Accrington A ratinhs

[Prodigal Dragon]

Okonkwo (6) - GK mistakes really can't be hidden. Mostly fine but some poor distribution.

Forde (6) - Solid but little support or movement.

Hayden (5) - His touch can be awful. Think he just switches off. Not doing himself any favours getting a new contract.

Tozer (5) - Poor passing and lack of pace yet again.

O'Connor (6) - He does dwell on the ball, but why was he subbed? Presumably an injury.

J Davies (6) - Mostly fine but struggled to impose himself.

Evans (6) - Again, struggles to impose himself. Would have him at CB instead of Tozer or Hayden once we get a proper midfield general in January.

Lee (6) - Best player first-half, but gets frustrated then tries to do too much.

J Jones (6) - Part of a midfield trio which struggled and failed to control the game.

Dalby (5) - Surprised he started. This was a game for Palmer to hustle and bustle. Dalby just isn't very consistent.

Mullin (4) - Missed 2 chances and throws himself to the ground too easily.

Subs:

All a (5). PP left it too late, and Palmer has the pace of a tortoise.

Accrington did their homework and stopped us playing football, albeit we helped them a lot.

We'll hang in until January, when we'll hopefully recruit enough new blood to mount a serious challenge for the top 3 spots. But quite a few need to be shown the door at the end of the season. That includes all our CBs bar TOC and Cleworth, who seems to have been discarded in favour of some lolloping dinosaurs!

[rob_the_red]

Originally Posted by Prodigal Dragon

Okonkwo (6) - GK mistakes really can't be hidden. Mostly fine but some poor distribution.

Forde (6) - Solid but little support or movement.

Hayden (5) - His touch can be awful. Think he just switches off. Not doing himself any favours getting a new contract.

Tozer (5) - Poor passing and lack of pace yet again.

O'Connor (6) - He does dwell on the ball, but why was he subbed? Presumably an injury.

J Davies (6) - Mostly fine but struggled to impose himself.

Evans (6) - Again, struggles to impose himself. Would have him at CB instead of Tozer or Hayden once we get a proper midfield general in January.

Lee (6) - Best player first-half, but gets frustrated then tries to do too much.

J Jones (6) - Part of a midfield trio which struggled and failed to control the game.

Dalby (5) - Surprised he started. This was a game for Palmer to hustle and bustle. Dalby just isn't very consistent.

Mullin (4) - Missed 2 chances and throws himself to the ground too easily.

Subs:

All a (5). PP left it too late, and Palmer has the pace of a tortoise.

Accrington did their homework and stopped us playing football, albeit we helped them a lot.

We'll hang in until January, when we'll hopefully recruit enough new blood to mount a serious challenge for the top 3 spots. But quite a few need to be shown the door at the end of the season. That includes all our CBs bar TOC and Cleworth, who seems to have been discarded in favour of some lolloping dinosaurs!

Play Tozer with 2 decent CBs either side of him and he does well ( as has been shown recently )

EOC when fit is very good

Boyle looks like a rare poor singing

Hayden looks like what he is - a player who has missed a huge amount of football due to injury


Not really commenting on ratings tonight , but not sure how JD gets a 6 - he was a fish out of water all night - it's not his position and he offers nothing going forward or in defence - not his fault , he shouldn't have played there

Also , I can't remember Dlaby doing anything positive again this game wasn't suited to him - he shouldn't have started

[NewportRoadEnd]

Okonkwo: 6, haven’t seen the goal again but did seem like he should have caught it.
TOC: 3, dwelled on the ball too much, caught in possession, hopefully not an injury the cause of his withdrawal
Tozer: 5, the best of our defenders but not great. Few nice touches but also caught in possession a few times.
Hayden: 3, very poor, chases the ball; dives in, no confidence, skittish.
Davies: 2, not a wingback. Shouldn’t ever play there again.
Lee: 4, struggled to make an impact on the game, caught in possession a lot
Evans: 5, tried to play his usual game. Failed.
Jones: 4, usual everyready battery, just didn’t come off for him today
Forde: 5, could have been quicker getting the ball into the box, but solid performance
Dalby: 3, woeful. Did he win a header all game?
Mullin: 5, probably buries the shot and the pen on a different day.

Boyle: 4, seems to have the worst feet and football brain of all our centre backs.
Cannon: 4, ran about a bit, put his foot in, no result.
Palmer: 5, made the ball stick a bit more, but generally ineffective.
McAlinden: 3, feel for the lad really.
Bickerstaff: 3, we need another striker.

Parky: 4, pushed the panic button too early I think going to 433, should have brought Palmer on for Dalby.

