Rather than being dropped, I wonder if what Max actually needs is the chance to get back out there on the green stuff and put it behind him and move on.
Other than the last few weeks he’s been an outstanding signing, one of our best ever. Perhaps he deserves a bit more loyalty in return at a difficult time for him.
Depends very much on his state of mind and whether Matt and Lee think he needs taking out of the spotlight.
A test for Matt. Ultimately he needs to work out what is the best approach for the club.
I agree that Max needs support as well, not just the cold shoulder - but it sends a terrible message to our #2 goalie (who I will freely admit I’ve never seen, but is not some fresh youth teamer) if, no matter what the so-called #1 does, you don’t get an opportunity other than in the tinpot cup.
Ravizzoli deserves a shot at the FA Cup game at a minimum - and if he does well, a chance to keep the spot, not just, “oh you’ve had your token cup game, thanks”.
Not sure I explained the reference clearly @micra . Whenever indirect free kicks are mentioned, my mind invariably flicks back to Wycombe goalkeeper Peter Spittle diving full length to get his finger tips to an indirect free kick thereby scoring the OG which gave Maidstone a 1-0 FA Cup win. Late 70s ish I believe. I think you have mentioned you were a Maidstone fan back along. I wondered if you were at the game.
Sorry, @DevC. Tiredness had set in and I stupidly misread your comment. I was indeed a United fan (Maidstone variety) in the post-war decade so I almost certainly would have been at the match you mentioned but I’ve no recollection of it.
It was a very early away game for me. Looking back I was a bit of a curse in those days tbh . Lost to Hendon in the Amateur Cup semi - lost to Minehead in the cup , lost to Maidstone with that own goal , conceded last minute equalizer in trophy semi at Alty and then lost the second leg and my personal nadir - lost to Bristol Rovers in the cup. I was a student in Exeter at the time, hitched up to Bristol for the game but seemed to forget that football matches in winter end in the dark and you don’t get lifts in the dark and that T shirts may be OK in winter day times but not so much at night. Valuable life lessons I think. Spent the night at Weston Super Mare motorway junction until finally getting a lift back at 8am. Never been as cold as that night.
looking back it was years until I saw a win away! Thank goodness for the club that my away trips were so rare.
@DevC I reckon there are a few of us on here who remember that day at Maidstone. I was sat in the main stand with my dad (we used to sit in the stand for ‘big games’ but stood on the terrace for normal league games, for some reason). The Spittle indirect free-kick incident was in the goal to our left - amazing what you can still remember clearly from all those years ago, when other stuff is a complete blur.
I would like to think that other keepers have a sense of self-respect and would not drop to the floor in an attempt to waste time or get a player booked. Our man made a twat of himself on so many fronts. Cheating is one thing, cheating badly is a real double down. I hope he has given himself a reality check.
Theres talk online, from a Barnsley fan even, that the referee will be taken off duty for the next game, which means people higher up than him do think it was a foul
I do think that the referee made the decision he did due to his (reasonable) conclusion that Max had been acting like a twat and deserved it. No too sure where he was positioned but I’m pretty sure it was at least 40 yards away and wouldn’t have got a clear view so would have been reliant on a signal from the linesman. That’s certainly where I looked first (although from 120 yards away it still didn’t look like a foul).
Normally Max would have got the decision but all night the referee had made clear he wasn’t going to tolerate any play acting.
Whats depressing is knowing that in a few years time when my memory has gone completely that image will be so indelibly embedded in my neuron's it will resurface at ever-increasing frequencies
That Barnsley video shows, in my opinion, minimal contact. What I have noticed is that the Ref was running full speed back towards the middle of the pitch so was unlikely to have seen exactly what happened. The linesman had a perfect view and would have presumably communicated that to ref.
I thought the referee was excellent BTW.
As already mentioned Max made a fool of himself and I think needs to be taken out of the firing line for a while. I’m 100% sure the club and his teammates are supporting Max as should we when he makes his return, whenever that may be.
The memory is certainly a strange thing. I was in Minehead this summer for the first time since that game yet knew where the ground was and remembered the name (Andy Leitch) and rough appearance (big bald) of their centre forward who scored their second goal yet can't honestly remember who was in our team that day apart from a memory of a ginger haired lad (graham Mackenzie?) missing a great chance for a late equaliser at 0-1 the image of which is clear to this day in my mind. Spittle's goal was indeed off to the left so perhaps I was in the stand too??
