was more composed and less reckless than of late, maybe the Lambert influence?.  Alnwick hardly had a thing to do the whole game but when needed pulled off a fantastic save from a corner.

That leaves us Maric and Whaley.  For me the jury is still out on Maric.  He was obviously not match fit and probably a yard or two off the pace, but having said that he battled well as a lone striker down the middle.  I thought the quality of balls into him was poor, especially from the right, and when he''d worked hard to get into good positions he was ignored (see Chris Martin above).  I think Graham, if you could watch the game again, you will find it was Whaley that was being caught offside most of the time, judging by where the free kicks were being taken from, so I''ll deal with him now.  Yet again I thought he was the worst player in yellow. Lazy, weak and no aggression.  Didn''t get back and help defend at all, which seems par for the course with him. Caught offside on numerous occasions. Constanly beaten to the ball and robbed by the left back and his ditribution was awful.  Even when given space he seemed terrified of taking his man on prefering to pay a long pass back to Spillane.  Doesn''t even deserve a place on the bench IMO.

All in all I thought it was a good TEAM performance.  As usual we had a couple of scares late on but I can''t think of any unforced errors that nearly cost us, which is nice.  Should have had the game dead and buried by half time though with the amount of territory and possesion we had.

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In best "Canary Call" style I did not go to the game last night but did watch it on the radio! The various reviews and comments above do seem to broadly tie in with what they said on the radio commentary. Sounds as if we had a belting first half and hour but then after the goal struggled to regain the same degree of control of ther game.

2 things that bug me a bit:

1. All of you have given good ratings to Russell, Hughes and Adayemi but from what i could guage on the commentary it seems that from about 35 minutes through to the 70th minute we barely kept possession at all and every loose ball was being picked up by Brentford. My intyerpretation of that at tht iem was that the midfielders had gine missing somewhat (as both Adeyemi and Hughes can go a bit quiet at times in a game). Fair reflection or was it more to do with the strikers not being able to hold the ball up and the defenders hoofing it meaning midfield was being by-passed?

2. I remain very concerend about Nelson. I have no doubt he can do a job against the more limited teams and clear away high balls all day but its on the floor I have concenrs both in terms of how he will cope with pacy strikers and also in terms of his "take no touch and just launch it" approach. Was he better last night in this regard? I am really concerned that the current clean sheets may be masking the fact we still have an issue in the CB department.

 

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Remind me how many games he has played?  Oh yeah one.  So shall we give him some time to fit in rather than just slate him?  Or is that the Norwich fans way nowadays.[quote user="Lineo"]Maric was f**king terrible, loan him out.[/quote]

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[quote user="B-ru"]

I would have to agree with this match analyis.

Maric did have a feew glimpses of what he can offer, but I also think he needs a strike partner. He is not a target man, dont think he won any headers, flick ons really. First touch was very lacking IMO... but he had his moments. I think not only has he not played a competitive game, but a run in the reserves with Theo and we could see him feature more later in the season. I also noticed that there could still be a language barrier

Very impressed with Hughes last night, way better than Clingan IMO. Did all the donkey work Sammy used to do, but passed it forwards. Russell had a good game I thought. nothing spectacular, but solid and did his job with ease. would like to see him on the bench.

I am inclined to disagree slightly on the Spillane views on here. I felt that Hughes was covering for him when he went forward, but there were times he was out of position... agreed. It seemed that Whaley was only holding the ball up for Spillane to cross it for him... Can we show Whaley videos of Croft last season please!!

Alnwick was OK, I was sitting just over the aisle from the Toon keeper we have on loan... he is a monster!! Not sure of his official height but it must 6''3" at least! There were quite a few of the squad there atually, Drury had some serious bling on his wedding finger, and Jamie turned up a little late.

Great to see the snake pitt laying into some Brentford fan being cautioned by the stewards!!

[/quote]

He''s 6ft 6in apparently.

And do you actually knnow where the Snake pit is?

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graham agree with most of that but thought spillane did ok. as for maric well i referred to him as a doherty clone up front! the guy was awful as was whalley. thought russell grew more into the game as it went on and adayemi was excellent too. to be fair to daley didnt think he was given enough of the ball but he did have a couple of good runs too.

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[quote user="ref89"]Remind me how many games he has played?  Oh yeah one.  So shall we give him some time to fit in rather than just slate him?  Or is that the Norwich fans way nowadays.

[quote user="Lineo"]Maric was f**king terrible, loan him out.
[/quote][/quote]

I agree, he must be given a little time and matches like this are they way to do it IMHO.  Plus if he''s being ignored on the pitch and not being fed the ball there isn''t really a lot the guy can do.

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Pretty accurate analysis Graham, nice one :)

Alnwick: 6 - Punches rather than catches

Spillane: 5 - Some good crosses from deep

Askou: 7

Nelson: 6

Lappin: 9 - In a word... outstanding

Whaley: 3 - In a few words, lazy, careless, crap

Adeyemi: 6

Hughes: 8 - Dictated tempo, neat passer

Russell: 5 - Didn''t really notice him to be honest

Martin: 7 - Surprisingly great in the air...

Maric: 4 - This lad played his first game in English football and showed a few glimpses... really hasn''t adapted to English football yet, but naturally that will take time.

Subs

Cody: 4

Daley: 5

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