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Wanderers Ways. Neil Thompson 1961-2021

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Showing most liked content on 23/10/24 in all areas

  1. That game has angered me a lot more than I was hoping it would. I was expecting a loss because our record against better sides is truly awful, but the way we went about it was just pure cowardice and defeatist. Evatt set us up more out of hope than anything, as if we were playing Arsenal. His comments again just proves how delusional and deflective he is. Yet again there's just always some excuse. This time he's thrown Mcatee under the bus, as well as Southwood, saying that by missing Baxter, Toal and Thommo that there was no way for us to play energetically. Yes they're key players, but what does that say about Southwood, Williams and Matete? Those players have been brought in and are they responsible for such a poor tactical performance? He just loves bringing in this whole siege mentality around injuries as an excuse for us not performing time and time again. In summary, despite all the analysis that could be made, I'm just simply bored. I'm bored of this formation, this theme of not winning big games and bored of a manager that is delusional and has long past his stay. And I'm reading comments from Birmingham fans saying that smaller L1 clubs like Lincoln and Leyton Orient had more of a go than we did. There's not even 1% of me that thinks promotion with this team at the minute. We're a joke
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  2. We're soft, flat-track bullies.
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  3. It’s hard for me to come on here and admit my faith and hope may have been misplaced. For me there can’t be any slip-ups in these next 4/5 games to convince me Evatt can get us challenging. It’s not impossible, but I’m far from convinced we brush that performance under the table to put in promotion standard performances consistently. I didn’t think last night would be a game that would have me making comments about Evatt tenure, but it’s really hard not to when you see that inept first half, the way we set up and his comments after about his plan B - all crap. I’m finding it hard, like I usually would, to call out some of the negativity on here as a lot of it is justified. Which in itself must tell a story if I’m not calling it out! The fans (cringey Villa and “how shit must you be” chants aside) last night, and all season really, have been brilliant. We are a passionate, hopeful (and to an extent loyal) bunch, we believe and follow in numbers. But that’s not going to stretch for much longer if we don’t show we have what it takes to challenge for promotion. Before yesterday I was seriously considering Stevenage away, but now I’m really wondering whether I can be arsed. And if I’m feeling like that, I just wonder how many tolerant and hopeful fans we’ll have left if we don’t very quickly turn last night’s disappointment around?
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  4. If we mess up against Peterborough or Stevenage, that's it for me with Evatt. If we win those games and play well then I'll reassess I'd then need to be seeing something positive out of Stockport and Blackpool. While wins would be the ultimate currency I'm also throwing in just seeing us play well/consistently/with identity. But I'll be honest, this seems beyond all hope for these next games. I'm thinking more than I ever have about a new regime invigorating us and getting more out of the squad.
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  5. Not going to slate him for last nights performance just like i never praised him for the previous few. Evatt lost me this time last season when both Carlisle and Wigan turned us over and i said he had no plan b......Seems he had a plan b,c and d which made plan a like the 1970 Brazil line-up. We then invested with Collins at January and blew both the automatics and the shambles that was Wembley. Summer recruitment was shocking yet again we brought in crocks and players getting one last pay day. The recruitment of another joint first team coach was another head scratcher as was turning down a million for Vic Morley is turning good performances week in week out for a team currently third in the league as is Sadlier. Evatt wont turn this around now because he puts square pegs in round holes and now these pegs are mounting up in the treatment room. Evatt was great for us 5 years ago but like Sarcevic and Doyle the club outgrew him
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  6. We were weak and light in midfield, even when we planned to only play with two. The fact this wasn't addressed is an absolute shambles. In fact, not only wasn't it addressed, we moved out a midfielder that's currently playing levels above any of ours.
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  7. We played like it was an FA cup tie against a prem side and we’re hoping to get them back to Bolton for a cash spinning replay
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  8. Exactly. Said it a million times, despite our obvious failings, we were inches away from promotion last season. We scored about 3 million goals and barely conceded. Stick to that plan with a higher tempo and early balls and some proper ingame management and we wouldn't be far off. All the fuck ups this season have been self inflicted from trying to reinvent the wheel.
