City come crashing back down to earth at Rotherham by Chris Cork Following an inauspicious start to the season City were beginning to resemble something akin to a passable football team over recent weeks. It looked like the players had settled into Championship life and were grinding out some decent results. The foolhardy expansiveness in our play had, for the most part, been eradicated and replaced with a more solid and robust look. It was by no means pretty or perfect, but it was looking like a pragmatic base from which we could garner enough points to survive. The workmanlike draw against Hull, for example, was probably one we wouldn’t have earned earlier in the season. And so we headed to Rotherham with realistic hopes of putting a bit of breathing space between ourselves and the relegation zone…. 90 abject minutes later and many are now seriously pondering the possibility of League One football next season. That’s what taking a hammering from a team who will likely be keeping us company in and around the drop zone all season will do to you. Bearing in mind the level of opposition it was the worst display of the season to date. A performance that offered virtually no positives and served only to highlight our glaring shortcomings in brutal fashion. Steve Cotterill’s assertion that we were the better football team is a stretch to put it politely. Yes, we started brightly. Then they scored. Thereafter our performance gradually descended into a wretched combination of defensive frailty and attacking impotence. Hardly hallmarks of being the better team. It’s an unfortunate reality that given the collective lack of quality in the squad, the players have to be operating at their absolute maximum to pick up results in this league. Any sort of drop off in application and endeavour and they’re going to get punished, even by the division’s lesser likes. Contrast that with Hull who looked short of their best against us but still had enough quality about them to get a result. City don’t have that luxury because the players can’t fall back on natural ability to bail themselves out of trouble when they’re not at their best. That’s not to say they aren’t putting in the effort (on the contrary; attitude has never been a criticism one could make of this group), rather that it’s simply not possible to perform at your peak week in week out. When performance levels dip poor results are an inevitability for a squad low on quality. It’s worth reiterating that prior to Saturday’s result we were looking a relatively assured – if unspectacular – outfit. Yes, Rotherham was an atrocious performance, but we could just as easily beat Blackburn next week and get back on the right track. Point being, we need to be realistic and accept the position we’re in (but certainly not accepting the inexcusable summer debacle that put us in this position) rather than grabbing our pitchforks and baying for blood every time we lose. This is a squad low on Championship class and experience and we’re going to get hammered and produce desperate displays from time to time because that’s what poor teams do. It’s when the desperate displays become the norm that the alarm bells should start ringing, and we’re certainly not there….. yet. As an aside, for those of you banking on City using the January transfer window to bring in quality additions; we had all summer to do that and failed dismally. What makes you think we can do it during a four week period that’s traditionally very difficult to do business of real significance, especially for teams struggling near the foot of the table?
We're doomed unless City decision makers actually decide to wake up and face reality. Apathetic comes to mind when the only noise coming out of Ashton Gate is silence, and although some say that is golden I think it is they know the gig is up and you have been found out to be terrible at completing their homework in a timely fashion. Bottom of the class in my books and an insult to the faithful who were some of the best away fans in the league. Mark my words it won't only be only the away disciples who will fall by the wayside if this lack of effort continues much longer. Get on the ball you idiots and do what is required to set the ship right or you will send us where we don't want to be.
Whilst the result and performance last Saturday was hugely disappointing, there is still a very long way to go yet. Teams like us, and like Rotherham, Bolton, Preston, MK Dons, Charlton, Blackburn etc will all get mini runs together at certain times of the rest of the season, only to be pegged back when their own form fails and the teams around them start picking up points. We are no different, and I believe we have a reasonable chance of not being one of the bottom 3 teams come May. But what we need to do is to turn the numerous draws into wins.....and bring in some quality in the areas in which we are short such as midfield and someone to support and supply Kodjia.
