Once and for all - Harrold

[Mr. Benedict]

Did he win it?

Probably not...! ;)

 

[Streaky]

He's pulls defenders all over the place creating space, but I think he needs to be a bit more aggresive when the ball is crossed into the box and take a few more chances.

Spot on, it would do wonders for confidence if he scored a few - maybe of his @rse or elbow - then we might see a meaner Harold

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Did he win it?

The thing is that he could "win" the header and flick it on and either nobody has made a run or his flick-on could go to a defender. "Winning" the header in those scenarios doesn't actually put you in a better position. More often you are better off jumping with the defender with the intention of putting the defender off. The defender has to concentrate on winning the ball and not on putting distance on the header. The result is the defender wins the header, but more often than not your team wins the ball. The question should therefore be whether Southend won the ball, not whether Harrold won the header.

Incidentally this poll would be a lot more interesting if it actually posed a question to vote on.

 

[BoyWonder2]

Everyone on here knows I'm a fan of Matty Harrold, and I think the people that continually knock him, don't see what he brings to the team, and doesn't appreciate the roll a target man plays in a side.

Clarke has looked far more comfortable up front with Harrold alongside him. Clarke himself said that he isn't a target man, he likes to be involved in the build up as well as scoring goals, playing someone like MacDonald or Hooper alongside him makes Clarke a target man. Whereas, Harrold will do that job without fuss. Foran, maybe, could also do this job.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

so its the supporters fault that harrold hasn't scored a competitive goal for a year then?

Matt Harrold has scored twice this season. If you are a supporter surely you'd know that?

 

[Interpol Shrimper]

Foran, maybe, could also do this job.

If we were playing in an under-11s league, maybe.

Oooooh, Mrs, nooooo, oooooh don't start! Not fair............

 

[Benji91]

The thing is that he could "win" the header and flick it on and either nobody has made a run or his flick-on could go to a defender. "Winning" the header in those scenarios doesn't actually put you in a better position. More often you are better off jumping with the defender with the intention of putting the defender off. The defender has to concentrate on winning the ball and not on putting distance on the header. The result is the defender wins the header, but more often than not your team wins the ball. The question should therefore be whether Southend won the ball, not whether Harrold won the header.

Incidentally this poll would be a lot more interesting if it actually posed a question to vote on.

I see your point - in the back of my mind whilst posing the question i did have the image of the numerous times Matt Harrold jumps a second too early and never gets near the ball, and where the defender appears to "win" a reasonably comfortable header which eases pressure on the defence and keeps the ball away from their goal.
If he can make a career in distracting defenders and not ever winning a header then fair play to the guy - i missed a trick when i was younger!

So, to keep things fair, Rayleigh Boy, Did Southend retain possesion when Harrold challenged for the ball in the picture on the official site? No guessing either, i want a factually correct answer.

 

[wiggy]

He is cack and we should sell him and Foran in the jan transfer window and buy a decent targetman and a pacy striker.

Spot on, the bloke is the most ineffective striker since Dan Webb now currently non league , exactly where Harrold should be. He scored pre season against park players which everyone got carried away with as though he'd had an ability transplant and look what the youth/reserves done to Bowers the other night. In the end you find your class and at the moment somehow Harrold is in a league way above his!

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Spot on, the bloke is the most ineffective striker since Dan Webb now currently non league , exactly where Harrold should be. He scored pre season against park players which everyone got carried away with as though he'd had an ability transplant and look what the youth/reserves done to Bowers the other night. In the end you find your class and at the moment somehow Harrold is in a league way above his!

Looks like darryl has found his level as well Wiggy - reserve team football. Didn't Collis do well on saturday?

 

[ldnfatso]

Far beit for me to slag one of our own players off ;) so i am staying out of this! Interesting voting though!!

 

[Beefy]

I am conducting a poll to see exactly what people really think of Harrold and I am also going to make it annonymous so that voting is fair.

