Post-Match Thread and Ratings AFC Fylde 2-1 Southend United

[Stuart W]

4 nil Oldham
5 nil Solihull
4 1 aldershot
Just off the top of my head

Before you get too excited about this, I would like to remind you that Dagenham got 7 (SEVEN) goals at home against Gateshead last Saturday. The last time we scored that amount in a league game home or away was over 56 years ago in 1968.

 

[LBBlue]

My post was based on what Wes offered when on the pitch.

It's interesting that John-Lewis of York is mainly used as a sub. I don't know for sure but I'm guessing he's fully fit but seemingly less effective when he starts. That's the beauty and beast of modern-day football and why I describe it as not being an exact science.

Lennel John-Lewis is 35, has come off the bench in every game (9) and has 4 goals.

Doubt he could last 90 minutes.

 

[bluesfansince1952]

Our fourth game in eleven days with a depleted squad some of whom are not yet match fit. Not only was it an away game but it involved a long trip.

Always thought a defeat was more likely than not. Disappointing? Yes. End of the world? No.

 

[Mr Browns Ghost]

A football team doesn't play very well for a few games and the end of the world is nigh... The ability of some to luxuriate in their own misery is something to behold. What short memories people have. A few short months ago, we very nearly didn't have a club to support. Through their twisted logic, perhaps that would have made certain masochistic posters happy. I, for one, am grateful I have a team to be disappointed in when it lets in an injury-time winner.

Many of these lads are the same heroes who stuck by this club in its hour of need, playing without pay. Never forget.

@Cricko was spot on with his post. We're just not very good at the moment. With all that has gone on, how could we be? Others have listed the numerous reasons why. The Dunkerque spirit/siege mentality cannot be sustained forever. I would join the call for patience, but I'm aware that word isn't in the vocabulary of the Zoners who descend on the site after defeat.

No, he actually said ‘ we are just not very good’ you said moment not cricko .. also just a few games 8 out of 9 still a few?? I’d say that’s about 91% of games played

 

[Wickford Blue]

It does feel a little bit like we are someone’s B team at the moment with the number of players we are trying to get match fit at the same time and potentially trying to get everyone in the team which may not be the best way to set up.

Midfield needs more energy as it is clear from last 2 games that Moncur/Noor tired in the last 25 mins and teams have been able to cut through us easily. As others have said, we need to be more direct and less passes for the sake of passing.

I would like to see Ralph back at LCB AND Bridge back out on the left but we do need a mobile striker who is match fit to play up top.

Our pressing game has gone backwards with exception of Eastleigh as it does not look like we have the legs to do this for 90 mins

I am sure it will come good but we need to have a couple of signings who are ready to go and not have to wait several games to get up to speed.

Here here! Post of the thread!

I firmly believe that we overachieved (because of trench mentality) in the last couple of seasons. The way we play and the tactics are unchanged. It is great, attractive football when it works, and we can be unbeatable. But when it doesn't, we get poor performances like Saturdays and last night. It was the same last season! What has changed are some of the players and finally a business minded management team in COSU, who have inherited what can only be politely described as a dogs breakfast. And of course some wildly ridiculous fans expectations that we would suddenly be setting fire to this pit of a league!

Its only fair to start asking questions of Kev, the players and cosu when we survive this season, finish mid table with a few very good and a hatful of mediocre/poor games, a fully functioning club and a proper pre season, unencumbered by off the field issues (so basically winding forward a year from now!!).

Do i like what I saw Saturday, no. That hurts. Then losing last night in injury time hurts too. Watching our team being ripped apart by injury, a bit of stupid and a fairly shrewd transfer also hurts. You need to remember that when you start your incoming transfer discussions 3 months after the rest of the division, you are selecting the players other clubs chose not to sign/keep! not that these players are bad, but they need time that our fanbase seems to not want to give them. It will come good, but it wont be in the next few games!

This is exactly what people need to get a grip of but there seems to be a lot of people who expected as soon as we were sold we would be on the up and up. We missed the transfer window, we lost two influential players, suffered injuries to this we signed and yes if we are still in this position this time next year then questions need to be asked.
All I want and expect from this season is to stay up and get the club running on a solid financial footing (that doesn't mean the COSU) just pimping money in as that is not a long term viable proposition as Wrexham may find out one day
COYB!!

 

[Shrimper83]

Our fourth game in eleven days with a depleted squad some of whom are not yet match fit. Not only was it an away game but it involved a long trip.

Always thought a defeat was more likely than not. Disappointing? Yes. End of the world? No.

Isn't this where maher should be using the new 5 sub rule then to help with tiredness? Players on bench need to be trusted or it's not even worth having them there!

 

[Fitz]

I left it until this morning to post because I was so frustrated last night and guessed that many others would be too.

My opinion is as follows.

Firstly, given we are where we are with the squad available, Kev needs to make the best from what resources he has available and is failing to do that by trying to accommodate players who don't play well together or in certain positions.

