JCR

[rabbloke]

Some may feel the topic description a tad harsh but personally, for all the tearing about he does, I feel his contribution to the team is a negative one. I am not suggesting that he does not have potential but I am saying that his current performance and style is rubbish. I am amazed that Tilly has persevered so long with this frustrating little man. The one glaring difference between ourselves and Cardiff yesterday was the creativity. JCR does not create and so the team is effectively carrying him. Eastwood has to come deeper and deeper to get the ball and then naturally has too much to do. Paynter is running and chasing 50/50's instead of being released in space. King Kev plugs away manfully but cannot be expected to do it all by himself. I accept Gower was not firing on all four but his recent contributions permit him an off day at the office. Its on the right we are throwing so much away. JCR needs to be rested and given the chance to prove himself in the stiffs. Inside of him Hunt is no play maker. I know Gutts has failed to live up to his growing reputation but Hunt is not the answer. For all the media talk of how we were outclassed, a view supported by Tilly, I can't help but feel the gap in class became a chasm because we were not at the races as an outfit and woefully underperformed. The Cardiff defence looked solid enough but then we had little idea on the pitch as to how to unlock it. If we do not sort out the right side soon we will be looking at the league table from the relegation zone. 4-4-2 has served Tilly well, in the lower divisions, but we can only play to our strengths. Perhaps at this level we do not have the personnel to carry it off. I would like to see a middle three of Gower, Maher and Gutts. Then we could really see the full-backs become wing-backs. Up front we could have Eastwood and A N Other and the likes of Jay or Hooper just behind them to add creativity. If we stick to 4-4-2 put Jay in for Hunt and replace JCR with anyone from Hooper to Collis as they can't be any less influential.

 

[Shrimpbizkit]

Harsh to pick on one player but you look at our record with JCR in the team and its a poor one and in that time he has contributed no goals and very few assists. Id like to see Hooper play on the right for a game or 2 see how he does or alternatively go 4-3-3 with Hooper and Eastwood playing either side of Ricketts or Ginger.

 

[Jam_Man]

Jcr was poor saturday, but who wasnt.

4-3-3 for me doesnt work, our shape second half was awful and had no width.

Hooper looked good when he came on but I dont know if Id want him playing wide and Im puzzled as to why we always play strikers out of position.

Now if only we had another winger to bring on during the second half, oh we do he is at Northampton....

 

[wiggy]

Before we actually knew all about him i think everyone got excited when he got the ball, now is the exact opposite, when he gets it you just think 'that's the end of that' and it usually is. Bad move outing Mitchell, at least he created a few goals even if he is a 20 minute merchant!

 

[Banksy]

We have missed Bradbury. Blimey, that was hard call but we have !

 

[Jam_Man]

Quote[/b] (wiggy @ Sep. 25 2006,10:49)]Bad move outing Mitchell, at least he created a few goals even if he is a 20 minute merchant!

Indeed, I wouldnt see Mitchell as a starter but end of last season he was excellent at the end of the season coming on with 20 minutes to go.

Would have been nice to bring him on for JCR yesterday.

 

[wiggy]

Quote[/b] (Jam_Man @ Sep. 25 2006,10:56)]

Quote[/b] (wiggy @ Sep. 25 2006,10:49)]Bad move outing Mitchell, at least he created a few goals even if he is a 20 minute merchant!

Indeed, I wouldnt see Mitchell as a starter but end of last season he was excellent at the end of the season coming on with 20 minutes to go.

Would have been nice to bring him on for JCR yesterday.

It seems that keeping the wage bill down is more important to the club than bringing on someone that might make something happen!

 

[Einstein]

Quote[/b] (wiggy @ Sep. 25 2006,11:05)]

Quote[/b] (Jam_Man @ Sep. 25 2006,10:56)]

Quote[/b] (wiggy @ Sep. 25 2006,10:49)]Bad move outing Mitchell, at least he created a few goals even if he is a 20 minute merchant!

Indeed, I wouldnt see Mitchell as a starter but end of last season he was excellent at the end of the season coming on with 20 minutes to go.

Would have been nice to bring him on for JCR yesterday.

It seems that keeping the wage bill down is more important to the club than bringing on someone that might make something happen!

I think you will find Tilly did not want Cole to go out on loan, but the boy himself wanted to.

Yes, it's all to do with saving money wiggy, especially as you posted just a few minutes earlier saying how we had made 'expensive sh1te signings'. Yes, all about saving money.

