BFTG Sheffield Utd

[Forest Gump]

It was poor and Stam must go but fair play to him for being a man and facing Tim, Ady and Mick after the game. Can't have been easy and I felt for him. He really did want to succeed here.

His tone is so different then even a few weeks back. When we lost to Wednesday in the cup he was almost bullish however now he just seems lost, deflated and beaten.

He'll be gone tomorrow, and rightly so, he's made too many mistakes however I hope he does well at his next club, wherever that might be.

If he quits now and we survive I might be able to wish him well.
But if we get relegated it will be 100% down to his sheer bloody mindedness and incompetence.

[JR]

So comments on a variety of subjects:

1) Slagging off the team selection - don’t be so stupid to slag Stam off for this. He clearly would have picked Barrow had he been fit - he confirmed afterwards he wasn’t.

2) Players don’t care - this is always a nonsense argument. As well as the “do they understand what it means to play for the badge”. They do care, they are just not playing very well or gelling as a unit.

3) Shooting ourself in the foot by playing around at the back - just getting embarrassing - Stam pretends it’s not instructions but it must be

4) Attendance figure - this has got to be an error by the club - all football clubs do based on tickets sold - I.e. including all season tickets

5) Sheff Utd 3rd goal - a bloody disgrace - I would be ashamed if we benefited from such gamesmanship

6) Jaap Stam’s PMI - his willingness to be sacked worries me. If I was in his position I would come out fighting and fight me corner. Which I think is still a winnable argument but he does not want to fight it

7) If he goes it must be an external appointment - Gilkes would take us down

Why oh why can’t we take penalties - Bacuna never looked like a safe bet. Surely Chris Martin has a good pen record?

9) Our senior physio/fitness team needs to be looked at - I hear murmurings that this is bringing down the club and Jaap is hamstrung as a result

10) To finish on a positive - this is going to be a really nerve wracking and exciting last couple of months of the season - let’s hope it ends with joy rather than despair. Better to nearly go down, create momentum with a squeaky survival and late run, than to be in mid table obscurity.

[windermereROYAL]

So comments on a variety of subjects:

1) Slagging off the team selection - don’t be so stupid to slag Stam off for this. He clearly would have picked Barrow had he been fit - he confirmed afterwards he wasn’t.

2) Players don’t care - this is always a nonsense argument. As well as the “do they understand what it means to play for the badge”. They do care, they are just not playing very well or gelling as a unit.

3) Shooting ourself in the foot by playing around at the back - just getting embarrassing - Stam pretends it’s not instructions but it must be

4) Attendance figure - this has got to be an error by the club - all football clubs do based on tickets sold - I.e. including all season tickets

5) Sheff Utd 3rd goal - a bloody disgrace - I would be ashamed if we benefited from such gamesmanship

6) Jaap Stam’s PMI - his willingness to be sacked worries me. If I was in his position I would come out fighting and fight me corner. Which I think is still a winnable argument but he does not want to fight it

7) If he goes it must be an external appointment - Gilkes would take us down

Why oh why can’t we take penalties - Bacuna never looked like a safe bet. Surely Chris Martin has a good pen record?

9) Our senior physio/fitness team needs to be looked at - I hear murmurings that this is bringing down the club and Jaap is hamstrung as a result

10) To finish on a positive - this is going to be a really nerve wracking and exciting last couple of months of the season - let’s hope it ends with joy rather than despair. Better to nearly go down, create momentum with a squeaky survival and late run, than to be in mid table obscurity.

Have to agree with with number 4. there was almost certainly quite a few more than 6700 there tonight.

[Zip]

I thought the gate was around 9000 to 10,000 tonight. The East Stand was reasonably well populated although the West Stand was sparse. The lower part of the ED Stand was sparse too.

[strap]

Have to agree with with number 4. there was almost certainly quite a few more than 6700 there tonight.

Tax dodge? I recall in the dim mists of time such shenanigins regarding "official" attendance figures. Not necessarily by RFC you understand.

