TheBigDog Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 12 minutes ago, Hemel latic said: And yet, the longest active unbeaten away run (8) in the National Leagues. And that shows what an ordinary league this really is and what we could achieve with more consistency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeP Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 On a lighter note, we're almost certainly not going to go down... 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BradKnowles1 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Thought it was a really poor game last night. Didn’t help with the referee stop starting it for both teams. both teams were setup to be hard to beat. Our midfield didn’t do enough and created very little. I couldn’t work out were Kitching was playing was he winger or left back? got to win Saturday to make that a good point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monty Burns Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 32 minutes ago, Hemel latic said: And yet, the longest active unbeaten away run (8) in the National Leagues. well said 1 hour ago, deyres42 said: Reid situation needs sorting, especially if Dallas and Norwood continue to be unavailable, laughable that a proven goalscorer is languishing in exile without explanation, journos really need to be pushing Mellon harder on this. yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nzlatic Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 18 minutes ago, BradKnowles1 said: Thought it was a really poor game last night. Didn’t help with the referee stop starting it for both teams. both teams were setup to be hard to beat. Our midfield didn’t do enough and created very little. I couldn’t work out were Kitching was playing was he winger or left back? got to win Saturday to make that a good point. Ref made it impossible to have a good game. He was ridiculously picky. Which meant more players going to ground to try and get free kicks, so there was never any real flow to the game. I think we started with Kitching at wing back in the 352, but then he moved to 442, but rather than playing out and out winger he seemed to play more central. Or we may have started 442, bit hard to tell. On the midfield, I'm a little puzzled by Conlon. He's an absolute must start because he offers something that none of our other midfielders do. But for me he hasn't looked as involved or as threatening as he did in the Barnet game which was his league debut I think. That night he looked really busy, all over the place looking for the ball and doing little give and goes etc. Since then he's played more like a Shez type of midfielder, sitting back and just trying to keep things ticking over. I expected him to be more involved higher up the pitch and to have more shots on goal. Maybe he's still feeling his way back to full fitness, or maybe that's the type of player he is now after injuries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy Branston Pickle Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Not a great performance, but win on Saturday and it's a decent point away at a side battling for their lives. If my maths is right it's one defeat in ten in the league now, so we're definitely hard to beat. Nervous about the game on Saturday tbh but that's definitely in our conditioning Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick26 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 1 hour ago, nzlatic said: On the midfield, I'm a little puzzled by Conlon. Missed the Barnet game so even more puzzled! Right back and midfield is still not right and with the right signings we'd have easily got top 3. Still might but just shows how crap this league is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yarddog73 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 I know Kitching has probably done enough to be considered for player of the season but playing him so high up in midfield exposes him, you then have Raglan whose playing left sided centre back where he's just not as comfortable, it appears Mellon picks the eleven he trusts most and hopes they can then go out and do enough, we very nearly did the job last night and had little worry other than going asleep for the York goal, my gut was Hudson could of done better but I'd have to watch it back but nevertheless it was poor defending and it cost us. It's not the end of the world but it's another opportunity missed to close up on the top two. We're right in the mix still with some big players to come back so no real need to panic. I notice Alfie Atherton is now in the matchday squads, he's the type who could come on in a game like that a make a difference a bit like Green last night, I'm hoping Mellon is brave and finds a place for him on the bench in the next couple of weeks, might add some value to him if others are sniffing around as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hemel latic Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 9 minutes ago, yarddog73 said: I know Kitching has probably done enough to be considered for player of the season but playing him so high up in midfield exposes him, you then have Raglan whose playing left sided centre back where he's just not as comfortable, it appears Mellon picks the eleven he trusts most and hopes they can then go out and do enough, we very nearly did the job last night and had little worry other than going asleep for the York goal, my gut was Hudson could of done better but I'd have to watch it back but nevertheless it was poor defending and it cost us. It's not the end of the world but it's another opportunity missed to close up on the top two. We're right in the mix still with some big