Away Match Day Thread 27/01/2024 L1: Bristol Rovers v OUFC

[Northstandboy]

COYY!

Lets get 3 points from Brizzle!

 

[greatunclekip]

Not surprised in the least that Conteh had a good game, he's class and will be worth several times the investment in a year or so.

Would have been an excellent signing, especially as all signs were that we were interested.

I honestly think Des would help himself more if he stopped covering for leadership..

 

[Thomas/Brock/Jones]

Desperately disappointing result today but apart from the dreadful first half all three goals should have been saved by Cummings and its a different game completely then.
I have been his biggest supportor and hope it's just a bit of rustiness but you just can't gift goals like that and expect anything.
The confidence it gave them was game changing.
We need a cm destroyer, cf , wingers and probably a rb .....we are spending so much in wages on crocks or past it players that could go to some real quality.

 

[bazzer9461]

Burey done well in my opinion see what happens when u have abit of pace and run pass players gaps open up for everyone on the pitch

Need two fast wingers to join on loan or permeant and one powerful midfielder

We have 3 wingers who can do that but they are out Browne edwards and Murphy

But we definitely need another striker as well

 

[battman]

Let’s have it right, that performance today was sh1t.

Those saying “well, we were better second half and had a go” need to get a grip. The game starts at 3pm, not 4pm.

I don't think I've seen anyone that's said that the first half was acceptable, rather that the second half was better and we should have started the game like that. The second half is a positive to take away, albeit without any points, because it shows we can play well, we just need the right application and tactics. I'd be much more worried if our first half performance was replicated over the 90 minutes, but failure is the best teacher so everyone involved needs to learn from this.

 

[Bicester Yellow]

Hey cheer up, I’m not looking forward to Pompey but we’ll beat Reading!!

Will we? They look much better recently and I can see them beating us on current viewing as they will be up for it & we are not! Don’t give a s**t if we beat Reading if we can’t beat anyone else.

 

[billyturleyscurlywurly]

Not surprised in the least that Conteh had a good game, he's class and will be worth several times the investment in a year or so.

Would have been an excellent signing, especially as all signs were that we were interested.

I honestly think Des would help himself more if he stopped covering for leadership..

You mean like publicly telling everyone listening on Radio Oxford that Hackett isn’t assistant manager..

 

[Bicester Yellow]

I don't think I've seen anyone that's said that the first half was acceptable, rather that the second half was better and we should have started the game like that. The second half is a positive to take away, albeit without any points, because it shows we can play well, we just need the right application and tactics. I'd be much more worried if our first half performance was replicated over the 90 minutes, but failure is the best teacher so everyone involved needs to learn from this.

But unfortunately that’s not the first time we’ve been s**t and out of a game by half time.

 

[Jster]

He said after the game he wants to play with wingers but we don't have any.

That comment annoyed me, I must say. You play with the players you have, and you make the best of it.

 

[Peterdev]

Hope you are ok.

I’m good. More down about the football than my health

 

[Peterdev]

I hope you are ok

Good thanks. Just down with the football. I had high hopes for Des as many of us did. I think we have to back him and not go down the Shrewsbury route of sacking after a few games.
The problem is Buckingham isn’t carrying the fans on his journey and I wonder if the players are sold on him now

 

[OX14]

Robinson was an utter tit in his last season with us regarding his off field antics however he was still the weekly spokesman on all things regarding the football club because Grant & Tim sat in silence.

Let’s not forget that.

He also got zero support.

Shouldn't we be concerned over the zero support? Or do the owners/investors have a free hit due to a promise of a new stadium?

 

[PottersRightBoot]

I think we have a good collection of professionals, I’m not sure they’d down tools for any manager. There’s some really good characters there that have good standards and I’m yet to see a game where I really feel they’ve thrown the towel in. That’s a plus and any accusation to contrary lacks foundation.

But….. We are totally lost. We kicked off with no clear direction today and it was just plain obvious that we were underprepared. We didn’t have a plan for ourselves and didn’t seem to know what to expect from them - if you did, your defence would be very tight together expecting balls coming in to Martin at every opportunity. How we came unstuck by the most basic and obvious of game plans so early in the game is frankly embarrassing, especially with 3 very good headers of the ball in the middle of defence.

I like Des, it’s not his fault that his ceiling has been brought down so low by the lack of proper support from his superiors. It’s a mindless appointment to make knowing that work needed to be done around him if you aren’t prepared to see that through. It’s like building a block of flats and disregarding the plumbing and spark work. But the fact remains that with what he’s got, we should still be starting games better than we have been - we didn’t start well at Carlisle either. Manning was getting a tune out of those players and it isn’t happening now so somethings got to give. They are trying, but they’re not being deployed in a way that sees them at their best.

Too much individuality is being encouraged. Our best moments today were from Burey and after we’d changed to our plan B - why wasn’t it plan A after the debacle at Barnsley in the first half?