Which raises a question that has always bothered me. Does the attendance figure include season ticket holders who have not turned up? Presumably not.

As for revenue, the club will submit their annual returns including all ticket income, whether or not season ticket holders actually turn up or not. So logically my question is nonsense, but thought I'd ask anyway.

[JR]

I’ve checked my own question for point .

Chris Martin has a horrific pen record - only scored 11 out of 20 in the Championship!

So why oh why do we never bring players in at Reading that can score free kicks or penalties?!

[JR]

Have to agree with with number 4. there was almost certainly quite a few more than 6700 there tonight.

Tax dodge? I recall in the dim mists of time such shenanigins regarding "official" attendance figures. Not necessarily by RFC you understand.

Which raises a question that has always bothered me. Does the attendance figure include season ticket holders who have not turned up? Presumably not.

As for revenue, the club will submit their annual returns including all ticket income, whether or not season ticket holders actually turn up or not. So logically my question is nonsense, but thought I'd ask anyway.

It is widely accepted and acknowledged that attendance figures published on the day of games are based on tickets sold - i.e. including season tickets.

Which is why tonight’s attendance is so odd!

[windermereROYAL]

I’ve checked my own question for point .

Chris Martin has a horrific pen record - only scored 11 out of 20 in the Championship!

So why oh why do we never bring players in at Reading that can score free kicks or penalties?!

Kelly has never missed one 2/2, but before tonight neither had Bacuna. I actually thought it was a good pen, right in the corner , keeper made a very good save.

[Dr_Hfuhruhurr]

It is widely accepted and acknowledged that attendance figures published on the day of games are based on tickets sold - i.e. including season tickets.

Which is why tonight’s attendance is so odd!

It not law in the Championship, though. Its up to the club.
The first thing I noticed when I checked the score this morning was the attendance. If Reading DIDNT use tickets sold, then where did the figure come from? Perhaps it came from the Turnstiles, in which case there was really less than 7k there. What do people who went feel? Was the stadium more than a quarter yet less than a third full?
I appreciate it was cold, but it was a very telling turn out.

[double d]

Wasted 45 minutes of my life there. Left at ht. Chucked my st away somewhere in a bush. I do not see myself ever going back. I will get a Crawley st next year when I move.

Good riddance you feeble sorry excuse for a supporter - if only this post was the truth!

Does feel like there needs to be a double d 24/7 IP watch

Good riddance to me too. I will gladly leave this shambles of a team behind. For all I care we are going down and this season we deserve it. If brum and Sunderland we not so diabolocal, we would be bottom 3 by now for at. I am moving house soon and Crawley will welcome me with open arms

[John Madejski's Wallet]

It is widely accepted and acknowledged that attendance figures published on the day of games are based on tickets sold - i.e. including season tickets.

Which is why tonight’s attendance is so odd!

It not law in the Championship, though. Its up to the club.
The first thing I noticed when I checked the score this morning was the attendance. If Reading DIDNT use tickets sold, then where did the figure come from? Perhaps it came from the Turnstiles, in which case there was really less than 7k there. What do people who went feel? Was the stadium more than a quarter yet less than a third full?
I appreciate it was cold, but it was a very telling turn out.

I would say 6700 was pretty spot on tbh

People thinking there were more than 10,000.....cant see it myself. Only compared to the 'total sold' we normally get

[windermereROYAL]

It is widely accepted and acknowledged that attendance figures published on the day of games are based on tickets sold - i.e. including season tickets.

Which is why tonight’s attendance is so odd!

It not law in the Championship, though. Its up to the club.
The first thing I noticed when I checked the score this morning was the attendance. If Reading DIDNT use tickets sold, then where did the figure come from? Perhaps it came from the Turnstiles, in which case there was really less than 7k there. What do people who went feel? Was the stadium more than a quarter yet less than a third full?
I appreciate it was cold, but it was a very telling turn out.

I would say 6700 was pretty spot on tbh

People thinking there were more than 10,000.....cant see it myself. Only compared to the 'total sold' we normally get

Well if that doesnt send a clear message to the owners nothing will.

