Slumdon

Anything yellow and blue
YF Dan
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Slumdon

Post by YF Dan »

Great performance today, definitely deserved winners and lots and lots of positives.

I will add this point early on - we had the rub of the green. I don't think our penalty was a penalty, it looked a free kick to me. I thought Maguire's foul on their guy shortly after was a penalty, delighted when it was not given.

But we were worthy winners, although they did have two or three really clear cut chances, even when down to 10.

As for us, Eastwood continues to be excellent, some really important saves.

The back four: solid. Dunkley is immense, I think of all of the team of 2015/6 and 2016/7 he will go the furthest. Raglan did really well today, fair play to him.
Our fullbacks were what they are, decent, solid pros.

Midfield: Lundstram's passing was still off in the first half, but especially after they went down to 10, he looked much more incisive, and he won a lot of decent tackles. Sercombe just has incredible energy. Rothwell looked a proper player today...he's changed my opinion of him.

Up front: Johnson had moments, Thomas didn't really, but my god, Maguire. What a player. He barely lost the ball for the first 70 minutes, either dribbling or passing. His strength on the ball is incredible, his awareness of the game belongs at a higher level. And he wanted it, summed up perfectly by his second goal.

Ledson looked class when he came on.

I still wonder how we're going to keep a) this squad happy and b) our bank manager happy with all these riches on the bench.
YF Dan
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Re: Slumdon

Post by YF Dan »

PS. I didn't call this thread Slumdon.
Dr Bob
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Dr Bob »

Compared with last week, we looked like a team with players capable of doing well at this level. As derbies go, it had almost everything. If only Marv had crossed for McGuire to get the first ever hat-trick again the auld enemy. We were up for it from the off, but without going into rash challenges, and that high pressing game made all the difference. Chatting to someone at half time, he thought the incident for the penalty was a foul but outside the box. I thought it was in the box but was not convinced it was a foul. Still, another great pen from Mr Cool. Post-match interviews on RadOx confirmed how much work went into preparation that, combined with McGuire's energy and desire, earned the second goal. Them getting two players sent off. A couple of rucks. Fantastic.

I thought Macca's slide in for the ball looked awful, BUT from the back of the SSU it was impossible to know how close to the keeper his leg was as he slid in. Given the position of the ref, Macca could not have been going straight into the keeper, otherwise it would have surely had to be a straight red.

For me, there was one clear negative. In that first half, when we (appeared) to have the bulk of possession and territory, how often did moves break down with Thomas? Either he lost the ball, or gave it away - and then appeared to moan at other players for his own failings. With Hemmings and Taylor on the bench, and Hall still to come back from injury, how long can Appleton stick with him?
OUFC4eva
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Re: Slumdon

Post by OUFC4eva »

Image

It was a 'front foot' performance with the U's showing their intent
from the first minute. Good pressing, excellent workmate and proving too strong
against Sw*ndon's midfield three. Could and should have won by more goals
but another victory against the old enemy feels great.
I'm a veteran of those many division three games from the mid 70's to the early 80's
when United went nine years without a win and never got close to a win
in Wiltshire. The Boxing Day '77 affair still hurts. 3-0 up at H/T only to draw
and come within inches of actually losing it at the death.

To win six on the bounce is tremendous.

Image

Good performances from Maguire (M.O.M) whose goal celebrations almost started a riot
and Joe Rothwell with Charlie Raglan looked very solid. Simon Eastwood made two fantastic
saves which could easily be forgotten. I like Sercombe playing
further forward. The competition for places is healthy with Ledson
now available for selection.

11,000 there but 1,500 empty seats is irksome.

