|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 12:40:01 GMT
Today's game is one of the very few left in the league as going ahead after a rash of postponements... Perfect chance to get three points are starting catching up some clubs.
|
|
|
|
Post by Boomer on Jan 2, 2016 13:32:42 GMT
Only games on at the moment, in the National League South, are -
Concord Rangers v Ebbsfleet
Dartford v Chelmsford City
Maidstone United v Margate
St Albans City v Bishop's Stortford
Let's hope we can make it count.
COYS!
|
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 15:11:26 GMT
0-1 down, 9th minute.
|
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 15:49:54 GMT
HT: 0-1.
However, great save from a Theo header has denied City.
|
|
|
|
Post by Hatboy on Jan 2, 2016 16:26:44 GMT
So Jonathon Edwards didn't make amends for the misses Monday, perhaps he should stick to the long jump  |
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 16:31:14 GMT
1-1, Theo... Presume you're here Hatboy to see how he did?  |
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 16:31:55 GMT
Also, Saints should have a penalty, but ref misses a blatant handball.
|
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 16:51:20 GMT
FT: 1-1
|
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 2, 2016 16:53:11 GMT
Saints should have won I feel, but no doubt the penalty appeal could have been huge.
|
|
|
|
Post by Hatboy on Jan 2, 2016 16:53:44 GMT
Another two valuable points dropped at home
|
|
|
|
Post by Canary Saint on Jan 2, 2016 16:55:30 GMT
Chelmsford drew
Margate lost
Concord drew
Other games off
|
|
|
|
Post by COYS on Jan 2, 2016 18:01:21 GMT
The first half was a really poor, error-strewn 45 minutes and I felt we were lucky to go into the break only one goal down.
Credit to the players, they picked it up in the second half and dragged themselves back into the game. Theophanous' goal was another cracker, following a deft lay-off from Ben Martin. We were certainly on top for much of the second 45, but taking the first half into account, we didn't deserve much more than a point.
It's a point that doesn't do us too many favours - drawing at home against teams like Bishop's Stortford isn't going to haul us up the table any time soon. Make no mistake, we are well and truly in a relegation scrap now and I'm hoping the squad realises that.
It's almost as though we're going into games with the attitude that we're a midtable side who just happen to be struggling at the bottom, and that at any moment our talent will drag us out of the bottom 3 and up the table. That is an utter myth. At this stage of the season, 23 games gone, the table doesn't lie. We have been the 20th best side in this division and we are where we deserve to be.
We'll continue to be the 20th best side in the division and head straight into the Southern Premier unless we start to get it right for 90 minutes week-in, week-out, as opposed to half-an-hour of good football once every three weeks.
|
|
|
|
Post by dunstablesaint on Jan 2, 2016 18:22:58 GMT
Very disappointed not to come away today with three points. I thought we played really well in the second half after a quiet first half. Thought everybody put in a good shift after half time, and I thought Theo, Edwards and Meade did particularly well. JK did well on his return. Where was Locke? I don't think you could fault the effort at any stage of the game, but the problem may be that we are not really good enough to be much above the bottom three. Against that, we would probably have won if the referee and linesman had not failed (or chosen ??) not to see a blatant handball in the BS penalty area. I know you could say this was justice after the Bender incident recently but still... I really don't see how the officials could not have seen it or how they could possibly have thought it was not deliberate. A disgraceful decision!
|
|
|
|
Post by casper on Jan 2, 2016 21:04:47 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by notsorecentconvert on Jan 3, 2016 1:10:34 GMT
We're in the doo-doo here.
|
|
|
|
Post by sideshowbob on Jan 3, 2016 9:49:27 GMT
if we continue without appointing a manager i think its back to the southern league, this sides not good enough to stay up, stortford could have scored twice in the opening five minutes. we little in attack and our frailities in defence are blatantly clear.
|
|
|
|
Post by St Michael on Jan 3, 2016 11:02:36 GMT
We need at least 25 points from the remaining games, and that might not necessarily be enough points. 44-45 points is usually enough to stay up, but this season there are lots of teams in the lower half of the league who are inconsistent but capable of beating each other and higher placed sides, so, a number of teams might end up around the 50-55 points total. Hayes look to be faltering, and maybe Eastbourne, but either Havant or Basingstoke could rally, they have resources. Weston are enigmatic but seem to have some fight in them.
