steveecky

Seriously! I hope not. May be quick but delivery very patchy even at a level of football that doesn't look that good, unless he's improved since 2011 video.

If Dickov is appointed, I look forward to seeing Doncaster back in L1 after next season. Talks well, signings ok, but manager of a team - useless - look at his record!!

If there's one thing to learn from a disastrous season, it's that you need some experienced and strong minded players in the side. Man U may win with kids but their kids were brought up in the United way, not begged, borrowed or stolen from some second rate club's reserves and chucked together. I pity Grounds, he's not had a stable partnership with a serious player in front of him all season.

Yes - with a heavy heart. Don't make enough chances from open play and always capable of letting in a goal - recipe for relegation! Games in hand won't matter if we can't get points from them.

The problem with relegation to L2 is that you're one bad season relegation away from non-league. If that happens we won't need the stands we've got. let alone a new one! Everything about OAFC at the moment smells like meltdown. We don't look capable of winning just as every team around us is getting their act together.

Watched Warnock's Latics - never hit a pass under 40 yards - dreadful to watch - thank goodness he's out of our pay league.

Self-confidence!

I've just had a thought - many of the Latic's team this season have played at a higher level or were from clubs at a higher level and our two big cup wins were against Premiership and Championship sides. Our current form is not Dickov or the team's fault; it's the club's fault for putting us in League 1 - we should be playing in a higher league and our problems would be solved. Apply for a place in the Championship now!

Has this tactic ever worked for Latics under PD? It seems like deja vu - behind by a goal near the end; go 3 at the back, get caught and let in another. PD doesn't seem to learn from his mistakes - got to go & quickly. If you want to chase a game, go 4-3-3 with the midfield playing narrow and three up top stretching the defence. AAAAAGGGHHHH, so frustrated with Latics!

The change has to come soon. There has been no improvement season on season and the current team seems incapable of turning it round, possibly under PD or another - there doesn't seem sufficient quality in the side to get the results needed. The more important thing is that a new man if brought in now would have the opportunity over the next 4 months to make an assessment of the squad, decide who should stay or go at the end of the season, and start to make his mind up about possible targets for the summer. That would be the case whether the season ends with relegation or escape. It seems pretty obvious that the current management has not got the managerial skills necessary to change the environment at Latics for the better in either the short or long term. It seems to me that we couldn't do worse with any choice of alternate manager and a squad of experienced lower division journeymen rather than 'Championship' level players supported by a bench of inexperienced cheap youngsters. I listened to games on Player (too far to travel) and it's depressing. If the opposition score first you feel that's the game gone, and if they put a bit of pressure on in the last 5 minutes you know we'll be likely to concede whatever the score.

Quote "It's 19 minutes gone and Scunthorpe are 2 up. We never saw this coming on the way over." What have they been watching this season? Whatever the final score is, and thankfully at the time of writing it's 2-1 - Latics' form has been sufficiently poor to expect them to be losing! The mantra is 'don't change a winning team' not generally 'keep the same losing team bar injury and suspensions' I'd like a bit of festive cheer - even Villa got points at Liverpool. We could have the worst festive period points haul in the English leagues.

Listened to commentary on Player today and to be frank, I've heard it all before: - unlucky in their box; individual mistakes; rubbish refereeing decisions; come down to BP and get behind the boys next time. But, can I get beyond the two latest results (and the Reserves drubbing)? What really worries me is that there seems to be no real longer term plan either - we don't appear to be bringing players through from the reserves to challenge for places - we don't look likely to produce anybody that can be sold on. Watching 'Being Liverpool' on TV it was interesting to see how Brendan Rogers was influencing the club not just for the next match but for the next few seasons - now I know Liverpool and Latics are a long way apart but does anyone see that the Latics have any strategy other than getting in a few out of contract players and loanees each season and hoping for the best. If you asked SC or PD "where do you see OAFC in 5 years time?" would they give you any vision of the future that you could sign up to? I long for OAFC to have a season where there appears to be genuine cause for optimism and matches would be about how much can be achieved rather than what are we going to suffer today! What I remember most about both Jim Frizzell and Joe Royle (showing my age I'm afraid) as managers was their ability to spot players that could really make it before anyone spotted the potential (eg the Irwin and Barretts of the time). Roll on the summer when the next OAFC team is put together.

