Match Thread - Port Vale v Colchester United

[Port Vale Paul]

4 out of the 5 teams below us gained point/s on us today, Notts County being the only one not, and the 4 were away, were fooooooked.

[gags 64]

Cannot believe what I have seen today, without a doubt we are in massive trouble now

 

Can anyone on todays showing see us getting another 21 points. Inept and clueless just about sum it up for me.

 

I do think at any another club there would be more vocal protests than are happening. It seems like as fans we have more or less given up.

 

Same old tactics that haven't worked for over 12 months and if anything we are getting progressively worse. Mainly due to the players we have not being capable of any better

 

When you look through the side at the start of the season many were saying we had the quality. The only thing I see is a ragbag collection of non league players. No fight, no passion, no skill.

 

Not going to criticise the manager but all I will say is that you only play with the cards you are dealt and Aspin is playing with a pack with no aces. They are all in a certain person's back pocket

 

Looking very much like National league and not sure a new manager will stop the rot, especially if we carry on looking in B&M for new players

[Danish Valiant]

Cannot believe what I have seen today, without a doubt we are in massive trouble now

 

Can anyone on todays showing see us getting another 21 points. Inept and clueless just about sum it up for me.

 

I do think at any another club there would be more vocal protests than are happening. It seems like as fans we have more or less given up.

 

Same old tactics that haven't worked for over 12 months and if anything we are getting progressively worse. Mainly due to the players we have not being capable of any better

 

When you look through the side at the start of the season many were saying we had the quality. The only thing I see is a ragbag collection of non league players. No fight, no passion, no skill.

 

Not going to criticise the manager but all I will say is that you only play with the cards you are dealt and Aspin is playing with a pack with no aces. They are all in a certain person's back pocket

 

Looking very much like National league and not sure a new manager will stop the rot, especially if we carry on looking in B&M for new players

Well, Sol is doing it at Macc, with a squad much cheaper than ours. To name just one...

A change of air can do wonders, if the new manager comes in with passion, positivity and energy.

Just look at Man Utd. Ole Gunnar is not a better manager than Jose. But his positive energy rubs of on the players and they perform much better. I know we don’t have a Pogba or a Rashford. But we have players that, if set free and infused with positive energy, can perform much much better than they currently are!

Listen to Aspin, it’s like he’s giving a eulogy...

No passion, no energy, and his outlook on football speaks for itself.

[Valiant!]

Money is clearly being taken out of the club. You only have to look at Aspin’s backroom staff. He’s gone from having Brabin and McCarthy (two qualified coaches) to Danny Pugh who will still be being paid from the playing staff budget.

 

Forced the kit man out who gave up his job to come to the club, took the kit van away, got an old lad to come in who lives local, just to save money

[For Us All]

What world are you living in.....

 

Is he on another planet?

[For Us All]

I see Smurf was spotted driving down Hamil Road way before the end

 

He was going down the Crown.

[valiant_593]

Cannot believe what I have seen today, without a doubt we are in massive trouble now

 

Can anyone on todays showing see us getting another 21 points. Inept and clueless just about sum it up for me.

 

I do think at any another club there would be more vocal protests than are happening. It seems like as fans we have more or less given up.

 

Same old tactics that haven't worked for over 12 months and if anything we are getting progressively worse. Mainly due to the players we have not being capable of any better

 

When you look through the side at the start of the season many were saying we had the quality. The only thing I see is a ragbag collection of non league players. No fight, no passion, no skill.

 

Not going to criticise the manager but all I will say is that you only play with the cards you are dealt and Aspin is playing with a pack with no aces. They are all in a certain person's back pocket

 

Looking very much like National league and not sure a new manager will stop the rot, especially if we carry on looking in B&M for new players

 

Sick of seeing posts like this saying it’s not the managers fault. It’s 100% his shitshow and his fault!!! Budget is mid table for this league. Aspin has signed loads of players that he wanted. Loads of other managers seem to manage with even smaller budgets!!!!

[Warren]

Some bad luck. I thought we were less airborne today. So good for that. However, we had loads of faults in attack. Basically we have no organisation or shape. We pass square and backwards. We leave the wide players to try to go on dribbling alone. We have no corner routines or any other routines.

 

We are in danger of going out of the league. Bottom line, our players are much better than where we are. Aspin has had long enough and needs to be replaced. I'm sorry to reach that view.

[who was markin him?]

Yesterday was terrible. The squad is better than last season but the players either aren't trying or are tactically clueless.

I was calling for Aspin to stay but after today we need someone else to turn it around.

The local media or someone could do some digging about smurf and our Club/ finances etc.

I make excuses not to go hangovers, family, its cold, the grass on the pitch looks a bit long. Its dire and the Club is drifting out of the league.

[Upfromnowhere]

Sick of seeing posts like this saying it’s not the managers fault. It’s 100% his shitshow and his fault!!! Budget is mid table for this league. Aspin has signed loads of players that he wanted. Loads of other managers seem to manage with even smaller budgets!!!!

 

I totally agree.

