My Half Full Glass Appears to be Half Empty

[Franchise FC]

I am usually a half-full sort of guy, but what I've just seen is extremely worrying.

1. I don't believe Newcastle are that good, but were easily too good for us on the day - it may be that this was just 'one of those days' but it didn't feel like it
2. Sorry Shane, but 1 up front using Shane Long is not going to work - he works very hard, but hasn't got the stickability necessary for that roile
3. Anyone that thought that Coppell had no Plan B needs to have a quick look at where we were today - does anyone see what Plan A was ? I accept that it's only one performance.
4. I'm struggling to think of too many good performances (Federici, Karacan, anymore anyone ?) Under normal cicumstances I;d put that down to 'one of those days', but there didn't seem to be any clues that there might be better to come
5. Sorry Jimmy, but Kebe is not the answer - and I'm not even sure what the question is
6. Confidence after today will take some repairing - we haven't exactly got an easy ride ove the next month and I can see a long winter ahead of us

I'd really like to get my glass refilled !!

I HOPE I'M WRONG ON ALL COUNTS

[Barry the bird boggler]

The beer's slightly cheaper in Newcastle.

[brendywendy]

seriously worried by the bemused look on brendans face in the second half
body language was shocking

[I was there at Elm Park]

seriously worried by the bemused look on brendans face in the second half
body language was shocking

Body language shocking!? From what I saw he looked very thoughtful and later in the game very angry, certainly not bemused. What do you want his body language to be?

[brendywendy]

well....i saw some shrugging, drooped shoulders,confused looks, and a bemused looking frown
that could have been him looking "angry" but it didnt look it to me

[Deathy]

seriously worried by the bemused look on brendans face in the second half
body language was shocking

Body language shocking!? From what I saw he looked very thoughtful and later in the game very angry, certainly not bemused. What do you want his body language to be?

Ripping his suit off, stood only in his Superman pants, jumping up and down on his suit Basil Fawlty style.

[brendywendy]

yeah, or that

[Rax]

I'm seriously worried - so many 'weak links' today - Begs the question why were we so adamant that Coppell should have left? He did after all get us into the play offs.

Kebe - easy to knock the guy, but was seriously off the pace today....
Tabb - Invisible save for one excellent piece of tracking back
Long - Woeful - please just accept that on his own up front does not work
Rosy - Usual inconsistent self...
Church - did nothing all game..


Positives? Fedders looked good today, we were the victim of some awful refereeing again (Smith should have gone without question and that could have changed the game....) Bertrand looked quite useful as did HRK and Hunt when they came on - but if BR does not get to grips with this team we could end up being the next Norwich or Charlton.

[Franchise FC]

I'm seriously worried - so many 'weak links' today - Begs the question why were we so adamant that Coppell should have left? He did after all get us into the play offs.

Kebe - easy to knock the guy, but was seriously off the pace today....
Tabb - Invisible save for one excellent piece of tracking back
Long - Woeful - please just accept that on his own up front does not work
Rosy - Usual inconsistent self...
Church - did nothing all game..


Positives? Fedders looked good today, we were the victim of some awful refereeing again (Smith should have gone without question and that could have changed the game....) Bertrand looked quite useful as did HRK and Hunt when they came on - but if BR does not get to grips with this team we could end up being the next Norwich or Charlton.

Excellent - you've reminded me of the positives :

Yes - Smith should have gone and that would have changed the game
Nolan was a mile offside when he chased the ball down for their second
Shane was a little unlucky with the pen

[The whole year inn]

IBegs the question why were we so adamant that Coppell should have left? He did after all get us into the play offs.

we didnt all want him to leave

[Northern Git]

I'm seriously worried - so many 'weak links' today - Begs the question why were we so adamant that Coppell should have left? He did after all get us into the play offs.

Kebe - easy to knock the guy, but was seriously off the pace today....
Tabb - Invisible save for one excellent piece of tracking back
Long - Woeful - please just accept that on his own up front does not work
Rosy - Usual inconsistent self...
Church - did nothing all game..


Positives? Fedders looked good today, we were the victim of some awful refereeing again (Smith should have gone without question and that could have changed the game....) Bertrand looked quite useful as did HRK and Hunt when they came on - but if BR does not get to grips with this team we could end up being the next Norwich or Charlton.

Excellent - you've reminded me of the positives :

Yes - Smith should have gone and that would have changed the game
Nolan was a mile offside when he chased the ball down for their second
Shane was a little unlucky with the pen

Oh come on. That is really scraping the barrel. Awful refs etc is bollocks
A Newcastle team tonked 1-6 by Orient two weeks ago.
Players that have struggled to put a pass together
Club in turmoil, widely described as a disgrace by both the local and national press.
Fans ready to rip into them and the Chairman.
We turn up, make them look like world beaters, and manage to play the whole 90 minutes without once troubling their goalkeeper.
Comedy defending, new Captain to busy gobbing off to realise the ball is still in play, Rosenior putting huge efforts into pointing and shouting but little else, over run midfield and a strike force (?) that seemingly cannot control a ball and create a scoring opportunity.
Lots of euphoria after the win against Burton on Tuesday, I would suggest that the gap between Reading and a poor Newcastle team is the same as the gap between Reading and Burton – huge.

[From Despair To Where?]

Just got back from the game. Very bemused by Rodgers' team selection today. Davies and Karacan in central midfield against experienced players like Barton and Smith and Nolan? Big mistake. Surely would have made more sense to either have Harper starting or Mills at the back and Cisse in midfield. We were completely overrun. Nice passing moves in our own half but nothing over the half way line. Solid but toothless first half, clueless and toothless second half. We made a desparately mediocre Newcastle side look like world beaters today. Maybe Smith could or should have been off but that does not excuse a really shit performance.