These Christmas games were important for us and 2 points from 9 against mediocre opponents is not good enough. I think that of the fixtures we have left we only have 5-6 games we should win, so it is going to be very tough for us, whoever is in charge.
|
|
|
|
Post by Canary Saint on Jan 3, 2016 11:35:59 GMT
Nil desperandum!
This was our position in January 2005 which is not dissimilar to our current plight.
1 Grays Athletic 24 17 4 3 70 20 +50 55
2 Lewes 24 136 5 49 37 +12 45
3 Basingstoke Town 25 13 4 8 37 32 +5 43
4 Thurrock 23 12 4 7 37 31 +6 40
5 Cambridge City 22 13 1 8 33 29 +4 40
6 Bishop's Stortford 25 10 5 10 46 40 +6 35
7 Eastbourne Borough 24 10 4 10 32 27 +5 34
8 Weymouth 24 8 10 6 36 34 +2 34
9 Bognor Regis Town 24 9 6 9 38 38 0 33
10 Dorchester Town 25 9 6 10 48 55 -7 33
11 Hornchurch 24 12 6 6 45 23 +22 32
12 Weston-super-Mare 23 8 8 7 33 35 -2 32
13 Hayes 20 9 4 7 27 21 +6 31
14 Sutton United 24 7 7 10 36 39 -3 28
15 Welling United 24 8 4 12 36 50 -14 28
16 Newport County AFC 25 7 5 13 31 41 -10 26
17 Havant and W 24 7 5 12 32 43 -11 26
18 Redbridge 23 9 1 13 36 41 -5 25
19 St Albans City 25 6 6 13 31 46 -15 24
20 Carshalton Athletic 23 6 6 11 25 40 -15 24
21 Maidenhead United 24 6 6 12 29 52 -23 24
22 Margate 25 7 4 14 35 48 -13 15
That season we finished 14th and the following year we were promoted. We did however have Colin Lippiatt in charge and maybe a bit more money floating around.
|
|
|
|
Post by PaperSaint on Jan 3, 2016 13:43:15 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by Boomer on Jan 3, 2016 16:06:58 GMT
Nil desperandum!This was our position in January 2005 which is not dissimilar to our current plight. 1 Grays Athletic 24 17 4 3 70 20 +50 55 2 Lewes 24 136 5 49 37 +12 45 3 Basingstoke Town 25 13 4 8 37 32 +5 43 4 Thurrock 23 12 4 7 37 31 +6 40 5 Cambridge City 22 13 1 8 33 29 +4 40 6 Bishop's Stortford 25 10 5 10 46 40 +6 35 7 Eastbourne Borough 24 10 4 10 32 27 +5 34 8 Weymouth 24 8 10 6 36 34 +2 34 9 Bognor Regis Town 24 9 6 9 38 38 0 33 10 Dorchester Town 25 9 6 10 48 55 -7 33 11 Hornchurch 24 12 6 6 45 23 +22 32 12 Weston-super-Mare 23 8 8 7 33 35 -2 32 13 Hayes 20 9 4 7 27 21 +6 31 14 Sutton United 24 7 7 10 36 39 -3 28 15 Welling United 24 8 4 12 36 50 -14 28 16 Newport County AFC 25 7 5 13 31 41 -10 26 17 Havant and W 24 7 5 12 32 43 -11 26 18 Redbridge 23 9 1 13 36 41 -5 25 19 St Albans City 25 6 6 13 31 46 -15 2420 Carshalton Athletic 23 6 6 11 25 40 -15 24 21 Maidenhead United 24 6 6 12 29 52 -23 24 22 Margate 25 7 4 14 35 48 -13 15 That season we finished 14th and the following year we were promoted. We did however have Colin Lippiatt in charge and maybe a bit more money floating around. That is a very significant factor in the equation, CS. |
|
|
|
Post by cityslicker88 on Jan 3, 2016 19:31:56 GMT
This festive period for me, was always going to be a big factor for the club this season with potentially 9 points from 3 games against 2 mediocre teams - 2 of these matches being at home. The poor performance and result at B.S. in the first of these games didn't bode well. Harry made it very clear in his interview after the match that he had told the team that they had to win the next 2 and that he would not be happy with anything less that 6 points from these 2 games. If we continue with our recent form (no wins in the last 4 games) we will not be staying in this division. I don't believe that Harry waved a magic wand which resulted in his first 2 league wins. Harry was an integral part of coaching and management prior to these wins. I believe that this is more to do with L.L. going into the dressing room before the game against Margate and letting the players know that the overdue FA Cup player bonuses that was agreed by the Chairman but was disputed by the owners was now going to be paid to them. This, in my opinion, coupled with other now resolved financial issues, was done prior to that game to change a previously negative attitude to a positive one in the dressing room for Harry's first game in charge. I believe that we should have dug deep and appointed a new, experienced manager after J.G. and G.G. resigned as we still had 25 league games and 75 points to play for. As much as L.L. wants Harry to succeed and become the permanent manager this is a football club first, not just one mans play thing. If the next couple of results go against us what next? I can see it all landing on one mans lap if we get relegated this season and that being the man who said in early December "he couldn't believe the number of applicants for the job" and that he had "a couple of irons in the fire". Well I hope he still does as time is of the essence now. I see Simon Lane at Wingate has left today, maybe he's our next manager?  |
