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Stockdale didn't hang around at the end, perhaps unsurprisingly. 1-0 gives the illusion that maybe it was close but it really wasn't. Nelson and O'Donnell did OK but that's about it, sadly it looks like a season too far for Hendo. Reasonably local for me, feel truly sorry for those that have travelled down from Lancashire because that was grim.
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 21:52 - Aug 16 with 3579 views
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 21:39 - Aug 16 by Yorkshire_Dale
Just remember, he is being paid handsomely for turning out this shite show.
...and there it is a fourth defeat in a row.
Irrespective of what he’s paid, he’s done his best and it hasn’t been good enough. There’s no need to take sticks to beat people with, the evidence is there.
I said before the last game he should get 10 games and we should not only be seeing an improving team but we'd need more than 10 points on the board.
Unfortunately I'm struggling to see much improvement after a brief upturn for a game and a half, 90 minutes of that being the cup match.
It's still early in the season and I don't think the board will make a rash decision. Every game is going to be big now but especially that home game against Crawley. And if he gets through that then the home game against Salford. If and it's a big if he makes it to the Salford game that's 8 games and you'd be wanting more than a point a game average. That's some turnaround needed to have more than 8 points!
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:00 - Aug 16 by dale1968
I never wish anyone to lose their job but Im sorry Robbie time to move on. That was worse than some of the Graham Barrow performances..
It had that Barrow feel by the end. When it’s desperate and you’re looking at a run by a central defender as a positive it’s time to accept that maybe things have come to a conclusion.
A genuine question should he go….based on what we have seen from the squad to date, have we actually go anything to work with to turn it around?
Henderson has been a passenger. Diagouraga appears a yard off the pace. Ball is one of the worst CM’s we have had. Kelly is still riding on the back of a decent highlights reel from Reading. Landell isn’t fit to lace O’Connells boots.
Ethan is our most gifted and ball playing midfielder and can’t get a look in. Chatman ended the season on a high having been treated like a dog until he got his chance and will be absolutely deflated following his treatment this campaign.
It all just looks and feels broken. I just worry it’s a big job to fix and who would actually take us on? If we leave it any longer, the gap will be even bigger and even less desirable. The board won’t sleep tonight and rightly so…
Swindon is the last chance saloon for Stockdale, a win or even a draw on Saturday would be something to build on, because there is only 2 points between us and Hartlepool who is four bottom. However I can see little in the team to suggest anything but another defeat. I know that RS will say he is frustrated and disappointed, the teams disappointed, etc, we have heard after every game. I like RS, but he seeks to lack ideas and the ability to change tack.
There is no game plan, most managers set out the team with a plan to stop the opposition and sneak a win. Why is Ebanks-landell not organising the defence, Odoh and Seriki are wingers, but they are not defenders, sign proper defenders. The midfield is dysfunctional and lack any ideas, Hendo feeds on scraps, but so far this season, he as not even had scraps, Rodney works hard and is our best player so far, I am not overly impressed by Sinclair. The lack of quality on the bench is also a worry. What was worse, even when got forward, we over passed the ball or tried to walk the ball into the goal, for example Kelly could have shot towards the end, but passed the ball instead and the chance was gone.
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:19 - Aug 16 with 2901 views
Where did it all go wrong! Started like a breath of fresh air and slowly eroded away to this. There not playing for him sadly, why we'll never know.. No more academy managers please, talk the talk but no walking the walk.
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:30 - Aug 16 with 2671 views
I think he will argue the Charman and Campbell injuries are costing us at the moment. I think its time to simplify and go to a back four and then 3 , 3. If we cant score goals we are going down again. Is he more worried (having apparently called in favours), about pleasing Leicester and West Brom than he is about fixing the tactics to be effective in L2? Everyone we play will toss high balls into the penalty area for 90 minutes if we don't cut off the supply and cant defend them. We have to put teams on the back foot and let the defence do their thing as best they can, I would rather lose every game 3-2 or 4-3 than watch 1-0 dross with no goals "for" Lets not go down whimpering for Christs sake, lets at least fight and start attacking,
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:31 - Aug 16 with 2629 views
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:23 - Aug 16 by borodale
Where did it all go wrong! Started like a breath of fresh air and slowly eroded away to this. There not playing for him sadly, why we'll never know.. No more academy managers please, talk the talk but no walking the walk.
Why does he struggle to change things. I mean even if he went to a four at the back it would be something even if it didn't work. Is he stubborn, does he think it sends the wrong message to his players. Does he not think it would make any difference
'Only happy when you've got it often makes you miss the journey'
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:31 - Aug 16 by James1980
Why does he struggle to change things. I mean even if he went to a four at the back it would be something even if it didn't work. Is he stubborn, does he think it sends the wrong message to his players. Does he not think it would make any difference
In a recent interview he stated that the wing backs helped us be really attacking. The fact we've scored 1 goal in 4 games says either their attacking input isn't good enough or their end product isn't being capitalised on. From what I've seen the former is more in play imo.
