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Thread | Goalkeepers playing out from the back
at 15:55 14 Aug 2023
Perusing the football highlights this weekend I was struck by incident after incident after incident in games at all levels with goalkeepers time after time giving away goals or near misses by trying to be too clever in trying to pass to their own defenders in and around the box.
I couldn't even begin to count the number of identical incidents, and it has always struck me as the complete and utter nonsense of this 'play out from the back 'stuff starting from a goalkeeper who isn't good enough to play professional football as an outfield player yet is either expected to or takes it upon himself to try and be the next Bobby Moore.
Never better illustrated of course than incident after incident created by goalkeepers under the Russell Martin regime at Swansea.
I've genuinely never understood why as stated above, goalkeepers not good enough with their feet to play out of goal are being expected to play out from the back causing utter chaos amongst their defenders who are immediately put under pressure by their delighted opponents.
Thats not to say that I expect to see keepers just banging every ball upfield without weighing up the options for passing nearer to the box, but surely anything less than a simple pass to a defender in plenty of space should be despatched upfield at a rate of knots?
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Thread | Welcome win but not convincing
at 13:33 1 Jan 2023
I realise that this opinion is going to make me rather unpopular and I'm sure that we all appreciated a 4-nil win to give the club a first win in nine games current record.
But having watched the game up to the 70th minute until I had to leave for other matters I thought that the Swans performance was pretty poor, mundane at best, the usual dross at worst.
I thought that a dreadful Watford side exposed every limitation that the Swans team is capable of during the first 15 minutes or so with several of our players reduced to basically wrestling Watford players from behind as they waltzed pass our own with embarrassing ease.
Any half competent side against us would have almost put the game to bed in their favour before Piroe's first goal.
I do realise that a 4-0 win against a highly placed team after weeks of complete and utter dross mingled with horrendous defensive mistakes is to be welcomed but feel that the wave of euphoria generated may well be short lived unless of course the 20 minutes of the game that I missed revealed new previously hidden talents and style that I hadn't spotted in the first 70 minutes.
A quick glance at the Watford message board shows that 63% of contributors had the Swans down for a win beforehand with the vast majority of comments even more scathing about their team and manager that even those displayed on here about Martin and our team.
Am I alone in being a touch cautious although naturally hopeful about our sudden anticipated revival?
To be fair my view of the game may have been coloured by the laughing fit that I was still undergoing after hearing Mr Martin's interview on the radio transmitted shortly before kickoff that surely contained the comedy quote of the decade Which went something like this :-
I'm fed up of us losing and the other side saying that we were the best side that they'd played all season
Possibly the tears of laughter were still affecting my subjective view of what was after all a very welcome 4-0 win
[Post edited 1 Jan 2023 13:43]
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Thread | How do you choose a manager?
at 13:12 10 Aug 2022
So just out of interest.
I must confess that I watch names of players and managers that I've never heard of bandied about by members of this forum who appear to know in fine detail the history and qualities of those who are touted to join the club.
I assume this professed knowledge must come from those who are more obsessed or diligent than myself in studying every single aspect of the European and British game perhaps helped by FIFA whatever computer games.
Whereas I vaguely hear of names here and there because frankly I can't be bothered to delve further and have other interests than totally immersing myself in the national and international game and I judge players, managers and coaches on my perception of their performances when they pitch up at the Swans and after I've watched them a number of times.
I do admit that when I heard of Mr Martin being linked with the Swans and that his previous club were Milton Keynes my first thought was..Weren't Milton Keynes pretty rubbish last season? But to be honest I couldn't even be bothered checking up on that assuming that we wouldn't be appointing someone with a less than stellar managerial record.
What I can't understand given the numerous posts listing Russell Martins previous managerial history at Milton Keynes in regards to average points gained and league finishing positions which appear to be fairly less than impressive to say the least, is what actually attracted the Swansea City ownership team to employ the guy in the first place?
I'm struggling to see exactly what demonstration of managerial ability sent the message...We've got to get this guy...He can drive us on to greater things.
