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Match day thread: Exeter

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  • Whilst all the 4 midfielders played really well (Sam Wood showed what we missed) I am not sure the diamond does us any favours. It encourages full backs to push on and give the other team width. If Northampton watched today I would have thought they would nail a 4-4-2 on Saturday.

  • Great performance and result today. Not sure what your expectations are @Keith_Allens_Wig but I'd hardly call it dull, especially compared to some of the recent home games.

    Not sure anyone had a bad game but standouts for me were McGinn, Wood, Cowan-Hall and Hayes. Shame Wood's cracking effort flew just wide towards the end of the game.

    Credit to GA for changing the personnel and formation, which it would seem was done specifically because of the opposition rather than as a result of recent performances. However I doubt very much that will be the way we set up or play against Northampton next week. I'd imagine it will be back to 4-4-2 with a more direct style and whilst it would be extremely harsh on McGinn I'd be surprised if he starts. Horses for courses and all that.

    Was good to hear GA praise McGinn in his interview on 3CR, which I think also contained a thinly-veiled dig at AAH. Made the point that McGinn had been very patient waiting for his chance, never complained, put the effort in, been the model pro, etc...
    Also nice to hear him talking about PCH - said he went over to see him at the end because nobody had noticed him still sat down on the touchline. He asked him if he was injured but he said no, he was just knackered! Which is a relief, he's given us that extra dimension and pace we've been missing, and boy does he put the effort in!

    Happy days.

  • McGinn's finish was sublime - a thing of great beauty

  • Classic nothingness league 2 fare, punctuated by an incredible strike out of the blue from McGinn.

    Playoffs look super tight now. Accrington with 3 games in hand and 1 point behind look dangerous. Need to keep this last week's run going, but 2 very hard games coming.

  • GA does certainly little things really well. Going over to a PCH who had run himself into the ground and could no longer walk was a great bit of man management. He picked him up put an arm around him and they walked off. Great moment of unity between players and management.

  • @Malone said:
    Classic nothingness league 2 fare, punctuated by an incredible strike out of the blue from McGinn.

    Playoffs look super tight now. Accrington with 3 games in hand and 1 point behind look dangerous. Need to keep this last week's run going, but 2 very hard games coming.

    'Classic nothingness' Strange comment. Imo an enjoyable game and not just because of the result. Decent shots, decent moves, decent saves, decent defending, some nice individual skills and surely one of today's best finishes in all four divisions.

  • @Malone said:
    Classic nothingness league 2 fare, punctuated by an incredible strike out of the blue from McGinn.

    Playoffs look super tight now. Accrington with 3 games in hand and 1 point behind look dangerous. Need to keep this last week's run going, but 2 very hard games coming.

    Really? Both teams played good football the ball was played to feet and with purpose. Mcginn and Wood were outstanding .Chances from O'nien and Wood.

  • Bit negative @Malone! Best football for ages. First home win for 7 weeks. Clean sheet. Stephen McGinn a revelation. Sammy Wood back to something near his best. There ain't no pleasin' some.

  • Wouldn't call it a nothing game, there were chances at both ends and at various points a game of football broke out. GA's tactical nous or lack thereof is often cited as the chink in his armour but he got yesterday's selection and set-up spot on. McGinn took his chance brilliantly but then so did Max against Crawley and he hasn't really had the chance to kick on from that.

  • @Fidget said:
    Great performance and result today. Not sure what your expectations are Keith_Allens_Wig but I'd hardly call it dull, especially compared to some of the recent home games.

    Not sure anyone had a bad game but standouts for me were McGinn, Wood, Cowan-Hall and Hayes. Shame Wood's cracking effort flew just wide towards the end of the game.

    Credit to GA for changing the personnel and formation, which it would seem was done specifically because of the opposition rather than as a result of recent performances. However I doubt very much that will be the way we set up or play against Northampton next week. I'd imagine it will be back to 4-4-2 with a more direct style and whilst it would be extremely harsh on McGinn I'd be surprised if he starts. Horses for courses and all that.

    Was good to hear GA praise McGinn in his interview on 3CR, which I think also contained a thinly-veiled dig at AAH. Made the point that McGinn had been very patient waiting for his chance, never complained, put the effort in, been the model pro, etc...
    Also nice to hear him talking about PCH - said he went over to see him at the end because nobody had noticed him still sat down on the touchline. He asked him if he was injured but he said no, he was just knackered! Which is a relief, he's given us that extra dimension and pace we've been missing, and boy does he put the effort in!

