What has changed our recent form?

[mattytheshrimper]

we have been playing so much better, working as team, winning a few games, getting great results away from home even shooting from outside the box occasionally, whats changed to make this happen?

i think a lot of it is down to macca arriving, he's been brilliant since he came along. best signing this season for definate (havn't many good ones!) also think the pre-match warm is a lot better and actually worth doing than the old one!

 

[Smiffy]

Alan McCormack simple as..

 

[palexander]

Smith and Gutts being loaned out, McC coming in...

Were Smith and Gutts a bad influence on the dressing room after being demoted out of contention?

 

[Pubey]

new players getting settled.. especially clarke and hammell.... and francis seems sharp when he comes on

 

[mattytheshrimper]

think clarke was a good signing, still a bit wary of hammell, one minute does a great tackle but then gives the ball away too much, i would like to see francis at right back again!

 

[Pubey]

think clarke was a good signing, still a bit wary of hammell, one minute does a great tackle but then gives the ball away too much, i would like to see francis at right back again!

i think hammell is really solid... great in the air and excellent set pieces, gives the ball away because often gower doesn't come all the way back to help out... i believe francis is the best right back at the club but you cant drop hunt at the moment, he had an excellent game on tuesday

 

[Jam_Man]

Man Utd game giving us confidence.

Sodjes awesome form at the end of the year.

McCormacks arrival.

New players settling in.

Overhauled defence gelling.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Removing the disruptive influence of Guttridge and Ricketts.

McCormack replaced Guttridge (although we beat Man U without either) and Ricketts didn't need replacing as he never started.


Tilly put our title last year down to great team spirit and those two's attitudes damaged team spirit. It took us a while to recover our confidence, but we are OK now. The balance of the team could be better, but I think we'd be safe if the season started from scratch now. Trouble is we've probably left ourselves a little too much to do.

 

[* ORM *]

A combination of the above and the realisation that no team in this division is far better (or worse) than anybody else. Plus, naturally, Maher has continued to be fantastic.

 

[silentshrimper]

McCormack coming in, defence bolting up the leakages, new players geling into the team, even if we do go down, we have a big chance of going straight back up with the squad we have now. We will need to as well or the new stadium will be pointless!

 

[southend_united_fan]

1. Macca - showing fantastic grit and determination from the word go. This sparked others off into running for every ball.

2. The fantastic form of Peter Clarke. WOW. I thought he was a very average player, if that when he first joined, but he has been brilliant since coming on as a sub against spurs. He's turned out to be an EXCELLENT signing - £300k - definitly worth it

 

[Blues Trader]

I think that certain players that came in have now started to gel. We also now have more belief. We've eventually realised that we are good enough for this league and don't go out of the traps looking like rabbits caught in the headlamps. More confidence in front of goal, and finally sorted out some of the set-piece defending.

 

[sufcintheprem]

Had a similar thread before and I said long-range shooting and defending properly. To elaborate on that I'd say that Hunt has been keeping things simpler, Hammell has worked on keeping players from getting in behind him and when the ball comes in, the central two have been well positioned and competing for every ball.

Long-range shooting, frankly, is allowing us to play a better attacking game. Teams should be aware they can not let us shoot from range now or they might be a goal down against a side not conceding many.

I'd also add a third and that would be McCormack's energy goign forwards. Ok, against Spurs we got completely out-energised but of the teams in our division, there's only two who struck me as having that sort of midfield. The first game I saw him in our second spell, he burst in to the box midway throuhg the first half and I realised that I hadn't seen a player do that barely this season.

So, for me, those three reasons but the defending one is comfortably the most important. Are teams like Stoke and Wolves any better than us attacking? I don't think so but they've defended doggedly all season.