Des is giving me assistant vibes. The same way Tim Williams gives me accountant vibes. A real lack of blueprint and leadership everywhere you look at the moment and what was an exciting time to be a fan a few months ago seems like ancient history.

Now you’re having a go at accountants, you never stop do you

 

[Followtheox1]

That comment annoyed me, I must say. You play with the players you have, and you make the best of it.

It's not either or though.

 

[Oufcrealist]

Truly awful today. We have definitely gone backwards.
We should be concerned about our club both on and off the pitch.
There'll be a certain poster along soon who'll give us a rousing speech, tell us all is well, no need to worry we'll make some astounding signings and it's just a blip etc.

 

[Symp59]

I don't think the players are sold on him Yet ,to say he wants to play wingers we sign Edwards who maybe won't play until April .I know Edwards is class and we obviously want him to sign for next season , but do you know a good manager finds a way to play with what you have It wasn't a bad team today but a good manager would have found away today ,he's starting to blame players missing instead of saying I've fu.....d up. He's letting himself down and losing the fan base . We had enough today with the team and with more know how we would have not lost .Image Warnock ,he probably is who we should have at the minute, someone who has passion it might not always be great football but my word what a manager. I was watching a few months back his last game at Huddersfield and the whole fan base, were up clapping they loved him the passion was tremendous.The fans here are fantastic but the manager is depressing me and we really have got some good players but we are missing something, and after a couple of lovely glasses of red it's driving me mad.

 

[Deanroger]

Hey cheer up, I’m not looking forward to Pompey but we’ll beat Reading!!

I wouldn't be so sure of that.

 

[WuTang]

Williams & Ferguson deserve more heat than they get. They let KR drag on and on after it became obvious he needed to go.

I'm not convinced by Des. But TW and GF presumably made that decision. And I still wonder whether the reason Manning jumped at the first chance, was it as simple as Bristol City being a bigger club or does he think there's a problem at OUFC at board level?

Feel really down about it but it's only football I guess. It's just so so disappointing.

The disappointment for me comes from the missed opportunity.

How many times have we had owners happy to provide money for 11k a week contracts, 6 figure transfer fees and £100m new stadium?

The money is there, it's an enormous and rare opportunity for Oxford United to seriously progress, I think Tim Williams and Grant Ferguson are wasting it. I would prefer that money to be invested into new people at that level of the club. If Grant Ferguson, the CHAIRMAN, has barely been in the country since arriving he needs to ask himself if he's the right man for that role, I don't think he is.

Tim Williams appears to be out of his depth, only communicates and shows his face when the fans put pressure on.

Ed Waldron has been excellent at picking the right profile of player so far but I'm concerned about the vital positions we are completely ignoring and not ensuring we have the right mix of players, we are one dimensional.

As for Des, all managers need a summer window to build their own squad but he's another that's starting to look out of his depth. I understand he didn't want to make major changes to a team already on a good run, but we haven't been on a good run for ages and he's stamped no authority or style since arriving. On the flip side, the injuries have been awful and he hasn't a proper squad to work with since arriving. Signing 2 injured players in January when we've been struggling with injuries is a p*ss take.

We appear to be wasting a big opportunity at the moment, the owners need to invest in experience at the top of the club to come in and ruffle the feathers and sort things out.

 

[Chippy]

That comment annoyed me, I must say. You play with the players you have, and you make the best of it.

Makes you wonder what he considers Burey and Goodrhams best positions supposedly to be then, I thought they were wingers? We've had months to identify other wingers but not managed to sign one (if you exclude Burey) in nearly 4 weeks of the Jan window other than an injured Kyle.

Not sure I can be arsed to finish work early and try and get to the game on Tuesday, call me a defeatest but I’m fast losing patience and interest at the moment, I’m sure I’m not the only one feeling like this.

 

[Victor1986]

Truly awful today. We have definitely gone backwards.
We should be concerned about our club both on and off the pitch.
There'll be a certain poster along soon who'll give us a rousing speech, tell us all is well, no need to worry we'll make some astounding signings and it's just a blip etc.

Who's that then?

 

[Followtheox1]

Makes you wonder what he considers Burey and Goodrhams best positions supposedly to be then, I thought they were wingers? We've had months to identify other wingers but not managed to sign one (if you exclude Burey) in nearly 4 weeks of the Jan window other than an injured Kyle.

Not sure I can be arsed to finish work early and try and get to the game on Tuesday, call me a defeatest but I’m fast losing patience and interest at the moment, I’m sure I’m not the only one feeling like this.

He highlighted how Goodrham likes balls to his feet, playing inside and is more of a no 10. I actually agree, I said a while ago on here he is more of a no 10. We only really have one fit winger and that is Burey. Hopefully get a couple more through the door this week.