Not a good start to the season

[Simster]

2 points from 5 games doesn't look too tidy.

If you've been to 3 or more of those games, can you give the rest of us an assessment as to where we need to improve in order to avoid relegation.

Personally, I still think Hull and Crewe will struggle, and we've managed only one point from those two games thanks to a last minute equaliser...

 

[Basil Fawlty]

2 points from 5 games doesn't look too tidy.

If you've been to 3 or more of those games, can you give the rest of us an assessment as to where we need to improve in order to avoid relegation.

Personally, I still think Hull and Crewe will struggle, and we've managed only one point from those two games thanks to a last minute equaliser...

We need 2 new midfielders, because Chippy and Oatway are not up to this standard anymore.

 

[Silent Bob]

4 games not 5.

 

[bhaexpress]

Simple, better service to the front from midfield. We just don't ask enough questions as they say.

 

[Simster]

Re: Re: Not a good start to the season

We need 2 new midfielders, because Chippy and Oatway are not up to this standard anymore.

That does seem to be the concensus, so I have two more issues:

1) We are unlikely to get TWO Championship class midfielders. If McGhee replaced just one of them, do you think we'd be able to compete.
2) Is that really the only problem anyway? Dodd seems to have one good game, followed by a bad one. I was hoping for more from a player with bags of top flight experience...

 

[Napper]

not a good start at all. We have certainly looked to play more football than last year and have looked pretty decent at times, however we are desperatly lacking a cutting edge still. Im pretty sure alot of this stems from midfield . I'm hoping Carole could sake this up a bit as he looked good against Crewe. I don't think the GK position is healthy with Henderson either. I think the defence we have is good enough providing we have keeper pulling off some saves as well.
I'm not sure where we are going to get our first win, you'd probably be looking at the Plymouth game in the same way we thought we'd beat Crewe.
I think once we're up and running with a win then we will kick on and be picking up the sufficient 7 points a month target.
The longer we go winless however then obviously it becomes a sychological issue

 

[junior]

I havent been to all the games,but from what ive seen i would say our main problems are that Oatway cant play football anymore,and McGhee insists on playing everybody out of position.

 

[Silent Bob]

That does seem to be the concensus, so I have two more issues:

1) We are unlikely to get TWO Championship class midfielders. If McGhee replaced just one of them, do you think we'd be able to compete.
2) Is that really the only problem anyway? Dodd seems to have one good game, followed by a bad one. I was hoping for more from a player with bags of top flight experience...

I feel that is the problem. Dodd has been inconsistent but that's not why we're not winning games. It's becasue we're not scoring or even threatening even when playing well (eg home to Crewe, parts of the Derby game). We lack any dangerous service from midifeld. MM is looking for a left sided player, if we get one, play Carole on the right and move Hammond into the centre we'd be a lot better going forward imo.

 

[Simster]

and McGhee insists on playing everybody out of position.

That is an issue with McGhee's sides although I'm quite pragmatic about it to be honest at this stage of the season. Adam Virgo would never have been sold for £1.5m if McGhee hadn't experimented and proved Virgo's versatility. And if you're going to chop and change, you have to do it early on in the season to see if players can add value. I hope he puts out an experimental side against Shrewsbury this week.

 

[London Irish]

2 points from 5 games doesn't look too tidy.

If you've been to 3 or more of those games, can you give the rest of us an assessment as to where we need to improve in order to avoid relegation.

Personally, I still think Hull and Crewe will struggle, and we've managed only one point from those two games thanks to a last minute equaliser...

Well, I don't think there is a huge amount wrong to be honest. We've had two good performances out of 4 and have been very unlucky not to have a win yet.

McGhee is still experimenting to try and find his best formation because we have a fair amount of new players and it is not obvious what their optimum roles in the team are. He needs time and that's what we need to give him.

The central defence are being scapegoated by many on NSC, which is ridiculous given how well they did against Derby and Crewe.

A case in point, many people wanted Chippy dropped after the Reading game, and yet on Saturday he was close to being our best player, something confirmed by both Hull fans and Peter Taylor.

 

[Knightsworld]

Re: Re: Not a good start to the season

Well, I don't think there is a huge amount wrong to be honest. We've had two good performances out of 4 and have been very unlucky not to have a win yet.

McGhee is still experimenting to try and find his best formation because we have a fair amount of new players and it is not obvious what their optimum roles in the team are. He needs time and that's what we need to give him.

The central defence are being scapegoated by many on NSC, which is ridiculous given how well they did against Derby and Crewe.

A case in point, many people wanted Chippy dropped after the Reading game, and yet on Saturday he was close to being our best player, something confirmed by both Hull fans and Peter Taylor.

And was the Sun's star player

 

[London Irish]

That is an issue with McGhee's sides although I'm quite pragmatic about it to be honest at this stage of the season. Adam Virgo would never have been sold for £1.5m if McGhee hadn't experimented and proved Virgo's versatility. And if you're going to chop and change, you have to do it early on in the season to see if players can add value. I hope he puts out an experimental side against Shrewsbury this week.

Paul Reid, one of our best players of last season, was also played out of position. It's an simple excuse for our defeats, not the real reason. Everyone gets on McGhee's back about this when we lose games. But there is utter silence on this matter when we win and complete the job of staying up in a difficult league. People have be consistent and not have their cake and eat it.

 

[y2dave]

We look decent and I'm generally encouraged but central midfield has been poor. We need 3 new players.

I have a lot of respect for Oatway and Carpenter but we have Hammond, Nicolas and Reid who for me are all better options in the middle.

If we can't bring in established midfielders bring in players so Hammond and Reid can switch back to central midfield. Another center back signing would also free up Mcshane to move into midfield, he has all the attributes and is suprisingly skillfull.

Also we need to start playing two up front, prefferably Big Mac or Turi so we can utilise Hendersons kicking and hold it in the final third.

At Shresbury i would see how this works 4-4-2:

GK:Henderson
LB: Reid
RB:El Abd (Rest Dodd)
CD Butters
CD McShane
LM Knight
RM Carole
CM Nicolas
CM Hammond
FC CKR
FC McCammon

 

[Barnet Seagull]

i think it's obvious what's required.

we need.

1. A left-sided midfielder
2. A left back
3. Edgar Davids

oh and Kuipers

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

We NEED Chippy or Oatway in midfield. Sorry but with hammond and nicolas we would be rather lightweight.

 

[Simster]

3. Edgar Davids

would be good but wages could be a problem.

 

[dwayne]

It's not just players needed.

The manager has to get us playing with a formation that suits the players (blatantly not 4-5-1, with CKR as the 1) and like others have said stop playing half the players out of position

Yes, Virgo was a success, but it can't and won't happen with most of the other players.

...and once a-bloody-gain we've not done the preparation properly before the season has started, which is unacceptable.

 

[dancing ninjas mate]

2 points from 5 games doesn't look too tidy.

If you've been to 3 or more of those games, can you give the rest of us an assessment as to where we need to improve in order to avoid relegation.

Personally, I still think Hull and Crewe will struggle, and we've managed only one point from those two games thanks to a last minute equaliser...

How dare you!!!. We had six players out on saturday four would have probably started if they where fit. We will stay up comfartably in my opinion. The standards better but we should have nicked a point at wolves. And we've only conceded two goals in four games

 

[Simster]

...and once a-bloody-gain we've not done the preparation properly before the season has started, which is unacceptable.

I think that's fair comment. We've gone into the season without an adequate keeper and a gash midfield. And we didn't play enough pre-season games against decent opposition.

 

[bhaexpress]

In fairness though MM did get snubbed a few times and several new players only arrived on the eve of the season start.