Home Match Day Thread 03/02/2024 L1: OUFC v Reading

[Carpy]

POST-MATCH PACK

Post Match Discussion

Interview - Des Buckingham

Interview - Cam Brannagan

Interview - Reading manager

Match Highlights

Match Report

Ref Watch

Fans View

 

[Made-in-Jericho]

Disappointing that it's just not clicking yet. We rarely play well for more than 45 minutes and never for the entire game - we seem to be playing in monotone, going through the motions, occasionally getting a sequence or two right. Is it communication between Des and his team? Is it the players' skill-level and inability to follow instruction? Des also needs an experienced deputy which the club have failed to support him with.
I do look at his post-match interviews and he comes across as slightly vacant, a bit dull perhaps - under pressure no doubt. Is this the way the team are playing?
Hope he turns it around!

 

[Joey]

I understand the injuries but Des has been here nearly 3 months and I have no idea what our game plan is. We no longer keep the ball, we consistently have less than 50% possession against everybody.
It all looks clueless, occasionally we have passion but mostly not. We cannot pass the ball fluently, we defend poorly, there looks no belief in what we are doing.
The absolute committment to the plan of Manning has long since gone. We are currently playing football off scraps.
I realise Buckingham stays we have invested too much for that not to happen but the comparisons with Clotet reign is scary.
Manager talks but says nothing, players not really understanding their roles.

Unfortunately agree with most of that, I also believe he's been dealt a bad hand, not just with injuries (either of our first choice right backs available and we probably win that today) but also off the pitch. That's where the biggest problems are unfortunately. I also think we'd have tailed off had Manning stayed, although he certainly had us more organised.

That said you can have a hard job and do it badly. I don't think anyone can see a plan either going forwards or defensively.

When the injury excuse ends Des will then become under real pressure not from the management but from the fans.

This is what I want to see, take any excuses away from the manager as currently you can point to that as mitigation, it undoubtedly makes a difference but at the same time having excuses handy isn't going to help anyone progress. Likewise he needs to be supported by the board but I don't hold out much hope of that happening either. It's a mess.

 

[OX14]

agree

especially re support network/ backroom staff - perhaps bringing in a DoF wouldn't be a bad idea?

I think bringing in an experienced no 2 with league experience would be better for Des. 2 heads are better than one.

 

[East Stand Fan]

Agree KR pre going through a mid life crisis would get more out of this squad, come to think of it he isn't doing too badly at Salford currently. That first season when we got in the play offs that was halted due to COVID was some of the most exciting football I've witnessed an Oxford team playing at the Kassam. I remember us spanking AFC Wimbledon 5-0 on a Tuesday night and it could of been a hell of a lot more.

I pray we some day get back to that kind of football.

There was some absolutely scintillating football and peak Matty Taylor along with the likes of Sykes and Cadden were absolutely deadly. That is the standard you need to achieve week in and week out to get out of this league and had it not been for Covid, we would've been potentially top 2 contenders or far better placed for the playoffs.

So far I don't feel that Buckingham has even got the sheer basics that you'd expect from an EFL manager - too many borked game plans from the off and matches where we just can't get anything going and lack conviction in all areas. His lack of experience is really showing and despite some glimmers here and there, it's way off even what Manning was delivering.

The way we fell apart for the final 20 and resorted to League 2 standard of football should not be happening at this level for a club in our position.

 

[Bitter]

Someone that achieves playoffs twice in his 5 year tenure as well as breaking records and generating some serious transfer fees through players development is a decent manager. I'm not a fan of KR but there is no doubt he has some strong credentials and many issues such as contracts and failure to replace players was on the board and recruitment. If he was in the dugout today for us, we would've absolutely annihilated this Reading team even with our current crop of players. Sure his final year was terrible on and off the field and it was time to go but managers like him are technically night and day ahead of the likes of Buckingham and others at this level right now.

Like we annihilated the worst Swindon team in living memory? Yeah right!