The Barnsley video show him clearly sprinting to the centre of the pitch to be where the action would reasonably be expected next and the lino positioning himself well to see what was happening with Max in the penalty area. Actually really good officiating from both. Whether the lino made the right call in not judging the contact a foul is a matter of opinion. 50-50 call for me.
Thats disgraceful if true. As fans we are tired of fouls for minimal contact and players falling over as they feel any contact on them. What Drysdale did should be applauded. The act of falling over and dropping the ball was all Max. When a player cheats it should be called out. It is just horrid that this stain is on our team so we can't enjoy laughing at the stupidity of another team. If he hadn't dropped the ball I still would have been shouting 'get up you *****'.
As for Max needing support, that's fair. Once he has gone round the dressing room and apologised to all of his team mates for letting them down.
I’m firmly in the “Max has got to start on Saturday camp.”
This is a goalkeeper nominated for September’s league player of the month award for goodness sake!
it will be strong management to start him Saturday with a warning that no more fuck ups like Tuesday will be tolerated. It will be weak management to drop him. Let’s see.
Comments
He was messing around but it was a foul.
Foul or not, he's got to be dropped. There was a pretty strong case for that even before that incident.
It's good timing with the cup game anyway - let's play Ravazolli and see how he does.
Rather than being dropped, I wonder if what Max actually needs is the chance to get back out there on the green stuff and put it behind him and move on.
Other than the last few weeks he’s been an outstanding signing, one of our best ever. Perhaps he deserves a bit more loyalty in return at a difficult time for him.
Depends very much on his state of mind and whether Matt and Lee think he needs taking out of the spotlight.
A test for Matt. Ultimately he needs to work out what is the best approach for the club.
I agree that Max needs support as well, not just the cold shoulder - but it sends a terrible message to our #2 goalie (who I will freely admit I’ve never seen, but is not some fresh youth teamer) if, no matter what the so-called #1 does, you don’t get an opportunity other than in the tinpot cup.
Ravizzoli deserves a shot at the FA Cup game at a minimum - and if he does well, a chance to keep the spot, not just, “oh you’ve had your token cup game, thanks”.
Sadly, @DevC, health issues have prevented me from attending matches for three years.
Haven’t a clue what a thread scofflaw is, @Malone, but I’ll hazard a guess that it’s not complimentary.
I tried to put those comments in the right place but failed miserably.
Not sure I explained the reference clearly @micra . Whenever indirect free kicks are mentioned, my mind invariably flicks back to Wycombe goalkeeper Peter Spittle diving full length to get his finger tips to an indirect free kick thereby scoring the OG which gave Maidstone a 1-0 FA Cup win. Late 70s ish I believe. I think you have mentioned you were a Maidstone fan back along. I wondered if you were at the game.
Sorry, @DevC. Tiredness had set in and I stupidly misread your comment. I was indeed a United fan (Maidstone variety) in the post-war decade so I almost certainly would have been at the match you mentioned but I’ve no recollection of it.
It was a very early away game for me. Looking back I was a bit of a curse in those days tbh . Lost to Hendon in the Amateur Cup semi - lost to Minehead in the cup , lost to Maidstone with that own goal , conceded last minute equalizer in trophy semi at Alty and then lost the second leg and my personal nadir - lost to Bristol Rovers in the cup. I was a student in Exeter at the time, hitched up to Bristol for the game but seemed to forget that football matches in winter end in the dark and you don’t get lifts in the dark and that T shirts may be OK in winter day times but not so much at night. Valuable life lessons I think. Spent the night at Weston Super Mare motorway junction until finally getting a lift back at 8am. Never been as cold as that night.
looking back it was years until I saw a win away! Thank goodness for the club that my away trips were so rare.
It might have been a foul.
Max shouldn't have fallen over.
He definitely should not have dropped the fucking ball!!
He should be dropped Sat, based on recent performances.
He has to be dropped to save him from endless abuse from the terrace.
As an employee of the club he deserves support and understanding. We all make mistakes.
Let's test the "not a foul" theory every game going forward by getting one of our strikers to jog up to the keeper and do the same.
Then see how often we get away with it!
@DevC I reckon there are a few of us on here who remember that day at Maidstone. I was sat in the main stand with my dad (we used to sit in the stand for ‘big games’ but stood on the terrace for normal league games, for some reason). The Spittle indirect free-kick incident was in the goal to our left - amazing what you can still remember clearly from all those years ago, when other stuff is a complete blur.
