derry

Spot on Ron. It was bloody dire again on Saturday with no width, no crosses and nothing out of midfield. Saganowski did win the first penalty. The rest of the time they were feeding off scraps marked by the back four, because Lallana and James were narrow, allowing the fullbacks to tuck in alongside the central defenders and outnumber our two strikers. Bloody hopeless!

Sooner rather than later because we won't score consistently with those two playing, they will get left out. Lallana might be tried as a striker but he isn't producing and as time passes Waigo, Holmes and Mills are stepping up their challenge. I can see Waigo wide right unless he replaces Saganowski but I would be surprised if Saganowski is left out, he did earn the penalty, that leaves only wide left and up front for Lallana. He doesn't produce wide left and I would be surprised if he could become a consistent scorer.

The reason Schneiderlin isn't effective at the moment is the narrow way we play. His first reaction is to release the ball wide and back it up. As Lallana and James don't have the first idea how to play a wide midfield role there is nobody wide so the ball goes long, inside or backwards. It is bloody hopeless and until we get two wide players we are going nowhere. Now we have a decent back four, we don't need comfort zone midfielders sitting, we need the team moving up and back as a unit attacking with 6/7 and defending with the same numbers. Hammond, Schneiderlin and anybody else who plays in midfield needs to start getting up to support the strikers, but to do that the wide players have to get down the flanks. Lallana either needs to be played alongside Lambert if they want him to play or leave him out. The way he plays is a fundamental impediment to us scoring sufficient goals to win the majority of our matches.

Because of the lack of balance in the team and the obsession with finding somewhere for Lallana to play, together with the ponderous James on the other side, we have no width, no pace, don't get down the touchlines and provide nothing in the way of chances to the strikers. Until we get a quick wide right player Waigo would be an option whilst Holmes/Mills should be picked on the left. Pardew is sacrificing the balance and the possibility of scoring goals from play by playing Lallana and James because both play nearer the centre of the field than wide allowing the fullbacks to close up with the centre backs and stifle the strikers. Neither Hammond or Schneiderlin commit themselves to runs from the centre so the opponents midfielders together with the compacted defence can reinforce and outnumber our attackers. Now that we have two strong centre backs we don't need two central midfielders sitting in front of them. We have scored a paltry 7 goals in 8 league matches and only 2 from play, unless we sort this out we won't score enough goals.

An ugly win and I'm grateful to the referee. The back five are solid, so are the two central midfielders. Lambert is more abused than used he must be really fed up with the lack of proper chances. Saganowski looked off the pace but the little Yeovil CB was quick. The side lacks balance which is down to trying to accommodate Lallana. If we want to start playing like a team we have to dump this make do and mend approach to picking the wide men. We need to play proper wide men on both sides. Lallana should be selected as a second striker or not at all, his play on the left and a slow fullback on the right means we have no penetration. We have scored 7 goals in 8 games and only 2 from play, that doesn't cut it any way you want to look at it. Balance and pace are lacking and need to be introduced immediately. I would still play Lambert and Saganowski in the absence of a quick right sided player with Waigo wide right and Holmes/Mills wide left, until we do this, the strikers are living off scraps and we will not score enough goals.

Terry Paine was the best crosser of a ball I have ever seen. Terry Paine used to hang the ball up for Ron Davies. I don't ever remember him hitting in crosses. John Sydenham on the other hand did but they weren't as effective. It is a popular myth that crosses have to be hit in with pace. Top headers of the ball attacking the back of the box prefer a ball that is hung up about 15ft reaching it's peak just goalside of the penalty spot and dropping fairly sharply towards head height. The defenders are taken out of the equation and the goalkeeper can't get near the ball. The best headers of the ball don't stand under the flight in the area but run in from outside the area. Something we don't do. I have a feeling that Jaidi well might. Whipping in crosses gives the defenders a better chance to get them away it is only superb glancers of the ball that can benefit from the pace. It also means that overhit crosses are out of play the other side and underhit won't clear the first defender. How often do we do that.

Difficult not being paid FFS!!!! £200k annual signing on fee plus £8000 a week. They were paid within the month but he must have been struggling.

I hope so too but you may well be right. That's probably why there are only a few successful managers and a majority that let fear rule.

I don't think the second paragraph is inaccurate as we don't get the wide crosses in from both sides. That's what I mean by balance. I see the midfield as a compromise at the moment. I know a lot on here and the management are desperately hoping that Lallana will suddenly produce and the team will click. I think the the management see their dilemma but are hoping things improve. I think shortly, however much they want to play Lallana unless the team click they will pick Waigo, Hammond, Schneiderlin and Holmes in midfield. They may give him a go alongside Lambert but he would have to become a regular goalscorer.

