| How do we get back on track? 21:05 - Feb 12 with 8295 views | Greenbay |
It's taken several hours to sort of recover from such a disappointing defeat at Barnsley.
On the match thread (FT REPORT page 12 @1711) nothing has changed - and what everybody else largely mentioned during a tough afternoon.
It was a terrible performance - not that we didn't try - we did - but our skill levels were awful.
The first thing is - to get back on the winning road - we have to be truthful.
And to Warbs credit - he doesn't hide - his post-match interview was spot on.
No cover-up - he said what it is - we were not good enough.
What Warbs, Hoos and Ferdinand have done AND the Board members - over nearly 3 years - is given us hope. Too much hope.
We have over-achieved - by a long way.
It's remarkable that the club has cut costs - millions of pounds - and improved our position every year. That's in addition for the directors keeping the club alive by pumping in - is it one and a half million a month?
When Warbs took over as manager we had just avoided relegation. We finished 19th.
The next year we were 13th and last year 9th.
Now we're in a promotion play-off spot of fourth.
Last August if anyone had said that on February 12 2022 we would be in 4th spot and five points clear of the 7th placed club - I'm sure most of us would have been happy with that.
Clever buying, smart loans-in - have played their part - and all with such a small budget.
We are really a small club - but credit to everyone at HQ.
We are punching well above our weight.
Who would want to follow a big Premiership club - with all their millions - instead of our highs and lows at QPR. It's so much more fun - and painful at times too.
So why do we have these amazing runs and then fall flat on our face against lower clubs - like Peterborough and Barnsley?
Our strength is our togetherness with some exceptional talent in Willock and Chair along with some good quality all around the park.
Our weakness IMO is our attack. Can you imagine how well we would be doing with say a Mitrovic. I know - it's impossible to acquire someone like that - but just a thought.
What we lack is pace.
No pace up front. The only pace we have is from our wonderful Uncle Albert.
Remarkable with his poise, balance and speed - at this Championship level and at the age of 34.
What pace do we have in midfield - Chair and Willock of course - and also Thomas - but it seems at the moment - his skill levels are below those outstanding two.
Defence has much improved but we are not the fastest of hares out of the traps.
But now for the next 16 matches we've got the squad that hopefully will take us to the Promised Land - and the money that will benefit us in the long run - regardless whether we become as most likely - a yoyo team - like Norwich.
The major thing we do have is the togetherness of our squad.
And this has been created by Warbs - respect for one another and work hard for one another.
What perhaps worries me is that the loan acquisitions in the transfer window of Sanderson and Hendrick might have upset the apple cart.
Warbs says we have to have competition for places. But before these two very good players arrived we were doing ok. It takes time for players to adapt to a new club and new surroundings.
So in this special situation where our pre-transfer window players had done really well and for the whole season - I question whether to acquire these loan players has been beneficial.
But I do understand the reasons why - quality players - ready in case of injuries and suspensions.
The only way though that we will achieve promotion - and that's a massive IF - is to recapture that togetherness and energy - and then deliver on the field - as if our lives depended on it.
We have to be over-achieving for the rest of the season.
We have to be better than the sum of our parts.
It didn't happen against Peterborough, Middlesbrough or Barnsley.
Hope we recapture that energy and resume our winning ways at Milwall on Tuesday.
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| How do we get back on track? on 17:47 - Feb 13 with 2198 views | Phil_i_P_Daddy |
| How do we get back on track? on 08:13 - Feb 13 by Logman |
I agree with the OP. I also don't think Luke Amos will make much difference.
To be honest our hopes of a top six finish rely on Chair, Willock and Dykes being fit. If ever we lose any of those three then any points are a bonus. |
Personally, I wouldn’t rely on Dykes to find his arse with either hand.
Unfortunately, NONE of our strikers can be relied on, as evidenced by them being continually rotated. |  |
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| How do we get back on track? on 18:02 - Feb 13 with 2154 views | ParkRoyalR |
| How do we get back on track? on 17:47 - Feb 13 by Phil_i_P_Daddy |
Personally, I wouldn’t rely on Dykes to find his arse with either hand.
Unfortunately, NONE of our strikers can be relied on, as evidenced by them being continually rotated. |
They are not continually rotated, unless you are referring to the rotation of who plays 2nd striker when either Willock or Chair are unavailable.
Dykes is 1st choice, and with regards who plays the 2nd striker role, seems Warburton has a preference for Gray over Austin, however difficult the obvious is for some of our fans to accept.