It's a bit hopeful to suggest that something would come of this. A dead ball kick will take more than 2 seconds to travel to the target man. Most professional footballers would be able to move 20 yards while the ball is in the air - thus able to change formation and close the man down before a real threat develops. Most teams play narrow defences with weak side (opposite the ball carrier) players tucked in for that very reason - ball travels, you travel.

Play like Barcelona!

.... but there are only 5 teams with worse records currently in the division, and 3 of those are only a win away from overtaking us! They must all be 'not a bad team' which similarly means that some 'not bad teams' must get relegated!

Building something? How do you build something on the back of short term contracts, loan deals and contracts that run for 2 seasons only? There's a sure fire way of removing negativity - win a lot (not the dog food; ah ah!). If PD had a remotely respectable win %age he might have some point to his argument. Pessimism can drag teams down, but let's face it - Latics' fans have a right to be pessimistic given the club's league position not just under Dickov and a ground that is showing it's age. I'd rather SC say it's not good enough than PD saying everything's rosy - one wants something better and the other is satisfied with the status quo.

Pedantic moaner - I know it is "doesn't" and actually have a very good grasp of language and grammar - I was just using a phrase in common parlance. You would never be off the board if you felt the need to correct everything that was wrong in posts!

10 points from the play offs; 3 points from the relegation zone. Is it: 1. The players actually aren't good enough to get results at this level? 2. The players are good enough but there isn't enough competition for places to get them to perform to their ability level? or 3. The manager can't manage the team to play well enough to get results? Not a poll, but I'd be interested in views - no chance of Corney putting his hand in his pocket with the form Latics show, he'd be throwing good money after bad. ... and yes, mildly disappointed is an understatement.

I'm not a UEFA qualified coach but do coach U18s at a reasonably high level. Sending Croft out alone for short corners was futile. He couldn't stop Crawley crosses into the area because he had to position himself to stop the run into the area and respond to a possible return pass to the corner taker: they just got a better delivery angle every time. Better to send two out - it's not as if the attackers in the box outnumber the defenders. Also, under pressure at the end we made the same mistake as England - two banks of 4 but so deep that you can't get out or link with the forward who is 40 yards up the pitch. All clearances concede possession to the opposition who start the next attack from 2/3rds up the pitch, ready to launch the next ball in. Crawley were very direct, certainly in the last 10 minutes, while we would all like to see Barcelona style intricate forward play - the fact is that at this level more balls in the box lead to more chances and more goals. That said the players should be proud of the performance especially when 10v11 and the Latics' goal came from the best move of the match,

We don't need to swap him for a better manager - though that would be a start - but we do do need one that has better luck in games! One whose team hits the post and it goes in rather than out or whose opposition doesn't score in the last 5 minutes. Confidence is a big factor and losses like these will see it ebb away, especially when the home crowd suffers disappointment over and over again. There needs to a catalyst to turn things round and, as yet, it hasn't been new signings.

At least you can get in to view the mistakes - all I get is two big club badges on a blue background and that's it!

Went on holiday to Rhodes last week and stayed in Pefkos. It's a small resort but still managed to see a young girl in a Latics shirt walking on the beach! Not much support but we do get around!

I think we started so quickly that the midfield burned out by the mid point of the second half - they didn't close down as well as first half and then Wednesday were able to play their way back in (helped by a shocking error from Cisak). Comments elsewhere about Tarkowsky are fair - he isn't strong enough yet, he's not quick and makes mistakes which cost, but he may be one for the future. Croft ran out of steam and couldn't cover - giving their winger too many one on ones, but he was a real threat going forward and his delivery was excellent.. I'll be pleasantly surprised if we manage to get a decent left midfield player and experienced centre back some time soon - I think we'll struggle to get anyone in. All in all though- it's not all doom and gloom.

I hope we aren't thinking of signing JT. His strike record is woeful; we need 20 goals a season not 11 in a career!

What about someone like Izale McLeod for next season? Out of contract at Barnet who barely avoided relegation to the BSP, a good goalscoring history wherever he's been. Call me old fashioned but I prefer strikers who score rather than those who 'play for the team', 'great hold up player', 'puts in a shift' etc