Jaros 6.5 Couldnt be faulted for any of the goals. so nearly saved the penalty for Solihull's opener, then wrongly adjudged by the hopeless ref for a 2nd penalty, linesman overruled

DKE 6 Combative, bordering on a red card

Rawlinson 6 Game made for his heading

Lacey 7 Great header to score from a corner

Chicksen 6 Got exposed defensively at times for not putting in a challenge

Francis 5 sometimes too easily challenged in midfield

Vincent 5 effort yes, but quality wasnt there

Brunt 5 hit the post, coudnt make things happen

Ruben 8 motm .... 2 goals 1 assist

Wootton 7 a better game than recent performances, lovely through ball to Ruben

Roberts 5 Anonymous 2nd half

 

I've virtually given up on this season in regard to promotion.  As I've said before, the longer you stay in this division the harder it is to get out. Something is not right whether that be players who are not motivated or good enough, or a manager who is not quite up to it. Personally I thought earlier in the season it was on the shoulders of the players and to be honest I've seen nothing really to change that view. But as I'm not privy to what goes on in the dressing room it is all Guess work on my part. I think we are in for an extended stay in this league. 

agree with @DonnyNotts sentiments. Basically we are not good enough defensively when compared to the other top teams. We looked scared when Solihull ran at us. Solihull's #6 looked uncertain with the ball at his feet, but we didnt press him hard enough. 

I would say that the reason we are not good enough defensively is because our midfield is too lightweight and small. They become overrun against sides with pace and power, which heaps too much pressure on the defence and it breaks. That along with our sides lack of height is the reason we will struggle for a playoff place.

 

 

 

11 hours ago, Piethagoram said:

Jaros 6.5 Couldnt be faulted for any of the goals. so nearly saved the penalty for Solihull's opener, then wrongly adjudged by the hopeless ref for a 2nd penalty, linesman overruled

DKE 6 Combative, bordering on a red card

Rawlinson 6 Game made for his heading

Lacey 7 Great header to score from a corner

Chicksen 6 Got exposed defensively at times for not putting in a challenge

Francis 5 sometimes too easily challenged in midfield

Vincent 5 effort yes, but quality wasnt there

Brunt 5 hit the post, coudnt make things happen

Ruben 8 motm .... 2 goals 1 assist

Wootton 7 a better game than recent performances, lovely through ball to Ruben

Roberts 5 Anonymous 2nd half

 

Apart from giving Wootton and Roberts a 6, I'd agree with those marks.  I know the centre midfield combination was forced on us, but they offered very little protection to the defence and Solihull found it easy to get into the final third.  The overruled penalty was a ridiculous decision by the ref.  It happened right in front of us, and Jaros got to the ball first with a strong hand then their player tripped over his arm.  I really don't know what the ref thought he saw, but the lino was right next to it and thankfully corrected him.

A good game and probably the right result in the end.  I think we'll sneak into the playoffs, but I have no confidence in us winning them.

You could probably accept this result had we collected a minimum of four from the last two. But in the context of those, it isn't enough. It looks like we'll be scrapping it out for the last one or two play-off spots, and like @Elite_pie I've got no confidence we'll even make it to the final.

Teams that win promotion keep clean sheets and rack up the ugly wins, and we don't. That's been the common thread between the last three seasons - a soft underbelly. We were in the lead against Chesterfield and twice against Solihull. That's five priceless points against immediate promotion rivals that we've blown. If we keep fluffing the big games, we'll get nowhere.

2 hours ago, DangerousSausage said:

You could probably accept this result had we collected a minimum of four from the last two. But in the context of those, it isn't enough. It looks like we'll be scrapping it out for the last one or two play-off spots, and like @Elite_pie I've got no confidence we'll even make it to the final.

Teams that win promotion keep clean sheets and rack up the ugly wins, and we don't. That's been the common thread between the last three seasons - a soft underbelly. We were in the lead against Chesterfield and twice against Solihull. That's five priceless points against immediate promotion rivals that we've blown. If we keep fluffing the big games, we'll get nowhere.

If you had to describe why I don't think we are likely to go up in just three words, "a soft underbelly" would be hard to beat!  We have a lot of positives, but for some reason we can't translate those positives into points.  Something is missing, if we could recruit a box to box midfielder in a lower league mould of Neal Bishop or Ryan Yates it could make all the difference.  We seem to have an abundance of midfielders who at this level are comfortable on the ball and technically gifted, but we seem to lack someone who maybe doesn't have the fancy touches but will crunch into tackles that stop the opposition playing.  I think it's a vital role, but one that our recruitment policy doesn't seem to recognise.

The reason we will not go up, say Notts average 66% possession, so our defence has to only cope with 34%...but we still concede goals, especially at set pieces throughout the season