A so-so game rather spoilt by a blustery wind and a lack of ambition from Morecambe (they were trying to waste time after about twenty minutes!). It is about time we got a dubious penalty - after two deflections last week it looks as if our luck is in at the moment. That did change the game somewhat and Morecambe's pressing in midfield did make it difficult but we were worthy winners and created more clear-cut chances in the last five minutes than both sides had managed to create for the previous 85. I thought Hurst was MOTM - he was assured in defence and very comfortable going forward with some probing passes - he looks a real find. GT clearly rates Wallace and with the directness of Collins and Ainsworth when they came on improving us today he has a real selection headache (of the right kind) next week. I think we are a much stronger side up front this year than last and, even though this league as a whole looks stronger this year, I think the experience of GT will see us through to an automatic promotion spot.
Wroe was my MOM. Hardly gave the ball away and won most challenges. There didn't appear to be more than perfunctory arguments over the award of the penalty by the Morecambe players. GT said he was surprised at the way Morecambe lined up which was different to their usual. When all said and done, the final ball by us was often poor and the shooting hurried.
If it hit his arm fair enough. We had one the other week when Chris Lines fell to the floor but the ball hit his arm & the ref gave the penalty. That is the rules of the game so no problem with that. Shame McCready's shot got kicked off the line with 5 minutes to go or we could have seen a different outlook. Just hope Jim can pick the players up after this defeat as two weeks to the next game is along time to wait to get it out of your system.
I thought Morgan was fantastic in the second half, ripped their defence apart but was a little profligate with decent chances. I also thought Ainsworth was very good when he came on, and for me he should start the next game - Wildig didn't offer much defensively imo; he looked much more inclined to come central and pass the ball around than he did to get in a winger's position. I have no problem with that, but at home, on a wide pitch, it'd probably be better to have a natural winger out there - especially one who's been playing as well as Ainsworth this season!
Kasule, I agree with you about our shooting - it is often dreadful and lets hope the squad can improve on this for the rest of the season. Interestingly, the BBC stats page shows us as only having one effort on target all game despite the fact we scored twice - perhaps they dont include penalties!
its getting very annoying, we are doing everything right and winning our matches, but we are not making headway into the top three!!....surely one of the teams above us will hit a bad patch...
so far, clubs have had the benefit of playing in very mild conditions. a genuine blast of winter weather may unseat the top 3, just hope our lot huddle together while scoring goals, to keep warm. town are making good progress on those below us by continuing to win. , and when the top4 start playing each other, there may be movement. we were lucky that the gas got a highly commendable draw at southend. we need a few more teams to follow their example. finally i would hate us to finish in the playoffs as the curse of that lenny the lion may strike. no town are going for the top 3, and so far deservedly so. floreat salopia, aab,,coys, bots and ctrab
Good win in difficult conditions that made it difficult for both teams to control the ball. Wouldn't be too critical of anyone's passing in that wind. No real stand out performances, but solid throughout. I'll mention Richards (who's playing very well but still takes flak from some who made up their minds about him too soon and either can't own up to being wrong or don't understand his role) and Wright (who's also taken some stick lately but showed again that he's a player to make things happen, be it an assist or a goal). Hurst too - settled in very quickly and played well. I hope Wildig's injury won't keep him out too long but Wallace can now return so we're looking strong in midfield. Not unduly bothered that teams above us won't lose at the moment. Southend dropped points so we're only 5 from top now and we always seem to slip up as soon as we get into the top 3. We're in a very good position. Besides, there's 27 games still to play - far too soon to be worried about whether we're 3rd or 4th! The top 3 at the end of the season could still be behind us!
cheltenham have a sparkling end of year fixture list, home to southend, away barnet, home to the shrews, home to the millers. 2012 does not get much better. 1st game away to vale. that may prove if they are top 3 material
Crikey that'll be interesting. We'll know just how good we're looking by the end of December. Then January becomes crucial as we need to keep the squad together. If we do that I'm confident we'll go up automatically.
Just watched the highlights on BBC website. Must admit that for the first goal it looks like their player was already putting his arms behind his back before the cross was taken. Bit harsh!!
Yes but look how far from the ball he is - it's not like it was a metre or two. I think he's too far away to claim ball to hand just because he wasn't quick enough to get out of the way. Having your hands by your side shouldn't be a defence when you're a reasonable distance from the ball. I'm biased of course, but I wouldn't have grumbled if that had been given against us. That said, I know refs don't always give them. We had a couple of similar penalty shouts at Derby that were turned down.
It's definitely in the fuzzy grey area between isn't and is a penalty. We are owed quite a few over the last two of three seasons though!!
