Goals : Notts v Shrewsbury

[Piethagoram]

Look away now

 

[DangerousSausage]

I've just seen the highlights now. All that was missing was the Benny Hill music.

What was Baldwin doing for the first? OK, anyone can slip, but he was turning towards their player and looking to take him on. That's never a good idea. And after he'd slipped he made no attempt to get up and get back.

For the second on the video (the third of the evening? Not sure they're in the right order) we have Brindley caught in possession and I have no idea what Baldwin was trying to do. Why are our defenders still trying to dribble past opposition strikers?

And for the other we have Randall and Langstaff joining in by putting insane balls into our own box and expecting our defenders to sort it out. Langstaff was under no pressure whatsoever. (Edit: hold on, that was Rawlinson. Was he wearing the number 9 shirt?)

Shame, that was a winnable tie. Reinforcements needed in the January break.

[4everapie]

You wouldn't expect to concede the last 2 in a game on the embamkment 

[liampie]

@4everapie the first is just as shocking, what the hell was aden baldwin doing? i get that players slip but that was just stupid. we need to start taking pride in the way we defend, i get that heads panic when teams are attacking and only a few are back but we need to show more confidence.

[Chris]

I'm sick of it, it makes us look worse than we are, and it's doing nothing to calm the minds of very excited Notts fans minds.

It's awful, it really is, but we are not the first League Two team to fall to pressure, switching off and blind defending. Defensively, we do have to take more accountability for the decisions and actions made, but it is a complete overreaction to worry that every team will get this sort of defending from us when we play them.

Some of our fans are acting like we are bottom of the table. In fact, I don't remember such nonsense when we had the likes of Richard Duffy on our side. He made mistakes virtually every game but somehow managed to be overlooked despite me bringing attention to just how poor he was.

Duffers can't even compare to the incredible talent of Kyle Cameron and Aden Baldwin. They are truly in a league of their own.

They just need a bit of help with keeping their heads and making smart decisions. It's so easy to allow mentality to creep into your game when you aren't playing well. No matter how good your ability is, mentally it can destroy you.

[NottsTastic]

I could defend better even if I were blindfolded, but I might also score the occasional own goal. I don’t think we should continue to be hard on it, let’s have a laugh and a joke. Let’s just support the players.

[DangerousSausage]

Some fair points there @Chris, there are some crazy overreactions on social media. However, I can understand some of the frustration. It's cost us a third round FA Cup tie and might yet cost us a shot at promotion.

Playing at the back for Notts is a tough gig and you're going to look bad at times simply due to how we play. As long as our system gets us results, we shouldn't throw out the baby with the bathwater, but we should remember that some of our players have been with us since the Ardley days and are an awkward fit for this system. Rawlinson was very sound in a back four and if he'd been picked for the play-off final against Harrogate we might even have returned to the league at the first attempt. Now he's being asked to play total football when he's not really suited to it. Brindley joined us as a right back and has had to adapt. Baldwin's head seems to have gone this season and he could do with a spell on the sidelines, but our squad depth hasn't permitted it.

It's clear that our defence as a unit isn't working and isn't likely to work. I don't think they're bad players individually, but in terms of decision making they've often been found wanting. If we can bring in a genuine leader at the back to instill confidence and settle the others down a bit, we might yet see the best out of Baldwin and co.

[upthepies]

I’m uncertain which goal is the worst, whether it’s the 2nd or 3rd. Then again, the 1st is appalling due to the lack of spirit shown after falling.

[TheSkipper]

Those will haunt us for some time, three nightmarish goals gifted to Shrewsbury in a game we should have won.