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  9. Utter crap. Scrap the season now. Just award positions on the basis of financial investment. We will qualify for the play-offs no doubt, and may even finish 3rd, which would mean we'd automatically win them too. Or alternatively, look at the smaller teams above us, giving it a go- above their size and investment. We could start showing more of an effort in these big games, and also not piss-arsing around with selections that have players not in their best position and leaving others exposed. Some (most) of our fans are simply frustrated by what appears to be team going backwards, and largely underperforming. Some of our fans want to live in the past. At least FV don't, and have made it clear that they want to be in the championship. They've provided the cash for IE, and he's built a good squad. The minimum we can expect is effort and to see players showing the basics. We were beaten well before kick off last night,and all this starts with the man at the top, together with his staff. It's not only stale, but full of mould.
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  10. Someone mentioned before the game how good we are at pressing teams, tonight we didn't and I have felt for a while how teams press and pressure us much more effectively than we do to them. Tonight Birmingham often had two players closing down our defenders, who panic and kicked it long, but where was our extra man? We can press two of their defenders, with one player and still look a man short when the ball moves forward. It is baffling. We also do suffer a lot of injuries, some of this is down to recruitment and that may be a consequence of where we are financially, however we need to look at our training methods and how we protect players. Dempsey tonight looked really uncomfortable, goes down and is saying he twisted his knee. Was very surprised he came back on, but then replaced at HT as obviously not right. Players will always want to continue but the medical team and manager sometimes need to take that decision away. We will wait and see the extent, but I can see it being another fairly lengthy lay off with something like a meniscus tear, given the way he was gesticulating as he walked to the touchline. Which will be a huge blow, if it turns out that way. The approach and set up tonight was embarrassing against a promotion rival and we looked miles away from competing. No one is getting much credit, but special mention to Sheehan who was fucking awful. If he wasn't giving the ball way he was kicking and pushing them and giving very cheap fouls away. Seriously depressing evening of football, I am just done with it now and as others have said completely lost interest and motivation for the season.
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  11. I just feel completely drained of any enthusiasm for the rest of this season.
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  12. Just got back. In what world is it ever a good idea to have Charles on his own up top? No issue with intending to keep it tight early on etc but once that plan was out of the window in 200 seconds, it wasn’t until 70 minutes later that we showed any sort of attacking intent. When we did, we looked genuinely threatening and showed their defence to be distinctly average. If McAtee scores that chance then we’re looking at an entirely different finish but as it is we got exactly what we deserved and ultimately what we’d set up for to keep the score down. Absolutely dreadful attitude for a League One match from all concerned.
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  13. Its a curse on football. Can't remember anything else like it that's infected a whole generation. There's only one manager who can carry it off. And even he evolves every single season. From grassroots to the top it's a plague.
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  14. Which was discussed at the end of the transfer window. Unbalanced squad with little cover in midfield, which is purely down to one man. If folks on here could see it, why couldn’t he?
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  15. He should have left after Oxford. Not simply the game but when, by his own admission, his head went. He wondered if he should quit. He spent a month in a flummox rather than signing new players. Only then did he leave his cave. If, from then, we'd been solid then fair play ... but we haven't. We've been extremely average since Pompey away mid December last year. 10 months. He's now clueless on how to turn it round. That team last night were sent out to nullify the game ... Plan B maybe. Then we let in a goal inside 3 minutes. His attitude to a Plan B is to passive/aggressively mock people suggesting it. He's not got it in him to turn it round. We've just wasted 2 seasons &, for us, for the level, a lot of money ... but worse, the fans goodwill.
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  16. Can't take us up and even if he did, he has no idea how to play against teams with equal or better players (which would be 23 teams in the Championship). It's been a fun ride... but this is all just wasting everyone's time delaying the inevitable.
