@AinsworthsSillyShoes going on a free to Reading's Forum & @bargepole's access being terminated 'by mutual consent' following a lengthy court process. @trevor refuses to attend training while results go in our favour.
@ChasHarps makes a sensational Deadline Day return and moves back into the starting XI
Mind boggling. Haven't forgotten the first leg playoff game v Fleetwood where he told everyone who'd listen (and surprisingly a number of people do) that we couldn't possibly be as prepared as they were because of his extraordinary planning only for them to get slapped about the place and resort to kicking and abusing our players.
Whatever his style is I want nothing to do with it.
Funniest thing I saw was the two occasions when there were two balls on the pitch, one thrown on by a ball boy, and one from a Rovers fan, I think. Both required a drop ball by the referee, which disrupted any Rovers momentum and wasted a few seconds.
I'm surprised Mr Barton didn't include those in his list of pathetic excuses.
Barton at his deluded best. The prosecution has no further questions m’lud (a phrase Barton may be familiar with). We rest our case (at least till we play them at home).
Just Hanlan scoring the winner to piss off Barton would have done it for me today! But turns out they lost because the sprinklers weren’t working and that pissed him off instead.
No idea for sure about Taylor, but just a feeling that it was a nasty gash from a stud rather than a broken leg/ankle. Just the way the players were about it, it wasn’t an instant reaction. Wondered whether it could’ve been a lot of blood rather than a broken bone. Hopefully just to hospital for stitches rather than anything more serious. If so, 3 or 4 weeks out would be my guess. Fingers crossed.
I didn’t think we played well today with the ball, save for 20 minutes at the start of the second half and McCleary/Hanlan were excellent in that period, but boy did we fight and scrap and defend for our lives which was really encouraging. And to get a win away from home was a great result, and to beat the odious human being that is Joey Barton is always nice.
Leahy is such a good player in the middle and Joe Low was imperious. Agree with another poster that he certainly has an Alfie Mawson vibe about him. Him and Forino in a back 4 would be absolutely immense. Keogh was also superb when he came on, a real leader.
The challenges we will have going forward are how we are to get the wing backs showing more attacking threat (given it seems 3 centre backs will remain regardless). They both are very good players, really impressed with Boyes particularly so far, but do seem to be more full backs than wing backs, so we are often playing a 5 rather than a 3 at the back. With this formation, we lack a bit of pace in wide areas going forward and it is hard to see where enough goals are going to come from unless our passing is absolutely spot on.
It was reassuring to go on the Bristol Rovers forum and find that we were atrocious. Every time we beat Barton's teams I start worrying that we may be good.
Agree about the full backs/wing backs, we look so different every time GMac comes on because he's one of the few players in the squad who provides width. But maybe that's the game plan, slog through the first half then GMac and Hanlan come on against more tired legs in the second half to cause havoc.
It’s pure comedic value watching Barton. Every time he plays us , he spouts out “ you know what you going to get when you play Wycombe “. Well, if you know what you going to get, why can’t you set up your team to beat us. A complete clown, and a nasty piece of work as well. How any club can have him as a manager is staggering.
I thought we looked excellent until the injuries / substitutions. We really controlled the game, even though we weren;t necessarily in possession.
Tafa's injury record is so frustrating, as he was immense yesterday alongside Low and Forino. This is our best back three. When he went off, we were all over the shop. However, I think that was caused more by the introduction of McCarthy for Boyes. KVY was at fault for the goal and again for the amazing Low block. Hindsight is wonderful but taking Boyes off and moving KVY across really opened us up on both wings.
Hanlan/McCleary were brilliant when they came on. We are missing pace up front.
Still not convinced that three at the back is working for us offensively but we are improving game on game.
Final thought, we've lost to 2nd and 4th in the league, as it stands. So perhaps those defeats aren't quite as bad as they looked at the time. Although we were pretty toothless in both.
Agree with @Commoner about KVY and the goal block moment. He was strolling around the box without an ounce of urgency. Had he been on his toes just a tiny bit more he’d have been ready to put the block in,or at least not make it as a clean a shot at goal as it was. Gmac wasn’t covering himself in glory ant that moment either on the edge of the box but you can excuse him a bit as defending isn’t one of his primary roles.
Thank the lord for Low being alive to it. Hopefully defending like that it’ll be a little bit of inspiration to KVY to stay switched on for 100+ minutes.
In the games I’ve seen him play I think KVY is a poor defender and a good attacker. If a team sets up to press the wing backs (Exeter and Lincoln) he will be exposed. If a team plays narrow he will link well with midfield and do a wing back job. A little like Obita I guess.
Three at the back with those three is a dream. Rovers were extremely impressive going forward until we scored on the break and their doubts crept in. Long balls forward found a blue shirt time and again but those three plus reinforcements from further forward repelled them with relative ease.
Long may we hold on to those three, not forgetting Richard Keogh of course when he replaced the injured Tafazolli and won everything fired at us in the air.
We’ll rarely play as well defensively as we did yesterday. It was great.
Comments
@AinsworthsSillyShoes going on a free to Reading's Forum & @bargepole's access being terminated 'by mutual consent' following a lengthy court process. @trevor refuses to attend training while results go in our favour.
@ChasHarps makes a sensational Deadline Day return and moves back into the starting XI
Mind boggling. Haven't forgotten the first leg playoff game v Fleetwood where he told everyone who'd listen (and surprisingly a number of people do) that we couldn't possibly be as prepared as they were because of his extraordinary planning only for them to get slapped about the place and resort to kicking and abusing our players.
Whatever his style is I want nothing to do with it.
https://twitter.com/tlmfootball/status/1695506560867278908
They could have at least made the fence behind the goal a bit higher couldn't they.