So what exactly was running through the minds of the Swansea board as they pursued their dream choice to fill the managerial position?
Have I missed something and there was actually a frisson of excitement circulating throughout the league over the potential of Russel Martin as a manager and we were the first club to step in and snap up such an exciting talent?
Because I've never really understood the appointment in the first place. |
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Thread | Having seen the highlights
at 13:02 7 Nov 2021
Of yesterdays match I think that I'd just release the entire defence immediately on frees.
I don't think that I've ever seen a more abject display of aimless, unconcerned, lethargic wandering about.
I'm not convinced that some of them even knew that they were on a football pitch in the middle of a game as opposed to a club employee day out stroll in the countryside.
[Post edited 7 Nov 2021 13:28]
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Thread | Come back Freddy
at 14:15 9 Aug 2021
He might have been the master of laying down on the ground very very slowly and gently with an outstretched arm well after the ball had gone past him into the net.
But after reviewing the performance of our latest keeper Woody seems almost Gordon Banks like in comparison. |
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Thread | Woodmans not exactly a world beater is he?
at 19:52 2 Jan 2021
Most teams seem to have fairly competent keepers, and most professional keepers will have a decent amount of fantastic saves in them on occasion as does our Freddy. The better standard of keepers clearly perform better on a more consistent basis than the also rans.
But I'm afraid the word 'ordinary' is the very best I can come up with to describe Woodman, surely it can't be that difficult to find a reasonably priced keeper who does the basics and reasonably straight forward saves on a regular basis with the odd sterling performance thrown in, as opposed to being beaten time after time by the most pedestrian of shots from distance on a fairly regular basis. [Post edited 2 Jan 2021 19:52]
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Thread | Now I'm no fan of Aaaron Banks
at 12:41 2 May 2020
But I'm a touch surprised that those inflicted with Brexit Derangement syndrome, BDS, who have been running about and screaming 'It was the Russians wot dunnit' for the last 4 years didn't feel moved to highlight this piece of news from a couple of days ago.
I'm sure that some will take the opportunity to apologises to Mr Banks here in recognition of their false hysteria.
A touch unfortunate of course that yet again a substantial chunk of our taxpayers money will be handed over to settle up the legal bills, money which could and should be spent on more necessary things and which really should be paid by the individuals who raised the case.
https://order-order.com/2020/04/29/breaking-aaron-banks-wins-electoral-commissio
[Post edited 2 May 2020 12:43]
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Thread | 13,000 NHS letters sent to old or wrong addresses Maybe I have the answer why
at 15:51 17 Apr 2020
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-52283236
Twice now in recent years the Welsh NHS have sent appointment letters to old addresses of mine despite being supplied with my correct current address by my GP referring me for a consultant appointment. This resulted in me patiently waiting two years once for an appointment only to discover when enquiring what was happening that the NHS had removed me from the waiting list for 'Failing to turn up for an appointment'
So there I was waiting more than patiently I'm sure that you will agree, for two years for an appointment on a list that I wasn't even on. I played hell at that time as you can imagine even having a meeting with three senior managers at Llandough hospital in Penarth who apologised profusely and were unable to give a reason as to why this happened.
Due to this as I was convinced that this wouldn't be an isolated case over the years I have advised all and sundry to check that they were on the waiting lists that they thought they were and several have come back to me having discovered exactly the same thing that they had been struck off waiting lists for not turning up to appointments that they knew nothing about because the appointment letters had been sent to old addresses despite current addresses being supplied by their GPs to the Welsh NHS.
To add insult to injury we then have to regularly witness Welsh government idiots and senior Health service managers pop up in the media whining about patients not bothering to turn up for appointments and wasting scant resources when in fact we have no idea how many missed appointments are purely down the Welsh NHS administrative incompetence actually wasting those scant resources.
To cap it all the same thing happened to me yet again not long before the lockdown an appointment letter turned up at an address that I briefly lived at 10 years ago and it only reached me because the present occupant knew me and got in touch.
