Middlesborough (H) FLC QF Match Thread 19th Dec

[SuperHuman]

How many times a game do we go sideways or back? 

It’s pointless playing wing backs because not one can beat a man or drive us forward. 

The front 5 were exactly the same too. No one drives into the box, takes on a shot, attacks the opposition. It’s all so safe, easy and boring.

Devine will never make a career playing in the premier league if he plays like he does for us. 

[Valiiant]

 

I know we weren't always great under Clarke. But does anyone think for a single moment we would have given such a feeble effort tonight under him? He would have had us ploughing into them all over the pitch.

Crosby is trying to be something he's not and will never be. How much longer do we have to endure his <ovf censored> for?

[headsup]

33 minutes ago, JoeB2 said:

My prediction of “the fans will somehow be at fault” has never been more quickly proven.

It’s becoming very enjoyable to play “how long will it take for someone to give the fans an e-kicking?”. Join us next week.

Please point out where in my post I said the fans were at fault, Joe? Of course they weren’t, football is played on the pitch and we were outclassed all over the park, but the fans were still objectively shocking. You can’t deny that. 

[sandyford_valiant]

I can’t figure out if we were poor as a lot have said in not having a go at them or we were just simply by far outclassed and out paced against a team so much quicker and better than us? These kind of games you need to stay in the game and have a solid start and before their deflection went on I thought we did just that. Then we never ever looked liked getting into the game, sadly. 
 

look how many times massey got a cross over and beat his man Saturday and the same for grant other side. Now tell me how many times they did that this evening? None. Is that because the opposition are just better and quicker. Sometimes you have to hold your hand up and say we were nowhere near close to them all game. Which shows you how big the gap is in nowadays. 

once again we end up with uche and loft leading the line tells it’s own story for me. 
 

we need some investment for sure in January or it’ll be very twitchy if we lose a couple over the Xmas period. 

[Vale Ball]

That's the most uninspiring, dull, boring attempt at a cup match I've ever seen, that 2nd half was embarrassing.



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[leedsvaliant]

Very disappointing effort in the end. In the first 25 minutes I thought they were very fortunate to be 2 up and were there for the taking. They were very quick and had a couple of very good players but when we put any pressure on them they looked ordinary. We needed to avoid the early goal as it knocked the stuffing out of the crowd.

Unfortunately the second half involved us watching and admiring them knock it about. It was a pretty pathetic effort. As others have said, we played our ordinary game and we're not good enough to beat better opposition playing like that...we're struggling to beat teams in our own league playing like that. We needed to turn it into a battle, blood and thunder cup tie. Instead it was like a training session.

Very disappointing effort. That Boro team is an average Championship team, yet we treated them like Man City.

[JoeB2]

I reckon we gave Man City (featuring Aguero, Foden, Stones, and David Silva) more of a fright under John Askey with the likes of Scott Burgess playing than we gave Boro tonight. 

[RayWalkers40yarder]

crosby close the door and take flitcroft with you on the way out. its not just that. money has clearly not been spent on the pitch and it shows. i feel really sorry for the youngsters having to watch that . embarassing

[Biddulph_PV]

4 minutes ago, Vale Ball said:

That's the most uninspiring, dull, boring attempt at a cup match I've ever seen, that 2nd half was embarrassing.



Sent from my SM-A217F using onevalefan mobile app
 

Absolute shambles. If the players had refused to come out after HT and simply forfeited the game, it actually would have done us all a massive favour. That says it all.

[ValeForever.]

15 minutes ago, SuperHuman said:

As I’ve said before, Crosby isn’t a typical Port Vale manager and the football he wants to play just isn’t us. Fans were attached to Clarke and Adams, but a lot of fans will never get that with Crosby.

We tried to out play a team that are simply better than us. We were never going to beat them at their own game.

I’m just disappointed we never made into a proper cup tie. It was pretty forgettable overall.

Spot on. We're now married to this way of playing, even in cup games against opposition who will football us off the park.

We needed to turn it into a battle tonight, in their faces, knock them about a bit. We're far too nice & we got punished. We were never ever winning that game with those tactics tonight.

Just want to get this one off my chest as well. We have some of the most brain dead fans I've ever come across. Not a single care for anybody in the world other than themselves.

Sat in the Hamil in what is usually the "family area" for league games. We have season tickets there. 3 young kids & an 89 year old. Everybody takes their seats to watch the game after kick off, bar 2 x lads about 6 rows from the back, just stood up on their own in the middle of a row with ppl sat down all around them. Not a care in the world. Basically daring for somebody to say something so they could kick off...

Then when asked to sit down, proceed to kick off around young kids & ask why we've sat where we're sitting if we want to be sat down. "QF of the cup & you're sat down". That's right you pair of bellends, with a 4 year old, 2 x 7 year olds & an 89 year old, where we sit every <ovf censored> week.

They eventually <ovf censored> themselves off after it was pointed out there was a standing section behind the goal. F'n & jeffin their way off. If you want to stand up that's fine, go & stand behind the goal. & if you can't get a ticket there, get a ticket on the back row, not in the middle of a block where everybody around you is sat down with good reason.

Bellends. <ovf censored> off.

[Vtid]

3 minutes ago, JoeB2 said:

I reckon we gave Man City (featuring Aguero, Foden, Stones, and David Silva) more of a fright under John Askey with the likes of Scott Burgess playing than we gave Boro tonight. 

we scored! it was something 

[sheffieldclayhead]

Just got back home to Sheffield and still pondering WTF was that performance. Yes boro were quicker, played better and generally showed the difference between L1 and the championship.

But why do we insist on sideways or backwards. How about take a shot outside the box or run into the box for once. What was their second goal apart from a gift.

Those tactics tonight beggars belief - sit back, don’t tackle, let them dictate and no plan b.

Time for a massive rethink - playing without strikers and wing backs who aren’t wing backs is not the way forward.

Massive let down for all the fans.

[RayWalkers40yarder]

31 minutes ago, Mellor! said:

I remember the Brentford game the other year where we lost 4-1. We lost by 3 goals like tonight but I came away from that game really pleased. We gave it a real good go, got in their faces, but their quality shone through. 4-1 flattered them. Tonight we did absolutely nothing. One shot on target floated into the keeperes hands. It took 80 minutes to get a real cup tie tackle in. It just wasn't good enough. The whole club has lost its edge after Darrell went. He got the fans, he got the area, look at the Swindon game, we would have been well up for tonight. Now we're just too nice. Play four passes in the corner then go back to Ripley. If that's good, entertaining football, I need to find a new game.

and this has been going on for 3+ months. its why i wanted him gone. and i got absolutely destroyed on here for saying so.

[JoeB2]

Debrah admitted the plan tonight was to play 'our way', 'through the thirds'.

We knew of this draw over a month ago, had loads of time to analyse and prepare for it, and decided we'd try and pass out from the back. It beggars belief.

Playing our way through the thirds has yielded 2 wins in 12 in League 1 - but let's crack on with it against a team a league higher who clearly play possession football. 

Tonight needed a front-footed aggressive style. Again, it's a common sense, gut instinct approach, which Crosby doesn't seem capable of. 

 

[Warren]

At a player by player level Middlesbrough had higher skill levels. It enabled them to play with the ball at higher pace and coordination. They also defended in every way better - though we were unlucky not to score first half.  They were a much better side I'm afraid. 

Deborah excelled for us tonight and is the only player at their level.