Absolutely right. Simply leave at least two preferably three up, two wide one central, keeps 3/4 back and pulls two midfielders deeper out of our box and means we can defend higher up the field and our clearances don't come straight back. It also means we can strike on the break and try and exploit the stretched defence and space behind it.

Two things stand out for me, Schneiderlin is a superb passer of the ball but to utilise him we have to have wide players out on the touchline for him to pass to. Secondly all the players in the team have to blend and complement each other, I don't see that at the moment. Individual flare might be thrilling at times, but because of the poor mix we aren't getting the ball into our strikers from wide, consequently we aren't scoring enough goals. Waigo is reputed to be able to play wide right and is an international with pace who can score. Holmes is a good crosser of the ball and links well and works hard on the left side. These two players could be the answer to the lack of balance and quality crossing.

Ron was told this by Lallana's father, there is no question mark against his commitment. One league goal in a year isn't a good return. He has scored three goals this season which isn't bad however our whole season hinges on our performance in the league. He is being criticised for not playing wide enough and not getting in decent crosses when he is supposed to be the wide man. His delivery from corners is pretty poor, hitting the near post in the last few minutes on Saturday with Jaidi, Trotman and Thomas in for the corner was inexcusable, not even reaching them. Lallana is putting his own position under threat because dead ball situations realise a high proportion of goals across the leagues but we are poor. Holmes puts in good crosses and dead balls, if he gets into the team it will put Lallana's position in the team in jeopardy, unless he starts to deliver an end product, providing good delivery and scoring more league goals.

My lowest handicap was 4. up to 6 at 63 then due to a knee operation which took 3 years to get over, now at a more than competitive 12. I play six days a week and will be disappointed if I'm not back to 7/8 by early next year. I was a member at Stoneham for over 25 years but the terrain is too up and down for me now. Like I said Quindell doesn't attract me.

We will see how long it takes for him to learn how to put a decent dead ball in or start putting in crosses for the strikers. If Pardew rated him as a goal scorer he wouldn't be taking all the corners, he'd be in the box.

Maybe taking your blinkers off would allow you to see things as they are. It is one thing having a subjective opinion but you seem to be devoid of any football background. As a matter of interest Teddy Nutkins is an ex Saints player.

The whole thing begs the question did this type of thing happen regularly and was this only because of it's failure that it became tellable.

That's up to them. There are a lot of charity days for good causes at decent courses competing for a limited number of available golfers. Quindell isn't the sort of course that interests too many. The players like MLT probably get a free day out but if I'm going to pay for the privilege I'd prefer to play on a decent course.

Provided Jaidi is fully fit I can see us being pretty solid at the back. The little I saw of Charlton last week they concentrate on getting to the byeline and cutting the ball back high or low. Our full backs will be key and so will the wide players to stay wide and stop Charlton easy access to the corners. If we hold them and they start hitting balls into the centre backs as we do then it will be as easy for Trotman and Jaidi as it is for our opponents when we do the same thing. I would like to see Holmes on the left with Waigo wide right and coming in on the right back post for centres hung up. Lambert and Saganowski as the battling strikers. I hope Waigo is decent in the air.

Maybe if it was played at a decent course it would attract golfers. As soon as I saw Quindell I lost interest. Like the Ryder cup it could be rotated home and away each year.

It opened today until Nov 26th.

Stating the obvious however we may find that he won't do that and unfortunately may become a fringe player.

He is right sided but appears more positive and effective on the left side. His biggest problem is the unhelpful hype that he is the real deal, when all he is, is a young lad trying to make a breakthrough. His end product is poor and he still hasn't got a nailed down position to call his own, despite the incessant promotion by some on here that he can play as a striker or central midfielder. He isn't strong enough yet to play in midfield and there is no evidence that he can get twenty goals as a striker.

Lallana was decent down the left in the first half, gave himself room, stayed out wide and caused some problems down the left. The second half was anonymous and he didn't have a clue how to play off Lambert. His dead ball delivery is flat and awful and if he does get it airborne it clears everybody. Karen Carney for England Ladies could give him lessons on how to deliver a dead ball. His problem is the more players we get in, the more difficult it is going to be to give him a game. This may be dawning on him but playing three positions in a match is counterproductive. He is an enigmatic problem, he does have good control but lacks pace and isn't a natural goalscorer. He looks better on the left because he can go either way but on the right he only comes inside. We can't play him up front as he isn't strong enough. quick enough or cute enough to get us 20 goals a season. He just isn't strong enough to play central midfield. It may well be, wide left is his best bet.

Quick players wide shouldn't dribble. They should knock the ball down the touchline well past the defender and sprint give it one more touch towards the byeline and get behind the defence. Again why haven't the academy taught them this, letting them dribble takes away their speed.

Coppell has a good pedigree, international player, winger, coach and manager, has a very stable personality. Unusually for a footballer is a university graduate and appears particularly mature and has worked with the other members of the management team in the past. I would welcome him.