[Wrexy]

Originally Posted by Prodigal Dragon

Okonkwo (6) - GK mistakes really can't be hidden. Mostly fine but some poor distribution.

Forde (6) - Solid but little support or movement.

Hayden (5) - His touch can be awful. Think he just switches off. Not doing himself any favours getting a new contract.

Tozer (5) - Poor passing and lack of pace yet again.

O'Connor (6) - He does dwell on the ball, but why was he subbed? Presumably an injury.

J Davies (6) - Mostly fine but struggled to impose himself.

Evans (6) - Again, struggles to impose himself. Would have him at CB instead of Tozer or Hayden once we get a proper midfield general in January.

Lee (6) - Best player first-half, but gets frustrated then tries to do too much.

J Jones (6) - Part of a midfield trio which struggled and failed to control the game.

Dalby (5) - Surprised he started. This was a game for Palmer to hustle and bustle. Dalby just isn't very consistent.

Mullin (4) - Missed 2 chances and throws himself to the ground too easily.

Subs:

All a (5). PP left it too late, and Palmer has the pace of a tortoise.

Accrington did their homework and stopped us playing football, albeit we helped them a lot.

We'll hang in until January, when we'll hopefully recruit enough new blood to mount a serious challenge for the top 3 spots. But quite a few need to be shown the door at the end of the season. That includes all our CBs bar TOC and Cleworth, who seems to have been discarded in favour of some lolloping dinosaurs!

Are you this generous with your Xmas presents? If so can I have a Ferrari please!

[Prodigal Dragon]

Originally Posted by Wrexy

Are you this generous with your Xmas presents? If so can I have a Ferrari please!

Individually they were a mixed-bag. Collectively, as a team, they were poor.

Unsure what the issue is.

However, fans — including myself — tend to over react when we lose.

[Bryn Tirion]

Originally Posted by Prodigal Dragon

Okonkwo (6) - GK mistakes really can't be hidden. Mostly fine but some poor distribution.

Forde (6) - Solid but little support or movement.

Hayden (5) - His touch can be awful. Think he just switches off. Not doing himself any favours getting a new contract.

Tozer (5) - Poor passing and lack of pace yet again.

O'Connor (6) - He does dwell on the ball, but why was he subbed? Presumably an injury.

J Davies (6) - Mostly fine but struggled to impose himself.

Evans (6) - Again, struggles to impose himself. Would have him at CB instead of Tozer or Hayden once we get a proper midfield general in January.

Lee (6) - Best player first-half, but gets frustrated then tries to do too much.

J Jones (6) - Part of a midfield trio which struggled and failed to control the game.

Dalby (5) - Surprised he started. This was a game for Palmer to hustle and bustle. Dalby just isn't very consistent.

Mullin (4) - Missed 2 chances and throws himself to the ground too easily.

Subs:

All a (5). PP left it too late, and Palmer has the pace of a tortoise.

Accrington did their homework and stopped us playing football, albeit we helped them a lot.

We'll hang in until January, when we'll hopefully recruit enough new blood to mount a serious challenge for the top 3 spots. But quite a few need to be shown the door at the end of the season. That includes all our CBs bar TOC and Cleworth, who seems to have been discarded in favour of some lolloping dinosaurs!

Very generous ratings. I don’t think any of them deserve more than a 5.

[gazwxm]

Originally Posted by Prodigal Dragon

Okonkwo (6) - GK mistakes really can't be hidden. Mostly fine but some poor distribution.

Forde (6) - Solid but little support or movement.

Hayden (5) - His touch can be awful. Think he just switches off. Not doing himself any favours getting a new contract.

Tozer (5) - Poor passing and lack of pace yet again.

O'Connor (6) - He does dwell on the ball, but why was he subbed? Presumably an injury.

J Davies (6) - Mostly fine but struggled to impose himself.

Evans (6) - Again, struggles to impose himself. Would have him at CB instead of Tozer or Hayden once we get a proper midfield general in January.

Lee (6) - Best player first-half, but gets frustrated then tries to do too much.

J Jones (6) - Part of a midfield trio which struggled and failed to control the game.

Dalby (5) - Surprised he started. This was a game for Palmer to hustle and bustle. Dalby just isn't very consistent.

Mullin (4) - Missed 2 chances and throws himself to the ground too easily.

Subs:

All a (5). PP left it too late, and Palmer has the pace of a tortoise.

Accrington did their homework and stopped us playing football, albeit we helped them a lot.

We'll hang in until January, when we'll hopefully recruit enough new blood to mount a serious challenge for the top 3 spots. But quite a few need to be shown the door at the end of the season. That includes all our CBs bar TOC and Cleworth, who seems to have been discarded in favour of some lolloping dinosaurs!