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  17. Agree with all the points on here. Whilst Birmingham will beat most teams and, I expect, win League One at the biggest canter ever seen, last night just didn't feel right. Thomason, Toal and Baxter are big losses for any top end team. But I'm not sure the result would have been hugely different with any of them available. We have players who have been recruited for a different system (McAtee and Lolos in particular) and I am not sure how some of them (plus the returning Mendes Gomes) get game time. I think last night was the 4th or 5th variation of a system we've tried this season. If Evatt stays, I imagine we will spend the season bouncing between 4th and 10th, with glimmers of hope dashed by really poor results. One of the current glimmers of hope is that 2nd place may well get promoted with well under 92 points, and there is plenty of time for us to get there. But i do worry about how Saturday turns out now against a side that will come and have a real go. I'm aware that, of the 3 'decision makers' at board level, Evatt now only has one supporter left. Also aware of some recent training ground 'incidents' that are out of the norm and definitely not helping. Whilst never being a fan of the bloke in terms of how he conducts himself, I always wanted it to work for him. He's clearly devoted to the job and, I think, genuinely cares for BWFC. I hope I'm wrong because I really didn't see this season turning out like this, but I think he needs a break before coming back with another club and I think we need someone to come in and re-motivate this squad of players. Big Sam ain't that man, but I do think an old head, one season manager would be a wise move at this point for the club. Right now, it feels like everyone is just waiting!
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  18. I came away from that Orient game really hopeful, as we'd won in a way I wasn't used to seeing. It was scruffy and ugly and the manager/players coming over at the end looked really up for a battle. So I thought you know what maybe we can mix it up after all. Even came away from Wrexham game still onboard, just need to get that forward line in tune with eachother and we're flying. Turns out it was just me making excuses to deny what's become blindingly obvious, that in our current guise we've shot our shot and missed. Our time to go up was last season, now we're an also ran. Could finish 6th or 12th.
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  19. Same. I like both of em. Wasn’t sure on Schon first couple but I think he’s an asset when we are dictating tempo. Mcatee. My type of player all day long.
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  20. I think/hope Aaron would be honest enough to admit that he'd gone off the boil and got a bit stale at Bolton. Often happens when you have your first kid. Perhaps the shipping out to Wycombe has given him the kick up the arse/motivation he needed that his manager and coaches couldn't.
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  21. I was chatting to a Wednesday fan today and he was saying their game v Swansea last night was a perfect example of poundshop Pep ball. Both sides moving slowly around the pitch passing sideways and gaining nothing but 2 sets of bored fans.
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  22. We don’t trott this out though when we lose at home to Exeter. We have spent a decent amount at this level. Can’t have it both ways. Birmingham are better and as @Greg_BWFCsays losing is fine. They didn’t get out of 2nd gear last night and we’d lost within 3 minutes, which is the tough bit to swallow
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  23. I don’t think any dismantling is necessary just a few changes, the majority of the squad is more than capable at this level and it’s the way they’re used that’s the problem which hopefully a new man will change very quickly?
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  24. Steven Schumacher's super white army SSSWA
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  25. Think they're all capable of doing a job. Issue is bigger than the capabilities of individual players for me.
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  26. Can’t be too sure. Sometimes feels like Santos hasnt actually got a set of bollocks! Sadly, I know Evatt does 🙃.
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  27. Just post whatever you want and stick "allegedly" in there
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  28. This is some wild mental gymnastics. It's the manager's team, his plan and his failings. To try and shift blame on some theoretical power struggle isn't going to cut it.
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  29. I don’t believe he will leave and be a success. I think this is his ceiling. It’s been a great ride and will continue for some time now but the lad needs a change almost as much as bwfc do
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  30. Wow, I knew Freddos and Twix had got expensive, but 10k for a Bounty is mad.
