Pace

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Oldsparkey

Oldsparkey

Well-Known Member
Forum Moderator
Jan 27, 2011
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Porthcawl Riviera
It's what we've lacked in the side for the past few years and where's it going to come from now?

The last player I can remember who used to frighten defenders by running at the with pace was Burkie - and that's a distant memory. Maybe Watt on loan was the nearest we came to it recently, but looks like we've now got a pretty pedestrian strike and midfield combination that worries me Route 1 beckons.

Although he can be tricky, Noone has never possessed the same sort of threat that he should and all too often overcooks it. I like Pilks and he has some class but again no great speed and Immers has other qualities. Perhaps the ignored until recently Kadeem Harris can spark something - he deserves a shot at it either coming from wingback or as an out and out winger in a different formation.

I hope Lambert can worry defenders like a few years back to get on the end of things or play someone else in. Who have we got with pace who can play off him and can finish?

I'm inclined to think that there could be another role for young Harris. He could be used up front buzzing around Lambert - any other options?
 
if Lambert is going to play to the width of the 18 yard box we need a tweak to the system.
3421 rather than 352. Get 2 players running around him rather than one.
Not sure what happens after 60 minutes when the 34 year old legs start to tire!
 
The other good thing imo about Lambert is that he never depended on pace. His game should be pretty much unaffected by age other than recovering between games.

It's a huge oversight that we don't have any attacking players with pace, but hopefully Lambert can score on a regular basis and make it less of an issue than it currently is.
 
We seem to be pinning an awful lot on a player whose possible shortcomings have been clearly high lighted. I very much hope he is successful for us as we clearly need it but I have misgivings on so many grounds. If this doesn't work out we will be a long way up sh!t creek with no paddle.
 
I've stated it beforehand on this board and I'll say it again: pace, pace, pace and even more pace is the key to football.

Even the best teams cannot defend against pace.

Dave Bennett was one of my favourites.
 
I think it's as much about the pace of play we seem stuck with as well some individual's outright pace. The ball can move much faster than any player and the slowness with which we move it around is bloody heartbreaking.

Our midfield is so pedestrian in it's setting up of the front men that whoever's up there is easy meat for defenders. It's the quick ball that we lack and you could say the lack of a runner is making the likes of Whitts and Ralls think twice before acting - by that time defenders are organised behind the ball.

You need to have someone with pace and awareness to get on the end of things not just being able to carry the ball at speed and we certainly lack that at the club. Unless we can release the ball more sharply to catch defenders out, we'll suffer the double whammy of getting nowhere and then because the move breaks down, being hit by faster opposition midfields on the break.
 
As you say Sparkey, clever players are swift of thought not always physically. First time round Bellamy out thought our players. He was on the move into space anticipating a pass that never came or saw and made a pass that no one anticipated. The only one to stay with him in thought was Whitts.

goal poachers have run 2 yards before the defender knows what is happening. Very few defenders can recover from that. Speed over the ground is beneficial, but smart players can compensate. A player with both attributes can be unplayable. Match fitness is as much about the mind as it is the body.

We're lacking speed over the ground so Trollope needs to work on the speed of thought and the anticipation.

It's where the 3421 might give us the edge, getting two attacking mids close to and beyond the striker.

Lambert
Pilks Immers
John Whitts Ralls Harris
Connelly Morrison Peltier
 
I'm with remote on the 3421 but I don't think you can play Ralls and Whitts together, it looks likely that Gunnarsson may move in January so it's either o'Keefe or Huws alongside ralls or whitts.

But Hey what to I know
 
Nice chat lads, but back to the thread for the moment.

He may prove to be a better option than what we've got, but by just adding Lambert, we've now got the choice of 3 big men up front and little variation.

I still think we need another Carl Dale/Tony Evans/Earnie/Chopra type of player in the side. Quick off the mark over the first five paces and playing off the last defender's shoulder.

Le Fondre was bought by Ole with that idea in mind but then Tinkerman played him on the bloody wing. When he did get his chance in the his best position he blew it big time with some dreadful misses that I still cringe at now - that smash over the bar against Blackpool (I think) must rate as bad as Gunongbe's against Brum.

Unfortunately that sort of player costs big bucks when they become established at a reasonable level - Dwight Gayle is a case in point. Other than that you take a punt on a lower league youngster for small money. For that you need vision in your scouting network and I doubt we've got a lot of that to spare.
 
Sayer77 said:
I don't think you can play Ralls and Whitts

But Hey what to I know
Click to expand...
yeah, crossed my mind Sayer, but think they both add to the mix. Would hope the two behind the striker would also help protect the two in the middle.

Still stand by the need for speed of thought. To take a flick on from a target man (head or feet) you need to be at top speed before he touches the ball and only a yard on side. by the time the defender turns, you're in the clear. In rugby, they refer to the top 3 inches. Its the ability to anticipate that is lacking as much as leg speed.
 
I agree Burke wasn't particularly a speed merchant over the ground, but he was direct. He used what speed he did have to set defenders back on their heels rather than allowing them always to be on the front foot when players piss around with the ball in front of them.

Defenders don't like attacking players running at them, particularly if they have some sort of pace. Jordan Mutch scared the hell out of many a defender when he was with us by doing just that - the trouble was he wasn't quick off the mark and needed some space to get up a head of steam.

Quick reactions and pace over the first 5 yards to turn defenders is what we lack. Kadeem Harris is the closest thing we have and I'd give him a go up front playing off Lambert.
 
No doubt about Kadeem's speed although he has benefited from playing at wing back by having open ground in front of him to build up pace when running at defenders. However, his control is not great and if starting tight against his full back, in the past he has not been so successful. Added to which he tends to drift out of the game a little. Playing at wing back gives him more focus and he has the likes of Gunnar and Peltier constantly reminding him about where he should be standing and what he needs to do. Doesn't work so well with Manga as we saw against Reading. <doh>

As to your suggestion to play him just off Lambert, no harm in giving him a go in the absence of better alternatives but my reservations remain the same as above.
 
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