    Happy days.

    I also fear McGinn may find himself back on the bench, which would be desperately harsh. Having waited for that chance he took it superbly. If I were him, I'd be furious were I not to start at Northampton. If that does happen, he probably needs to accept that this is not a club where he can really develop his career.

  • I wouldn't really say Max took his chance against Crawley. He capitalised on an awful piece of defending and finished well, but apart from that was pretty anonymous the rest of the game.

    McGinn on the other hand was everywhere and involved in most of our best moves. I thought it was his best game in a Wycombe shirt even before his goal. Surely Ainsworth can't drop him after that performance.

  • Hate to go on and on, but all this talk about waiting your chance and all that is wearing a bit thin.

    Players have scored to find they are benched the following week. Defenders have kept a clean sheet (in for team due to suspension) to be awarded bench time. So spare us the violin as this is the norm. Ainsworth selects the best team to beat or thwart opposition end of.

  • Was a bit confused when I saw the team sheet yesterday, a couple of pints and some vigorous discussion later managed to figure it out. Thought yesterday was excellent, back to playing the ball instead of hoof ball, thought our midfield was excellent, Hayes making nice touches to link play, overall a much better performance than recent home games.

    If I was to be super critical then based on our second half performance I felt we should have scored another goal to seal it, a few long range efforts (one of which went in!) which were good to see but late on city had a corner which could have spoiled our party, so I think we still need to work on finishing. But as said that's beg super critical, overall a good game to watch, both teams coming to play and of course the right result for us and up to fourth.

    Happy days ! COYB!!!!

  • And surely that's the way it should be? Pick the team you think will get the job done on any given day, not on sentiment just because you might hurt someone's feelings.

    Yes McGinn had a very good game and did a pretty good job with the more physical pressing side as well, to complement the passing and creativity. But it's easy to see how he'd be overrun by a more dynamic, physical midfield than Exeter's. Indeed that's why he has struggled previously this season, because the majority of League 2 teams are more physical than Exeter.

    If he's to play next week then Bean and O'Nien would have to be tasked more with protecting him which would detract from the other sterling work they do. An interesting - and nice - dilemma for GA to have. Who'd be a football manager?

  • If you are meaning Banton or Holloways feelings or anyone else. If you read Banton's piece he wrote today saying it's fustrating not playing all week then not in a sat it's hard. You can understand why they would want to move on as they are footballers and it is there passion to play. We don't have a reserve team to keep up there fitness so they must also struggle when they come on after a few weeks of not playing.

  • To be honest, Holloway showed zero passion to play whenever he came on as sub. If your not in the starting eleven surely you give everything when you get on the pitch to prove the manager was wrong?

  • Ciderkid, you seem to want this to be an under 11s side where everyone gets an equal amount of playing time. It's not. The best players play and those that aren't good enough don't play. If some players don't like that then they leave and someone else comes in and life goes on.

    The last 3 games Danny Rowe has played he hasn't played well, we've conceded 8 goals and looked completely dis-organised. We have better options at the moment so he's not in the team.

  • I guess if you score then you are benched you would be pissed off to. He was never going to get on before the two oldies so I guess a move was the best for both parties.

  • I think Paris is definitely the key to us achieving this season. Just that pace to stretch things, not to mention good ability on the ball, with a rare high workrate for his abilities.

    Ainsworth manages the squad well in my opinion. Has the majority of his 11 that picks itself, with a few who can interchange. And then has the squad fillers, who are generally hungry cheap players.
    I don't know how anyone would run it differently.

    Who would Rowe play in front of for instance?
    Sellers clearly isn't better than an off form Wood

    etc

  • What was the tune the Exeter fans were singing?

    Oh oh oh, oh, oh oh.... We are ECFC, da da da da... etc.

    I loved it and secretly felt like joining in

  • Better than that un-original "oo-arrrr, we are ex-et-arrrr"

    No match for the all time classic of "Chairboys, Barmy Army"

  • @Croider: Amen. Barmy Army!

  • Barmy Army!

  • Chairboys!

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