After requesting a meeting with senior managers at the Heath Hospital in Cardiff they revealed that their IT systems were so inadequate that even though they received current address details from GPs, if old addresses had been left on the system then the Welsh IT system automatically overrides the current address that is punched in on receipt of the GPs referral and sends out appointments to patients old addresses ( I have this in writing and on the CD copy of the transcript of the meeting supplied to me)
To compound the problem, the system initially sends out the confirmation of receipt of GP referral to the correct current address just to lull patients into a false sense of security that their address details are held correctly but the duff IT system bizarrely then overrides that address when the appointment letter gets sent out so it wouldn't even do you any good to check that they have the correct address details because they would confirm that they had and the system would then eventually override those details at the appointment letter stage.
Obviously this doesn't happen in every case buts evidenced by my own experiences and those people who I know and mention above that have taken my advice to check if they are still on a waiting list and found out that they have been removed also in similar circumstances then I have always known / suspected that there is a major fault with the Welsh NHS administrative appointments system but obviously have also never known the full extent of the problem.
The alarming bit is that the managers at the meeting I attended who had identified the IT problem when I requested that they immediately demand that the IT department sort the 'Glitch' out meekly response with 'it doesn't really work like that but we will ask them to have a look at it.
Ask them! Ask them! I would have thought that they should already have been in the IT office raging at the IT manager demanding that its sorted out on the spot. But my impression was very much Ce La Vie so I don't expect anything has changed.
If this has happened to me twice in recent years and others that I know, how big exactly is this problem and how many people are missing appointments that they knew nothing about, having their medical details shared with unsuspecting householders living in these patients old addresses and how many people are patiently waiting for appointments with consultants but have actually been removed from those lists without their knowledge?
So the lists given by the Welsh NHS to Local Authorities who are administering the vulnerable peoples lists may well wrong and full of inaccuracies through no fault of the individuals expecting to be on them.
Btw when inquiring about the latest foul up in my case the administrative staff initially tried to blame me for moving and not updating my address after referral. I had to point out that I hadn't moved in years.
[Post edited 17 Apr 2020 16:24]
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Thread | DVLA query
at 15:02 14 Apr 2020
Don't know if any of the DVLA bods on here are able to answer this query from someone on a motor forum that I frequent.
Understandably the chap has been having a bit of trouble getting a response through the normal channels. His query is:-
"Is there any way of tracing the owner of a particular reg plate?
Been looking for a personal plate the perfect plate would be D34NNA. Looking it up it's registered to a 1987 Austin, most likely the original plate that car was registered with. However the car hasn't been MOT'd since 1998.
Does anyone know if there is any way of tracing the owner of the plate? Assuming the car still exists. And if the car is scrapped, is it still possible to purchase the reg from DVLA?
Thank you for any advice that may be forthcoming |
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Thread | Time for a return to a UK wide NHS
at 13:39 31 Mar 2020
If ever those incompetent fools in the laughably titled Welsh Assembly Government have been exposed for the waste of spaces that they are then it is now.
I travelled up to the Heath hospital yesterday to get some urgent medication for a kidney patient in Penarth whose dialysis has been delayed, The medication was only available from the pharmacy there and had been picked up by the staff at the kidney treatment department who had no way of getting the medication to the person in need, the person in need contacted me after mentioning that they had no idea who to turn to or who to ring for help.
Upon speaking to the staff up the Heath when collecting the items I mentioned that surely what was needed was a couple of people in an office who held the contact details of all the volunteer organisations and individuals who were ready to help and had come forward in order that Doctors nurses and those in need could ring up explain the delivery requirement and that central office could contact the nearest local group or individual eager to help in order that medicines, emergency food supplies etc etc can be distributed and delivered.
They told me that they had been asking for such a facility for days now but had been ignored and also had not received any communication whatsoever in regards catering for such scenarios.
just look at the difference in the volunteering websites provided by the English NHS and the joke site highlighted by the Welsh government after being pressed as to why they had not followed the
English model
https://www.goodsamapp.org/NHS
Welsh joke site
https://volunteering-wales.net/vk/volunteers/registration.htm
This is just their general volunteering for beach cleaning, hedge cutting along country paths site with an uninformative pathetic unclear Covid-19 bit tacked on which basically tells you nothing and has provided nothing in the way of assistance to our medical professionals and their patients as my experience yesterday proves.
