shurlock

Maybe a Regi Perri moment.

As I said in the other thread, comebacks like the Leeds 4-3 (not to mention some of the other great sickeners- Cardiff etc) would happen if away teams weren't kicking towards their own fans. The sense of momentum that away supporters provide is palpable.

No offense taken - basically you've got a situation in the Itchen North where people with season tickets have treated the area like their own backyards for the past few seasons and have been able to sit where they like because of dwindling attendances. And not without reason. Everyone now knows each other and clustering together, especially among the back rows, has added to the atmosphere. All of a sudden this season you have a few new faces turning up with tickets. Since there's plenty of space elsewhere and they have no attachment to a seat (as opposed to block) that's been randomly allocated, they are happy to move. They also know that if they press things they will get told to f**k off or be ignored. And that's the Itchen North in a diplomatic mood. The stewards have no interest in disturbing the peace - they already have a running battle in getting people to sit down which has led to brawls and punch-ups. They now pick their fights more wisely. The last time a steward did a ticket search, he settled with asking fans if they were in the right place, prompting the no-brainer yes. So, by turning a blind eye, overcrowding has been a factor. No doubt, reducing the numbers in the Itchen North also makes it easier for stewards to control and keep people seated - in no other part of the ground is seating a problem. Unfortunately, the cost is a loss of atmosphere.

Wasn't it ML's birthday?

I look forward one day to the taunts of "where were you when you were sh*t?"

15th

Great post - some context and perspective. Can be easy to forget our good fortune when people are in a stuffy, otherworldly forum bubble where petty one upmanship and attention-seeking masquarade for constructive criticism.

My hunch is overcrowding. I have a ST in the Itchen North and there was a tendency earlier on in the season for fans without the right tickets (wrong seat numbers/row but correct block) to flock there and people with the right tickets to be crowded out (exacerbated by the surprisingly big attendances for matches like Brentford). Needless to say there was quite a bit of aggro as a result of this game of musical chairs - hence Luker's actions (I generally think he's a good and committed bloke). Of course, the problem could have been avoided by opening/freeing up the back few rows which had been sanctuary for people with and without the right tickets who only wanted a common place to stir up some atmosphere.

Not as loud as City when they've come here.

Definitely if Thomas has recovered from injury. And ultimately Murty.

Murty won't have enough in the tank to get up and down like that. The risk is that if the wingbacks don't constantly get forward, we'll be even narrower than we currently are. For Gillingham, I would like to see the following, with Schneiderlin slightly behind Hammond in the Safri role. -----------------------Davis----------------------- -----James------Jaidi----Trottman--------Harding ------------------------------------------------------ ----Papa-----Hammond---Schneiderlin----Holmes ------------------------Lallana----------------------- -----------------------Lambert----------------------

You don't think that the players also share these views? To be honest, I don't read players reactions fullstop. I actually think they're worse after a win because they can don't need to a step out of comfortzone boll*cks whereas when we lose, they are forced into some form of justification, however tepid. My hypothesis is that most professional sportsmen arent the most self-reflective bunch in the world - they have been successful precisely they have been good at drills and repetition over the years that has allowed them do things automatically, almost effortlessly. Possibly, that's one reason why so few have cut it as managers.

Why is it PR - Hammond is not saying we were fantastic - he identifies (correctly) that we shaded things until their 2nd goal but we didn't take our chances and subsequently lost the plot. You can only look forward to the next game - what do you expect? some great cathartic moment for some of the fans wrist-slitting and melodrama "f*ck it we're doomed and I personally should have never left a side that's in the playoff places". Or how about an opening session at SMS with the fans where the team undergoes primal scream therapy?

Compared to the Colchester sending off, the challenge on Hammond was as straightforwardly red as they come.

I thought Arse nal won yesterday?

Actually, they've changed their style considerably since Lambert left (going for pace with Dickson etc). By the same token Lambert is being asked to do things with us -playing less deep, being used as a target man- that he wasn't at rovers.

...he did play in Lallana for the opener and possibly got our 2nd/put it on a plate for Papa.

It also depends what peoples targets/expectations for the season are. God forbid we're in the same position by Xmas but even if we were, we still wouldn't be cut adrift.

He got better as the game went on TBF. First half wasn't given the ball enough or when he did get it, it had taken an eternity by which time the defender was right up his a$$ amd touch was too heavy. Second half looked much more with it and was heavily involved in our long spell of possession- for instance, it was his cross that Schneiderlin should have converted. Actually he thought he did a decent job defensively. Got back every time and provided ample cover for James - one reason why they didn't have much success down our right.

