ElstreeBlue
Coach
Yesterday's performance was dire. I've not been able to make some of the much better games recently so if anyone should be complaining about how rubbish we must be it would be me.
What I couldn't understand from some of the fans yesterday and having just seen some of the posts on here is some of the strength of feeling directed at T&B. They can't get everything right all the time and we'd all have our own feelings about where yesterday went wrong. Many of our views probably differ. It might simply be one of those bad days at the office. They happen. We've all seen them before. Anyone remember an awful 0-2 home defeat against Col U on Boxing Day about 20 years ago that was totally unexpected? Or a dire 0-3 home reverse against Oxford in the second tier when we'd exceeded all expectations in that season up until then (and afterwards)? These odd bad games happen when virtually the whole team inexplicably seems not to have turned up.
Don't T&B deserve a bit of slack? Only one game ago, people on here were drooling about how T&B keep doing it again and again - building a team with limited resources, coping with a small squad, bringing in loan players with no money available and surpassing expectations. Given everything else that's gone on and how the players and management must be feeling with everything behind the scenes at the club recently, how incredible it is that, bar yesterday, in every game they keep playing with great team spirit.
I thought there were a few clear things wrong yesterday. The front two need to play as a partnership, but O'Donovan and Barney had no understanding and played nowhere near each other. There was little energy from midfield to support them. O' Donovan didn't look sharp enough yet. MacCormack kept breaking up every attack - ours! Friend needs to play a lot better to justify leaving out Herd. Barrett played more like some of Clarke's awful old performances. We lacked a spark - someone like Freedman at the end to take control. Maybe this is enforced due to T&B having to work with such an inexperienced squad? Sankofa DID roar forward down the wing but inexplicably his cross always hit the defending full-back. Didn't see anything from Friend helping forward on the other side. We played a totally patched up team at the back. T&B have to keep juggling because of all the problems - all these ins and outs can't be good. The squad never has much chance to gel with all this enforced chopping and changing. Once again, T&B's hands have been tied but have done a better-than-expected job so far this season.
Not saying T&B never make mistakes and IMHO they made some yesterday. I have my own opinions on what they got wrong. But what they did may be better than what I'd have done. I'd say they're more likely to get things right than me and probably everyone on this board. It's easy to be the manager when things go wrong and we all have our own solutions, and we're not the ones being judged by our decisions. They've done an incredible job at the club but won't get it right every time. Given that we should be fighting a relegation battle, don't they deserve a bit more than one poor performance before they're slagged off?!
Take a few different people around me yesterday. "Tilson never uses substitutes". Well there are two theories on this. One is to change it up and gamble as many seem to want. The other is that things can get more disjointed by using subs. Yesterday, Tilly did actually make a very early (for Tilly) double substitution (which shows just how bad it was), and if anything we created less and looked worse after that, so using subs isn't always the best strategy.
And the people who were calling vociferously for Tilly to make substituations then criticised him when he did do something. Making a substitution can involve any number of possibilities about who comes on and who comes off and at what time - and unless Tilly does exactly what we want at exactly when we want (and bearing in mind we all have different opinions), there will always be plenty of people who will criticise for "too late" or "wrong choice".
"Look at Tilson, just standing there doing nothing." This is ridiculous. Just because he's not ranting and raving doesn't mean he's doing nothing! And what does that achieve? Who's done better - Martin Allen or Steve Tilson? Tilly may not be shouting but that doesn't mean he's not thinking about what to do. Actually, I think Tilly's best quality is being incredibly level-headed. Far more than many of our fans. That's why he's so brilliant at his job and his results prove that. Things are never as bad as they may seem when we're doing badly or never as good when we're doing well.
I think Brush's reaction on BBC Essex was just right. Said it wasn't good. We didn't play as we have recently or how we should. Didn't make ourselves a hard team to play against. Didn't get in the opposition's faces enough. Lack of spark generally. Too many were off their game today, which makes all the difference - need at least 8/9 players each game to have par or above par performances. The players need to go away and have a hard look at themselves. He said, let's hope for a response on Tuesday. Just like Tilly, Brush also sounded pretty level-headed. He made no excuses for a poor performance but gave a measured response.
Thank Goodness T&B are managing our team. Yes, they make mistakes and they're not perfect. But they'll get it right more times than the rest of us. Their record for us over a sustained period is incredible. All I ask is we give them a bit of slack, especially as they have AGAIN exceeded expectations. Even if we have three of four bad games in a row or even have a relegation dogfight this season, I trust them more than anyone to achieve the best that can be expected in the circumstances for our club.