Jordan Davies 6? Dear me, that says it all

[Prodigal Dragon]

Originally Posted by rob_the_red

Play Tozer with 2 decent CBs either side of him and he does well ( as has been shown recently )

EOC when fit is very good

Boyle looks like a rare poor singing

Hayden looks like what he is - a player who has missed a huge amount of football due to injury


Not really commenting on ratings tonight , but not sure how JD gets a 6 - he was a fish out of water all night - it's not his position and he offers nothing going forward or in defence - not his fault , he shouldn't have played there

Also , I can't remember Dlaby doing anything positive again this game wasn't suited to him - he shouldn't have started

We disagree about Tozer, who has been going downhill since the middle of last season. Even with 2 good quality CBs doing all the work, he simply isn’t good enough now, let alone for EFL1.

Most if not all our CBs are slow and designed to deal with the big aerial threat we faced in the NFL.

O’Connell is OK when fit but….
Boyle has been a major flop: slow and poor positioning. He does have a left-peg; shame he can’t use it very well.
Tunnicliffe hasn’t recovered from his back injury, judging by how he moves.
Hayden can be very good but he is rusty and loses concentration. Hence poor control and passing.

Cleworth is out of favour. Yes, he makes silly mistakes, but the others do, too.
O’Connor is better at LCB than midfield but must cut out his tendency to dwell on the ball.

So, the central pivot for PP’s game is not as strong, quick or talented enough. Most ain’t going to improve.

Yesterday we had one RWB who is returning from injury, so still getting up to speed. But Forde lacks the pace needed to skim players. He’s a very good footballer who might be better in midfield.

JD was asked to do a job Brighton realised he couldn’t do, hence his move forward. He can be excellent for 10 minutes, but rarely good for 90. Yesterday, he wasn’t helped by so many others playing very averagely, especially in the second-half. We were holding our own in the first but, uncharacteristically dropped off in the second..

Was this a one-off? Wiser folk than I were saying, “We can’t win ‘em all”, yet go apoplectic when we do eventually lose. The test will be next Saturday at home to Morecambe. They will be tough opposition, too. So PP and the players need to rethink, reunite and rejuvenate with the reinforcements. Lots of RE there so, hopefully, we are not living on a prayer!

For me, yesterday simply exposed our numerous weaknesses, and we were unable to regain the initiative against a well-drilled and combative opposition. One day soon, PP might get us to play as an effective team rather than 11ish effective players!

Finally, I haven’t seen too many comments on the missile issue towards the end of the game. That is something the club must address asap before the stupid habit becomes prevalent.

A final, final, albeit it wasn’t a final. We dropped 3 points, which we were expecting. It wasn’t so much that, but the way we went about it. Easy to blame Okonkwo, when the real issues are in front of him. Game and rant over. Must do better on Saturday, when we’ll all be ‘happy chappies once again’!

[blackbrookred]

Originally Posted by Prodigal Dragon

Okonkwo (6) - GK mistakes really can't be hidden. Mostly fine but some poor distribution.

Forde (6) - Solid but little support or movement.

Hayden (5) - His touch can be awful. Think he just switches off. Not doing himself any favours getting a new contract.

Tozer (5) - Poor passing and lack of pace yet again.

O'Connor (6) - He does dwell on the ball, but why was he subbed? Presumably an injury.

J Davies (6) - Mostly fine but struggled to impose himself.

Evans (6) - Again, struggles to impose himself. Would have him at CB instead of Tozer or Hayden once we get a proper midfield general in January.

Lee (6) - Best player first-half, but gets frustrated then tries to do too much.

J Jones (6) - Part of a midfield trio which struggled and failed to control the game.

Dalby (5) - Surprised he started. This was a game for Palmer to hustle and bustle. Dalby just isn't very consistent.

Mullin (4) - Missed 2 chances and throws himself to the ground too easily.

Subs:

All a (5). PP left it too late, and Palmer has the pace of a tortoise.

Accrington did their homework and stopped us playing football, albeit we helped them a lot.

We'll hang in until January, when we'll hopefully recruit enough new blood to mount a serious challenge for the top 3 spots. But quite a few need to be shown the door at the end of the season. That includes all our CBs bar TOC and Cleworth, who seems to have been discarded in favour of some lolloping dinosaurs!

Davies and Dalby were easily the worst players on the pitch.

Davies drifted far too narrow at times, closing the space that Lee plays in. When he did get the ball out wide in decent positions, his final ball was terrible. He was clearly out of his comfort zone and was only played there because he is left footed, a big mistake from Parky.