derry

If you get to the ground about 2pm there is loads of parking on the Northam side of Freeborn. One place on the corner by the burger van is under cover £5. Just past Elliotts turn right before you get to Freeborn and there are car parking signs every where. About 200 yds from ground. HTH.

The central midfield was adequate with the way those players were performing. Now Barnard probably won't be seen until after the new year, Lambert has one goal from play and no gamechanging Waigo/Antonio. The central midfield is one of the problems, but to follow the Chairmans ambition of building a Championship winning side coming out of this division, we need a new goalkeeper, centre back, two central midfielders, two wide players, at least one striker and all of the outfield players need to be quick and athletic because without that we are deluding ourselves if we think the present team is going anywhere. I would see Schneiderlin, Puncheon, Mills, Wotton going with Lambert a possible but Lallana unlikely to go because we know he is happy with Adkins. Some of the above recruited in January may get us out of the division. Either way I see big changes in personnel. Interestingly the Chairman remarked that there are players that they are desperate to unload and even though we offered to pay 100% of their wages could get no takers.

Waigo, Antonio, Barnard, Lallana, Lambert, Puncheon all performing.

If we can dominate and carve up the opposing defence we can destabilise the oppositions attack as Brentford did to us on Saturday. Richardson Martin Seabourne and Dickson with Fonte available if pressed would be stronger rather than weaker and certainly give us more aerial power.

You obviously don't grasp the significance of rapidly overloading the opponents defence, as it sucks attacking players back, additionally if we can't defend with the back four together with defending from the front if the ball is lost, we will never be a decent attacking team. The central midfield is slow to close down, doesn't pressurise quickly enough and when in possession lacks the drive needed to get up in attack. Lambert is overloaded and marked out of it without much support and until the the wide players get behind the defences regularly, and the strikers get support from the midfield we aren't going to score a lot of goals. Lambert is not quick or mobile so the movement and penetration to open things up has to be supplied by others. The static midfield we had on saturday is just stifleing the life out of the team.

At the moment we are not playing the pass and move football that Adkins and Cortese want. We tried to, but Davis has no idea how to start playing from the back, more often than not because of his indecision and delay, passes to a player already closed down.This is why he takes so long and invariably kicks long. He wastes as much time as the Brighton keeper did on purpose. If we want to play passing football, there has to be instantaneous release to players expecting the pass, ready to move it on to players already on the move. The central midfield's pass and stand style also ends up with the ball back with Davis as soon as we are closed down, due to the slowness of the passing. We are going to have to bring in players that play this way and then Adkins can be judged. This has to include a goalkeeper that is part of the defence and moves the ball on quickly.

Part of Lambert's problem is that he is not playing up on the last defenders, together with the wide men not getting enough crosses from the byeline. When Lambert gets the ball aimed up at him he often wins the flick on, but even though it is obvious it is going goal side, we get nobody gambling. As soon as the ball is hit up towards Lambert, the second striker and the wide man on that side should be running behind him anticipating the flick on and the two central midfielders should be busting a gut to get up in support. Instead we get everybody ball watching with little movement. The two central midfielders are the biggest problem because neither bust a gut to do anything and are comfort zone players. What would I do? I'd play Fonte alongside Chaplow (Hammond if Chaplow is injured) in central midfield and bring in Martin alongside Seabourne at the back. Richardson and Dickson at fullback with Chamberlain Lambert (as far up as possible) Guly and Lallana with Bialkowski in goal. Fonte is aggressive and a leader and gets into the box, gives us three central defenders at set pieces and should be the captain. Unless we get some aggression and movement into the side we are going to struggle to win enough games until we can get some reinforcements in. Saturday was awful but the central midfield's lack of bite is the problem and unless that is changed we are in for more of the same.

Adkins hasn't been here very long but this is his first defeat at SMS along with two draws, 24 points overall from 14 games. Why haven't I criticised him? Because his teams have always played good passing football and because some of the players on the team are incapable of playing this way forcing him to compromise until he can add the players to make a difference. Pardew last season had the very quick Waigo and Antonio plus Lambert scoring, backed up by Lallana and Barnard also scoring. On Saturday Lambert yet again, except for dead ball situations got nowhere near the opponents goal and again provided no evidence that he will be able to score anytime soon. Barnard is out with a hernia, Fonte the only competent centerback suspended. Obviously the missing Chaplow was brought in as Adkins didn't think the center midfield was mobile enough which again it proved. Nobody could argue with Mills out on loan as he was third choice and wouldn't have played. Wotton is not an alternative either. A fit and performing Puncheon is missed but his history of changing clubs regularly doesn't mark him down as being the real answer. Adkins is going to have to change almost half the present team to get us promotion as we are far too fragile at the moment. Barnard, and Chaplow fit will help plus Fonte back but new athletic, quick players are needed plus a dominant goalkeeper. Schneiderlin seems to view passing the ball as the be all and end all of his game, his positional play shows no intent to attack and his defensive abilities are equally poor. Hammond works hard but is not quick and alongside Schneiderlin gives us a weak, static central midfield. Chamberlain is a seventeen year old with massive potential learning how to play league football and should really be having the odd start, plus regular appearances from the bench, not be the only wide right midfielder. The squad would be strong if we can bring in the necessary players to add to the present players and get Lambert back on track but until we do we are on a knife edge. It would be wrong to criticise Adkins because all he has is the part of Pardew's squad that is left plus Chaplow. Apart from Richardson, Dickson, Harding, Chaplow, Chamberlain and Guly the rest are pretty slow so we have to rectify that. Lallana isn't quick but more than makes up for that with his general all round ability.

