Hux. Frustrating.

[nycanary 1]

I understand why Hux''s prior clubs have been so frustrated with him. I am so frustrated with him right now because he''s become so predictable. And even so, he''s our best player.

His head-down, run at defenders, and try to split them both by hoping to put the ball between their legs or get the luck of the bounce is predictable. Premiership defenders don''t need to watch much tape to know what he''s going to do.

And frankly, I just don''t understand it at all. He''s a clever player. He''s not young. He doesn''t need to add much to his game to make him everso unpredictable. He just needs to try something different once in a while ot cause defenders to think twice.

He is at his best when he cuts in from the left to deliver a cross. Early this season, he was getting past his markers but as he''s been more watched, it''s become much more of a rarity nowadays -- he''s just so predictable.

I don''t understand why someone in the coaching staff wont FOCUS him on making some small additions to his repertoire. It would make a world of difference to his and the team''s performance.

I don''t care that he scored a wonder-goal against Arsenal. Big deal. We lost 4-1.

[TwoSheds 0]

Well said Nycanary.I had stated at the begining of the season that Hucks is not really upto Prem standard unless he tries out some new tricks.If you look back at any of his Man City outings plus Coventrys tapes you will see he is doing exactly now as he was doing then.Im not gonna knock the lad to much,he is a good player & done wonders for all involved at City last season but i do feel he is to good for the Fizzy league but not quite good enough for the Prem.But maybe its our tactics this season that havent really helped him.Also i do think he should be the 2nd name on Worthys team sheet every week after Greeno,but i must admit in the 1st half against Man City a few weeks ago when we went 2-0 up the lads were knocking the ball around here there & everywhere & the Man City defence didnt really know if they were coming or going.There was the element of suprise i think,Keegan new all about Hucks & would have been probably happier if Hucks had played.It was a nice change to see some variations of attack other than hoofing the ball upto Hucks down the left & seeing what happens!

[AJ 1,224]

i agree,

          Hes coming to predictable. Sometimes he just needs to whip in that early cross like a mid-fielder rather than runnin it right in for a tap-in.

GET THE CROSSES IN EARLIER HUX!!!

[sheded 0]

I`ve said this more than once , but it doesn`t seem to sink in !  Hucks  REAL position should  centre forward  , compre ?    sticking  him  out there on the left   is a complete waste of his potential  ,  if the  pundits who disparage  him as " predictable "  actually WENT to the matches  they would see a winger  doing  the business of putting  crosses   with considerable accuracy  to our " strikers " who , 90 % of the time , lose the plot in front of the goal !! ..........  as for being old  [what ? ] 28 is old ????    what BS !!!

[Mook 0]

He wouldn''t need any additions to his repertoire if he was played in his rightful position.

Think of him running at the centre-backs at pace with the ball at his feet. Not the right midfielder, the right back, THEN finally the centre-back.

Play him up front. That''s where he is best, and look at what we''ve done to Paul McVeigh by playing him as a left-winger for 3 years.

[sheded 0]

Absolute tripe  nycanary and 2sheds  !

[BedsCanary 0]

I think it''s a little unfair to single out Hucks though. Every single player Norwich has needs to work hard at his game to improve and do better.

I think the only reason we get frustrated with Huckerby is because we know he can be a 20 goal a season Premiership striker if he works that little bit harder

[If I had the wings of a sparrow 0]

What utter rubbish, take Hucks out of the side this season & we would have scored about 5 goals. The reason you think hes predictable is because the rest of the team uses him as the only outlet hes proven to me that he can play easily in the Premiership & I hope he is here next season to fire us up, without him it will be a massive struggle.

[Tumbleweed 106]

I think twosheds has hit the nail on the head. Its not Hux''s "predictability" for me, its the fact that when he plays we just hoof it over to him and expect him to do all the work- a one trick team. So other managers know that when you stop Hux you stop City. A common problem is that Hux''s pace takes him out of range of the midfield who lumber upfield as if its a walk in the country. So when he cuts in or tries to beat the defender there is often little support, so he has to do it again, and again until he''s either through himself or there is somebody to pass or cross to.

I am not frustrated by him at all. He''s a great player and seems a great bloke. What frustrates me is that we haven''t got a team around him of the same standard which have much imagination and just expect Hux to do it for them every week.

