Match Day Thread Rochdale , game / match thread/ team

[Zenfootball2]

so we face another team battling relegation; who have had a slump in form and lost the last four games ,there manager has been sacked and often clubs then have a bounce..

so who will he pick ? who will be rotated ?
i hope ferjiri and Campbell lead the charges, i hope haynes is back to help with some forward momentum , i would like to see Docherty start and Edwards come on as a sub.
Grant will still be suspend so you would expect Norburn to continue as the holding defender.
in Goal is Arnold fit? if not we might see Mitchell make his first start i really hope Ricketts does not choose Cook .

let us hope we see a return to the fast paces , one touch , pressing high and keeping it on the ground football we saw in the first half against Doncaster.

There are no easy games things are on a knife edge the bottom four is like a game of musical chairs we just dont wont to be there when the music stops, so it is a top priority to not lose ,to be clinical and consistent . who scores first could be pivotal in this game we dont wont to give Rochdale or there fans any reason to feel confident.so let us hope town score first and silence the home crowd.

we also know these are the sort of games town have a history of slipping on the banana skin and under-performing .

 

[Zenfootball2]

https://www.shropshirestar.com/spor...ew-sam-ricketts-undaunted-by-spotland-hoodoo/


"Many new Town fans have never seen an away win at Spotland. The last was in 2001.Sam Ricketts’ response? Undaunted.

“Similar to the Peterborough one?” he chirped back as soon as the record was brought up."

 

[Zenfootball2]

depending on whether you are a fan Arnold has the all clear after an x ray, as goalkeepers dont seem to be rotated beyond the subs bench. i would assume he will be playing

 

[Matster]

It'd be good to see Campbell and Okenabirhie up front again, but he might go for Holloway as he is a bit more physical. I can only recall one blasted over shot by Payne so far and he looks a little lost, so doubt he'll start.

I'd rather Doherty over Edwards, but I think we could see to nice play if Edwards starts as he makes some nice runs.

I think the back three will not alter much, but the wing back setup is a bit of a quandary with Whalley running a huge amount each match

 

[Zenfootball2]

It'd be good to see Campbell and Okenabirhie up front again, but he might go for Holloway as he is a bit more physical. I can only recall one blasted over shot by Payne so far and he looks a little lost, so doubt he'll start.

I'd rather Doherty over Edwards, but I think we could see to nice play if Edwards starts as he makes some nice runs.

I think the back three will not alter much, but the wing back setup is a bit of a quandary with Whalley running a huge amount each match

Haynes brings more of a balance to the team and in attack when he pushes forward.

 

[Matster]

I like Haynes and think he slightly shades Golborne. However golborne looks a slightly better tackler at times. Getting the ball forward without hoofball is key to success.

 

[Zenfootball2]

awful defending two soft goals , town not clinical enough with there chances but very poor in the second half
what is baffling for is on paper apart from Beckles that for me is towns strongest team.

 

[Zenfootball2]

if we had a rather painful dvd of the goals we have conceded this season you would tend to see they have come from;
not tracking back,
poor communication,
not picking up the run,
not covering front or back post,
been static then trying to jump from a standing start only to be out jumped by the mobile opponents,
been caught out by a quick free kick,
been caught out by the diaganole ball,
been caught out by the pace of the opponent,
general lack of anticipation and awareness of what is unfolding in front and around you.
giving away silly free kicks in dangerous areas.


what is alarming and disappointing this is the stuff you used to get taught at your school team, it is basic stuff.

 

[Zenfootball2]

https://www.shropshirestar.com/spor...-town-players-fell-below-their-recent-levels/

 

[greenhousmeadowman]

It is rather strange that such a good defender as Ricketts cannot get us doing the basics better - we seem to take one step forward and two steps back at the moment. Every single game is massive for the club at the moment but the way some of the players perform you would not know that. At least Grant will be back on Tuesday.

 

[Zenfootball2]

i dont think the constant rotation helping in any way, under Coyne he kept things simple the players knew what to do, under Ricketts to often it looks a mess.

 

[Zenfootball2]

https://www.shropshirestar.com/spor...-must-look-in-mirror-and-take-responsibility/

sums up what i feel, i hope Ricketts reads it.

 

[greenhousmeadowman]

Yes, Zen that is a well-written piece. Some of the players need to step up and take responsibility for basic errors and work on cutting them out, Would like to see Grant and Laurent start tomorrow as these are two of our best battlers and we need to start battling now before we find ourselves back in League 2.