Goal Keepers and us.

[Angell Delight]

We have Oxley and the Smiths, or Smith and Oxley, or Oxley and Smith, dependent on your preferences. None of them are up to the standards that we have come to expect with Daniel Bentley so whoever becomes the regular custodian of our goal is going to require a lot of patience from fans and players alike.

I'll start off by dismissing Paul Smith from the selection process, which leaves us with Smith the younger and Oxley. Oxley looks more like what I expect a keeper to look like in terms of shape and size, and Smith doesn't. That shouldn't be a criteria for Oxley and both have made mistakes that we can do without at FL1 level. I assume that Smith will get better with experience and maybe Oxley has developed as far as he is going to. So what to do, who to choose?

I'd love to think that the Southend home crowd will give either of them time, love and patience to improve but I don't feel that that is likely unfortunately. So I'm going for the one that has most crowd love and that is Smith. I also think that this will only be necessary until the January window at which point, if I was Phil, I would move heaven and earth to get an experienced GK in to ease our problems.

What do you think people?

At this stage I'm sure Brown is hoping at least one of his keepers will step up to the plate and establish themselves. If they don't then I would hope he'll dip into the market come January as you can't afford to have goalkeeping issues throughout a whole season and be successful. Personally I'm hoping Ted steps up but we'll see.

 

[bazzashrimper]

If Ted chose to stop coming for crosses, he would be oxleys equivalent except that he can make saves

 

[WESTY_SUFC]

Disagree with that, it was a big mistake not loaning Ted out when we knew Bentley was going. But then I suppose Brown knew he'd be signing a new number 1 to replace Dan. The major issue here is therefore that the number 1 he signed isn't good enough and could now become number 2 behind Ted (who isn't anywhere near ready and the window is shut). Big problem for us.

Think that's spot on. We will have to wait and see how long it will take before Ted is really ready. In that time it could cost us our league 1 status and Brown his job.

 

[Magnum PI]

I am not having a dig at you for starting the thread. After all you have only responded to the fact that both our keepers have now been slagged.

The simple fact is who ever signed for us as a keeper, was never going to be good enough to replace Bentley. Remember there was plenty of people on here who slagged Bentley so what chance do Ted or Oxley have.

Honest question. Are you employed by Southend United Football Club to put positive spin amongst the fans on Shrimperzone? You make many sound points and I have no doubt you know what you are talking about but I am getting increasingly irked by your condescension to the plebs like us who would choose the terrace over the directors box.

Anyone can see we have a goalkeeping problem at the moment and whilst we all still need to support them both we need to acknowledge that the supporters are only replaying what is being seen out on the field. The term slagged suggests that you think we don't have a goalkeeping problem which is an opinion you are of course more than entitled to but leaves me wondering if you are rather seeing things through glittery Blue rimmed spectacles.

 

[AndyT]

Anyone would think we're shipping goals for fun.

There's plenty of sides in League One who've let around the same number of goals in as us and some from less matches.

Even one side in the play-offs have shipped more goals than us.

 

[Chairman Trigg]

Time for Ted to have his chance,has bulked up and seems to be a shot stopper to me looks a great prospect like Bentley did when he came good.Will improve with experience

 

[Magnum PI]

Anyone would think we're shipping goals for fun.

There's plenty of sides in League One who've let around the same number of goals in as us and some from less matches.

Even one side in the play-offs have shipped more goals than us.

Winning football matches is about balancing the ratio of goals scored with those conceded. Our defence needs to be better than most given how little we create on the whole. Phil Brown prouded himself on goals conceded and therefore I am sure he is equally worried by the current situation.

 

[AndyT]

Possibly, but a fair number of the match reports from yesterday suggest Bolton are La Liga standard with powerhouse players, showboating around with their Premiership pedigree, running rings around our hapless lads, caught like rabbits in the headlights, yet we only conceded one goal and that seems to have been debatable, as well.

No problem in being concerned with the goalkeeping situation if we were letting four or five in, but we are not and since Port Vale away, we've let four goals in in five matches.

 

[rigsby]

You assume everything without the knowledge to back it up.

It's not a claim. Its fact that accounts show a £1.7m wage outgoings during Tilson promotion from league 2 year and Brown's league 2 promotion year show's £3m.

Do you not check anything before you class it as 'fact'?

So I'm saying they don't reflect what each manger had for playing staff, which you won't accept. The offer still stands....I say less than £2m and I'm willing to back that up with £100 to Shrimperzone....... Either put up or shut up.

 

[RHB]

You assume everything without the knowledge to back it up.

It's not a claim. Its fact that accounts show a £1.7m wage outgoings during Tilson promotion from league 2 year and Brown's league 2 promotion year show's £3m.

Do you not check anything before you class it as 'fact'?

So I'm saying they don't reflect what each manger had for playing staff, which you won't accept. The offer still stands....I say less than £2m and I'm willing to back that up with £100 to Shrimperzone....... Either put up or shut up.

