I have been to all but one of the home games this season and I felt from very early on yesterday that the tactics were wrong. Allen had clearly decided to go direct, possibly as a result of scouting. I was pretty close to the dugout and he was angry about the failure to get to the second ball. What has me confused is why he benched Kedwell if he wanted to play so directly as it seems to me he is well suited to the tactic. I fe lt Jackman was unlucky to see red. The tackle may have been a little rash but didn't look dangerous from my perch. Anyway 1-0 down with 10 men was always a big ask. I was pleased that they made a game of it though and one poor performance isn't the end of the world.
I do not think I am all that far apart from Grumpy and allright. The thing that worries me most is that the team has been totally outplayed by Southend and Rochdale when it was 11 v 11. Against Rochdale the performance actually improved with the departure of Jackman, not so much a condemnation of Jackman but more a reflection that the contributions of Burton and Findley were pitifully poor. Grumpy's comment that this may not entirely be their own fault, may have some justification, but it looks like Allen had planned to outrun Rochdale's big guys at the back but Coleman countered this by disrupting the supply of passes. Coleman outsmarted Allen. We have to be pleased to be top but I am uneasy. It was a spectacular achievement to get a win at Port Vale and away form has been terrific but the fixture list has been kind and Gills have only dominated one match at home. Results have gone well despite all the messing with the team not because of it and my personal opinion is that loan signings are a recipe for decline and Gills have started down this route. Things are fine really and 4 points this week will fill everyone with confidence but there are a couple of cracks showing that need to be fixed quickly and Allen should not feel he has to play his loan signings if they are letting him down!
The most important thing here is not to get carried. Nothing is won or lost in September, and one bad result doesn't make us a bad team. Bristol makes a good point about the performances over the last few home games, although I haven't seen them first hand, I have heard that we weren't exactly setting the world alight, but lets be truthful if the players on our books were capable of putting in consistant performances with the talent they have, they wouldn't be playing in L2 for Gillingham. We were never going to go the whole season unbeaten, although losing at home hurts it is nothing to get hung up about. The most important thing now is the reaction of the players and management at Northampton tomorrow, for one I don't believe Allen will allow the players to dwell on one result and I expect to see us bounce back stronger
