match ratings Notts v Yeovil

[Piethagoram]

based on mean on 5

Fitzsimons 4 Cannot be blamed for any of the goals. Left exposed by a non existant defence

Hewitt 3 First 2 goals down to his errors. Better passing but defensive positioning and awareness lacking

Duffy 4 usual Duffy dive....

Brisley 3 Lost it completely..composure, confidence....

Jones 3 wandering too far upfield, leaving a gaping hole

Husin 6 Composure on the ball, creative but dont expect him to tackle

Vaughan 3 Not the player needed, too small against a tall energetic Yeovil midfield

Thomas 5.5 was it offside? Some good touches, looks willing to take players on

Boldewijn 6 Looks capable but perhaps should have dlivered more against Dicko's limitations

Dennis 3 £100k+ makes runs but cant say much else positive

Hemmings 4 Aganaesque in hold up play, doesnt look like scoring a la Tony

[Remmy Skye]

Excellent analysis. Forgive me if it's rude or uncommon to say words after a ratings post up but id been looking for discussion of the yeovil match and this was the first place I was taken on the blog, forgive me if I'm in error as I'm a new member to this blog and this may be only by second or third post. Originally id been to Leigh Curtis article at the Post site but for some reason the past few articles at their site I've not seen user comments or any way to comment there.

It's 3:27am here in New York City and I can't sleep and one of the things on my mind of course is the result. I felt reinvigorated by the performance against Boro while of course theirs wasn't the dream team nevertheless to play so well against a championship side was a delight. The earlier results seemed less dire and I thought well these lads just need time learning each others idiosyncrasies on the pitch in live games is all. But then this. 

 

Now please the last thing I want is to appear subversive in any way whatsoever. I mean it when I say Mr. Nolan has given all the proof of being a sound and above average at the least, manager. And I am absolutely an ardent supporter of Mr. Hardy not just because of the new culture he's brought to the side and his ambitions but even on a personal level, I don't know the man at all however homelessness is a serious issue to me personally. Extremely so. Top 5 personal matters without a doubt and his endeavors with charity and awareness towards that issue has endeared me to him greatly. So please don't misunderstand my thoughts as anti Notts or anti management / ownership etc. 

 

It's just something from a book I greatly enjoyed and reread often, One Flew Over the Magpies Nest by Mr. Paul Mace. In the book there's a bit by former owner Mr. Jack Dunnet wherefore he speaks about transfers and how he had a cap of allowing only 3 players in per season but would allow exceptions of course but he said that any more than that and essentially you're not building a team any longer. I must admit I kind of agree with This philosophy. I mean if you consider the great success of last season. Yes i do believe the officials played a larger part than they had any right to in those last matches. But fellow Magpie fans, if I may, I live in the US and this gluttonous place has such a massive amount of boring sport but one thing you see time and again every year without fail when you consider there are 4 major sports in the US and not every state but most have representation in at least two of these sports every shifting season you will be guaranteed the spectacle of at least several teams gutting their roster and entirely renovating their sides and without fail it NEVER works. Never in the first year anyway. In the second once in a rare while it has but generally it never works and after some years a new general manager is brought in and the cycle continues until a team grows together clicks with chemistry and usually contains a superb home grown athlete or two. The two most famous US examples of this were the Los Angeles Lakers whom despite winning multiple championships gutted their roster in order to sign two hall of fame players Karl Malone and Gary Peyton. They were destroyed in the finals ultimately. The next and more recent example would be the Miami Heat who signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh. That first year they too were beaten and beaten by a shining example of the sort of team I discussed as having the winning ingredients. But I digress, sorry, I don't much like American sports but US Sporting news is all too often confused with the regular news here so you are appraised of everything.

The point being though that Mr. Nolan had a fabulous side and though Accrington and Luton Town seemed like runaway trains there were certainly times when the Pies seemed destined to achieve automatic promotion. In the papers and interviews too you could see that there was great chemistry in the side and some genuine friendships amongst the lads and that they all seemed to enjoy one another and this is immeasurably helpful on the pitch as opposed to walking into the dressing room feeling guarded and like a hired gun surveying other hired guns and having no trust or chemistry with anyone else. These things can come or personalities will clash and the team will suffer but it takes time to work these things out and after last year I figured things had gone well enough to where time would be spent chasing the League title, not necessarily growing a new side. I mean 10 new signings. It's just so many. And so many had left. Yes of course lads were getting on in age but I think the transition needed to be a bit slower. 

