whitey1980

I might be in a minority of one, but I hope we give him pelters on Saturday. Very much as sly says above (and I don't really know why) I have a feeling he is potentially vulnerable if we can put him under some real pressure from the stands. He strikes me as a decent young man who won't want people to think the worst of him (hence the loan back arrangement) as jumping ship. A bit like sledging in cricket - it either inspires or pressurises - I hope we're not too friendly because I think we will have missed a trick. After the game, show our appreciation for his efforts this season, not before IMHO.

Sounds like a good number of our away games against good opposition Slashton - Walsall, Brentford, Rotherham and Preston to name but a few........ Don't really care tonight though as its amazing what a last minute leveller will do, ha ha!!!

Thats an outstanding point, big effort backing up a good result at the weekend. Hope the lads have an enjoyable journey home - they've earned it!!

I strongly agree with astottie above. I like Winchester as a package (and this is clearly in the clubs decision making process), so do a large number of scouts who come to watch us play. However I am surprised so many people clearly rate his vision. He has the technical ability to 'ping' a ball from side to side of the pitch but I feel his speed of decision making is a major issue. Precisely the reason he needs to feint and create space is because often he has invited pressure in an area of the pitch where it is at a premium due to the time he requires on the ball. Think the (at least) 3 vs 1 break that he ran straight into a defender at Brentford or the goal we conceded (against who last season it escapes me) where he held onto the ball - ran it 40 yards back into his own final third before being tackled leading to a goal. I don't say that to slate a talented young footballer, simply to query his vision as a strength of his game. He has always looked better as a wide player to me where he has decisions dictated to him rather than giving him the responsibility of creating those opportunities centrally. As a full back or wide player he could be a real outlet in a good footballing side - much more so than a Connor Brown for instance. That said I suspect if he had half of Brown's desire to play and improve he might be there already....

For what little its worth in terms of raw materials I actually agree Lee. I think the question is whether it is the right time for him to be playing now. My strong suspicion would be that the input from more experienced members of his back 4 is what has prompted the change from LJ. Unfortunately despite the real progress he has made and potential he has - I think his back 4 have struggled at times due to his learning curve. Just an opinion of course.....

I agree Bristol, and think that would be a decent template for LJ to work from for next season. I also agree about Oxley parrying the ball too centrally. He has to remove the ball from the danger area and doesn't on occasion. The point made by yarddog about Lockwood's communication is also a good one that has been commented on in a number of threads. In a game like yesterday he was very effective, I do worry about his limited distribution against the better sides however as I think we have really struggled to retain possession of late which has negatively affected the whole shape of the team.

Am far from an expert - but have played at a reasonable level of non-league football in goal - so here's my two pence worth... Oxley has improved from the start of the season and is an excellent shot stopper. However like most goalkeepers he is more comfortable diving to one side than the other - in his case his right. Interestingly both his superb recent penalty saves have come that side - poor research by the takers possibly? His handling is also better on this side - the fumble against Rotherham came (I think from memory? ) on his weaker side as he doesn't shift his weight as well moving to his left. That said, all goalkeepers at present are struggling with the movement of current footballs - and Oxley as with many current keepers prefers to parry (and punch) for this reason. Sometimes I do think this affects his positioning as he subtly shifts too far too the left - precisely because he is more comfortable diving to his right. Think the Baxter free kick (possibly) or some of the recent strikes from distance that have beaten him to his right hand side. He must improve his communication - which is very difficult for a young gk - I felt the same watching the highly rated young lad at Sheffield United (Long) who barely spoke to his back 4. It is interesting that their improvement has come with a more experienced gk - not that I have seen enough of them to comment. Our defenders are clearly unsure when dealing with balls into the box due to the lack of information Oxley gives. I think about the late winner at Brentford where Grounds was screaming at him on the floor in frustration. That speaks more loudly to me than LJ's subsequent defence. The irony about his reluctance to leave his line is that his technique when attacking the high ball is pretty good as he often takes it at the highest point when coming into traffic and rarely fumbles. Unfortunately for his defence - he just hasn't done it enough - and this in turn had led to an uneasy relationship at times. I sometimes feel his distribution is a little unfairly criticised, but he certainly could release it quicker at times. His kicking technique is solid though and as a big plus for his defenders he can release the ball from both feet which gives them a greater margin for error. He isn't a footballer though - as his warm up shows and he is never completely comfortable with the ball at his feet. Rachubka is a typical veteran with a reasonable all round game but not the athleticism of a younger gk. His agility is still ok as he showed getting down to his left in the second half yesterday but he will not make saves with the range of Oxley. He is also not particularly tall which may explain a reluctance to come for contested balls - that said I had a lot of sympathy with him yesterday as swirling conditions are a nightmare for a gk. One area I did notice yesterday was his use of the drop kick which enabled JCH to contest more easily due to its flatter trajectory. Finally he has experience and talks to his back 4. He may not be perfect, but I think he is better suited to our back 4 at present - and their views may have been central to LJ's decision.