Must have been 10-12 balls fly into that little waste ground in the warmup and game itself
Funniest thing I saw was the two occasions when there were two balls on the pitch, one thrown on by a ball boy, and one from a Rovers fan, I think. Both required a drop ball by the referee, which disrupted any Rovers momentum and wasted a few seconds.
I'm surprised Mr Barton didn't include those in his list of pathetic excuses.
Barton at his deluded best. The prosecution has no further questions m’lud (a phrase Barton may be familiar with). We rest our case (at least till we play them at home).
Can I give a huge shout out to GMac? He has looked so dangerous for us off the bench.
I’m fairly sure Barton blamed the pitch when we last beat them at the memorial through that Hanlan goal. I’ve serious deja vu
Just Hanlan scoring the winner to piss off Barton would have done it for me today! But turns out they lost because the sprinklers weren’t working and that pissed him off instead.
Barton even tanks the morale of his grounds people!
Hopefully the next time the chap who mows the grass does a genuinely poor job, he blames it on their poor football manager.
Joe Low is the next Alfie Mawson.
It was very wet before kick off on that occasion, certainly not a bone dry pitch to blame. Always something with him
No idea for sure about Taylor, but just a feeling that it was a nasty gash from a stud rather than a broken leg/ankle. Just the way the players were about it, it wasn’t an instant reaction. Wondered whether it could’ve been a lot of blood rather than a broken bone. Hopefully just to hospital for stitches rather than anything more serious. If so, 3 or 4 weeks out would be my guess. Fingers crossed.
I didn’t think we played well today with the ball, save for 20 minutes at the start of the second half and McCleary/Hanlan were excellent in that period, but boy did we fight and scrap and defend for our lives which was really encouraging. And to get a win away from home was a great result, and to beat the odious human being that is Joey Barton is always nice.
Leahy is such a good player in the middle and Joe Low was imperious. Agree with another poster that he certainly has an Alfie Mawson vibe about him. Him and Forino in a back 4 would be absolutely immense. Keogh was also superb when he came on, a real leader.
The challenges we will have going forward are how we are to get the wing backs showing more attacking threat (given it seems 3 centre backs will remain regardless). They both are very good players, really impressed with Boyes particularly so far, but do seem to be more full backs than wing backs, so we are often playing a 5 rather than a 3 at the back. With this formation, we lack a bit of pace in wide areas going forward and it is hard to see where enough goals are going to come from unless our passing is absolutely spot on.
It was reassuring to go on the Bristol Rovers forum and find that we were atrocious. Every time we beat Barton's teams I start worrying that we may be good.
Agree about the full backs/wing backs, we look so different every time GMac comes on because he's one of the few players in the squad who provides width. But maybe that's the game plan, slog through the first half then GMac and Hanlan come on against more tired legs in the second half to cause havoc.
It’s pure comedic value watching Barton. Every time he plays us , he spouts out “ you know what you going to get when you play Wycombe “. Well, if you know what you going to get, why can’t you set up your team to beat us. A complete clown, and a nasty piece of work as well. How any club can have him as a manager is staggering.
I thought we looked excellent until the injuries / substitutions. We really controlled the game, even though we weren;t necessarily in possession.
Tafa's injury record is so frustrating, as he was immense yesterday alongside Low and Forino. This is our best back three. When he went off, we were all over the shop. However, I think that was caused more by the introduction of McCarthy for Boyes. KVY was at fault for the goal and again for the amazing Low block. Hindsight is wonderful but taking Boyes off and moving KVY across really opened us up on both wings.
Hanlan/McCleary were brilliant when they came on. We are missing pace up front.
Still not convinced that three at the back is working for us offensively but we are improving game on game.
Final thought, we've lost to 2nd and 4th in the league, as it stands. So perhaps those defeats aren't quite as bad as they looked at the time. Although we were pretty toothless in both.
Agree with @Commoner about KVY and the goal block moment. He was strolling around the box without an ounce of urgency. Had he been on his toes just a tiny bit more he’d have been ready to put the block in,or at least not make it as a clean a shot at goal as it was. Gmac wasn’t covering himself in glory ant that moment either on the edge of the box but you can excuse him a bit as defending isn’t one of his primary roles.
Thank the lord for Low being alive to it. Hopefully defending like that it’ll be a little bit of inspiration to KVY to stay switched on for 100+ minutes.
Still not 100% on KVY, Boyes looks a lot more solid to me but he's the one that seems to get taken off
In the games I’ve seen him play I think KVY is a poor defender and a good attacker. If a team sets up to press the wing backs (Exeter and Lincoln) he will be exposed. If a team plays narrow he will link well with midfield and do a wing back job. A little like Obita I guess.
Boyes seems more capable of both roles.
Three at the back with those three is a dream. Rovers were extremely impressive going forward until we scored on the break and their doubts crept in. Long balls forward found a blue shirt time and again but those three plus reinforcements from further forward repelled them with relative ease.
Long may we hold on to those three, not forgetting Richard Keogh of course when he replaced the injured Tafazolli and won everything fired at us in the air.
We’ll rarely play as well defensively as we did yesterday. It was great.
What on earth was Leahy trying here? 😂
He was confused by having three balls on the pitch
Anyone else totally unable to make sense of that cryptogram?
Balls are the goals
Yeah, every dot is a shot and the balls are the goals. Would be helpful if they (FotMob) put our dots in red, mind you.
Looks like something I might have achieved with subbuteo. Shot for goal nearly hits the corner flag.
I'm pretty sure it went out for a throw.
Was going to say exactly this, as I remember remarking it almost hit some orange fence deep in the side of the stand.
So that graphic makes even less sense.