It’s not disheartening. There were numerous changes for Notts around the time when the game tipped in the host’s favour. Sam Slocombe faced a lot of action at times, but he performed well and was highly praised. The 3-1 loss, after being 1-0 up, suggests to me that our first team would have been more capable of maintaining the lead. It’s not as if we would field multiple youth players in a league match, but those who deserved the opportunity to play.

It’s a pre-season friendly match, and they don’t always go as planned. As a team, they are not a team we would have been familiar with. No amount of planning could alter this, but I do concur that the changes to the team likely contributed to the final score. I would prefer to see players given a fair chance in games like this, rather than winning 1-0 or drawing.

The outcome wasn’t bad, it would have been a valuable experience for the young players who came on around the 75th minute. For the first team, we need to be mindful that we didn’t field what would be our starting XI. Jodi Jones came on in the second half and David McGoldrick isn’t young enough to lead the front line. I hope he can contribute more this upcoming season but if it turns out like the majority of last season, I hope others are chosen ahead of him. This is what pre-season is about - gaining match fitness and getting the players back on the same wavelength. It’s about creating good opportunities and delivering decent performances.

An out of town stadium, a fair walk from the bus stop...the pre match atmosphere was excellent, an engaging German PA and a sense of togetherness he brought.

Dan Crowley played in front of back 3, as an orchestrator ...but the linkage to rest of midfield and up front was really missing. Having said that Notts controlled the game til the 80th minute. Perhaps the ref was conned.. an excellent 2nd goal from MSV Duisburg, their 3rd disappointed in Notts defending

Notts substitutions just emphasised the gulf between youth and 1st team ready. Duisburg stepped up a gear and you see that the positional sense of the youngsters is exposed.

Ryley Reynolds looked promising but he did find pockets of space only for the passes to him seemed to be ignored

Didzy missed a great chance when Jodi put a perfect cross in. Macca would have buried it

It was extremely hot afternoon... fitness yes but important not to pick up injuries

Rumours that Jatta  didnt travel re visa issues???

 

 

 

The result didn’t go our way, but it was just a friendly match. Losing isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The club will learn from this and I’m confident a stronger team would have performed better. We shouldn’t let any negativity affect the young players who took part.

I don’t expect Notts to win every friendly match, especially ones like this where the home team has the advantage of familiarity. We essentially have two squads for each half of the game, plus substitutes who come on to see how they perform. I haven’t seen any indication of trialists playing in the game.

Google translate

MSV Duisburg - Notts County; what sounds like a UEFA Cup match from the 70s was today a friendly between two fourth division teams. Around 150 Brits took advantage of the opportunity of a rare international tour, but were even more inferior in the acoustic duel than the players on the pitch.

Google translate

In front of 2591 spectators (estimated ~150 guests from England) in the PCC Stadium in Homberg, MSV Duisburg won a friendly against Notts County 3-1. Both teams are based in their respective fourth divisions.

5 hours ago, Piethagoram said:

but were even more inferior in the acoustic duel than the players on the pitch

Duisburg were playing a short bus ride away in front of their own fans in a stand with a roof, while our fans were literally in a different country and made up 5% of the crowd. What on earth did they expect? Snide comments like that about English football are a tiresome feature of living in Germany. From what I've read, there's been nothing but respect for the way that our club and fanbase presented itself from the Duisburg fans.

As for the match, it bears repeating that the opposition are a couple of weeks further along in their preparation, so there will have been a noticeable difference in sharpness. Had that been a league game, we would have approached it differently and had a stronger team out there. It's all about practicing different scenarios and learning about how the team will fit together, and a defeat against decent opposition can also be valuable for that. 

Check

https://chudphotography.smugmug.com/Notts-County-FC/2024-2025-Season/MSV-Duisburg-v-Notts-County-20072024

 

I don’t view it as a criticism of the young players who were on the pitch when the goals started coming in. I also believe the penalty was more a case of their player pushing into Chicksen and then falling over. It’s challenging to keep up with games when there are numerous changes, and while some fans might see this as making excuses, for a young player it’s much tougher. Once a goal is conceded, it impacts how you play and it can be easier for the attacking team to capitalise on this. All things considered, it’s not a bad result.

@Wheelbarrow repair man

I think we can safely say that we lost because Stuart drastically changed the side.

I wonder why Stuart can't change the personnel a few at a time in the second half so that the side is affected so much.

My question would be, How can one seriously find out the worth of a trialist if he isn't playing within a side full of first teamers?