Yeah, good point about Worrall. Would imagine that will be a decision out of LJ's hands and Dayton would keep the shape of the team as it was on Saturday. I would start JCH and see how long he lasts as we desperately need the ability to hold the ball centrally to bring Harkins, DP and either DW or JD into the game. I just hope he resists the temptation to move Philly wide right as he provides the ability to support JCH from an advanced midfield position. If he goes with a more defensive option such as Byrom in there I can see us struggling due to JCH being isolated. I suspect we will need at least 1 goal on Tuesday to have any chance of a point - despite them stuttering of late.

A cracking 3 points that we just about deserved on the first half performance. As an aside on Crawley, they actually reminded me a lot of us earlier on in the season. They moved the ball well and created the extra man in wide areas regularly - but completely failed to get in behind us at all and as such we were quite comfortable for long periods. We have to finish games when we have the chances though - on another day we would have paid when they did finally create a couple of chances in the second half. Same team and formation on Tuesday I would imagine....

I was actually really pissed off at the tone of Claridges response. For what it's worth I completely support Corney and am firmly in the camp that he has - despite the tough times and poor decisions at times - managed to support the club when others may have walked........ That said, Steve Claridge will know next to nothing about our club and I found his tone patronising and condescending. Would he have said the same about a 'bigger' club - I think not.

Whichever formation he plays, he has to find a way to compensate for Harkins being so advanced on the left hand side. Having watched Wigan at City on Sunday, it was an excellent advert for 3 at the back - which would suggest having Lockwood and Wilson marking with Grounds ideally spare as the quickest and best distributor of the three. This would allow Mellor and possibly Winchester (harsh on Brown admittedly) as Wingbacks with Wes and Smith rotating in front of the back 3 (and covering forward runs from either DM or CW) That frees Harkins and Philly to roam further forward with less defensive responsibility - but Dayton or Kissock would provide an alternative. Personally I like the idea of the pace of Turner to stretch them in the channels but can see the argument for McDonald's experience. They are strong, physical and will press us high up the pitch. We have to pass the ball as if we are forced direct I suspect its a game we can't win. We have to start fast and commit players forwards, which we have tended to do on the occasions we have been forced into playing 3 at the back. Finally, I am not in for happy clapping, but they need our support on Tuesday, as the lack of confidence was there for all to see on Saturday......that and still being in the game after 10 minutes without having given a soft opener away!!

He is completely lacking in confidence, and that plainly showed in his choice and execution of pass on Saturday. However he remains our best player and captain and needs to shoulder responsibility more than he did within that game. However anybody considering dropping him against a strong and physical Rotherham side who press high up the pitch and will try and force us to drive the ball long into their strengths is crazy in my opinion - and cannot have watched the first game between the teams!

I honestly could not care less about a player who is no longer ours and who left after an admittedly excellent 4 months service this season. What hurts is seeing the club we love, floundering again and struggling desperately to get out of its own way. I wish Tarky no ill will but I suspect he's been given a free pass from some about the timing of his departure. My thoughts and concerns are with the players we have. As said earlier in this thread, we have some good players who are a shadow of themselves at present - that much was obvious on Saturday - they need our support tomorrow!!

