"Snake" wrote:"Ascension Ox" wrote:"Snake" wrote:Now that things are back to normal on this board, has there ever been a better time to trot out the fringe squad and youth players for a game than this one against York?
Hey, we may even win the match, which would be great, but if we don’t then so what?
Good job Wilder picks the side and not you. You're on a wind up again, shirley?
Nope, but tell me, how else is Wilder going to find out for himself whether the youth banging on the door of the first team are good enough to keep, or confirm those who Mickey Lewis reckons are not good enough to keep next season? Play them in the reserves??? Oh, I forgot, WPL got rid of the second team.
Anyway, I’d like to see Sappleton and Fisher start up front with Hinchliffe in goal.
For the others perm 8 from Groves, Day, Hutch, Murray, the two new loanees, Bennett, Dobson, Haldane, Sampson.
And if things go seriously tits up after an hour then on the bench I’d have Constable, Turley, Odubade, Foster and Clarke.
All in all, it’s a tinpot cup competition and we’re playing a non-league team with home advantage in front of about 1800 of our fans and 18 of theirs.
I cannot believe that people still believe that making the youth team (plus perhaps one or two out of favour senior players) travel half way across the country midweek to get hammered by a team of Championship play off side fringe players is somehow going to solve all our problems!
We have played as many friendlies this season as many of the reserve teams in our old league have played fixtures, but on our terms and when we want them, not when we have to against mismatched sides which helps no-one.
Our youth team have not missed out on their development have they? - two years back they won their league and many played nearly every reserve game, yet none have gone on to mark their mark in our senior side. Since we dropped the reserves and allowed the youngsters to work more in training both on their own and with the seniors (as opposed to missing time resting for/playing/recovering from reserve fixtures) we have seen a steady trickle into the senior reckoning...
There is a case for including more of them in the squad for the game on Saturday, but not for flooding the starting XI with them. Play the team you suggest and it will be chaos, with little senior experience to hold them together, plus a mix of people who have barely met before trying to play a game - win or lose, this will not teach Wilder much in any case.
Maybe put one or two in to start, with experience alongside them to help and organise them, make sure we win the game to keep the home momentum and morale up, then introduce one or two more late on as circumstances allow - we'll be more competitive and Wilder will probably learn more about his squad.
Right, having now bitten, I shall stop chewing and disappear under my rock again...