Fozzy

Well, he was rested for most of the game and I actually think that Jim did a half decent job and was one of our better performers. It certainly showed after he went off as there was nobody trying to organise or encourage.

It is embarrassing, no other word for it, Sutton have scored 40 goals all season, but 9 of them have been against us, and I hate to keep banging on about it but we had warnings in pre season that the defence wouldn’t be good enough. Then August came and it showed from the off that they weren’t good enough, what does the club do? It signs a couple of kids to bolster it. January comes and it is now evident and has an imperative need for upgrade, what does the club do? Signs another kid! This falls on Montague and his team, they have let the club and supporters down appallingly since the start of the season, only signing Macari and Robertson that look anything like half decent is shocking (juries out on Colkett and Jatta as not seen enough). You can’t keep signing kids and injury prone players as you are hoping rather than anticipating that they will make a difference, you have to sign solid, experienced pros as well. Maynard is fighting a losing battle here as the players just won’t perform for him, but chopping and changing formations mid game is just asking for trouble. You can’t experiment during a game just find a system and stick to it, it’s not as if we’ve got a barn door striker on the bench that we can chuck on to cause havoc for the final 15 if chasing a game. A lot of players need to leave in the summer, but the ones more likely to go are the ones who are actually still trying to perform.

I don’t think he has been the same since he got injured against Mansfield to be honest, he has really been struggling recently and seems a bit lost without Matty. I would rest him tomorrow and play Jim in his place instead as it could be a battle. We might get 60 minutes out of Jim and then Colkett can take over.

We could only go direct down the channels though as we are too small through the middle, we would need a proper target man for that and we just don’t have one. You’re absolutely right @Robbie, we have never been able to deal with the high press, even when Birchnall was in charge. Today, Crewe nailed us with it and doubled up on both our wingers as soon as they got the ball. Contrast that to Crewe’s first goal, two Crewe players over for a short corner and Notts only send one player over to stop it. They had all the time in the world to get that ball into the box and just cannot defend crosses. I don’t blame Maynard, he’s trying to find solutions to problems that have been here for a long time. Richard Montegue’s team are the real culprits, for their failure to find defenders good enough for league two. He’s been more obsessed by their passing stats rather than their defensive ones.

Issue is, this Notts side cannot play ugly, it is too lightweight to try and play physical. I watched Jatta and my in depth analysis after 45 minutes would be that he looks quite quick and ran around a bit! He didn’t really do anything else. Looked a bit weak against their centre halves, and not that great in the air. He needs the ball over the top to run onto, but if the defence sits deep he won’t have that option. The main trouble now is that we had a really small squad at the start of the season and lost three of those players to long term injuries by October. That has meant that the rest of the 1st XI are burnt out and can’t give any more. The urgency has gone, and there just isn’t the same effort being put into closing down the opposition. Today was pretty awful, we didn’t even start to play until around the 35 minute mark and by then the game was gone. At one stage in the second half you could even see the frustration on Balwin’s face when he had to play the ball back to the keeper as he had no other options available. Subbing off Robertson was an error and Crowley was playing way too deep and was completely ineffective for most of the game. I will add though that the Crewe players were embarrassing with their feigning injuries, but luckily the ref wasn’t having any of it. 3 more points needed to stay up and that’s all we can expect to do this season now. Big summer rebuild required, but unfortunately we have gifted too many 2 year contracts to players proving that that they can’t step up to the levels required, and that could be a massive sticking point.

How about the EFL doing something even more radical by employing competent officials? Refereeing standards are appalling but by not owning up to it and burying their heads in the sand, the EFL are making matters worse. That being said, I once remember a game at Notts against Macclesfield in the late 90s/ early 2000s where Macclesfield scored a clear goal, but the ball rebounded out off the Stantion at the back of the goal and neither the linesman or referee gave it! We couldn’t believe our luck!

Just think of a pancake as a fried Yorkshire pudding as they are practically the same. As a desert, try Yorkshire pudding with either syrup or jam, bloomin’ delicious!!

The issue I have with “Breathless” is that Dr Rachel Clarke is politically motivated and so it won’t be a totally true account of what actually happened. I saw an interview with her and the main actress the other day and she still stated that over 200K of people died ‘of’ COVID in the country, and not ‘with’ COVID. Unfortunately we will never probably know the true number that actually died because of COVID because of the willingness at the time to write all deaths off as COVID on death certificates just because they tested positive.

Would say that from reading the above he is spot on. I won’t listen to his interview though as I think he is the most disingenuous manager I have ever come across, the blokes a low life and not worth the air time. He never gives the opposition any credit when they beat him and is even worse when his side wins.

