Bolton v Newport

[Lt. Aldo Raine]

3 minutes ago, Adlington Trotter said:

It's a shame the Shrewsbury EFL trophy game isn't this midweek. it would be pretty much a friendly, trial a back 4 and see how it goes.

Playing wing backs is all well and good if you have players in tune with each other. A newly formed team, as we are, it just seems like an open invitation to attack down the wings.

We've played a back four in our last two matches.

[Burndens Bogs]

59 minutes ago, captainmed said:

We’re hoping to stay over in every away town, both mid-week or sat, where BWFC are playing.

That would be a great effort - fucking menkul, but a great effort all the same.

Edited September 27, 2020 by Burndens Bogs

[Underpants]

I've thought long and hard over this. Knee-jerk reactions aside. I said a few weeks ago (Bradford match) that I could see the embryos of what IE was trying to produce. I said, from from my armchair, it would take 5 games for it to knit together. Sorry, but 5 games on I see little improvement. In fact, IMO, we have gone backwards

[birch-chorley]

6 hours ago, Cheese said:

Anybody giving up after 3 League games needs to give their head a wobble, or think back to this time last season. If you're writing us off with 43 games to go, I think you need to find a more fulfilling hobby. Maybe you just aren't cut out for lower League football. It's shite.

Not sure anyone is giving up on Bolton, a few are ditching ifollow perhaps 

This time last season we had drawn at home to Coventry (who went on to go up), so for me this season has seen us have a worse start, despite having a senior squad and one of the biggest budgets in the league 

your right, it could all click into place and we go on to compete at the top end of the division. However we have a huge way to go in terms of performances, so far I see little or no sign of it, we haven't scored and can’t defend. 

Whilst turnarounds do happen, it’s difficult to see us go from such a low level of performance to competing to get out of the division. If it’s a case of aiming for mid table obscurity in League 2 then plenty more will be ditching ifollow 

[Spider]

10 hours ago, Rudy said:

Right possession football. 
A few things you need

Every player comfortable on the ball

Every player understands how their teammates like to receive the ball, into space, into feet, which way they can turn.

All players need to be super fit, to press the ball to be constantly on the move. We just aren’t there.

Possession penetrating football takes years to form a DNA. and a blueprint. It took Ajax, Holland, Barca, City years to get there and yeah we aren't them but you can see that’s the foundations IE is trying to lay down.

we lack quality, creativity and a strong mentality 

We need to focus on the basics , be tough to beat, play football when we can, go direct when we need. 
 

I Hope we still get behind IE and the lads because I believe we will come good.

Do you think IE is analysing each player he brings in thinking he can turn them into This type of team?

Or does he think they’re already good enough?

I honestly get it, and I wish as much as we all do that it will work. But we don’t have the time or money like Ajax, City, Barcelona.

The next trapdoor that could await us is truly unthinkable.

[Rudy]

4 minutes ago, Spider said:

Do you think IE is analysing each player he brings in thinking he can turn them into This type of team?

Or does he think they’re already good enough?

I honestly get it, and I wish as much as we all do that it will work. But we don’t have the time or money like Ajax, City, Barcelona.

The next trapdoor that could await us is truly unthinkable.

He must see something in training to think yeah they can do it. I don’t think he’ll abandon this philosophy but it needs tweaking especially at the back, but we also need to make it stop up top, so if we go direct Doyle can bring midfielders into it.

Second balls just aren’t won up top, but that’s fitness and sharpness. I’d be getting them to increase their fitness and make us fitter than other teams, and just press teams to get the ball back and don’t let them have a minute. 
We need to do The ugly things best first. 

[desperado]

7 hours ago, Adlington Trotter said:

It's a shame the Shrewsbury EFL trophy game isn't this midweek. it would be pretty much a friendly, trial a back 4 and see how it goes.

Playing wing backs is all well and good if you have players in tune with each other. A newly formed team, as we are, it just seems like an open invitation to attack down the wings.