 

[Sarge]

I think bringing in an experienced no 2 with league experience would be better for Des. 2 heads are better than one.

thatd help- one of DBs choosing of course

 

[werthersoriginal]

There was some absolutely scintillating football and peak Matty Taylor along with the likes of Sykes and Cadden were absolutely deadly. That is the standard you need to achieve week in and week out to get out of this league and had it not been for Covid, we would've been potentially top 2 contenders or far better placed for the playoffs.

So far I don't feel that Buckingham has even got the sheer basics that you'd expect from an EFL manager - too many borked game plans from the off and matches where we just can't get anything going and lack conviction in all areas. His lack of experience is really showing and despite some glimmers here and there, it's way off even what Manning was delivering.

The way we fell apart for the final 20 and resorted to League 2 standard of football should not be happening at this level for a club in our position.

I'm more positive about Robinson than many on here but let's not get Robbo nostalgia!!

 

[Mad Dog]

As much as I hated his last 6 months, KR was an excellent manager. His personal issues and public affair were what caused his demise here, his head was not straight.

Karl Robinson was NOT an excellent manager!

Karl Robinson was an incompetent, selfish, despicable, devious, arrogant moron.

Other than that I loved him, and miss him terribly

 

[Sharp Edges]

Someone that achieves playoffs twice in his 5 year tenure as well as breaking records and generating some serious transfer fees through players development is a decent manager. I'm not a fan of KR but there is no doubt he has some strong credentials and many issues such as contracts and failure to replace players was on the board and recruitment. If he was in the dugout today for us, we would've absolutely annihilated this Reading team even with our current crop of players. Sure his final year was terrible on and off the field and it was time to go but managers like him are technically night and day ahead of the likes of Buckingham and others at this level right now.

If Robinson had been in the dug out today we wouldnt have been playing Reading, we would have been playing in league 2.

 

[MustardYellow]

Des has said in several occasions that he wants to win games, but the way we play just doesn't reflect that. We came out so slow at the start of the second half, and it was clear the instruction was to contain rather than go for a second. We invited pressure and eventually the inevitable equaliser came. At that stage we then tried to play with a bit of urgency but it was too late, and Reading looked the more likely to get the winner. Really frustrating performance overall and the first time I've been really disappointed with Des.

This is the most surprising thing for me. We so often don't even look interested in winning.

 

[MiddleBartonYellow]

I don’t know why Robinson is being bought into it.

 

[dickwalton1964]

No KR is not an excellent manager.

A good manager treats his staff well and KR had favourites and left others out in the cold.
I have lost count of the players he signed on or gave longer contracts to that were injured or past their best.
He listened to what agents said rather than going after players the club wanted. If you don’t believe that ask yourself why Thomas left and went to Derby.
He didn’t replace our only defensive midfielder for two years and constantly played midfield players out of position.
He was a bully
His after match comments were an absolute joke
Luckily for him we did have a few players around who could play a bit

I could go on but he definitely was NOT a good manager

What absolute nonsense. Robinson was, and likely still is, an excellent lower league manager. Our football under him, for the best part of his reign, was very good. That period when we beat West Ham, scored six at Lincoln and Crewe etc, saw some spellbinding football. We knew exactly how we were playing and a lot of the time were able to execute it to devastating effect. Look at some of the quality we recruited too.

He went off the rails, seemingly professionally and publically, in the last throws of his time here but that should never mask his over all contribution. We were probably a James Henry shot away from the Championship and if not for a Covid outbreak, I think, would have pipped Rotherham to the automatics.

He was a bit brash, bit full of himself, but who cares. In what way was he a bully ? Called out a few players but why not, he’s the manager and making brutal decisions is part and parcel of it. Bless any little footballer who can’t take a bollocking.

Robinson NOT a good manager is among the most absurd comments I’ve read on here.

 

[Orkney Islands Yellow]

 

[werthersoriginal]

I don’t know why Robinson is being bought into it.

Yeah agree, it's just that someone mentioned that he beat Wrexham today and has started well at Salford. Best kept in the 'Former managers' section really.

