Well deserved point. The Albion pundit was ex Welsh international Andy Johnson (a forgettable journeyman) who was slagging us off all first half but as the game went on he conceded it was a fair result.
so, 4 games in (well, Coventry are half way there) and the championship is predictably unpredictable. no-one with 4 wins, no-one without a point. 4 teams undefeated. 5 teams without a win. wigan with 3 draws out of 3.
Gutted we couldn't find a way to nick it, just to be unexpectedly joint top but it shows another side to the team AND a bit of strength in depth to lose Kipre and JC as well as Sawyers and still come away with a clean sheet. Only conceded 1 goal in 4 (league) games thus far... If you are hard to beat you always get a chance to win it....
Same hymn sheet Dai - Etete looked way off the pace and I didn't like his languid approach when he came on. He hardly put himself about and was very slow getting back on side for the next phase when we regained possession. There were a couple of times he had to ignore a through ball because he was so slow getting back. I like Watters but he needs more bite about his game. A real trier when he chases down a forward pass and lays it off to a team mate, he seems to think he's done his job rather than go again for a return. Midfield is all about Wintle and Rhino - absolute monster players for us whereas Ralls had a very poor game. Sawyers needs to pick up the pace - obvious skills but seems to need too much time now and again. At the back I'm very happy. Simpson had a good game coming in cold for Kipre and Ng oozes awareness if not physical size. Romeo and the unfortunate Collins are brilliant aquisitions. An out of position O'Dowda was superb and Ojo made a marked improvement on earlier showings. Back to your point Dai - we need a striker.
A point at WBA with a good defensive performance, and largely controlling the second half is a good result. Yes we didn’t score but neither did they. Watters and Etete didn’t have any chances created for them but agree on last saturdays showing a decent striker would have taken both those glaring chances. I’m sure SM is looking for a striker in the closing days of this window but he’s got little money and so suspect it’ll be a loan player from a PL squad. Unless he can unearth a gem from abroad?
Agree it's not quite happening for Watters at the moment, but it seems like his showings are getting better, even without the goals. Etete is a different story, although he's come in from Spurs we have to remember this is the highest level he's ever played at in reality, so stepping up from League 2 and League 1 where he's gained the bulk of his experience is going to take a little time. Despite his size I'd imagine he still needs to work on his physical strength too. Coming up against the likes of Ajayi, Livermore and O'Shea, all pretty experienced and certainly with Ajayi and LIvermore physically big and strong players is a big test for him. Even Watters can probably still be classed as finding his feet at this level if truth be told. We probably DO need another, more experienced striker in the Hugill kind of mould though. Hopefully we can find one and the finances stretch to it... Either way though I think we'll be ok this season. May not trouble the top six for too long but at the least mid-table is beckoning and as we've said on here before, if we achieve that or more AND revamp the squad and playing style at the same time it has to be considered a decent enough season. For me, the biggest worry will be that once teams have gotten used to our playing style, do we have enough about us to overcome that? Both in terms of the players ability and the managers tactical nous? Time will tell but it'll be a fun ride finding out.
A decent enough set of early results and a dynamic style and set of players. A top half finish would do for this season. Posters on this board anticipating a decent game of football and looking forward to the game. After the last few seasons, big changes off the field as well as on it. One step at a time. Hope Tan is enjoying the transformation and turns up for a few games.
Just watched the extended highlights. Solid performance. WBA probably had slightly the better of the chances but nothing really clear cut. Injury to Collins didn't look good. ACL? Plenty to work on, but easier when you're not losing games. Need to get some tips from the ladies on finishing. They scored 11 in a pre-season game against FGR.
Such bad luck for Collins who, like Alfa, has started the season so well. Hope it is not ACL but doesn't look good. So, for Sunday persist with O'Dowda at lb against his old club or bring in Bagan. He was doing some serious timed efforts from half way to goal line and back before the Brum game.
SM said Collins will get a scan in the next couple days. Didn't say ACL outright but hinted at it. They were trying to rest O'Dowda on Wednesday. He got 8 mins off. Would be tempted to put Bagan in there. Then do you start O'Dowda or put him on the bench? Either way there's the option to move him to LB if Began is struggling. Can Simpson play LB or does that bring back memories of 5 CBs? Would be nice to see the side that played Brum (less Collins obviously) start and see what they can do. Given the Wurzles problems in closing games out, I look forward to seeing Colwill, Harris and the like off the bench.
