derry

It didn't need an opinion. We were garbage for an hour. The manager changed nothing at half time. Wotton was awful and Schneiderlin alongside him was almost as bad, consequently we had no link up. We had one passing move in the first half and the first 15 minutes of the second half was as bad. Waigo came on, the lights came on, Schneiderlin and Holmes suddenly had an outlet and from there we started to play. The last 30 mins wasn't half bad. Waigo is a good player, terrific movement and pace, a good touch and passed the ball, what a difference he made. The disapointing thing is he didn't get much credit from Pardew. Antonio isn't in the same class, poor touch, little end product, flatters to deceive, doesn't seem to know where he should go, yet he starts regularly. Waigo is an infinitely better player and looks like a real footballer. Pardew set it up negatively again. There was no need for Wotton and Waigo should start, so should Gillet instead of Wotton. We won't make the playoffs playing negative crap.

And Terry Paine, George O'Brien and John Sydenham wouldn't. If that team could murder Man City 5-1 at Maine Rd it could handle our lot. FFS we don't even play as a team just humping it up to Lambert. We need to put that right first.

He spends a lot more time inside than out wide. He also is usually getting back out wide when the midfield receive the ball, he hardly ever gets wide first. It is a waste of time moving wide after we have the ball, he needs to be wide to receive the ball immediately we get it. Because Ron is friends with his father and talks to him at the match, we tend to watch him very closely. We also know how he is told to play before the game.

If you wanted to take that a stage further the 1959/60 Saints side would murder this lot. They scored for fun. Paine, O'Brien, Reeves, Mulgrew/Clifton and Sydenham were lethal.

If Pardew keeps playing James with everybody fit and we don't win the playoffs he will be out of a job. James is not good enough. We need to set our sights a lot higher than him he is reserve quality only. We also need to replace the centre midfield as all round that isn't up to it either, unless the wide players make it better.

Maybe the question should be which would be the best squad under Pardew, Grayson or Lambert, that might be the difference.

Probably, and I hope not, it's more pace we need not less. If Pardew is serious about the play offs we need to go for it, not put a team out to stop the other side. We won't win 15 games with the likes of James as an attacker.

It's how we use them that counts. Up to now it has been pretty negative and unimaginative.

He is a decent footballer, fairly combative and not slow, breaks forward well and scores goals, he is a natural left footer and fairly tall, there is no reason at all why he couldn't play central midfield. Does Pardew have the imagination to try it out? No, but I personally would like to see it tried if only to answer the question. Wotton and James don't cut it for me and as we sign more players they will gradually disappear. Is Harding a better player than either? in my view yes.

Lallana spends a lot of his game in central positions. We need to be able to pass the ball out wide from the centre of the field, receiving the ball from the full back with the midfield and defence moving across to cover isn't going to open teams up, that is when the ball needs switching quickly across to the other side, to attack down the open side. It is an option we don't have or use.

There is a massive difference in the effect of wide on both touchlines as Utd play, or just one wide, which cramps the midfielders and promotes the lump it up top approach.

If they play Puncheon wide left it will sort the central midfield problem by opening up the passing options which we don't have at the moment. The only reservation I have, is I think like Lallana, he likes to play narrow which isn't going to cure anything. Although Alec Ferguson sees playing down the touchlines as vital, Pardew doesn't seem to be bothered, which is one of our major problems. It is all about outlets and we only have the front man at the moment, we need to get men out wide to stretch the defence and allow us to pass the ball around.

I don't think we play either 4-5-1 or 4-4-2 properly as we have no left sided outlet. Until we sort that out and get the balance right we just aren't going to play passing football. The interesting thing is the way various teams use hybrid systems to suit the talents of the players, we don't do that either. I think there is a priority for both but it is probably the availability factor and the plan for the summer. I'm sure if we want both that the club is now in a position to cover that especially with Saganowski gone.

It doesn't matter how many central or right midfielders unless we have somebody wide left we are going to continue narrow and lumping it up front. MK Dons can't block Puncheon's permanent transfer under FA rules. They either have to buy him permanently or let him go. Any fee paid for the loan is a matter between Plymouth and MK Dons.

Under FA rules the only way MK Dons can block his transfer is to exercise their contractual option and buy him.

If we want to buy good players, we have to let them play. Tieing them down in a narrow midfield is akin to trench warfare. If we played two wide players we could play two or three in the middle and keep the ball. The long ball then is not ugly just another variation rather than the result of trench warfare. You can't kick teams off the park if you can't get hold of the ball.

He needs to start playing head up. I know it is one of the most difficult things to pick up, but as long as he runs looking at the ball he won't see the runners. That was evident from the start with the crosses hit in to nobody and not passing in to the middle for a tap in having done the hard work getting to the byeline. He is very much early work in progress.

One of the problems is the bunching in the middle leading to an inablity to do anything else but belt it up front. Wotton is the worst because he does it without looking. We need to play two wide like Utd did last night and it doesnt matter if we play two or three in the middle as we can pass it out to them, then we can get break outs from midfield. I've got the history book by the way. The variations are interesting.

Out of contract at the end of June. He only signed until the end of the season.

The company that owns the electronic pitchside advertising have shut it down. There was no pitchside advertising at the West Ham game this week.

The company that leases them the electronic pitchside advertising has pulled the plug on it and shut it down. There was no pitchside advertising during the West Ham game.

He is the quick left sider we need.

Under FA rules MK Dons can't block him coming to us unless they exercise their option to purchase him permanently. Even then like all these things it will be down to what the player wants to do. If Plymouth have a buyer then MKD have to exercise the option. If there is any repayment of fee it would be between MKD and Plymouth. We would only deal with Plymouth.

Under FA third party rules a player on loan to another club is tied to the loan club, only in so much as they have under the agreement been given an option to purchase, should the home club want to sell the player. MK Dons therefore have to exercise that right and match the offer or the transfer will go through. I suspect that they would also have to match the players new contract offer. I know we can't talk to the player without permission but the agent would have this end tied up.

I would be very surprised with any loan agreement if there isn't a clause covering the situation of the players home club wanting to transfer the player permanently.