Out of the Scottish Leagues, a significant step-up in level, on probably less than a sixth of their combined wages and still required to play week-in week-out. We're certainly getting our value per minutes played out of Dykes, compared to the other two. This will be even more the case now with the realisation playing 1 upfront is our best option, given the alternatives. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 18:03 - Feb 13 with 2153 views | QPROslo |
| How do we get back on track? on 22:58 - Feb 12 by superhoopdownunder |
We’ve lost our way since Reading.
What’s changed?
We’ve dropped Luke Amos.
Chris Willock has been injured.
Chair and Dieng have returned.
We’ve loaned Hendrick and Sanderson.
Hendrick has been playing although he only had 70 minutes play all season before joining us.
Has this impacted our harmony in the dressing room?
People at the club have been speaking about promotion.
I’d suggest not talking about promotion.
Making sure everything is good amongst the playing group.
I’d bring back Amos and Willock (if fit for Millwall)
Play one up front probably Dykes
Drop Moses bring back Albert
Drop one of the defenders and play Sanderson.
We’ve lost our way in the past week and need to bounce back and fast as otherwise we won’t stay in the top 6. We have quite a few difficult games to go - Barnsley was not meant to be one of them. |
I wouldn't drop Moses. He played with more confidence yesterday, had the beating of the back and got some decent crosses in. Lost the ball a couple of times in dangerous situations but defended well otherwise. He has the speed we lack. I'd rest Wallace who hasn't been at his best and play Moses at LWB. Albert should play of course. We also looked a lot better late on when we went 4 at the back Barbet LB, with Moses at RB and Uncle at RW combining well together. A change in formation for the odd game would also make us less predictable for Opposition who are working out how to beat us.
I'd give Sanderson a chance at RCB soon too. Dickie has not been playing at quite the level he was | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 19:51 - Feb 13 with 2028 views | daveB |
That was our first league defeat since December 27th so I don't think anything drastic has to change |  | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 21:06 - Feb 13 with 1930 views | Myke |
One thing we need to do is avoid a 'knee-jerk' reaction, which is why I waited till I calmed down a bit before posting. Yesterday, I was beyond disgusted and not good company to be around. I was disgusted with our home defeat to Derby last season when there was nothing riding on it, and this was right up in terms of how I felt full time.
But a glance a t the league table and another glance at the recently published accounts emphasise how far we have come in extraordinary circumstances and one crap result against a poor team doesn't change that. This league, as we know, is full of such results. Last week we were crowing over Swansea beating Blackburn and earlier this season Blackpool brought Fulham's blinding start to the season to a crashing halt with a 1-0 win and came agonisingly close to repeating that against the second best team yesterday.. If you are not bang at it in every game, any team can punish another - yesterday, for whatever reason, we were nowhere near being bang at it.
So to answer the OP's question, I would say, keep doing what we have been doing all season. No need to change anything yet. Blackburn are in a slump, but no panic. Bournemouth are trying to buy their way out of a very mediocre run of form. It has already being forgotten as they disappear over the horizon,but Fulham went six games in December,early January without a win. Our only 'blip' so far, was losing two home games in a row. TWO! We have been remarkably consistent throughout the season and there is no reason why that can't continue,by us continuing to do what we are doing.
Of course there can be tweaks, maybe bring back Seny, maybe give Dickie a rest for Sanderson, certainly give Amos more game time. Although on that last point, while I do agree Amos should be on the pitch more since Reading, I don't accept, as has been whispered, that Hendrick is somehow responsible for our slump. AS a RoI fan,I can tell you that not only is Hendrick a decent player (VERY decent at this level) but also a top bloke, who will integrate himself very well back into the squad, not upset it in any way.
For the first time all season Warburton has a fully fit squad to choose from and that brings its own challenges. Logically, if all our players are fit, then we should be at our strongest, but it is not that simple. When players are suspended/injured/ill/unavailable and the squad is small, there is no juggling of ego's about who makes (or doesn't make) the match day squad. But now, players who were integral to the platform that we have given ourselves in the first half of the season - like Dozzell for example - have suddenly being jettisoned , and that is a huge part of Warburton's job to keep that sense of togetherness and harmony that is often spoken about as one of our greatest strengths. Seny,guaranteed No1 before he goes off to AFCON, suddenly finds himself replaced by a guy who wasn't even at the club when he left - how does he feel about that? So competition for places is critical, I get that, but keeping everyone happy could be the real key to keeping the wheels on our little bus running smoothly. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:03 - Feb 14 with 1732 views | Rangersw12 |
| How do we get back on track? on 21:06 - Feb 13 by Myke |
One thing we need to do is avoid a 'knee-jerk' reaction, which is why I waited till I calmed down a bit before posting. Yesterday, I was beyond disgusted and not good company to be around. I was disgusted with our home defeat to Derby last season when there was nothing riding on it, and this was right up in terms of how I felt full time.
