Bristol City vs Boro 3-2 (Viner (og) Crooks)

[Bruce 3,109 2.5k]

In the Gazette, Craig Johns writes 

Quote

As Carrick said, it was a strike no goalkeeper would save, but it was a goal that should have been avoided through better protection of the ball in the first place, and then better reorganisation and taking control of the situation once out of possession. It's something Boro haven't done well all season.

At the moment we're an inconsistent team with a chance of making the play-offs. We can string together good runs but mostly we won't. We have two systemic failings. One is that we have never found a way to play the way Carrick wants us to without making ourselves too easy to score against. We don't unluckily concede "worldies"; most decent championship players can score a long range goal against us because they do it all the time on the training ground.

The other, like most Championship teams, we can lose our heads.

Then again, it has to be said that we are involved in a massive rebuild while the experienced spine of our team has been lost through injuries.

If you add together the key players missing due to leaving the club and injuries that comes to:

Smith, Lenihan, Giles, Mowatt, O'Brien, McGree, Akpom, Archer, Ramsay, Forss

That's most of a top 6 Championship team right there. So you have to say that being an inconsistent team is probably about as good as we can hope right now.

[Plastic Goat 731 1.1k]

1 hour ago, Redcar Rioja said:

Just so frustrating watching the same failings again and again.

Perhaps Carrick isn't as good as we all thought. He certainly doesn't seem to be learning from his mistakes.

[AnglianRed 7,882 18.1k]

1 hour ago, Redcar Rioja said:

Just so frustrating watching the same failings again and again.

Well said and I think your comments echo how many of us are feeling.

Boro have proven in some games that they can play to a pretty high standard, all across the park and it is immensely frustrating to watch games where we simply don't turn up, or only show our best in sporadic flashes.

It feels like our players are very inconsistent...anonymous for large parts of games. Why is this? We need them operating at full capacity for 80-90% of games, rather than the 50% or less we seem to be getting at the moment.

As you mentioned, our coaching doesn't seem to be improving their organisation, communication or technical skills...again - why not? Some on-field leadership would help this to some extent, but we need a player worthy of wearing the captain's armband.

Also agree that Carrick needs to better recognise when subs are needed...not just sticking them on for a few minutes at the end.

[Plastic Goat 731 1.1k]

Putting Coburn on at the 86 minute was absurd. He should have been on for at least half an hour. 

[Humpty 5,144 10.6k]

6 hours ago, Downsouth said:

Some good considered posts made overnight but at the end of the day we were simply naff all over the park.

If there is a hint of arrogance from Boro then it is the arrogance of not trying to do better!

I simply can not see why after equalising we did not go for the jugular because BC were in dissaray and there for the taking, but oh no as too often the case we have witnessed there was simply no effort made to win the game.

That was the time for change get ELL and Greenwood off getting Silvera and Coburn onto the park.

MC made an error or two yesterday he did not take the game to BC

That’s exactly what we DID do. We took the game to Bristol City and went for the jugular. It back fired and was probably the wrong way to go about the game because it gave Bristol City more of a chance in the game than they should have had.

[sanddancer 2,099 6.2k]

Just my take on things. The issues from the start of the season haven't gone away and the recent run now seems an exception from the rule, a freak occurrence.  I’m not saying it’s far away but inconsistency is prevalent. More like winding up a diesel engine on a cold morning with farting and coughing and just as it’s about to spark into live it splutters and gives up the ghost. 

[Changing Times 15,960 23k]

7 hours ago, Bruce said:

In the Gazette, Craig Johns writes 

At the moment we're an inconsistent team with a chance of making the play-offs. We can string together good runs but mostly we won't. We have two systemic failings. One is that we have never found a way to play the way Carrick wants us to without making ourselves too easy to score against. We don't unluckily concede "worldies"; most decent championship players can score a long range goal against us because they do it all the time on the training ground.

The other, like most Championship teams, we can lose our heads.

Then again, it has to be said that we are involved in a massive rebuild while the experienced spine of our team has been lost through injuries.

If you add together the key players missing due to leaving the club and injuries that comes to:

Smith, Lenihan, Giles, Mowatt, O'Brien, McGree, Akpom, Archer, Ramsay, Forss

That's most of a top 6 Championship team right there. So you have to say that being an inconsistent team is probably about as good as we can hope right now.

We can't keep talking about players who were here last season but have left.  Players leave clubs, this is just how it is.  I would imagine every club in world football has lost some players between this season and last.  You don't just shrug and give up, you get on with it.  You coach to the players that you have, not the players that you had.  Aside from that, the problems we have now aren't new problems anyway, so it's not really due to players we have missing.

[TeaCider24 18,300 23.4k]

I'd missed that result, means we're still only 4 points off the play-offs even with the slip-up yesterday, and we obviously play Preston next.

[Borodane 7,946 27.6k]

Just seen the highlights. We just don’t do defending do we. Not individually and not collectively. We really look like a team that needs a destroyer in midfield alongside Hackney. 

[SmogDane 4,138 8k]

On 11/25/2023 at 9:12 PM, Changing Times said:

No he wasn't.  Engel was at fault.  He's a defender, he's supposed to clear the ball not flick it on straight to their man.  Do people really not understand this stuff?  If Fry doesn't make a challenge then their lad has a free shot at goal from 7 yards out.  It was a naff challenge from Fry but it shouldn't have even been required, and it was required because we have a left back that is a poor defender.

#vikinglivesmatter

[SmogDane 4,138 8k]

If Engel's header went out for a throw in, it was a great play .. The decision to head was alright, but the execution wasn't great. 
You do know that when on the pitch, you don't have the same vision and "good" time as when watching from the stands or even on tv? 

Fry aso made a choice to try and tackle, but it was a poor attempt .. Again the decision wasn't wrong, just the execution of it that sucked. 

Ifs and buts  ... 

If teams didn't score a goal of the season contender against us every other game ... 

If my grandmother had two wheels, she would have been a bicycle .. 

Over all I think we did an ok attempt at winning, but you also have to give BC some credit for what they did .. at their ground

[Plastic Goat 731 1.1k]

2 hours ago, Borodane said:

Just seen the highlights. We just don’t do defending do we. Not individually and not collectively. We really look like a team that needs a destroyer in midfield alongside Hackney. 

I'm afraid you are dead right. I can't get my head around how awful we are at times in every game, at basic defending.Does Carrick not see this? I suspect he does but he is encouraging the team to play in a certain way. Time after time we are giving goals away that a competent defense would not. If we continue in this vein then we will end up lower mid table with the worst goals against in the league. All Preston have to Tuesday is wait for the defensive lapses and it's game over.

[SmogDane 4,138 8k]

Lose one game and we suck and will end below midtable ... 

Win one game v Leicester and we will for sure go up ... 

😅

[Changing Times 15,960 23k]

11 hours ago, SmogDane said:

If Engel's header went out for a throw in, it was a great play .. The decision to head was alright, but the execution wasn't great. 
You do know that when on the pitch, you don't have the same vision and "good" time as when watching from the stands or even on tv? 

Fry aso made a choice to try and tackle, but it was a poor attempt .. Again the decision wasn't wrong, just the execution of it that sucked. 

Ifs and buts  ... 

If teams didn't score a goal of the season contender against us every other game ... 

If my grandmother had two wheels, she would have been a bicycle .. 

Over all I think we did an ok attempt at winning, but you also have to give BC some credit for what they did .. at their ground

I don't think that there was a way for the header to go out for a throw in is my point.  He couldn't get the power on it doing it like that, it's such an awkward way to head the ball.  It was a poor decision, and it lead to us conceding a goal.  Just how it is 🤷‍♂️