Away Match Day Thread +++ 13/01/2018 Walsall v OUFC match day thread +++

[Shosho]

On the train back now. My first match for a while and I was actually very impressed. We were by far the better team and absolutely deserved to win. Those having a go at pep are off the mark I think, not really sure what more he could have done. Their keeper doesn’t make that unbelievable save from Thomas’ header first half and we win comfortably, and it’s not Pep’s fault Obika’s missed that one on one at the end. I actually think he was right to take off Payne too, he was getting pulled in to the middle too often giving us absolutely no width on the left and was too lightweight to replace either of our CMs. We played much better with a proper winger in Napa - who by the way I thought had another exciting cameo. Although I agree taking off Henry was perhaps the game changing mistake - he was clearly well up for it, playing very well and high on confidence (that little drag back flick!). Mousinho played very well and Obika played his role up top excellently.

Oztumer is outstanding. Faded when we put them under the cosh, but when going forward he just creates so much. Deserves to play in a better team, he could be the star man in a team bossing this league. That pirouette he did in the first half is perhaps the most nonchalant piece of skill I’ve ever seen. Their keeper also kept them in it - hopefully any scouts therewatching Eastwood will have turned their attention to him instead! Their 24 was absolutely dreadful.

Disappointing attitudes from some fans. Almost seemed like they were looking forward to us conceding so that they could start hurling abuse at the team. Chanting ‘f*****g useless’ at our player halfway through the first half for one misplaced pass is just pathetic. We played well and were just unlucky on the day. Onwards and upwards.

I watched on iFollow, I thought we played well!

Tiendalli looked to have a decent game, getting forward. How did he look live!? He looked a lot more mobile.

Napa was an exciting addition but Mehmeti and GVK were poor. Henry was on fire just as he was getting subbed!

It was the best performance I’ve seen for a while, on top of the opposition, wave after wave of attack but failed to finish. The goals conceded were stupid and naive.

Unfortunately we have a section of our support wanting defeat to justify their thoughts/position on the club/manager/players.

 

[DreamInYellow]

On the plus side we have 3 exciting signings for consideration next week. The optimism of the last week was based on these chaps who, probably rightly so, didn't get on the pitch today.

 

[eraser]

I watched on iFollow, I thought we played well!

Tiendalli looked to have a decent game, getting forward. How did he look live!? He looked a lot more mobile.

Napa was an exciting addition but Mehmeti and GVK were poor. Henry was on fire just as he was getting subbed!

It was the best performance I’ve seen for a while, on top of the opposition, wave after wave of attack but failed to finish. The goals conceded were stupid and naive.

Unfortunately we have a section of our support wanting defeat to justify their thoughts/position on the club/manager/players.

So poor tactical management not supporters wanting failure?!

 

[Jon-ioualways]

A Couple of quotes from their forum sums it up nicely:

.....As for the game, our tactical genius selected a fantastic starting 11 who would have been 3 down before we'd known what hit us but for a wakka style display by Roberts. Oxford then gifted us two goals with Whitney-esque defensive lapses. I'd imagine that Oxford haven't a fudge clue as to how they lost that game. Might be a crucial 3 points by may, but lucky as fudge.

......have to say a fantastic performance against one of the best teams ive seen down bescot this season.
a real gutsy effort throwing bodies on the line and the change of goalkeeper was a masterstroke
a 10/10 performance from our goalkeeper and one of the best goalkeeping performances in 5 years plus for me.

Have to agree with that, Silver...we really were all over them, weren't afraid to shoot, got 7 shots on targets, their goalie pulled off some brilliant saves. Sometimes you just have to hold your head up (and admit we gave away two goals) and say that their goalie saved them.

 

[Mellowyellow]

If you think they should play after 1 training session then that's just idiotic. We lost because of a combination of poor concentration,Poor finishing and a dodgy ref.

Dickie won't come in for a CB partnership that has been relatively good recently.

....and an incompetent manager

 

[Mellowyellow]

We had 14 shots but apparently are afraid to shoot. Shoot when there's no sight of goal, and someone's in a better position?

Can we change the way we play? People were crying out for 4 4 2 and Pep changed it. We had so many chances to win the game. Some of our fans!

It's the fact that it's still the good old, crab football at the back, then tippy tappy around the box, with no-one shooting. In simple terms, the squad is in a fantastic state, the problem with the club is the manager.

 

[Dubai Yellow]

I didn't see MKD, but otherwise, the last 5 or 6 league matches that I've seen, for me, have been very poor (in terms of our performance) and I have been critical on here. Today, i don't think we were poor at all. It was a good team performance overall and we were unlucky not to win. Their keeper has been magnificent and we've have had an off day in front of goal. If we were to play like that for the remainder of the season we would most probably make the playoffs.

 

[werthersoriginal]

It's the fact that it's still the good old, crab football at the back, then tippy tappy around the box, with no-one shooting. In simple terms, the squad is in a fantastic state, the problem with the club is the manager.

