Wombling free

[GodalmingYellow]

Prior to last night, I am told (though I haven't checked) that we had won only 5 league games out of the last 27 and we had lost a club record 6 in a row.

I posted this before Tuesday's game

Since the turn of the year and prior to Tuesday night we have played 31 League games and 3 cup games, the figures are thus.

League games
Won 10
Drawn 10
Lost 11

Cup Games
Won 2
Lost 1

The last 27 games prior to Tuesday look like this.
Won 10
Drawn 6
Lost 11

The last 27 League games results prior to Tuesday are
Won 9
Drawn 8
Lost 10

Full Results for 2012 are

League
Won 11
Drawn 8
Lost 12

Cup
Won 2
Lost 1

Total
Won 13
Drawn 8
Lost 13

If you want to manufacture a bad stat that includes 5 wins prior to Tuesday night then it is thus

League
Played 18
Won 5
Drawn 4
Lost 9

All games
Played 18
Won 5
Drawn 3
Lost 10

If you want a better stat that includes 5 wins then of the last 11 games we have
Won 5
Lost 6
Those figures are the same both prior to and after Tuesday night

League games only
Played 17
Won 5
Drawn 3
Lost 9
That, however, includes Tuesday night. Prior to Tuesday the good and the bad stats are the same.

I don't know whether 6 League defeats in a row is a club record or not.

Statfest over.

For now.

Thanks for clarifying that and saving me the job A-Ro!

I'm sure all but the die hard Wilder adorers would agree that those stats still make miserable reading. Even so, the stats are not the foundation of the argument, the problems are more fundamental than that, as has already been described.

[recordmeister]

Beano remains our highest scorer every season he has been with us, including the league seasons. Craddock, Potter, Pitman and Smalley do not come close...

Didn't Craddock finish 1 goal behind Beano in our 1st season back in the league? Hardly 'not coming close'.

[GodalmingYellow]

Beano remains our highest scorer every season he has been with us, including the league seasons. Craddock, Potter, Pitman and Smalley do not come close...

Didn't Craddock finish 1 goal behind Beano in our 1st season back in the league? Hardly 'not coming close'.

It was 2 behind Beano according to RO stats.

Beano has scored 80 goals for us in 193 appearances (41.5%) that's close to 20 per season on average which is pretty good by anyone's standard
Craddock has scored just 18 goals in 63 appearances (28.6%) that's less than 9 per season on average and at some point you just have to accept that he isn't the great finisher that some seem to think he is.

[Ancient Colin]

Craddock's career goals for games is 0.39 Constable's is 0.36 (I didn't count Chippenham Town in that ....

[Sideshow Rob]

I thought we passed it around quite well. If Clarke had stared we would have won at a canter, well 3-1 at least.

[Kernow Yellow]

I must say that I do find it a bit odd that the last two games (a win and a loss) has resulted in some poeple on here moving into the Wilder out camp, are we now expecting nothing less than being unbeaten for the next 5 games to save him - if so he may as well go now as that ain't going to happen.

I'm not (fully) in the Wilder Out camp yet. But the point is that we need to push on from Tuesday night. Scraping past a very poor team at home proves nothing. It would be wrong to say: 'the next few games are going to be tough - it doesn't matter if we lose them'.

In order to prove that he should continue to be manager of this club, CW needs to show that he can organise and motivate the players to beat (or at least not lose to) the better clubs in this division, as well as the very poorest. And I really hope he does that. But if he doesn't, I for one will not accept any more excuses. We should have enough fit players of perfectly reasonable quality to be able to compete against most teams, and I think we'll see pretty quickly whether or not Wilder is able to get them to do so - whether Tuesday was a corner turned, or a false dawn.

[GodalmingYellow]

Craddock's career goals for games is 0.39 Constable's is 0.36 (I didn't count Chippenham Town in that ....

Unless I am doing something silly, according to Soccerbase, Craddocks is 36.1 and Constable's is 39.1 even counting Chippenham!

