I’ve always been one of the biggest Nick Freeman fans, absolutely love watching him play, but I’m also not sure who I would have left out at the start to put him in. After the game I did think I’d rather have seen him in place of Wing though, who didn’t have his best game.
A squad hit by significant injuries. A squad heavily weighted in certain positions. A transfer strategy that is still a work in progress.
We have been told that there are 2 weeks left in the window so assuming this is all under control and results like today are collateral damage. The management and board are clearly happy that come the closing of the transfer window when our final squad is in place the head start we give our automatic promotion rivals will be insignificant.
I would imagine the answer is that his time will come. After a year out and a decent run out on Tuesday I think he was quite rightly held back today to help his fitness
Half the division could argue being promotion contenders and based on a three year period (rather than a week) we are definately one of them. Absolutely certain of that after the showing today from our fringe players.
Some of our fans really do live out the opposite of the "never too high never too low" mantra don't they?
On another day we'd have walked that match and gone in 3 up at half time like against Burton.
Its annoying, but certainly nothing over which to write the season off.
ps if you stand on the Valley and sing "timewasting bastards, we know what we are" like it's some sort of Oscar Wilde level witticism, then rage up today at Shrewsbury's tactics; have some self-respect
Poor start to the season , however complete over reaction by many especially on Twitter / Facebook. Yes we need a goalie a settled defence and maybe another striker however I’m not writing the season off early days all teams have a slump . We tend to start very well and have a slump maybe we can do it different this year and become a much stronger side for the long run.
We needed a goalkeeper, centre half and a striker to replace Stocko, Stewart and Bayo from the beginning of pre season. What did we do , nothing until Mawson was signed this week. We took a risk and it’s not paid off.
It's a bit like standing at the finishing line of a marathon and shouting "what the fuck have you been doing for two hours?" as the athletes cross the line
Guys, it's 3 games into the season. We have started badly.
We had a run of 8 or 9 games last season where we barely picked up a point, in an arguably stronger league. We still finished 6th with a massive points total.
If you are going off 3 games, then MK Dons are going down and Cambridge will play Bristol Rovers in the playoffs and I don't believe that will happen for a minute come the end of the season.
We have been VERY unlucky with injuries. Thompson was our best player for some time and we haven't seen him in 6 months of football being played. We have 5 or 6 that would get into our starting 11 and walk into most other teams in our league, all sidelined.
On the positive side, think how crazy it is that a club like ours can attract players like Mawson and Vokes! We would have laughed a few years back. Steps are being made. Sensible ones. Baby ones. We have over achieved for the last couple of seasons, let's be honest. With a couple more additions, we will be up there again but there are a lot of good teams hoping to do the same.
My only fear is that after this season, I feel like we will be going through a transitional period. So the pressure is on this season. But let's get behind the boys and enjoy players like Vokes and Mawson whilst we can! That in itself is incredible! For anyone to slag off GA - football is such a fickle world. He is the reason we are where we are. Never forget that.
I think what @davecz is saying is that we didn't sign replacements for those players until Mawson - which is true. I didn't read anything more into it than that.
Just arrived home in Stockport after the game. 7-8 hours in an air-conditioned car today and for once I reckon that makes me the lucky one! Brutal conditions today.
Not too disheartening today. Thought we played really well for much of the game and on another day would have been comfortably out of site. Our style of play is evolving and that will take time but I liked most of what I saw today. Interestingly bumped into some Shrewsbury fans on the way home who had no idea how they won that game - me neither. But that’s how we have won games in the past - today it was done to us!
Going forward I actually think we looked very good. Love the way Horgan, Mehmeti and Mccleary are all turning and running with the ball straight at defender. The link up play is excellent and Scowen does a great job recycling the ball.
Trouble is today Shrewsbury sat so deep there was no space in behind. So we really needed a target in the box to hit with crosses. Too often Mellor was the only one in there, and he probably isn’t the right type of player for that anyway (although overall I did think he played well and certainly looks a decent prospect). Had Vokes or Hanlan been available I think we’d have been out of sight before Shrewsbury could get back into it.
