whitey1980

I also agree..... but professionally those goals were inexcusable. If he even attempts to highpoint the ball and fumbles - that happens. To completely abdicate his responsibilities like he did in the second half was shameful.

Don't exempt him from the third goal - the lack of conviction to go and challenge was a disgrace and his footwork was worse. He is one of the worst we have had - any team who do not load the box against him have clearly never watched him!!

I see no evidence that we actually have a plan as to how we are attempting to win the game. We have Yeates hugging the touchline on one one flank......and Philly tucked right inside on the right. That might work with Dummigan stretching the pitch - but Eckersley?? Are we stretching the pitch to create width or passing the ball inside to feet? I have no idea. Kelly is playing on his own in the middle of the park. Fulton spends most of the game running a yard behind the play trying not to get injured and Dieng we saw at the weekend. How Winchester (and I am far from his biggest fan) is not in the team with that shape I have no idea. What is Poleon supposed to be doing. If he is trying to read Higdons flicks (when he can be arsed to jump) then he needs to play closer...... yet we spend half the game lumping it into the channels for him to chase? James Wilson for all people will criticise his role is playing in front of a goalkeeper who never leaves his line....or one who leaves his line with no consistency. His central partner is forever rotated and our fullbacks get no defensive cover from either wide player so are permanently swinging in the breeze!! They are also useless themselves at tucking in when the ball is delivered from the opposite flank. It is a complete mess and the team has no identity whatsoever. They looked marginally better with 3 at the back but that was forced and reactive rather than by design. Moving forward it might provide an avenue.... but the players will need to be coached far better than at present. Possibly.... Dieng - J Wilson - B Wilson Dummigan (if fit) Kelly Mills Poleon Philliskirk Yeates Higdon We would require more discipline from Poleon, Philliskirk and Yeates but Jones would help when he returns. He has to come up with something though.... and he cannot play Cornell on Saturday. That was one of the most gutless, professionally cowardly performances from a goalkeeper.

Just suggesting they were physical misses the point. They ran the channels very well and pulled their wide players very wide. That created the space for their inside runners off the knock downs. Kelly was subsequently fighting fires all over the midfield on a pitch they stretched to the limit. It helps when you have a wide player like Hammill to take advantage, but I have no idea how they have lost 8 league games in a row. I would suggest that LJ musn't have been paying quite as much attention to other opposition - and they must hate playing at Oakwell for many of the reasons suggested for ourselves at BP!!

Regardless of this (and he has certainly inpressed thus far) his touch was very poor at times today. It was a disappointing performance from him today despite his position. I agree he has ability though.

He looked good and certainly provided the spark. I also thought that he caused a big problem for them defensively as he wasn't easy to mark. He looked very effective between the lines dropping into the space that Poleon created through his forward running. They couldn't decide whether they should have been pushing up from the back or dropping a man in from midfield - ultimately they did neither very well!! It was also interesting that Poleon had much more space when Higdon wasn't on the pitch. We had been so static centrally that we had often been forced long as we ran out of options in possession.

Was a really strange game throughout. I thought we passed the ball as well as we have done in some time in the first 15 minutes - but understandably everybody's attention was on the much more serious situation unfolding. I don't know if that - or the increasing tension in the crowd - affected the players but we really lost our way for the next 45 minutes or so. Mills free kick before half time summed it up really!! We had improved before Higdon's removal, but very quickly the improved movement started to make life difficult for Chesterfields sluggish centre halves. Poleon stretched them and the extra space allowed Rasulo in particular to exploit the space in front of the defence. It would be a stretch to say the equaliser was coming - but it certainly wasn't undeserved. The winner was the icing on the cake. What pleased me the most as a fan was the reaction to the equaliser. The players barely celebrated as the ball was cleared back to restart. It was the intent that ultimately drove us to win the game. He hasn't been at his best of late, but Kelly was outstanding yesterday - particularly mopping up as we chased the game late. Great result!

Really? He is getting a very raw deal and must be well ahead of schedule for them. He certainly won't be on contract. I have clarified that I was talking about the top end of the division - and as I also suggested, the likes of Worksop were paying players to come up from London to play on a good deal more than £200 per game 2 seasons ago. Their top earner Leon Mettam was closer to £450 with goal bonuses. The likes of Fylde and FC United were in the division at that time. A club like Barwell in mid table have long been paying top players in three figures even when they were at Midland Alliance level. I would imagine that for them to rise above the likes of Quorn, Coalville, Oadby and Shepshed in that area, finance is involved. They have a young lad Brady Hickey on contract who they picked up from St Andrews (Bottom rung of the pyramid) who they are hoping to cash in on at present. I know Birmingham watched him last weekend. However you are right that players certainly do lie about how much they are on - and you are right to suggest that only a few clubs at that level will be paying those figures suggested. It is also true that outside of an occasional club there might only be a couple of players on that money. It also interests me the lack of non-league structure in this area. In Leicestershire the County FA's top division offers the opportunity to get into the pyramid if your ground allows. Consequently there are ambitious clubs from a very junior level who can progress with the right infrastructure should ability allow.... Or the ability to buý players in!! Consequently their local league football is relatively awash with cash, and a club at say Springhead's level would have lights and a significantly better playing surface. Conversely there is no money in their local league cricket bar a couple of clubs at all!!