 

[DTS]

I still cant see it......I think JCR is a class player..

His work rate is second to none, he can beat people for fun, his pace is fantastic all that lets him down is his final ball.

That said I do feel a winger should weigh in with a few in the course of a season - Clearly he has not.

Coley isnt the answer at the moment in my book. To easy to put him out the game....Right back after right back has put him in the stands once and he bottles it. His defending is also poor compared to JCR.

I hate the way as soon as we have a bad run everyone looks for scapegoats such as JCR or Billy. Its about time that we remembered we are one of the top flight and teams arent going to roll over and die like they did in the lower leagues.

 

[wiggy]

Do you blame him, he has to watch JCR doing a circus act every week and can't get a look in just as Jay Smith has to watch the so called midfielders getting a nose bleed anytime they dare go over the half way line, must be a bit depressing knowing that no matter how bad someone plays they are given 8 weeks to try and get out of it!

 

[Barry's Boss]

I have to agree with the comments re JCR, yes he may have potential, but we cannot carry 'unfulfilled potential' within our team at the moment. We were all quick to criticise Lee Croft of Norwich, but his positional sense and perfect cross for their 3rd Goal was everything that JCR does not do - can anyone please advise me when we last scored from a JCR assist? (I'm not saying we havn't by the way - I just can't remember it!!)

Until Bradbury is fit, why not consider moving Hunt to RB and moving Francis up to RM - he looks pretty good going forward to me, and is not a bad crosser, plus it would give us more physical presence in Midfield. Yes that would mean a starting place for Gutts who is in really bad form at the moment, but IMHO he would still give more to the Team than JCR based on current form.

Alternatively bring back Sodje, move Clarke to RB (he can't play any worse there than he is at CB) and leave Hunt in CM. This would help us deal with free kicks and corners better, as Darryl does not command the 6 yard box, not a criticism as I think he is a fantastic 'keeper but he needs a commanding Centre Half to help him. Remember the goals conceded at the tail end of last season when Sodje was injured!

 

[Richard_Cadette]

Quote[/b] (wiggy @ Sep. 25 2006,11:22)]Do you blame him, he has to watch JCR doing a circus act every week and can't get a look in just as Jay Smith has to watch the so called midfielders getting a nose bleed anytime they dare go over the half way line, must be a bit depressing knowing that no matter how bad someone plays they are given 8 weeks to try and get out of it!

It's not often I reply to you Wiggy, usually by the time I get there, everyone else has had there say. But your comments regarding Mitchell Cole and Jay Smith are bizarre.

JCR performs every game, and whilst he does frustrate, he is still in my opinion one of the better players in our squad.... If he wasnt, he would have won player of the month for August.

Yesterday in the first half there were 3 or 4 occasions he got the ball whipped into the box, and who was in there waiting???... answer... no one!! It is easy to try and make a sscapegoat of JCR, even Tilly has taken to removing him from every game at the moment in the second half, but he isnt the problem at the moment.

It is no coincidence that every opposing fan, certainly the vast majority of games this season, they have all enquired about our right winger and how good he is... Even the WBA fans were extremely impressed, yet it seems our own lot wont be happy if he beat 7 players and then scored from 35 yards in the top corner.

His work rate, commitment to the team and overall level of effort is greater than anyone else in our squad, and given that the HUGE majority of them yesterday walked around like they couldnt give a monkey's, why are you picking on him?.... At the very least, he yet again, gave his all.

You suggest Cole and Smith as replacements, but you have clearly forgotten that Mitchell Cole was possibly out of his league last season, and when he has appeared this season, ahs been quite truly shocking... and that includes pre season games.

As for Smith, we seem to go round in circles with him....I dont know why Tilly gave him another year as he clearly doesnt want to play him, but I have to agree that whenever he started last season, he didnt come close to cutting the mustard... Only a few substitute appearances were any good.

I agree that our midfield is lacking creativity, but I cannot see that changing with the personnel we currently have at our disposal.

 

[Hawkwell Blue]

Quote[/b] (Barry's Boss @ Sep. 25 2006,12:43)]I have to agree with the comments re JCR, yes he may have potential, but we cannot carry 'unfulfilled potential' within our team at the moment. We were all quick to criticise Lee Croft of Norwich, but his positional sense and perfect cross for their 3rd Goal was everything that JCR does not do - can anyone please advise me when we last scored from a JCR assist? (I'm not saying we havn't by the way - I just can't remember it!!)

