Pre-Match Thread Walsall FC vs Southend Utd 19 April 15:00 ko

[Bromley Blue]

We're down to the bare bones, with no fully fit proper striker. I fear the worst. Our only chance is to put away one or two of the chances we get, and hang on for dear life. If we play a midget up front as target man, please no balls in the air to him Kevin Bond. We have to keep possession more to have a chance.

The thing is, you say that like Bond instructs our players to hit it long to short strikers like Cox. I very much doubt that. I doubt Powell or Brown did either. All three have common sense as do we as fans. The direct passes we put up with at our level of football, however ridiculous and frustrating they are, are down to lack of form, confidence or ability rather than managerial instructions.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

The thing is, you say that like Bond instructs our players to hit it long to short strikers like Cox. I very much doubt that. I doubt Powell or Brown did either. All three have common sense as do we as fans. The direct passes we put up with at our level of football, however ridiculous and frustrating they are, are down to lack of form, confidence or ability rather than managerial instructions.

I'm pretty sure that any manager worth his salt could drum it into his defensive players not to hoof or aim the ball at head height to a small striker, unless absolutely necessary. For example, White did it to Cox 4 times the first half against Wycombe, when under no pressure at all. That gave them the ball back, and we were attacked each time. You can forgive the first one, second one Bond should have shouted to White. But to let it keep happening. We're not Graham Taylor's Watford, when they played the percentage game and all defenders were instructed to hoof up to the giant Ross Jenkins to flick on to Luther Blissett. And we're not Brian Clough's Forest or Derby, when he did his nut if his players hoofed the ball when not under pressure. But surely we can limit the air bombs to a small striker that has no chance of winning. Cox always loses the header or backs in and gives the foul. Even he's been complaining about it this season.

 

[Tony Allen]

Just a thought that if we had played all our games away from home we might have had 3-4 more points now!!!

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

The thing is, you say that like Bond instructs our players to hit it long to short strikers like Cox. I very much doubt that. I doubt Powell or Brown did either. All three have common sense as do we as fans. The direct passes we put up with at our level of football, however ridiculous and frustrating they are, are down to lack of form, confidence or ability rather than managerial instructions.

What are managers expecting though if they pick John White?