Match Thread: Crawley Town v Port Vale

[Bald Eagle]

14 minutes ago, Beech said:

I don't disagree with any of that, still wouldn't mind Pope on the bench.

I certainly wouldn’t want him to get off the bench even if we were daft enough to keep him.

Aside from his poor play isn’t it amazing how the team spirit is stronger / they are so together without him sulking because he wasn’t starting.  By his own admission in his 3 hour red wine rant he wasn’t putting the work in because it wasn’t worth his while if he knew he wasn’t starting at the weekend.  Out in the week for the same reason. Professionalism? My ar£e as Jim Royle would say.

Had his day - he’s at his level.  We are at a totally different level, on and off the pitch. Move on

[1]

Even players like Amoo must be fully motivated and behind the project, to come on and play so well and commit to the friendlies etc. There’s not a player in this squad who can’t come in and do a good job and I think it’s great we don’t have a starting 11 then the fill-ins.

How many teams could drop players from the starting 11 just to rest them, without losing any attacking threats or quality? I’d argue no other teams can do that and the other teams up there with us are relying on a handful to produce the quality needed for the entire season, but our burden is shared and managed.

Well done DC, Carol and all involved.

[Doha]

10 minutes ago, Doha said:

Watching the goals back, just noticed Hessenthaler going down clutching his face just before the Pett goal. Pretty embarrassing really. 

 

 

[Bald Eagle]

My only worry about this squad is will they turn up in Boslem for the promotion/ championship celebration come May? 😀 

[MBE]

17 minutes ago, Doha said:

Watching the goals back, just noticed Hessenthaler going down clutching his face just before the Pett goal. Pretty embarrassing really. 

It looks like his own player took him out.

[Joe B]

5 minutes ago, Bald Eagle said:

My only worry about this squad is will they turn up in Boslem for the promotion/ championship celebration come May? 😀 

Too much change. We've lost that losing identity. That's so important.

[NellyTheValiant]

14 minutes ago, Bald Eagle said:

My only worry about this squad is will they turn up in Boslem for the promotion/ championship celebration come May? 😀 

I reckon we could shoulder Carol out of the Crown come closing time

[jeffers]

30 minutes ago, Doha said:

Watching the goals back, just noticed Hessenthaler going down clutching his face just before the Pett goal. Pretty embarrassing really. 

Fell over his own player then lies there head in hands. Maybe just having a strop like my 5 year old granddaughter sometimes does. 😭👶😭

[Beech]

37 minutes ago, Bald Eagle said:

I certainly wouldn’t want him to get off the bench even if we were daft enough to keep him.

Aside from his poor play isn’t it amazing how the team spirit is stronger / they are so together without him sulking because he wasn’t starting.  By his own admission in his 3 hour red wine rant he wasn’t putting the work in because it wasn’t worth his while if he knew he wasn’t starting at the weekend.  Out in the week for the same reason. Professionalism? My ar£e as Jim Royle would say.

Had his day - he’s at his level.  We are at a totally different level, on and off the pitch. Move on

I always thought he was well liked and respected in the dressing room?

I'm not sad that he's gone. Far from it. Just making the point if I had to make a choice between him and Lloyd to bring off the bench, I'd still opt for Pope. Lloyd might and hopefully will come good, and just might go on to have an excellent career. But as of right now I just think he's not at anything like the level of our other players.

[Old fort]

38 minutes ago, Joe B said:

We worship Dazzler, we love Flitters, we trust the Pruhcess/Matrix, but this all comes back to our chairlady who saw things weren't good enough last year and ruthlessly overhauled the football operations at the club.

Carol Shanahan saved us from oblivion and has us enjoying being a Vale fan again.

I think she got a few things wrong last season, but her ability to learn and adapt and improve is so encouraging.

There will be something named after her at the ground when she sells the club, I have no doubt.

I'm sure Carol and Kevin have a succession plan of continuity when they decide to hand over the reins,  but hopefully that's something in the distant future. 

[darren1810]

Lloyd has been fouled twice for both of Conlon free kick goals and his harassing and harrying helped with the winner at Swindon. 

[Old fort]

3 minutes ago, Beech said:

I always thought he was well liked and respected in the dressing room?

I'm not sad that he's gone. Far from it. Just making the point if I had to make a choice between him and Lloyd to bring off the bench, I'd still opt for Pope.

Lloyd has now won two fee kicks that has produced two TC goals to bring us back in to games from losing positions. Pope's dynamic would not see him making the bench anymore in this team. Grat hold up play, but nothing else for the last two and a half years, but I'll never forget the Etihad moment. 

[Conrad]

9 minutes ago, darren1810 said:

Lloyd has been fouled twice for both of Conlon free kick goals and his harassing and harrying helped with the winner at Swindon. 

He forced a good save out of their keeper today,was he wearing the number 20 shirt?

if so he ran into a good position if Amooooo had squared the ball to him for the 4th goal.

[Joe B]

Lloyd has his uses. Cheltenham used him as a sub last year and won the title.

He's aggressive and pacy, and denied by a great save from a good keeper. Well worth a place on the bench.

[Beech]

1 minute ago, Joe B said:

Lloyd has his uses. Cheltenham used him as a sub last year and won the title.

He's aggressive and pacy, and denied by a great save from a good keeper. Well worth a place on the bench.

I just want a forward who has a slightly better average than 1 every 10 or more games as our third or fourth choice. I'd say Cheltenham won the team much more so in spite of him than because of him.

He's basically a not as quick Michael Husbands.