The Wes - Smith - Philiskirk in the hole combination was exactly what he did play at Preston earlier in the season IIRC. When he dropped Wes for Mellor at Rotherham on the Saturday, we had a massive issue in our play because they pressed Smith hard and we were unable to play out from the back in the same way. It was only when Mellor was sent off and Wes came on that our play improved because we regained the ability to find space to play the ball out from the back. The difference in that side of the early season however was the pace and outlets provided by the fullbacks and wide midfielders. Too often now, we retain the ball quite well but as soon as we progress through the midfield all the pace in the attack is lost when the ball is played wide. This makes life doubly difficult for both Wes AND Smith both who need pace and movement further forward to be effective.

They did at Deepdale......the ref waved play on!! Not that it has any bearing on Saturdays decision.

There was trouble before the game as well. Two groups of lads, one Oldham, one Preston - BOTH with 11 or 12 year old sons in tow who ended up in tears and terrified as the police piled in. I suspect what happened after the game may have led on from there. Genuinely shocking behaviour from both groups - whoever started it as the young lads were blameless and terrified!

Kilkenny barely gave the ball away all game and whilst unspectacular was constantly available - hence one of the reasons we chased shadows for 50mins. Davies I will grant was quiet......but equally was far more mobile and suited to their style of play than his namesake. Those players have made them better - and they were much better than in either game at Deepdale. By contrast, Harkins has been fantastic but that aside nothing that has come into our squad that has improved it at all. Worrall would if fully fit, but its hard to build a team with a player who struggles to last 90 minutes or play two games in a row.

Preston were cynical, organised and physically imposing. We were none of the above and so second best it was painful to watch in the first half in particular. Davies and Kilkenny have made an impact for them and the difference in quality of recruitment is there for all to see. What worried me the most moving forwards though was the abdication of responsibility at times when in possession. As bad as we were we had some decent attacking positions but had nobody prepared to take a chance to progress the game. JCH made a massive difference as he did give us a target to hit and rotate off in attack. They were seriously wobbling until the sucker punch of the second goal - which only served to show how easy we had made it for them.

This, this and this again. Mellor was hopelessly exposed and not just by Harkins. One of the deep lying midfielders had to shift across to cover the space left by Harkins going forwards or the inevitable was always going to happen. That said, he didn't do well on either goal and his basic body shape was far too square. He was however a decent outlet in possession - especially when the game opened up in the second half. At the very least Connor Brown brings an energy and hunger to the side which was sadly lacking in many other areas today.

I think within the context of a weakened division thats short on consistency and quality, the side that started this season had the potential to be very decent indeed. Not perfect, but relatively solid defensively with the potential to retain possession of the ball very well. The midfield had pace in wide areas and quality centrally, with a good variety of attacking options. Worryingly we don't seem to have any of those attributes now. We should have accrued more points earlier in the season and it is that as much as anything that we are paying for now.

Great post!

Major loss, in 2 months we have gone from having fantastic options defensively to a very bare cupboard. Worrying.

Have just seen that Kasunga is out for 6 weeks - doesn't bode well!! Probably Wilson in for me.

Agree with this almost completely (I don't see that Kasunga is not a far better footballer than either Wilson or Lockwood.) We have neither the players, nor fans with the appetite for, direct football. Our fullbacks must provide an outlet that can progress the game which the two names mentioned would. Sit Wes and Smith in front with Philiskirk tucked in behind the front man. Any two from Harkins, Dayton and Worrall playing wide with licence to push high up the pitch. Moving forward, that is the team that allows our best players on the pitch, with the fluidity to play the ball through from back to front. I suppose it all depends on how many of those stay fit as to whether we can keep our heads above water.

We could do far worse than revert back to a back four of (left to right) Mellor / Grounds / Kasunga / Winchester. At the very least that allows us to have 4 options who are comfortable receiving the ball from the GK and bring our midfielders into the game rather than bypass them!