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  31. I've not read much after last night's game, but my overall take is this (and I'm sorry it it has all been said before)... This squad should be more than good enough for the top six, if not higher. Sadly Evatt is tactically naive, he's too arrogant/stubborn and he thinks he's far cleverer than he actually is. I'm not one for knee-jerk reactions asking for managers to be sacked mid-season etc, but he really should have gone after the play-off final. I'm now at that point where I think a fresh start might get more out of this squad and I'm not interested in his excuses about injuries. Every team gets them, but if he does want to go down that route, let's examine how many of our players get injured in training, shall we? He talks of a lack of choice to select from with the players missing, yet we have an unfilled squad place on the roster. I'm not saying Mathieson is a world beater, but he's sat there doing fuck all, whilst we've a spare place in the squad? That's as baffling as signing Arfield. I don't like getting on players' backs, but he's fucking shit. He hadn't played competitive football since leaving Burnley in 2018, yet he's the one to do a job here? Fuck off and take Evatt, Creaney and whoever else sits there in a tracksuit with you.
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  32. Got to the point where the formation, personnel or tactics are irrelevant. we’ve had many variations of them all in the games that matter and come out with pretty much nothing from any of them. there seems to be a fundamental culture issue which runs all the way from the top down. Everyone concerned with being the good guy. It’s like everyone’s happy with finishing on the wrong side of the results as long as we conduct ourselves in a nice, polite and respectful manner. the amount of times an “unforgivable” performance has repeated itself further down the track with very little accountability has gone beyond worrying now. we seem to have a chairman who is so heavily invested in the personal element of the manager she can’t / refuses to see what’s blatantly staring her in the face. A Manager who appears to be trying to chuck everyone under the bus in order to deflect from his own misgivings and players so comfortable and lacking in professional pride and desire that one tickle on their whiskers sends them reeling to the canvass anyone expecting any sudden change whilst that goes on has the whitest tinted spectacles imaginable
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  33. And shipped out Morley who is playing 90 mins regular for a team who will go second if they win their game in hand. Morley did have a dip on form but clearly has ability, shipping him out is gonna come back and haunt us too I feel.
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  34. I don’t get the “not an evatt style performance” he’s masterminded plenty of performances like that for us.
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  35. You could come away from those defeats to Derby and Portsmouth and a few others in that we had a plan, played reasonably well, kept possession, had some control but just couldn’t get over the line or nick a scabby goal. And with that you could stick with evatt and see what is trying to be achieved. This season there are absolutely zero positives from the defeats. Absolutely no control. No identity. It’s not as if we are just passing around at the back anymore and not getting anywhere. We are just launching it and giving the ball away.
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  36. Brand Evatt does not exist, he has talked about how we want to play. Which I think means like Birmingham did last night. We have improved as a team under him, but that improvement has been more than matched by the spend. In League 2 we had Doyle, Lee , MJ Williams , Santos and Dapo. No wonder we went up. Last night we started with Collins, McAtee and Big Vic on the bench, best part of £3m worth of spend. The midfield 4 might try and work hard but Sheehan, Matete and Arfield have so little pace and even less movement (Dempsey gets a pass) with no cover on the bench. Who the fuck oversaw recruitment that leaves us short in the middle and a spare place in the squad. In Jan we need to pay Arfield up and strengthen in midfield. Is there anyone that does not think we need a leader/bastard in there ? We were coming back last night and the talk was about apathy setting in and how predictable his interview would be 'couple of injuries, in the game, miss a great chance' etc etc and he trotted out just what we expected. No mention of 29% possession and the fact 'the chance' was our only shot on target. His selection was baffling. The signing of Arfield even more so. Mcatee despite the miss did more to disrupt their defence than the rest of the team in the whole of the first half. Dion up front on his own has never worked, never will. 20 minutes to go, still getting beat, but at least got something up front, sign goes up to say Williams coming off, are we going to go more attacking ? Are we fuck, just swapping wing backs, no problem with Forester but we had an obvious chance to go to a back 4 and get Lolos on. More awful in game management. Has he been unlucky with injuries ? Captain Legohead missing last night. Jones to comeback but defence was not the issue and CMG who has been the verge of a comeback longer than Donald Trump. The issue is recruitment added to an inability to provide a different option. Remember we could not find a system that get the best out of Dapo. The injuries is another excuse. Evatt seems a lost, broken, defeated man. The team reflects that. Teams playing against can either press high and the midfield hide or stand off us and let Santos have 3345 touches a game. Whatever 'Brand Evatt' is meant to mean is broken and falling into disrepair. It is time for a change. Would Moyes take on the challenge ? Probably not but due maybe he knows Sharon through her West Ham connections. Steven Schumacher maybe ?
