Argyle

[pottersrightboot]

Why can't Wilder be cut some slack for an appalling injury list?
With fewer injuries we would have comfortably in the play off zone.

Now is not the time to be opining on Wilder and the coaching team. The season has not ended!

[Dr Bob]

Why can't Wilder be cut some slack for an appalling injury list?
With fewer injuries we would have comfortably in the play off zone.

Now is not the time to be opining on Wilder and the coaching team. The season has not ended!

?!

How do injuries explain first-half/second-half performance issues? Or the conceding of early goals? Or the conceding of late goals and the inability to hang on to leads, or to hold on for draws?

I don't think the Midson problem was tactical - I think it is more fundamental than that, illustrative of something deeper. CW basically prefers a 4-3-3 system, with a central striker and two wider players. Having a player like Midson as a back-up for Constable is one thing, so long as you also have players for whom out wide is their best position and who can also score goals. But having a player whose best position is more central, then playing him out wide, inevitably means his performances will not be optimal.

Or, to put it another way, I am utterly unconvinced by CWs ability to acquire the right forward players to be played in the right positions in his favoured system. I would say post-Crawley JPP is exactly the sort of player we should be starting with, but...

[Joey's Toe]

Those that are saying that we are &quotbetter off&quot for another season in L2 are kind of missing the point. The only reason we would be better off is because we haven't got a squad that would be able to cope with L1 (without major investment) and, frankly, that highlights the biggest failure in Wilder's squad assembly. We SHOULD have a squad that is at least 75-80% able to make the step up.

But I think we probably do, don't we? As I said above, the first XI is probably as good as any in this league. And some of the cover (Whing over recent games being a good example) is decent too.

I'd say 75% of the squad is good enough to challenge at this level and cope in Div 3 - where we fall short is that the remaining 25% (Worley was the example I mentioned, but there are others) are probably Conference standard. Filling out the squad with better players, along with quality returnees like Capaldi and Chapman should mean we are in a significantly stronger position next season without having to tinker too much with the first XI.

And GY, thanks for your generous response. I suppose my point is simply that because of all the factors I listed, I wouldn't see finishing one position outside of the play-offs this year as 'falling short'. I accept that this probably is because of lower expectations on my part, but I think this season has been a reasonable one. We've played some good stuff at times, have done the double over the champions, coped with some squad challenges (bad injuries, the Chapman situation, Beano's inexplicable loss of form) and have come close. And I still think we will win another promotion under Wilder at some point.

[Myles Francis]

Those that are saying that we are &quotbetter off&quot for another season in L2 are kind of missing the point. The only reason we would be better off is because we haven't got a squad that would be able to cope with L1 (without major investment) and, frankly, that highlights the biggest failure in Wilder's squad assembly. We SHOULD have a squad that is at least 75-80% able to make the step up.

But I think we probably do, don't we? As I said above, the first XI is probably as good as any in this league. And some of the cover (Whing over recent games being a good example) is decent too.

I'd say 75% of the squad is good enough to challenge at this level and cope in Div 3 - where we fall short is that the remaining 25% (Worley was the example I mentioned, but there are others) are probably Conference standard. Filling out the squad with better players, along with quality returnees like Capaldi and Chapman should mean we are in a significantly stronger position next season without having to tinker too much with the first XI.

I'm not convinced of that to be honest. Taking a nominal starting XI and bench of seven, in terms of making the step-up I'd say:

Clarke - Yes
Davis - Yes
Wright - Yes
Duberry - No (more about age than ability)
Batt - No
Whing - Possible
Chapman - Yes
Hall - Possible
Craddock - Possible
Constable - Possible
Smalley - Possible

Capaldi - Lord knows!
Heslop - Possible
Tonkin - No
Worley - Possible cover
Potter - No
Leven - Yes
Pittman - Possible

Many of those I've marked as possibles are those I haven't seen enough of to form a proper judgement, or simply haven't been consistent enough to justify a higher grade (which, I guess, could be argued that they should be a &quotno&quot).

[ty cobb]

Having not been to a game sine Christmas due to being the other side of the world my view is purely based on what I can read on the Internet.

At the start of the season if someone had said we'd beat the scum home and
away and be up and in the play offs before narrowly missing out I think I'd have thought that would be acceptable albeit a little annoying.

This is likely to be our highest league finish since we got relegated from league 1 some 15 years ago, any manager should get credit for this. That said I agree with yf dan and have been saying it for sometime we need an attacking coach, strikers don't improve when playing for us and I think the treatment of beano this season by the club has been a disgrace and the reason for his lack of confidence, instead of treating him as the clubs most important player we've been trying to offload him and dropping him for loanees who are unlikely to be here next season, no wonder his form has dropped.

