RFC - a total shambles

[RoyalBlue]

But the point you are mising is that it is clear that the club have been trying to fill those gaps and that, for whatever reasons, have not been able to attract the quality they would like within the budget set.

You either support the Board and the manager in carrying out that policy or you don't. I do.

But in the meantime giving the team anything other than 100% support for their honest endeavours seems futile and feeble. The players are only as good as they are, and, in my opinion they are good enough to stay up - just.

If we go down it just means they were not good enough to stay up, that's all - it doesn't mean that they gave less than 100%, it doesn't mean that the club is a shambles, that Coppell can't hack it when the pressure is on and all that rubbish.

There is a long-term financial plan here to ensure the long-term stability of the club. That works in the supporters favour as well as the owner. In times of financial instability and uncertainty, deviate from the policies that drive those plans at your peril - as I suspect the next few years will indicate to several recent / current Premier League clubs great cost.

Do you honestly think that supporters will suddenly turn up and boo the team and sing "sit down for Steve Coppell, he's not worth standing for" just because many of us can see that we're potentially heading for trouble? Your holier-than-thou attitude day in, day out on here is getting tedious and you quite obviously don't know our supporters as well as you seem to think you do. I'll be very surprised if I hear any sort of booing aimed in the direction of our team or manager at any upcoming game. Our support at the games is what counts to the players and management. If some of us wish to discuss our concerns on here, we'll jolly well do so, without having to put up with criticism from the likes of you.

Do me a favour will you? When you have a strong point to make, please don't use "jolly-well" in future - it just makes me laugh.

Do me another favour and read the content of the Team Board after and during recent defeats and tell me if that constitutes 100% support for their honest endeavours. I think not.

And tell me you have not heard booing and aggressive reactions to mistakes made by those players from the stands. And tell me you think that won't get more noticeable in the coming weeks if we do really get pulled into the mire. Sorry but that's just ostrich syle naivety.

Are you really suggesting that this team board should only contain 100% support for the team and their honest endeavours (as in the example you set with Lita , of course!)??

If so, time to shut up shop Graham!

[Royal Lady]

But the point you are mising is that it is clear that the club have been trying to fill those gaps and that, for whatever reasons, have not been able to attract the quality they would like within the budget set.

You either support the Board and the manager in carrying out that policy or you don't. I do.

But in the meantime giving the team anything other than 100% support for their honest endeavours seems futile and feeble. The players are only as good as they are, and, in my opinion they are good enough to stay up - just.

If we go down it just means they were not good enough to stay up, that's all - it doesn't mean that they gave less than 100%, it doesn't mean that the club is a shambles, that Coppell can't hack it when the pressure is on and all that rubbish.

There is a long-term financial plan here to ensure the long-term stability of the club. That works in the supporters favour as well as the owner. In times of financial instability and uncertainty, deviate from the policies that drive those plans at your peril - as I suspect the next few years will indicate to several recent / current Premier League clubs great cost.

Do you honestly think that supporters will suddenly turn up and boo the team and sing "sit down for Steve Coppell, he's not worth standing for" just because many of us can see that we're potentially heading for trouble? Your holier-than-thou attitude day in, day out on here is getting tedious and you quite obviously don't know our supporters as well as you seem to think you do. I'll be very surprised if I hear any sort of booing aimed in the direction of our team or manager at any upcoming game. Our support at the games is what counts to the players and management. If some of us wish to discuss our concerns on here, we'll jolly well do so, without having to put up with criticism from the likes of you.

Do me a favour will you? When you have a strong point to make, please don't use "jolly-well" in future - it just makes me laugh.

Do me another favour and read the content of the Team Board after and during recent defeats and tell me if that constitutes 100% support for their honest endeavours. I think not.

And tell me you have not heard booing and aggressive reactions to mistakes made by those players from the stands. And tell me you think that won't get more noticeable in the coming weeks if we do really get pulled into the mire. Sorry but that's just ostrich syle naivety.

I use "jolly well" rather than swearing at you. I read and contribute to the Team board after and during recent defeats - my point was that it is perfectly acceptable to air our grievances on here, which is what this board is also here for, and that supporters, in general, don't wait until the next game to shout a few obscenities at players/management. I haven't heard booing of our players, but I have heard moans when a pass goes awry or someone misreads a ball - and it's quite acceptable to do so isn't it? It may get more noticeable in the coming weeks 2if we get pulled into the mire" and those supporters who do it, will IMHO, be fully justified to do so. And please stop patronising me.