There is a small part of me (the pessimistic side) that can't help but think Mawson was signed to soften the blow of any potential Taff news. The way Taff comes across in his videos is quite withdrawn. Likes his own company. Which is fine but I get the impression he;d put himself before the team.
I do not think we were adequately prepared for the start of the season with the squad. Yes you can say that last season ended later for us than others, but our transfer window (even with Alfie) has been vastly below what I think most of us would have liked to see.
Part of me thinks that GA’s interview process for the Blackburn job may also be a factor. Perhaps we weren’t lining players up when others were as we didn’t know if we would need to be lining up a new manager?
Anyway, the manner in which we have dealt with the GK issue is Sunday League stuff. At the first sign of doubt over the NB deal we should have moved on to other targets - instead it has still not been addressed three games in after two consecutive losses. I think we miss an Andrew Howard-type figure in a Director of Football role to help navigate and prevent this type of thing from happening.
I also agree that hearing Vokes and Wing quoted as new signings is tosh - they are contract renewals.
Huh, funny thing is I thought the more recent vids he has done has included much more of the team mates than any of the others.
previously it was him doing, what I assumed, was additional training on his own and now he’s had meal time vids, on coach vids and even ice bath vids with Vokes.
He’s coming back from a year out with a serious injury. Easing him back gently is surely the right thing to do. The manager’s faith in Nick was amply displayed when he extended his contract after he sustained the injury.
Comments
I’ve always been one of the biggest Nick Freeman fans, absolutely love watching him play, but I’m also not sure who I would have left out at the start to put him in. After the game I did think I’d rather have seen him in place of Wing though, who didn’t have his best game.
A squad hit by significant injuries. A squad heavily weighted in certain positions. A transfer strategy that is still a work in progress.
We have been told that there are 2 weeks left in the window so assuming this is all under control and results like today are collateral damage. The management and board are clearly happy that come the closing of the transfer window when our final squad is in place the head start we give our automatic promotion rivals will be insignificant.
We go again.
I would imagine the answer is that his time will come. After a year out and a decent run out on Tuesday I think he was quite rightly held back today to help his fitness
To have automatic promotion rivals, you have to be automatic promotion contenders
Half the division could argue being promotion contenders and based on a three year period (rather than a week) we are definately one of them. Absolutely certain of that after the showing today from our fringe players.
We are. Rob said.
To be a contender you just have to say it to make it so.
Didn't he also say we're going to have the best toilets in the world?
But for real, we're nowhere near being auto contenders. And that's fine - but stop saying it, Bobby.
Be a better bet than McCleary, Mehmeti or Horgan probably.
That's quite some 3 to get ahead of.
Some of our fans really do live out the opposite of the "never too high never too low" mantra don't they?
On another day we'd have walked that match and gone in 3 up at half time like against Burton.
Its annoying, but certainly nothing over which to write the season off.
ps if you stand on the Valley and sing "timewasting bastards, we know what we are" like it's some sort of Oscar Wilde level witticism, then rage up today at Shrewsbury's tactics; have some self-respect
Poor start to the season , however complete over reaction by many especially on Twitter / Facebook. Yes we need a goalie a settled defence and maybe another striker however I’m not writing the season off early days all teams have a slump . We tend to start very well and have a slump maybe we can do it different this year and become a much stronger side for the long run.
£400k plus Fred
We needed a goalkeeper, centre half and a striker to replace Stocko, Stewart and Bayo from the beginning of pre season. What did we do , nothing until Mawson was signed this week. We took a risk and it’s not paid off.
Post match on 3cr, Gaz was absolutely fuming we gave away the pen, 'it's not going anywhere, the lad is trying to waste time to the corner'
Not true to say we’ve ‘done nothing,’ about the need for a goalkeeper is it?
It's a bit like standing at the finishing line of a marathon and shouting "what the fuck have you been doing for two hours?" as the athletes cross the line
That may be so, but we're about to get to game four of the season without a goalkeeper up to standard. Whatever the reasons, that's piss-poor.
