Match Thread - Mansfield Town v Port Vale

[valiant steve]

The January window usually sees us weakened as a team and as a squad. It's obvious we need a couple of decent attacking players to help out Pope. That is a winger who can get behind the full back and deliver decent crosses and a quick striker to play off Pope. We'd be a force in this division then.

We all know it won't happen while NS is in charge.

[Jacko51]

Pope didn’t seem himself today, maybe a touch more immobile that usual I’d day.

 

It’s hard to be mobile when you’ve got two centre halfs grabbing you and pulling your shirt all the time.

[vale on toower]

Monty was vales most improved player last season....playing as a left/wing back and not as a forward..

[Frank Mustard]

It’s hard to be mobile when you’ve got two centre halfs grabbing you and pulling your shirt all the time.

It's swings and roundabouts though when you've got Smith up the other end. One of the worst offenders for it I've ever seen.

[darren1810]

A sign of the apathy shrouding our club is that Mansfield brought 537 to our place last season for a night match.

We took 459 yesterday !!

Apart from the diehards the floaters are sick to death of poor away efforts .

Again after yesterday I have to ask why I bother myself .

There are people on here who maybe go to 6 or 7 away games a season who have seen maybe 1 away win in 3 years.

 

I go to maybe 10-15 aways and had a 2 year drought only ended at Crawley last season.

 

It's all a results business and I see Aspin is praising the battling effort.

Personally I'd prefer a 3-2 defeat giving it a real go .

We are nowhere near Mansfield as a team yet at 3-00pm were 6 points behind them with a chance of making it 3 .

 

At least I can say ' I was there ' on the day Montano played centre forward and Dodds on the left wing

[man in the pub]

I heard Aspin talking about the January transfer window , moving a few out and a few in. Feel we have a reasonable squad strength wise. However we are desperate for another striker , one who can not just play up front but actually score goals. Not easy to find and not cheap. Is the answer to let 3 players go and use their combined wages to pay for one decent striker.

[Santa]

We lack width, either from out and out wingers or forwards who can make channel runs and stretch defenders laterally.

 

Also, Manny is our only midfielder who can take a game by the scruff of the neck, drive forward, force players to come out of their shape to follow him and create space that way.

 

Until we do that we will continue to play turgid inoffensive football. Sadly these players cost money and we have a chairman who does not learn from his mistakes.

[Jacko51]

It's swings and roundabouts though when you've got Smith up the other end. One of the worst offenders for it I've ever seen.

 

Got to disagree there. Smith gets away with stuff agreed but he is no different in that respect from your average League 2 defender. It was clear yesterday that, as their manager said before the game, Mansfield’s sole purpose was to stop Tom Pope. He had two men on him virtually all game and was fouled persistently both inside and outside of the box. The ref simply ignored this. When he finally gave Tom a free kick late in the second half almost the whole away end jumped up and cheered as if we’d scored a goal! I hate seeing players getting booked for dissent but I could understand Tom Pope finally snapping yesterday.

[Jacko51]

A sign of the apathy shrouding our club is that Mansfield brought 537 to our place last season for a night match.

We took 459 yesterday !!

Apart from the diehards the floaters are sick to death of poor away efforts .

Again after yesterday I have to ask why I bother myself .

There are people on here who maybe go to 6 or 7 away games a season who have seen maybe 1 away win in 3 years.

 

I go to maybe 10-15 aways and had a 2 year drought only ended at Crawley last season.

 

It's all a results business and I see Aspin is praising the battling effort.

Personally I'd prefer a 3-2 defeat giving it a real go .

We are nowhere near Mansfield as a team yet at 3-00pm were 6 points behind them with a chance of making it 3 .

 

At least I can say ' I was there ' on the day Montano played centre forward and Dodds on the left wing

 

Re the followings last season - there was an element of “new ground” in both games because we hadn’t played each other for ages. That’s one of the reasons we took 600 there despite barely having won a game for months and being on the verge of relegation.

[Upfromnowhere]

I heard Aspin talking about the January transfer window , moving a few out and a few in. Feel we have a reasonable squad strength wise. However we are desperate for another striker , one who can not just play up front but actually score goals. Not easy to find and not cheap. Is the answer to let 3 players go and use their combined wages to pay for one decent striker.

