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Simon Clark

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Posts posted by Simon Clark

  1. Absolutely right, Robbie. We can't defend or hold onto what we've got so let's go out there and make them worry about us.

    For all the recent wobbles, a defender won't look forward to playing against Jones, Macca and Didzy. Crowley and Nemane pose their own threats and can't be ignored. If we have to, let's play like basketball and just hit back at them once they've attacked. And that will help to keep some pressure off our back line as well.

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  2. @ARLukomski You know my thoughts very well - I wouldn't have given any of the defenders a new contract. They were weak in NL - bear in mind how much we dominated last season, they hardly had to defend and yet we still gave away 35 goals, was it? Mainly from individual errors. It was obvious those errors would be punished more in L2. Somehow we need to find a way to get rid of the ones under contract to free up space.

    I was Ok with Slocombe as a back up keeper. A solid, reliable professional who would be wanting a start but accepting a place on the bench and never giving less than 100% in training to help the senior keeper. The problem was the guy we signed isn't good enough. And neither is the loan replacement. 

    I get the point with gambling on Gosling, we needed bodies and you'd hope his experience would have shown more than it did. A gamble that failed. 

    Colkett strikes me as a 4 month trial period. Do we sign him in the summer and will he want to come? 

    I'd actually like to see one or two young lads get a run out as the season comes to a close but we probably need a win or two to give Maynard the freedom to do that. Sanderson and Cisse both looked exciting players. I fear Munakandafa has missed the boat as he's done himself no favours when he has played and Williams was pretty critical of his attitude in an interview earlier this season, although he could easily have out that right, of course.

    I wonder if the owners / recruitment team had seriously underestimated the level of L2. Let's hope they learn quickly.

    I will take you to task when you say they did nothing for 5 weeks just because there were no new faces. That could have been for any number of reasons. A lot of players would be holding out for better offers and a lot of clubs would be unwilling to let someone go until they had a replacement in, so discussions could have been going on left, right and centre. 

     

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  3. I have a friend who is a season ticket holder there. He's obviously unhappy with what's going on but doesn't seem concerned about the club folding, just about relegation and a lack of funds going forward. Shocking what's been going on there and I did see fundraising has reached around £20k. No doubt because their facilities are better than most of the league, they only have 3 home games left so that will hit their cashflow, I'm sure.

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  4. I think we're safe without another point. Sutton need to win 7 of their last 8 to catch up and Forest Green need 5 wins from 9 to catch us but still have to play all of the current top 5, 3 of them away. Although I hope it isn;t a winner takes all final day!!

    Play offs have gone which may take some pressure off Maynard and he can work with the recruitment team in assessing which players are good enough to stay next season and where do we need new faces.

    We were pretty carefree in issuing contracts last summer so we may need to negotiate to get some players out.

    My one concern is that Maynard is just the unluckiest manager. Disallowed 'goals' at Mansfield and Wrexham, Macca missing chances he'd normally convert, etc.

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  5. Looking at the last pre match press conference, I thought he looked pretty comfortable in his role. Anyone who has had any level of success will put themselves under more pressure than others generally would, but I felt he seemed confident. Especially when he came out and said what we all know - the system isn't the reason we're letting goals in, basic individual errors are the reasons. Then after Saturday's game, he said this team isn't equipped to deal with balls into our box. 

    Effectively, a new manager has come in and said "our defenders within the whole club aren't good enough."

    I  may be reading too much into this, but that suggests to me that the owners / recruitment team have admitted to him that he's been stitched up and we'll sort out the defence in the summer.

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  6. A lot of the problems began when Matt Palmer was injured. We all knew he's a great player and capable of better the L2, but I'm not sure many of us realised just how vital he was. Robertson looks to be growing into the role and it should be great having both of them next season, but our defence seems to be going from bad to worse. I'd like us to keep Macari and Brooks from the back, I wouldn't lose sleep of any of the rest going. And for all the criticism aimed at Maynard on the usual channels, no-one seems to mention that Macca missed 2 sitters on Saturday and we should have been 2-0 up before they scored. With Wimbledon's recent away record, they could easily have given up at 2 down, we have a home win, we're 5 points outside the play offs and in with a chance. As it is, I think the play offs will now take a huge run, although we are capable of that. At the other end, we could lose every game and we've already got enough points.

    And I've just checked the article I wrote last summer. Only 2 sides in the last 14 years have finished in the top 10 in L2 after winning the NL play offs with an average final position of 12th.

