Dear Messrs Adam Hinshelwood and Tommy Fraser,

[Man of Harveys]

With a (grown-up) player inches away, I can hardly imagine any ball-boy delaying the hand-over by mucking about or not allowing to let the player pick the ball up himself.

That's exactly what HAS happened loads of time at Withdean in the past, and quite right too: my nephew did it in front of a stand full of baying cockneys against QPR once and copped loads of grief from them for it, although it wasn't THAT long really. He was proud as punch afterwards.

 

[jonny.rainbow]

Back page of Argus

" Wilkins blames ballboys for the goal "

well the 4th official really

It's always someone else's fault.

Can't he just admit the team and his tactics f***ed up?

 

[Man of Harveys]

Back page of Argus

" Wilkins blames ballboys for the goal "

well the 4th official really

Stop talking drivel which implies that you STILL can't cope with the departure of McGhee - that's really a bit crap isn't it? What did it say? Because on teletext, I read Wilkins saying that he was pissed off that the players were busy watching the ball going into the trees and not concentrating on the game, which is about as fair an assessment as is possible.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Back page of Argus

" Wilkins blames ballboys for the goal "

well the 4th official really

Not quite! YOu should be a politician, Spielberg!

He blasted the 4th official for allowing Northampton to abuse the multiball system. YOu are only supposed to have 8, but Gorman complained and got another 7 added, claiming that they were not getting the ball back as quickly as Brighton.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Not quite! YOu should be a politician, Spielberg!

He blasted the 4th official for allowing Northampton to abuse the multiball system. YOu are only supposed to have 8, but Gorman complained and got another 7 added, claiming that they were not getting the ball back as quickly as Brighton.

Yep - Gorman and his monkey were a disgrace. Don't know if this is fixtures but the monkey clearly flicked D block the V sign behind his back after walking some 10 yards outside his technical area to berate the ballboys. Frankly the 4th official was as weak as a John Inman handshake.

The defence should, of course, have been awake to the quick throw but lets not understate the role of Gorman and the officials in the goal. The poor ballboy was entirely blameless. How anyone can blame a 6 year old for a goal and hold their head up in public is beyond me. If he was my lad I'd have been furious with the stick the ballboy got.

 

[NMH]

Yep - Gorman and his monkey were a disgrace. Don't know if this is fixtures but the monkey clearly flicked D block the V sign behind his back after walking some 10 yards outside his technical area to berate the ballboys. Frankly the 4th official was as weak as a John Inman handshake.

The 4th official did actually shake hands with John Inman, here they are in the Sportsman after the match -

 

[Gritt23]

When you welt the ball into the next galaxy to waste time and show what a clever boy you are, did you know that (these days) there are SPARE footballs in the hands of ballboys? It is their JOB to hand the players the ball (both sides' players) to save wasted time for a ball that went over the stands. The ball is often inches away, a mere two seconds from being back in play.

Fraser; It is NOT the ballboys 'bad' if he doesn't hold onto the ball deliberately to keep it from the opposition. He is doing his JOB that he was put there for, if he gives the ball over to a player asap.

Hinshelwood; When you are enjoying a (somewhat flattering) game that lacks serious threat from an attacking player, and you have time to make lots of no-pressure dummies on the ball, clearances, passes and covers - one mistake will still cost points and make all your fine efforts a total non-event. Overconfidence ensuing, and lack of concentration for a schoolboy error in watching a throw-in while the man you are supposed to be marking is practically SAUNTERING to put the free NOT-OFFSIDE pass down the yellow brick road to Oz (i.e into our net), made you look like a rank amateur, and cost TWO lovely POINTS.

Both players; a mis-kick is understandable and simple human error that happens in Prem games every weekend. However, losing concentration, not remembering that there is a ball inches (and one or two seconds at most) away, and not picking up the opposing attackers to keep them from a FREE RUN ON GOAL is not the fault of a little tiny ballboy who is doing what he was required to do.
That my friends, was YOUR job that did NOT get done.

Thus endeth the 127th lesson in professional league football.

Totally agree with that, although I do think the whole defence - except perhaps the left back should take the blame for an incident like that. YES Hinsh took himself monstrously out pof position, but where was everyone else? It looked like El-Abd charging back from midfield was the only one who got anywhere near the player. Where was Butters and where was Whing? Surely they move across to cover a defender who is out of position.

Blame all round from me.

 

[NMH]

Fair do's. I believe Whing was often in a forward role on the far flank, and doing reasonably well there. Butters was holding the midfield position, and would've been closer - but if those lads came across then they would be leaving their own positions wide open. If the ball was quickly played cross from that throw-in to the other flank, then those defenders are culpable and at blame for coming across for a throw that already had two defenders on the spot.

Also, the ball was, obviously, thrown rather promptly to their attacker, enabling him that easy mugging of our defence.
Two points above the relegation zone, thanks to the swift thinking of that C*** Scott McGleish, and the slow thinking of someone who thought it smart to hoof the ball and take a little rest.