[gazzathegreat 0]

hucks just doesn''t have the team around him to fufill his potential - agreed tumbleweed, the main problem is we don''t play football to his strengths - we don''t have a competent midfield for him to pass to or a striker capable of getting up in the box for him

i too would love to see him being played in a upfront role, but given the players we have at the moment this isn''t going to happen

in the championship he will shine once more, but the ultimate solution is to build a team who are capable of bringing the best out of him

at the moment, yes he does the same thing - but what else can he do, he can''t win a game all on his own

[ZLF 274]

[quote]He wouldn''t need any additions to his repertoire if he was played in his rightful position. Think of him running at the centre-backs at pace with the ball at his feet. Not the right midfielder, the r...[/quote]

The return of the Mook - welcome back.

And I wholeheartedly agree - how can we shoot ourselves in the foot by wasting our most potent attacking force by playing him deep in our own half where the opponents can expose his defensive weakness and he has to beat half the opponents team just to see the goal?  This also allows the opponents to play far further up the pitch squeezing the game and keeping us on our back foot.

Having hux up front allows him the width of the pitch to play with rather than just a left flank,  like Henry he will favour the left wing but we are better with him in and around their penalty box - a burst of pace there is devastating. His goal last weekend shows what he can do when far enough up the pitch.  No his finishing is not clinical - if he was he would be at Manure etc and worth £20m, but its better than Leons and no worse than Svens or Ashtons. 

As far as consistency is concerned he has threatened just about every team he has faced, given his all every game, played far more games than I could have hoped for each season and been involved with the vast majority of our goals this season - how much more consistent do you want??? 

Just let him weave his magic where it benefits us rather than the opponent. POTY for me by a mile

 

OTBC

[First Wizard 0]

[quote]I understand why Hux''s prior clubs have been so frustrated with him. I am so frustrated with him right now because he''s become so predictable. And even so, he''s our best player. His head-down, run at...[/quote]

Thank God for Darren Huckerby!.

IMO, we wouldn''t even be in the Prem if it wasn''t for him.

Take him out of this season''s team performance, and we would have been relegated by Christmas.

When will you all learn this?.

Yes, I am biased, that''s because I recognise class when it slaps me in the face!.

Gary Neville (The England full back) couldn''t cope with him, hmm, I wonder why?.

[Peter 0]

Huckerby is played wide left but delivers with his right therefore always need to cut in, that is what he does, should be so easy to send him down the left, but surprisingly teams of the calibre of Arsenal and Chelsea failed to do so and two goals.  He may be predictable but is our only effective source other than Bents v Bolton.

Lets have a tru right winger not seen since Disco and Ruel, ex Womble at Cardiff might be the answer.

But Hucks is a brightish light in a depressing sea of mediocrity.  We will need him next year, lets hope all this transfer talk is rubbish otherwise we will really see what we shall be missing. 

[charlies dad 0]

Agreed, Huckerby was very poor at Bolton. But he was back to something like his best at Arsenal. Given his desire to stay at the club no matter what division we ply our trade, we should give thanks and make him welcome. He''s a maverick granted, but he will tear defences apart next season, and Ashton will love playing with him. Also im voting for him as my POTS.

[BedsCanary 0]

To the people suggesting Hucks be played up front : whenever he has been put in that position he spends 80 minutes of the game drifting back out to the left of midfield leaving the other striker isolated

[ZLF 274]

PS - I would have loved all our players to have been as inconsistent and frustrating as Hux  - would wouldnt be bottom of the table now if they were. 

 

OTBC

[Saint Canary 0]

I don''t feel frustrated by Hux at all.  It''s not his fault that players like Holt aren''t good enough.  We look like a school team sometimes, with everyone passing the ball to the boy who can dribble and hoping he will do it all.

 

[Kent Canary 0]

Hux remains as great as before, too often when he''s on the ball all you can hear is people shouting ''Help him out!''. He still cant do it all on his own.

[Campbell 0]

At the start of the season, Huckerby played up front with Svensson, with Bentley on the left and some of their link up was superb. If we had a Bentley-type on the left with the pace and intelligence to get into the box, then playing Huckerby up front would work a treat.