players to come back so no real need to panic. I notice Alfie Atherton is now in the matchday squads, he's the type who could come on in a game like that a make a difference a bit like Green last night, I'm hoping Mellon is brave and finds a place for him on the bench in the next couple of weeks, might add some value to him if others are sniffing around as well. We are light in respect of game changers on the bench. Bit surprised Hallam Hope seems to have drifted out of the picture. Although game changer might be a bit of a stretch his legs and engine have been used to good effect late on in games. Haven't seen Atherton play but also noticed he was in the 18 at Maidenhead on Saturday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BP1960 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 35 minutes ago, yarddog73 said: I know Kitching has probably done enough to be considered for player of the season but playing him so high up in midfield exposes him, you then have Raglan whose playing left sided centre back where he's just not as comfortable, it appears Mellon picks the eleven he trusts most and hopes they can then go out and do enough, we very nearly did the job last night and had little worry other than going asleep for the York goal, my gut was Hudson could of done better but I'd have to watch it back but nevertheless it was poor defending and it cost us. It's not the end of the world but it's another opportunity missed to close up on the top two. We're right in the mix still with some big players to come back so no real need to panic. I notice Alfie Atherton is now in the matchday squads, he's the type who could come on in a game like that a make a difference a bit like Green last night, I'm hoping Mellon is brave and finds a place for him on the bench in the next couple of weeks, might add some value to him if others are sniffing around as well. Atherton is ready to start, he's no shrinking violet and despite being able to run at defenders, cross the ball and shoot on sight his tackling back is tremendous. I don't know why MM won't play him as in training he will be just the same. If he can take Manchester United u21s apart and score against them Kidderminster will hold no fears. An 11, 000 crowd urging him on will be perfect. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick26 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 32 minutes ago, Hemel latic said: We are light in respect of game changers on the bench. Bit surprised Hallam Hope seems to have drifted out of the picture. Although game changer might be a bit of a stretch his legs and engine have been used to good effect late on in games. Haven't seen Atherton play but also noticed he was in the 18 at Maidenhead on Saturday. Hope was in the gym last week with physio so probably not available. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only Blue Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 4 hours ago, deyres42 said: Reid situation needs sorting, especially if Dallas and Norwood continue to be unavailable, laughable that a proven goalscorer is languishing in exile without explanation, journos really need to be pushing Mellon harder on this. The Reid situation is sorted . He was suspended by the club and since then he hasn't been good enough to get into the squad, am assuming mostly because of his poor attitude. When you say proven goal scorer , come on!! He is really being built up as the saviour in exile now. He is alright but it wouldn't have mattered who was up front because the service was poor yesterday so no way would he have had an impact. What is there to explain? We are bobbing along picking up decent enough amount of points and absolutely no way in these battling matches would a luxury player like Reid have improved us. Also have you thought the players morale would drop with him in the side? After all it was them that copped it because of his childishness. He missed it as he had his feet up probably pissing about on social media. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hemel latic Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 7 minutes ago, BP1960 said: Atherton is ready to start, he's no shrinking violet and despite being able to run at defenders, cross the ball and shoot on sight his tackling back is tremendous. I don't know why MM won't play him as in training he will be just the same. If he can take Manchester United u21s apart and score against them Kidderminster will hold no fears. An 11, 000 crowd urging him on will be perfect. I know you're a fan of Atherton, and I'm keen to see him play and do well, but lots of our loans have demonstrated there's a gulf between U21 and senior football, even at National League level. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only Blue Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 3 hours ago, JoeP said: On a lighter note, we're almost certainly not going to go down... Damn I was going to say that !!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