[winchester_royal]

If we could bring in someone who would have, say, Hunt's kind of influence on our team no doubt we would. But players like Hunt can't be bought, not even from cheapskate clubs like Reading.

PNE have a right winger really similar to Hunt, 22yo Simon Whaley. Whenever I've seen him on tv he always looks lively and energetic, and is a good finisher with either foot.
Middlesbrough and Portsmouth have been linked with £2M mentioned, but nothing seems to have materialised.
We are desperate for a right winger and I think we should make an offer.

a bit more quality would be nice

players with more quality demand quality wages... maybe we need to continue signing players that we can develop the quality in.

Too bad the academy hasn't proved a success.

if the academy is going to be a success then academy graduates need to be given a chance

the fact that DLC and Gunnar were picked out of position a CB, when Pearce (arguably our most exciting prosect ever) is fit and raring to go sends out an extremely negative attitude to the academy

it was the same for the liverpool CC game when SC picked Halls, a complete failure at this level who was about to go out on loan anyway, instead of Henry

Until coppell starts giving young players like pearce and henry a chance in the first team, then the academy will continue to be an expensive failure

[holsgrove breaks a leg]

Well so much for the 'over reaction' thread on hob nob because quite frankly anyone who thinks there isnt cause for concern now must be completely blinkered. Praise must go to a strong Villa outfit- Laursen was a man mountain, Young a terrific winger and Agbonlahor and Carew a constant menace. However i keep mentioning it like a scatched record but niavety alone is costing us massively- defending as a unit has been an utter shambles from top to bottom. Doyle was constantly out hussled and looked a shadow of his usual self (more of that later) whilst guna at CB and mid offered no protection or inventive play what so ever. Ingi was exposed time and again and looks way out of his depth. The system Coppell played was similar to that v Spurs and i do have time for the man marking formation but against top four teams away only not Villa where we just went into our shell. DLC for me did all he could to cover for the hapless ingi and guna when cross field balls were being pinged from everywhere. The utter lack of pace of ingi and guna at the back was frankly embarrasing and serves to remind that in Sonko,Duberry and Bikey we have CB's who can compete far better at this level.

I fully agree Sonko has been shocking recently but an injury like his is bound to affect mobility and pace- when he comes back im hopeful it will be regained. Sonko quite clearly has the pace and strength that Ingi and Guna have never had which is exposed time and again. FWIW i cannot believe Coppell didnt give Pearce his debut, a young lad full of energy and of considerable height which was needed. Yet time and again Guna and Ingi keep their place when in my mind they have reached the end of the road. I think Cisse showed glimpses of skill and promise yesterday but he must be kept at CM. Doyle needs a rest, he is hard working but is clearly a man short of confidence in front of goal - Lita should now bw given his opportunity. Come the Chelsea game it is likely we could be hovering around the relegation zone- we need to shake the current side up. If this means taking the likes of Ingi and Guna out of the team then so be it.

[Riseley]

I think I will join the Royal Rother fraternity and only offer my away support from the comfort of my keyboard in future. It is so much easier to be positive when it does not take the whole of your day and all of your disposable income to support in the depressing flesh.

[brendywendy]

Well so much for the 'over reaction' thread on hob nob because quite frankly anyone who thinks there isnt cause for concern now must be completely blinkered. Praise must go to a strong Villa outfit- Laursen was a man mountain, Young a terrific winger and Agbonlahor and Carew a constant menace. However i keep mentioning it like a scatched record but niavety alone is costing us massively- defending as a unit has been an utter shambles from top to bottom. Doyle was constantly out hussled and looked a shadow of his usual self (more of that later) whilst guna at CB and mid offered no protection or inventive play what so ever. Ingi was exposed time and again and looks way out of his depth. The system Coppell played was similar to that v Spurs and i do have time for the man marking formation but against top four teams away only not Villa where we just went into our shell. DLC for me did all he could to cover for the hapless ingi and guna when cross field balls were being pinged from everywhere. The utter lack of pace of ingi and guna at the back was frankly embarrasing and serves to remind that in Sonko,Duberry and Bikey we have CB's who can compete far better at this level.