Blame the chairman for many things, most things actually, but unless some of these NA fans, whose unwavering support is now bordering on the sycophantic, genuinely believe Smurf picks the team, chooses the tactics played, and motivates the players (or clearly not these past couple of months)then how can anyone other than Neil be held culpable?

 

Neil might have wanted, more and better additions to the squad every manager does, but i'm afraid, managers, all managers and he is no different, must do the job with the cards dealt, and he will accept that.

 

By his own admission, unlike the squad he inherited, he has now at least managed to recruit many players of his choosing and yet judging by both results and performances is clearly no nearer working out how to build them into any kind of a cohesive unit than he was when he was given the job.

Problem is, under all those constraints, what we accepted then, is not, especially now he's put his mark on the team, acceptable now. Back then, we all knew with what he inherited how grossly unfair it would be to judge either him or the way he wanted to play football, but that was then, he has now had the time to put his stamp on things, and many, not all, feel it is most certainly fair to do so now!

 

The continual dross he is serving up every Saturday (though we didn't think it possible) which is now getting even worse, the totally dour, and dire tactics he chooses and the lack of energy and passion he gets from his charges 'suggests' the players at best, have lost faith in him, and am sorry, none of this is Smurfs fault.

 

Yes he could certainly give him the £400k he promised, that might help, and if he doesn't, he again rightly runs the risk of total vilification, but seeing what we've all seen, ask yourself honestly, would you?

 

Agree or not though, it doesn't change, nor even in part, is it, can it be attributable for Neils ongoing failings, the biggest of which is clearly the inability to organise a football team at this level.

He is being out-thought by nigh on every manager in the division, and his teams are, bar the odd exception, being out-fought by their players, never in football has there been a more demonstrable recipe for disaster.

 

You cant blame Smurf for playing 3,4,5 CH's, you cant blame Smurf for playing two holding midfield players, one, a 36 year old that can't run. You can't blame Smurf for putting so many players in wrong positions, or lumping everything up to an isolated lone striker,you can't blame him when the manager continues to choose his select bunch of favourites in front of others, regardless how they play, nor can you blame him when the manager so obviously, and seemingly so regularly falls out with his own players for weeks on end. Worral, Gibbo, Miller, Whitfield, Joyce, and recently Conlon all of whom at some stage have fitted into this category and be ostracized from the starting eleven. In short scapegoats!

 

No, in my opinion, the only thing one can blame Smurf for, team wise, and especially as we move worryingly towards the relegation zone, is his refusal to sack Neil and bring in a replacement, which I do concede invites numerous conspiracy theories as to what level of football he may prefer and why.

 

Look it wouldn't be so bad if Neil actually took responsibility for the clear failings in both his tactics and judgment, but he never does, our performances are never his fault, nor have anything to do with him, his selections of his tactics, it's always the players, referees, lady luck or a combination of all three, and if Neil genuinely believes that, if he genuinely feels the position we find ourselves in is not of his doing then we are in even more trouble than our league position suggest. I am afraid, foe the good of the team, he has to either walk or be pushed.

[beasty77]

Glad i stayed in the pub. I seriously cant be arsed no more, and i dont think ill be going another home game this season. Enoughs enough now. I really wish Aspin would resign now as i dont want him be the manager that takes us into non league. Because lets face it, we're going down this season. The club is rotten from top to bottom.

[onestepatatime]

Glad i stayed in the pub. I seriously cant be arsed no more, and i dont think ill be going another home game this season. Enoughs enough now. I really wish Aspin would resign now as i dont want him be the manager that takes us into non league. Because lets face it, we're going down this season. The club is rotten from top to bottom.

100% correct.

[yoblet]

Just looking at the two teams as they came onto the pitch it was clear to see we would struggle to cope with there physicality, men against boys, and every time they had a spot kick it looked ominous.

[Erniemossrules]

Really you have to ask the question if Aspin can motivate the players.He is not taking responsibility for his dire team selections and tactics.He also seems to have lost hope that he can turn it round and seems to upset some of the players by ignoring them and keeping them out of the squad and team.

It’s ok to say he can’t sign the players he wants but can he sell to them that Port Vale is the future for them.

Changing the Manager may not be the answer but look at Macclesfield who have a lower budget and with the same players are winning games since Sol Campbell took over.

It’s absolutely crazy that we can’t compete for players like Cheltenham.

[gags 64]

Just to clarify I am not absolving Aspin of any blame as I think his tactics are terrible but I was merely saying the ultimate blame for our plight is with the Chairman.

 

He has brought in himself a lot of the players that Aspin obviously wasn't keen on hence never played them. Bargain basement buys and you get what you pay for, either limited ability or questionable characters

 

Yes our style of play is horrific and yes that is down to the manager but maybe his hands are tied. I do wish he'd not come across in the media a bit better but at the end of the day he must be so hacked off with the constraints he's under

 

Would I sack him, yes and it should have happened weeks ago but were back then to NS employing someone he can control.

 

The only solution to this is a new owner otherwise we drift into oblivion