Stop moaning. Pep isnt leaving this season, and if we did try to replace him in the summer we might well end up with someone worse

 

[holdsteady]

Stop moaning. Pep isnt leaving this season, and if we did try to replace him in the summer we might well end up with someone worse

Don’t know about that, Clotet and the people in charge at the club don’t seem close to me. He is most definitely a head coach not a manager now, be interested to see how the rest of this transfer windows actions pans out over the rest of the season.

 

[Mellowyellow]

Stop moaning. Pep isnt leaving this season, and if we did try to replace him in the summer we might well end up with someone worse

Moaning no, opinion it's called. Today was 350 mile round journey, to see ground hog day, a manager telling the players to be crabs, then kick the ball around like its a hot coal that burns their foot, in a tippy tappy fashion.
The real frustration is at the moment, we have built the core of a good squad, but you could bring Messi into this squad and the way the team are playing he would look pants. As someone on the radio said, the squad isn't the problem its the manager. Now go and suck yourself.

 

[Oldman159]

I was at the game today Jerome,

I though we played quite well at times. Second half was very entertaining. Very impressed with young Napa. A pleasure to watch. However......

Some comical, if not blatantly biased officiating today. Prime example in the first half saddlers pass the ball forward on the extreme right. The ball rolls fully out then curves back in. (I was directly in line) Lino says the ball stayed in. Second half, Yellows pass ball forward on extreme right in the same position. Ball runs along the line, remains on the pitch with an inch or so on the line. The Lino, gives a throw to the saddlers. I guess he was following the lead of the ref.

At least the ref made me feel content with my bodily profile ?

 

[West Oxon U’s]

However Alex Mowatt has the opportunity to impress in his favoured position he has to take it otherwise Brannagan will jump right in next Saturday. He's got the chance to show why he was once the next big thing in English Football after supposedly being near an England call up.

Mowatt certainly impressed.

 

[Oldman159]

Oh, and the foul mouthed moaning by some c* cks around us today was boring in the extreme...no way was it constructive criticism..

 

[Concretebob]

Garbage, rubbish, waste, refuse etc. I felt like we played some decent football at times, but the defending today was awful. Tiendalli really did not look anything close to a professional footballer today.

Positives from today - good atmosphere in the away end, and Napa looked promising when he came on.

Onto Bury I guess.

 

[werthersoriginal]

Moaning no, opinion it's called. Today was 350 mile round journey, to see ground hog day, a manager telling the players to be crabs, then kick the ball around like its a hot coal that burns their foot, in a tippy tappy fashion.
The real frustration is at the moment, we have built the core of a good squad, but you could bring Messi into this squad and the way the team are playing he would look pants. As someone on the radio said, the squad isn't the problem its the manager. Now go and suck yourself.

Very poor response. Are you 12? Or one of those grunting guys who slag off the players at the slightest mistake? Grow up.

 

[eraser]

I was at the game today Jerome,

I though we played quite well at times. Second half was very entertaining. Very impressed with young Napa. A pleasure to watch. However......

Some comical, if not blatantly biased officiating today. Prime example in the first half saddlers pass the ball forward on the extreme right. The ball rolls fully out then curves back in. (I was directly in line) Lino says the ball stayed in. Second half, Yellows pass ball forward on extreme right in the same position. Ball runs along the line, remains on the pitch with an inch or so on the line. The Lino, gives a throw to the saddlers. I guess he was following the lead of the ref.

At least the ref made me feel content with my bodily profile ?

And those are your reasons for OUFC losing? How sad. Talk about the team not the officials - they had no influence on the outcome today!

 

[RATC]

I think for all the disagreements that have happend about was the ref poor, was peps subs poor, do we need another striker,

There's one thing we can agree on, there keeper won them that game along with our poor finishing. And this is Karma for last week against Blackpool where they had the exact same situation that we did today. Dominated the game looked the better side, but we met a keeper who played out his skin liked Eastwood did last week.

Let's hope a Barnsley scout was there and really liked there keeper and they end up recommending him instead of Simon Eastwood. (Wont happen)

 

[Browny]

There is 2 things to take from that game

The result - extremely disappointing in a game we should have won

The performance - a couple of defensive lapses apart that was a very good performance. We created endless chznc3s, looked dangerous throughout, controlled the game and clearly should have won

It seems that on here a win means we played great and a defeat means the manager has to go.

The substitutions didn’t work but we could all be the best manager in the world if we could makes us of hindsight. I cam away disappointed and frustrated but knowing that there was not masses wrong with the performance

 

[eraser]

I think for all the disagreements that have happend about was the ref poor, was peps subs poor, do we need another striker,

There's one thing we can agree on, there keeper won them that game along with our poor finishing. And this is Karma for last week against Blackpool where they had the exact same situation that we did today. Dominated the game looked the better side, but we met a keeper who played out his skin liked Eastwood did last week.

Let's hope a Barnsley scout was there and really liked there keeper and they end up recommending him instead of Simon Eastwood. (Wont happen)

It's "their keeper" grammatically and Eastwood has picked the ball out of his net 6 more times than theirs this season!

 

[werthersoriginal]

Oh, and the foul mouthed moaning by some c* cks around us today was boring in the extreme...no way was it constructive criticism..

We’ve got some really thick fans