Fulham v Ipswich

Two words

Fooking Bollox!!

 

When I've calmed down I shall write a more considered and thoughtful response!

 

Wow, what a second half. Feisty and 4 goals in 7 minutes make this an embarrassing result.
Watching us compared to Fulham it really sunk in how much I can't stand this McCarthy philosophy anymore. Fulham were well drilled and fluid. In comparison we are a team that relies on Garner getting the ball and falling over to win a free kick. We're a team of whingers when things don't go our way and we waste time when we're in front.
It's terrible to watch.

 

Whatever play off hopes some of us harboured before this match, however dim, are surely all but extinguished now. We had our usual gameplan of sitting back and inviting pressure, and yes, up to Spence's red card it was working. Yet regardless of the sending off, you can only go into a football match and withstand that much pressure for so long before you break. Yes, sometimes you get lucky and nab a draw or a win, but often you get beat. Almost every time we play a team with a bit of quality in it, or a side in or around the top six, we lose. And in my opinion, we lose playing some of most defensive, negative football in the top four English leagues.

I didn't expect us to beat Fulham and I think it's unrealistic to expect us to get top six this season. What I do think is a realistic hope is going to Portman Road and see Ipswich Town play good football, and we haven't witnessed that from the club for a long time, certainly not on a consistent basis. What disappoints me is the cynical, negative nature of our play, whether we play home or away. This doesn't even happen under just McCarthy, although he is the main culprit. But going back, we played the same negative, cynical, and bland football under Roy Keane and Paul Jewell. There are so many issues with the state of this football club that it'd be exhausting listing everything and we've covered most of it in discussions on this forum over the last few months.

There is almost nothing left in this season to make me want to go to Portman Road and see another game of 2017/18. I don't want to pay the stupidly extortionate ticket prices, I don't want to cheapen earlier Ipswich memories by watching a dour style of football played by ordinary footballers in a half empty ground. I don't want to watch McCarthy refuse to play or bring on attacking players as some passive aggressive gesture to the crowd. I don't want to appear to be supporting our faceless, absent owner with a dubious business record and who refuses to invest in a club he appears to have no care for anymore.

I'm not even that angry anymore, I'm just apathetic and bored of it now.

 

Didn't listen to the game so can’t comment too much.However even at 1-0 up I notice the match stats were 72% Fulham possession,little wonder we weren't going to get anything.

 

This is the result of years of under investment from our faceless owner, we have a squad of second rate players who give everything but lack the basic skills to improve and now we are threadbare in vital areas.
Every now and again we unearth a gem who is quickly sold off for a huge profit, in any other business this would be called asset stripping.
We expect the team to turn out against squads worth tens of millions and be successful regularly which clearly is ridiculous, our squad is so low on quality we even have unfit players on the bench re Hyam, this policy of strangling the Club to death from the inside has now taken us to crisis with gates falling and interest waning.
Our reclusive leader who for some reason thinks the public would invade the privacy of a ticket seller is wholly responsible for this disgraceful stage of affairs, for Gods sake Evans just go!

 

Second rate players or not, they can still be coached to play better than that!

 

Mick out.

 

I can't remember the last time we won a game!

Ah well at least we've got a free hit in the FA Cup!

 

I hope right SD because the new manager will have the same squad to work with, a squad comprising of players no one else wants, bargain basement, or free transfers, and no transfer budget.
That should bring some quality applicants.

 

Great post Nuggets

We're pretty unfortunate with injuries atm (or is how we play a factor?) but actually we've got a half decent squad, certainly by far the best since Mick and arguably ME has been here credit to Mick for his recruitment but we should be able to be far more competent on the ball than we are.

I've seen far less talented teams play better quality football than the crap we do week after week.

I don't care if we finish midtable and dont invest more in the team, I just want my club back, who plays entertaining football and treats the fans as it should do (the most important part of the football club).

Please just go Mick, why do we just have to wait so long for the inevitable? Let's show some balls and appoint a manager from the lower leagues who'll give our youngsters a chance and allow our players to fulfil their potential.

 

I wish someone would tell me who these quality players are they think we have, Cellina ? possibly but hes not ours, Connolly? same as cellina, Bart? Probably but can improve, Huws? Ive not seen enough to know, Adeyemi ? Wouldnt know him if i fell over him, Webster? could be but time will tell, Bishop sick note.
I cant think of anyone else worth mentioning and two are not ours, and two are out for the rest of the season along with Dozell, this is what years of neglect in respect of the playing staff has brought us to, very little quality and no strength in depth.
I forgot to mention McG but he hasnt looked that great lately with poor decision making in promising positions.
Sorry if this sounds too pessimistic but im a Town fan and always will be and it pains me to have to stand by and watch this process over the last few years happening to OUR Club, no fans = no Club.

 

Far as I'm concerned, you've cost us any chance Mr Spence.

1-0 up with you on the pitch, well bloody done.

Also, WELL DONE ref for not even booking the Fulham player in the build up to the red. Shocking ' challenge ' on Freddy.