 

Do totally agree we need another striker, but in this team, with this manager, and these tactics, personally I don't think it would make any difference. Kanu scored plenty at Aldershot, but wasn't given a chance at Posh, Miller had his problems at Posh, but, if the cup games are anything to go by (or his record) to me looks a very good finisher but we never get a chance to make a judgement on either as one never plays, and the other never gets any chances. Whits similarly, okay he did miss one real sitter but take that one out of the equation he too never benefits from chances created.

Even the skipper who has probably had twice as many minutes on the pitch as Whits and Miller, and 95% as many as Kanu has only scored (pens aside) 3 possibly 4 league goals all season and why, you've guessed it, for the same reasons, doesn't really get the chance to do otherwise either.

I am not sure, we probably have, but I can't remember us even scoring an away goal from open play, but can unfortunately remember several games, where we didn't even register a shot on goal. Am sorry, as Saturday proved yet again, that in my eyes is not down to the forwards profligacy or lack or quality, but complete lack of creation spawned entirely by the way we play, and until that changes, Aspo can bring in whatever bloomin forwards he likes, we will continue, as Del Boy once said, to be a team of Jaffas!

Ask yourself the question, would you honestly want to be a forward in this team, I wouldn't.

[valeparklife]

In our 9 away games this season, we have scored 4 goals.

 

None from open play.

 

Pope pen vs Oldham

Pope pen vs FGR

Legge header from a set piece vs Crewe

Hannant direct free kick vs Carlisle

 

Absolutely shocking stat. Today's result was utterly predictable.

[Howjy04]

In our 9 away games this season, we have scored 4 goals.

 

None from open play.

 

Pope pen vs Oldham

Pope pen vs FGR

Legge header from a set piece vs Crewe

Hannant direct free kick vs Carlisle

 

Absolutely shocking stat. Today's result was utterly predictable.

 

We are too easy to defend against vpl.We have no goalscoring threat as it stands.The only time we have played a different way is in the Checkout Trophy.3 games,3 wins,albeit Reserves v Reserves.

[VantaaVale]

Exemplified by the Pontiff, got wrestled and battered all game but the majority of fouls were given against him. I thought the ref was a homer.

 

We had the same referee for our game against Newport.

 

I also found this: https://www.nwemail.co.uk/sport/barrow-afc/match-reports/16448040.refereeing-disaster-cannot-cover-up-barrow-afc-defensive-errors/

[Jacko51]

Do totally agree we need another striker, but in this team, with this manager, and these tactics, personally I don't think it would make any difference. Kanu scored plenty at Aldershot, but wasn't given a chance at Posh, Miller had his problems at Posh, but, if the cup games are anything to go by (or his record) to me looks a very good finisher but we never get a chance to make a judgement on either as one never plays, and the other never gets any chances. Whits similarly, okay he did miss one real sitter but take that one out of the equation he too never benefits from chances created.

Even the skipper who has probably had twice as many minutes on the pitch as Whits and Miller, and 95% as many as Kanu has only scored (pens aside) 3 possibly 4 league goals all season and why, you've guessed it, for the same reasons, doesn't really get the chance to do otherwise either.

I am not sure, we probably have, but I can't remember us even scoring an away goal from open play, but can unfortunately remember several games, where we didn't even register a shot on goal. Am sorry, as Saturday proved yet again, that in my eyes is not down to the forwards profligacy or lack or quality, but complete lack of creation spawned entirely by the way we play, and until that changes, Aspo can bring in whatever bloomin forwards he likes, we will continue, as Del Boy once said, to be a team of Jaffas!

Ask yourself the question, would you honestly want to be a forward in this team, I wouldn't.

 

Miller has had a decent number of chances - he just hasn’t finished them. Kanu didn’t score plenty at Aldershot. He got 3 in 29 appearances, 24 of which were starts.

[Heatwave]

For almost first time not even bothered by missing a game. A manager so negative that don’t even know what current squad could achieve.

He wants another striker, every striker or attaching player will fail under Aspin’s dire negative tactics.

 

I don't suppose you were missed.