All in all, a thoroughly frustrating and disheartening performance and result, not least because it was a true Jekyll and Hyde performance which, in 90 minutes, portrayed the very essence of this team at the moment; a complete lack of consistency coupled with incompetence that is costing us dearly.
During the first half, I actually thought we played some fairly scintillating stuff. As soon as key players like Hall, Clohessy and Hills got into the game, we knocked it around very well indeed. One particular passage of play early on in the first half was brilliant, a succession of high-tempo, one-touch passes forced an opening for Benyon down the right channel, who flashed a cross right into the danger area. Blair didn’t read it (a staple of the lack of match sharpness and lack of familiarity with Benyon), but the cross was so good it only needed contact for it to give us the lead.
I thought the formation, even just in the first half, caused Aldershot a few problems. Hall relished his role in the middle because Aldershot struggled to pick his movement. This showed in particular when Hall drifted wide and Benyon dropped into his space. On another night (and with another forward on the pitch, particularly someone like Dickinson, whose movement off the ball is generally very good), it would’ve been enough to carve open more goalscoring opportunities. Blair was off the pace and patently not up with the play, and this caused a number of these chances to break down.
He wasn’t the only one at fault for this, though. Sawyer just didn’t seem to understand where he was supposed to be all evening. Sturrock has said in the past that half of Sawyer’s trouble is what you tell him goes in one ear and out the other, and his performance last night certainly appeared to be indicative of that problem. Every now and again he’d saunter into a dangerous area, but his crossing barely beat the first man. The problem with the diamond that Sturrock deployed is that the two central midfielders, in our case Timlin and Sawyer, need to understand when to drift wide and when to stay in the middle. Timlin looked to comprehend that, perhaps helped by Hills’ decent runs in the first half, but Sawyer looked positively lost.
Our right-hand side is usually our strongest and one of our best offensive assets, but Clohessy was fairly poor last night going forward. Sawyer did get in his way a few times, but when he was released down the channel he was another one who couldn’t beat the first man with a cross and this handicapped us all night. The players in and around the box weren’t being given the service they required from the channels, and our play deteriorated as a result.
A positive about Clohessy, however, was that I thought he showed some touches of refinement to his game in comparison to earlier on in the season. I’m sure I’ve highlighted this before, but at the start of the season he was struggling to identify the flight of the ball in the air and tended to get sucked in under it, meaning he’d often allow the ball to drop or misplace the header. This looked to be improved last night, which is pleasing to see.
Whilst on the subject of ball flight, I’ve no idea what happened to Hills during the interval because he completely changed the flight and direction of his passes for the second half. During the first, he was delaying his delivery until he beat the full-back, and this resulted in a number of drilled crosses, one in which drew a smart stop from the ‘keeper. After the break, he’d decided to float them in towards the back post, obviously hoping that someone would be around to knock it back across the face. This could’ve been a result of Martin’s introduction (Martin hugs the line more than most wingers, which means that his full-back can’t really overlap, so doesn’t get into the position to drill a cross in), or it was a tactical instruction. If it’s the latter, then I don’t understand that at all.
The last 30 minutes of Hills’ distribution was Gilbert-esque. Aimless punts into the area that were hopeful at best, hopeless at worst. This might be the very reason that Sturrock is reluctant to deploy both Martin and Hall, because it chokes the delivery of our full-backs which has been a reliable weapon for us this season.
Dailly’s involvement was, like other players, hugely reliant on the system we deployed. During the first half he had a clear and concise role at the base of the diamond. His duty was to protect the back four and intercept, before laying off a simple pass. He pulled this off with aplomb, proving that experience and nous are just as effective as pace and stamina in certain roles. During the second half, and particularly as we switched to a more regimented and flat 4-4-2, he struggled to identify a role for himself and impose it on the opposition. He went missing during this period, and only really came back into the game once Barker had been withdrawn.
In his absence, we needed someone else to take the mantle and Timlin certainly tried to do so. During the last 30 minutes he covered more ground than anyone else on the pitch, but a lack of movement (particularly from our front two, and later on three) meant that Aldershot could merely cover the men and force Timlin to pass into space or keep hold of the ball. This forced Timlin to wait for Hall’s movement inside (to either give him the ball or cross it out to Clohessy on the overlap), and that became hugely predictable.
The lack of movement in the second half from our forwards irritated me, but may have been the result of two games in three days and, in Benyon’s case, a newborn to care for. During the first half Benyon impressed me massively. He has this canny knack of pulling his defender out of position, forcing them to get sucked under the flight of the ball so that they’re already in a poor position to make the clearance. This allows him to win more in the air than he should, and we’ve seen that time and time again from him so far this season. His movement into the channels is also very effective, and it’s no wonder than we’ve looked considerably more potent with him and Harris up top than we have done in recent weeks (months?).
As much as Benyon has become vital to us, Barker, I’m afraid, looks to be on his way out. He looks a good yard or two off the pace at the moment and certainly looks like he could do with losing a few pounds. His movement looks restricted and he’s misplacing his headers, another symptom of being out of time and out of sync. I understand that he’s the captain and is seemingly a well-liked member of the squad, but Luke Prosser has performed admirably recently and deserves a chance in his natural position, especially as Barker continually delivers below-par performances. He’s the weak point in our armour, and he’s the one who’s being highlighted by opposition forwards.
One last note, I thought Aldershot gave a textbook away performance. Holdsworth’s got them well organised and regimented away from home, playing a 4-1-4-1 system that provides adequate cover through the middle. The full-backs provide support, and they look to capitalise on one or two chances. It doesn’t make for a good viewing at all (I don’t think Hylton got much of a touch all evening aside from his goal), but it’s hugely productive. Some of their antics were poor, particularly Hylton grabbing Belford when he shaped up for a kick (should’ve received a second yellow for unsportsmanlike conduct), but you can see how they pick up results.