As we all know, Huckerby has a tendancy to drift out left, so if we can get our left ''winger'' going past Huckerby, or slotting inside when Huckerby drifts, then not only would we have the option to feed that player, Huckerby could also cut in and lay it to Francis, who in turn could spread it to Helveg, who could deliver a quality ball like he can. By this time, we''d potentially have Bentley, Huckerby, Ashton, Jonson and Francis all attacking this ball or waiting for the second ball in or around the box.

A lovely pattern of play I''m sure you''ll agree!

I think Huckerby is asked to do too much when playing left wing. It''s something he has added to his game that he is able to play left wing, but we are not as solid like this, nor do we have enough options when one of our midfielders is in possession; hence we often lose it.

In Francis we have a player who is great at joining from deep, so it''s not such a big problem that Huckerby drifts wide, as long as Francis is switched on and joining in as much as possible.

When we used to play three strikers last season, Huckerby would work the right full back, McKenzie would work the left and Svensson would stay in the middle as much as possible. Then these three would take it in turns to drop into midfield to help out when needed. I think we should try this again at some point.

Overall, Huckerby hasn''t had a great season, but in a struggling team he has been our spark and I really hope he stays and we can get the best out of his ''peak'' years by playing him in the correct position and utilising him effectively.

 

[Robbo007 0]

Its quite amazing how he can be critiscised when he has done more going forward than the rest of the team put together (with the one exception of Damo)!

Our other midfielders and attackers: Jonson, Holt, Mcveigh, Mulryne, Helveg, Brennan, Bentley,Stuart, McKenzie, Ashton, Svennson, Jarvis.

I would say that on average, 4 of these play per game. Thats 120 games played by these "forward men" this season. And how many goals have come from these players?? I make it about 12. How many assists have come from these? I would say less than 10 (bents'' crosses vs bolton, jonson vs liver and deano vs man C).

Now look at one player, Huckerby. He''s scored about 7 (i think), and I would say has at least 10 assists.

There are plenty more players in front of him to be critiscised!

[Andrew Wood 0]

hux''s  

[Twinkles 0]

One man doesn''t make a team, how about the other''s on the pitch? Cant see that Norwich has lost all their games due to the fact that Huckerby is a total donkey and has lost all of them personally for us?! Obviously he''s the dangerman so he is marked and shut down by the other defences. Henry, Rooney, all heavily marked, and as players go huckerby is our scariest player. Most players are told by the managment what is expected of them, all players need to have a basic knowledge of set plays so they can position correctly and be ready for what is coming. You cant sit there and condem him for the way he plays the game, its probably worked out in training and pre-match discussions.

He shows passion and commitment to the club and you can see he cares about the team and that goes a long way to me having a high regard for the player. If Norwich bounce back up then having huckerby dancing past the less experienced championship players is a vital part of that success. The premiership was never going to be easy for a side as small and inexperienced as Norwich, its all too easy to lay blame at players and management. But after all the excitement and opportunities huckerby has given this club so far, and the posibilities of what can happen in the future some people are being just a tad too harsh!

[TwoSheds 0]

What part dont you agree with sheded? The sentence where i said he should be the 2nd named player on Worthys sheet? The sentence where i said he is a good player & he has done wonders for the club last season? The sentence where i said he is predictable & all we do is hoof the ball up to him every attack? Exactly what part is tripe?

[sheded 0]

[quote]i agree, Hes coming to predictable. Sometimes he just needs to whip in that early cross like a mid-fielder rather than runnin it right in for a tap-in. GET THE CROSSES IN EARLIER HUX!!![/quote]

OK ?   your observations don`t hang together too well .....   not just yours , but a few others ! ...  lets take your  reference to Hucks  stay at Mancity , it was thanks to Hucks  goals [ not a striker ?? ]  that  they got back into the prem !!!!   and the thanks Hucks got for this ?   hardly any chance  to play in the first team , whilst the  amazingly useless Keegan  went on a wild spending spree  which  practically  bankrupted the club , and led to them hurtling down into the relegation zone , typically , as he did as an England " manager " Keegan  did a runner when he saw  it all going tits up    he makes Worthy look like a genious !  ... then your other reference , Coventry , who was the top goal scorer  during Hucks stay there ? ...... Strachan was another  manager who`s ego  couldn`t take on board  a player who had talents they never possessed ... simple as that !