S-Clarke

It encourages the backwards passing because the 3 CB's are always free to receive the ball, it's pretty much simple to everyone - right? Why can we all see it yet we keep persisting with it? The oppo are more than happy for us to do what we're doing. Stick an extra CM in midfield, and encourage more progressive passing as we have extra bodies up field. That's where we need them. I'm bored shitless, absolutely tired of watching Wood > Stephens> THB > Bazunu > THB > Wood > Stephens > Manning > Bazunu. Just bored. It's pointless. It's the ultimate propaganda football and it's killing us stone dead. It's a club strategy, clearly, that's why we only get yes men who agree to do it - the U21's and U18's play the same way. At this point it's basically self sabotage.

Oh absolutely, there's nothing in this season for us. It's like I thought it was going to be, similar to our 05/06 season when we came down with Redknapp - and then changed to Burley in mid-season. I can see how it'll play out, we'll get another good run which takes us to a playoff shout after 40 odd games - everyone gets excited (teams as far down as 12th are often in the playoff shout come the end of the season), then when we fail to finish top 6 it will be lauded as ''what an effort, we got so close''. Tonda will be kept on to help shape the next season, then we start the next season stuttering and shit, he gets dumped in November/December, and we've wasted half a season again. So basically, we're never getting promoted with SR in charge. They've fucked us. We're now Stoke/Swansea. Pretty much nailed on now.

The weak wrists to get a touch, but struggle to keep it out were one thing - but the biggest issue with that goal was his lack of commanding of the area. It was bobbling all over the place, the CB's didn't get a touch and the GK didn't take command either. There was nothing. That's yet another weakness in his game, which doesn't really have any strengths. But I'm sure he's 'fine for the Championship'.

He shouldn't have ever been appointed tbf. Everyone knows it. The club would have given it to him whatever the outcome, they were desperate for him to have the job. The club (Ankerson) is desperate to be seen as this revolutionary/outside of the box thinker, and you're not going to stroke his ego by appointing someone like Steve Cooper.

First half was as bad as we've been all season, slow, predictable, sideways, backwards, getting caught etc etc - same script that's been played many a time. We were very lucky to go in 0-0, should have been 1 or 2 down if we're honest. Second half we actually started the same way, and let in a goal that would have not looked out of place in the Sunday league - with 3 CB's on the pitch, not one of them got anywhere near that. The GK didn't command or take control either, just horrendous all round. A non-league standard goal. After that, Birmingham changed it a bit and removed the pace they had - so it removed their threat on the break, which allowed us to move higher up the pitch. The goal came from exactly that, with the right back pushed up high and providing a first time drilled ball into the box. Apart from that though, I thought it was more propaganda football in the main - no one willing to take a risk in those last 10-15mins, safe passes, pointless probing and very, very slow predictable build up. We didn't make Birmingham work at all and it was just a revert to type really. Overall we play too predictably, too slow, too safe. There's no urgency in our game, no movement, no quick passing - it's all very static and slow, which means there's never any space as we give the teams the entire game to block off any channels. The entire setup in the CM area is just wrong for me, Jander is clearly being targeted and closed down heavily by everyone we play now - we need an extra body in there to open up some space. There is no need for us to have 3 CB's, in an attacking sense it brings us nothing and in a defence sense it brings us nothing. It actually causes us to recycle it backwards as our numbers are at CB, so you end up with THB/Stephens/Wood cycling the ball between each other - the oppo are more than happy for those 3 to keep the ball, it offers fuck all. We need extra bodies in CM, and have Leo and Fellows on the flanks - keep them up field and wide where they can hurt opposition, what's the point of spending £10m on a winger in Fellows when his primary job was defending? It's foolish. Just cut the 3 at the back for everyone's sanity.

Keeps the possession stats high and creates the illusion of domination, even though we're not doing anything anywhere that matters.

I thought Birmingham played pretty well at our place, and we were somewhat fortunate to come away with the 3-1 - which probably flattered us a bit I'd have to say, we were just very clinical. I think they're without some players, so we'll see how it goes. They're clearly a club with momentum and some finance behind them, so expect them to go big in January $$ wise - so in that sense we're probably playing them at the right time.

He passes the ball between the CB's very well.

