tommytwojags
Well-known member
We won the game comfortably because they missed three sitters including the worst miss I've seen for years. We were definitely second best from half time.
Why do we seem to only be able to play for 45m?
- Thread starter TwelveAngryMen
- Start date
We won the game comfortably because they missed three sitters including the worst miss I've seen for years. We were definitely second best from half time.
JJpool
Well-known member
People just want to see a team capable of putting in a performance for the full game. It's great we were ahead, but falling ever deeper and allowing a side leagues below to dictate the game and create chances was very poor. 2nd half we showed almost no skill, little passing ability, the ball was bouncing off Beesley and hoofed aimlessly far too much.
It's because it's a problem weve seen many times now, where we sit back and it often costs us.
If we can't carry on playing against a non league side when can we?
It wasn't that comfortable, they missed almost a half open goal and had numerous other half chances.
The manager was unhappy with and rightly so, although it on him how we play and if its not to his liking he should by going mad on the sides.
Anyway, we're through, but must do better if we have any hope of going up. Good teams don't just get ahead and stop playing, they carry on.
Camberwell1
Well-known member
Yep we were awful the more the 2nd half went on
De belle xgot a smack in the face and was not there 2ndperiod but he won the match
De belle xgot a smack in the face and was not there 2ndperiod but he won the match
SydneyTangerine
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Well said
SydneyTangerine
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Good teams don't just get ahead and stop playing, they carry on.
Mark_GT
Well-known member
I'd settle for heavy metal football vs Bolton, whatever the result
JJpool
Well-known member
It's the truth though isn't it.
It's not like this was a one off and because it's some fringe players it's only them, it happens often with our best lineup.
We saw it against Fleetwood, men possessed to get back into the game and had them on the ropes, as soon as we're winning we dropped right off again. Cheltenham hadn't scored more than 2 goals all season and we did the same there.
There can always be an element of defending what you have a bit, but good teams can carry on and finish games with more goals.
We have a horrible habit of falling back and going into hold on or even panic mode.
SomersetSeasider
Well-known member
I agr
I agree with what you say, but his early subs did seem to weaken the side.
Opinionhated
Well-known member
Players play to a system, Carey Morgan & Oakley Boothe and others all have ability but they play to a system to stop the opposing team from scoring, IMO some players are all about attacking scoring goals not defending, Carey for me falls into this category Morgan is also of this type. Dougall & Norburn are your more defensive midfielders they protect & move forward if they can. Peterborough had 4/5 players who could pass move & turn a defender, we don’t have enough of those type of players. That’s why we lost against them. Yes Dembele should be in the team every week, but we could do with another 2 who have that capability if we want promotion.
I’ve always backed him but at times I’m left frustrated by the way are players seem stagnated to a system that doesn’t allow themselves to express there ability.
I’ve always backed him but at times I’m left frustrated by the way are players seem stagnated to a system that doesn’t allow themselves to express there ability.
AlternativeSeaside
Well-known member
That’s fair
tangerine_neil
Well-known member
Decent 1st half performance and two well taken goals. With the right mindset, we could easily have doubled our score in the 2nd half.
However, the 2nd half was all about holding onto our lead, backing off, more sideways & backwards passing, trying to catch them on the break. Like we were up against Man City, not Bromley. We even did a fair bit of time wasting and in the end were very fortunate not to concede at least a couple, to a non-league team. That’s down to Critchley.
The 90 minute performances will come. I think we still have an instinctive nervousness about us which in my opinion is a hangover from last season.
The players coming off the bench need to understand their roles better, and the ones already there need to know how their role changes after the reshuffle. Critchley is not making changes with the intent of inviting pressure, but it is having that effect currently. It will be coached out of them and the 90 min performances will come.
The players coming off the bench need to understand their roles better, and the ones already there need to know how their role changes after the reshuffle. Critchley is not making changes with the intent of inviting pressure, but it is having that effect currently. It will be coached out of them and the 90 min performances will come.
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straightatthewall
Well-known member
The basic facts also show that we won the first half 2-0 and then drew 0-0 in the second when we didn't need to score.
Murciaseasider
Well-known member
Is it though? The 1st half performance was particularly impressive, I'm sure everyone is in agreement with that. That being the case you'd have to be a complete idiot to then tell the team to play a different way. There's a mentality issue throughout the team I think and yes it's up to Critchley to coach them out of that. However to put this solely at his door is an oversimplification and looking for an easy way out. There is no overnight solution to this which is why we may have to accept another season in L1. To change the Coach (yet again) though at this stage will just compound the issue and result in more insecurity and instability.
Insider
Well-known member
He's certainly NOT predictible with his team selection.
Insider
Well-known member
I disagree about Morgan's best position. Critch seems to play him deep and that's a positive because he can pass the ball forward. The negative is he might lack a little bit of bite defensively.
