Match Thread - Grimsby Town v Port Vale

[pete vale]

Have to stick with Aspin but you also have to question :

 

why so defensive again when playing a poor team.

Why not stay with two up front.

Pope and Miller have not scored recently but as a pair

they at least make the opposition defence work a little.

Grimsby were there to have a go at and not sit back.

 

Our big problem isnt the front two its the wide men and midfield players never create or score enough goals for us.

 

I said pre season Pope and Miller needed 40 goals between them to put us in top ten

Now we have 12 games gone they wont do it.

The whole team will do well to score 40 goals between them

 

There is no creative football played at all

There is no goal threat from anyone

Hannant, Worrall, Whitfield etc etc just cannot create or score the number of goals we need

 

Without goals we will struggle to get enough points needed

 

Pretty good assessment. Soon as I heard yesterdays line-up (or to be honest predicted before), you can see and feel the negativity. Desperate not to concede and take a point mentality. It won't work, never does. We isolate either Pope or Pope +1 every time, by retreating we invite the opposition on to us, give them confidence to play. We are and should be better but it worries me.

[smithie]

Failure to bring in quality players to play the positions we are short of quality added to Aspins negativity will once again leave us looking over our shoulder at relegation out of the league. A bad run like we saw after January will see us go down.

 

Crikey.

[Thevalefan]

0-2 Oh well I didn't pick the lottery numbers either!

 

I listened to Aspin on the radio after the match and one thing that struck me was how totally defensive minded he is. Can't remember the full conversation he had but something that stuck with me was when he said that after going 1-0 inside a minute, it means our whole team needs to sit back deeper in defence. He reckons because of that goal our defenders will sit deep. In my opinion, it should be just the opposite of that thinking. You need to keep a higher line to keep the ball away from your goal, which is always a good way to defend. When you've gone 1-0 up you should be able to sit back deeper a bit and try to keep possession and make the other team chase the ball a bit more.

 

If we decide we need to sit back deeper, to invite more pressure 1 minute into a game because of the goal then we need a rethink. It sounds like we've set ourselves up completely wrong for the match again. I can't imagine some of these lads will be please about playing in a side that's going away from home and setting up so defensively. Definitely does not get the best out of them.

[Hagrid]

This forum is bipolar.

 

I think the responses are fairly reasonable.

 

You've got the odd few numpties who enjoy winding people up, but largely its fans (justifiably) aggrieved at a poor result to a poor side, mostly as a consequence of truly baffling tactical decisions. We all knew we were going to lose as soon as we saw the 11. That's not good, that fans are seeing things before the manager does.

 

We had a settled side, we got one injury to a starter, and the entire 11 falls to shambles. We play an injured Pope up front by himself. Its a common trend, and concerning.

[smithie]

Total overkill by the police yesterday, filming Vale's support which was back to its usual seated and meek self. Making everyone walk the long way round to the turnstiles was very poor too.

 

All in all a waste of a Saturday afternoon.

[Andy Proctor]

The reason why we lost is because i went. The last 4 away games ive been were cambridge 5 vale 0 colchester 2 vale 0 tranmere 1 vale 0 and grimsby 2 vale 0. Doesnt bode well for oldham and mansfield away then. I cant go stevenage and yeovil away so even though there tough games we may draw or win one of them.

[Jacko51]

I think the responses are fairly reasonable.

 

You've got the odd few numpties who enjoy winding people up, but largely its fans (justifiably) aggrieved at a poor result to a poor side, mostly as a consequence of truly baffling tactical decisions. We all knew we were going to lose as soon as we saw the 11. That's not good, that fans are seeing things before the manager does.

 

We had a settled side, we got one injury to a starter, and the entire 11 falls to shambles. We play an injured Pope up front by himself. Its a common trend, and concerning.

 

I'm not just talking about yesterday. Two weeks ago after we'd beaten Crewe, Aspin was the dog's danglies. Last week after the heroics against Exeter we were climbing the league. This week we are getting relegated. There has to be a middle way.

 

I think Aspin made a serious mistake on Tuesday bringing Montano on. Whether he was fit or not, it sent the wrong message to Kanu who had done well on Saturday. His team selection yesterday looked negative but if you look at our away performances we have lost at Colchester, Tranmere and Carlisle having started with Pope and Miller.

 

It is a fact that without Oyeleke we haven't got a point this season. He is the key to the way we play. Is the fact that we have become so dependent on a lad few of us had heard of and came from non league a reflection on the manager or the rest of the team?

 

I thought we didn't do badly in the first half yesterday apart from the utter brain f*** by Clark. In the second half we didn't push on enough and the chances we did create were wasted.

 

Incidentally, it was interesting that having criticised Aspin for bringing on Montano on Tuesday with suspect fitness, he was getting criticised yesterday for not starting Whitfield, with suspect fitness!

[Emile]

I'm not just talking about yesterday. Two weeks ago after we'd beaten Crewe, Aspin was the dog's danglies. Last week after the heroics against Exeter we were climbing the league. This week we are getting relegated. There has to be a middle way.

 

I think Aspin made a serious mistake on Tuesday bringing Montano on. Whether he was fit or not, it sent the wrong message to Kanu who had done well on Saturday. His team selection yesterday looked negative but if you look at our away performances we have lost at Colchester, Tranmere and Carlisle having started with Pope and Miller.

