Fan's View Fan's View 22/23 - Morecambe at home

[Paul B]

Fan's View - 22/23 - No.7 - Morecambe at home

 

[OxfordYankee]

Oh god. Dare I?

 

[Essexyellows]

Good read as ever - if only we had published targets............

 

[SteMerritt]

Oh god. Dare I?

Yes do it! It has the required amount of pub chat and gratuitous swearing that we all have come to love and expect.

 

[Manorlounger]

It says a lot when Fan's view is depressing reading. But, there we are, it is a depressing time to be an OUFC fan.

 

[ZeroTheHero]

I seem to remember that Spasov's shot that went wide was given as a corner. In that case you would have to say that rather that being a *miss*, a Morecambe defender managed to get a touch on it that sent it wide. My memory is like a sieve though...

Depressingly accurate report though and with the proliferating injuries our form looks unlikely to improve much in the near future.

 

[Sarge]

Good read as ever - if only we had published targets............

...or even a shareholders meeting

(no legal requirement to hold a shareholder AGM - or given there hasn't been a Shareholders meeting since Tiger took over as chairman , it'd now be presumably a GM,- as it hasn't been Annual for some years now - if and when one is eventually held )

 

[RyanioBirdio]

Interesting to see the car park being mentioned. I commented to my brother that it was noticeably quiet before the game. He got lumbered with some last-minute parenting and didn’t turn up until 2pm so was resigned to a trip to the overflow, yet he managed to drive straight into one of the best parking spots without fuss. There were even a couple more spare in the same area. I don’t remember the last time that happened. You could tell from the off that it was going to be a bit of a stinker in terms of interest and atmosphere.

Combined with the underwhelming Palace sales it feels markedly flat at the moment. August can be a little tricky with school holidays etc so it’s not a crisis, crowds can sometimes take a few games to settle into a groove of sorts and it isn’t unusual to be getting less than 7k at this point, but there is definitely a weird feeling at the moment. Even last season when we had some big 10k crowds towards the back end the atmosphere was largely poor unless there was a late goal, which on several occasions there were, but prior to them going in there was 85+ minutes of real quietness for the most part. Numbers did not equal noise.

I feel like there is an increasingly awkward combination of people who are happy with their lot - ie we won’t really achieve anything but at least we might have a nice time while going close enough to clap and cheer a bit - and people who are getting progressively bored with knowing how it ends. Whichever ‘camp’ somebody is in is irrelevant in that regard - the outcome is anything other than passion or excitement. I don’t feel like I’m surrounded by people daring to dream anymore. Nobody is asking “what if?” because I think they already know the endgame. Those content with it don’t have a reason to shout, and those who want a bit more are either too cheesed off or too deflated to do much more than sigh. If they turn up at all.

The latter demographic will begin to grumble, though. There is a limit to how long some people will accept paying money without feeling like there is even the slightest chance that the season will end in glory. When any lower league fan base loses its collective “this could be our year” mindset, which is pretty much universal and the only reason many of us bother with investing in our local clubs to begin with, let alone for our entire lives, it’s a problem. No club at this level or in the league below can afford to give that up. It’s vital.

Merely my feelings, of course. I think we badly need a win and a decent performance on Saturday. Nothing to do with the manager or anybody else - forget any one individual who may or may not need X, Y or Z. Oxford United needs a decent win. Soon.

 

[Paul B]

I seem to remember that Spasov's shot that went wide was given as a corner. In that case you would have to say that rather that being a *miss*, a Morecambe defender managed to get a touch on it that sent it wide. My memory is like a sieve though...

Depressingly accurate report though and with the proliferating injuries our form looks unlikely to improve much in the near future.

Actually now I come to think of it you are probably right. Just goes to show that I'd had it up to here with us not scoring and was doing the lad a disservice. But it happened time and again and whether or not a defender got a touch the outcome was the same.

 

[TailsWeWin]

I can’t remember feeling as depressed about a season with so few games played for many years.Robinson’s idiotic transfer dealings and lack of tactical awareness have left me flat and sliding towards apathy, with little to look forward to. And I’ve been around since the mid 60s. And yes, I will continue to turn up - tomorrow night and for the rest of the season - but boy, is it getting hard work!

 

[Paul B]

Interesting to see the car park being mentioned. I commented to my brother that it was noticeably quiet before the game. He got lumbered with some last-minute parenting and didn’t turn up until 2pm so was resigned to a trip to the overflow, yet he managed to drive straight into one of the best parking spots without fuss. There were even a couple more spare in the same area. I don’t remember the last time that happened. You could tell from the off that it was going to be a bit of a stinker in terms of interest and atmosphere.

Combined with the underwhelming Palace sales it feels markedly flat at the moment. August can be a little tricky with school holidays etc so it’s not a crisis, crowds can sometimes take a few games to settle into a groove of sorts and it isn’t unusual to be getting less than 7k at this point, but there is definitely a weird feeling at the moment. Even last season when we had some big 10k crowds towards the back end the atmosphere was largely poor unless there was a late goal, which on several occasions there were, but prior to them going in there was 85+ minutes of real quietness for the most part. Numbers did not equal noise.