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  7. 13 hours ago, AmericanPie said:

    Without player improvements, I have doubts. Stuart Maynard appears to be struggling against a group of players who were in decline long before his arrival. The transition won't happen quickly enough, so let's ease the pressure and start by focusing on improving the form to salvage this season. Attracting players for improvement is crucial. Some fans booing aren't promoting reasons to stay, and it's disappointing. I understand poor form is the main issue. What began as a slight landslide is worsening due to the negative atmosphere. It's tough for a new manager when fans won't give him a chance. Maynard has faced challenges, and Luke Williams left at the right time. Unfairly, the blame is falling on Maynard.

    Unfortunately, I agree. I'd love SM to turn this around and for the players to start showing as much fight against the opponents as some of them seemed to show against the fans on Tuesday night but a run of 4 points in 7 games takes some turning round. It was one heck of a tough run and I feel for him walking into such a start, especially when our defensive frailties have been evident for a long time. I'd love Alfred's dad to be right but I can't see how we'll only concede 2 goals in the next 3 games.

    I think our best chance is to go full on Keegan - we'll score more than you! A main factor in our goals against record last season was that teams were terrified to attack us, because we'd destroy them if they gave us space. With players like Macca, Didzy and Jones we can get those goals flowing again.

     

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  8. This could be a game for some players to show the new coaching team what they're made of - or not. 

    Despite our recent results, we could well be close to an 11,000 crowd again and, although Crewe are in excellent form, they don't seem to have the X factor of a Stockport or Wrexham, more of an effective unhit all doing their jobs well.

    Maynard needs a win for his own comfort. I'm certain no-one within the club will be putting pressure on him, but successful people put pressure on themselves and no amount of support in the boardroom will replace the feeling of getting a win.

    I've seen comments elsewhere that the next 2 are must win. I disagree, especially with tomorrow, but I'd love at least 4 points in the next 2 games.

    Tomorrow? Take a point, hope for 3.

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  9. 13 hours ago, Wheelbarrow repair man said:

    Do you remember that joker Oliver King he used to write about Notts on Nottingham Live ? He once wrote Notts were owned by Derek Parvis, ring any bells ? Anyway he writes for Football League World now. He seems to think if Notts  don't get promoted or make the playoffs it's a disaster . Why ? I've said it before and I'll say it again Notts aren't ready for League 1. It may happen 2024/2025 it all depends on recruitment this Summer. I still think Notts are a side capable of attracting quality players to the Lane and over the past couple or so season's the Recruitment team have unearthed some Top Talent without breaking the Bank. Lets wait and see.

    That's ridiculous. Why would it be a disaster for us not to make the play offs? The owners have repeated that it's all about progression. We have the 10th biggest budget in the division according to the CEO so play offs would be a stretch based on that. We've demonstrated you can find absolute gems if you're a well run club with good people - Jones, Macca, Ruben, etc, etc, all came to us as a Non League side (I know Jones was only on loan) - so if anyone leaves, I'd think there will be no shortage of players happy to replace them.

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  10. 3 hours ago, Robbie said:

    The Weekend Action begins today starting with the under 18s today and the B Team on Saturday.

    Under 18’s:
    🏆 Youth Alliance
    🆚 Lincoln City (A)
    ⏱️ 12:00
    🗓️ Friday 23rd Feb
    🏟️ The Barrett Steel Stadium, DN17 2TQ.

    B Team:
    🏆 Friendly
    🆚 Brentford FC (A)
    ⏱️ 12:00
    🗓️ Saturday 24th Feb
    🏟️ Wheatsheaf Park, TW18 2PD

    Thanks Robbie, this is great info. I agree that it's a pity the main club info doesn't highlight these, it would surely get a few more people there watching. I'll keep an eye on the academy info and hopefully get to a few games before the end of the season.

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  11. Quite right, his work rate is exceptional and he seems to have an incredible temperament. 

    I think £4m+ is unrealistic for a L2 player aged 26 (or any age, really) but a £2m fee plus a decent sell on clause could be lucrative. According to a google search, the L2 transfer record is Ollie Watkins from Exeter to Brentford at around £6.5m and I'd guess most of that is a sell on when he moved to Villa. For us, £2m in the summer and then £5m in 18 months would be wonderful!

    Apart from that, no-one has gone for more than £2.75m.

     

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  12. Seems like a 'try before you buy' to me. We pay his wages for 3 months so it's low risk. If we like what we see - and he likes what he sees - we can bring him in during the summer. An extra pair of midfield legs is helpful so we can rotate a little, some players have had more minutes than I think we'd have planned, given that we expected Matt Palmer to play all of every game.

