Match Day Thread V Coventry FA cup

I think criticising team selections would be splitting hairs. There have been a few daft selection and formation decisions but largely we are toward the top because these have been good ones.

The problem is much more about the decision to postpone games on international weekends, which means that instead of finding ourselves several points clear at the top we’ve been looking up to the next team. That’s meant we’re under more pressure to find a winning goal in the tighter matches and less likely to win the handful of points that costs league position. If we find ourselves in a play off battle we could still go up but don’t have control over our destiny and generally the teams who surge at the end of the season do better in those circumstances than those who start well and drop off.

Occasionally we may have a bad week but to be promoted we really need to win the matches in which we take the lead and not winning in three is not the sign of a side that is going the distance in the autos. I think it’s happened purely because Lambert hasn’t valued that winning momentum enough.

 

I think most agree Hampy, that in hindsight, postponing so many games has been our 'downfall', loss of form, energy and momentum. When you are on the up, ffs, stay there!

We can & should bury te Coventry hatchet, and storm to a strong home win tonight. This will bring that festive pre-Xmas surge and keep us on the right track til our next flock of fledgling injured players return to the fold.

I am going for 2-1 COYBs!

 

I don’t think it was just hindsight SCG some of us questioned it from the very first International break.
Anyway I’m going for a win on penalties after a hard fought
1-1.

 

I think we will edge this 2 - 1. COYB.

 

Any idea why the third round listings are scheduled a minute after the hour?

 

I believe they are doing a 1 minute silence to "Take A Minute’ to think about looking after their mental health, as part of the Heads Up campaign"
on all FA cup 3rd round games

 

Cheers stretchy thought it might have been a glitch but then saw those times published everywhere.

 

Yes, BigAl I questioned it too, and I also dont like 'empty' matchdays, when we should have been out there!

 

What a load of poo.
Our worst 45 by the sounds of it, Coventry all over us.
Let's hope for a better 45

 

Fraid I lost interest at k/o. 8 changes, change of formation, tactics, key positions, what on earth is going on?

As I predicted might happen, a serious run of poor games in all comps could see us fall away over Xmas.

Need dramatic change of hearts & minds by Saturday.

 

Balls. Same old.

 

Bristol Rovers on Saturday is now a huge game. Anything less than a win and I think there might be some issues with certain sections of the fans

 

The FA Cup is not really the issue here, Accrington and Rotherham beat us easily and since then we've had postponements, and unconvincing performances in most cases hanging on at the end for a draw, yes we've had poor officials who have cost us 3 points but the overall 90 minute form has been very average at best, we really need to turn this around starting Saturday or questions will start to asked of the wisdom of continually making mass changes to the side.

 

At least lambert didn’t sugar coat it, he said we were awful. Must play best 11 every game and in my opinion, that does not include Judge. I was delighted he signed but has not played with any consistency this season. We obviously miss KVY at right back but I also think we need a left back in January to allow Garbutt to play further up. Must play 2 up front every game and start going at teams rather than waiting and hoping. I would love a complete 90 mins performance on Saturday as despite winning games early this season, don’t think we’ve had that yet

 

Six games without a win now. The rot has to stop soon. I think most of us were surprised at how well we started the season but the expectation has increased and consequences of remaining in the division for a second season will be severe so I think we will start to see some ugly scenes if we can't turn it around.

 

We all need some festive Xmas cheer. I hope ITFC and all staff give themsleves a right old bollocking and P L can pull a White Rabbit out the Cracker...

Or there will be fireworks and anger on the terraces, and spiral down to doom & gloom.

A must win, 100% effort and 3 pts Saturday.

 

It's been covered and mentioned before, but the regular postponements and the constant changing of the team and formation has ruined our early season momentum and looks to have disrupted our attacking efficiency. The manner of our early season form always had the whiff of us getting by based on having better players. Teams now appear to have generally wised up to the fact that we still look incapable of dominating games for long periods and our attacking patterns consistently look predictable. Teams have also learned that if you press us and force us into making mistakes in our own half, chances will come quite frequently. This is exactly what happened to Sunderland last season, and indeed this season. Lambert has had a year with more or less the same squad (bar a few signings in the summer) and we still look like a team of strangers at times. The constant chopping and changing does not help this.

We may get promoted this season. As concerning as the last month or so has been, we are second with games in hand and we can overturn what is hopefully a blip. We'd all happily take second place, as long as we get back into the Championship. But my pre-season fears that we'd possibly become 'the next Rotherham' and yo-yo between the second and third tiers is looking increasingly likely, based on how we've been playing this season against a weaker standard of opposition. Can this squad cut it in the Championship? It certainly didn't last season. Investment is required in January, and indeed next summer. I hope we can work on attacking coherently and play with some self-belief over the next few months, otherwise it's possible we'll be spending more than one season in League One.

 

We would get murdered in the championship, sadly we have found our level and unless a very large amount of money is invested....i can't see things changing, tooo many bang average players!

 

Our goalkeepers are ok, nothing special but can do a job.

Defence is average apart from KVY and Wolfy

Midfield and forwards....get rid of,
Judge
Edwards
Skuse
Roww
Nolan
Jackson
Norwood
All overrated IMO!!

 

That's our squad decimated then