League one forever Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 17 minutes ago, Only Blue said: The Reid situation is sorted . He was suspended by the club and since then he hasn't been good enough to get into the squad, am assuming mostly because of his poor attitude. When you say proven goal scorer , come on!! He is really being built up as the saviour in exile now. He is alright but it wouldn't have mattered who was up front because the service was poor yesterday so no way would he have had an impact. What is there to explain? We are bobbing along picking up decent enough amount of points and absolutely no way in these battling matches would a luxury player like Reid have improved us. Also have you thought the players morale would drop with him in the side? After all it was them that copped it because of his childishness. He missed it as he had his feet up probably pissing about on social media. I’ve mixed feelings on him. Do you set the standard for professionalism and not budge. or Do you show show some pragmatism when it might benefit the team. My view- If everyone is fit, then fine he doesn’t play for the reasons you mention. But with Dallas and Nors out for the time being, I don’t see the harm in having him as an option from the bench for the last twenty. Then when everyone is back he doesn’t play again. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yarddog73 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 16 minutes ago, Only Blue said: The Reid situation is sorted . He was suspended by the club and since then he hasn't been good enough to get into the squad, am assuming mostly because of his poor attitude. When you say proven goal scorer , come on!! He is really being built up as the saviour in exile now. He is alright but it wouldn't have mattered who was up front because the service was poor yesterday so no way would he have had an impact. What is there to explain? We are bobbing along picking up decent enough amount of points and absolutely no way in these battling matches would a luxury player like Reid have improved us. Also have you thought the players morale would drop with him in the side? After all it was them that copped it because of his childishness. He missed it as he had his feet up probably pissing about on social media. I'm not advocating a Reid return that's Mellons call, your post just misses the point though on what Reid offers, he is a goal a game man on minutes played so if he was to maintain that then that alone would be impressive and that's without him taking the penalties so all goals from open play. He also offers something different, I know Mellon prefers the graft and battering ram approach but Green has proven that pace is key at our level, these big pudding defenders hate it, Reid gets in behind and plays off the last man so he would of been perfect last night in the last 20 against tiring legs. He turns defences and causes a different type of problem. All that said I'm not really bothered if he plays for us again after what went on at Christmas, same goes for McGahey for that matter but there is no denying he'd add something to the 16 we are currently naming, particularly late in games. He'll probably end up somewhere like Macclesfield in the summer, they'll love all the nonsense that surrounds him there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ritchierich Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Surely the primary reason for our inconsistency is down to the squad size and having to effectively “start again” after DU left. This is not MMs fault and he’s doing the pre season work in the middle of a playoff chasing season which is not ideal. When I look at teams like Aldershot, sure they are as inconsistent as us but they have a much smaller squad, presumably the starting eleven is pretty much set and they seem to have a real togetherness and spirit and their fans are behind them because they know they are punching a little above their budget and expectations for this season. We are the opposite; huge squad with endless permutations, issues with individual players, 3 managers this season, high expectations due to budget and the club size etc etc. Is it also possible injuries are more frequent due to players not playing regularly so losing match sharpness? I know I suffered less injuries when I played every week compared with when I “semi-retired” and played every month or so to help my old team out. I still stand by my original view that this season is a bit of a write off but one in which we could still make the playoffs and even be promoted! The real proof in the pudding is next season for MM. I think we need a smaller squad, hopefully with more quality and a style of play that we can get a bit more excited about. We are in the playoff positions but this season has, to me, never really felt like a promotion chasing season….nothing like the Dowie season for example. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeP Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 1 minute ago, League one forever said: I’ve mixed feelings on him. Do you set the standard for professionalism and not budge. or Do you show show some pragmatism when it might benefit the team. My view- If everyone is fit, then fine he doesn’t play for the reasons you mention. But with Dallas and Nors out for the time being, I don’t see the harm in having him as an option from the bench for the last twenty. Then when everyone is back he doesn’t play again. Bring him in, I reckon. We've taken action against him for lack of professionalism. If he's shown willing since, his error shouldn't be held against him forever. From the outside looking in, while he seems a bit daft sometimes, he doesn't seem like a bad lad at all and could still do a job for us on the pitch... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deyres42 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 25 minutes ago, Only Blue said: The Reid situation is sorted . He was suspended by the club and since then he hasn't been good enough to get into the squad, am assuming mostly because of his poor attitude. When you say proven goal scorer , come on!! He is really being built up as the saviour in exile now. He is alright but it wouldn't have mattered who was up front because the service was poor yesterday so no way would he have had an impact. What is there to explain? We are bobbing along picking up decent enough amount of points and absolutely no way in these battling matches would a luxury player like Reid have improved us. Also have you thought the players morale would drop with him in the side? After all it was them that copped it because of his childishness. He missed it as he had his feet up probably pissing about on social media. People love to point out Mellon's P2G ratio, Reid I believe has one of if not the best M2G ratio in the squad, seems odd that you wouldn't want to utilise that asset. But if all of what you say is true then it shouldn't be too difficult for Mellon to come out and explain that the player is no longer being considered for selection. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BP1960 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 37 minutes ago, Hemel latic said: I know you're a fan of Atherton, and I'm keen to see him play and do well, but lots of our loans have demonstrated there's a gulf between U21 and senior football, even at National League level. Not so with this lad IMO. I saw him take a battering from 4 6ft + defenders who targetted him and came back for more, even giving some a taste of their own medicine. Kidderminster won't be able to handle him I'm convinced of that. Rarely seen such ability and desire in a young player. MM needs the courage to start him I'd say on the right wing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BP1960 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 20 minutes ago, Ritchierich said: Surely the primary reason for our inconsistency is down to the squad size and having to effectively “start again” after DU left. This is not MMs fault and he’s doing the pre season work in the middle of a playoff chasing season which is not ideal. When I look at teams like Aldershot, sure they are as inconsistent as us but they have a much smaller squad, presumably the starting eleven is pretty much set and they seem to have a real togetherness and spirit and their fans are behind them because they know they are punching a little above their budget and expectations for this season. We are the opposite; huge squad with endless permutations, issues with individual players, 3 managers this season, high expectations due to budget and the club size etc etc. Is it also possible injuries are more frequent due to players not playing regularly so losing match sharpness? I know I suffered less injuries when I played every week compared with when I “semi-retired” and played every month or so to help my old team out. I still stand by my original view that this season is a bit of a write off but one in which we could still make the playoffs and even be promoted! The real proof in the pudding is next season for MM. I think we need a smaller squad, hopefully with more quality and a style of play that we can get a bit more excited about. We are in the playoff positions but this season has, to me, never really felt like a promotion chasing season….nothing like the Dowie season for example. His problems are having to fit in Raglan, Hobson and Hogan, not wanting to drop any of them. This sets up his team into virtually a 7 at the back if the wing backs are reluctant to go forward - as we have often seen. The 3 centre backs then tend to hoof the ball. He needs to decide on his best 2 centre backs, sign a strong right back and a central midfielder who can run at pace directly with the ball. I'd play with 2 out wingers, Walker when fit and Atherton (who I might have mentioned). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monty Burns Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 if we say the season started when tea time took over where would we be in the league? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deyres42 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 44 minutes ago, deyres42 said: People love to point out Mellon's P2G ratio, Reid I believe has one of if not the best M2G ratio in the squad, seems odd that you wouldn't want to utilise that asset. But if all of what you say is true then it shouldn't be too difficult for Mellon to come out and explain that the player is no longer being considered for selection. Just seen the Oldham Times, looks like he has pretty much said he won't be back. Fair play Micky, as you were lads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nzlatic Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 55 minutes ago, League one forever said: I’ve mixed feelings on him. Do you set the standard for professionalism and not budge. or Do you show show some pragmatism when it might benefit the team. My view- If everyone is fit, then fine he doesn’t play for the reasons you mention. But with Dallas and Nors out for the time being, I don’t see the harm in having him as an option from the bench for the last twenty. Then when everyone is back he doesn’t play again. I don’t really have an opinion one way or another on Reid seeing as I don’t know what’s gone on behind the scenes so Mellon might be justified in freezing him out. But I don’t think it would send a great message if he’s frozen out but then brought back in just because it suits Mellon when there’s injuries. If you’ve left him out because of principle then you don’t compromise that principle temporarily just because it suits you. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LightDN123 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Mellon has set standards and isn’t going to go back on them because we have injuries. Shame about Reid, but it’s his fault and he’s not exactly been a good egg at other clubs. So don’t buy into the first error comments. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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