As for people going mental re Mick........ we were 1-0 up and winning until Spence did that. Love a blubfest.

 

I hope they all kicked Spences arse when they got back to the dressing room, he should be at PR today so all Town fans especially the ones that went to Craven Cottage can kick his arse as well.

 

I think we have an above average, 6/10 type squad that underachieved last season and have now found their level in the mid-table positions. As with any teams in this division, we are capable of occasionally inflicting defeats on the bigger, more expensively assembled Championship sides (which is helped when we have a fully fit starting 11), but this has been preciously rare over the past couple of years.

Of the existing squad, and excluding loan players, I'd argue our key, talented players are Bart, Webster, Huws, McGoldrick (although time is not on his side any longer), and Waghorn. We then have several players, such as Downes, Bishop, Kenlock, and Dozzell who have the potential to be key players, but realistically will probably just be solid first team regulars. The rest of the squad is made up of poor, average, or above average players. That is the reality of years of under investment. As others have mentioned, the stand out players are only a result of some shrewd and impressive recruitment from McCarthy, which has kept us competitive (bar last season and, what looks likelier and likelier after every week, this season too).

This squad can be coached to play a better style of football, as San Diego stated above. Unfortunately, I still believe this squad is some way off promotion material (regardless of the playing style) and that our defence is in need of reinforcements and refreshment. Some of these players are clearly unsuited to the type of football we'd like to see, so there would be a transitional season or two to be realistically expected. I think our next managerial appointment (hopefully sooner rather than later) should be hired from a successful League One or Two side that plays the style of football we'd like to see. The new man should be backed appropriately in the transfer market. I'm not expecting a significant transfer war chest like Wolves and Derby have (that's clearly unobtainable and potentially financially disastrous), but the availability to make several signings should not be beyond us. I also expect that a majority of the outgoing player proceeds will be reinvested back into the team. I also believe the new manager will use our academy, and should have a track record of bringing through youth players, to get the most of the potentially gifted and technically proficient footballers that are available.

Now whether this will all be achieved under an owner who has been responsible for the decline of this club in the past decade remains to be seen. I have little confidence this board possesses the ambition or vision required to deliver such wide-ranging but positive changes most supporters would like to see. There are two poor decisions this board could make after the season has finished. 1) Extend McCarthy's contract or 2) Sack and replace McCarthy with a manager who has 'got experience' but is another familiar old face from the McCarthy coaching class (Megson, Redknapp, Grayson, Lambert, Pearson etc).

 

It's easy to blame Spence for the result(and blub about him and the ref)but even before he was sent off we were getting our asses spanked and what happened to the old "10 men are difficult to break down" spirit?We certainly laid that old chestnut to rest with our capitulation

 

Great point you make Big Al

 

fieldmarshall, I'd say we have pretty decent squad made up of players who have performed well in this division and players who have good potential but at the moment are not being allowed to flourish in a restrictive negative system, even though we keep hearing how much more entertaining the football is this season I've barely seen it and when I have it's come from players who have yet to have the footballing ability/confidence knocked out of them yet. Here's my assessment of decent players:

Bart - top goalkeeper, the one player to really progress at Ipswich
Iorfa - send back please, no better than Emmannuel who we may as well give some first team opportunities
Knudsen - bang average
Chambers - When Mick first came to the club showed himself to be one of the best CBs in the division, 3/4 seasons at RB have taken their toll though
Smith - Again when Mick first came to the club formed a formidable partnership with Chambers, probably the best CB partnership I've seen at the club so can perform well at this level
Webster - Top CB with huge potential
Spence - bang average if not poor but not as bad as Iorfa
Emmannuel - When I've seen him he has impressed, has good potential. Certainly has shown more promise than previous full backs
Kenlock - Again when I've seen has impressed, enough at least to be ahead of Knudsen and given more of a chance
Bishop - huge potential just made of glass
Skuse - despite how much I moan about him there is a good player in there, with a more positive coach I could grow to like him
Celina - Very talented player at this level
Adeyemi - not seen much of him in an Ipswich shirt but heard good things about him at this level prior to this
Ward - Clearly a talented player just hasn't shown it, only seen in the odd glimpse. Gave some great performances for Rotherham a couple of years back
Hyam - decent yet limited player if used correctly
Downes - lots of potential
Nydam - lots of potential
Dozzell - lots of potential
Bru - meh, alright as a bit part player
Huws - quality at this level
Waghorn - very good player at this level
McGoldrick - talented player
Garner - decent player at this level
Sears - off form but has shown in his first season at Ipswich what a good player he can be at this level

Looking at this squad yes there is room for improvement particularly for me in the full back position and on the wing (although I'd like to see us eventually go 5-3-2 with the talented youngsters we have in midfield) and some more strength in depth at CB but actually it's probably one of the better one's we've had since we've been out of the PL

 

We were 1-0 up with Spence on the pitch.

We lost without him on the pitch.

Yes, should have done better with 10 - 4 in 7 minutes is embarrassing but even so, Spence, never again please!