So many people loved Stanley Aborah and so many felt he should have always been playing but Mr. Nolan identified his cancerous behavior, spotted his unpleasant demeanor and work ethic and lack of commitment etc and cut him loose. Some were surprised. I was slightly but I found the move so sure footed and Mr. Nolan so decisive about it that it greatly impressed me. His comments after the Yeovil match about how he had identified defensive things and the side was diligently drilled in these for the week only to completely forget them at match time made me wonder for a moment though surely it's an over reaction but has a Stanley Aborah type attitude maybe infiltrated the dressing room somewhere from new signings? I don't know. 

 

I am sorry I really hope I've not offended anyone I am just worried and frustrated I hope it's understandable I truly did not mean to be out of order. As I said the Yeovil loss and the recent losses and even a sort of disappointing (to me) pre season has just got me sour I guess. I hope I've not been out of order. I apologize if so. It's now 3:58am here in New York and I just needed to vent somehow. I hope i can get a few hours sleep. Again sorry if I been out of order or anything. As to the ratings I found them entirely agreeable and to the point. Fully insightful. You certainly have a sharp eye for the ratings unlike some Premiership 8 year old giving out 9s and 10s to everyone with nothing but praise lol. 

 

Good night friends

[Piethagoram]

@Remmy SkyeAs regards Stanley, Nolan had inherited a player who wasnt given an opportunity in a 10 match losing run. Stanley had already given up hope and wanted away...but do take your point, Nolan showed good man management in removing him as soon as practical. 

[samwatto2008]

9 hours ago, Piethagoram said:

 

Fitzsimons 5/10 -  Goals were not his fault but could do more I think to command the defence and use his vision of the whole pitch to let other players know what the dangers are.

Hewitt 2/10 - 2 goals were his fault and he seemed hoof ball was the only tactic and I dont actually think he knows how to pass a ball. Nolan's post match comments about not listening was clearly aimed at him.

Duffy 4/10 - Did ok in parts, disappointing performance.

Brisley 3/10 - Not sure what's going on between Duffy and Brisely but they need to sort out their differences and actually start looking like they wanna play together.

Jones 4/10 - Good overall player but poor performance tonight. Good runs, but as always first touch lacks big time.

Husin 6/10 - Composure on the ball, creative but don't expect him to tackle. However he could have cut off more of the channels Yeovil were finding.

Vaughan 4/10 -Tried his best but the first half performance was not great and didn't stay on long enough to make an impact.

Thomas 6/10 - Scored an offside goal, quick feet and pace but must focus on playing to Dennis's and Hemmings strengths and not just lumping any old ball into the box.

Boldewijn 7/10 - Looks capable and fast but I think could have done more against a left back we released for not being good enough.

Dennis 5/10 - Effort was there but no service was given this was down to Husin and Vaughan. Needs ball to feet passing.

Hemmings 6/10 - Again needs service at his feet. Lacking confidence it seems but as soon as he grabs one or two I think he'll be off and running.

 

[Elite_pie]

Fitzsimons 3.5 -  Just doesn't inspire confidence, looked hesitant throughout.

Hewitt 3 - Awful game.  Hewitt can't play right back, get him in midfield where he can be effective.

Duffy 3.5 - Never attacked their crosses when they came in, just allowed their forwards to get there first.

Brisley 3 - See comments for Duffy, only slightly worse.

Jones 3 - Positional play again hopeless, always gives his winger far too much space.

Husin 4 -  The odd good touch, but interesting to see my mate Aborah mentioned earlier.  Like him, Husin has a few tricks, but has no impact on the game.

Vaughan 4.5 - Can have some influence, but needs a bit of muscle alongside him.

Thomas 4 - Saw a fair bit of the ball first half but didn't do much with it.

Boldewijn 5.5* -  The odd poor touch but provided our only attacking threat, put in some useful crosses

Dennis 4 - Failed to get on the end of some decent crosses from Enzio.

Hemmings 4 - Again disappointing, including the missed penalty.

[frank lepie]

Agree with most of these ratings.

However, it was quite clear to some of us at least before kick off that the eleven selected was inadequate from a defensive perspective. A central midfield of Vaughan and Husin although creative, is simply not physical enough in League 2 and they should not play as a pair again. It should be one or the other. O'Connor has not been adequately replaced, indeed our recruiting generally is looking unbalanced. 