|
|
|
Post by PaperSaint on Jan 3, 2016 20:01:06 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by notsorecentconvert on Jan 3, 2016 20:16:22 GMT
I've seen the odd relegation campaign in my time and this has all the hallmarks of one, I'm afraid. The poor start followed by a bit of a rally gave us the impression that we were in a false position and if we could just put together a bit of a run, we'd pull clear. The run of heavy defeats that led to Gray and Golds going were the wake-up call, then we got the little bounce after the managerial change (or perhaps the issue over cup bonuses that cityslicker mentions) but since then we've been flat-lining.
Three points from Basingstoke, Bishops Stortford x2 and Cheltenham is not enough. The thing that concerns me most is that the three teams immediately above us have games in hand on us.
Home form is absolutely critical now because the next five aways look difficult – Sutton, Oxford, Dartford, Ebbsfleet, Bath.
|
|
|
|
Post by PaperSaint on Jan 3, 2016 20:28:38 GMT
I don't believe that Harry waved a magic wand which resulted in his first 2 league wins. Harry was an integral part of coaching and management prior to these wins. I believe that this is more to do with L.L. going into the dressing room before the game against Margate and letting the players know that the overdue FA Cup player bonuses that was agreed by the Chairman but was disputed by the owners was now going to be paid to them. This, in my opinion, coupled with other now resolved financial issues, was done prior to that game to change a previously negative attitude to a positive one in the dressing room for Harry's first game in charge. I believe that we should have dug deep and appointed a new, experienced manager after J.G. and G.G. resigned as we still had 25 league games and 75 points to play for. As much as L.L. wants Harry to succeed and become the permanent manager this is a football club first Sorry cityslicker88 but I really have to disagree. Harry made very visible tactical changes as soon as he took over and demonstrated a different approach to man management. I think there were many other factors affecting our form other than a few quid apparently owed to players. I'm also not sure why you think LL wants Harry to be manager - I've seen no indication at all on that one although personally I think he has done a great job so far. We are playing far more attractive football and have lost just one in six. We are suffering from a terrible run at the start of the season when we got 0pts from the first six games - if we had picked up just 4pts then we would be 15th. He has also obviously made a positive impact on the dressing room - why else would we have quality players like Bender and Edwards choosing to stay here rather than taking up offers to play in the league above. Yesterday's first half was poor but Harry took action and changed us tactically - transforming our performance and preventing a loss. This season is a long, long way from being over and I still believe we have what it takes to stay in this league. |
|
|
|
Post by Canary Saint on Jan 3, 2016 20:31:00 GMT
Nil desperandum!This was our position in January 2005 which is not dissimilar to our current plight. That season we finished 14th and the following year we were promoted. We did however have Colin Lippiatt in charge and maybe a bit more money floating around. That is a very significant factor in the equation, CS. Couldn't agree more with you re the highlighted comment (which is why I said it ). I think my second point is also very pertinent. |
|
|
|
Post by Boomer on Jan 3, 2016 22:26:13 GMT
I have to say that the 1st half yesterday was as bad as I have seen all season, probably on a par with the 1st half at Basingstoke. Somehow, you could sense from very first minute that something wasn't right. Harry says in his post match interview that he changed the formation to counteract the way Bishop's Stortford play for the major part of 1st half, until it patently wasn't working and we reverted back to our usual set up. You have to ask why? You are just confusing players, changing systems. Find one that works and stick to it.
