Well, yesterday wasn't what we hoped for, or expected after the super effort made by the club and the volunteers who came down to clear the pitch and get the game on. Bravo all :clap:
It was an awful result, not a great game, and not one of our better performances. But with the state the pitch was in, and it was bad before anyway, it was pretty inevitable that there wouldn't be much in the way of creative football going on regardless. I think we were a bit caught out, possibly guilty of assuming Walsall would be an easy 3 points and we were basically outplayed on the day. Our biggest mistake was allowing Oztumer any sniff of the ball at all - he was without doubt the best player on the pitch yesterday. I think the first was a little unlucky for Oxley, on that potato patch the ball could end up anywhere and it would have been like trying to catch a bar of soap! The second was well worked by them, Ox possibly could have been standing somewhere else and Timlin may have inadvertently not helped - but I think the timing was awful as SCP already had Fortune and Kightly on the touch line for the substitutions. Had that not gone in and it had stayed 1-0 at that point I think we would have been looking at a very different result. At 2-0 the game was all but lost anyway, not that it is an excuse, but I think we need to draw a line and look forward to next week.
not going to do ratings, because I don't think there is much point after a defeat like that. That said, I don't think anyone was completely terrible (noting that Lapodo unfairly appears to be the upcoming scapegoat), which is unfair because he wasn't doing anything that was worse than anyone else. No one had a complete howler, but there were no real stand out performances either. We just looked rusty and slightly off the pace. I think we lost the game in midfield - Tims and Yearwood weren't running the show as they had in previous games and we alllowed them in and this let Oztumer run riot.
SCP has now seen us at our worst, so he will no doubt be unhappy about the game but at least he can see first hand what he needs to change.
Oxley - actually didn't have much to do, apart from the obvious.
Demetriou - made some nice runs, and did a fair about of tracking back.
Turner - experience showed yesterday
Anton - thought he did okay to be fair. Lack of speed didn't help him, but consistently in the right place and won most headers.
Coker - not at his best, looked okay coming forward but off the pace defensively
Yearwood - Jekyll and Hyde, flashes of real skill, and some awful touches, inexperience showing
Timlin - didn't rev up the midfield as much as usual. Right decision to substitute him.
McLaughlin - pick of the midfield
Harrison - should have buried that first chance. Not his greatest performance, his chance will come.
Coxy - my MOM. Remained committed from start to finish.
Lapodo - ineffective
Subs -
Wordy - good to see him back, probably wouldn't have lasted a full game
Kightly - picked up where he left off. Looked really good.
Fortune - just pure class! Really wish he were 5 years younger!!