Might be an idea to let full backs be full backs and wingers be wingers rather than trying to mix the two. If they were that good at it, they wouldn't be playing at the bottom of league two in such a sought after position.
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:40 - Aug 16 with 2474 views
I actually don't think the defence was the problem tonight. Nelson was my man of the match and EEL and John also did well. Unfortunately the team didn't keep the ball, couldn't hold it up and any breakaway runs quickly subsided. We also gave away too many freekicks. This resulted in us being very deep and it's no miracle that under all that pressure we only lost one nil. The rest of the team owe that back 3 one because it should have been a mauling.
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:35 - Aug 16 by DaleFan7
In a recent interview he stated that the wing backs helped us be really attacking. The fact we've scored 1 goal in 4 games says either their attacking input isn't good enough or their end product isn't being capitalised on. From what I've seen the former is more in play imo.
Might be an idea to let full backs be full backs and wingers be wingers rather than trying to mix the two. If they were that good at it, they wouldn't be playing at the bottom of league two in such a sought after position.
If he thinks the only way to get the best out of this squad is playing wingback and making very little in game tactical changes that's very strange
[Post edited 16 Aug 2022 23:09]
'Only happy when you've got it often makes you miss the journey'
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:23 - Aug 16 by borodale
Where did it all go wrong! Started like a breath of fresh air and slowly eroded away to this. There not playing for him sadly, why we'll never know.. No more academy managers please, talk the talk but no walking the walk.
For me, when we stopped creating chances. RS came in and sold us expansive football on the front foot and entertainment. We did have a spell when we made a lot of chances. Now we make very few and convert even less.
Other than the ghost of Gordon Banks temporarily possessing O'Donnell's body, the evening was almost completely devoid of entertainment. Rodney looks like he might do ok with a better supporting cast. Disappointing to see Ibbi diving even though he at least put some effort in.
Another performance like that on Saturday and Robbie will get a very rough ride at Spotland. He will deserve it too based on what he has delivered. It's not good enough at any level unfortunately. 😕
I said before the game that Evans would have as good an idea as any manager of how to stop us playing and he did. By my reckoning that’s the last game and a half where we have been completely sussed out tactically and had nothing to answer back. It’s clear that opposition managers have realised that if they stop our wingbacks playing they stop us playing- partly due to negative tactics (2 defensive dms in the middle) and also poor recruitment (we can’t be expecting Tulloch/Sinclair to offer us a consistent threat through the middle.)
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:54 - Aug 16 with 2329 views
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 21:56 - Aug 16 by 442Dale
Irrespective of what he’s paid, he’s done his best and it hasn’t been good enough. There’s no need to take sticks to beat people with, the evidence is there.
Absolutely - he has always conducted himself professionally and from all accounts tried his best. He deserves respect even if the feeling is it is time for him to go.
There is a piece on the BBC rugby league web site about a top Australian rugby league coach who took his own life last week, he had a wife and two young kids.... a tragedy few of us can contemplate. A journalist came out at the weekend to apologise for a column he had written about another coach which on reflection he recognised was over the top.
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:56 - Aug 16 with 2303 views
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:40 - Aug 16 by boromat
I actually don't think the defence was the problem tonight. Nelson was my man of the match and EEL and John also did well. Unfortunately the team didn't keep the ball, couldn't hold it up and any breakaway runs quickly subsided. We also gave away too many freekicks. This resulted in us being very deep and it's no miracle that under all that pressure we only lost one nil. The rest of the team owe that back 3 one because it should have been a mauling.
The defence in general isn't the problem, from open play we haven't looked that vulnerable in any game and we wouldn't expect to keep loads of clean sheets away from home. The vulnerability is from set pieces that the manager won't change tactic on.
We have no throughput to the attack because our midfield is absolutely awful and doesn't have either any attacking sense nor a backbone.
I feel sorry for Rodney, he's been a rare glimmer of hope so far this season and has looked dangerous when given the ball. Henderson has been an effortless passenger.
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Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 23:12 - Aug 16 with 2130 views
Stevenage (a) Match Thread on 22:54 - Aug 16 by pioneer
Absolutely - he has always conducted himself professionally and from all accounts tried his best. He deserves respect even if the feeling is it is time for him to go.
There is a piece on the BBC rugby league web site about a top Australian rugby league coach who took his own life last week, he had a wife and two young kids.... a tragedy few of us can contemplate. A journalist came out at the weekend to apologise for a column he had written about another coach which on reflection he recognised was over the top.
Good post
There's not much more needs to be added to the debate about his tenure. It might've worked out for an inexperienced board with other mountains to climb, but it didn't. No reflection on them, providing the agony isn't prolonged any further. No reflection on Stockdale either, who like BBM will find a role in football where he can earn a good living for himself and his family and go home at night with a smile on his face
This isn't doing anyone any good, but thanks for trying Robbie