 

[MiddleBartonYellow]

I said earlier that we drop off after 70mins or so, we just need a second goal and lack that ruthlessness to get it. Other teams just hang on and finish strong it seems.

 

[Sharp Edges]

What absolute nonsense. Robinson was, and likely still is, an excellent lower league manager. Our football under him, for the best part of his reign, was very good. That period when we beat West Ham, scored six at Lincoln and Crewe etc, saw some spellbinding football. We knew exactly how we were playing and a lot of the time were able to execute it to devastating effect. Look at some of the quality we recruited too.

He went off the rails, seemingly professionally and publically, in the last throws of his time here but that should never mask his over all contribution. We were probably a James Henry shot away from the Championship and if not for a Covid outbreak, I think, would have pipped Rotherham to the automatics.

He was a bit brash, bit full of himself, but who cares. In what way was he a bully ? Called out a few players but why not, he’s the manager and making brutal decisions is part and parcel of it. Bless any little footballer who can’t take a bollocking.

Robinson NOT a good manager is among the most absurd comments I’ve read on here.

Robinson inherited a squad that included two players now in the premier league and 5 or 6 now in the championship. These were players from the Appleton/Ashton/Eales era that were young, hungry well coached and improving. He left us with a hospital ward of over paid, under performing, never fit end of the line employees on their last deals. We never won a game in the play offs which wasnt surprising because we rarely beat teams in the top 6. When it was good it was great but we were flat track bullies and he ultimately left us in a far worse place than he found us. That isnt excellent management.

 

[Symp59]

That second half of constantly punting the ball in the air was woeful. Was it a game plan for the wind? They did it all the time.

I kept shouting get the ball on the ground, get forward and shoot ,and we paid the price.

 

[The mighty Aldo]

What absolute nonsense. Robinson was, and likely still is, an excellent lower league manager. Our football under him, for the best part of his reign, was very good. That period when we beat West Ham, scored six at Lincoln and Crewe etc, saw some spellbinding football. We knew exactly how we were playing and a lot of the time were able to execute it to devastating effect. Look at some of the quality we recruited too.

He went off the rails, seemingly professionally and publically, in the last throws of his time here but that should never mask his over all contribution. We were probably a James Henry shot away from the Championship and if not for a Covid outbreak, I think, would have pipped Rotherham to the automatics.

He was a bit brash, bit full of himself, but who cares. In what way was he a bully ? Called out a few players but why not, he’s the manager and making brutal decisions is part and parcel of it. Bless any little footballer who can’t take a bollocking.

Robinson NOT a good manager is among the most absurd comments I’ve read on here.

You are entitled to your opinion, I am not saying we didn’t play good football at times under Robinson we did I am saying he is a bad manager because he didn’t learn from his mistakes.
You say one shot away from promotion and Covid cost us well he didn’t get us promoted and should have gone after the Blackpool debacle
He will do the same at Salford as he did with MK and us, go in turn things around and after a couple of seasons implode
I’m sure you were one of those saying he shouldn’t have been sacked well if we had your way we would be in div 2 now

 

[MiddleBartonYellow]

Robinson inherited a squad that included two players now in the premier league and 5 or 6 now in the championship. These were players from the Appleton/Ashton/Eales era that were young, hungry well coached and improving. He left us with a hospital ward of over paid, under performing, never fit end of the line employees on their last deals. We never won a game in the play offs which wasnt surprising because we rarely beat teams in the top 6. When it was good it was great but we were flat track bullies and he ultimately left us in a far worse place than he found us. That isnt excellent management.

At least we were in the playoffs, twice in fact. I would settle for that this season.

 

[OX14]

I said earlier that we drop off after 70mins or so, we just need a second goal and lack that ruthlessness to get it. Other teams just hang on and finish strong it seems.

Was earlier than that. Reading came out second half with grit and determination that they were going to get something out of the game. Us on the other hand came out like we thought we already won the game and this was just a cool down period.

Zero quality, zero urgency, zero fight in that second half.

Can Des sort that out before the end of the season? I'm doubtful.