Seems that he draws a bit of a divide which is confusing to me as I really cant see what he is bringing to the team because it certainly isnt goals!
I accept that at the end of the day he is human and doesnt deserve to be abused by the people that are supposed to be his fans....however, I am not being nasty I am just expressing my opinion that he is in fact not actually that good!

Pre-season people were raving about him becuase he knocked a few past some utter cack teams and said "yep 20 goals for Harrold this season". Never once had me fooled and quite rightly so! The stats dont lie, a year today since his last league goal, I think that says enough!

Like I said this is not a hate campaign and for gods sake it isnt coz he is lanky and ginger but lets face it, it doesnt really help things :D
I just want to know what the opinion is once and for all.

Its a simple YES, NO to Harrold. No maybe's or in the future, I am talking about here and now, is he good enough?

For f**ks sake, why do you constantly feel the need to remind us how little you rate Harrold?! We know, we get it. Plenty of people have explained plenty of times what he brings to the team. You say this is once and for all but I bet that it isn't.

For what it's worth, Matt Harrold is not a brilliant footballer who dazzles everyone with his sublime skills and 20 goals a season. But he's not in the side to fulfill that role. When he plays he is asked to make a nuisence of himself, to put himself around, to win free kicks, to push the opponents defensive line back and to create space for his strike partner and his midfield runners to play in. All of which he does adequately. If he can then score eight or nine goals a season along the way then brilliant but either way as long as the team are scoring goals then he is doing his job.

If we can get someone in who is better than him and can play that role then fine, but right now he's probably the best we've got. He hasn't let us down once when he's been played this season and simply does not deserve the abuse and ridicule that he's subjected to.

 

[MrB]

Opinion is officially divided looking at that vote!

I think it shows that Harrold has certainly made progress this season as if the poll had been taken in May there would probably be a much different result.

 

[Southend_Lady]

For f**ks sake, why do you constantly feel the need to remind us how little you rate Harrold?! We know, we get it. Plenty of people have explained plenty of times what he brings to the team. You say this is once and for all but I bet that it isn't.

For what it's worth, Matt Harrold is not a brilliant footballer who dazzles everyone with his sublime skills and 20 goals a season. But he's not in the side to fulfill that role. When he plays he is asked to make a nuisence of himself, to put himself around, to win free kicks, to push the opponents defensive line back and to create space for his strike partner and his midfield runners to play in. All of which he does adequately. If he can then score eight or nine goals a season along the way then brilliant but either way as long as the team are scoring goals then he is doing his job.

If we can get someone in who is better than him and can play that role then fine, but right now he's probably the best we've got. He hasn't let us down once when he's been played this season and simply does not deserve the abuse and ridicule that he's subjected to.

Jeez calm down. I just wanted to put a poll up to see a simple yes or no answer of what people actually think. As I mentioned on my post, it wasnt a hate campaign or anything like that, I am not being nasty or rude. I am entitled to my opinion on him. I think that he is pants where as other people think that he brings something good to the team. Well fair enough, I wont slate people for having their opinions.

All I am saying is that he is a striker and he hasnt scored a league goal for a year, that stat doesnt need back up.

 

[Sean 2]

I am conducting a poll to see exactly what people really think of Harrold and I am also going to make it annonymous so that voting is fair.

Seems that he draws a bit of a divide which is confusing to me as I really cant see what he is bringing to the team because it certainly isnt goals!
I accept that at the end of the day he is human and doesnt deserve to be abused by the people that are supposed to be his fans....however, I am not being nasty I am just expressing my opinion that he is in fact not actually that good!

Pre-season people were raving about him becuase he knocked a few past some utter cack teams and said "yep 20 goals for Harrold this season". Never once had me fooled and quite rightly so! The stats dont lie, a year today since his last league goal, I think that says enough!

Like I said this is not a hate campaign and for gods sake it isnt coz he is lanky and ginger but lets face it, it doesnt really help things :D
I just want to know what the opinion is once and for all.

Its a simple YES, NO to Harrold. No maybe's or in the future, I am talking about here and now, is he good enough?

