Match Day Thread Stoke away

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2 awful decisions which have cost us 4 points the last 2 games.

Great character to come back but that's about as positive as it gets from me. I thought it was a pretty awful performance. We look so sloppy on the ball, McKenna spent a lot of time convincing the fans playing it about at the back and taking risks would be worth it and my god was it 2 seasons ago. This team however lose the ball so much when under very little pressure. Most of Stokes chances came from us just giving the ball away.

Despite the outstanding touch and pass from Kipre for the goal, I've felt the past few games he's been far to casual on the ball and is making far too many mistakes, he's also getting pulled out of position far too much.

Taylor was awful. Given the players we have recruited I feel it says a lot about those players that he still appears to be Matusiwas most regular partner in midfield. For me he's no better player than he was 2 seasons ago and he couldn't get in the team then.

As someone who's been highly critical of our performances all season I was half expecting by this point to have seen more consistency and fluidity in our performances but I haven't, we still constantly look disjointed and sloppy on the ball in the majority of our games.

A lot can happen in the last games of the season, with teams at the top getting jitters however the pattern of performances across this season (and even last) tells me this team isn't good enough to make it. And even if it is somethings got to click/majorly improve for these players to be considered good enough to have a chance in the PL. How things are at the moment if this team goes up I feel like we'd struggle more that we did last season
 
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Just got back to the hotel after the match and the feeling among the many Town fans is huge disappointment, after a terrible first half of poor passing and basic errors leading to a 2 goal deficit at half time coupled to Town carrying no goal threat whatsoever a terrific fightback started early in the second half.
Town battled their way to a 3 2 lead and complete dominance in the match, but then not for the first time we subbed and sat back and got caught by a last minute penalty, the few Stoke fans still in the ground couldn't believe their luck when they equalised and so it ended in a draw.
The first half was so bad that a chorus of Boos rang out at half time which is something I've never heard away from home, simple passes going to the opposition, lightweight challenges from normally reliable players coupled to Azon doing virtually nothing along with many other sub standard performances all over the pitch.
So it's on to Sheffield on Saturday but be in no doubt that this team of ours is light years away from getting promotion and surviving in the Prem, and although I'm sure that when Nunez and more importantly Philogene are fit things will improve we are at the moment a reasonable championship side at best.
 
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fieldmarshall said:
Just got back to the hotel after the match and the feeling among the many Town fans is huge disappointment, after a terrible first half of poor passing and basic errors leading to a 2 goal deficit at half time coupled to Town carrying no goal threat whatsoever a terrific fightback started early in the second half.
Town battled their way to a 3 2 lead and complete dominance in the match, but then not for the first time we subbed and sat back and got caught by a last minute penalty, the few Stoke fans still in the ground couldn't believe their luck when they equalised and so it ended in a draw.
The first half was so bad that a chorus of Boos rang out at half time which is something I've never heard away from home, simple passes going to the opposition, lightweight challenges from normally reliable players coupled to Azon doing virtually nothing along with many other sub standard performances all over the pitch.
So it's on to Sheffield on Saturday but be in no doubt that this team of ours is light years away from getting promotion and surviving in the Prem, and although I'm sure that when Nunez and more importantly Philogene are fit things will improve we are at the moment a reasonable championship side at best.
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Azon chasing after the ref in entirely the wrong direction instead of chasing back summed up the first half.

Glimpses of some wonderful one touch football is a sign of what might be to come, but sadly only glimpses.

I am starting to think we would be better served in the long run by another season at this level.
 
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That was a terrible first half from us. Far too many mistakes. It looks like Kieran's tactics are to try and keep and move the ball in the first half to tire a team out and then go for it in the second. I was yelling at the TV for Walton to throw it out early many times but he's just not doing it until we really need to. The amount of games the lads have played is starting to tell and it won't get any easier with a ridiculous run in to come. From having barely any matches in the opening two months to now cramming in postponed matches and having a team we're against go through in the FA Cup, there really needs to be a look taken at the fixture list. Surely it would make more sense to get a few more midweek games in early in the season to counteract the inevitable postponements and potential FA Cup fixtures that come in the winter and from January onwards.

We didn't get the ball to Burns or Mehmeti enough in the first half and Clarke has been frustrating in the last couple of matches. Azon is right to be annoyed at the foul that wasn't given for having his shirt pulled but he should've still been tracking back to help out anyway.

Second half was much better, but equally as annoying to see that we can attack quickly, so why the **** don't we do it earlier??

The penalty that cost us 2 points was so soft, but Kipre's mistake for putting hands on the player. In Kipre though, we have a little bit of all three positions on the pitch. He can strike a ball like a forward, pass like a midfielder and defend like a centre back.

This was a really frustrating result, from the joy of getting in front to a soft penalty making us drop points again. The refs have given us some pretty ****ty calls lately, I really hope they don't cost us in the end.
 
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Another game we should have won, but tbh, like others have commented, we are not ready for the Prem. And we have slipped 4 valuable points, thanks in part to some shocking ref decisions.

Maybe we are enjoying the journey and not the destination via the play-offs. Few of us like the Prem, tho its obviously a strategic aim for Gamechanger.

I am in the camp where we needed a fresh stronger no 9. Maybe with our new European scout, that will be our priority come season's end.
 
We can’t be blaming the ref. In fact, if O’Shea led the side by playing to the whistle and making a robust case when it was really warranted instead of chasing the ref for every tackle and shirt pull we’d have the three points.
 
YorkieLancsHampyLondoner said:
I think the moment we blew it was subbing off Matusiwa. Tired or not, I remember thinking that was an incredibly risky move for another CDM to have to come in cold for an intense last few minutes.
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I agree, I thought it was an odd one given there is no one better defensively in the league I would argue (questionable on the ball). I would've brought Mehmeti off and put Cajuste in the 10 however I understand Matusiwa was injured.
 
I think Saturday is the last game before the yellow card situation becomes void. Are they saying he’s injured just so they can leave him out as they think we can beat Sheff Wed without him? Think that’s a risky game as we remember what happened when we didn’t have him in the Charlton game
 
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