He might get King Kenny's place next Saturday.
Dembele isnt a 90 minute player yet and was completely anonymous 2nd half but that might be because of the knock.
Its probably best if he starts though to put us on the front foot.
With reference to an earlier post by @Eternaloptimist Eky will start next week because Casey is still suspended.
Shiggy
Well-known member
Like it did on Wednesday night when we came out after half time and scored 3 in 15 minutes?
Shiggy
Well-known member
We’re now dealing in ridiculous hypotheticals apparently if it means getting on the managers back.
“If Bromley had scored does anyone think they wouldn’t have scored a second?” They didn’t score. We kept a clean sheet. We won the game.
Not a brilliant performance by any stretch and there’s certainly reason to question why we can’t put in a solid 90 mins or even a good 75, but Jesus Christ, it’s getting worse and worse on here.
Shiggy
Well-known member
Agreed. Either it’s him telling them to play that way or the players not following instructions. Regardless, it’s not a good look.
I do think we have to focus more on individual player performance as well though. Beesley was absolutely horrific and Dembele was anonymous second half.
It’s a combination of the coach being more defensive and cautious than he needs to be and certain players just not being up to standard.
Jaffa_The_Hut
Well-known member
It’s easy to mention one game I could easily mention several games where we’ve gone in at half time winning and looking comfortable and ended up hanging on for dear life Cheltenham was a classical example for one.
We all agree that 45 mins is not good enough
It is noticeable that it is either first half or second half not parts of each half
Whether the manager or players are to blame to progress further it needs addressing now
The early goals did put them on the back foot, which suggests our strengths are in attack
We know the problem so get it sorted
It is noticeable that it is either first half or second half not parts of each half
Whether the manager or players are to blame to progress further it needs addressing now
The early goals did put them on the back foot, which suggests our strengths are in attack
We know the problem so get it sorted
Bandagem
Well-known member
Clappers, it’s the opposite from what I’ve heard.
Willie Mcgrotty
Well-known member
Think you'll find that's Critchley's playing career not clappers.
glasshalffull
Well-known member
You can interpret the way we played in the second half as professional, defending a lead, doing a job etc.
To be honest I don’t think we were good enough defensively to interpret it that way. For most of that time we couldn’t hold the ball for any length of time at all, and posed zero threat on the break.
We surrendered territory and possession for long periods and in the end we ‘got away with it’.
To be honest I don’t think we were good enough defensively to interpret it that way. For most of that time we couldn’t hold the ball for any length of time at all, and posed zero threat on the break.
We surrendered territory and possession for long periods and in the end we ‘got away with it’.
Thank you for that - Clappers gave me the impression it was his
Glassman
Well-known member
With respect it’s not ridiculous though - How often have we been comfortable or on top gone defensive and conceded? I’ll give you Cheltenham, Fleetwood recently and last night was the same but they couldn’t get it in the net - We were second best second half by a distance .
20togo
Well-known member
yes it is.He makes the substitutions, he went to playing just Beesley up front in the 55th minute. That frees their defence to only have to worry about one man and they can push up, their midfield pushes up, etc. All the problems started when HE made the substitutions. Just like it did on wednesday. The players play to instructions, the subs are given a job to do and yesterday was so noticeable how we just sat deeper and deeper inviting the pressure on to us and thinking we could deal with it. Remember last season under McCarthy and how he set his teams up. It was with a negative mindset to not concede. Our halves of football on the whole this season are totally different. If we are losing at half time he'll commit to attacking more because he has to to get us back in the game. If we are winning at half time then just like yesterday it's the ultra cautious approach. It's a general theme on here that we can't seem to put a ninety minute performance in and that has to come down to the manager and his decisions.
All, that said, am I at the stage where we need to change the manager? No not at all. But I do believe we have a squad that in L1 is much more capable of playing on the front foot that Critchley allows.
fcblackpool
Well-known member
Probably a combination of players and manager. It's natural for players to want to protect the lead and sit back. The art of being a manager is knowing when to go with that and when to stop it happening. I haven't seen anything to suggest NC knows when to stop it happening.
Seasidedaz
Well-known member
True, but virtually everyone we play always seems or feel is fitter than us - it’s been the same the last 3 or 4 years. Or maybe it’s a mentality thing - concentration levels etc
Costero Poderoso
Well-known member
I missed the first half of the game yesterday, couldn't get a stable stream, so saw about twenty minutes, and was relying on radio Lancashire commentary, which gives about 5% game commentary and 95% mumblings between the two commentators, so other than a post event - "that was a good move" or something similar cant draw a lot from it.
from what i saw of the first half we controlled the game, camped in the Bromley half, zipping passes around, sideways forwards sideways, back again down the other side. We consistently had 5 or 6 players in or around the box and every time there was a defensive clearance we had numbers to take control and rework another move. Now to me that looked like controlling the game.
