Match Thread: Port Vale v Colchester United

[Sandyford_Lion]

7 minutes ago, valiant_593 said:

For me it was the same. We played some decent stuff. Missed chances as we always do because we didn’t sign a decent striker and defended horribly for the goal as we have done this season. 
imo that’s 2 goals in 2 league games mills has been at fault for. He’s not close to gibbons. I do think we’re starting to concede more goals now that brown isn’t playing as amazing as he has since signing. Now looking like a pretty normal league 2 keeper 

I just thought that today we played better than for some time at home this season.

Clarke has not looked as good this season. Yes Gibbons looks to be the one we are missing at full back for now but there are mistakes in him too.

[Rampant Zebra]

7 minutes ago, Sandyford_Lion said:

Askey plays one up front

Rodney has the shirt after his last , good performance, so Pope and Robinson and Cullen when fit will always be on the bench. Will be the same Tuesday night, guaranteed. McKirdy will never get a chance i dont think.

Two forwards , at sometime is a must , but for me to do that we have to leave out Joyce or one of Conlan / Manny. It defeats the object to play two forwards and leave a wide man out.

Do you think McKirdy deserves a chance? I wasn't that impressed with his performance today. 

[valiant_593]

7 minutes ago, werstayinup said:

I wasn't saying Askey went defensive mine was a sarcastic response to a poster

Askey's subs today were to try and win the game

They were too late though. Both were subs I think needed making just 10 mins too late 

[CambridgeDon]

4 minutes ago, Sandyford_Lion said:

Askey plays one up front

Rodney has the shirt after his last , good performance, so Pope and Robinson and Cullen when fit will always be on the bench. Will be the same Tuesday night, guaranteed. McKirdy will never get a chance i dont think.

Two forwards , at sometime is a must , but for me to do that we have to leave out Joyce or one of Conlan / Manny. It defeats the object to play two forwards and leave a wide man out.

He's supposed to be playing 3 up front unless we're really playing 4-5-1. So the answer today was to play Rodney out wide instead of Hurst and then play either Pope or Robinson up front in order to increase our goal scoring potential. That would have given us a front three of Rodney Pope/Robinson and Worrall who at least have some goals in them. Hurst played well, I thought, but he's never going to pose a goal threat.

The result, as we saw today - again - is that we looked toothless. Loads of crosses into the box (Phil Bowers said on his count it was 20 or 30) but no one on the end of them. This is going to dog us all season unless Askey can bring himself to be a bit more adventurous - especially at home against a porous defence. 

[Biddulph_PV]

14 minutes ago, Nofinikea said:

His very first contribution was to go missing leaving his teammate isolated.  He then did some good work defensively which I was pleased to see.  However, his first touch was generally poor and he just keeps turning into trouble, giving away possession too easily.

I just don't see the potential to be honest.

That was exactly how I saw it, a bit of a headless chicken at times although he did get back defensively. He isn’t disciplined enough to stick to a position so does need a free role in behind the striker, meaning you’d lose Conlon (and effectively be 4-4-2 which we know beyond doubt doesn’t suit us) who I thought played ok today.

[TylerB]

2 hours ago, Santa said:

Rodney is growing into it but he's definitely a mixed bag at the moment.

 

I thought he was a future prospect and very much our 4th choice forward when he signed. He's extremely raw and has a lot to improve upon but he's already doing much more than I expected him to be doing this season.

[Rampant Zebra]

He seems to be able to score goals, an important skill for a forward. 

[Biddulph_PV]

I can’t put my finger on what it is we’re missing.

We have players we generally do 95% of what’s expected of them but it’s those missing 5%’s across the team add up.

Is it fitness? Is it concentration? Is it grit or determination not to let your man beat you? Is the lack of applying the darker arts/game management?  What is it?

Very, very frustrating today but, again I commented that I didn’t like their 3 subs and then that the game had a Scunny feel to it i.e. we bang on the door but get nowhere. I’m no clairvoyant, just have seen enough of Vale to know how it ends up. If I can see it, why can’t Askey??

I also refrained from giving a pre-match score purely because I suspected it would be a case of “after the Lords Mayors show” as Rudgie used to say, and so it proved. In a way, the Bolton result could do more harm than good because we’ve been lulled into thinking there are goals in the team, when clearly there aren’t. Three shots on target is, frankly, ridiculous.  

We will continue to be inconsistent and finish 10th-12th IMO.

[valiant_593]

I think were missing a bit of quality to be honest. Just don’t think some of our squad are up to it. Hence the amount of individual errors and missed chances. We have a steady side but no real players that are standing out. 