 

It is a fact that without Oyeleke we haven't got a point this season. He is the key to the way we play. Is the fact that we have become so dependent on a lad few of us had heard of and came from non league a reflection on the manager or the rest of the team?

 

I thought we didn't do badly in the first half yesterday apart from the utter brain f*** by Clark. In the second half we didn't push on enough and the chances we did create were wasted.

 

Incidentally, it was interesting that having criticised Aspin for bringing on Montano on Tuesday with suspect fitness, he was getting criticised yesterday for not starting Whitfield, with suspect fitness!

 

As usual, the voice of reason.

[NellyTheValiant]

I'm not just talking about yesterday. Two weeks ago after we'd beaten Crewe, Aspin was the dog's danglies. Last week after the heroics against Exeter we were climbing the league. This week we are getting relegated. There has to be a middle way.

 

I think Aspin made a serious mistake on Tuesday bringing Montano on. Whether he was fit or not, it sent the wrong message to Kanu who had done well on Saturday. His team selection yesterday looked negative but if you look at our away performances we have lost at Colchester, Tranmere and Carlisle having started with Pope and Miller.

 

It is a fact that without Oyeleke we haven't got a point this season. He is the key to the way we play. Is the fact that we have become so dependent on a lad few of us had heard of and came from non league a reflection on the manager or the rest of the team?

 

I thought we didn't do badly in the first half yesterday apart from the utter brain f*** by Clark. In the second half we didn't push on enough and the chances we did create were wasted.

 

Incidentally, it was interesting that having criticised Aspin for bringing on Montano on Tuesday with suspect fitness, he was getting criticised yesterday for not starting Whitfield, with suspect fitness!

 

I didn't go yesterday Jacko so can't comment about the game in general but Aspins selection seemed completely negative from the off. This wasn't Colchester, Tranmere or Carlisle, this was Grimsby, okay they had a decent result away in the week but their home form is shocking, almost as bad as ours is away.

 

I also think that comparing the fitness of Whitfield and Montano is pushing it a little when Monty had been out and not playing for weeks. Whitfield has been playing, albeit within himself IMHO for the past couple of games but if he wasn't fit shouldn't have been on the bench, otherwise another mistake made by someone at the club.

[KEV.WILLIE]

Totally agree ref, Manny,

But why does he feel the need to change the whole system?, Surely he should stick with a system(ie, 442) that wins or plays well, and slot players in!!

[Valist]

Knee-jerk Neil strikes again. He is the lower league Tony Pulis without the results.

I actually think we've got a decent set of footballers available that with proper management and coaching could play some decent stuff and be at the business end of the table.

Unfortunately all we get is brain dead, unimaginative, routine driven rubbish I.e. long throw down the line, goal-kick always long, free-kick just chipped into the box regardless of the angle and 80% of open play balls just lumped towards Pope.

As much as Aspin inherited a difficult situation I think that if you looked at each squad in the league player for player I believe we are underachieving and don't see any signs of progressing any time soon.

[Upfromnowhere]

Aspins post match comment that playing two up front weakens our defence left me head scratching, as clearly it doesn't. What weakens our defence is continually dropping too deep and inviting teams into our half, having the ball continually coming back at us because we are only playing one up top and have no one to close opposition down and most clearly, lack of organisation, especially as we seem to to let in similar goals week after week.

[Hagrid]

Total overkill by the police yesterday, filming Vale's support which was back to its usual seated and meek self. Making everyone walk the long way round to the turnstiles was very poor too.

 

All in all a waste of a Saturday afternoon.

 

That's because the idiots of our fanbase embarrassed us last year with their antics.

[SFBT]

Aspins post match comment that playing two up front weakens our defence left me head scratching, as clearly it doesn't. What weakens our defence is continually dropping too deep and inviting teams into our half, having the ball continually coming back at us because we are only playing one up top and have no one to close opposition down and most clearly, lack of organisation, especially as we seem to to let in similar goals week after week.

I agree with this.

I thought that this default position had been consigned to history with the 4 game unbeaten run.

There was good progress being made.

Sure, Tuesday maybe needed some tweaking, but yesterday was throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

I think it was a knee jerk reaction, which is very disappointing.

We apparently rely on Manny.

Is this real, or is it that without him, we revert to playing deep.

Surely we have other midfielders who can play this role, even if not as effectively.

Surely it has to be better than Kay as a fifth defender.

Aspo says we defend from the front, which is what happens with 442.

With yesterday's formation, we do not, cannot, defend from the front.

Hence conceding ground and inviting pressure.

[smithie]

I agree with this.

I thought that this default position had been consigned to history with the 4 game unbeaten run.

There was good progress being made.

Sure, Tuesday maybe needed some tweaking, but yesterday was throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

I think it was a knee jerk reaction, which is very disappointing.

We apparently rely on Manny.

Is this real, or is it that without him, we revert to playing deep.

Surely we have other midfielders who can play this role, even if not as effectively.

Surely it has to be better than Kay as a fifth defender.

Aspo says we defend from the front, which is what happens with 442.

With yesterday's formation, we do not, cannot, defend from the front.

Hence conceding ground and inviting pressure.

 

We must hoof it to Pope 20 times or more in a game. If he wins and retains it even half the time, we're still conceding possession 10 times a game at least.

 

It shouldn't be that hard to solve!