But a glance a t the league table and another glance at the recently published accounts emphasise how far we have come in extraordinary circumstances and one crap result against a poor team doesn't change that. This league, as we know, is full of such results. Last week we were crowing over Swansea beating Blackburn and earlier this season Blackpool brought Fulham's blinding start to the season to a crashing halt with a 1-0 win and came agonisingly close to repeating that against the second best team yesterday.. If you are not bang at it in every game, any team can punish another - yesterday, for whatever reason, we were nowhere near being bang at it.
So to answer the OP's question, I would say, keep doing what we have been doing all season. No need to change anything yet. Blackburn are in a slump, but no panic. Bournemouth are trying to buy their way out of a very mediocre run of form. It has already being forgotten as they disappear over the horizon,but Fulham went six games in December,early January without a win. Our only 'blip' so far, was losing two home games in a row. TWO! We have been remarkably consistent throughout the season and there is no reason why that can't continue,by us continuing to do what we are doing.
Of course there can be tweaks, maybe bring back Seny, maybe give Dickie a rest for Sanderson, certainly give Amos more game time. Although on that last point, while I do agree Amos should be on the pitch more since Reading, I don't accept, as has been whispered, that Hendrick is somehow responsible for our slump. AS a RoI fan,I can tell you that not only is Hendrick a decent player (VERY decent at this level) but also a top bloke, who will integrate himself very well back into the squad, not upset it in any way.
For the first time all season Warburton has a fully fit squad to choose from and that brings its own challenges. Logically, if all our players are fit, then we should be at our strongest, but it is not that simple. When players are suspended/injured/ill/unavailable and the squad is small, there is no juggling of ego's about who makes (or doesn't make) the match day squad. But now, players who were integral to the platform that we have given ourselves in the first half of the season - like Dozzell for example - have suddenly being jettisoned , and that is a huge part of Warburton's job to keep that sense of togetherness and harmony that is often spoken about as one of our greatest strengths. Seny,guaranteed No1 before he goes off to AFCON, suddenly finds himself replaced by a guy who wasn't even at the club when he left - how does he feel about that? So competition for places is critical, I get that, but keeping everyone happy could be the real key to keeping the wheels on our little bus running smoothly. |
Hendrick hasn't been great in the two games he has played and from what I've seen he doesn't really add anything to the team that we haven't got already
I hope he doesn't start on Tuesday [Post edited 14 Feb 2022 10:14]
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| How do we get back on track? on 10:19 - Feb 14 with 1701 views | Wegerles_Stairs |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:03 - Feb 14 by Rangersw12 |
Hendrick hasn't been great in the two games he has played and from what I've seen he doesn't really add anything to the team that we haven't got already
I hope he doesn't start on Tuesday [Post edited 14 Feb 2022 10:14]
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And Amos had been great against Reading.
What pisses me off is our failure to sign an attacking player with pace in the window. Look at Bournemouth on Saturday - Dembele got the winner. And yes, I am fully aware of our financial situation compared to them, FFP, Uncle Tom Cobley, etc. But we should have signed someone to make a statement and show that we are serious about going up. I can see this season falling apart, Willock going in the summer and the excitement of competing for 16th place again next season. Our window smacked of lack of ambition. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:25 - Feb 14 with 1693 views | CliveWilsonSaid |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:03 - Feb 14 by Rangersw12 |
Hendrick hasn't been great in the two games he has played and from what I've seen he doesn't really add anything to the team that we haven't got already
I hope he doesn't start on Tuesday [Post edited 14 Feb 2022 10:14]
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I think Hendrick looks decent but hasn’t been great so far as you say. I agree that he doesn’t really add anything different but I do think that he gives us the option of pushing Johansen forward if needed. As we didn’t succeed in signing another forward. |  |
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| How do we get back on track? on 10:42 - Feb 14 with 1657 views | daveB |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:19 - Feb 14 by Wegerles_Stairs |
And Amos had been great against Reading.