I like Kevin Nolan who over his time with us has demonstrated he is a strong motivator. Last season we had a basic approach centred around playing up to Stead/Ameobi and feeding off them so our manager stuck with a formula that was relatively successful. Once established it didn't require a great deal of tactical nous to manage games. We now have a comparative excess of attacking options but limited defensive ones and yesterday Kevin Nolan had no answer to the Yeovil attacks other than replace like for like from the subs bench and that clearly failed. He is going to have to show a great deal more tactical acumen and imagination going forward if he wants to avoid serious criticism of both his recruiting over the summer and in play tactics. I hope he has the skills to do this.

[Truefootballfan]

It would be interesting to get marks out of 10 for the first 20 minutes or so ! And then for the rest of the game. My guess is that all of the forward movement was fantastic and the midfield and attack would all have been 9 or 10. We didn’t fall apart until the defence (4th best in the league last season) got tested.

yes in general it was the final ratings may be somewhere near accurate, but I for one will stay positive and look forward to the day when the final 70 minutes match up to the first 20.

[Chris]

Dennis and Hemmings played very well until it became hoof central.

They battled for the ball and TRIED regardless of the lack of quality behind them. The issue is the midfield doesn't move the ball clever or fast enough, it's all skill and step-overs. This then leads to rushed passes, I thought Notts did very well if you focused on the attacking play a lone.

Hewitt and Jones need to step up, they leave the centre backs wide open and they're more to blame than Duffy or Brisley (who was shocking).

For me, Duffy was worse because he couldn't clear the ball. Brisley tried but people don't seem to give credit and yes Fitzsimons does have fault on his hands and shoulders. He played awful, I do feel sorry for him but he's got his own fan club which I am starting to see more. Collin wouldn't have been so lucky, people need to accept Fitzsimons doesn't communicate, he doesn't organise and his hands have gone possible due to confidence.

[Lozzle1]

It would be interesting to get marks out of 10 for the first 20 minutes or so ! 

 

BRILLIANT comment! 

In those first 20 minutes, I didn't recognise A-N-Y-O-N-E as a Notts player and with the full-on Kop support, I thought KN had (finally) got the TEAM to come together as one!

THIS is what we want!

THIS looked like a 'promotion-winning' side!

THIS was don't-stop, up-and-at-em football, at it's best!

HOWEVER, we had four or five chances to score in that time and just...couldn't finish the job off!

What followed was un disastra!

Idk if...

a)   there are too many 'individual styles' to make a team?

b)   there are problems in the dressing room?

c)   we've over-bought players (from the play-off side)?

d)   KN's too rigid a Gaffer to change thoughts/style/choices?

e)   He said afterwards, "they're not listening!". What made them 'listen' last Season, and not this?

f)    Duffy's no different now, than last Season (imho). Barks orders to others, for moves he's incapable of making himself; and falls like a snowflake at every opportunity! Am I the only who's watched that, continually?

f)   Oooooooooooo, too many questions today and not coming-up with answers that'll change last night's shambolic result, I'm afraid!

From heroes to zero's in the space of ninety-odd minutes!

COYP!

 

[Magic magpie]

Based on the first 20 Minutes of the game I would say hi scores all round but after the last 70 minutes I would say the scoresnare more than fair with a good analogy of the players and there play. 

[Fan of Big Tone]

@Remmy Skye you make some interesting points about the big influx of new players during the close season and I can understand how this may disrupt the bonding/comradeship/team spirit in the dressing room, if that has happened it would be a shame, however, our near neighbours Mansfield have had a similar overhaul of playing staff and they have got off to a flying start, I write this before today’s results they may have lost by the time you read this, maybe Mansfield have recruited better characters that fit in the dressing room better.

It’s early days folks, let’s not give up on the season yet. COYP!

[liampie]

why did duffy always head the ball like he was pretending to be a fountain and the ball was the water?

he really became useless in the second half, him and brisley had no defensive composure at all. they just switched off but i would struggle to give any player below the midfield more than a two. hemmings and dennis worked hard, they deserve more credit.

[TheSkipper]

Good to see the ratings by you both @Elite_pie and @Piethagoram.

[Elite_pie]

On 18/08/2018 at 12:31, frank lepie said:

Agree with most of these ratings.

However, it was quite clear to some of us at least before kick off that the eleven selected was inadequate from a defensive perspective. A central midfield of Vaughan and Husin although creative, is simply not physical enough in League 2 and they should not play as a pair again. It should be one or the other. O'Connor has not been adequately replaced, indeed our recruiting generally is looking unbalanced. 

