66% possesion and 2 shots on target.

[Turkey]

Essentially it's a whole different ball game when we play the better teams because they will attack us. We do have a good defence and we do have players who can hurt them. It's always hard when the oppo have everyone behind the ball and something to hold on to, doesn't matter who you are. There have been plenty of occasions to be negative and critical of us this season but I had no complaints yesterday, they gave everything and pretty much to a man collapsed at the final whistle they were so tired from going for it.

 

[Luke93]

Huddersfield were poor and deperate to get a result but we didnt sttack enough especially on the wings

I'm assuming you didn't go to the game? Because Huddersfield sat back after their goal, and made things very difficult. First half we were poor, second half though was a major improvement. We were easily the better side during the second half, regardless to our number of shots! A point isn't bad either, because that keeps us in the hunt, if Watford win or draw tidal verses Ipswich, yesterday turns out to be a fantastic day!

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

if Watford win or draw tidal verses Ipswich, yesterday turns out to be a fantastic day!

No. Yesterday would turn out not to have been too damaging. Far from fantastic. We missed a very good chance to get three points, improve our gd and put down a marker when the other contenders slipped up. Whatever the Ipswich result today, yesterday was a missed opportunity to put clear water between us and the rest and to lift off some of the pressure we will now feel at home.

 

[Icy Gull]

No. Yesterday would turn out not to have been too damaging. Far from fantastic. We missed a very good chance to get three points, improve our gd and put down a marker when the other contenders slipped up. Whatever the Ipswich result today, yesterday was a missed opportunity to put clear water between us and the rest and to lift off some of the pressure we will now feel at home.

Teams going for the playoffs tend to stumble, especially those going for 6th place. Two of our rivals did worse than us yesterday. Many more twists to come in the last three games I suspect, try and enjoy it

 

[Zen Frenzy]

Surely the lesson for tomorrow and Friday is to go at these weak teams with overpowering intent from the off. They'll have difficulty "parking the bus" for 80 mins if they're already a goal or two down by then. Big finish boys - come on.

 

[Zen Frenzy]

Sorry... Monday and Friday.. durrr

 

[Easy 10]

On a side note. I have never seen time wasting like yesterday before. The ball boy deserves MOM for Huddersfield!

It was noticed by the home fans too http://downatthemac.proboards.com/thread/90706/sad-say-bit-ashamed-today

Although most of them don't seem to have a problem with it...

 

[Triggaaar]

No. Yesterday would turn out not to have been too damaging. Far from fantastic. We missed a very good chance to get three points, improve our gd and put down a marker when the other contenders slipped up.

We may have missed that chance to get further ahead, but we also avoided the chance to fall behind. If Ipswich don't win today, then overall the results would have been very good for us. We've over-taken Reading, and Bournemouth have fallen further behind with less games remaining. So no, yesterday would not have been damaging at all (if Ipswich don't win), quite the opposite.

It was noticed by the home fans too http://downatthemac.proboards.com/thread/90706/sad-say-bit-ashamed-today

Although most of them don't seem to have a problem with it...

Time wasting is a huge slur on the beautiful game. It ruins it. But I don't blame Huddersfield at all. Why shouldn't they do whatever they can to try and stay up. Just like Swansea against Chelsea (cup final). Everton taking away all the spare balls when they took the lead against Man U. It's FIFA and officials that should stop it. If the ball boys take the piss, start by sending the manager to the stands. If they continue, send a player off (offending side's captain can choose which). Problem solved. And when players time waste, book them. It was the ref's fault yesterday for not booking players - it sounded like he had no control on the game and messed it up from start to finish.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

How about Leicester at home then, or QPR?

Yep, 6 points off Leicester, 4 off QPR, 4 off Burnley and beat Wigan away. I would agree with you.

 

[Easy 10]

Time wasting is a huge slur on the beautiful game. It ruins it. But I don't blame Huddersfield at all. Why shouldn't they do whatever they can to try and stay up. Just like Swansea against Chelsea (cup final). Everton taking away all the spare balls when they took the lead against Man U. It's FIFA and officials that should stop it. If the ball boys take the piss, start by sending the manager to the stands. If they continue, send a player off (offending side's captain can choose which). Problem solved. And when players time waste, book them. It was the ref's fault yesterday for not booking players - it sounded like he had no control on the game and messed it up from start to finish.

Depressing that we just glibly accept cheating though isn't it ? Or that we "don't blame" teams for cheating if they can get away with it.
Yes the ref should be more pro-active and do something about it, but I suppose we're just grown so accustomed to everyone cheating in the game that we've just reached a point of general acceptance on it. So we don't even chastise the team thats cheating any more, we just blame the officials for not dealing with it.

