Johnnyrotten

Toal is difficult to replace, in the way he plays, defensively and creatively. Numerically we can say its one in one out if Santos is back. But who plays on the right of 3? Obviously not Santos, and IMO not Forino. One of those two to play in the centre and the other on the bench for me. Forrester probably the next bet for the right but he's another who's best qualities are shown in the middle. Jones is the most comfortable on the ball of the right footed CBs but we'd lose some defensive muscle and height. Hopefully Toal not out long.

Can we play Rotherham on Saturday now? 😀

So's my (88 year old) Mum, she really enjoyed it (both parents from North East). Supports Newcastle and Sunderland equally, and Bolton obviously. Listens to commentary of all our games on Radio Manchester, they provide a brilliant service for those that don't get to games. Never been to a game in her life, just enjoys listening to the North East teams and us, doesn't have Sky so was very happy to be watching it on ITV.

I'd still rather just play Rotherham on Saturday instead of moving it to a Tuesday during the busiest month of the season. We've played plenty of games where we've chosen to start without Toal and Sheehan, and it would be one less game for them to play in the busy schedule. Admittedly I've no idea if Rotherham have call ups too. Games get moved too easily, no need IMO.

Fair enough, I suppose the answer is he wasn't "LCB" then, it was a hybrid/inverted position SS has come up with. So two CBs and another without an obvious label playing somewhere at the back/midfield! Definitely hugged the touchline most of the game, more than Johnston has ever done when playing CB, and was hardly ever in the centre if at all after the first 5 minutes. They all seem to have license to change positions "in the moment". I'd say only Forinho and maybe Cogley stuck fairly rigidly to their stated positions, everyone else very much roaming, Toal spent as much time in midfield as Tomo did from what I could see. I presume the experiment with Tomo in that position will be over as soon as Johnston is fit, hopefully Murphy is just used for back up at LB. On another note, Mark Iles gave Tomo 6.5, I'm sure he knocks off a couple of marks if we lose, that was 8 minimum in anybody's book. If we win I'm sure every player starts with a minimum 7 just for turning up. Even his "MOM" Baxter only got 7, if we win he's getting 8.5 or 9.

No league game for 2 weeks, I bet some of the first team would love to get a game, probably the only chance any current Bolton player will get to play there.

In their last 13 homes, they've drawn 9, lost 2 (the first & last of the 13) and won 2 (Cambridge and Crawley). A win for us would be "above par" given they've lost so few, a defeat would be very much below par given their only home win against a team not getting relegated was Exeter.

I never said or suggested we were played off the park, not sure where you got that from. I'm not reading back my exact quote, but my general feeling was that they were just a better team than us on the day, that's a lot different to getting played off the park (0-4 v Hudds and 0-5 at County would fall into that category). I even commented on it still being a competitive game upto the end, it was never game over. We were clearly superior on the day to Shrewsbury, Crawley and Burton but I wouldn't claim we played them off the park.

I thought Forino played well apart from the goal and that pass early on which put them in with a chance (don't know how he didn't get booked for the lunge but I haven't seen it back). He won about 100 headers, distribution was calm and assured, battled gamely with their physical strikers, not saying he was perfect but he was a positive for me. On Tomo's position, I'll bow to greater knowledge and insight, but this "license to go into midfield" is a strange one. Which players don't have a license to go into midfield? Toal and the full backs do it every single game, whether we are playing 4 or 5 at the back, and the strikers don't just play up front, they clearly have a license to go into midfield (and defence in McAtee's case). The players don't have a zone that they are restricted to, its fluid as the game progresses. Tomo played like a full back that likes to get forward yesterday, like most full backs do. Anyway, he can play there again if that's how much it suits him.

The same year we were paying half a mil for him County signed Wooton on a free from Notts County in the National League and Olaofe from Millwall for a small fee (he'd been playing for Sutton on loan in Div 2). It shows the importance of recruitment, not saying they'd fire us to promotion but I know which I'd rather we were playing against.

We'd love to still be in the game after an hour v Wigan! I remember having that thought in the 2nd half at 0-0, grateful to still have a competitive match to watch in a local derby, it doesn't happen often. And we did play OK for a 10 or 15 minute spell when we penned them back, we were in a match. Against Wigan here we don't even get a contest beyond half an hour, which makes their hold over us all the more bizarre, its not like they are better than other teams we play, but they rap the game up in the 1st half.

First time I've seen that - stonewall pen, the JDB-lookalike admits as much by looking at the ref with his hands up. Nobody does that if they haven't fouled the player. Ref started badly and got worse.

You must have missed my comments on the performances of Tomo and Baxter if you only picked up on critical comments. I'm unsure how anyone could claim we were the better team, irrespective of the ref. I was appealing for a pen like everyone, I've not seen it since, I am just judging the overall relative performances of the 2 teams, and they were better than us on the day. But yes of course a pen changes the mood in the first half, I'm sure SS won't be thinking we don't have to improve because the defeat was just down to the ref's decisions? And yes if he gets sent off it changes the 2nd half, I can't argue with that, my genuine opinion was it would have been a harsh yellow as he had nowhere to go, McAtee sort of ran into him, plenty of times they aren't given as a foul and very rarely a booking, I'm not sure how deliberate it was - happy to be corrected if it was blatantly a block rather than just being "in the way". More of a red card was that challenge on Tutu early on, when Tutu did him a huge favour getting up so quickly. The ref had a stinker, that farce when they gave 3 minutes 1st half injury time, then carried on treating the Stockport player for 45 seconds (I checked) before play resumed. Then the keeper delayed taking a goal kick for 30 seconds and the ref blew before he even took it! Ridiculously incompetent.

Just going off what I watched! He was at the back. He was on the left.

Baxter made more saves today than Southwood has in about 6 games. That cross, I agree he could have caught it, but he punched it to the touchline, well away from danger, he didn't flap, he got rid. And its not just about today, Baxter completely proven as a quality LI keeper for the previous 18 months, on loan to L1 from the championship. Southwood is OK but if anyone claims to have evidence he's better than Baxter they are being a bit disingenuous, there simply isn't the evidence for it.