I like Kevin Nolan who over his time with us has demonstrated he is a strong motivator. Last season we had a basic approach centred around playing up to Stead/Ameobi and feeding off them so our manager stuck with a formula that was relatively successful. Once established it didn't require a great deal of tactical nous to manage games. We now have a comparative excess of attacking options but limited defensive ones and yesterday Kevin Nolan had no answer to the Yeovil attacks other than replace like for like from the subs bench and that clearly failed. He is going to have to show a great deal more tactical acumen and imagination going forward if he wants to avoid serious criticism of both his recruiting over the summer and in play tactics. I hope he has the skills to do this.

Brilliant post Frank, you say exactly what I think but word it much better than I could!  

[Elite_pie]

On 18/08/2018 at 13:05, Truefootballfan said:

It would be interesting to get marks out of 10 for the first 20 minutes or so ! And then for the rest of the game.

The first 20 minutes were great to watch in an attacking sense, but if you watch it again the warning signs were definitely there.  I  thought we played some good stuff early on but you can't avoid the fact that Yeovil created and missed three pretty good chances despite seeing less of the ball, fully exposing our weakness in defence.  The most disappointing thing was the way heads dropped once they scored.  After that we looked like boys against men.

[CliftonMagpie]

1 hour ago, Elite_pie said:

The first 20 minutes were great to watch in an attacking sense, but if you watch it again the warning signs were definitely there.

These are things Kevin Nolan should be instructing the players about, even Richard Duffy should have a better sense for the games progress.

[BromPie]

On 18/08/2018 at 11:42, Elite_pie said:

Fitzsimons 3.5 -  Just doesn't inspire confidence, looked hesitant throughout.

Hewitt 3 - Awful game.  Hewitt can't play right back, get him in midfield where he can be effective.

Duffy 3.5 - Never attacked their crosses when they came in, just allowed their forwards to get there first.

Brisley 3 - See comments for Duffy, only slightly worse.

Jones 3 - Positional play again hopeless, always gives his winger far too much space.

Husin 4 -  The odd good touch, but interesting to see my mate Aborah mentioned earlier.  Like him, Husin has a few tricks, but has no impact on the game.

Vaughan 4.5 - Can have some influence, but needs a bit of muscle alongside him.

Thomas 4 - Saw a fair bit of the ball first half but didn't do much with it.

Boldewijn 5.5* -  The odd poor touch but provided our only attacking threat, put in some useful crosses

Dennis 4 - Failed to get on the end of some decent crosses from Enzio.

Hemmings 4 - Again disappointing, including the missed penalty.

I agree with this bar the striker ratings, Yeovil thrived on seeing Notts struggle and despite this both Hemmings and Dennis worked hard.

They deserve at least a 5.

[AmericanPie]

14 hours ago, TheSkipper said:

Good to see the ratings by you both @Elite_pie and @Piethagoram.

I agree Liam, thanks for sharing them @Piethagoram and @Elite_pie, I will compare with the other ratings now.

[ivansneck]

based on mean on 5

Fitzsimons 3 Inspires panic in the defence

Hewitt 3 Midfielder, not a full back

Duffy 4 poor

Brisley 1 His worst performance in a Notts shirt

Jones 3 Exposed positionally all the time

Husin 5 OK - just

Vaughan 3 Too slow

Thomas 5 OK going forward - doesn't defend.

Boldewijn 6 Best chance of a goal, but faded a bit

Dennis 2 goal poacher apparently. watched too many crosses instead of gambling

Hemmings 4 OK

[Magic magpie]

I can only imagine the Newport scores 

[Remmy Skye]

@Fan of Big Tone I wanted to thank you kindly for your reply though I know it is long overdue. I apologize for the tardiness as there have been familial illness but I never stopped following all the news and matches not for anything. Today was the woeful defeat to Lincoln City. But I must say the Boro battle though heart breaking really gave me a spark of hope. Then the injury time loss to Newport was like a kick while being downed. So soon after the equalizer. It did my heart good to hear Nolan talk about missing Shola but then there was a deal of talk about something Shola may have said to sky? Would someone fill me in? And what about Smudge. Kevin mentioned him as another missed presence. I'm a fan of Smudge. Every year I buy at least one new kit. At least one. Last year I bought Smudges with Paul Maces Mace Sport logo because I am also a fan of Paul's. This year I bought Kevin's #44. I really don't think he should get the sack and I really think he's a top manager. Honestly I know how horribly things have gone but it's sad to hear fans wanting him to get the sack. But I understand. I appreciate what you said about Mansfield. I guess it can go either way. The comments I read the most complain about a lack of defence. Its hard to argue with that. Nolan gave Fitzsimons the business about today's defeat though. I hope the boys can set things to right with Forest Green. Fingers crossed. Thanks to the gentleman who sent me a message welcoming me to the board I do appreciate that. Cheers