On to stadiumMK next.
Jimski
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Jimski »

Out of interest, why were there 1500 empty seats - was it security precautions?
OUFC4eva
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Re: Slumdon

Post by OUFC4eva »

Segregation but it's a heck of a lot
of seats lost and,of course, revenue.
Mr T
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Mr T »

I wasn't there, but the 2 red cards seemed harsh, especially the GK's after the terrible challenge from MacDonald. As for Maguire's goal celebrations, the 2nd was fine, as it was in front of the East Stand, but I hope the management had a quiet word about the first in front of the away section; I know that if it had been the other way round, we would be incensed.
Was the new scoreboard up and working? And if so, how does it compare; I'm thinking of Fleetwood's as an example of a good one. Cricket and Ice hockey are the 2 sports I can think of where a scoreboard is a major part of the experience, but never football.
Bring back the black away shirt!
GodalmingYellow
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Re: Slumdon

Post by GodalmingYellow »

A great win from our 10 men for the first 80 minutes. I say ten men because Thomas contributed zilch. As a lone striker he is way off the pace. I think with Taylor in instead of Thomas, we would undoubtedly have won by more.

I was sceptical over the 4-2-3-1 formation before the game, but Thomas apart, it suits our squad really well and congrats to Appleton for working it out.

Having seen a video replay, the ref got our penalty right (and I thought the ref had an excellent game controlling it early on and not getting too excited with cards which might have made the game boil over). Their penalty shout wasn't in the highlights I've watched, but at the time my always reliable (ha) yellow goggles said no.

On the Macca challenge, again the video replay shows me the ref got it right. Macca went in parallel to the keeper, rather than into the keeper, with his feet trailing back, rather than feet out in front, so there was clearly only intention to get the ball and not play the man. If Macca did catch the keeper, it would only have been a slight glancing blow (which in fairness can be painful) but given the keepers reaction to get up and shove Macca in the face, he was clearly a long way from mortally wounded from the challenge. Thereby a yellow card to Macca was fair for the challenge and a red to the keeper for his reaction after the event was fair.

On the earlier red card, again the replay shows this to be a correct decision, which might even have warranted a straight red.

In terms of our play, I would say that was our best performance of the season. Yes I know we beat the Brum, but that was an early round cup tie with weakened sides. For the first time this season, we looked like a proper League 1 side capable of doing damage almost at will. Our play from midfield into attack was the best I have seen under Appleton. The passing was fast and accurate, we were always in control, the moves were incisive and cut the defence apart, and our movement was fab. We also put in the leg work for ball retrieval.

Under this new system, Rothwell looked a handful. He outshone Lunny and looked like a typical ManUre type player, strong in the tackle, but quick to counter and direct running at the opponents penalty box. A really good performance from him.

Lunny improved as the game went on and you could see him begin to gain back some confidence. Perhaps the sole defensive midfielder role doesn't suit his passing game and having Rothwell alongside gave more reassurance.

The back line were excellent. I can't see Ribeiro getting a game whilst Edwards is playing well. Raglan is a proper centre half and both he and Dunkley worked as a partnership controlling the back line perfectly.

Eastwood made a couple of decent saves when required, and his timing for coming off his line is so well judged.

I'm really loving having two quality wide inside forwards in Maguire and Johnson. Swinedown's defence really struggled to know where the next attack was coming from.

I have to save the best comments for Maguire though. I can't see him improving on that, I really can't. He was just fantastic. Best performance from an Oxford player under Appleton? Perhaps. Best performance from an Oxford player in 20 years? Perhaps.

We didn't see enough of Ledson to form any conclusions. There were no mistakes, but Swinedown were down to 10 men by then.
Taylor improved our front play noticeably when he came on.
With Maguire and Johnson in the side, Macca is now 3rd choice for his position, which shows how much the squad has improved over the last 2 weeks.

The question now is can we also be up for games at Milton Keynes? I certainly hope so as on yesterday's performance, we would be comfortable in the League. Maybe even a little more than comfortable.

Big plaudits to Appleton. He read the script and directed the performance to perfection. Days watching Oxford United don't get much better.
Kairdiff Exile
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Kairdiff Exile »

A few thoughts:

- I think people are being a bit harsh on Thomas. He's a limited player, but he knows his role and generally performs it well. Yesterday wasn't his finest hour, but one of the reasons Maguire and Johnson an do what they do is because Thomas wins the ball and they get the knock-downs. In better conditions against different opposition, Hemmings is a much better fit for the team and our style - but in the pissing rain yesterday against a physically strong Sw*ndon side, Thomas was the right call.

- Like others, I was very impressed with Rothwell and Raglan; I sincerely hope the former gets more game time and we consider securing the latter on a long-term basis (and allow Aaron Martin to join a pub team).