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  37. Meh didn't expect us to get owt. Most depressing thing was the reminder of the monumental fuck up of not getting out the league last season was. We are not getting out of this league with Evatt.
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  38. 5 defenders and 4 midfielders on the pitch for the majority btw last night. It’s ok doing that if you’re going to get about them, put pressure on and make life as difficult as possible. We did non of that. his whole philosophy and principles got chucked out of the window. Far too much respect given and the actions of a desperate man who doesn’t have any idea on how to change the tide.
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  39. These Peterborough, Stevenage and Stockport games are where it’s at for me now. Any slip ups here and I think my mind will be irreversibly made up. I wobbled after Huddersfield, gave credit where it was due since and called last night out for what it was. I’m still just about, by the skin of a gnats bollock, hanging on in hope.
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  40. Then don't pick Arfield, and frankly don't select Sheehan. We were never having loads of possession and as per every time we play such a game where we can't bully a team, Sheehan goes missing. He must see that it's the same each time. Why not try something different; maybe 4 at the back, 5 in midfield for example. Johnson and Santos as central defenders last night. Williams and cogley full backs. Schon wide left, Matete and Dempsey with Lolos as the 3. May have needed to utilise McAtee wide right as needs must. No guarantees clearly, but at least offers the chance to double up and help prevent crosses, which we sometimes struggle with. Whichever way he used them, it simply doesn't seem to suit any of them. Over elaborate and failing.
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  41. Susanna Reid this morning…..”why didn’t they just disable the car” “why did they shoot him in his head” shes obviously been watching to many Hollywood movies
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  42. Evatt's whole philosophy with us is to make us ready for the Championship, yet after 5 seasons this has not happend. And when we play against a side that is the best in the league, we abandon our whole philosophy because of a couple of injuries. Clueless and delusional.
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  43. Starting line-up / formation was all wrong. Charles cannot hold a ball up to save his life, yet he was our only player up top. We showed them far too much respect I the first half. Second half was an improvement and at least gave them something to think about at the back. Great chance for McAtee to snatch us an undeserved point only a minute or so before their penalty. Ultimately though, we got exactly what we deserved. Whilst Birmingham weren't brilliant, they looked light-years ahead of us in all aspects of their game. Finally, if Arfield starts another game for us I think I'll combust. He makes Jerome look like a spring chicken. It really is like playing with 10 men.
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  44. And don't even get me started on "one nil to Villa boys".
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  45. Watching Arfield try and chase back was like watching me play five aside when the lads from the office started bringing their 18 year old kids in as ringers.
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  46. Oddly I thought we defended alright overall, but the total negativity killed us from first minute. It's division 3 ffs, division 3. We're meant to be challengers for promotion and just acted like total cowards.
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  47. Watching Birmingham reminded me how we used to play under Evatt. Quick passing, players making space, winning the ball back quickly, tiring the opposition out. We had a system that worked. Everyone knew their roles. If a player was injured we'd have a back up player to fill that place. The identity Evatt built up has gone and I think that's what pisses me off most about this team. Anyone know what formation we played tonight? Looked like a 523 again. Recruitment has been shocking too. Schon 1m? Weak as piss ... McAtee 1m? Anyone know what his main position is? Arfield? utterly pointless. Papering over the cracks with our mini winning run. Tonight was a reality check of how backwards we've gone.
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  48. It was common knowledge the kind of character he was
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  49. After Wembley evatt said that he had done a lot of soul searching and knew what was needed to improve us so he stayed on . Is tactics and signings have made us worse he should be judged on that
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  50. On nights like this I miss Magohma He played for Brentford U21s yesterday What a waste
    1 like
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