But they wouldn’t fall over in a show of gamesmanship and certainly not drop the ball!!!!
I would like to think that other keepers have a sense of self-respect and would not drop to the floor in an attempt to waste time or get a player booked. Our man made a twat of himself on so many fronts. Cheating is one thing, cheating badly is a real double down. I hope he has given himself a reality check.
The other teams penalty area is the place for creative experiments, not your own, and not just before the whistle in a hard fought draw.
Theres talk online, from a Barnsley fan even, that the referee will be taken off duty for the next game, which means people higher up than him do think it was a foul
Interesting development and if that happens it ends the debate.
Obviously those of us who are certain it's a foul appreciate the whole scenario was utterly our keeper's own making.
I do think that the referee made the decision he did due to his (reasonable) conclusion that Max had been acting like a twat and deserved it. No too sure where he was positioned but I’m pretty sure it was at least 40 yards away and wouldn’t have got a clear view so would have been reliant on a signal from the linesman. That’s certainly where I looked first (although from 120 yards away it still didn’t look like a foul).
Normally Max would have got the decision but all night the referee had made clear he wasn’t going to tolerate any play acting.
Whats depressing is knowing that in a few years time when my memory has gone completely that image will be so indelibly embedded in my neuron's it will resurface at ever-increasing frequencies
That Barnsley video shows, in my opinion, minimal contact. What I have noticed is that the Ref was running full speed back towards the middle of the pitch so was unlikely to have seen exactly what happened. The linesman had a perfect view and would have presumably communicated that to ref.
I thought the referee was excellent BTW.
As already mentioned Max made a fool of himself and I think needs to be taken out of the firing line for a while. I’m 100% sure the club and his teammates are supporting Max as should we when he makes his return, whenever that may be.
Now for an epic cup run COYB
The memory is certainly a strange thing. I was in Minehead this summer for the first time since that game yet knew where the ground was and remembered the name (Andy Leitch) and rough appearance (big bald) of their centre forward who scored their second goal yet can't honestly remember who was in our team that day apart from a memory of a ginger haired lad (graham Mackenzie?) missing a great chance for a late equaliser at 0-1 the image of which is clear to this day in my mind. Spittle's goal was indeed off to the left so perhaps I was in the stand too??
That would be grossly unfair on the referee.
The Barnsley video show him clearly sprinting to the centre of the pitch to be where the action would reasonably be expected next and the lino positioning himself well to see what was happening with Max in the penalty area. Actually really good officiating from both. Whether the lino made the right call in not judging the contact a foul is a matter of opinion. 50-50 call for me.
Perhaps the correct decision would have been to both award Wycombe a free kick and book Max?
Please, no @eric_plant !!
I read @Glenactico’s excellent pithy summary (1.14 am) and thought a line had been drawn.
Feels like it’s been done to death.
Had he stayed standing up when pushed he could have wasted a bit more time as the referee had a word with the striker.
As it was comedy fall and dropping ball = goal!
Thats disgraceful if true. As fans we are tired of fouls for minimal contact and players falling over as they feel any contact on them. What Drysdale did should be applauded. The act of falling over and dropping the ball was all Max. When a player cheats it should be called out. It is just horrid that this stain is on our team so we can't enjoy laughing at the stupidity of another team. If he hadn't dropped the ball I still would have been shouting 'get up you *****'.
As for Max needing support, that's fair. Once he has gone round the dressing room and apologised to all of his team mates for letting them down.
I’m firmly in the “Max has got to start on Saturday camp.”
This is a goalkeeper nominated for September’s league player of the month award for goodness sake!
it will be strong management to start him Saturday with a warning that no more fuck ups like Tuesday will be tolerated. It will be weak management to drop him. Let’s see.
What about the mistakes last Saturday, prior to the massive fuck up on Tuesday?
What if he plays in the cup game (ahead of the GK who hasn't put a foot wrong in previous cup games) and fucks up again?
You're only as good as your last game. Being nominated for playing well in September is completely irrelevant in December.
Ravizzoli has to start against Morecambe.
Either way, Max is going to find himself on compilations of hilarious goalie fails for the rest of his life.
…and that reminds me
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3y_IOU6Lb2g
Correction, Boyes is suspended on Saturday. Update from Gasman in response to Ian Baker.