Legod Third Coming

Not sure how to do the layout but I would push the wide men forward and play Lallana alongside Lambert. Lambert was way too deep yesterday for the first half and I think it's because he recognises he will not get crosses to run onto. I like the team you have there.

I think today we plumb new depths. People slating an 18 yr old forward. People booing a club that damn near didn't exist eight weeks ago. It's a sad endictement of society. There's an expectation culture that refuses to recognise hard work is required for success and believes that you can just luck into achievement. I don't dispute anybody's right to express an opinion about anything. But while this may sound perverse, I just cannot comprehend how people are not enjoying seeing their club rise from the brink of extinction. That the rise is not vertical is somehow excuse to undermine anything and everything. And rather than considered opinion, we just get constant, permanent whinging that we don't win every game. Of all the fans, in all the world, surely, surely, we understand that NOW is the time to sit back, avoid premature judgement and give the new regime time and support. It's the fecking least they deserve in my view. Booing the team off. Seriously. My heart sank. Thanks Mr Liebherr, this is what you inherited - myopia.

Everyone is entitle to an opinion. But here's my view - aged and out of touch I agree. I was in danger of losing my birthright. A man I had never heard of came in and spent £20m of his own money saving it. He appointed a CEO, that CEO appointed a manager. If they now spend two years and take us to the Blue Sq Premiership, it's still better than having nothing to support at all. What does that make me? Grateful. Something that just doesn't seem to exist in this country any more.

Research has been undertaken on this that suggests this is not true. Often, the team wins initially and then reverts back to previous form. That's why the Sunderland and Palace effect is so rare. Take Spurs last season. Arry won his first game, and then they slipped back into the relegation zone and evenutally pulled away after a worrying few months. If Spurs board had pulled the trigger then (as Charlton did with Dowie and Reed) they wouldn't be top of the table now, they would probably be in the league above us. Most people around me (and me) were immensely p!55ed off that we couldn't win yesterday. But reflection tells you things are getting better - a solid defence, untroubled, a good midfield who before the sending off bossed the game, but the final third was poor. No width and no pace. That's what the bloke in charge is now trying to address. I can't see what else he is supposed to do? Buy more players more quickly?? It's hard after so many years of pain, some people just can't cope. I am convinced that Pardew is doing the right things. And results follow. If he was doing the wrong things, I would be seriously worried.

As did what? Changing the manager for someone else who had no credibility, no experience and no funding? Did you see JP identify problems, iterate them and then solve them? Have you seen Pardew? What else do you propose?

If you cannot see genuine improvement in the side you are either: 1) not there 2) there but with your eyes closed 3) there, can see it but are, because of your own state of mind, ignoring it consciously or sub-consciously. I defy anyone to tell me this defence is not 200% better than that inherited by Pardew. So, like all the best managers he has improved the back five immeasurably first. Now we need to score goals. What did everyone who was there say yesterday? We had no pace and width to get behind. What did the manager say in his post-match comments? Exactly the same. What is he supposed to do? Get Lallana to improve his speed? Or what he did, throw on our only two wingers? What else do you want Pardew to do? Bribe the ref? Turn Lallana into Gerrard with a magic potion?? Come on, fes up, I'm all ears...

"Boothroyd then saw his team miss two golden chances on the stroke of half-time, but the rest of the game was dominated by wave after wave of Southampton attacks. Midfielder Hammond and defender Trotman were unable to convert Saints' best goal scoring opportunities and the home side were subjected to a crescendo of boos at the final whistle." how the BBC reported the game. Makes you proud to be a fan of a club that eight weeks ago was about to disappear forever doesn't it...

I thought the booing was unjust. No one on that pitch did not work hard and put in the effort. We had chances, they had chances. Until they went down to ten men it was a really good game. For five minutes afterwards it was like headers and volleys at school, they didn't get into our half. We kept attacking, brought on width in Holmes and Thomson, but sadly those two are not good enough yet. We still made the best chances and missed two good ones near the end. In my view, people are letting their own frustration cloud any improvements made. I thought our back four were by far the best defence I have seen at SMS since we had Svensson and Claus back there. We were threatened once and that by a bad bounce which undid Harding. I wouldn't sing from the rafters for the performance, but all I saw if there are to be any complaints was the players feeling the same frustration as me.

Apart from the money you mean? We've never had wealthy Jewish backers in my living memory, oh until now maybe...

Ah feck it, so they now have internet access in Mongolia...

Forget last season. We had no money and every game we got worse, because the kids could not cope with the pressure, the confidence being knocked and the abuse from the terraces. Pardew is getting them out of the first team, slowly and carefully so as not to kill their confidence forever. They might still be good enough one day. He's identified that James and Llalana (corners aside) can probably cut it, but that some of the others can't yet. In ten games, if we are in the bottom three and have made no improvement, panic. But Christ, I didn't once fear Colchester would score yesterday with 11 men. And I spent last season betting on when we would concede our first goal... It's hard, we have been asked to be patient so often, but this time surely it's worth it?? And I have it on very good authority that Lisa had a superb left foot...

