Bolton build up
We don't usually have build up threads, but I wanted to have something for our Bolton friend to post in if desired. @FarmerCee - if you are around, perhaps you could give us a breakdown of how your season has been going so far?
We have a good record against Bolton, winning five and losing one, but obviously the first season was against the kids as the club clawed their way back from the brink. Plenty of mutual affection between the clubs too.
I am confident we can get something, based on the fact we have performed well for some time now, even in the two fairly recent defeats (though to be fair we were hanging on a little against Portsmouth).
Sadlier to get a cheeky extended runout as a sub to give him a chance to not celebrate against his old team if he scores?
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I keep pronouncing Sadlier's name SAD-LEE-AY, like it's the French verb for 'to saddle'.
Despite Johnston doing his Achilles in the pre-season, we started well and played some really good stuff for a while but the manager's policy of only registering 18 senior players backfired when we got a spate of injuries all at once and it all got a bit messy. Simultaneously, George Thomason managed to pick up a booking for something like 7 games in a row and had a suspension and Jones got a red and had to sit three out. Even when we are close to having our best team out we are capable of some lacklustre performances e.g. Wigan but by and large we've done enough to get points on the board albeit unconvincingly at times.
When it all comes together, we look brilliant but we have got a mistake in us and that's usually when the passing and movement gets sloppy - we tend to have good and bad spells in the same match. Currently we have players coming back from injury/suspension but our win on Saturday showed we've not quite gelled again yet and we are still sometimes overelaborate in the final third which is frustrating.
Not sure how we'll go in this game but the hope is that after Saturday, the players are motivated enough to put in the type of quality performance that every Wanderers fan knows we're capable of on a good day. We'll see.
Thanks for the run down, @wanderlust - it sounds as though you have not hit that groove yet. With all due respect, I hope we can delay it by one more game!
thanks @wanderlust. That sounds not dissimilar to the Chairboys - lots of promise, but not routinely convincing or consistent yet.
Randell Williams looked a bit useful on the highlights from Saturday. Shot from distance from a ‘give and go’ which hit the post, and then scored one of those classic ‘cut inside from the left’ goals a bit like matey from Peterborough for their 2nd... (although from not as far out). Hoping not to see that backflip somersault celebration tonight!
When he was here, I thought he would go on to play at a higher level than League 1. Really liked the player.
Williams was great for half an hour and got the rewards for running at defenders and being willing to have a shot - something we don't do enough of in front of goal. More often than not we try to pass it through a crowded defence or pass back to start again.
After an all action start on Saturday we made the big mistake of slowing the game down - it was tortuous.
Hopefully we won't be trying to bore you into submission tonight.
Hi Shev, Wanderlust has rather beaten me to it and I can’t really disagree with anything he’s said, we really are a curates egg this season and that’s in the same game. To be fair we have experienced a lot of injuries and suspensions and with a relatively small squad might actually consider we’ve done pretty well really but expectations were high and so far we’re well short of where we wanted to be. Now we’re getting players back things will hopefully settle down but we have a tough run of games coming up so the next month should tell us where we are.
Obviously we lost Bradley and Trafford back to their clubs, both big holes to fill but in fairness our new replacements have been excellent, especially Dacres-Cogley at RWB who’s been superb. On the other side Randell Williams has been excellent going forward and is now starting to add more goals to his game, encouraged by Evatt to shoot more. In fact all our midfield players too have been told to do the same when chances arise instead of pass, pass, pass.
I wondered how you’d fare this year without Gareth but you seem to not be missing him at all and look a decent shout for a play off spot. It’s all pretty tight at the top at the moment and a play off spots up for a good few teams at the moment and I don’t expect that to change much. What’s wrong with Kieran Sadlier, I’m surprised he hasn’t played, there’s still a lot of love for him at the Reebok and some surprise that he isn’t getting game time. It would be just like him to come on tonight and pinch the game for you as he’s done for us several times. Anyway, I wish you luck, not tonight obviously, but certainly for the rest of the season. As you say, there’s still that bond between our clubs after the way you guys reacted during our troubles so much respect and good luck for the season, after tonight!! 😄
Great to see you back, @FarmerCee - and I appreciate the added insight. Apart from Portsmouth and Oxford it feels like all of us contenders are simply "lurking" to some degree, trying to be the next to put a really great run together.
I think with Sadlier that we have been playing well enough going forward lately that it is hard for him to force himself into the lineup. However, I am sure he will get his opportunities.
The best of luck to you after this game!
Sadlier's been quite unfortunate timing wise. When we signed him, he seemed to be just what we needed. Since then however, we've started to click and look much more effective as an attacking unit. As a result, he's not really been given much of a look in. I'm sure his time will come though, he's looked decent enough when he has come on.
What a pleasure to see such open and apparently honest contributions from visiting fans - who are always most welcome on here.
On a related note, I was extremely impressed by Darren Ferguson's repeated compliments about the team's performance at Peterborough on Saturday. Such a contrast to Alan Swann's constant snide remarks.
Very unlucky, At Fleetwood he finally got more than a few seconds and was pretty good but Phillips and Taylor had already put on a bit of an unlikely masterclass with GMac and Vokes in reserve. Sticking with that XI as we mostly have means we have people chomping at the bit to get on which can't be bad.
Cheers blue, we have a few regular opposition fans on our boards too and I think it’s great that we can get opinions from the other side instead of our own often polarised views. I hope Kieran doesn’t get a run tonight because if he comes on with say 20 to go he’ll be going all out to put one over on us and I wouldn’t bet on him not doing because that would be just his type of MO. Anyway let’s just hope it’s a cracking game between two teams who want to win and it isn’t spoiled by dodgy officials? 👍
Leigh Doughty is the ref. Can't say his name rings any bells, which is often a good thing...
Now you've said it I doughty does anything controversial tonight :p
His name is hopeful anyway!