Yes, maybe @CliftonMagpiecan name him ???? Clue is that he ran around a bit but that’s about it. I don’t remember him actually scoring for us to be honest. Struggling a bit with this, but remember Manny Smith went to Wrexham from us and also Gary Mills managed both clubs (loosely termed in our case).

Daffs are starting to hit the shops, always a sign that spring is round the corner. My Snowdrops are just starting to die off, that along with longer days are always the tell tale sign for me. Fields are still sodden though, with a lot that still need to be re ploughed and seeded, going to be a bad crop year methinks.

Good spot @menzinho, let’s hope he is fit and can play an active role soon. The last thing we need is for another Randall, who seems to be more interested in posting images of him and his Mrs shopping trips on their instagram account rather than actually making a positive contribution to the team.

I would say the aftermath of too much sugar @KB1862 not the actual pancakes! I bet it was like a scene from the Muppets in your house, exactly how long was it before you got them to sit still! ????

Totally unexpected result but I felt more confident when I saw the team sheet. Playing 4 centre halves (trying to think if Macari was a RB at Stoke) across the back just gives that extra cover and still leaves us with 4 quality attackers in the side, along with Robertson who is getting better and better the more he plays. Fully deserved win, we looked fairly solid and hopefully the more we play this system the more we will get used to it. Credit to Maynard for playing it, as it is something Luke refused to do because he didn’t want to lose an attacker.

Just to say that only 3 sides were Semi-Professional in the National league last season.

Not in the squad tonight, maybe because he’s not match fit yet, but you would think with seven subs we would be able to find a space for him. If he isn’t fit, it would prove to be a shambolic signing.

Love a pancake, but I prefer mine in one of three ways. Mainly with a freshly squeezed orange over the top (and a sprinkle of sugar), but sometimes with Lions golden syrup (if I want a pure sweet sugar treat), or thirdly, with pitted cherries and vanilla ice cream. On my own with the dogs this year for it as my wife and Dec are in Turkey so got some from M&S, but I normally make hem myself.

He can’t play centre half as he’s earmarked to play in goal!

Exactly @Piethagoram, our defence has no awareness of threat, are physically bullied and have no urgency to close down and get tight to attackers. The least said about our keeper the better, but he has leaden feet, and refuses to get physical and leave his line for corners. He reminds of the goalkeepers on the old ‘Super Striker’ table top football game, as they never left their line and by the time you got them to dive the ball is nestling in the back of the net.

Yet another young, inexperienced defender. Will be a good player in a couple of years but at the moment he is making the mistakes you would expect a young player to make. Would be good alongside an experienced, vocal partner, oh wait, we don’t have one of those. Again, the recruitment team have ignored our defensive needs in the window.

Well, that was a tough watch. Never created one clear opening in the first half as Crowley’s goal was all his own work, Gillingham just did the basics well at the back, which is something that we are incapable of doing and we couldn’t break them down. Stone is without a doubt, the worst keeper I remember in a Notts shirt for many a year. Immobile, flat footed, and glued to his line for crosses. That third goal was totally shambolic, we’ve just got to find a way to ship him out in the summer. I’m pretty sure the season is done for us now, without Matty we just have no idea what to do and we can’t move the ball quick enough without him. We’re physically too small and get so easily bullied by bigger sides and our players just can’t cope with it, only Robertson was willing to get stuck in and try to win the ball, the rest of the side appear to be scared of getting hurt! Going to take us at least two seasons to be in a position to challenge for promotion, we need a lot of personnel change.

Keep Scott & Baldwin on 2 year deals. Bostock probably a year, would be two but he has struggled without Matty. Give a short term deal with an option clause to Baj with the hope he will prove his fitness and value Offer Jim a player/coach role. Release Tobi, Brindley and Luther unfortunately, we need better.

Can’t argue with the fact that our season has fallen apart since Matty got injured. I’m trying to think of the sides in the past that have been so dependent on one key player and seen results seriously drop off without them, Bryan Robson at Utd and Stevie G at Liverpool are the ones that spring to mind but there are bound to be others. You can’t replace the irreplaceable, you have to adapt your side and style. We have failed to do that.

Love JJ, I think he is easily our best player so far this season. He is just brilliant at crossing the ball between keeper and the last line of defence, it’s a nightmare to defend against and a godsend for strikers. As to whether he could play in the championship, I’m not so sure as the injuries he suffered have robbed him of his pace, he would have to play a different role but that would make him less effective. League 1 quality player for definite.

Gazza, Ally McCoist & Ray Parlour. I don’t think my liver would survive the weekend!