For example he tried to accommodate Bonne last night, not surprising as he's a decent asset for any club at our level. However he deployed him on his own up front which really doesn't play to his strengths - presumably because he thought he'd tire and Bim is our only other fit striker. He also seems to want to play Gubbins and Ralph which means Ralph has to go LWB and if he then wants to start Jack Bridge too Bridge has to play in the centre behind the striker - not his best position.

In my opinion this is not going to work and it showed in the first half yesterday - Bonne couldn't hold the ball up, Bridge couldn't play off him and too many moves broke down in the final third.

Kev needs therefore to play Bonne alongside Bim and get them working as a pair, which means dropping one of Bridge, Ralph or Gubbins. He is unlikely to drop Ralph (captain and one of our best players) so Gubbins or Bridge needs to be benched - frankly I don't care which, but he needs to judge which one potentially on a game by game basis.

Secondly, we are missing Cav Miley in front of the defence at the moment and Morton is the best alternative we have. I think he's been doing OK, he's not Cav but in some respects he's a more forward thinking player. Appiah-Forson is a permanent signing, highly rated and did well at Daggers last season - however he's a little guy and not really going to be best placed to be the midfield enforcer. I agree with bringing him on or even starting him - however not in place of Morton which means Husin has to drop back to play the role on his own, when he's only really been successful there alongside Miley. Therefore mistake number two is taking Morton off - if he wants fresh legs then Husin should go off or even Moncur (I'd definitely go the former). The only other option is to utilise Taylor in the midfield enforcer role but that means messing up the back three.

I think mistakes were made in the set up and the tactical changes. These are not bad players but they've not got a lot of confidence at the moment and need to be played to their strengths.

Last season for Kev was tricky because of the embargo and the shadow hanging over the club. This season looks like it's going to be tricky for other reasons and he needs to step up to another level because our fanbase is notoriously fickle and a manager who could previously do no wrong can fall from grace pretty quickly.

My thoughts exactly…excellent post

 

[leeblue]

Before you get too excited about this, I would like to remind you that Dagenham got 7 (SEVEN) goals at home against Gateshead last Saturday. The last time we scored that amount in a league game home or away was over 56 years ago in 1968.

Too excited? Odd comment. So that's the latest gripe, we haven't put seven past anyone for 56 years.....grrrrrr maher out.

 

[GBJ]

I think that's part of the problem, this year the signings (and losing cards and kens) feel like we've taken a step backwards.

Clinging to the hope that its a lack of fitness thing and when they are all up to speed we should be ok.

I agree, I don’t think the recruitment has been brilliant. It may come good though, only time will tell.

Remember, there was a time not long ago when some people thought we should get shot of Cardwell as he “wasn’t up to it”.

Reality is we missed out once again on several targets over the summer (whether it’s down to the budget restrictions or other reasons, I don’t know) and we’ve been left with what we’ve got.

I doubt that Kev himself is happy with the way the squad looks right now, but he’ll have to make do with what he’s got.

 

[yogi bear up the cagire]

The 2024 trip(s) to Fylde is understandably not creating to many laughs at the moment but it will surely go down in Southend United folklore history. Really felt for those who went, especially on both occasions but hope that, given time, they will really have a good laugh at our adversity, over a few pints when they recall that night

 

[leeblue]

The 2024 trip(s) to Fylde is understandably not creating to many laughs at the moment but it will surely go down in Southend United folklore history. Really felt for those who went, especially on both occasions but hope that, given time, they will really have a good laugh at our adversity, over a few pints when they recall that night

You do down the line.
The amount of drubbing I've seen away
Walsall, Palace, Plymouth, Stoke absolute hammerings but there's always something from the day.
Don't let 90 minutes of football ruin a good day out.

 

[Strykr]

The 2024 trip(s) to Fylde is understandably not creating to many laughs at the moment but it will surely go down in Southend United folklore history. Really felt for those who went, especially on both occasions but hope that, given time, they will really have a good laugh at our adversity, over a few pints when they recall that night

We can reminisce about when we played in the big time against fylde as we get battered by AFC totton in the southern premier league

 

[Ipswhrimp]

No, he actually said ‘ we are just not very good’ you said moment not cricko .. also just a few games 8 out of 9 still a few?? I’d say that’s about 91% of games played

Whatevs, mate. If you really want to be pedantic, I didn't specify a time period. If we assume we've played about 3,500 league games since 1906, those few matches would constitute 0.26% of them.

 

[AlfaShrimper]

Just seen the highlights from last night.. forced myself through it. Really really poor first goal too concede. Can't be letting the ball bounce like that in the box and Collin seemed to flap at it. Our goal was a great flick on by bonne and the goal scoring machine does the rest. Winner is an absolute peach. Not much can be done about that but do disappointing!

 

[Billy Bests boot laces]

Equally they had time to organise their defence because we have to have at least 10 touches they broke with pace and purpose.

Which to me & possibly many others, is so frustrating?. For us to break with pace & purpose, our game plan & tactics ( & possibly some players ) would have to change big time?.