Second half after about ten minutes, we didn't have control of the game, we were chasing their midfield, we didn't retain possession, we sat deep and let them play in the area in front of our penalty area, we had eleven men behind the ball and every time we cleared it ended up at the foot of a Bromley player coming forward again, we were lucky not to concede a couple of times maybe more. I cannot look at it as a professional performance seeing out the game (even though we did) it was us holding on.
so the question to ask is how do we go from sitting back and holding on, and its not solid, and we don't look comfortable, to absolutely monstering teams as we did in the first half yesterday, or for thirty minutes against Fleetwood, or with ten men against Peterborough, or for fifteen minutes against oxford.
When we did go forward in the second half yesterday we only had a at most a couple of players in the box, and its something I've noticed in a lot of the damp squib performances. That restraint to get forward has to be coming from the management team, its also noticeable that when we are "being solid" we wont shoot until we are about three yards out, we get close with what looks like a decent attacking move, but then end up passing all the way back seemingly to just retain possession. at a psychological level that has to give the opposition the idea that defensively they are doing a decent job, which gives them confidence to attack the ball, knowing that what the Blackpool team is doing is trying to retain possession for the sake of possession.
When your goal is being peppered with shots, and / or you're conceding corners and freekicks which result in more attempts you are unlikely to be feeling comfortable.
I cannot believe that the group of players who came out in the second half relinquished the gulf in class that they had from the first half, it has to be orders from the dressing room, or a lack of understanding of orders from the dressing room.
It didn't help yesterday that Beesley had an absolute shocker, I don't think he won a single challenge for the ball and was so badly positioned for most of the time that nobody could find him with a pass. I quite liked him as a player though he might do a decent job, but yesterday was a shocker. The other subs, Carey in the free role that Dembele had we know can cause problems so like for like, but no. TOB i think gets pelters on here but is a decent player and hasnt done much wrong in my eyes, too careful not adventurous enough in the rigid system that critchley wants to play to be """"solid"""".
from what i saw of the first half we controlled the game, camped in the Bromley half, zipping passes around, sideways forwards sideways, back again down the other side. We consistently had 5 or 6 players in or around the box and every time there was a defensive clearance we had numbers to take control and rework another move. Now to me that looked like controlling the game.
Second half after about ten minutes, we didn't have control of the game, we were chasing their midfield, we didn't retain possession, we sat deep and let them play in the area in front of our penalty area, we had eleven men behind the ball and every time we cleared it ended up at the foot of a Bromley player coming forward again, we were lucky not to concede a couple of times maybe more. I cannot look at it as a professional performance seeing out the game (even though we did) it was us holding on.
so the question to ask is how do we go from sitting back and holding on, and its not solid, and we don't look comfortable, to absolutely monstering teams as we did in the first half yesterday, or for thirty minutes against Fleetwood, or with ten men against Peterborough, or for fifteen minutes against oxford.
When we did go forward in the second half yesterday we only had a at most a couple of players in the box, and its something I've noticed in a lot of the damp squib performances. That restraint to get forward has to be coming from the management team, its also noticeable that when we are "being solid" we wont shoot until we are about three yards out, we get close with what looks like a decent attacking move, but then end up passing all the way back seemingly to just retain possession. at a psychological level that has to give the opposition the idea that defensively they are doing a decent job, which gives them confidence to attack the ball, knowing that what the Blackpool team is doing is trying to retain possession for the sake of possession.
When your goal is being peppered with shots, and / or you're conceding corners and freekicks which result in more attempts you are unlikely to be feeling comfortable.
I cannot believe that the group of players who came out in the second half relinquished the gulf in class that they had from the first half, it has to be orders from the dressing room, or a lack of understanding of orders from the dressing room.
It didn't help yesterday that Beesley had an absolute shocker, I don't think he won a single challenge for the ball and was so badly positioned for most of the time that nobody could find him with a pass. I quite liked him as a player though he might do a decent job, but yesterday was a shocker. The other subs, Carey in the free role that Dembele had we know can cause problems so like for like, but no. TOB i think gets pelters on here but is a decent player and hasnt done much wrong in my eyes, too careful not adventurous enough in the rigid system that critchley wants to play to be """"solid"""".
Murciaseasider
Well-known member
clappers
Well-known member
It’s a mystery that’s for sure. Especially the long term ones like Stewart and Gabriel and the hamstrings.
Shiggy
Well-known member
Agree we were definitely second best but I just think it is pretty ridiculous to criticise the manager for goals we haven’t even conceded?