If ever there was a case for a return to a real UK national Health service and the scrapping of the shambolic money generating piggy bank for the Welsh AMs their families and political cronies that is the Welsh assembly then this is it. [Post edited 31 Mar 2020 13:45]
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Thread | DVLA
at 11:26 1 Mar 2020
So had one of those amazing conversations with a government body Friday which I find hard to get my head round.
Now I have to say that my experiences with the DVLA over the years have been pretty good with the odd minor exception but Fridays conversation with D*** surname can't be given ( despite them asking for my full name) from team 35 sums up for me why so many of the public have lost faith with the authorities.
The scenario is that I have been contacted by a number of local residents who have reported a dumped car in their close, the car is shown as being been declared SORN on the .GOV website. The car has been on the public road since October and has been reported both in December and January on the DVLA's anonymous reporting facility on their website with nothing happening in regards the removal of the car.
I suppose like most people including those who had reported the car previously it was imagined that one of those roving DVLA clamping vans.would be provided with the details and either fairly immediately or when next in the area would drive to the location and clamp the car.
So after checking the facts I called up the DVLA to see what was going on, or not as the case is at present.
I won't relay all the almost bizarre conversation with D*** from team 35 but the crux of the conversation went something like this after I enquired as to why the car had not been clamped or removed
DVALA....Sir the car or any other vehicle in a sorned category on the public road will be clamped if one of our vans come across it when in the area.
Me...Yes but that's unlikely as the car is in a small close well into an estate, and surely given that you have the details of the cars location then those details are passed onto the operative of one of your vans for checking out?
DVLA.....Sir when we receive reports from our tip off website facility the current registered keeper of the vehicle of the car is sent a letter telling them to take the car off the public highway.
Me...I see so presumably then the keeper / owner of this car must have ignored two previous letters from the previous two reportings to you? So why haven't you sent a van round to clamp the car?
DVLA....Our vans only clamp cars that they come across whilst patrolling the streets.
Me....What are you talking about? So you clamp cars that the vans stumble across but just send letters to those that are reported by the public despite the DVLA being in full possession of the cars location and despite the public being urged report such vehicles by the DVLA?
DVLA... That's right sir.
Me.... Buts that's nonsensical, those who aren't reported but are caught on the road are clamped but those whose locations are known to you just get a letter to remove the vehicle from the roads despite the fact that it might not be taxed and is shown as having no MOT which I also understand invalidates any insurance policy?
DVLA... Sir the car is Sorned which means it is licensed.
Me....What does that even mean? Presumably its licenced to be on someones drive not the public highway.
DVLA...Sir a Sorned car is licensed vehicle.
Me.... Well can you tell if the car is even taxed or not or if letters actually have gone out on the two previous occasions that the car was reported to you?
DVLA....We're just a call centre we don't hold that information.
ME...Well can you pass me over to someone who can provide more information as to why a reported sorned vehicle owner is just sent a letter whilst a vehicle stumbled across by chance gets clamped and possibly towed away.
I'd have thought it preferable and more time productive to go straight to those vehicles whose location has already been provided by the public and what do you suggest that we do to get the car either made legal for road use or taken away?
DVLA...No you'll have to contact your MP if you wish to to take this any further.
Phone put down in disbelief by myself.
[Post edited 1 Mar 2020 12:27]
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Thread | For the pious anti gambling mob
at 14:20 4 Mar 2019
I note that the 'You never see a poor bookie' adage has taken a bit of a knock this week with William Hills announcement of a £722m loss for 2018.
I will consider a conditional acceptance of an apology from the beeding hearts on here who were quite adamant that myself and others were just winning off other mug punters rather than gaining a certain degree of satisfaction of rinsing the bookies on a reasonably regular basis. |
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