No-one said Matty would score 20 goals this season,just that many thought there was an improvement in the kid's play - and there was and it was encouraging to see.
I take it Southend Lady is not lanky and ginger and while poking fun at this attribute of Matty she would do well to remember a certain P Beardsley,a real male minger but one of the best players of the English game.
Having opinions on players is part and parcel of coming on here but what is the point of mocking one of our players? A striker at that ! Harrold,like Clarke,like Hooper,like Foran,like,like Paynter and like Michael friggin Owen thrive on having that confidence to being on top of their game.
I'm sure Harrold will be chuffed to know what people say about him,his own club's supporters.If he didn't try during a game,fair enough.

Lest we forget that penalty that Matty won for us the other week,y'know the one where Leon snatched the ball off him.We wouldn't be talking about Harrold not scoring for a year if it weren't for his unselfishness.

So,let's take a look at his game.Which BTW Southend Lady does not.

Ok,as some have said already,he works very hard for the team.Comes home for corners against,drops into midfield to win the ball and because he is so tall he gets shoved,tugged and kicked more so than anyone i bet.
When you play a ball to strikers who are marked tightly then that striker will have his back to goal in order to recieve that pass.Turn slightly and more than often the defender will get a toe to it,so you have to hold them off and not show the ball.If defender can't see it,he won't try and tackle fact.Which Matty holds the ball up very well,especially after the experience of last season,playing against a much higher class of defender.

Who has Matty been paired with upfront? Mmm,a very disjointed Eastwood who looked half the player of the previous season who never worked hard enough.Well Matty,that must've been fun playing alongside him!
Leon Clarke, who by his own admission doesn't like being the "target man" which in my eyes is the reason he got loaned out.
"Target man" my arsh,no such thing.Both strikers should look to recieving the ball (eg like Rooney and Tevez) and not squandering possession easily.

Matty has had a fantastic experience in the Chumpionship and has been under the wing of Tilly and Brush for a little while and i believe our best pairing in time will be Harrold and Macdonald, i don't think Clarke has the mentality to be a success and his scoring run will come to an end.

So there you go Southend Lady,while you mock Matty Harrold i put it to you that you know everything about hair colour and nothing about football!!!!!

 

[Southend_Lady]

No-one said Matty would score 20 goals this season,just that many thought there was an improvement in the kid's play - and there was and it was encouraging to see.
I take it Southend Lady is not lanky and ginger and while poking fun at this attribute of Matty she would do well to remember a certain P Beardsley,a real male minger but one of the best players of the English game.
Having opinions on players is part and parcel of coming on here but what is the point of mocking one of our players? A striker at that ! Harrold,like Clarke,like Hooper,like Foran,like,like Paynter and like Michael friggin Owen thrive on having that confidence to being on top of their game.
I'm sure Harrold will be chuffed to know what people say about him,his own club's supporters.If he didn't try during a game,fair enough.

Lest we forget that penalty that Matty won for us the other week,y'know the one where Leon snatched the ball off him.We wouldn't be talking about Harrold not scoring for a year if it weren't for his unselfishness.

So,let's take a look at his game.Which BTW Southend Lady does not.

Ok,as some have said already,he works very hard for the team.Comes home for corners against,drops into midfield to win the ball and because he is so tall he gets shoved,tugged and kicked more so than anyone i bet.
When you play a ball to strikers who are marked tightly then that striker will have his back to goal in order to recieve that pass.Turn slightly and more than often the defender will get a toe to it,so you have to hold them off and not show the ball.If defender can't see it,he won't try and tackle fact.Which Matty holds the ball up very well,especially after the experience of last season,playing against a much higher class of defender.

Who has Matty been paired with upfront? Mmm,a very disjointed Eastwood who looked half the player of the previous season who never worked hard enough.Well Matty,that must've been fun playing alongside him!
Leon Clarke, who by his own admission doesn't like being the "target man" which in my eyes is the reason he got loaned out.
"Target man" my arsh,no such thing.Both strikers should look to recieving the ball (eg like Rooney and Tevez) and not squandering possession easily.

