Jedi Shrimper
formerly Drastic™
Exactly. When we're low on confidence the ball goes long, when we're confident we play better football and the wins come.
The Crawley game shattered the players confidence simple as.
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Hoof Ball
- Thread starter sufc_dave
- Start date
Exactly. When we're low on confidence the ball goes long, when we're confident we play better football and the wins come.
The Crawley game shattered the players confidence simple as.
WESTY_SUFC
Guest
We certainly didnt play this way when we went through our good spell. We started off last season playing a very very direct style of play which got us to 20th then we changed it and improved drastically. It seems Sturrock wants to give it another go this season. We've all seen enough already its not working.
ooh-andy-ansah
Director
Absolute rubbish, it was one game and has it escaped your attention that Sturrock has admitted he got the tactics wrong on Saturday ?
Lots of agendas being played out here.
We haven't been a passing team for years, not since we were relegated from the Championship despite outpassing most teams. Tilly ******* the best part of a million pounds up against the wall on a series of big forwards - Paynter, Harrold, Foran, Revell - none of whom were accepted here and who all, with the exception of Foran, went on to success elsewhere. They weren't signed for their skills on the ground. The most route one we've been was actually when we were lumping it over the top for Theo Robinson to chase. And some of the most depressing years were when we were passing it (the relegation from the Championship, the Alvin Martin years etc).
Then look at our midfield - our last central midfielder who could pass it was Kevin Maher, who got marginalised in 2007. Since then we've had a series of central midfielders who couldn't, as Wiggy memorably said of Nicky Bailey, pass water. If Bailey couldn't pass what about JFC, Alan McCormack etc. What few players who could pass the ball, they were all dumped out wide - Mark Gower who playing centrally got Swansea to the Premier$hite; Franck Moussa now at Championship Leicester; and last season under Sturrock, Josh Simpson.
Playing Lee Sawyer isn't going to make us a passing team, Sawyer moves the ball about by running with it, not passing it. Sure, he opens up angles, but he isn't going to get us ticking like Kevin Maher did. What we actually need to do is establish a platform higher up the pitch to start playing from. That's what we did under Tilly last time we were in this division with pressing in the final third to win us the ball high up, or using Wayne Gray's athleticism to make the ball stick up top when we won it deep.
If we can establish that platform high up, this current team will start playing "better" football. The problem isn't so much Gilbert or Prosser hoofing it, but that we're failing to stop their hoofs being returned back. Picking Sawyer alone isn't going to solve it because we'd need to find a way of getting him the ball in an attacking position. If the ball sticks up front, we then have that platform to attack and "play football" from. Currently, Dickinson is doing enough to prevent the opposition cleanly winning the phase one ball but then we have no-one following up the phase two ball because Harris is 74 years old and our three central midfielders are all holding midfielders and don't get ahead of the ball, so that's when the ball comes straight back.
We haven't been a passing team for years, not since we were relegated from the Championship despite outpassing most teams. Tilly ******* the best part of a million pounds up against the wall on a series of big forwards - Paynter, Harrold, Foran, Revell - none of whom were accepted here and who all, with the exception of Foran, went on to success elsewhere. They weren't signed for their skills on the ground. The most route one we've been was actually when we were lumping it over the top for Theo Robinson to chase. And some of the most depressing years were when we were passing it (the relegation from the Championship, the Alvin Martin years etc).
Then look at our midfield - our last central midfielder who could pass it was Kevin Maher, who got marginalised in 2007. Since then we've had a series of central midfielders who couldn't, as Wiggy memorably said of Nicky Bailey, pass water. If Bailey couldn't pass what about JFC, Alan McCormack etc. What few players who could pass the ball, they were all dumped out wide - Mark Gower who playing centrally got Swansea to the Premier$hite; Franck Moussa now at Championship Leicester; and last season under Sturrock, Josh Simpson.
Playing Lee Sawyer isn't going to make us a passing team, Sawyer moves the ball about by running with it, not passing it. Sure, he opens up angles, but he isn't going to get us ticking like Kevin Maher did. What we actually need to do is establish a platform higher up the pitch to start playing from. That's what we did under Tilly last time we were in this division with pressing in the final third to win us the ball high up, or using Wayne Gray's athleticism to make the ball stick up top when we won it deep.
If we can establish that platform high up, this current team will start playing "better" football. The problem isn't so much Gilbert or Prosser hoofing it, but that we're failing to stop their hoofs being returned back. Picking Sawyer alone isn't going to solve it because we'd need to find a way of getting him the ball in an attacking position. If the ball sticks up front, we then have that platform to attack and "play football" from. Currently, Dickinson is doing enough to prevent the opposition cleanly winning the phase one ball but then we have no-one following up the phase two ball because Harris is 74 years old and our three central midfielders are all holding midfielders and don't get ahead of the ball, so that's when the ball comes straight back.
Bluepen
My own honest opinion
it didnt seem like we played Hoofball to start but fortunately went 1-0 up after 2mins then for 20-25 mins could have no should have scored 2-3 goals because we overpowered them in midfield but then we run out of ideas and AS got back in the game and made it difficult we did not change our system but we needed to then........ i did a post after that game and made a comment that we would find Crawley a different matter playing long ball stuff even tho we played away from home .......but lets be honest when we are at home surely we should be letting teams worry about us and stamp our own authority on the game but it feels like if they can stop Hall playing his game and get in between him and Sean it cancels us out and we become to direct ........just my opinion tho
Bromley Blue
The artist formerly known as the_saafender
Longest sentence ever?
Bluepen
My own honest opinion
Sorry did not realise this was a grammar school:smile:
Jedi Shrimper
formerly Drastic™
Yes he changed the tactics and got it wrong, after a bad defeat that knocked the players confidence. Did the players look confident on saturday then?
Sorry but beyond that I'm not going to get bite, try baiting another of your fellow supporters.
ooh-andy-ansah
Director
The lack of confidence as you see it in my opinion is more a lack of belief in the system they are being asked to play.
You can't be serious that one defeat against Crawley turned them all into nervous wrecks ?
As for baiting, grow up, it's all about opinions that's all.
Jedi Shrimper
formerly Drastic™
Yep it is all about opinions, and I'm happy to debate differing opinions (whether they agree with me or not) with anyone who can manage to not call mine rubbish in the process.
Now back to the case in point.
I think it is mostly a matter of confidence at the moment, it could be a lack of confidence in the system as you say but I'm not sure about that. Afterall we played the same system last season and did ok over the season as a whole, obviously we've brought some new guys in and maybe they're not used to it.
The point I was trying to make originally was about our good run last season. Did the better football follow improved results or did results improve when the football improved? For me when we lack confidence under PS there is a tendancy to hit it long.
Take this statement - Southend are playing longball badly.
The part that worries me most is the badly part. Sure we'd all love to be playing nice football on the deck, but it's wins that are most important.
Super Kevin Maher
Newbie⭐
I agree with Beefy. We win games, people get behind the team. We have played some good football - and some poor. Sturrock is very open and honest in his reflections and instead of jumping on the sack Sturrock brigade , after a mixed start, we should get behind the team.
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