I really don't understand the negativity and booing going on at the moment, we are in with a great shout for the play offs and hopefully when I return to England for port vale we will clinch a spot, instead of defending the players from fans wilder should be talking about the 100% support the team is getting.

COYY

[joepoolman]

I'm just gonna second what Joey's Toe and Smiley Man have said.

[pottersrightboot]

Why can't Wilder be cut some slack for an appalling injury list?
With fewer injuries we would have comfortably in the play off zone.

Now is not the time to be opining on Wilder and the coaching team. The season has not ended!

?!

How do injuries explain first-half/second-half performance issues? Or the conceding of early goals? Or the conceding of late goals and the inability to hang on to leads, or to hold on for draws?

I don't think the Midson problem was tactical - I think it is more fundamental than that, illustrative of something deeper. CW basically prefers a 4-3-3 system, with a central striker and two wider players. Having a player like Midson as a back-up for Constable is one thing, so long as you also have players for whom out wide is their best position and who can also score goals. But having a player whose best position is more central, then playing him out wide, inevitably means his performances will not be optimal.

Or, to put it another way, I am utterly unconvinced by CWs ability to acquire the right forward players to be played in the right positions in his favoured system. I would say post-Crawley JPP is exactly the sort of player we should be starting with, but...

?! to you too.

Way too harsh on Wilder.

Pittman has been hardly fit since his return from loan. Nor has Craddock. Potter has been in plaster sonce the end of January.

Craddock is a finisher. Potter was having a very decent season.

I repeat. If we'd had two of these three firing for the majority of the season we'd be six or seven points better off.

[Dr Bob]

Why can't Wilder be cut some slack for an appalling injury list?
With fewer injuries we would have comfortably in the play off zone.

Now is not the time to be opining on Wilder and the coaching team. The season has not ended!

?!

How do injuries explain first-half/second-half performance issues? Or the conceding of early goals? Or the conceding of late goals and the inability to hang on to leads, or to hold on for draws?

I don't think the Midson problem was tactical - I think it is more fundamental than that, illustrative of something deeper. CW basically prefers a 4-3-3 system, with a central striker and two wider players. Having a player like Midson as a back-up for Constable is one thing, so long as you also have players for whom out wide is their best position and who can also score goals. But having a player whose best position is more central, then playing him out wide, inevitably means his performances will not be optimal.

Or, to put it another way, I am utterly unconvinced by CWs ability to acquire the right forward players to be played in the right positions in his favoured system. I would say post-Crawley JPP is exactly the sort of player we should be starting with, but...

?! to you too.

Way too harsh on Wilder.

Pittman has been hardly fit since his return from loan. Nor has Craddock. Potter has been in plaster sonce the end of January.

Craddock is a finisher. Potter was having a very decent season.

I repeat. If we'd had two of these three firing for the majority of the season we'd be six or seven points better off.

Doesn't address my ?! Moreover, even accounting for those three named players, if you think I am being harsh on CW why have the multiple loanees not offset their absence?

[Snake]

Excuse me for interrupting*, but some of this is getting a bit negative and in particular this theory about it being better than last year because if we’ll lose out on the play-offs by less points than last time that makes it an improvement on last season, or if we go do up (mainly from TiU Mk II) we’re not good enough to stay up in League I, even given the extra Play-Offs and Wembley revenue.

How many years has it been since OUFC played in the third tier of English football and is everyone happy with that?

I'll be mighty pissed off if I have to cancel my hotel booking in London on May 27th.

* = as I don’t go to that many OUFC games these days

[Brahma Bull]

We can do nothing but support the players, manager and club at this time and for anyone to suggest 'we' don't is detatched from reality. Even the negative posters in the main, only want success or something close to it.

I just want to debate this chronic injury crisis we have had which apparently is the main reason for our current stuttering results and form.

Alf Potter - a box of tricks between the halfway line and the edge of the penalty box. Has little end product, scored a flukey goal at Burton and hasn't done much else this season. I don't think we've missed him that much, Montano has contributed more than him.

Tommy Craddock a justified claim.

Michael Duberry's absence was hard on us. Peter Leven not being fit till August but then we did sign him injured. Since his other layoffs the bloke was missing form, again did we miss him? Chappy has done ok to bridge that gap.

Ryan Clarke has missed two games. His injury has not contributed to our general position.

JPP's injury is grabbing at straws. Not in the side due to his attitude, sent out on loan, came back and hardly set the world alight. Another not missed.
Calpadi another who can't be justified. His replacement, Davis, has been a season highlight.

It's an excuse in my view as only Craddock, Lev and Dubes have harmed us, with two of those seeing the club do well and remained in the hunt.

[joepoolman]

Alf Potter - a box of tricks between the halfway line and the edge of the penalty box. Has little end product, scored a flukey goal at Burton and hasn't done much else this season. I don't think we've missed him that much, Montano has contributed more than him.