I feel like there is an increasingly awkward combination of people who are happy with their lot - ie we won’t really achieve anything but at least we might have a nice time while going close enough to clap and cheer a bit - and people who are getting progressively bored with knowing how it ends. Whichever ‘camp’ somebody is in is irrelevant in that regard - the outcome is anything other than passion or excitement. I don’t feel like I’m surrounded by people daring to dream anymore. Nobody is asking “what if?” because I think they already know the endgame. Those content with it don’t have a reason to shout, and those who want a bit more are either too cheesed off or too deflated to do much more than sigh. If they turn up at all.

The latter demographic will begin to grumble, though. There is a limit to how long some people will accept paying money without feeling like there is even the slightest chance that the season will end in glory. When any lower league fan base loses its collective “this could be our year” mindset, which is pretty much universal and the only reason many of us bother with investing in our local clubs to begin with, let alone for our entire lives, it’s a problem. No club at this level or in the league below can afford to give that up. It’s vital.

Merely my feelings, of course. I think we badly need a win and a decent performance on Saturday. Nothing to do with the manager or anybody else - forget any one individual who may or may not need X, Y or Z. Oxford United needs a decent win. Soon.

Very well put indeed.
I'd not picked up on the underwhelming Palace sales.
If only we could bottle some of the "passion and excitement" we generate at places like Derby and bring it to the Kassam. Would never work though because the two grounds are oh so different, home and away fans produce a very different output and we no longer have the Ultras.

 

[Trevor L]

Well written as ever Paul and what a depressing start to a season.

I wonder how others reacted when we equalised against Morecambe? I can't remember ever feeling less enthused (if that's the right word) when my team's just scored! I guess I put it down to having very little faith at that point that we would go on to win the game. At that moment in the game I just felt utterly flat.

Please tell me I'm alone in that!

 

[Paul B]

Well written as ever Paul and what a depressing start to a season.

I wonder how others reacted when we equalised against Morecambe? I can't remember ever feeling less enthused (if that's the right word) when my team's just scored! I guess I put it down to having very little faith at that point that we would go on to win the game. At that moment in the game I just felt utterly flat.

Please tell me I'm alone in that!

You are not alone. Far from it Trevor. I felt exactly the same.

 

[werthersoriginal]

You are not alone. Far from it Trevor. I felt exactly the same.

Over the last couple of seasons, if we'd equalized (or even pulled one back) with most of the half to go and were attacking 'down the hill' I'd have felt confident we'd win, and even expected it - but not in the last two games.

 

[Paul B]

Depressing or what - and now this https://www.oufc.co.uk/news/2022/august/crystal-palace-injury-update/

 

[TailsWeWin]

You are not alone. Far from it Trevor. I felt exactly the same.

Me too.

 

[RyanioBirdio]

Well written as ever Paul and what a depressing start to a season.

I wonder how others reacted when we equalised against Morecambe? I can't remember ever feeling less enthused (if that's the right word) when my team's just scored! I guess I put it down to having very little faith at that point that we would go on to win the game. At that moment in the game I just felt utterly flat.

Please tell me I'm alone in that!

You are not alone. Far from it Trevor. I felt exactly the same.

Me too.

This is what I mean when I comment on a fan base losing its ability to dream or believe it could be their club’s year. If a mentality that it can’t or won’t happen takes hold, whether that means missing out by one point or 20 points, it’s a death spiral. There has to be belief. What is there without it?

The mention of Morecambe’s board stating its ambition for 20/21 was to merely stay in the division, and yet they ended up winning promotion, is what I’m talking about. I bet any money that plenty of their fans would have still gone into that season daring to dream, even though on paper that would seem daft and almost none of them would have genuinely expected it. You have to believe that however unlikely, it might happen. A 10% chance? 5%? Doesn’t matter - there’s something. It’s enough.

I’m worried. I don’t think we’re in any genuine danger of going down or anything like that (oh God…) but I do worry that things have gone stale and that more and more people are starting to resign themselves to the fact that we just can’t or won’t take the next step. We spent some really big money in January when we were in the top six, and tried to spend even more than we did while turning down bids for some of our best players, and even then I saw plenty of people already playing down our odds of promotion and saying it was about building for “next season”, despite the fact that we were firmly in the pack and had strengthened the squad. A few people were already making their excuses for missing out and trying to spin it as a positive thing, and I had to listen to people on Radio Oxford saying they would rather stay in League One under Karl Robinson indefinitely than get promoted with someone who might not be as ‘fun’. So if that’s the case then why would anyone bother having any hope, and why would anybody be surprised that the whole thing feels a bit… meh?