We’ve played a back 4 for the last 2 games

[dusan nikolic]

11 hours ago, Cheese said:

Can't argue with anything he said in that. I've still got every confidence he'll sort it. And there's no fucking way that was the "worst ever Bolton team performance". Think a few people got carried away with all the "we're gonna piss the league" nonsense. We'll be reet.

He pretty much said what needs to be done , from a very experienced defender himself I hope to see some real improvement soon in that department. The attack in stages looked a lot sharper and I could see green shoots of understanding between the midfield and attack . It's a start. 

[MickyD]

1 hour ago, Spider said:

 

The next trapdoor that could await us is truly unthinkable.

Yes, but we'll piss that league. We're a massive club. Think of all the new grounds. 

[Lt. Aldo Raine]

I'd be taking a look at Phoenix myself. Some of these signings look so far to be the signings of someone just playing at it. I can't help but think we've been a bit naive.

[birch-chorley]

8 hours ago, captainmed said:

We’re hoping to stay over in every away town, both mid-week or sat, where BWFC are playing.

Be very few in the 100% club this season, from all 92 clubs 

[Tonge moor green jacket]

15 hours ago, ZicoKelly said:

Where were Barrow this time last season?

Non league.

[Rudy]

2 minutes ago, Tonge moor green jacket said:

Non league.

So we’re heading in the right direction, what you all moaning at 

[desperado]

10 hours ago, birch-chorley said:

Just had a look, Newport only played 3 players today who played the last league games in March (lost away to Carlisle which meant they finished 14). They have basically re built, likely with a much smaller budget 

We can’t hide behind the new players stuff. In league 1 & 2 50% of players contracts expired in June. It’s all short term stuff at this level (for most) 

For me, no excuses, we’ve been way below where we should be given our budget and the time we have had to prepare 

They are all good, rational and debatable points.

However I’m not fully in agreement. You’ve obviously done more research than I have on Newport, so you may hold the higher ground.

Ok the starting 11 may have had changes. But a whole squad? A new keeper? A new manager? A manager who hasn’t managed at this level before? A new captain, new training methods, new coaches there’s a lot more you could add to this list.

Did Newport not have players/buy in players on bigger wages before the salary cap decisions? Are we really spending more money than our rivals? And if we are, surely it won’t be by much

As much as it hurts for us all, at the moment we are on an equal, in fact no, at the moment lower footing than the likes of Newport.

Hopefully it won’t last long and we start to turn the tide

Surely we’ve bought into this for the long term.

[dusan nikolic]

29 minutes ago, Lt. Aldo Raine said:

I'd be taking a look at Phoenix myself. Some of these signings look so far to be the signings of someone just playing at it. I can't help but think we've been a bit naive.

I think if the finances could have stretched to a Marquee centre back signing to go alongside Doyle,Delf, Sav , things would look a lot rosier , sadly they  haven't and that means risks have had to be taken with the defensive signings , perhaps the theory that I.E was an experienced defender himself it would help him to nurture some of the raw at the edges defenders was the idea. Perhaps a defensive midfielder plonked in front of the back 4/5 is an option , just to afford the centre some protection , although what can be done about the Set Piece issue (generally not winning any first or second balls) I don't know.

 

Edited September 27, 2020 by dusan nikolic

[birch-chorley]

7 minutes ago, desperado said:

They are all good, rational and debatable points.

However I’m not fully in agreement. You’ve obviously done more research than I have on Newport, so you may hold the higher ground.

Ok the starting 11 may have had changes. But a whole squad? A new keeper? A new manager? A manager who hasn’t managed at this level before? A new captain, new training methods, new coaches there’s a lot more you could add to this list.

Did Newport not have players/buy in players on bigger wages before the salary cap decisions? Are we really spending more money than our rivals? And if we are, surely it won’t be by much

As much as it hurts for us all, at the moment we are on an equal, in fact no, at the moment lower footing than the likes of Newport.