Until then you had a semblence of an argument... After yesterday's game, I was really p!55ed off. We went direct too often, Lambert played too deep for a half, Thomson didn't run at people, down the line, Mills did but his crosses weren't great, James had some excellent delivery, nearly set up the winner, we had a ball across the line anyone could have scored if they had gambled, but they didn't... I'm not saying anyone is happy with not winning, or failing to beat ten men. But the best teams in the world fail to beat ten men too, you know? We are a work in progress. Most of our fans would have walked into Da Vinci's studio as he was washing his brushes in preparation to paint the Mona Lisa and called for her to be blonde, thinner, with blue eyes, and a smile, more of a smile, and topless, or at least less demure, and then eventually, after a few brush strokes would start calling for Da Vinci to go, to bring in Rubens, then after a few sketches it would be Rembrandt and so on... Whatever has happened in the past, forget it. Six games into a season and seeing genuine improvement - or did noone notice our defence yesterday, the most solid it has been for years?? Fans are entitled to express any opinion. But all that the expectation is doing is creating anxiety in the beholder. And when this translates to the pitch we go direct... der...

Er, we're in league one. Oh sorry, because we used to be a Premiership Club we're entitled to beat everyone bar the top four in the Champion's League... No Wonder Leeds are steamrollering everyone, and Bradford, not forgetting Oldham of course, remember them... Why oh why oh why can our fans not accept our position, deal with it and then enjoy the ride back... or not. But it's more likely now we have backing. Remember that too? Eight weeks ago no club, throwing money into buckets to have one. Now undermining the manager after six games. You couldn't make it up.

lmao

There are clearly some people who canot cope with being bought by a billionnaire and watching their entire football club being rebuilt from the ground up. New Manager, New Scouting Network, All New Coaches, Entirely New Playing Squad. So here is my message to you. Go Away. Go Far Away. So Far Away that you cannot access football results. Try Mongolia, the centre of it. Then stay there. For a year or two. Then come back. And all the hard work will be done. And you can bask in it, While the rest of us have endured it with good grace. Without booing it, without slating it and without jeopardising it. Thanks.

John Terry is slightly worse than Terry Butcher. The trouble with today is that kids wouldn't know class if it bit then on the ass! Class centre backs were players like Bobby Moore who could tackle with amazing grace and then lay the ball to someone on a platter. John Terry is just a typical modern-day footballer - chucks himself into everything and slaps his club crest every ten minutes.

And if only they all did that we could win the fecking league!

I thought Schneiderlin looked good when he came on. Sitting in that holding role he hit two or three superb passes - one was immense and sadly Mills didn't use it. He also came forward at will, but then Colchester had vacated the middle of the park by then! The problem for James was that every time he looked up the pitch, there was noone wide to hit. His own delivery into the box is very good and nearly created a goal towards the end. But we lack movement rather than pure width.

Dodd and that fat bloke.

I don't think the manager disagrees. He's even said it. I suspect he is trying to replace the entire first team from last season apart from James who seems to have cut it, Kelvin for obvious reasons and Thomas (who was out). But you can't just clear out a whole squad and start again...

Agreed. He should not be taking them, it should be James, his delivery is far superior. And I would always have a left footer taking them on the right, personally. I would also always leave a man up at corners. Successive managers have not done this and I find it totally bizarre. It takes two defenders out of the game!

We still have. But I ain't slitting my wrists yet over rebuilding five fecking years of mismanagement six games into a FIVE YEAR VISION. What is wrong with people?? Are we all premature ejaculators or something?

Well, all I can say is what a miserable bunch if short-sighted w a n k ers we seem to have on here tonight. I saw plenty of effort today. Only one bloke had a bad game - Mellis - who appears a bit weak yet, but even that might come he's only a kid yet. The back four were totally solid and the Us had one chance when they got lucky with the bounce. Other than that they created feck all - and they are a far better prepared outfit than we are. We were in control of the midfield where Hammond and James ran the game. Mills came on looked rusty but still got the ball into the box a few times. We do seem to go diagonal too much but then the manager has admitted that's why he bought some pace and our best wide player is still out injured. I suppose nobody else noticed them throwing everyone behind the ball when they went down to ten men? No we could not break them down and yes we lacked width but screaming abuse at Jake Thomson ain't gonna give him much confidence to take a man on down the line now is it?? Thank God most of the people in the stadium have more sense than most of our lamentable doom mongers!

The trajectory is wrong. The ball needs to come in flatter, faster and with whip towards the rear third of the goal.

How many more people are going to rewrite history. Look NOW at how many games Parkinson was in charge at Charlton before his first win.