Top of the league, unbeaten, and on a run of five consecutive league clean sheets; I’m starting to get used to the notion that we’re a strong team with a bit of a fear factor. A few of us, including myself, were fairly downbeat about potential life in League One (and who could blame us considering the chore and regular disappointment the last few years has delivered as a Town fan). But in League One, we find a division that is certainly more our level (in fact, maybe a bit below our level) and the quality and consistency of the opposition was possibly overestimated. A home match against a newly promoted Tranmere side, who are still finding their feet at this level, looks like another winnable fixture on paper. The poor form of pre-season promotion favourites Portsmouth, and the continuing struggles of a Sunderland outfit that regularly settles for 1-1 draws, also benefits us and our objective of an immediate return to the Championship.
The good news stories for the club seem plentiful. Holy, a goalkeeper who was following in big footsteps from three-times Player of the Year Bart, has settled in well and is well-liked by supporters. Kane Vincent-Young seems to be a long-term, quality solution to the club’s persistent issues at finding a reliable right-back. Wolfenden has emerged as one of our key players and should be the first-choice centre-back on the team sheet. Downes has really kicked on this season and seems to be living up to his potential. The likes of Jon Nolan and Emyr Huws have made good progress in their return to full fitness and will be high-quality players at this level. We also have a reliable centre-forward in James Norwood and a squad that has a good depth and an ability to keep the opposition guessing in how we will line up.
The negatives surround the consistent concerns about our approach and style of play in matches. Despite the clean sheets and despite not losing so far in the league, this is still a team that seems incapable of dominating large portions of games. This is a side that thankfully has five consecutive clean sheets - because two goals in three games against Doncaster, MK Dons, and Gillingham does not make for encouraging reading. The left back position, which involves in a player in Kenlock (who has struggled for the past couple of years in making that position his own) and Garbutt (who seems more comfortable and effective further forward) is still looking weak. Alan Judge, a key player on paper, has been disappointing and arguably resentful at being denied a move to QPR – a club both closer to home and in the division above. We still look a little blunt out wide, where players like Danny Rowe and Gwion Edwards have been unable to stake a consistent claim to those places.
Regarding the match tomorrow, I’m thinking a comfortable 2-0 win is in the pipeline, with both Norwood and Nolan getting on the scoresheet. For the first team selection, I would like to see:
Holy
Chambers / Wolfenden / Wilson
KVY / Downes / Huws / Garbutt
Nolan
Norwood / Jackson
The good news stories for the club seem plentiful. Holy, a goalkeeper who was following in big footsteps from three-times Player of the Year Bart, has settled in well and is well-liked by supporters. Kane Vincent-Young seems to be a long-term, quality solution to the club’s persistent issues at finding a reliable right-back. Wolfenden has emerged as one of our key players and should be the first-choice centre-back on the team sheet. Downes has really kicked on this season and seems to be living up to his potential. The likes of Jon Nolan and Emyr Huws have made good progress in their return to full fitness and will be high-quality players at this level. We also have a reliable centre-forward in James Norwood and a squad that has a good depth and an ability to keep the opposition guessing in how we will line up.
The negatives surround the consistent concerns about our approach and style of play in matches. Despite the clean sheets and despite not losing so far in the league, this is still a team that seems incapable of dominating large portions of games. This is a side that thankfully has five consecutive clean sheets - because two goals in three games against Doncaster, MK Dons, and Gillingham does not make for encouraging reading. The left back position, which involves in a player in Kenlock (who has struggled for the past couple of years in making that position his own) and Garbutt (who seems more comfortable and effective further forward) is still looking weak. Alan Judge, a key player on paper, has been disappointing and arguably resentful at being denied a move to QPR – a club both closer to home and in the division above. We still look a little blunt out wide, where players like Danny Rowe and Gwion Edwards have been unable to stake a consistent claim to those places.
Regarding the match tomorrow, I’m thinking a comfortable 2-0 win is in the pipeline, with both Norwood and Nolan getting on the scoresheet. For the first team selection, I would like to see:
Holy
Chambers / Wolfenden / Wilson
KVY / Downes / Huws / Garbutt
Nolan
Norwood / Jackson