It’s like me saying if we would’ve scored a fourth on Wednesday night we could have gone on and scored 5 or 6? It didn’t happen so it’s not really relevant.
poolseasider
Well-known member
Too bloody true this site only used to go into a meltdown after a defeat now it does after a draw even more bonkers after a win.
It's like everyone has forgot the ups and down of being a football fan.
Shiggy
Well-known member
Equally I could say it was the opposite against Reading, Barnsley, Burton, Stevenage etc. We were comfortable in all of those games once leading.
We’ve also given away leads and been way too cautious at times yes but you can’t just ignore the times we’ve held on to leads comfortably just to suit your agenda against the manager
Albert Ross
Well-known member
No, it’s because the same snake picked the wrong line up initially and in the first half realised his mistake, correcting in the second half.
Albert Ross
Well-known member
Delete comfortably and you’re right.
Albert Ross
Well-known member
If the National Leagues leading scorer hadn’t had a night when he couldn’t hit a bulls arse with a banjo, we would have been struggling.
Sven
Well-known member
I'm starting to wonder if I nodded off as I can only recall one good chance for them.
electric_eel
Well-known member
Personally prefer us to be less defensive minded but then again I wouldn't rely on me to get us promoted.
Plenty saying we were bound to lose but we didn't, yeah but we could have second half, yada yada, but we didn't.
Should play Marv every game (not just based on yesterday) because he's still a feckin great defender. Don't ask him to overplay at the back, let him knock it long when ever he wants, even if it gives possession away it's giving it away in their half. He's not our only defender who's got a ricket in him either, by any stretch.
Plenty saying we were bound to lose but we didn't, yeah but we could have second half, yada yada, but we didn't.
Should play Marv every game (not just based on yesterday) because he's still a feckin great defender. Don't ask him to overplay at the back, let him knock it long when ever he wants, even if it gives possession away it's giving it away in their half. He's not our only defender who's got a ricket in him either, by any stretch.
Albert Ross
Well-known member
You must have , Cheek had 2 chances which were nearly impossible to miss. Official stats say they had 3 shots on target.
Bet you would of scored them Albert
Bisphamtang
Well-known member
We won a cup tie in a professional manner
Critchley is no Olly - much more circumspect in his approach which can lead to frustration and ,at times,boring footy .
However this is much better than anything we saw last season ( OK the Dobbie interlude at the end when it was all over was good ) and we will end the season in the top 6 with Critchley at the helm .
I'm sure that will be dismissed as shite by some
Critchley is no Olly - much more circumspect in his approach which can lead to frustration and ,at times,boring footy .
However this is much better than anything we saw last season ( OK the Dobbie interlude at the end when it was all over was good ) and we will end the season in the top 6 with Critchley at the helm .
I'm sure that will be dismissed as shite by some
Albert Ross
Well-known member
I would have been bloody disappointed if I hadn’t and I’m 83.
Mind you I would have to stand in the area all the time, cause I certainly can’t run these days.
Sven
Well-known member
Just watched the highlights. O'Donnell made two saves in the second half, one from about 30 yards out and one from the header that led to the bad Cheek miss, the third shot didn't make the highlights and I can't recall it. Their other decent chance was in the first half when we were playing well. They put some decent balls into the box, I credit them for that and they were always going to have a go in the second half, they were at home in front of what will probably be their biggest crowd of the season.
Cheek had one other opportunity but it was a first time volley from a deep cross at a tight angle, it wasn't an easy chance, he'd have done very well to get it on target.
Seasidestevo71
Well-known member
He plays 1 up front towards the end and invites pressure on us, cost us against Fleetwood and Bromley nearly scored late on after doing the same, Will he ever learn
Seasidedaz
Well-known member
This season we seem to have sorted the dodgy hamstring issue - only Joseph, Lavery and Virue this season - three seems reasonable if not good for the time into the season that we are. We always seem to go deeper and deeper the longer the game goes on which suggests to me it’s a fitness issue. Lavery for example always looks fooked after about 70 minutes.
BFC_BFC_BFC
Well-known member
At no point in the last 20 minutes plus at Fleetwood (after Blackpool made the Sub) did Blackpool Invite Pressure. To suggest that they did is total bull!!
During that period of the game Blackpool must have had 90% of the possession at least and the overwhelming majority of it was us pressurising Fleetwood in their half. They literally had the breakaway chance (result of us attacking) where they scored from a long range shot and then maybe further combined 30 seconds of play where they were in possession in our half.
I really don't think you could have seen a more one sided last 20 minutes and Fleetwood were the only Team who were under sustained pressure for the entire time. How anyone could genuinely suggest that we sat back and invited pressure after watching the end to that game is beyond me....
Seriously where did you come up with this rubbish from??
AngelBFC
Well-known member
That will do