Guys, it's 3 games into the season. We have started badly.
We had a run of 8 or 9 games last season where we barely picked up a point, in an arguably stronger league. We still finished 6th with a massive points total.
If you are going off 3 games, then MK Dons are going down and Cambridge will play Bristol Rovers in the playoffs and I don't believe that will happen for a minute come the end of the season.
We have been VERY unlucky with injuries. Thompson was our best player for some time and we haven't seen him in 6 months of football being played. We have 5 or 6 that would get into our starting 11 and walk into most other teams in our league, all sidelined.
On the positive side, think how crazy it is that a club like ours can attract players like Mawson and Vokes! We would have laughed a few years back. Steps are being made. Sensible ones. Baby ones. We have over achieved for the last couple of seasons, let's be honest. With a couple more additions, we will be up there again but there are a lot of good teams hoping to do the same.
My only fear is that after this season, I feel like we will be going through a transitional period. So the pressure is on this season. But let's get behind the boys and enjoy players like Vokes and Mawson whilst we can! That in itself is incredible! For anyone to slag off GA - football is such a fickle world. He is the reason we are where we are. Never forget that.
Yes it’s very annoying. But not the same as ‘doing nothing,’ is it?
I think what @davecz is saying is that we didn't sign replacements for those players until Mawson - which is true. I didn't read anything more into it than that.
Just arrived home in Stockport after the game. 7-8 hours in an air-conditioned car today and for once I reckon that makes me the lucky one! Brutal conditions today.
Not too disheartening today. Thought we played really well for much of the game and on another day would have been comfortably out of site. Our style of play is evolving and that will take time but I liked most of what I saw today. Interestingly bumped into some Shrewsbury fans on the way home who had no idea how they won that game - me neither. But that’s how we have won games in the past - today it was done to us!
Funny but I don’t see a number 1 goalkeeper and we have played 3 games.
Going forward I actually think we looked very good. Love the way Horgan, Mehmeti and Mccleary are all turning and running with the ball straight at defender. The link up play is excellent and Scowen does a great job recycling the ball.
Trouble is today Shrewsbury sat so deep there was no space in behind. So we really needed a target in the box to hit with crosses. Too often Mellor was the only one in there, and he probably isn’t the right type of player for that anyway (although overall I did think he played well and certainly looks a decent prospect). Had Vokes or Hanlan been available I think we’d have been out of sight before Shrewsbury could get back into it.
There is a small part of me (the pessimistic side) that can't help but think Mawson was signed to soften the blow of any potential Taff news. The way Taff comes across in his videos is quite withdrawn. Likes his own company. Which is fine but I get the impression he;d put himself before the team.
I do not think we were adequately prepared for the start of the season with the squad. Yes you can say that last season ended later for us than others, but our transfer window (even with Alfie) has been vastly below what I think most of us would have liked to see.
Part of me thinks that GA’s interview process for the Blackburn job may also be a factor. Perhaps we weren’t lining players up when others were as we didn’t know if we would need to be lining up a new manager?
Anyway, the manner in which we have dealt with the GK issue is Sunday League stuff. At the first sign of doubt over the NB deal we should have moved on to other targets - instead it has still not been addressed three games in after two consecutive losses. I think we miss an Andrew Howard-type figure in a Director of Football role to help navigate and prevent this type of thing from happening.
I also agree that hearing Vokes and Wing quoted as new signings is tosh - they are contract renewals.
Do we know for sure Gaz was interviewed for the Blackburn job? But that's an interesting point. And when did Andrew Howard leave?
Huh, funny thing is I thought the more recent vids he has done has included much more of the team mates than any of the others.
previously it was him doing, what I assumed, was additional training on his own and now he’s had meal time vids, on coach vids and even ice bath vids with Vokes.
weird how people perceive things differently.
He’s coming back from a year out with a serious injury. Easing him back gently is surely the right thing to do. The manager’s faith in Nick was amply displayed when he extended his contract after he sustained the injury.
It’s not because we’ve ‘done nothing,’ tho is it?