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  13. Is anyone else frustrated that they don't want to seem spectators? It's really difficult finding out when games are taking place, and almost impossible to do so any earlier than the morning of the game.

    Unless, of course, I'm missing something and one of you kind people can help me...

    It would be great to give them some support from time to time.

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  14. I saw Hibs last August - weakened side in the League Cup and just before they sacked the manager, but he looked pretty comfortable. Moving away from home has challenges, but Edinburgh must be one of the easier places to be. When I saw the move, I wondered if we might have missed out but with hindsight, if we have Warner, Macari and Baldwin then there are 3 L2 or better standard players. I'd like another but better players might help cover the weaknesses of others.

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  15. It's great to see so many youngsters coming through at the same time and it's easy to get carried away but so much can happen at that age. Luke Williams said in an interview early this season something to the effect that Munakandafa needed to learn how to refuel and what being a professional footballer means. Maybe he thought the contract meant the work was done? Cisse excites me, he seems to have no fear and puts in a decent ball that Nemane could learn from. There's a lot he needs to do yet - perfect example being how Nemane works so hard to defend - but it was great to hear that intake of breath around the ground when he got the ball as a sub against Newport (I think it was?).

    Giving kids a chance can only be beneficial when looking to persuade others to come to our academy as well.

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  16. The key area - as it has been almost every game this season - it how the defence bounces back. Anyone who has watched us for the last 18 months will know these players simply aren't good enough to play this style week in week out. Yes, we conceded fewest goals last season but we had the most possession by a massive distance, so we conceded those goals based on the opponents having around 25 - 30% possession in each game. This season is a little higher, maybe 35 - 40% possession and our goals against record is close to the worst in the division.

    We've all seen that but it's almost been kept in house. Last week was so appalling - and in the FA Cup - so has been picked up by BBC, swept across social media, etc, so these players need to show character and stand tall. You can bet Walsall players will be in their ears reminding them.

    Our middle and attach - as a whole, not necessarily individuals - are L1 standard in my opinion. Sadly, our defence is little better than a poor NL standard. Not because they are being forced into errors, but because they make them without being under pressure. We concede a huge amount of goals when we should be in control but then a misplaced pass, a loss on concentration, whatever, gifts a goal.

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  17. Absolutely! Crowley is one heck of a buy and looks to be a player who is far better than L2. It's amazing to think no-one is bemoaning Ruben's absence because they were huge boots to fill. While not being exactly the same player, he creates and scores and works for the team. We certainly lack creativity without him and the understanding he and Nemane have established unlocks defences time and time again. It's even more noticeable when Randall plays and still has some way to go to get that same connection.

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  18. I think the last few weeks have shown where we are, really. 

    We're not as good as the best teams, we're better than the worst teams. 

    If Sky is to be believed and we do have the 10th biggest budget in the league, we might just about out perform that.

    With some good January recruitment, we can make a good bid for the play offs. 

    With regards to the game tonight, I feel we are stronger than Crawley and should control the game and convert that control into goals and points. 

    For all the criticism of our defence - and I give plenty - there is a whole lot of poor defending in this Division and our middle and final thirds are too strong for a lot.

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  19. One thing worth remembering is that most contracts end on 30 June. So players taking a pay cut would most likely want to stay where they are until then, and clubs giving a payrise will most likely not want to pay the new player in June when they're on holiday.

    It won't work for everyone, of course, and a player in demand may well need signing sooner to avoid the risk of losing them, but a lack of activity at this stage isn't anything to worry about.

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  20. Don't know if this means anything or not, but the players who haven't yet re-signed can go if they show a lack of commitment as it seems as if they're holding out for offers. Palmer is the best player we have and signed an extension without knowing which division we'd be in. Same with Chicksen. I can live without those on the fence, replaceable with our recruitment expertise. I can't seriously see a team as high as Portsmouth wanting Nemane. We dominated almost every game last season yet his stats show 9 goal involvements all season? I'm not saying I want him to go, but would think Portsmouth would want a better player.

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  21. We are far better than they are according to the league table, surely they can't stop us winning a third time this season? I can see Kelly-Evans picking up a red for a rash and mistimed tackle - let's hope we're ahead at that point so they don't pack the defence and play for penalties.

    They have to be at the top of their game to beat us, and then only if we have players below par.

     

    • Like 10

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