Post-Match Thread and Ratings Cambridge Utd 0-0 Southend Utd

[Joolz]

I also thought Kyle Taylor wasnt at his best today and was that why he was subbed, Very skillful player but surprisingly shy of tackling, prefers to keep plenty of space and move away from the action to receive and create but not getting stuck in as much as when he first came ?

Not the same player since his injury unfortunately. I’m confident he’ll come good again - I rate him.

 

[Mr Browns Ghost]

thought we were superb today, as good as we were in the first half against Cambridge a few weeks ago. We were a better team than them and that says alot, also unfortunately just shows how let down we have been as a club by the chairman in relation to recruitment of a striker, without any replacement made after all the strikers we let go.

Fare play to all the management team and players today. I thought White was superb and Dieng (who I hate) as usual the the forwards did everything right except get in a goal scoring position. I actually thoughts Aquah had his best game in a blue shirt.. But the tell tell sign, is the chance he had in the first half when the ball was crossed across the box on the deck around 16 yards out, and poor old emile once again needs a first touch before he shot, only to see the ball safely cleared... All in all a great week in football

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

We've taken four points from the last two games. That's exactly how you escape from relegation.

Those five draws converted to wins puts us almost out of sight of the relegation places.
It would have also given us a second round FA Cup tie, lol!

 

[Gorgy21]

Good performance at one of the better teams in our league, my main worry if Akinola is injured Goodship and Acquah will never get the goals needed to stay up, in real need of an out and out striker.

 

[pete boss]

Great point away from home. Shows just how far we’ve come that a lot of us are annoyed that we didn’t take all three points against the league leaders!

Oxley - Only one real save to make and did that superbly. Seemed to get off his line well and claim crosses.

Elvis - Another solid performance from him. Got forward well and defended well.
White - Just a classic White performance. Hard to believe there was any debate as to whether his contract should be extended!
Hobson - Back at home in a back 4. Back to the player we had in December. Very pleased with the progress he’s made
Clifford - What a player we have on our hands here. Earlier in the season I thought he looked a little shaky still but is no longer the case. Would be top of my list to get tied down to a longer deal.

Ferguson - Looks to be a solid player. Nothing flashy but does the nitty gritty stuff and we all know what a shot he has on him.
Dieng - Personally, I never got the criticism that he received. The ultimate utility player for us.
K. Taylor - Pitches right now probably don’t quite suit his style of play but still some great touches and passes and worked hard. We are a better team with him in the side.

ANG - Every time he gets the ball I get a little excited. Seems to have the skills to deal with pretty much every situation. Some excellent turns and touches today. Felt like we could create whenever he touched the ball.
Acquah - I’ve been vocal against the criticisms aimed towards him. I don’t condone abusing any player that is currently playing for our team. I thought he had one of his best games for us today. Held the ball up well under lots of pressure. Looks to be learning from the more experienced pros we now have in the side.
Akinola - As with ANG, lots of great touches, held the ball up well as well. Hopefully the injury is not too serious but would imagine he may be missing for next Saturday due to the concussion protocola.

RHF - Difficult for him to get fully involved today. Still showed some good touches and runs.
Goodship - Not enough time to really see him again but good to see him back from injury. One good run which was only stopped due to them making a tactical foul to stop us breaking.

No ratings or MOM as I thought everyone stuck to their tasks today. This result is down to the team effort.

With the likes of; Lennon, Ralph, Egbri, McCormack, Olayinka to come back into the side. Plus the additions (hopefully of Ranger, Holmes and Simpson) we look a world away from the squad that was named in that horrific opening day defeat.

My final thought (as I have rambled on a bit and my glass is now empty) is that whilst it is frustrating not to be scoring ,
many goals at the moment. Scoring goals doesn’t guarantee you points. Keeping clean sheets guarantees you at least one point every game.

COYB ???

very good detailed round up and i agree with 99% of ur comments ... im not a Ranger fan and i hope we dont drop someone just to give this guy another shot after treating us like crap...the guys today are working hard and deserve to be here? i like Ralph and Egbri... Olayinka is a fantastic player in my book and will be a massive help at the back end of this season to ensure we stay up! Holmes and simpson i know and if they can bring their A game to this club.. next year could be a great year... ANG was fantastic and like you im amazed how easy he gets past 3-4 people with ease... another thats showing his worth.

 

[rigsby]

It was a lot like Tuesday insofar as midfield battles were mostly won by us.
Control was at a premium, which is why ANG stood out from the rest.
No arguments with defence: Clifford is better than Hart, but the attack needs more than Akinola.
Someone better than me will remember how many chances we've created in the last two games from open play.
Three/four? That's over 180+. We aren't going to escape relegation with draws as good as this one was.

Unless there away at the league leaders....Oh and you won few days before away at the team in 5th place. Then the players have confidence, team spirit and purpose.

Anyway I enjoyed it today because the team did exactly what fans demand regardless of the result. Normally on match days I would be ordering a large whisky at this time of night. So i've just cracked open a nice bottle of Jameson.....

 

[davewebbsbrain]

Just realised I forgot to mention the manager. I know there has been lost of criticism towards MM for the formation change recently but the calls for him to be sacked as he’s out of his depth to me are just absurd. Even at the start of this season when there a number of factors working against him he stuck to his task and got a team of mainly youngsters to keep within touching distance of the rest of the league. Come December the embargo is lifted and he can show more of what he has to offer.

We’ve just played two chasing teams in the last few days and kept two clean sheets and picked up 4 points. Yes the team are performing but I strongly believe that a lot of this success is down to the ”PE teacher“ standing on our touchline.