I think the moment he put himself on the board, as chairman of this football club (during last season I think) is the point that he became open to criticism - and what has happened since he's been 'in the seat' has been worse than what went before, we've regressed even further. Tonda happened on his watch, Juric happened on his watch, Rusk happened on his watch, Still happened on his watch. Signing Downs happened on his watch. The guy should now share blame with anyone else involved with Sports Republic, the argument that was put up a year or two ago is that he put his money up - which is fair, he has - but the decision making that has gone along with that has been among the worst in English football, and that's also on him. You can have all the money in the world, but if you don't make the right decisions then it's all irrelevant really. He probably has the right intentions, but he's clearly pretty clueless when it comes to running professional sports outfits and that's why he needs to shift it and go back into media or whatever he did before (god knows how he made money)

I don't really give two hoots about other clubs owners, all I care about is what I see in front of me and what is happening to my club. They took an established PL club and relegated them in their first full season They oversaw one of the - if not the worst - PL side in recent years. They are currently overseeing a £50m spend transpiring to a mid-table Championship finish. We have cycled through 7 managers and 3 Directors of Football in 4 seasons. The 'there are worse' owners argument doesn't really hold up with me, as all I've seen is incompetence and the gradual decline of my club under these charlatans - and that isn't changing. They don't know how to run football clubs, there are some poor guys over in France who are being mismanaged in the same way.

We'll never be ready to go up with these owners in charge. We'll be saying the same in L1 in a few years, whilst the likes of Walsall and Bradford zoom past us and Wrexham are in the PL. That outcome feels much more likely than anything else.

I think after 4 years of incompetence and bad decision after bad decision, the safest assumption to make is the worst one. You'd be foolish to believe there is any sort of good coming out of SR's ownership at any stage. It's inevitable they've ballsed up the manager situation again.

That goal was nothing to do with 'Russball', it was because the opposition stood off and allowed THB and then Armstrong receive the ball in space. That will happen once, maybe twice in a 46 game season. That game does not justify 'Russball' in anyway. What happens when clubs low block and don't leave players in space is what we have now - lots of safe sideways, backwards boring passes because there is no angle to play through. You can't build a philosophy on an approach which may do you well once or twice a season.

Yeah I hated that, I didn't even really take in those puff pieces. It's a shame the media didn't push back and ask why didn't they let me interview you when we were struggling? They used the 5 wins as an opportunity to pat themselves on the back, look at what we've done, hope the fans lap it up nonsense. No, we won't. You've failed. 5 games doesn't change that.

This is just me saying, nothing I know about. But it's fairly obvious in my eyes that they'll be doing this. Jan 10th - 'Stewart back is amazing news, it's like a new signing!!'' - Feb 10th - ''Stewart out for the season''

But that would mean someone calling out their nonsense. It becomes more clear to me by the day that they want someone to control, feed the narrative to and someone who complies with the back 3 nonsense, Bazunu in goal etc. Any experienced/been around the blocks manager will tell them to do one, hence why we've ended up with a kid who is just grateful he has a job.

The club have already fed the media mouth pieces that we won't be doing much/if anything in January. We need a new GK, LB, CB and ST - just to be competitive, but the club won't see that. They're still putting their eggs in the Stewart basket, expect media driven puff pieces around him in the coming weeks.

'The club are happy with the squad, and will only act if a really strong opportunity arises. The club are not planning any major changes' Prepare for this.

Romeu didn't stop the break, as his legs are long gone tbf, but Bazunu's 'attempt' at even trying to save it was non-league. He should have got to both goals today, he cannot save shots on target. I see that with my eyes, but also the stats back it up fairly heavily. (although we have to ignore stats apparently). I actually hate the bloke. He might be a nice lad, but I despise his name when I see it on the team sheet. All he has done is bring me pure misery for 4 years every single week.

It's an ownership profile problem, let's cut to the real truth of the matter. They're the ones who have lumbered us with shite, they are the ones who keep cycling us through managers and DOF's like it's a fashionable activity. It's all on the ownership. Unless they do one, all we end up doing is re-arranging the deckchairs.

I wouldn't say Redmond was a scapegoat really, but Stephens and Bazunu are ridiculed because they are shite. End of. They are both horrific players who do not deserve to be playing at a club or our size earning what they're earning. As soon as we gave Stephens a new contract in the summer you knew it was game over as far as the season was concerned, as we still weren't making big boy decisions.

We were utter, utter shit for the entirety of that game. Did they deserve to win? Probably not. Did we deserve to win? Absolutely not. Am I surprised we lost? Playing that way, no. If we want to spend 80 mins fart arsing with the ball across the back 4 then we're not going to achieve anything at any level of football. It provides the illusion of domination when all it is is absolute wimpy football played by players who are scared of their own shadows, coached by a manager who has no idea if his mum has ironed his top for tomorrow.

He had one approach. Hope the opposition allow THB to receive the ball in space, hope they allow Armstrong to come deep without pressure. That was it. Once the opposition close down Armstrong, shut down Jander and Leo then it's all pretty much done and dusted. There is nothing else to our game under this kid pretend-manager.

He is the perfect summary of the SR era, all wrapped up in popadom wrists. Get this fucker gone.

He was appointed because he wouldn't kick up a fuss with the club selected formation, that much is clear. He won't be here next season and will probably never be seen as a manager again.