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Joined
Nov 13, 2011
Messages
8,958
Location
SW1A 0PW
I was wondering when was the last time we (S.U.F.C.) had a defender come forward for a set piece and thump in a header?

In recent years we have had Philips and Cresswell (dare I mention Bilel? :nope:) and before that a number of defenders such as Shane Westley that you knew where a threat. And you knew, as fans, that a well taken corner could see the onion bag bulging.

This is not a criticism of our current players but goals should come from all parts of the team, shouldn't they? *



(Moderator - perhaps not the goalie, eh?)
 
I think Prosser got a last minute winner against York last season ?
( although my memory is poor so it could have been the season before )
 
The right ingredients are needed for this to happen. Maybe if we could keep sokolik for a longer period, or better still, sign him permanently in January, then we might see said thumped header happening. I don't know whether Mads is capable because I have just not seen enough of him.
 
As most defenders score from corners and free kicks, our delivery into the box has not been all it should be, could be one reason for defenders not scoring.
 
Clearly our current central defenders do not have the same ability to find a yard in the box with some clever movement as some of their predecessors. Cresswell, Phillips, Barrett and Bilel were all excellent at this. We have been relatively spoilt over the years with goalscoring centre halves (I remember one season when Rob Newman was top scorer) so it's especially noticeable when there's no-one doing it. Prosser has the height and got a couple last year but IIRC Phillips came back into the side and got two in one game (Exeter) which might well have been the last time we had a defender score from a corner.
 
To be fair, Thompson has nearly scored twice from corners at home this season so does have a bit of a threat, but do I agree we miss someone who has the movement of a goalscoring CB. Phillips was very good at this.
 
I'm not sure it is a movement thing. Our defenders don't like players who would score goals. The likes of Phillips, Barrett, Cresswell, Sodje, Mohsni.... they all looked like the type of tough defenders who you'd hate to have to defend against because they'll throw themselves at the ball and will take a whack in the face in exchange for a chance to score.

I like Luke Prosser but he looks too much like a nice chap.
 
I'm not sure it's so much the movement as that they don't attack the ball.

None of Prosser, Thompson, Ibenfeldt etc really have a thumping defensive header like a Sodje, Roget, Mohsni, Cresswell, Phillips or Prior that will clear the ball into the opposition's half. Someone like Prosser has the size that means he will rarely get beaten in the air but his headers lack a little conviction in comparison to those centre-halves. With Ibenfeldt it is even more pronounced: his headers are all about deflecting the ball rather than powering it clear. Bolger has the most powerful header amongst our backline but can't get in the starting XI. Hopefully Sokolik can change this if we can make that deal permanent rather than being a 30 day sticking plaster.

Add in a somewhat floaty delivery and we don't have much threat at set pieces if Corr is held.
 
This is one thing we really miss from the Sturrock era.

We always looked threatening from free kicks and corners.
 
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