I fully agree Sonko has been shocking recently but an injury like his is bound to affect mobility and pace- when he comes back im hopeful it will be regained. Sonko quite clearly has the pace and strength that Ingi and Guna have never had which is exposed time and again. FWIW i cannot believe Coppell didnt give Pearce his debut, a young lad full of energy and of considerable height which was needed. Yet time and again Guna and Ingi keep their place when in my mind they have reached the end of the road. I think Cisse showed glimpses of skill and promise yesterday but he must be kept at CM. Doyle needs a rest, he is hard working but is clearly a man short of confidence in front of goal - Lita should now bw given his opportunity. Come the Chelsea game it is likely we could be hovering around the relegation zone- we need to shake the current side up. If this means taking the likes of Ingi and Guna out of the team then so be it.

not sure how an away defeat at villa constitutes that reaction

what the feck did you expect?

[Alan Partridge]

Well so much for the 'over reaction' thread on hob nob because quite frankly anyone who thinks there isnt cause for concern now must be completely blinkered. Praise must go to a strong Villa outfit- Laursen was a man mountain, Young a terrific winger and Agbonlahor and Carew a constant menace. However i keep mentioning it like a scatched record but niavety alone is costing us massively- defending as a unit has been an utter shambles from top to bottom. Doyle was constantly out hussled and looked a shadow of his usual self (more of that later) whilst guna at CB and mid offered no protection or inventive play what so ever. Ingi was exposed time and again and looks way out of his depth. The system Coppell played was similar to that v Spurs and i do have time for the man marking formation but against top four teams away only not Villa where we just went into our shell. DLC for me did all he could to cover for the hapless ingi and guna when cross field balls were being pinged from everywhere. The utter lack of pace of ingi and guna at the back was frankly embarrasing and serves to remind that in Sonko,Duberry and Bikey we have CB's who can compete far better at this level.

I fully agree Sonko has been shocking recently but an injury like his is bound to affect mobility and pace- when he comes back im hopeful it will be regained. Sonko quite clearly has the pace and strength that Ingi and Guna have never had which is exposed time and again. FWIW i cannot believe Coppell didnt give Pearce his debut, a young lad full of energy and of considerable height which was needed. Yet time and again Guna and Ingi keep their place when in my mind they have reached the end of the road. I think Cisse showed glimpses of skill and promise yesterday but he must be kept at CM. Doyle needs a rest, he is hard working but is clearly a man short of confidence in front of goal - Lita should now bw given his opportunity. Come the Chelsea game it is likely we could be hovering around the relegation zone- we need to shake the current side up. If this means taking the likes of Ingi and Guna out of the team then so be it.

not sure how an away defeat at villa constitutes that reaction

what the feck did you expect?

It was the manner and total inevitability of it all that makes it so depressing. Villa really weren't that good yet eased to a 3-1 scoreline.

[Gordons Cumming]

I like Ivar alot but was embarrassed at his obvious ball watching that left him exposed to prevent Villa's 3rd goal.

He's been doing that, amongst others, alot recently.

It's not just down to his lack of pace.

[Alan Partridge]

I like Ivar alot but was embarrassed at his obvious ball watching that left him exposed to prevent Villa's 3rd goal.

He's been doing that, amongst others, alot recently.

It's not just down to his lack of pace.

He had an awful start to the season, came back and did pretty well but has been below average in the last few games and was abysmal yesterday. Easiest game Carew has had all season and but for an incorrect offside flag he'd have had a hattrick.

[brendywendy]

the manner of our away defeat?
its the same manner as most of the others aint it?
seems like it to me

if anything over december we started to look a different prospect, and picked up some good points
the spurs game really knocked it out of us, and we lost some players to the acn
and massive surprise returned to usual away form
itll get better in feb

FFS chill
reality check needed for the kneejerks

[Alan Partridge]

the manner of our away defeat?
its the same manner as most of the others aint it?
seems like it to me

if anything over december we started to look a different prospect, and picked up some good points
the spurs game really knocked it out of us, and we lost some players to the acn
and massive surprise returned to usual away form
itll get better in feb

FFS chill
reality check needed for the kneejerks

Kneejerks?? Reading haven't won away all season and have conceeded 32 goals in the process? That's a body jerk!!!