I have never rated Davis as he is purely a linebound shotstopper. The biggest criticism I have is that he shows poor judgement and is flaky. He doesn't come off his line to dominate the box and undermines his defence by indecision. I will be glad when he is gone and we have a proper goalkeeper. At fault today and showed all his shortcomings without the shotstopping. The central midfield was appalling. The last thing we need is two pedestrian negative players. Schneiderlin is a luxury we can't afford in the face of mobile athleticism. His sole thought is to unload the ball and move sideways. We need athleticism, pace, forward driving movement and aggression from our midfield not comfort zone meaningless, slow, square and backward buildups allowing defences to consolidate. We were dominated today by an aggressive, athletic, hard working side but with a decent goalkeeper might still have got something out of the game. IMO we need a keeper, centre back, two central midfielders, two strikers, and two wide players. We are a very slow side, lacking pace, so from now on it should be a requirement that any player we sign to get us out of the Championship (stated aim of club's transfer strategy.) must be athletic and quick.

So highly tuned that they can stay out drinking until the early hours. Footballers compared with real athletes are nowhere near highly tuned. Secondly it is easy to write off history and think that the old time players couldn't compete. Believe me there was much more character, toughness and physical hardness in the 50s to 70s partly because all the players served national service. The present crop of overpaid, mollycoddled woosers would be kicked off the park in tears by the old timers. Given the same training regimes the old timers would be far superior because of the spartan upbringing and the national discipline together with poor pay giving them a hardness that few players today possess.

An idiot to be where he was in the early hours, an idiot to put himself in that position, but faced with a pasting from a professional boxer he was no idiot to defend himself the best way he could.

In the Premier, and I agree about the fitness in the 60s, no substitutes, and virtually the same team week in week out. Present day players wouldn't survive the tackling or the pitches.

Absolutely.

More likely, the way things were at the club with Pardew's relationship deteriorating with both Cortese and the development people we were set for implosion. In any case Adkins is a better manager. Pardew didn't embrace the technology available but Adkins does.

Happy Christmas Bill.

Sorry not very good with the computer but surely this post is suppose to be a joke !! Why would that be? Ted built the club, Markus Liebherr saved it, is still keeping it going as his family legacy and his plan is very much alive including the training ground development. He died long before his dream was fulfilled but for me he has contributed immeasureably to the club's existence and future. A statue would be appropriate.

I think that the writer mixed up N'Doye with N'Daye. I think he would be exchanging one bench for another. With us if Adkins rated him he would be playing and that would be all important.

Because they are going to need it. It will be interesting to see how he tries to play. He says that the target is to stay in the Premier, however he is a safety first manager and that won't go down well at SJP unless the results are good. Rather them than us. Happy Christmas Colin.

Why not indeed. Happy Christmas Bert.

This seems strange as we had agreed a fee for him to join us at the end of his loan. It could be that Fiorentina think there is interest out thereand are trying to auction him, but not playing him isn't going to help get a big fee for him. If we are the only bidders, along with our ability to write a cheque out, providing Nigel Adkins is convinced, it could be that we would become a possibility. His agent is obviously trying to get him a new club and I suspect he is talking to us. He would be a great signing even with a right sided 4-4-2 in mind.

Excellent coverage from our three lucky posters. This confirms some of the things about Nicola Cortese that have come from someone who worked for him and is still at the club. A demanding boss who treats those who respond to his requirements well. It sounds as though he has a good grip on the requirements to make this a great club. He has my support. A statue as company for the great Ted Bates would be a good gesture especially if the fans could contribute something towards it.

If we get to the Premier we are going to have to have it

Not according to Adam Lallana who was surprised how fit and strong he was at pre season due to training over the close season.

Maybe a bit of planning was in order, If there is a group why don't one of you take everybody's customer number and book all the tickets early, which is what I do for my group so we always sit together in our usual seats. There is no trouble getting usual seats if one books as soon as possible. I would prefer a period for season ticket holders to claim their seat but it is as well to be prepared if that doesn't happen.

At least he will gurantee them mid table in the Championship by the middle of next season. The Toon fans will love his narrow long ball game. At least £2m for Lambert. Who else could he take? Fonte.