What I saw out there yesterday was a Bishop's Stortford side battling for all they were worth, all over the pitch, with their midfield (certainly in the 1st half, when our midfield was virtually non existent) continually pressing us and closing us down. With the exception of Meade, we looked lost, were forever losing possession and sending passes astray. If we are going to get out of this unholy mess, some of the senior players in that midfield are going to need to start stepping up to the plate and show us what they are capable of - retain possession, play the simple pass and keep things moving. In fact, we need a lot more movement generally and we also need to start shooting on site (instead of trying to walk it in), once we are anywhere near the box. Theo can do it, how about a few others.
We really couldn't have asked for 3 more easier games over the holiday period and, frankly, 2 points from 9 is a pretty abysmal return. As someone else has mentioned previously, we are soon about to come up against some of the teams on the top half of this league and unless things change, I don't see us picking points at the likes of Oxford CIty, Ebbsfleet Utd, Dartford et al. We have got to start picking up wins against those around us. If we don't, I think we all know where we will be plying our trade next season.
Ben Nunn getting recalled to Boreham Wood on Boxing Day was a huge blow and Eddie Oshodi not being available to play yesterday certainly didn't help, either. Bishop's Stortford's new signing from Forest Green, Corby Moore, was excellent and gave us a torrid time down our right flank. On the plus side yesterday, a magnificent strike from Theo and very decent performances from Tom Bender (yet again), Jorelle Johnson and Jernade Meade. Not forgetting the loan extension to the end of the season of Jonathan Edwards - a great signing.
COYS!
|
|
|
|
Post by PaperSaint on Jan 3, 2016 22:42:57 GMT
As soon as I heard Nunn had been recalled my optimism for the Stortford away game reduced dramatically...
|
|
|
|
Post by cityslicker88 on Jan 3, 2016 22:43:10 GMT
Appysaint, I have to agree with you, the start of the season was poor. I believe the loss of Omar Beckles and Danny Green pre-season didn't help matters. Tactically, he did make changes, but nothing that I feel could be contributed to a turnaround in form so quickly. What are the other factors that you believe contribute to our form being affected if it wasn't financial? The FA Cup bonus isn't a paltry amount and that's why I believe it was an issue for the players. I don't think you can judge a person's man management skills after just a few weeks, especially that of a caretaker manager who is really under no pressure whatsoever.
Surely the indication that L.L. wants Harry to be manager is the fact that he couldn't believe the number of applicants for the position and that no-one has been appointed. You don't have to be a fly on the boardroom wall to know that L.L. has given Harry the opportunity to prove himself and wants him to succeed. As I have said before, after this experiment has reached it's conclusion, I hope that we are not too far adrift for it to be rectified.
With regards to Bender and Edwards, firstly some credit must go to the former management for identifying where we needed to strengthen, and bringing in these 2 players. If they have turned down higher offers and signed as you say on the back of Harry's positive impact, then maybe it is a give away that Harry is getting the job!!! Or, if as you say, their decision was based solely on the managers impact then surely they would want to know who is possibly coming in to manage before making such a decision, I certainly would!
I would have preferred if tactically we got the 3pts yesterday or against Chelmsford or even Basingstoke.
|
|
|
|
Post by PaperSaint on Jan 3, 2016 22:52:50 GMT
Personally I'd like to see Harry remaining part of any new management set up. I understand that players do like his coaching approach and that has helped to retain players like Edwards and Bender.
I'm very disappointed that we only managed to get 2pts from a possible 9 - but still believe we can survive. I also strongly expect a new manager at some point in the near future - especially as Harry has a full time job at Dagenham and Redbridge. But I think the quantity of applicants doesn't mean there are a) many with sufficient experience or b) those with sufficient experience who are keen to work with the level of resources they would have available
|
|
|
|
Post by Saint on Jan 3, 2016 23:05:40 GMT
Considering we were extremely close to getting a new manager before Harry was appointed, I dont believe that Levy sees Wheeler as the long term fix which is possibly being suggested in here.
Indeed, it will probably become a lot more clearer in the coming weeks, one would have thought.
|
|