Yes, we desparately need an out and out striker in the squad and I know it's early days but the way we played, it's like the second coming of Tommy Burns, pretty passing moves but no cutting edge and a tendancy to roll over and fall to pieces when put under the cosh. One half decent chance in 180 minutes of league football. Not good enough.

[Challisman]

Reality check guys, as much as I was the first peron cursing like a complete twat infront of all my customers in a busy Worcester pub which I run (bunch of Wolverhampton, Villa and Birmingham) I know as much as you do how much it hurt today. First half, we really did not look that far off the pace & I personnaly was looking forward to us pushing forward and really going for it in the second. Hopefully we can address these shortcomings and sign the couple of players to compliment this emerging team that we have. God it really hurts me how we seemed to fold today but the season is young and so much could happen with a few calmer, experienced heads out there.

[Archie's penalty]

1. Cissé is not good enough. We have seen this for ages now. Why the hell should he suddenly be trusted as a key player in the side? GET RID!!
2. I agree that playing a youngster midfield against Smith, Barton and Nolan was a huge mistake.
3. We don't really have an established striker, and certainly nobody that can offer a physical presence in the classic sense, and of the smallish strikers we have it seems none of them have that killer touch. Bring back Jimmy Quinn.
4th and last: please, let us sign some reinforcements, pleeease.

+1 on all fronts.

[Dick Habbin's hairdo]

I'm seriously worried - so many 'weak links' today - Begs the question why were we so adamant that Coppell should have left? He did after all get us into the play offs.

Kebe - easy to knock the guy, but was seriously off the pace today....
Tabb - Invisible save for one excellent piece of tracking back
Long - Woeful - please just accept that on his own up front does not work
Rosy - Usual inconsistent self...
Church - did nothing all game..


Positives? Fedders looked good today, we were the victim of some awful refereeing again (Smith should have gone without question and that could have changed the game....) Bertrand looked quite useful as did HRK and Hunt when they came on - but if BR does not get to grips with this team we could end up being the next Norwich or Charlton.

+1 - and saves me typing all that above. Not that anyone will read it.

Even I - but I am sure not Vision - was prepared to give Kebe a second chance but I'm afraid the summer has done nothing to improve the giraffe on crack's coordination or vision.... or, indeed, his ability to go past a player, or cross, or shoot.

[Mr Optimist]

I think I must definitely be in the minority but I did not think yestrerday was that bad.

First half up until their goal we looked the better side with a team of kids who up until that point did not look out of place, all looked comfortable on the ball. Their v expensive and experienced midfield were being shown up against some slick passing from us, what is missing is a cutting edge in the final third.

I do not think we are that far away and it amazes me the composure on the ball that this team has already at this stage of its development.

It will be a steep learning curve but if we need to learn from yesterday and move on. Add a couple of experienced players - winger and a mobile forward, Ingi back along side Pearce at the back, and we will be comfortably mid table or higher.

Not many give us a chance of automatic this season so realistically we could afford a dozen losses and still be in the play offs!!

May be I am mad or hopelessly optimistic but if Brendan continues with the progress he has made already with the resources at his disposal we will be fine.

Still not happy to lose to a play off bound Newcastle but its not doom and gloom....

[Murts-is-Lej]

I'd pretty much agree with most of the positives and negatives stated so far. Some of the youngsters are going to make the step up from their lower League loans and some wont. I don't think BR knows which yet so it will take a few months to find out. If there's enough that do helped by just enough experience left behind (Tabb, Armstrong, II, Marek, Gunnar, Noel etc) then we should be fine. I'd be happy with a season of "consolidation" rather than seeing this lot thrown to the wolves (no, not Wolves!) in the Prem...

That said, is it just me or does it look like we're going to concede a headed goal every time there's a corner or free kick? It looked that way during the Chelsea match but at the time I put that down to the Prem quality we were up against. However, it was the same against Newcastle and they could have had 3 or 4. When our wingers and full-backs were on fire (dreams of Murts/Little and Shorey/Convey!) we were doing the same at the other end but that seems to have dried up these days.

[79Royal]

That said, is it just me or does it look like we're going to concede a headed goal every time there's a corner or free kick? It looked that way during the Chelsea match but at the time I put that down to the Prem quality we were up against. However, it was the same against Newcastle and they could have had 3 or 4. When our wingers and full-backs were on fire (dreams of Murts/Little and Shorey/Convey!) we were doing the same at the other end but that seems to have dried up these days.

We definitely do, but to be fair we are not a very big side and we have a makeshift CB pairing at the moment. Pearce lost his man for the first two goals, leaving Bertrand for the first and Rosenoir for the second competely exposed. Cissé was also partly at fault for the second. Hopefully we'll get better when Ivar and Mills are both fit. That of course doesn't mean that we won't concede if we don't start stopping the supply from the wings and for that to happen, our full backs need help from Kebe and Church, which didn't happen nearly enough yesterday.

Lots to work on in training this week.

[From Despair To Where?]

1. Cissé is not good enough. We have seen this for ages now. Why the hell should he suddenly be trusted as a key player in the side? GET RID!!

I thought Cisse was one of our better players yesterday, although, I saw the game without the benefit of replays and was suffering from altitude sickness at the top of the Edmund Hilary Stand.

My point was that he can tackle and is reasonably comfortable on the ball so maybe bringing Mills in at the back and sticking him in midfield to add some experience would have been a good option for this particular game.

[Irvinchangeyaname]

Was Mooney unavailable? People speak of our need for an out-an-out striker and he is one. OK, he's not the finished article by a long shot but at lease we'd have a chance of having a shot on target from one of our many squandered corners.