petelatics

Size only matters in defence - definitely need a big back four. The rest is dependent on the accuracy of the passing, the control of the players, their strength on the ball and their ability to move eg Barcelona. However if you have small players but play as though they are all six foot three then you have a problem.

Corney has made mistakes it's true and from his financial point of view buying Latics was his biggest! He has propped up the club for, what is it, ten years? He hasn't invested as much as probably most of us would like, but for someone who doesn't come from this area, he should be congratulated for keeping the club going. Basically we wouldn't have a club without him and for those who point to Mr Salford, he wanted us to relocate to Salford and given all the hissy fits when a possible move to the bottom of Broadway was mooted, I don't think we want that do we? However, if anyone is aware of a brain dead moneybags knocking about then point him to Boundary Park and I'm sure he will receive a warn welcome!

I can understand the feelings of some on here who want LJ out, but has the money saved by getting rid of Rooney been invested in someone else? The same can be said of the Baxter money. Trying to manage a football team in your first year with ever decreasing funds is no easy matter. Not sure how this season is going to pan out but I think we have got to get behind the team and the manager to try and help the players pull us out of trouble. Johnson won't be fired before the end of the season so I don't think we have any choice - however I feel as sick as the rest of you at how a promising start to the season has ground to a halt.

The formation we seem to play at the moment is 4-4-2. On Saturday, in the first half, Brown kept trying to make runs forward but his path was blocked by our winger. I would suggest moving the wingers ten yards in when we are attacking to allow the full backs to get forward. We'd also have more bodies to get into the box - a recurring problem with Latics - crosses come in only two attacking the ball. Wouldn't play Harkins central midfield. If you remember in the first half against Peterborough he was one of the two central midfield players and we got steamrollered - he's talented but he's not as fit as he should be and he won't put the work in. An idea might be to play him behind a striker that LJ is about to bring in!

We've got to remember that this is LJ's first season as a manager. At the start of the season he had a pretty good group of players. However, we kept outplaying teams and losing. So as a manager you have to change things. Rooney wasn't scoring - well who was? Dayton went off the boil. We lost two wingers for different reasons and also two defenders we couldn't afford to keep. Right, you are the manager, what would you have done? Difficult job on a shoestring budget.

They're all loan ball boys and it destroys the team spirit. Need to get a system of bringing them through the ranks.

Goals don't have to come through wingers - see Barcelona and most of the Premiership sides. Good passing, plenty of movement and someone who can find the net. A will to win seems to have drained away from our players - you see it in dribs and drabs but Preston gave us a good lesson.

As the acoustics are better at RRE I think the Latics fans should move from the chaddy road end and let away supporters have it. It would improve the atmosphere.

Yes Lockwood and Wilson are uncomplicated. So far so good.

Saw him play at Orient last season - he had a terrific game. Uncomplicated, won all the headers, anything else went straight into the stands. This may be a may be a big mistake.

Just to comment on Rooney. His first goal for Aberdeen was a header into an empty net and today's was a pen.

I usually try to stay positive but it's a recurring theme and I'm sick of it! there, I've said it. Fix it LJ please!

So much was dictated by the weather. We wouldn't have played so many long balls if the wind hadn't been swirling around. Must agree with the guy who said some players are a liability in their own box.

Harkins played well but, as I've stated on another post, he left his position by the post so wasn't able to clear their goal bound shot and switched off when he should have been marking at a corner we were defending. Still I suppose we were warned!

Funny how we all see the game differently. I didn't think Smith was that bad. To get some idea of the conditions you only needed to (a) look at the corner flag at the corner of the main stand and the chaddy road end - it was almost horizontal at times and ( to step out of the ground after the match and ask yourself how you would fancied playing tippy tappy football with that wind. I was disappointed with the goal we conceded but overall not too disappointed with 4 points from the last two games. I would have settled or that before the Swindon game.

I would like someone (preferably a member of our coaching staff) to organise our defence at set pieces. Harkin left his post for their goal so he wasn't able to clear it off the line and in the second half when defending a corner I saw Harkin watch their big number 10 walk past him into the penalty area and left him completely unmarked. And some of our marking when defending set pieces is really sloppy. Our players forget to track the ones they're supposed to be marking and Oxley just stays rooted to his goal line - one day he'll take route! No wonder we give away silly goals, however I am pleased with what I have seen of Lockwood and Wilson so far.

Yes the West Ham game with the comical (if you were a West Ham fan) goal and of course the Southport game - pitch completely covered in snow and we won 11-0. When I arrived home my dad asked me how they'd got on (Boxing Day so no sports news in those days). When I told him we won 11-0 he wouldn't believe me (I had been known to have him on a bit in the past). It was the next day when he saw the newspaper that he finally believed it! Served me right!

They can have my season ticket right now. Ever since Corney came in he's been wanting to get rid of our chairs. Well now he's done it! And they're going for no fee. Is it part of the deal to bring Jon Stead to BP?

Well done bit of research. Glad we've still got a club.

We are a small club. Probably our correct position would be below half way in League One. To get into the play offs would be a major achievement. Very rare for a team without money to prosper. Tranmere nearly managed it last year and Orient and Walsall are doing well this year but there is still a long way to go. I've been supporting Latics since 1958 - they were a miserable bunch then but Jack Rowley came in as manager with a bit of money and off we went eventually getting promotion. They were slow steps and when Jimmy Frizzell took over eventually he took us up into the next division. More slow steps and the under Royle we got to a League cup final and an FA cup semi final. With the money made we improved the team and were promoted again to the top division. So the progress made took over thirty years. Be patient - in 1958 I would never have dreamt that Latics would one day be in the top division or playing at Wembley.

And after we got rid of him he spent the next 3 years teaching kids football in Doncaster - obviously in great demand!

Killing the club? You wouldn't have a club without Corney! Yes he's made mistakes but be honest would you sink your money into a club knowing that without a doubt you will never see any of it back? He's put millions into our club. He's not from Oldham and no matter how well we do he won't recap his investment - unless we make it to the Premiership. No matter what he does, every decision is greeted by 'he's only in it for the money', ' he doesn't put enough money in', he's killing the club'. Get real!

There has been some barmy stuff written about our signings, like we have unlimited funds to bring in top players. I'd like to see what these people would do given the budget LJ has.

I suspect Latics found out when Montano's alleged other transgression hit the papers recently.

Can't make it tonight but I really hope we can get at least a point out of the game. It'll be tough though - they're a very good team. Come on you blues!