Hopefully it won’t last long and we start to turn the tide

Surely we’ve bought into this for the long term.

No research done beyond looking at their 0-2 defeat at Carlisle in March vs Yesterday 

I agree that we are currently on a lower footing than Newport County but I don’t think we should be given the resources available 

We've had 5 defeats now against Newport County, Colchester, Forest Green, Bradford and Crewe. We surely should be on a par with OR better than those teams with the budget we have 

Edited September 27, 2020 by birch-chorley

[Ghana White]

Wish Ifollow started doing the training sessions they sound ace

[dusan nikolic]

Just now, Ghana White said:

Wish Ifollow started doing the training sessions they sound ace

Even with Gary Henshaws Heavy Grunts

[Horwich]

Crelin is a bad un

[Lt. Aldo Raine]

23 minutes ago, dusan nikolic said:

I think if the finances could have stretched to a Marquee centre back signing to go alongside Doyle,Delf, Sav , things would look a lot rosier , sadly they  haven't and that means risks have had to be taken with the defensive signings , perhaps the theory that I.E was an experienced defender himself it would help him to nurture some of the raw at the edges defenders was the idea. Perhaps a defensive midfielder plonked in front of the back 4/5 is an option , just to afford the centre some protection , although what can be done about the Set Piece issue (generally not winning any first or second balls) I don't know.

 

I don't think it's about budgets - we intend to max out the salary cap, don't we?

But we didn't need to have marquee, just competent. It's clear that we signed so many centre-backs because we intended to play with the now abandoned back three. Maybe we knew we couldn't afford five or six good centre-backs, but we also seem to have recruited them to a specific criteria: tall, with the ability to bring it forward on the overlap. Defensive ability seems to have been a secondary consideration. Some of them just appear to be overly statistics-based signings, and I'm beginning to think we've got that approach wrong, or been overly reliant on it in a pivotal area of the pitch.

[Johnnyrotten]

11 hours ago, Andy Gee said:

I only watched half a hour then decided to go to Blackpool. Listened to 5 live and they said it was 1 all, then 5 minutes later it was 2-0. 

In the half hour I managed to endure its clear we have no penetration be it through the middle or out wide, just passing  it in front of the opposition defence won't get us many goals. 

As for our "defence" we signed big and fast non league players. They might be fast but they are still non league. Same reason Usain Bolt never made it as a footballer. 

 

I know where you're coming from but only Gordon is a true "non league" player of yesterday's team.  Santos has played about 100 league games for Peterboro and Barnet (plus conference for 2 years).  Its IEs choice to select them, we could pick a defence of Jones and Taft as full backs , Delaney and Baptiste centre backs.  Whether or not we think that's a good enough defence, its got loads of EFL experience and should be able to look like keeping a clean sheet for half a game.

[Guest]

Santos for the Campo role?

[kent_white]

3 minutes ago, boltondiver said:

Santos for the Campo role?

Santos for a turnstile operator role?

[Johnnyrotten]

12 hours ago, RONNIE PHILLIPS said:

I'm behind Evatt & know if he can sort it out we will be entertaining to watch but what worries me with playing around at the back is that even the top teams get caught out occasionally with international defenders.... How the hell do we get big donkeys like Santos to do it without conceding bucket loads? I'd prefer us to concentrate on teaching our defence that playing statues in our own box isn't conducive to getting results. 

Nail on head.  That's been my concern from minute 1 of the FGR game once I'd seen how our new players looked in possession (we already knew Baptiste wasn't going to suit this style, to be kind). I don't see how Div 2 standard players can be expected to pass it around successfully around their own box and in dangerous situations when they've got half decent players bearing down on them. 

[radcliffe white]

I’m still very much behind IE and certainly not calling for him

however let’s get this right we payed money to get this guy and FV (especially with covid losses) will want promotion, forget the 8k season tickets if it’s another season in league 2