Have you ever visited planet Earth brendywendy?

[brendywendy]

the manner of our away defeat?
its the same manner as most of the others aint it?
seems like it to me

if anything over december we started to look a different prospect, and picked up some good points
the spurs game really knocked it out of us, and we lost some players to the acn
and massive surprise returned to usual away form
itll get better in feb

FFS chill
reality check needed for the kneejerks

Kneejerks?? Reading haven't won away all season and have conceeded 32 goals in the process? That's a body jerk!!!

Have you ever visited planet Earth brendywendy?

blah blah blah
moan moan moan
doom, gloom

you sound like an old woman

fulham have won a grand total of about three away games in five years, yet managed to establish themselves here

maybe you should be transported to another planet
earth would be better off without you


away form is what you need to get top half

[Alan Partridge]

quite agreed, an easy home win against Man Utd then Chelsea away doesn't matter.

You need points wherever, home or away. Relying on home results then we get duffed by Portsmouth, marvellous.

To steal a line of Blackadder.

'That's the spirit, if nothing else a total pig willingness to look facts in the face will see us through'

[rg6royal]

As long as we gain points at home then we will be fine.....i still think and havn't changed my mind that we will definately stay up.

[brendywendy]

quite agreed, an easy home win against Man Utd then Chelsea away doesn't matter.

You need points wherever, home or away. Relying on home results then we get duffed by Portsmouth, marvellous.

To steal a line of Blackadder.

'That's the spirit, if nothing else a total pig willingness to look facts in the face will see us through'

lol

[Cookie]

to support in the depressing flesh.

I can't cheer you up Riseley, but here's a flesh coloured bikini supporting some rather less depressing flesh.

[Cookie]

quite agreed, an easy home win against Man Utd then Chelsea away doesn't matter.

You need points wherever, home or away. Relying on home results then we get duffed by Portsmouth, marvellous.

To steal a line of Blackadder.

'That's the spirit, if nothing else a total pig willingness to look facts in the face will see us through'

Hey that made me laugh mate, but this is what you mean isn't it?
"That's the spirit, George. If nothing else works, then a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through."

[RoyalBlue]

I like Ivar alot but was embarrassed at his obvious ball watching that left him exposed to prevent Villa's 3rd goal.

He's been doing that, amongst others, alot recently.

It's not just down to his lack of pace.

He really was awful for that third goal. You can see him looking back over his shoulder at Carew, yet despite the fact that he was our nearest defender and there were no other Villa players free, he did nothing to pick him up. Only when the ball reached Carew did he make a last minute and vain attempt to close him down.

He was also the defender who lost his man for the second goal scored from the corner.

These mistakes from the only specialist and experienced PL centre half we had available!

[papereyes]

Two thoughts:

1) Yes, we shouldn't be expected to get wins to teams pushing for Europe and tough game saway from home and I never expected much from Dec-Jan the moment the fixtures came out.

However, what this throws into sharp contrast is the Bolton, Fulham and Sunderland games (and to some extent Birmingham and Middlesboro') where we lost all three. We had the wins around them to keep us out of the pack but we'd lost to three of our rivals. Lost and played poorly.

And, at the time, we had 'over-reaction' threads, the typical denialist approach that we simply could not discuss those results as poor results because we were 12th/13th (so the low points total was ignored). That's 5 of our rivals played, 6 games and we've won 1 of those games and drawn two. That simply was not good enough then and not good enough now.

2) Why were we ever in a position where we had one fit centre-back? Even with the ACN (which is in the calendars for a good couple of years), we shouldn't be left with only two centrebacks so that when one gets injured we play a centre mid and a right back in defence.

That's poor planning, regardless of who does it and, IMO, is a situation we should have avoided.

[Alan Partridge]

quite agreed, an easy home win against Man Utd then Chelsea away doesn't matter.

You need points wherever, home or away. Relying on home results then we get duffed by Portsmouth, marvellous.

To steal a line of Blackadder.

'That's the spirit, if nothing else a total pig willingness to look facts in the face will see us through'

Hey that made me laugh mate, but this is what you mean isn't it?
"That's the spirit, George. If nothing else works, then a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through."

That's the one, did it from memory, i wasn't too far off.