Ignoring the other bits that you said, have a look at this:

&quotfluke

1.
an accidental advantage stroke of good luck: He got the job by a fluke.
2.
an accident or chance happening.
3.
an accidentally successful stroke, as in billiards.&quot

Notice the key word is accident, or accidental. I'm pretty sure he didn't accidentally take on all those players, or that this shot was meant to be a cross.
Adam Chapman's goal v Torquay was a fluke because he wasn't trying to score, he did it accidentally while trying to cross. And I agree that he probably doesn't score enough, and an end product isn't always great but he has done a lot of damage to teams, and always showed a spark every game so for me your criticisms are pretty harsh.

Surely a player that makes 10 oppertunities (for himself) but only produces an end product to six of them is better than one who makes 4 oppertunities for himself and makes an end product each time? (Although I'm guessing you'll say he doesn't make that many oppertunities.

[Baboo]

Alf Potter - a box of tricks between the halfway line and the edge of the penalty box. Has little end product, scored a flukey goal at Burton and hasn't done much else this season. I don't think we've missed him that much, Montano has contributed more than him.

Ignoring the other bits that you said, have a look at this:

&quotfluke

1.
an accidental advantage stroke of good luck: He got the job by a fluke.
2.
an accident or chance happening.
3.
an accidentally successful stroke, as in billiards.&quot

Notice the key word is accident, or accidental. I'm pretty sure he didn't accidentally take on all those players, or that this shot was meant to be a cross.
Adam Chapman's goal v Torquay was a fluke because he wasn't trying to score, he did it accidentally while trying to cross.

To call that goal a fluke when it was a highly skilled piece of work is bordering on the criminal. The fact that he usually has a crap end product has no relevance whatsoever to this wonder goal. But isn't this just typical of the negativity that many are heaping on the football club at present. If we can talk anything down and put a dampener on the good stuff - let's do it. Getting sick of it.

[Ancient Colin]

I thought a fluke was a whale's tail?

[Brahma Bull]

Alf Potter - a box of tricks between the halfway line and the edge of the penalty box. Has little end product, scored a flukey goal at Burton and hasn't done much else this season. I don't think we've missed him that much, Montano has contributed more than him.

Ignoring the other bits that you said, have a look at this:

&quotfluke

1.
an accidental advantage stroke of good luck: He got the job by a fluke.
2.
an accident or chance happening.
3.
an accidentally successful stroke, as in billiards.&quot

Notice the key word is accident, or accidental. I'm pretty sure he didn't accidentally take on all those players, or that this shot was meant to be a cross.
Adam Chapman's goal v Torquay was a fluke because he wasn't trying to score, he did it accidentally while trying to cross.

To call that goal a fluke when it was a highly skilled piece of work is bordering on the criminal. The fact that he usually has a crap end product has no relevance whatsoever to this wonder goal. But isn't this just typical of the negativity that many are heaping on the football club at present. If we can talk anything down and put a dampener on the good stuff - let's do it. Getting sick of it.

Did he mean it then? He stumbled past some wavering legs and turned himself inside out before hitting it into the bottom goal. He's hardly Messi.

It's an opinion anyway, happy for you to disagree with me. He generally has no end product, sorry Baboo, it's an opinion.

As for implying I am negative, negative I am not. If you want me to talk positives then lets discuss Clarke, Duberry, Davis, Whing, Asa and may I suggest Dean Morgan. Or the commercial department, the great backing our fans give and 3100|| season tickets sold for 2012/13. Plus many more.

[Baboo]

Did he mean it then? He stumbled past some wavering legs and turned himself inside out before hitting it into the bottom goal. He's hardly Messi.

It's an opinion anyway, happy for you to disagree with me. He generally has no end product, sorry Baboo, it's an opinion.

As for implying I am negative, negative I am not. If you want me to talk positives then lets discuss Clarke, Duberry, Davis, Whing, Asa and may I suggest Dean Morgan. Or the commercial department, the great backing our fans give and 3100|| season tickets sold for 2012/13. Plus many more.

There are plenty of positives - yes agree. And I agree about Dean Morgan. And I agree that Alfie has little end product but that goal was a piece of pure skill. You saw it as a &quotstumble&quot I saw it as a some excellent dribbling wizardry. Just cos he has only done it once should not be overlooked. And not wanting to state the obvious - there's only one Lionel Messi, although even he ain't going to win much this season.
I'd say Alfie's goal is second to Leven's half way line effort in our goal of the season.

As has been said over and over, everyone is entitled to their opinion but it did come over to me as really negative at a time when there's too much of that about by far for my liking with no justifiable reason.

Let's see what Saturday brings - one thing is for sure it won't be a goal from Alfie.