There will be some that say we were lucky in both games and both Newport and Cambridge were poor. I disagree with both points

 

[secondalibi]

Decent point on the road, got to be happy with that. But our need for someone who can put the ball in the net is clear to everyone. Akinola desperately needs a strike partner and Acquah isn't the answer. Seen a few people praising him today, not sure why. He is far too passive. He appears to have the attributes to scare defences, but he's far too easy to defend against. When he gets the ball it's like a hot potato. He keeps falling over too, so frustrating to watch as it feels like there's a player there.

 

[Jai]

It really is weird that we were all holding out for a big points haul from them 3 consecutive home games in January before the so called tougher fixtures. Yet we get far more reward from the following 3 consecutive away games?

Not that weird considering the form of the opposition in each of those games. Of those three home games, Cambridge were in the promotion places and Mansfield/Bradford were up the top of the form guide. Plus we didn't have the midfield options we do now, hence the formation change.

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

Unless there away at the league leaders....Oh and you won few days before away at the team in 5th place. Then the players have confidence, team spirit and purpose.

Anyway I enjoyed it today because the team did exactly what fans demand regardless of the result. Normally on match days I would be ordering a large whisky at this time of night. So i've just cracked open a nice bottle of Jameson.....

Enjoy the Jameson!
But whether at the league leaders or Barrow, we're going to need wins as well as draws.
For argument's sake, if we drew all our remaining 18 games we would end up on 42 points and relegated.
It says mountains Tom Clifford is our top scorer.

 

[Byford1994]

There will be some that say we were lucky in both games and both Newport and Cambridge were poor. I disagree with both points

As do I. We’ve changed back to a tried and tested formation and clearly set up to shut out the other teams. Didn’t watch the Newport game so can’t comment but the defence did a great job today to limit a very potent strike force to one shot on target today.

 

[Chrisb]

A big shout out for Emile today from me. The poor lad gets so much stick - he is a youngster still learning his game and so much pressure is put on him, he gives his all - it is not his fault that other strikers have left (Hump and Kelman) and not been replaced. There are so many comments during a match about his every move, almost as if there is nobody else playing. A mate of his was on here earlier saying what a great humble lad he is and many on here would do well to take a moment to think about what they post.

 

[Maroon Blue]

Not that weird considering the form of the opposition in each of those games. Of those three home games, Cambridge were in the promotion places and Mansfield/Bradford were up the top of the form guide. Plus we didn't have the midfield options we do now, hence the formation change.

Exactly, that is why it is so weird in hindsight. Sorry I was being ironic. Thanks though for reminding me of the obvious.

 

[hlane17]

A big shout out for Emile today from me. The poor lad gets so much stick - he is a youngster still learning his game and so much pressure is put on him, he gives his all - it is not his fault that other strikers have left (Hump and Kelman) and not been replaced. There are so many comments during a match about his every move, almost as if there is nobody else playing. A mate of his was on here earlier saying what a great humble lad he is and many on here would do well to take a moment to think about what they post.

If he replicates today's performance everytime we call upon him, I cannot ask for any more. A good quality performance from a young lad learning his trade.

 

[Jay_SUFC]

Not that weird considering the form of the opposition in each of those games. Of those three home games, Cambridge were in the promotion places and Mansfield/Bradford were up the top of the form guide. Plus we didn't have the midfield options we do now, hence the formation change.

As I mentioned before, Cambridge had lost 4 of their last 6 away games, we were also a form team after our December run, so I don't buy those excuses.

Though MM may not have had the midfield he's got now, he still had options (including having Clifford on the bench during those games!) to have been able to keep 4 at the back

 

[duncan bulgaria]

That side should be holding their own in this league , Stevenage in our sights , let’s just chip away at them .
Confidence should be high coming into the crucial part of the season

 

[Ayrshire Blue]

Big props for young Emile Acquah today too. I felt that's the best he'd played in the target man role. Got it into his body well and brought others in to play. Would love to see him get a bit more aggression but he comes in for so much stick and it's unfair.

Look at the way the likes of Clifford and Elvis for example were praised by the fan base very early on.

He gets stick because he hasn't come into a struggling side and hit the ground running scoring loads of goals. He's 20 years old and improving all the time. It's a different game to academy football but this is where he will learn.

 

[Supa Shrimpa]

He's a young striker, playing his first season, in a team that has been struggling until recently

Why is it, that fans (in general) have to have a scapegoat to moan about ? and they're normally strikers that don't score in EVERY game, irrespective of how good or bad they play #justsaying

 

[Somerset Ex-TTB]

Aquah still isn’t great, but he has improved leaps and bounds this season. If he carries on improving, which at the age of 20 he will, then he will end up being a good lower league forward.
give the guy a break.

 

[Shrimp and two veg]

Shame we didnt get the win, we need wins. Pitch was tough going for both sides, we always play better on a nice surface but at least it was dry-ish compared to recent games.
White was a stand out player, full of passion and commitment, really set the tone for the quieter lads in the team and won nearly everything, we wont mention distribution though..
I would just like to see a more bullish player in the box when those crosses rain in, no one takes a chance and runs in, they all stand, marked normally, and react to the cross. A good striker will run into where the ball should be sent and if its not, theyll be asking why.
The build up play is good, the final ball and static targets not so good.
Out of the bottom two, thats a miracle in itself after conceding nearly half a season to everyone else, it looked impossible.
If a crowd can enjoy watching live at the end of the season, what a reception these boys will get from us if they keep up.
Top of the table getting one shot on target is just immense. This is how my SUFC should look, hard working and full of belief, regardless of ability.
And staying in the Football League.