- Much like the Wycombe game that secured promotion, after 20 minutes yesterday I had no doubt we'd win. We adapted our game excellently to the poor conditions and showed we could play direct football when needed - and we were the only side creating chances for much of the game. We were lucky to get the penalty rather than a free-kick, but other than that I thought the ref got the big decisions bang-on.

- After the first sending off, we could quite easily have pushed on and made it 3-0 or 4-0, but it felt like both sides unspeakingly adopted a non-aggression pact. Shame no-one told Macdonald, whose rush of blood would surely have drawn a red if it hadn't been immediately over-shadowed by their goalie's petulance.

- Johnson looks the business, doesn't he?

All in all, very encouraging. I'm very excited for our next (legitimate) fixture against Charlton on 24th September.
recordmeister
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Re: Slumdon

Post by recordmeister »

Just to correct some misconceptions here:

Their keeper wasn't given a red for the Macca incident. He was given a second yellow, his first for 'approaching the ref' earlier in the game; yet another example of how good this new rule is.

However, for me his reaction was a straight red: raised hands to Maccas face. Off.

Also, what was he wearing under his shirt?!

We were clearly on the keepe from min 1 with his kicking. Whenever he had a goalkick, his defenders came back and wanted it short and our forwards did a good job of constantly running back with them and/or closing him down. And it paid off. As it happens I thought Thomas did a good job in the 1st half of always being on the keeper for back passes and always closing back with their captain who constantly came back for short goalkicks, not giving the keeper that option, the very first time it happened in the first half, if my memory serves me right, their keeper kicked out for a throw in.
Dr Bob
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Dr Bob »

Watching our penalty decision on YouTube and freeze-framing at the point of contact, both players' bodies are in the penalty area and the contact of foot on foot is on the line. The ref and lino had one go at getting it right - and they did. As GY has said, the ref did an excellent job of controlling the game, not flashing cards around and getting the players all het-up. Apparently, having refereed in the Prem last weekend, the ref (Attwell?) was brought in to do a job here. No ref is perfect, but he did an excellent job under increasingly difficult circumstances as their players progressively lost it.
Kernow Yellow
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Kernow Yellow »

Mr T wrote:I wasn't there, but the 2 red cards seemed harsh, especially the GK's after the terrible challenge from MacDonald. As for Maguire's goal celebrations, the 2nd was fine, as it was in front of the East Stand, but I hope the management had a quiet word about the first in front of the away section; I know that if it had been the other way round, we would be incensed.
Both red cards were obvious. Both players had earlier been booked for dissent (stupid lack of discipline); the first sending off was an obvious second yellow - he held his hand up and started walking before the ref even got the card out; and the second, as others have said, could have been a straight red by itself. The fact it came about by Macca trying to take his head off only made it more amusing, though the challenge looks less bad on the highlights than it did from behind the goal in real time.

Chris Maguire became an instant legend - winding up the away fans in the first few minutes, celebrating the penalty in front of them despite being showered with missiles, and then THAT second goal. And all of that on top of one of the most skillful, dominating individual performances seen in a yellow shirt for many years. What a hero. He understood what it meant to be playing Sw*ndon. Indeed the whole team seemed to get it, and that's why we won. Sw*ndon played their normal game and got found out, we raised ours and beat them comfortably. As GY says, if we could play like that every week we'd have a very good season. Let's hope Appleton drums that into them.

I'm not going to dwell on any negatives because it was such a good day. A great glimpse of what this team's capable of. Lovely.
SWA
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Re: Slumdon

Post by SWA »

"I wasn't there but the red cards seemed harsh" :roll: :lol: :lol:

As KY said above, both Scum players deserved to be dismissed - end of.
Kernow Yellow
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Kernow Yellow »

Nice write up in the Grauniad this morning:

https://www.theguardian.com/football/fo ... erby-goals
Radley Rambler
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Re: Slumdon

Post by Radley Rambler »

Kernow Yellow wrote:Nice write up in the Grauniad this morning:

https://www.theguardian.com/football/fo ... erby-goals
Good write-up but they could have perhaps got the right player in the photo.........
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