There is always another option, that is to take your discussion to another relevant thread, and we just discuss the goalkeeper stuff on here?

 

[RHB]

Anyone would think we're shipping goals for fun.

There's plenty of sides in League One who've let around the same number of goals in as us and some from less matches.

Even one side in the play-offs have shipped more goals than us.

I get all that Andy, but my original question was who should be our first choice keeper based on performance to date. What do you think?

 

[AndyT]

Fair comment 'RHB'.

I'd go for Ted Smith and let him grow into the role*, with Oxley as a back-up if he struggles.





*quite literally, by the sounds of things.

 

[davewebbsbrain]

I think the trick we missed was in not sending Smith Jr out on loan while we had Bentley doing so well. For me, yesterday's shortcoming on the goal is exactly the sort of thing that experience prevents. That said, it's also difficult as an outsider to say how much of a role Dan will have played in Smith's development.

What seems obvious is that neither can be an adequate replacement for Dan, at least in the short term. Ted may evolve of course...

I do want to believe that Ted is the future so, in the absence of Oxley showing that he's a safer bet, I want to see Ted in there learning from his mistakes and improving. I feel Ted will also get more support from our 'patient and understanding fans'.

And much as he's liable for the first goal yesterday, from what I could tell he made up for that later on with some great saves?

This is the crux of the matter. Oxley does not make these saves and we could easily have lost yesterday. Smith did make a couple of very good saves, saves I don't believe Oxley would or could make. Of the games I have seen Oxley play, he has looked suspect in every one and I don't really remember him making a good save, a save that would save us a point of 3 points.

I am more than happy having Ted as Number one. As you say he is young and will learn from these mistakes. Oxley is older and he clearly hasn't learned from his past mistakes

 

[WESTY_SUFC]

So I'm saying they don't reflect what each manger had for playing staff, which you won't accept. The offer still stands....I say less than £2m and I'm willing to back that up with £100 to Shrimperzone....... Either put up or shut up.

That is still more than what Tilson had is it not! You are wrong and i have proved it but you cannot accept it. I bet £10k its more than what Tilson had.

I certainly will not stop posting because you tell me to 'shut up'.

 

[manor15]

I never understood why we signed Oxley in the first place. Surely there were experienced pros of a similar quality available who could've come in, helped Ted to develop while filling the number 1 shirt for a season or two and letting Ted get some game time too, then moved on/retired. At 25, Oxley doesn't really have the experience to help Ted and he's not very good either. Based on performances so far this season, I'd stick with Ted, on another day yesterday's goal gets disallowed and he's kept a clean sheet against top of the league and everyone would be saying he's the new Dan Bentley if not better.

 

[blueveined]

For all those saying that Ted had a poor game yesterday CP posted a picture of a 'great' save that Ted made and got this response -
James H Cross ‏@SportsAgentJHC The one low down in the first half was special as well.

 

[eastling]

I'd stick with Ted personally, will certainly get a lot of experience this season and despite his current physical stature his general 'saving' nous seems better than Oxley's. That said I m not a fan of constantly changing the first choice keeper so a decision should be made now, either give Ted a good run of League games regardless of result or give it to Oxley.

 

[rigsby]

Its quite simple if we had a 20 year old keeper who could step into L1 at places like Bolton and never make a mistake he would be at Man City and not playing for us.

So for those of you who always want to sign a non league player or like to see youth given a chance. Why don't we do just that give him a chance and accept that like any of you if you had been given areal tough job at that age......You will make mistakes but that is part of the learning curve.

 

[RHB]

Its quite simple if we had a 20 year old keeper who could step into L1 at places like Bolton and never make a mistake he would be at Man City and not playing for us.

So for those of you who always want to sign a non league player or like to see youth given a chance. Why don't we do just that give him a chance and accept that like any of you if you had been given areal tough job at that age......You will make mistakes but that is part of the learning curve.

You make it sound as if the majority of the posts on here are suggesting that they don't prefer Smith. The reality is that virtually all posts are supportive of him retaining the number one spot. They are also realistic and reckon that he will make mistakes and learn from them. That doesn't make him the finished product and we could do with another keeper that was better than Oxley but there you go.

 

[rigsby]

You make it sound as if the majority of the posts on here are suggesting that they don't prefer Smith. The reality is that virtually all posts are supportive of him retaining the number one spot. They are also realistic and reckon that he will make mistakes and learn from them. That doesn't make him the finished product and we could do with another keeper that was better than Oxley but there you go.

I did not say that at all.

What I am saying is lets not make it sound like he is the lesser of two evils and show him plenty of support.

Some of the claims that he was rooted to his line for everything are plain false. Bolton put in some really good balls with pace. Some of our fans can't see the difference between a high floaty corner that a keeper can come for and one that he would get nowhere near if he did.

Just like when young Harry Krypto whipped in a couple of excellent corners on Tuesday and yesterday, neither keeper could come for them.