What pisses me off is our failure to sign an attacking player with pace in the window. Look at Bournemouth on Saturday - Dembele got the winner. And yes, I am fully aware of our financial situation compared to them, FFP, Uncle Tom Cobley, etc. But we should have signed someone to make a statement and show that we are serious about going up. I can see this season falling apart, Willock going in the summer and the excitement of competing for 16th place again next season. Our window smacked of lack of ambition. |
Was it really a lack of ambition? They did try to sign several players but couldn't afford the ones we wanted. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:43 - Feb 14 with 1652 views | Rangersw12 |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:19 - Feb 14 by Wegerles_Stairs |
And Amos had been great against Reading.
What pisses me off is our failure to sign an attacking player with pace in the window. Look at Bournemouth on Saturday - Dembele got the winner. And yes, I am fully aware of our financial situation compared to them, FFP, Uncle Tom Cobley, etc. But we should have signed someone to make a statement and show that we are serious about going up. I can see this season falling apart, Willock going in the summer and the excitement of competing for 16th place again next season. Our window smacked of lack of ambition. |
Your post clearly shows you don't understand the financial situation at all. If we went out and spunked loads of cash and still didn't go up we would be in a far worse position.
Here it is black and white. Our wage bill compared to the others
Don't be scared of selling players we've got better with every single sale for the last 3/4 years
[Post edited 14 Feb 2022 10:54]
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| How do we get back on track? on 10:55 - Feb 14 with 1626 views | nix |
| How do we get back on track? on 10:43 - Feb 14 by Rangersw12 |
Your post clearly shows you don't understand the financial situation at all. If we went out and spunked loads of cash and still didn't go up we would be in a far worse position.
Here it is black and white. Our wage bill compared to the others
Don't be scared of selling players we've got better with every single sale for the last 3/4 years
[Post edited 14 Feb 2022 10:54]
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Exactly.
Just look at the accounts thread.
Our board definitely backed the management team last summer. If we get in the play offs it will be a significant achievement. We're still well below the budgets of many of the teams below us.
We keep telling the board to put their hands in their pockets, but are all of the fans paying for streams, coming to matches, buying shirts, buying programmes, buying over priced cups of watery tea? It's got to be a group effort. Not everyone can afford to do it/logistically get to games but all those that can are all part of the solution. |  | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 11:55 - Feb 14 with 1566 views | daveB |
should be pointed out it's only a week since the board was full of posts worrying about what happens when we go up, things change very quickly in football. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 14:39 - Feb 14 with 1453 views | PinnerPaul |
| How do we get back on track? on 21:32 - Feb 12 by Toast_R |
10/5 most places.
I went in for a crazy acca with Barnsley, So'ton to beat Man united and Fulham to win. Almost |
Yes despite the reaction we were available at odds against.
So not quite Liverpool/Man City levels of dead certs. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 14:43 - Feb 14 with 1448 views | PinnerPaul |
Interesting question.
Would love to see how MW DOES get back on track.
He seemed quite angry in offy interview, when Nick suggested the "move on to the next one" approach - he didn't want to just brush the defeat under the carpet.
Not exactly loads of time to over analyse Saturday, so do you scream and shout, keep calm, make wholesale changes to team/formation , stick with what has got us here?
We all have an opinion, but think/hope we can mostly agree there is no easy/magic solution. | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 14:43 - Feb 14 with 1448 views | PinnerPaul |
| How do we get back on track? on 22:00 - Feb 12 by PlanetHonneywood |
Forgive my naivety but is that not 2-1? |
Yep! | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 14:49 - Feb 14 with 1434 views | PinnerPaul |
| How do we get back on track? on 11:51 - Feb 13 by ParkRoyalR |
Agree, Barbet (since his injury) and Dickie (maybe since Bournemouth) have been much more conservative in travelling with the ball and drawing an opposition midfielder on to them,
One of the biggest frustrations and stand-outs from yesterday was this and trying to break through their two banks of four, too easy to pass all the responsibility to Moses to do this and Adomah when he came on. Easy to criticize Moses when he loses possession but Barbet and Dickie need to be braver on the ball. |
Good last point. Thought that for some time re Barbet.
If he moved forward, gives the oppo down that side a decision to make, close down him and therefore you have one less player nearer to Willock, or let him advance into a more dangerous area, always thought he doesn't make the oppo make that decision nearly enough - even when we are doing well.