 

[Gritt23]

Fair do's. I believe Whing was often in a forward role on the far flank, and doing reasonably well there. Butters was holding the midfield position, and would've been closer - but if those lads came across then they would be leaving their own positions wide open. If the ball was quickly played cross from that throw-in to the other flank, then those defenders are culpable and at blame for coming across for a throw that already had two defenders on the spot.

Also, the ball was, obviously, thrown rather promptly to their attacker, enabling him that easy mugging of our defence.
Two points above the relegation zone, thanks to the swift thinking of that C*** Scott McGleish, and the slow thinking of someone who thought it smart to hoof the ball and take a little rest.

But that is what you do in football, you cover for each other when you are out of position. If Whing has charged forward, someone such as El-Abd drops in the hole he's left, and Hammond comes across slightly to cover not having El-Abd in h9is usual spot. Likewise as HBinsh comes across, to a lesser extent so does Butters, and likewise even the left-back, Mayo. As we so often hear from Alan Hansen, centre-halves should never be too far apart when defending.

Yeah sure, it means they can play a pass or two and still find an open man, but many a slip twixed cup and lip, those passes could go astray, better to make them play that than simply take a throw in and have a free run on goal.

Hinsh made a mistake, a bad one, but there were others who completely failed to cover for him. As Big Ron would say, "they weren't in the wide-awake club."

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

The ball was not thrown to Scott McGleish, he picked it up off the floor next to the ball boy.
Am I the only one on here who saw Whing make the first mistake in this charade?
I'm sure it was him who sliced a clearance which Hinshelwood then smashed out of touch towards the trees. The rest is just poor concentration by Hinshelwood, Whing, Butters and El-Abd.
Although at least El-Abd tries to get a tackle in on Quinn.

 

[blockhseagull]

apparantly it wasnt even the ball boys fault, there was a ball just lying there on the side of the pitch and the northampton guy just picked it up and threw it back on. admittedly i was watchin hinsh smash the ball over my head and over the stand (and cheerin it ), but my friend next to me was watchin the pitch and he said the ball boy had nothing to do with it. i guess that means fraser REALLY didnt have a clue what was goin on!

The problem was, the guy in charge of the ball-boys had only just told him to pick the ball up and he did...then 30 secs later dropped it again.

It is because of that we lost, but you can't really blame a 6 year old lad, should be better organised and have some older kids doing it.

However, the fact that our back four completely switched off was just as much to blame

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

Can we stop laying any of the blame at the foot of a six year old please?
There were men on that pitch on Saturday who are payed to play football, they are the ones at fault no one else. They are ones who didn't clear the ball properly, they are the ones who stopped concentrating not the bloody ball boy!
But as we are talking about ball boys I would like to say that I think someone needs to take them in hand. In OTHER games there have been occasions where two balls have gone on to the pitch at the same time and this needs sorting out.

 

[NMH]

The problem was, the guy in charge of the ball-boys had only just told him to pick the ball up and he did...then 30 secs later dropped it again.

It is because of that we lost, but you can't really blame a 6 year old lad, should be better organised and have some older kids doing it.

However, the fact that our back four completely switched off was just as much to blame

I don't see that first 'problem' - what diff if the ballboy was holding the ball? The kid was all of, what, five years old? The time it would take McGleish to get the ball off the ground/off the ballboy is about the same.
Agreed totally about the last bit though, and any player who had a go at the kid must need to read the rule book and examine his role on the pitch and not the role of the ballboys.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

If the rules state that only 8 balls are used with multiball then the 4th official should have stood his ground. If he thinks the home side is abusing this system then the balls should be gathered up and the game is then played with only one match ball. Why does the club use ballboys of this age when it would be beneficial to use teenagers who can be told what to do and then dont ignore it a minute later. If the ballboys are told to hold on to the ball and then 30 seconds later drop it onto the ground at least tell them to kick it into the crowd to stop the opposition sneaking in a quick throw in.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

It is because of that we lost

Did I miss something?

 

[blockhseagull]

I don't see that first 'problem' - what diff if the ballboy was holding the ball? The kid was all of, what, five years old? The time it would take McGleish to get the ball off the ground/off the ballboy is about the same.
Agreed totally about the last bit though, and any player who had a go at the kid must need to read the rule book and examine his role on the pitch and not the role of the ballboys.

The point i was trying to make is the fact that none of the ball-boys actually have any idea what they are doing.

As someone has already said that sometimes this season we have had more than one ball on the pitch, just seems they are too young and we would be better off ditching the multi ball system as clearly the ballboys AND the players aren't up to it

 

[blockhseagull]

Did I miss something?

Well yes, if you missed the fact that the reason we lost was that they had a quick throw on from which we weren't organised for

 

[Bry Nylon]

Well yes, if you missed the fact that the reason we lost was that they had a quick throw on from which we weren't organised for

We didn't lose

 

[NMH]

We didn't lose

In block 'H' we DID lose BN, didn't you know that? In Block E, F and G we drew, and in blocks A,B,C and D, we WON

I want a refund on my ticket, and believe I paid enough so I'm entitled to sit in one of the blocks where we won.

 

[NMH]

(pssst Block 'H' is half price, so anything that happens in the first half doesn't count towards the final score)