You talk some real s**t. Watch a game, maybe two, even three, preferably in a row -compare things with where we've been, not where you want us to be. Steady improvement -and that's all we can hope for in the absence of a miracle- won't be sufficient to exorcise past dysfunctions (and you were eloquent in detailing those). To avoid facile generalisations (that's your strong suit), consider that before Saturday, nobody knew that Lambert and Lallana upfront would hit it off. This is NEW and the rest of team needs time to adapt, especially since Lallana is not a conventional centre forward. Playing Lallana down the middle, however, has emptied the left hand side and exposed Harding. This is a NEW problem and playing a right-footer like Mellis is no solution. Experimenting with Mills and preferably Holmes -neither of whom have played much first-team football this season will again require time. Also consider that Jaidi played only his third game for us tonight-and second in four days. He is a NEW player and so needs time. Ditto with Papa Waigo for whom tonight was his full debut and big things are expected given the lack of pace in the team. NEW injuries at RB meanwhile have complicated things, making us depressingly too reliant on youth again. Of course, all teams have to deal with injuries etc but this is a NEW team with little continuity and confidence (what disappointed me tonight was the sense of deja vu with Millwall, how brittle we looked when confronted with a fightback and a swing in momentum). But therein lie some of the positives - apart from the fact that we scored wice from open play (5 goals in 3 games now), we managed to restore the lead for a second time when in the past we might have crumbled after the first equaliser. Perhaps, these are no more than crumbs of comfort. I prefer to interpret them as signs of improvement but ones that must be built on to mean anything. But improving we are...

I also found that very interesting (though should be commonsense). I guess that puts AP's challenges, as a new manager, in some sort of perspective- its not just about setting up the system in accordance with a manager's priors, its more importantly about knowing your players inside out which takes time.

Play AL down the centre in and around Lambert and things will happen. Use him the way Charlton use Shelvey. I saw enough proof yesterday that this could be very effective. I would like to see Papa start on the right though with the option of alternating with AL. Play Mills or Holmes on the left (maybe give Mills another go on Tues but then if necessary give Holmes a proper run). Finally if Schneiderlin isn't willing to get forward more put Mellis in CM (I think Mellis will come good -he has movement and energy that we've sometimes lacked while he is no slouch defensively - has played RB and CB for Chelski reserves).

+1 Absolutely.

Back from the game - obviously the manner and timing of the goal sticks out. Great to see us to get something at the death for once, sweet justice for stockport. You could feel the life sucked out of the stadium as Jaidi nodded in a header that was beautifully teed up by the keeper's miscue. Also great to see the unity in the team after we scored - there is a spirit beginning to form that shouldn't be underestimated. No doubt, the result was deserved. They had two chances -one header from a corner in the first half that was cleared off the line and the other, a series of fortunate deflections/breaks that resulted in the goal. I guess my one disappointment is that we didn't quite build on the first half performance in which we were rampant. Our play was as fluid as I've seen it this season, even if the goal was scrappy and from a very cheap freekick (Holmes went down rather theatrically). At least in the first half, creativity was not an issue. Interestingly alot of our good play came from Lambert's partnership with Lallana who effectively played as the second striker (though he went to the left and then the right when Papa and then Holmes came on). Lallana was my MOTM - his excellent close control allowed him to pick up, retain and build on Lambert's knock downs (yet again he won everything in the air). While some think that Lallana is neither fish nor fowl, neither forward nor winger, its a partnership I would persevere with because the two seem to have a natural understanding. They were also helped by Mellis who -yes I'm not afraid to say it- had a decent game. He broke from midfield and linked up with Lambert and Lallana to provide lots of threat (most of our attacking play came down the right first half). Yes his finishing leaves a bit to be desired - he seems to want to take that extra touch or have that bit more time on the ball; but its a confidence thing. And lets not confuse things - his second half-chance wasn't gilt-edged, a sitter - he was stretching/running at pace from an angle; it was his willingness to run with the ball, play a give-and-go with Lambert and get into the box that created the chance. It was a chance he crafted out of nothing. Unfortunately we started chasing the game in the second half and our play got more ragged after their goal (not making excuses but the sun didn't help). James had a poor, poor game - he gave attackers too much space and his distribution was erratic just when we needed someone to take a touch and play it simple. Mills had a very quiet game and I was a bit worried by Jaidi and Trotman's lack of pace at times (Trotman made what could have been two very costly slips). Hammond was much more defensive-minded today which placed more pressure on Schneiderlin to get forward which goes slightly against his nature. WHen things do click, they can be devastating. In the first half, Carlisle broke dangerously from a corner; Schneiderlin followed the attacker for 40 yards before making an exquisite challenge, turning on a sixpence, weaving past a few challenges and hitting a great pass. He's not a big personality, so he possibly needs somebody to keep talking to him, to keep him involved. Another thing worth clarifying for those who only have available BBC stats. We had plenty of corners yes but particularly in the first half wemade full use of them -thanks to Mills delivery. For some reason, we changed things in the second half with James taking over and we looked pretty toothless (usual nonsense, failing to beat the first man etc). Holmes had a go after he came on and finally Schneiderlin took the freekick that led to the goal. SUpport was fantastic - the fans dusted down a few classics (the Le Tiss, Pahars, Kevin Davies, Shipperley and Marsden chants) before sustaining AP red-and-white army for most of the second half. Carlisle did very little, though the half-time celebrations woke them a bit. First game I've seen where a team has tried not to use more than one ball. All in all, a decent result and some real flashes of understanding between players in the final third. But there's a long way to go. AP is going to have some interesting choices ahead of Tuesday - what to do with James, whether to play Lallana upfront again (I would depending if Papa starts), whether to stick with Mellis (I start) and whether to give Papa a start (I think he's about ready - certainly not afraid of the physical stuff).

Fancy this will be the line-up too.