Andy S has mentioned it in commentary previously as well, so not all my (mad) idea! | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 14:58 - Feb 14 with 1421 views | PinnerPaul |
| How do we get back on track? on 21:06 - Feb 13 by Myke |
One thing we need to do is avoid a 'knee-jerk' reaction, which is why I waited till I calmed down a bit before posting. Yesterday, I was beyond disgusted and not good company to be around. I was disgusted with our home defeat to Derby last season when there was nothing riding on it, and this was right up in terms of how I felt full time.
But a glance a t the league table and another glance at the recently published accounts emphasise how far we have come in extraordinary circumstances and one crap result against a poor team doesn't change that. This league, as we know, is full of such results. Last week we were crowing over Swansea beating Blackburn and earlier this season Blackpool brought Fulham's blinding start to the season to a crashing halt with a 1-0 win and came agonisingly close to repeating that against the second best team yesterday.. If you are not bang at it in every game, any team can punish another - yesterday, for whatever reason, we were nowhere near being bang at it.
So to answer the OP's question, I would say, keep doing what we have been doing all season. No need to change anything yet. Blackburn are in a slump, but no panic. Bournemouth are trying to buy their way out of a very mediocre run of form. It has already being forgotten as they disappear over the horizon,but Fulham went six games in December,early January without a win. Our only 'blip' so far, was losing two home games in a row. TWO! We have been remarkably consistent throughout the season and there is no reason why that can't continue,by us continuing to do what we are doing.
Of course there can be tweaks, maybe bring back Seny, maybe give Dickie a rest for Sanderson, certainly give Amos more game time. Although on that last point, while I do agree Amos should be on the pitch more since Reading, I don't accept, as has been whispered, that Hendrick is somehow responsible for our slump. AS a RoI fan,I can tell you that not only is Hendrick a decent player (VERY decent at this level) but also a top bloke, who will integrate himself very well back into the squad, not upset it in any way.
For the first time all season Warburton has a fully fit squad to choose from and that brings its own challenges. Logically, if all our players are fit, then we should be at our strongest, but it is not that simple. When players are suspended/injured/ill/unavailable and the squad is small, there is no juggling of ego's about who makes (or doesn't make) the match day squad. But now, players who were integral to the platform that we have given ourselves in the first half of the season - like Dozzell for example - have suddenly being jettisoned , and that is a huge part of Warburton's job to keep that sense of togetherness and harmony that is often spoken about as one of our greatest strengths. Seny,guaranteed No1 before he goes off to AFCON, suddenly finds himself replaced by a guy who wasn't even at the club when he left - how does he feel about that? So competition for places is critical, I get that, but keeping everyone happy could be the real key to keeping the wheels on our little bus running smoothly. |
What a very sensible post THAT is!
Thanks | | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 15:36 - Feb 14 with 1385 views | TheChef |
The other issue as such, based on the formation we play, is it's quite difficult (and inevitably more expensive) to buy wing backs 'off the shelf'. Instead you're more reliant on converting wingers or full backs to play that position, and that doesn't happen overnight unfortunately and isn't guaranteed to be successful either. |  |
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| How do we get back on track? on 17:56 - Feb 14 with 1301 views | rbee |
I was reading before Saturday's game how Barnsley had lost their previous six league matches and were without a win in 13 so all of the hallmarks were there for Benevolent Park Rangers to show up.
We weren't really at it from the start so it was disappointing for me that nothing really changed throughout the ninety minutes and our substitutions were more or less like for like.
A change of formation would have been worth a try or the introduction of Thomas. I am no great fan of George Thomas as we haven't seen that much of him but his pace could have caused Barnsley problems if we had put him out wide and given him the ball, just try something different.
You need players in your squad like Tony Scully and Kevin McLeod with genuine pace to alter the course of a game. |  | | |
| How do we get back on track? on 23:32 - Feb 14 with 1186 views | Greenbay |
With another result going our way West Brom drawing 0-0 with Blackburn this Monday night - looking back on this thread - with many solid contributions - one of the several things to help us progress to the Promised Land - was a nice piece by Myke.
It finished with Warbs Warburton "keeping everyone happy could be the real key to keeping the wheels on our little bus running smoothly."
Agreed we are a 'little bus' and that's why we we are overachieving - by a long long way - for all the reasons stated.
This season has been so remarkable despite these disappointing setbacks.
So - as many people have mentioned - let's enjoy the ride.
A win at Milwall this Tuesday night will put us in third place.
Unbelievable! | | | |
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