[valiant_593]

1 hour ago, Sandyford_Lion said:

I just thought that today we played better than for some time at home this season.

Clarke has not looked as good this season. Yes Gibbons looks to be the one we are missing at full back for now but there are mistakes in him too.

Yeah today our general play was certainly better. I think we looked much better than recent home matches (not difficult) but still much better. 
 

your right Clark hasn’t been brilliant this season but we know he is a quality player at this level. Although he’s not been brilliant I can’t think off the top of my head of an individual error that’s lead to a goal, whereas mills has in the last two games. Offers more going forward as well. For me him and gibbons back in that 11 will certainly strengthen that defence. Think we might need dip into the market for a centre back though 

[Jacko51]

4 hours ago, Properman said:

I had no idea that Phil got paid for his job at vale.

He doesn't.  I was mistaken when I said that.

[PV1973]

There’s no getting away from the fact that individual errors and lapses in concentration are costing us goals and points. Today we saw Mills find himself too far forward from the rest of the back 4 and their lad was in behind, it’s tight margins like that which can be punished and we were. But I think in this last 2 games Mills (despite mistakes for goals in both games) has offered more to the side than Clark has,  who IMO hasn't put the work rate in and been nowhere near as good as we know he can be. There’s something not right with him. Speaking of Mills mistakes for goals I thought Clark suffered a similar fate at Cambridge where he was out of position and they got behind him for a goal and I think that’s one of his weaknesses, he tends to get caught out of position for the opposition to play in behind him. Maybe even one of the Tranmere goals came about in a similar way too. 
 

But we’re not where we are because Clark hasnt played well or because Gibbo is missing or because Mills has made mistakes it’s because all over the pitch the cumulative effect of players missing through injury, (Amoo, Gibbo, Monty, Manny for a spell), players not hitting form for spells (Legge, Joyce, Burgess, Worrall, Smith), players missing chances and making crucial defensive mistakes has seen us struggle and drop points. It’s a team effort and as a team we haven’t played as well as we were doing at times last season. 

[Guitar Ray]

1 hour ago, Biddulph_PV said:

I can’t put my finger on what it is we’re missing.

We have players we generally do 95% of what’s expected of them but it’s those missing 5%’s across the team add up.

Is it fitness? Is it concentration? Is it grit or determination not to let your man beat you? Is the lack of applying the darker arts/game management?  What is it?

Very, very frustrating today but, again I commented that I didn’t like their 3 subs and then that the game had a Scunny feel to it i.e. we bang on the door but get nowhere. I’m no clairvoyant, just have seen enough of Vale to know how it ends up. If I can see it, why can’t Askey??

I also refrained from giving a pre-match score purely because I suspected it would be a case of “after the Lords Mayors show” as Rudgie used to say, and so it proved. In a way, the Bolton result could do more harm than good because we’ve been lulled into thinking there are goals in the team, when clearly there aren’t. Three shots on target is, frankly, ridiculous.  

We will continue to be inconsistent and finish 10th-12th IMO.

The missing 5%'s aren't allowed back in yet.  I can't help but think that getting fans back in our ground would be the missing ingredient.  Time will tell I guess.

[valefan79]

A frustrating game, I though we played decent in spells in the game but we still lack that quality striker who would have won us that game today.  While being in the top 6 I thought Colchester were bang average and it goes to show what a mediocre league it is.  

If it wasnt for Mills and Brown both at fault for the goal, I felt we would have gone and won the game.  I felt we do miss Monty when he is not playing, Hurst did ok but Monty is a massive threat and has goals in him when played further forward.  We are seriously lacking in goals from midfield, with Manny, Joyce and Conlon, you are going to be lucky to get many goals from open play between them.  They have played 242 games for us and have 12 goals, reckon a few would have been set plays for Conlon too.  We seriously need a midfielder who can chip in with goals if we are to do anything.

17 games and down in 14th place is not where I thought we would be and already 9 points off the automatics, the top 5 look like they could be starting to pull away and what we don't want to be having is a battle for just 1 or 2 spots, I know its still early but I don't see this team putting together a run like last year. 

[Sandyford_Lion]

2 hours ago, Rampant Zebra said:

Do you think McKirdy deserves a chance? I wasn't that impressed with his performance today. 

From what i have seen NO.

Maybe harsh or maybe he has had one lucky run, last season at Carlisle, wheere he was successful.

Might be unfair to say but he does seem to bring problems with him