Vintage Cobbler
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I don't think the back 5 is going to change much but we may have a big problem at right back if Moloney is out injured for a period. In my view Phillips is a better defender but he is also out long term. The major problems lie in almost every position in front of the back 5. On yesterday's performance none of them would be picked for the next match if there were adequate replacements. But sooner or later we need to have a settled side to fight the relegation battle that surely awaits us.
Looking ahead several weeks if we are to play JJOT & Crooks in midfield who is going to play alongside them? We desperately need a ball winner, a lower division of the Scott Brown (Celtic) type, a leader, a tackler, a motivator. Up front watching Rico & Revell struggle is depressing. Neither is able to get past a defender and whatever was in JFH's mind to select both did him no good yesterday with supporters. We are back to where we were with JED in January saying that JED inherited from Page a very poor and unbalanced squad. History has a habit of repeating itself and so far as NTFC is concerned will continue to do so unless and until someone gets a grip on recruitment at our club.
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clarkeysntfc
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McWilliams is the driving force we need in the middle of the park. He surely needs to start v AFCW.
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Buster
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That's the second time this season I've left a home game with 20 minutes left.
Shameful
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Buster
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It was interesting to see the group of maybe 15 Chinese in the directors area clapping like seals with big grins on their faces as our players trooped down the tunnel...
To be fair, they'd just watched a 6-goal fest. It's not as though any of them are Cobblers supporters is it?
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DrillingCobbler
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Our defence has been fine in 8 of the 11 games so far this season. Yesterday, Charlton and PBoro it wasn't.
That said, the defence wasn't the issue yesterday, certainly not in the first half. I cannot recall where a back line has such little protection. We literally had no midfield.
Unlike the majority, I didn't even flinch when the penalty was saved. I could see exactly what was coming. At half time I said if he doesn't change the formation and bring on an orthodox midfielder (McWilliams was the obvious option) then we'd be battered by at least 4 goals. Indeed; I predicted 30 seconds before the 2nd goal was scored that they would score in any moment and JFH would make a change. No hindsight was needed, it was bloody obvious. But taking off Foley and replacing him with another 'forward type' beggared belief, at that point it was simply a case of 'how many would they score'. I wanted to go home, somehow I resisted until the moment the 4th goal went in.
I've seen some badly managed teams on a single match day, yesterday was up there with a few others that spring to mind. Boro and Stourbridge under Page, Wycombe at home when Broadhurst was in charge (his last game), Bournemouth away (again Broadhurst, that was a real gem when he didn't take Spedding off before he was predictably sent off). Zero logic was used from the moment the team sheet was put out.
Its frustrating. So so frustrating. The very two basic things I want to see from a Cobblers manager is sensible team selections, pro active changes during the course of the matches and a series of 'templates' used when it comes to recruitment. A bit like when you play football manager. You know your main formation, you bring in 2 players for each position. A squad of around 22. It really isn't hard.
Yet we've got an abundance of midfielders and 'bitty players' (Bowditch is what I define as a bitty player), zero pace up top and 4 goal keepers. Surely someone high up at the Football Club must approve the recruitment? If I was the chairman, I just wouldn't let it happen. Of course Jimmy can't be blamed for this element of our shortcomings, but in terms of yesterdays shambles he can certainly take the bulk of the responsibility.
Where do we go from here? I just hope that professional pride comes into play, the lads use yesterday as a wake up call and they behave like wounded animals next Saturday. Quite often a properly battering helps a team refocus and react positively, of course it can also kill confidence if the dressing room doesn't have the right characters. We shall find out next Saturday, it cannot come soon enough. We need to win and firmly put yesterday into the history books, the perfect storm in terms 'of a blip'.
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defender
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I was out for most of Saturday, WHAT THE HELL WENT WRONG? HOW DIS WE GET BASHED SO BADLY?
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Vintage Cobbler
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I am sure McWilliams will be back in the team next Saturday but we mustn't raise our expectations of him too high. He is young and inexperienced, a terrific prospect but a work-in-progress.
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andycobbler
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Shameful
Why I also left early, my choice.
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if you hate peterborough clap your hands and Fxxk off poxford.
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Glastonbury Cobbler
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McWilliams is the driving force we need in the middle of the park. He surely needs to start v AFCW.
TBF we miss o toole massively for this
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guest2235
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That team selection was pure incompetence! The way he uses Smith and Hanley is odd, one of them plays then the other gets banished from the squad. Surely they should both feature on match day as competition for that wide left role. Revell covering down the right was a total joke. Rovers had their first choice centre backs out and when I saw that Revell and Richards were playing I thought it was to attack the inexperience in that area.
I think JFH played for the Tinkerman at Chelsea, he has certainly picked up a lot of his traits.
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Glastonbury Cobbler
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From what I a reading on Companies House, JFH is racing KT to the door.
What did you mean by this?
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ajp
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What did you mean by this?
Yes cmon spill?..
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Dan
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I too would like to know what you meant Kev.
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The Hotelend Grand National Sweepstake Champion 2013
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guest3063
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I too would like to know what you meant Kev.
He won't tell, he likes to play games with snippets of information that are probably wrong anyhow. How come he didn't know McGugan was training with us, if he spends all his time watching it?
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Insider
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You need to look a little further than NTFC. You should worry that the Chinese are in control and seem to think that losing 6-0 at home is some sort of laughing matter. Tom Auyeung meanwhile seems to spend his days flogging signed shirts and footballs off a Guanzhou market stall. £6m? Let's ask David Bower how that sliced up. And how he's going to monetise his investment in CDNL. The exit plans are in full swing.
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Artlenock Cobbler
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You need to look a little further than NTFC. You should worry that the Chinese are in control and seem to think that losing 6-0 at home is some sort of laughing matter. Tom Auyeung meanwhile seems to spend his days flogging signed shirts and footballs off a Guanzhou market stall. £6m? Let's ask David Bower how that sliced up. And how he's going to monetise his investment in CDNL. The exit plans are in full swing.
Perhaps they were laughing because someone told them we were playing in black with flourescent piping.
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Vintage Cobbler
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Worrying, Insider. Can we assume that you are sharing what you are alluding to with your co-directors at NTFC Supporters Ltd?
As though we don't have enough of a crisis on the pitch without more trouble off it.
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SteveRiches
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Other than the fact we're all agreed that we are not scoring goals and that it needs addressing mighty soon, recent comments on here have no common agreement that I can work out. Yes, everyone has their own idea who should be in the matchday squad, or their own version of the formation to which we should play - but real solutions are missing. The manner of playing and the quality of squad are both currently to be found wanting - a matter of fact and not of opinion and borne out by statistics. What's needed is a big public statement of intent from the club, backed by manager, chairman, Chinese co-owners etc. on how this mess is to be addressed before it's too late to recover. Trundling along is no plan.
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defender
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Fo JFH SAYING ''WE weren't GOOD ENOUGH, MUST BE THE UNDERSTATEMENT OF THE SEASONM.
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