Not that it makes a blind bit of difference how well Craddock did for Luton. Its only how well he does for us that I care about.

[Ancient Colin]

Fair enough, I just grabbed from Wikepedia I'm afraid. But equally, it doesn't make a blind bit of difference how well Beano performed in the Conference if he now can't score regularly in League Two, does it? Particularly in a system that requires him to be able to play with his back to goal much of the time given that he can trap the ball like a sieve can catch water.

[GodalmingYellow]

Fair enough, I just grabbed from Wikepedia I'm afraid. But equally, it doesn't make a blind bit of difference how well Beano performed in the Conference if he now can't score regularly in League Two, does it? Particularly in a system that requires him to be able to play with his back to goal much of the time given that he can trap the ball like a sieve can catch water.

Is trapping the ball the only requirement of a striker?

Should we force our best players into a system which doesn't make the most of their capabilities, or should we use a system to get the best from our players?

[Dr Bob]

I think there is another point here that both GY and AC contribute stats to. Over many years, why is it that on too many occasions strikers seem to score fewer/less regular goals for us than they did before arriving or after leaving us? Midson is but the most recent of many such players over the years (whether I am misremembering or not, Andy Thomson is one who always sticks in my mind for this).

[Myles Francis]

Over many years, why is it that on too many occasions strikers seem to score fewer/less regular goals for us than they did before arriving or after leaving us? Midson is but the most recent of many such players over the years (whether I am misremembering or not, Andy Thomson is one who always sticks in my mind for this).

It would be interesting to do some sort of analysis on this to see if there is a significant trend here long term. Short term though, I think Midson and Craddock are victims of the system. Midson is/was a centre forward, not a wide player (although I note that he was played wide midfield on Tuesday?). I'd argue that Craddock is a central striker and also not a wide player. They are also players schooled in 442 and 433 simply does not come naturally. Players at this level are, by definition, limited and less likely to adapt to &quotnew&quot formations. Could you imagine a team at this level playing a formation with no real striker a la Barcelona? No, me either.

To echo GY's comment. if you're adamant on playing a given formation, you have to select the players to fit and, to a significant extent, Wilder has failed to do this.

[recordmeister]

I think there is another point here that both GY and AC contribute stats to. Over many years, why is it that on too many occasions strikers seem to score fewer/less regular goals for us than they did before arriving or after leaving us? Midson is but the most recent of many such players over the years (whether I am misremembering or not, Andy Thomson is one who always sticks in my mind for this).

Funny you should mention AT. I went to see Queen of the South play on Sat (don't ask... and they claim one of their stands was 'built from the money for AT'. Speaking of QotS, the had a very good young center-back and a very good young forward. And they played great football, for a Scottish L2 side 442, getting the ball out to wingers... they've won 11 of 12 this season (drawing the other) and beat L3 Rangers at Ibrox in the cup. Oh, and it's the chaps 1st job in management. Just saying, like...

[SmileyMan]

Fair enough, I just grabbed from Wikepedia I'm afraid. But equally, it doesn't make a blind bit of difference how well Beano performed in the Conference if he now can't score regularly in League Two, does it? Particularly in a system that requires him to be able to play with his back to goal much of the time given that he can trap the ball like a sieve can catch water.

Is trapping the ball the only requirement of a striker?

Nope, but would you trust an accountant who couldn't add up?

[GodalmingYellow]

Fair enough, I just grabbed from Wikepedia I'm afraid. But equally, it doesn't make a blind bit of difference how well Beano performed in the Conference if he now can't score regularly in League Two, does it? Particularly in a system that requires him to be able to play with his back to goal much of the time given that he can trap the ball like a sieve can catch water.

Is trapping the ball the only requirement of a striker?

Nope, but would you trust an accountant who couldn't add up?

There are a lot of accountants I just wouldn't trust!

I take the point but a footballer is chosen firstly (though certainly not exclusively) on ability to put the ball in the net.

[OUFC4eva]

I take the point but a footballer is chosen firstly (though certainly not exclusively) on ability to put the ball in the net.

really ?