Sorry to bang on - I’m just really bemused as to why so many people have decided that this is as good as it could ever be. I’m not saying people should be negative or have unreasonable expectations, but they should have expectations.

Shouldn’t they?

 

[NottsYellow]

Saturday reminded me of some of those Conference games v Grays, Stafford, Droylsden. Very few away fans, opposition playing for a 0-0 but hoping for one break and one goal.
At half-time I thought Morecambe don't look like scoring in a million years (I know, I know that was a stupid thought) then they go and score with the first shot on target. How many times have the opposition scored with their first shot and made it look easy?
Using BBC Football website I thought I would check how many shots our opposition have had on target against us, this season. It is only a total of 11 (Derby 4, Cambridge 0, BR 3, Lincoln 3 & Morecambe 1) from those 11 shots we have conceded 5. So we have let in 45% shots that have been on target and effectively Eastwood has only saved 6 shots in 5 games.
So what is the figure for other teams in our division, looking at teams at the top:-
Sheffield Wednesday, opposition had 23 shots on target, SW conceded 5. 21%
Plymouth - 24, conceded 7. 29%
Portsmouth - 15, ccd 5. 33%
Bolton - 16, ccd 3. 18%
Ipswich - 13, ccd 2. 15%
So at 11, we are the best in the league at keeping the opposition at bay re shots on target, so the defence, midfield must be doing something right. But once the shot is on target we are worst in the division at keeping the ****** ball out of the net. This must be down to goalkeeping.
I'm afraid I then got a bit carried away with looking at the BBC stats.
Our shots on target for the 5 games is 25. This is in line with the above teams but with goals scored of 3, by far the worst conversion return of the other teams.

The other figures on BBC are the total shots, (what constitutes a shot, god knows) the figures for the season so far are:-
Oxford For 72, against 36
Sheffield Wed For 58, A 58
Plymouth For 71, A 53
Portsmouth For 69, A 49
Bolton For 64, A 69
Ipswich For 87, A 38
These stats stand up very well with being 2nd in total shots and top in preventing shots against. Obviously with only 5 games it is a bit distorted due to quality of opposition, but Pompey have played BR, Cambridge & Lincoln however I feel there is an underlying story carried over from the end of last season. I think we need a new goalie.

 

[Paul B]

Saturday reminded me of some of those Conference games v Grays, Stafford, Droylsden. Very few away fans, opposition playing for a 0-0 but hoping for one break and one goal.
At half-time I thought Morecambe don't look like scoring in a million years (I know, I know that was a stupid thought) then they go and score with the first shot on target. How many times have the opposition scored with their first shot and made it look easy?
Using BBC Football website I thought I would check how many shots our opposition have had on target against us, this season. It is only a total of 11 (Derby 4, Cambridge 0, BR 3, Lincoln 3 & Morecambe 1) from those 11 shots we have conceded 5. So we have let in 45% shots that have been on target and effectively Eastwood has only saved 6 shots in 5 games.
So what is the figure for other teams in our division, looking at teams at the top:-
Sheffield Wednesday, opposition had 23 shots on target, SW conceded 5. 21%
Plymouth - 24, conceded 7. 29%
Portsmouth - 15, ccd 5. 33%
Bolton - 16, ccd 3. 18%
Ipswich - 13, ccd 2. 15%
So at 11, we are the best in the league at keeping the opposition at bay re shots on target, so the defence, midfield must be doing something right. But once the shot is on target we are worst in the division at keeping the ****** ball out of the net. This must be down to goalkeeping.
I'm afraid I then got a bit carried away with looking at the BBC stats.
Our shots on target for the 5 games is 25. This is in line with the above teams but with goals scored of 3, by far the worst conversion return of the other teams.

The other figures on BBC are the total shots, (what constitutes a shot, god knows) the figures for the season so far are:-
Oxford For 72, against 36
Sheffield Wed For 58, A 58
Plymouth For 71, A 53
Portsmouth For 69, A 49
Bolton For 64, A 69
Ipswich For 87, A 38
These stats stand up very well with being 2nd in total shots and top in preventing shots against. Obviously with only 5 games it is a bit distorted due to quality of opposition, but Pompey have played BR, Cambridge & Lincoln however I feel there is an underlying story carried over from the end of last season. I think we need a new goalie.

Very interesting, especially those stats on percentage of goals conceded. Might nick some of that if I may (will give credit obvs)

 

[Trevor L]

Much I could write and though it would be useful therapy it would be a borefest.

Couple of quick points.

First, yes as Ryan says, it's the hope that keeps you going (in both senses of the word). I don't understand the acceptance you describe, though I don't reckon it's a view held by all that many. This is the 3rd division and we should set our sights higher!

Second, interesting stats on goals conceded but, without appearing to defend either Stevens last season or Eastwood this, I think we've sometimes lacked the determination defensively to get in a block and avoid giving strikers a clear shot. In the new world of football stats, are there any measures that quantify that sort of thing?