YoopEyes

Agreed. I thought Tsaroulla was excellent, Iorpenda was busy and caused them some problems. Norburn, Robbo & Macari all in with a shout to. Platt was superb at the back, almost faultless - so I go for him too tbh.

Jarvis is no loss, talented lad but application and consistency were sadly lacking. He’ll be better off back where he’s had most success. If Jones can maintain a decent fitness level we have more than enough capable wide players, particularly with the arrival of Enoru. Never understood all the fuss about Jarvis tbh, one mazy run and a spectacular goal - that was it, full stop. Thus, sensible decision to let him go, he was never going to displace Tsaroulla, Jones, Bennetts, Enoru or the likes of Grant or Iorpenda.

Agreed. I’d say you’ve picked up the 2 most significant areas tbh. We need to be more clinical in front of goal - we seemed to take more shots in the last 2 home games but we’ve spurned good chances. That is certainly an area where we could improve. The concept of playing/competing for 90 minutes - we could be more effective in that respect. Even though this is L2 and we are not Arsenal or Man City, we can try to control games for longer periods, particularly in the final 20 mins or so. It all amounts to putting the game to bed, as it were. We are winning, which is fine, but we could be winning more convincingly. Not a bad problem to have and given the traumas of previous seasons, it is a massive improvement for my money.

Another game that might have got away from us in the past - but we battled it out and kept a clean sheet, aided by some heroics from Belshaw. They were big and lovely but the energy from Iorpenda, Kouhyar and Hall was more than a batch from them. Robertson was non stop, showing skill, awareness and determination and together with Norburn secured central midfield for the most part. Another win, solid and resolute all round performance. Onwards and upwards. Footnote: The squad looks strong, we bring on players who can make a difference now. Pity the 2 new lads didn’t get in, both were ready when we, clearly, changed approach and sent on Bennetts instead.

Although it doesn’t seem to have formally confirmed on the Club website, it seems that Gerry Carver sadly passed away some time over the past 2 days. Whilst only a few of us will remember him playing, he was a great figure in the 59’s and early 60’s. I saw him in the Centenary game, that’s my first recollection of him. An iconic figure to many and a keen member of the Former Players Association. Very sorry to hear this news, I think he’d just turned 90 as well. RIP Gerry, you will always be a Pie.

Based only on radio commentary and a couple of texts from the game - Grant for me.

Very impressive win. Sounded like a real battle but we have the squad and the attitude to win these games now. Pleased to see Grant & Macari get a full shift on too. We always look stronger with those 2 on the pitch. Great stuff Notts.

Yes, I eventually went for Jatta too.

Agreed - some solid performances again. Hall stepped up tonight, Jones was excellent going forward, best game for a long while. We looked balanced, creative and we moved the ball swiftly and accurately for the most part. I said at the match, Macari goes under the radar a lot - he was superb tonight, as were Platt and Bedeau. Drinan never had a sniff. Overall, hard to choose but I’d go for Macari, Platt or Jatta tbh but honourable mentions for Jones, Hall. Bedeau, Norburn and Belshaw for the spectacular save! I’ll opt for 1 of the above in due course.

Another impressive display and an important 3 points. No passengers again tonight, Jones & Hall much better than recent performances and Jatta was excellent again. We deserved that, industry, mobility and some terrific efforts on goal. We have momentum, need to get as many points as possible from the next little 3 game run.

Stern test tonight but hoping we carry on from Sat - but with more goals! Hopefully, we’ll get a look at Ndlovu at some stage and, maybe, Enoru. We could do with all 3 points in order to stay in contention tbh, it would be a big win & send a message to the chasing pack.

Welcome aboard Harald & good luck. Looks and sounds decent enough signing - Norwegian top flight is handy, produces quick, robust and talented players on a regular basis.

Very impressive performance apart from the finishing. Solid all over the pitch, no “passengers” today, at all. There were some stand outs, particularly in the 1st half but only a couple maintained their high standards throughout. Platt was very impressive, Norburn and Palmer competed and distributed well. Grant was excellent, despite the header, and Jatta was busy, looked better on the ball and he scored. However, Iorpenda was head & shoulders above any other candidate. He produced a spectacularly impressive display from start to finish. Some touches of genuine class, a robust and busy performance and he was effective with and without the ball. His running, pressing, tackling and general mobility were outstanding.

Hmmm, interesting one - not the most exciting signing tbh. I can’t see the point of him signing to sit on the bench, so is Jatta on his way? Dennis is a handful and occupies defenders, plus he scores (apart from today!). I don’t really see the benefit of this bloke tbh, unless we lose Jatta, but I may be wrong.

I’d agree with this list. McDonald is a very close 6th tbh.

Norburn has guile, nous and fair amount of experience, they are useful qualities. I’d say he must be a strong candidate. It sounded a bit turgid for the most part but we conjured up a goal, managed the game and then got another. As usual for Notts, we then made it an exciting finish! Hard to pick a MOTM in a gritty and determined team performance. Other than Norburn, you have to consider Jatta, who has been dire for weeks but did his stuff, and Belshaw, who proved that goalkeepers are allowed to catch the ball and command their box. For that, I’d go Belshaw tbh.

We needed that, Jones needed it too. COYP.

It looks a balanced line up, delighted to see Grant & Palmer back in the starting line up. Astonished that Jones is in tbh - but I guess it goes back to “balance” and not risking the new man from the start, nurse him in gradually. Dennis should not be on the bench in my view, that is just strange. We need the win, COYP.

Sadly, Kell never really nailed down a place in the team - he seemed a “nearly” player to me. I expected pace, dynamism & sharpness - which he provided but only in short bursts. His crosses were inconsistent too. I think overall, he was a slight disappointment tbh but I wish him well. Always tried and came across as a good bloke in interviews etc.

Delighted with this - more than useful keeper, surprised at some of the negativity surrounding his signing tbh.

This is one I’d be happy with tbh. We developed him as a youngster, it would be interesting to see him return. Over the years he’s always looked steady rather than spectacular but he’s an established, experienced keeper at lower league level. He could be a replacement, or at worst, very good cover, for Roos. Either way, I’d welcome his arrival with a degree of optimism.

Interesting signing, hope it works out. I’d suspect that it might take a bit of time to adjust to the full time, L2 environment tbh. At 23 and with limited expedience, he is a raw talent. I’m not expecting too much too soon. Time will tell with this one.

The worry is that we have a “net loss” during January. If we replace outgoing players with improvements or simply add some additional quality to the squad, fine. My fear is there will be a couple of out/goings who will be replaced by less favourable signings. We’ll either sign untried youngsters or “experienced” (injured has beens?) journeymen. I sincerely hope that my fears will be misplaced.

Game off - postponed due to frozen pitch. So much for the covers, cannabis lamps etc. We have the facility for under soil heating but it isn’t connected/operational!

My only concern with Dennis was that he didn’t score - and he has a couple of good opportunities to be fair. He is far more dangerous throughout the game than Jatta tho’. Dennis has better close control, more ball skill and threatens the keeper/goal more often too.