St. Ciervo

My money is on Sulemana leaving and miraculously being healed. From the 1 minute of highlights I have seen, Rothwell is not afraid to take players on to create good scoring chances (similar to Sulemana's front-footed swagger).

...That is soooo last year... Its cool to be positive on saintsweb now.

Having Fraser and KWP marauding down the flanks is just too much for teams. I am loving every minute of this season.

How is Adams out there before Dibling on a 2-0 lead against a random league 2 team? And again... Sign Fraser permanently NOW.

Great pass from Alcaraz to start the move... Great finish from Mara. Lol.

Make Fraser permanent! The man is our best finisher, hands down. What were the odds that Adams didn't pound that into the stands if in the same position?

I mean, I don't hate it. It would reduce out GA each year by at least 2...

Yeah, yeah, yeah... You don't like him. We have heard your insufferable opinion plenty over the past 34 pages, Eeyore. He has been playing top-quality football for the better part of the season, and all I hear is, "Last year...blah blah blah." Last year was a wreck from the goal box to the owner's box. The fact that his confidence is in tact speaks for how strong this kid is mentally. And, my god, he is getting better by the day. Get off his back and go be miserable elsewhere. Try to enjoy our run while it lasts, even if that is against your nature.

Are Baz haters still talking about THAT goal? He should have absolutely stopped that final shot. However, we shouldn't have even been in a position to win the game; he kept us in it. You may say he lost us 2 points, but I'd say he earned us 1 pt. I'd repeat that again for the mid-week game. There is a lot of other players for haters to move onto. If Baz had taken that throw-in like Alcaraz, I'd be reading entire spreadsheets about how he is subpar in whatever category.

I fully expected to hear the nonsense answer: The Circle of Trust. Thank you for sharing! 2-0 Saints. Just locking that in for Convict...he must be away doing something better with his life...

When a save looks routine, it means the goalie did EVERYTHING right. He made that one on one save beautifully by cutting down the angle and closing holes. Looked routine and robotic, but it was hardly either.

Ill take the point. Stings like a loss, but we really should have lost.

I didn't think it was all that bad considering we were practically playing with 10 men. Alcaraz might as well be picking daisies out there...

Jesus in goal would not have saved us last year, I'm sorry.

...

Another good game from Baz today. Excellent reactionary save on the line through the scramble in front. To the normal questions... I do believe WBA would trade keepers today. I have no reason to believe their keeper would have stopped that final flurry of opportunities, and Baz's distribution was far more confident and well-placed through the majority.

Locked in for 2-0 Saints now that you gave up on that...

Last minute goals are what we need when we can't hold a lead for 5 minutes.

I guess thats the main point in the rest of my post, Clark. Unless in a cup tie, he will not be asked to do what that goalie did to us. Baz will instead be tasked with ball movement and handling high-percentage, odd-man rushes. This is not an endearing system for a keeper. We can agree on a single wish that our younger keeper wasnt in net each game because it is going to crush his confidence in himself, and a goalie needs to be full of hot air. I am afraid for his development with our club because he is going to look like a sieve on many occasions and our fanbase will tear into him. There is no pressure on a goalie going into a game against us in this league. If they get lit up, it was expected. If they stand on their head, they look like a god. For Baz, his best hope is a game where he stopped the 2 shots he was "expected to make," otherwise he's trashed. Its a shitty place to be.

This is categorically false. I was a hockey goaltender in major juniors across the pond... I was guilty of exactly what you said here. I would make an outstanding save and then let a howler in later on. Because of that, you will never know or recognize my name. You must be consistent and make the obvious saves; flashy saves are a distant second. A brutal goal against deflates a team and steamrolls any momentum. Also, baz can get a clean sheet and get 0 love on here. No one, especially Clark, will give him a tip of the cap at this point. So dont tell me Clark and friends will be on here 30 seconds after a howler to say it was "okay." Baz will not be asked to stand on his head with our quality of team this year. He will, however, be tasked with some quick counters after turnovers in difficult spots. I would argue that any goalie in this system is going to be hung out to dry.

I think our new style of football is partially to blame for this save percentage. Baz gets left out to dry with high percentage shots often. Swansea had a terrible GA, as well. I would love to see him make more of the saves; that's undeniable. But some of you cry as though he is our main problem, and I don't think that is fair. Do you really think either of our other goalies would do better? If so, why are they not being played?

The man gets a clean sheet and this thread goes nearly silent... 🙄

And of course, Janny B gets out of the way of the ball and has his palms towards the sky moments later.

WTF are we seeing right now? A Armstrong has all of the confidence... Leeds defense is porous on all fronts... What a fine afternoon we are having

I have always considered myself a "forever-optimist." Even with that in mind, 2-4 Leeds. This team is feckless and seemingly apathetic in the kindest of terms.