As a few have touched on, I am not convinced it is not just football generally. The lack of identity with the team at this level is corrosive - at times you genuinely don't know who you are arriving to watch if you have had a busy week and not kept in the loop. I am not totally sure about formations, as I have seen plenty of sides even at our level rotate effectively behind a lone front man and create plenty. With us there is just a total unwillingness to press on and support forward runners. There are far to many sideways passes and we are painfuĺly static. When you throw in off the field issues, managerial revolving doors and the bloody price of subjecting yourself to it, its painful. Genuinely at times. The highest level in this country is completely uninspiring though as well. The least SKY and the Premier League could provide is a decent product for removing the very fabric of our game. The Champions League and Europa league expose the naivety and tactical rigidity of our best sides.....and the clubs themselves have not worked out that they need to start producing some young players worth the name. The likes of Bayern, Barca and even Real still manage to produce players who are good enough to provide a domestic nucleus to their teams. To be absolutely fair though, I am not convinced Hodgson gets enough credit for doing a decent job with the National team.... but even that was a seriously dull qualification!! I still love Latics - Just wish I didn't, ha ha!!!

It will be a very mixed bag. By 'that level' I am talking about those clubs at the business end of the division. I know that at Worksop Town two seasons ago they were paying comfortably above that and subsequently paid the price when their owner pulled out. FC United and Fylde were in the division at that time and I know they too would have paying at that level and beyond. I have no idea how Ashton United manage to stay at the business end of the division given the lack of interest. Worksop can attract gates close to 1000 for the biggest games and are still getting 400+ at North East Counties level. Whilst I take the point that there are teams - and there will certainly be players within even the top sides - who are paying less, those at the top end will be pushing the boat out I am sure.

Ha ha ha!!!

Totally agree.

Thats far too strong. I can understand why people wouldn't consider it - and share many of those reservations... BUT There was nothing lucky about the progression from April to November last year. We started by playing resiliant football, but by the time we rocked up at Ashton Gate we were as measured and impressive a side as there was in the division at the time. Both ourselves and LJ have seriously lost our way since, but who is to blame for that remains shrouded in rumour and half truths. I can see why it has gone tits up at Barnsley.... There are many managers with a better pedigree who have gone the same way at Oakwell. We were clearly a good fit - and it is very possible that whatever created that fit is now well and truly lost. However to suggest it is absurd that you would consider it strikes me as naive. People have short memories if you are winning games!

It is a world away, but I feel it is an easy stick to beat a professional athlete with - the idea that your opponent is in it for purely altruistic reasons. Most lads playing at that level are either not good enough, or more frequently, not mentally strong enough to cope with the pressures of playing for your career. There are of course the exceptions (such as Danien Reeves by all accounts) who make a financial decision to stay at that level. The commitment required to play at a good level of non-league football is massive.... but the character required to play at a level where you are constantly judged is huge. I have not played with or against an ex-pro who has not impressed me - and on those occasions the level of the step up has been clear to see.

I would strongly suggest that lads playing at Salford City (and most other sides at that level) are playing for much more than the love of the game. £200 a game (give or take) on top of a decent job is serious money.

Grimsby's support at Alfreton last season with a couple of games to go was truly incredible. They essentially sold out the ground with over 3000 of them there 30 minutes before kickoff. Have genuinely not seen anything like it and was pretty impressed with their non-stop passionate support in what was a horrific game of football. Fair play to them!!

Absolutely spot on. The formation itself is not simply to blame. We transition so slowly when we finally win the ball that teams have an age to reset defensively. It needs a change of mindset and intensity - otherwise 2 up front will make little difference.

Gregan also has his own kids coaching and leadership classes running in secondary schools. We were offered his services around 12 months ago.

They must have done a hell of a lot of work on that ground since my non-league football days playing against them in the early 2000's if they are even considering holding a full tie there!!

Anyone could miss a penalty.........The skied effort from underneath the cross-bar either just before or after (not sure which!!) showed a striker lacking all confidence and instinct! His drifting to the wing was just symbolic of the state of his game at that time. He was willing to work hard but was hopelessly out of touch and I suspect was becoming scared to miss. Full marks to him for turning his career back around though and it is a fair call to hold the failure of the signing as a question mark against LJ.

Not remotely as good as he appeared to think he was.........as he appears to have found out as a free agent! Totally agree about the leadership comments at the back pre-Brian Wilson's return though!!

I thought it was terrible. We completely lost shape and composure as the game went on and throughout our passing and movement lacked any sharpness and precision. The 20 minutes either side of half time showcased the best of our game (and arguably could have killed it), but as said by somebody earlier, as soon as the substitution was made Vale were in complete control. Brown (who was hopeless) was completely exposed by Jones and they just loaded ball after ball (with little or no pressure centrally) onto him and the equaliser was inevitable. Both centre halves defended well, but the complete inability to clear our lines should have seen us punished by more clinical opposition. Cornell's kicking in particular was truly disasterous and invited pressure throughout. We also looked completely spent after 70 minutes and by the finish the movement was non-existant. Very concerned and saddened by the clear regression of the past 12 months - they are capable of far better.

Totally agree with this. For a talented (as most of us believe they are) bunch of professional footballers to record a series of such dismal capitulations is shameful. I hope they are embarrassed - but suspect not!!

I do feel we have genuine versatility in our potential forward line, and there are most certainly goals to be unlocked from forward options of Forte, Cassidy, Poleon, Turner and Murphy. The question is of course if our manager is good enough to manage his resources. We bought 3 and aquired 2 of those options - It is a long time since a Latics manager had that as a starting point....over to you Darren!!

I was at Alfreton on Easter Monday when they took 2,800 out of a gate of 3,200. Fantastic support and their away end was literally bouncing for 45 minutes prior to kick off. Outstanding support that deserves league football!!