 

[Acker79]

Time wasting is a huge slur on the beautiful game. It ruins it. But I don't blame Huddersfield at all. Why shouldn't they do whatever they can to try and stay up. Just like Swansea against Chelsea (cup final). Everton taking away all the spare balls when they took the lead against Man U. It's FIFA and officials that should stop it. If the ball boys take the piss, start by sending the manager to the stands. If they continue, send a player off (offending side's captain can choose which). Problem solved. And when players time waste, book them. It was the ref's fault yesterday for not booking players - it sounded like he had no control on the game and messed it up from start to finish.

I think the player waiting to take the set piece should be cautioned. The ball boys aren't a requirement of the game, and if a player just stands there instead of retrieving the ball when the ball boy won't he is as much to blame as the ball boy and should be punished.

 

[Triggaaar]

The ball boys aren't a requirement of the game

Nor are multiple balls. But a club should choose which they want, and offer the same service for both sides, not play multi-ball, and then put them all away when they take the lead. Or ball boys that go on strike when they take the lead. It turns the game from a beautiful sport to petty time wasting.

Depressing that we just glibly accept cheating though isn't it ? Or that we "don't blame" teams for cheating if they can get away with it.
Yes the ref should be more pro-active and do something about it, but I suppose we're just grown so accustomed to everyone cheating in the game that we've just reached a point of general acceptance on it. So we don't even chastise the team thats cheating any more, we just blame the officials for not dealing with it.

It doesn't really matter if we blame the teams that 'cheat', they're still going to do it if the officials allow it.

Ultimately, I'd like the game to improve, and the only way that will happen is if FIFA/the officials do something about it.

 

[Luke93]

No. Yesterday would turn out not to have been too damaging. Far from fantastic. We missed a very good chance to get three points, improve our gd and put down a marker when the other contenders slipped up. Whatever the Ipswich result today, yesterday was a missed opportunity to put clear water between us and the rest and to lift off some of the pressure we will now feel at home.

Moving up a place to sixth AND opening a point gap was productive. You can't win every week, is that what you're expecting

 

[mona]

I was disappointed with the quality of our crossing yesterday. Don't think much attention is paid to it in training.

 

[Dan Aitch]

Goalkeeper, six seconds. End of.

 

[portslade seagull]

Absolutely this. I watched todays game thinking that Yeovil and Blackpool may well give us very similar games to Huddersfield who parked the bus at the back but broke dangerously, not helped by some very average defending by us. Throw in an ineffective Ref and the next two games could be tough (hope I'm wrong of course). We need to be ruthless and batter them.

Hopefully we can get points in the bank and put more pressure on our play off rivals. I don't really want us to be going to Forest needing 3 points, especially as they now have many of their long term injuries returning, so may well be a bit more of a handful than of late.

I don't think they will have that as a choice, they will both need to attack because they need 3pts and not the 1pt which hopefully will play to our strengths

 

[Machiavelli]

This is pretty much what happened. The communications between he defence - including TK - was very poor for the first 5 mins, and we were punished and had to contend with the time wasting from 50 mins.

The time wasting was possibly the worst I've seen, from players, coaches and, worst of all, ball boys. There was one point when the ball went out for a goal kick that the ball boy took so long to get up over the ad hoardings and fetch the ball (to throw to the keeper stood waiting no more than 15 yards away), that Ulloa ran from the half way line to pick the ball up himself and pass it to the keeper. If the 4th official had accounted for all of this then there should've been at least 10 mins extra. I know all ball boys do it to some extent when the home side is trying to run down the clock, but today's effort during the 2nd half really took the piss. Refs can and will book players for time wasting, but something needs to be done to stop it being done by the ball boys; people pay good money to watch 90 minutes of football, not some ginger tosser sloping after a ball with all the enthusiasm of Kevin the teenager having been told to tidy his room.

This time-wasting is probably the worst thing in football at the moment. The FA needs to do something about it -- it seems to be far more prevalent in the Championship than the Premier League. I can think of our home games against Millwall, Sheff Wed, and a few others, and about ten minutes of each half (plus four or five added on for substitutions, etc) constituted time-wasting. The FA have clamped down on dangerous challenges effectively over the past decade or so; they need to do so over time-wasting.

 

[7oaksgull]

This time-wasting is probably the worst thing in football at the moment. The FA needs to do something about it -- it seems to be far more prevalent in the Championship than the Premier League. I can think of our home games against Millwall, Sheff Wed, and a few others, and about ten minutes of each half (plus four or five added on for substitutions, etc) constituted time-wasting. The FA have clamped down on dangerous challenges effectively over the past decade or so; they need to do so over time-wasting.

It is simple to fix. On average, the ball is in play for about 60 minutes in a professional game of football. Therefore, the ref (or a separate time keeper) starts and stops the clock every time the ball goes dead and we play for 60 minutes. Time wasting becomes pointless and additionally all games immediately last for exactly the same time.

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

Of course not. But it was posted as a "fantastic result" I was pointing out that it was not fantastic, whatever happened to the teams around us. It was ok.