YoopEyes

I’m unable to attend - due to holiday - but should be a very positive vibe, I’d think. I Good PR, maybe, but I’m never convinced of the real value, above “cosmetic good will” tbh. Fans tend to learn very little that isn’t already in the public domain and details, in depth insights and exclusives are very rare in my experience. It’s ok to hear from the hierarchy but they are never going to reveal the stuff that many fans want to hear. Thus, not sure I’d have attended even if I was here.

Very optimistic re: Kanu. He is agile, energetic and scores goals…… Good luck to him, welcome aboard. Finneran’s debut was spectacular. For a young, inexperienced and extremely “new boy” he showed skill, vision, composure & strength on the ball beyond his years. If he can maintain that standard he’s an absolute gem.

Finneran - accomplished, composed and robust debut that belied his age & inexperience. Never got out muscled, terrific, driving performance littered with classy touches. The subs made a difference, said before Grant would start every game for me. Smyth made a huge difference and enabled Mustapha to have more room & time, which he exploited superbly. No passengers again - terrific effort and very gritty display.

Injuries in training are baffling. Yes, they can happen occasionally - but not on the scale & severity that we seem to accomplish. That, as mentioned, is a half decent starting team with a keeper added. Fortunately, we have, just about, enough depth to cover the gaps at the moment. I’d like to see Sanders, Campbell, Acquah back asap, closely followed by McDonald. Genuinely don’t believe we are missing any of the others at the moment tbh. Baker not making the starting XI & having, particularly, Mustapha, Grant & Samuels-Smith on the bench suggests that we are ok defensively & in midfield. We are desperate for a striker, first choice or cover, that is for absolute certain.

Gone for Bedeau, he was immense in 1st half and never stops battling. Thought Cooper was quality on & off the ball again. Roberts showed he is acclimatising to this league and he can score from almost anywhere. Overall, another gritty display with some spells of really good possession & movement. Grant should start in my view - genuine class on the ball & his vision and awareness stand out at this level. We just lack the ability to hold the ball up & retain possession in the final 3rd but Tsaroulla & Cooper showed what we are capable of, if & when we do!

You have to pass medicals before Clubs sign you…… just saying…

Plenty of candidates - the combined midfield were extremely impressive. Combative, dynamic, creative and progressive. Gibbons was outstanding, Ness, misplaced shot apart, was superb. Overall, no passengers and terrific team display with individual contributions that made an impact - Grant, Belshaw, Aquaman & Mustapha for example. I’ve gone for Tsaroulla because he was at it from start to finish in all thirds of the pitch. He looked sharper and more mobile than last season tbh. Always liked him & I thought he was outstanding in & out of possession. No complaints if any of another 5 or 6 got the MOTM award tbh. Cooper, Evans, Ness & Gibbons were pretty close seconds for me.

Grant is a class act, always has been. Some of our fans fail to grasp the touch, vision, awareness, close control and subtlety that he brings. First saw him at MKD then on loan for Barnsley. He was cultured and creative - as he has been for us. Because he doesn’t dump opponents on the ground or smash goals in for fun he gets a bad press in some quarters. I’ve also observed him in training sessions, he does possess a fierce and accurate shot, but he’s maybe not taken the opportunities to demonstrate that facet of his armoury. His style and quality should suit this league and he added something to our performance when he came on, culminating in the equaliser. I’m confident that he will be a significant asset - he’s a significant member of this squad in my opinion.

Impressive display - we improved in areas where deal last season. Out of possession we were dynamic and resolute. We’d have conceded 2 or 3 last season because the midfield players were not as quick or tenacious. Evans is a terrier, he’ll start as many games as possible! Cooper & Gibbons are very high quality for this league, make no mistake about that. I doubt we’ll see much, if anything, of Palmer & Jones. Neither are good enough to cope with the pace of today’s game. Ndluurv is another, based on today’s showing there are 3 miles ahead of him. Anyone who doubted that Grant had class last season might start changing their mind. He’s made for this division, absolutely delightful footballer. His skill, vision, touch and awareness will be hugely important this season. Ness was immense today btw. Great start, time to be optimistic for my money. We’ll do ok.

Very impressive display. Last season we looked suspect and frail, at times, out of possession. This team is full of dynamic, energetic grafters. We won the ball back and covered brilliantly - best example was Gibbons challenge on their breakaway which led to Tsaroulla clearing from 2 yards out. That would have been a goal last season, no danger. Cooper is a class above but Campbell & Evans were superb today. Always rated Tsaroulla higher than a lot of fans, he looked more agile & sharper today too. I’d just picked him as my MOTM when he was announced as the sponsor’s choice. Absolutely no passengers today, anyone moaning about Smyth must have a serious eyesight deficiency tbh! Mobile, grafted, got stuck in - needs time to bed in and settle with Roberts but he’s an asset. Aquaman & Mustapha both look a handful too.

Roberts is quality - have no fears about him at this level. He’ll deliver.

Me too! I have genuine concerns that he won’t cut it in L1 anyway. He isn’t robust enough, will be a target and he’s lost a yard of pace…… I’d hope Roberts has the agility and direct, attacking instincts to do well for us tbh. He is a highly talented footballer and he’ll grow into L1. I’d probably back him over Jones for the next couple of years tbh.

Sorry to see him go and I wish him well for the future. Norburn was an integral part of our promotion campaign, he provided the necessary grit, subtlety and composure - with the odd exception, of course. I liked him and Robbo together but look forward to Sanders replacing Ollie tbh.

StarkM - interesting pic of Sid Owen. We’ve signed Rickaaaaay Butcher!

Sanders looked impressive for Crewe when we played them - but they looked pretty shambolic generally to be fair. His pedigree is decent, solid, battling midfielder who moves the ball sharply. Similar, not identical, to Norburn. Would expect him to start ahead of Palmer tbh.