Matty has had a fantastic experience in the Chumpionship and has been under the wing of Tilly and Brush for a little while and i believe our best pairing in time will be Harrold and Macdonald, i don't think Clarke has the mentality to be a success and his scoring run will come to an end.

So there you go Southend Lady,while you mock Matty Harrold i put it to you that you know everything about hair colour and nothing about football!!!!!

FYI that comment about his hair was a joke for gods sake. What is wrong with some of the people on this board they do my ****ing head in. I have made a joke in my post but apart from that I havent been nasty or abusive towards him but I have just put my opinion across. It annoys the **** out of me how some people on here think they know everything and try to force their view on others.

Ok fair points made he brings attributes to the team, but personally I dont think that he has enough right now. But like others say we dont have anyone else right now so what can we do??

I just want to add aswell that I am fed up with people making sneaky comments about me being female. I dont give two ****s - I know just as much about football as the next bloke on here. Just because I dont love Matt Harrold, does not mean that I dont know anything about football.

 

[Phippsy]

Had to put no as he just isnt good enough even at this level, at the end of the day a striker gets the plaudits for scoring goals and thats something Matt has never done, no matter how well he seems to compliment Leon, that in itself doesnt warrant a starting place IMO.

 

[Sean 2]

Had to put no as he just isnt good enough even at this level, at the end of the day a striker gets the plaudits for scoring goals and thats something Matt has never done, no matter how well he seems to compliment Leon, that in itself doesnt warrant a starting place IMO.

And as you go up a level,you'll find that not even scoring goals is enough.
Take a look at that starlet Eastwood at Wolves right now.
It IS about the all-round game and competing.

 

[Sean 2]

FYI that comment about his hair was a joke for gods sake. What is wrong with some of the people on this board they do my ****ing head in. I have made a joke in my post but apart from that I havent been nasty or abusive towards him but I have just put my opinion across. It annoys the **** out of me how some people on here think they know everything and try to force their view on others.

Ok fair points made he brings attributes to the team, but personally I dont think that he has enough right now. But like others say we dont have anyone else right now so what can we do??

I just want to add aswell that I am fed up with people making sneaky comments about me being female. I dont give two ****s - I know just as much about football as the next bloke on here. Just because I dont love Matt Harrold, does not mean that I dont know anything about football.

What else can we do? Well how about supporting a player,our player thru thick and thin in the hope he does turn out good.Harrold is getting there,no doubt about it.
Support him,let him gain confidence and lets see what more we get out of the lad.He has gone very close to scoring recently but have you noticed our midfielders not shooting on the edge of the box recenly since Harrold's been out of the team?

We have allegedly the best midfield in the league.Lets get Harrold back in and play to our strengths,we need that midfield further up the pitch and Harrold is the man along with Clarke to do that because together they are a right ole handfull.

 

[mattytheshrimper]

having thought about it i havn't noticed our midfeilder shooting from outside the box. good point.

 

[Benji91]

And as you go up a level,you'll find that not even scoring goals is enough.
Take a look at that starlet Eastwood at Wolves right now.
It IS about the all-round game and competing.

As has been said its all about different opinions. Ive played most of my football as a forward. I know im looked upon from the team to score the goals, as thats why im there. Now personally i can get through a couple of games without scoring if i know i can contribute by setting up a few here or there - thereby justifying my role as a forward/attacker. If its just a case of chasing around all game or putting some of the other players off you could put any jub up there to do it (bitlike when we stuck Keith Dublin up front).

I would never boo one of our players, and im happy to give Harrold all the encouragement i can while im watching (as i know there are only the few people who sit around me who can hear the big sigh i let out when i see him start / come on as a sub) but for me, i think the only reason he is playing upfront is because of his height - all the positive feedback he has received i would expect to read about a midfielder, works hard, chases down, puts off defenders etc - if this guy was 5 inches shorter he wouldnt even get a lookin upfront.