Until Bradbury is fit, why not consider moving Hunt to RB and moving Francis up to RM - he looks pretty good going forward to me, and is not a bad crosser, plus it would give us more physical presence in Midfield. Yes that would mean a starting place for Gutts who is in really bad form at the moment, but IMHO he would still give more to the Team than JCR based on current form.

Alternatively bring back Sodje, move Clarke to RB (he can't play any worse there than he is at CB) and leave Hunt in CM. This would help us deal with free kicks and corners better, as Darryl does not command the 6 yard box, not a criticism as I think he is a fantastic 'keeper but he needs a commanding Centre Half to help him. Remember the goals conceded at the tail end of last season when Sodje was injured!

Don't think anyone doubted Croft's ability it was his touchline antics that wound people up.

 

[Hawkwell Blue]

Quote[/b] (Jam_Man @ Sep. 25 2006,10:46)]Jcr was poor saturday, but who wasnt.

4-3-3 for me doesnt work, our shape second half was awful and had no width.

Hooper looked good when he came on but I dont know if Id want him playing wide and Im puzzled as to why we always play strikers out of position.

Now if only we had another winger to bring on during the second half, oh we do he is at Northampton....

No one was poor Saturday but Sunday was a different matter!

 

[Kris]

Quote[/b] (wiggy @ Sep. 25 2006,11:22)]Do you blame him, he has to watch JCR doing a circus act every week and can't get a look in just as Jay Smith has to watch the so called midfielders getting a nose bleed anytime they dare go over the half way line, must be a bit depressing knowing that no matter how bad someone plays they are given 8 weeks to try and get out of it!

To be fair, Mitch Cole needs to take some of the blame for the fact he has barely figured for us so far this season. I'm pretty sure Tilly had actually pencilled him in as his first choice left-winger in pre-season (he started pretty much every game) but failed to make enough of an impression. His dire first half showing against Portsmouth was the final straw, particularly when Gower came on for the second half and played superbly.

And as many posters have commented before, once Cole suffers a hard tackle, he tends to disappear in matches. If Cole wants to feature more, he simply HAS to toughen up. For all the stick JCR gets, he NEVER shirks a tackle and when he gets clattered himself, he gets up and gets on with it. Likewise, Gower has toughened himself up considerably since he first signed for us.

This isn't a personal tirade against Cole, by the way. He definitely has the talent, he has masses of potential and with a bit of luck the loan spell at Northampton will do him lots of good. But I'm not sure he's anything more than an option from the bench at Championship level yet. We'll see.

As for Jay Smith, like you, Wiggy, I'm a big fan. But as I've said before, Tilly sees him every day in training so I'll trust his judgement as to why Jay isn't getting much of a look in at the moment. The fact that he hasn't been setting the world alight in reserve matches isn't particularly encouraging.

 

[Upminster Blue]

Quote[/b] (Shrimpbizkit @ Sep. 25 2006,09:44)]he has contributed no goals and very few assists.

I'm struggling to think of any assists in his 30 or so games to date. Compare that with Gower who has probably created 5 or 6 and scored a similar number in the same time.

What's more, JCR's actually cost us several goals (eg Barnsley home and Notts Forest away last season) including yesterday. Instead of acting like a prima donna while Cardiff were taking the quick free kick for the second, why wasn't he standing over the ball (or creating a wall) to delay the free kick as any player with half a brain would have done. Absolute basics and I hope Tilly got stuck in to him.

 

[Skyblue]

I just wish JCR would switch wings with Gower once in a while, I would love to see him cut inside from the left and get into the box...he's so light and nimble I'm sure we would get a few pens from desparate lunges as he leaves a trail of deffenders in his wake.

 

[prittlewellshrimper]

I promise you if Cole had been our only/first option over the last few games all of the Boo boys posts would have been about Cole instead of JCR. Cole has neither the strength nor the hunger at present and would quite simply get chewed up and spat out by Championship defenders .

 

[steveo1]

I think we will find Bradbury returning to the right hand side of midfield as soon as he is fit. Tilly rates him highly.

 

[ozzy-shrimper]

I beleive JCR is a good player for the club. Yes the records show that he has few assists and no goals since he has joined, but do the stats show how many players he has beaten and if we have lost the ball he will battle back and try to win the ball. I still think he is a good player.