 

[Guybrush13]

My best friend is a Man City fan and I watch a lot of City with him. It is clear that Kev is trying to play like Pep/Man City (Which I'm all for by the way) however he is missing a couple of key ingredients to play that way.

Apart from the ability of the players - which I won't include, the main ingredient is a defence splitting pass which Man City play a lot. We rarely play this type of ball and should be utilising it a lot more with our strikers, especially with our build up play. We become too predictable and slow otherwise otherwise.

Another "City" tactic is the quick cross. We have started to use this a bit more this season, however we seem to get down the wings and 90% of the time turn and pass back just to keep possession. I'd love to see Jack & Gus running on to giving very early, quick crosses for the forwards or in running midfielders to run on to.

Like a lot of people, I was angry last night, but I'm 100% behind what Kev is trying to do and with a couple of tweaks and possibly better "incomings" - if it's possible, I'm sure next season we'll definitely be going up.

 

[bluethroughandthrough]

I h

And during his tenure we’ve steadily improved year-on-year. That’s not an opinion, it’s a fact.

Defensively, we have improved. Maher’s first season, we shipped 61 goals. In the previous two, we’ve only conceded 45 in each - making us one of the best defences in the league on both occasions.

Attacking wise, we have improved too. Goals scored in his first season - a meagre 45. Second season that figure crept up to 57 and last term we bagged 70.

The squad has continued to improve too.

Maher started life with Josh Coulson, James Dunne, Nathan Ferguson, Hamzad Kargbo, Terrell Egbri, Tom Clifford, Rhys Murphy.

We axed these and moved forward with the likes of Ollie Kensdale, Louis Lomas, Dan Mooney, Cav Miley, Harry Cardwell, Callum Powell, Noor Husin, Gus Scott Morris.

We have lost the majority of those and strengthened in the main: Adam Crowther, George Moncur, Josh Walker, Macauley Bonne, James Morton, KAF. We are/were short of players to begin with, without losing Miley, Cardwell & Kensdale at the same time.

I’ll reiterate, we are steadily improving year-on-year. It’s been a very mixed start to this season, sure. It’s frustrating & disheartening to lose to teams like Sutton and Fylde, but we are just 9 games in. We went a third of the season unbeaten last year. Nobody wanted Maher out then… apart from those who’d held some weird grudge against him since his playing days.

I hear you. The problem exists that personally I don't see him taking it any further. Same tactics, same issues. It's nothing to do with 10 games only of feeling.

 

[rigsby]

Which to me & possibly many others, is so frustrating?. For us to break with pace & purpose, our game plan & tactics ( & possibly some players ) would have to change big time?.

First half injury time on Saturday, Bridge had an extra and needless touch instead of crossing with out fuss. They break and after our disastrous mix up they score.

Injury time last night, Bridge in the same area has an extra and needless touch instead of crossing without fuss. They break and score the winner.

I'm not laming JB for either goal because we were poor defending the break. My point is and as you say to most of our frustration, delaying a delivery is as bad as passing straight to the oppo. Our obsession with possession ends up with several extra passes why they organise. Then a soft side foot delivery from Jack that is comfortably read and easily cleared 9 out 0f 10 times. That type of cross never wins a corner, an OG or a deflection to another player. The success of the move has been limited to the 'perfect' pass and then the player would have to put the pace into any shot. Many of the best strikers in football have made career of one touch goals from less than 8yds. Toe, shin, knee....They all count

I read on here about lack of service for forwards. Which of course is true . But Its not 30yd defence splitting balls that win you titles. Its the the two crosses that Sutton did for their 2nd and 3rd goals

 

[WestyReturns]

I h

I hear you. The problem exists that personally I don't see him taking it any further. Same tactics, same issues. It's nothing to do with 10 games only of feeling.

Yep. Tactics are not suitable for players signed and bizarrely moved players who have been excellent in certain positions to other positions undoing all his good work of fitting them into a shape that wasn't natural to some two years ago. Feels like a 12 year old on football manager trying things out to see if it works and when it doesn't tries it again and again in the hope it will. Most games I can tell how we are going to play when I see the formation and personnel. I bet most people could see within 15 mins that the ball was not going to be held up by Bonne. It feels like really obvious stuff.....square pegs in round holes as they say.

Know he didn't come on last night but for example....who on here would ever bring on Wood and play him as a striker?

Losing confidence in the decision making fast!

 

[GBJ]

I h

I hear you. The problem exists that personally I don't see him taking it any further. Same tactics, same issues. It's nothing to do with 10 games only of feeling.

Can you elaborate why? We’ve played the same system and style for the past two seasons & we’ve continued to improve. We’re not even a quarter of the way into the new season, so it’s impossible to know if that upward trajectory will continue or not this season.

You may be right, this might be as far as Kev can take us. However, I think he’s shown he’s capable of A) putting together a good squad & B) getting the most out of them. So far this season that hasn’t happened. Yet.

My opinion might change in due course, but for now I believe we have the right personnel at the helm.