What I couldn't understand from some of the fans yesterday and having just seen some of the posts on here is some of the strength of feeling directed at T&B. They can't get everything right all the time and we'd all have our own feelings about where yesterday went wrong. Many of our views probably differ. It might simply be one of those bad days at the office. They happen. We've all seen them before. Anyone remember an awful 0-2 home defeat against Col U on Boxing Day about 20 years ago that was totally unexpected? Or a dire 0-3 home reverse against Oxford in the second tier when we'd exceeded all expectations in that season up until then (and afterwards)? These odd bad games happen when virtually the whole team inexplicably seems not to have turned up.
Don't T&B deserve a bit of slack? Only one game ago, people on here were drooling about how T&B keep doing it again and again - building a team with limited resources, coping with a small squad, bringing in loan players with no money available and surpassing expectations. Given everything else that's gone on and how the players and management must be feeling with everything behind the scenes at the club recently, how incredible it is that, bar yesterday, in every game they keep playing with great team spirit.
I thought there were a few clear things wrong yesterday. The front two need to play as a partnership, but O'Donovan and Barney had no understanding and played nowhere near each other. There was little energy from midfield to support them. O' Donovan didn't look sharp enough yet. MacCormack kept breaking up every attack - ours! Friend needs to play a lot better to justify leaving out Herd. Barrett played more like some of Clarke's awful old performances. We lacked a spark - someone like Freedman at the end to take control. Maybe this is enforced due to T&B having to work with such an inexperienced squad? Sankofa DID roar forward down the wing but inexplicably his cross always hit the defending full-back. Didn't see anything from Friend helping forward on the other side. We played a totally patched up team at the back. T&B have to keep juggling because of all the problems - all these ins and outs can't be good. The squad never has much chance to gel with all this enforced chopping and changing. Once again, T&B's hands have been tied but have done a better-than-expected job so far this season.
Not saying T&B never make mistakes and IMHO they made some yesterday. I have my own opinions on what they got wrong. But what they did may be better than what I'd have done. I'd say they're more likely to get things right than me and probably everyone on this board. It's easy to be the manager when things go wrong and we all have our own solutions, and we're not the ones being judged by our decisions. They've done an incredible job at the club but won't get it right every time. Given that we should be fighting a relegation battle, don't they deserve a bit more than one poor performance before they're slagged off?!
Take a few different people around me yesterday. "Tilson never uses substitutes". Well there are two theories on this. One is to change it up and gamble as many seem to want. The other is that things can get more disjointed by using subs. Yesterday, Tilly did actually make a very early (for Tilly) double substitution (which shows just how bad it was), and if anything we created less and looked worse after that, so using subs isn't always the best strategy.
And the people who were calling vociferously for Tilly to make substituations then criticised him when he did do something. Making a substitution can involve any number of possibilities about who comes on and who comes off and at what time - and unless Tilly does exactly what we want at exactly when we want (and bearing in mind we all have different opinions), there will always be plenty of people who will criticise for "too late" or "wrong choice".
"Look at Tilson, just standing there doing nothing." This is ridiculous. Just because he's not ranting and raving doesn't mean he's doing nothing! And what does that achieve? Who's done better - Martin Allen or Steve Tilson? Tilly may not be shouting but that doesn't mean he's not thinking about what to do. Actually, I think Tilly's best quality is being incredibly level-headed. Far more than many of our fans. That's why he's so brilliant at his job and his results prove that. Things are never as bad as they may seem when we're doing badly or never as good when we're doing well.
I think Brush's reaction on BBC Essex was just right. Said it wasn't good. We didn't play as we have recently or how we should. Didn't make ourselves a hard team to play against. Didn't get in the opposition's faces enough. Lack of spark generally. Too many were off their game today, which makes all the difference - need at least 8/9 players each game to have par or above par performances. The players need to go away and have a hard look at themselves. He said, let's hope for a response on Tuesday. Just like Tilly, Brush also sounded pretty level-headed. He made no excuses for a poor performance but gave a measured response.
Thank Goodness T&B are managing our team. Yes, they make mistakes and they're not perfect. But they'll get it right more times than the rest of us. Their record for us over a sustained period is incredible. All I ask is we give them a bit of slack, especially as they have AGAIN exceeded expectations. Even if we have three of four bad games in a row or even have a relegation dogfight this season, I trust them more than anyone to achieve the best that can be expected in the circumstances for our club.
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