[Hound]

I don’t think it was especially telling. It came off the back of probably the best game of the season entertainment wise on Saturday, and off a couple of ok draws. It really was very cold, and that is the main reason the attendance was so low

Going back a couple of posts in terms of team selection. I appreciate Barrow was injured and Swift correctly not risked, but the set up was still wrong. Playing Joey is never the correct decision and Clement over Evans or Edwards was a very poor decision

Could still have set up 4-4-2 or 4–3-3 with the players available. The players looked utterly confused first half by the system and we had Zero width

[Delboy]

If we stay up with Stam, how many season tickets will we sell next season. Regardless of where we finish he has to go !

[Winston Biscuit]

6,769 including 700+ from Sheffield (decent travel)

#iwasthere

[Old Man Andrews]

6,769 including 700+ from Sheffield (decent travel)

#iwasthere

#METOO

[Winston Biscuit]

It is widely accepted and acknowledged that attendance figures published on the day of games are based on tickets sold - i.e. including season tickets

nope. only some clubs do that

Which is why tonight’s attendance is so odd!

nope. see above.

[RoyalBlue]

Absolutely dire. I have never left a game early like that before but it was pointless staying. Even with the best levels of support in the world, the players, management and coaching staff had already made it abundantly clear that they were incapable of turning the game around.

We have absolutely no-one amongst the management and coaching staff with the ability and experience to turn this around. Gilkes is one of my heroes but his appointment to the coaching team says it all.

Maybe one day we will learn the real reason why Steven Reid left.

After 50 years I think Reading Football Club (or at least the men's side of it) look as though they are going to completely cure me of my Reading Football Club addiction. I really don't think I would miss following them at present.

[leon]

Absolutely dire. I have never left a game early like that before but it was pointless staying. Even with the best levels of support in the world, the players, management and coaching staff had already made it abundantly clear that they were incapable of turning the game around.

We have absolutely no-one amongst the management and coaching staff with the ability and experience to turn this around. Gilkes is one of my heroes but his appointment to the coaching team says it all.

Maybe one day we will learn the real reason why Steven Reid left.

After 50 years I think Reading Football Club (or at least the men's side of it) look as though they are going to completely cure me of my Reading Football Club addiction. I really don't think I would miss following them at present.

Hold on. You’ve been saying we’re playing great football and Stams been doing a great job?

[RoyalBlue]

Whilst I want Stam out the players are a disgrace. They badly let him and the supporters down. Gutless, cowardly and unprofessional.

Mannone 4 Time for change. Moronic persistence with playing goalkicks short and putting defenders into trouble. Needs dropping. Suspect for two goals tonight

Gunter 5 Offered next to nothing going forward. Distribution poor.
Moore 5 Ok but part of a central defence that was all over the place
Illori 4. Another very poor performance. Distribution shocking. Needs to be dropped
Van Den Berg 4 The usual concession of unnecessary free kicks and some really poor passing. Should not be in the side
Clement 4 Why is he in the side? Useless
Kelly 6 Tried hard and won a pen but didn’t create much
McCleary N/A
Bacuna 4 The usual error strewn performance and pen was saved
Martin 3 Utterly hopeless. Couldn’t make a simple pass
Bodvarsson 4 Anonymous

Richards 6 Took his goal well. Overlapped well but struggled defensively
Evans 6 Showed composure on the ball. Did ok
Smith 6 Worked hard. Good movement.

We could have lost by 7 or 8 tonight. Yes their last goal was a bit scummy but ffs play to the whistle. We look every inch a relegation team.

Have to take issue with your Mannone comments, yes he`s part of the reason we are losing, but he must be under orders to play it short. teams just press us so high now it cant be done.

Stam has repeatedly stressed that he is not under orders to do that. Like all the players he is under orders to use their highly paid brains and make the right decisions according to the circumstances.

Yesterday in the second half he gathered the ball on the edge of his area with Sheffield Utd having committed loads of players forward. He had no one in his way, Kelly had broken quickly forward down the left, was completely unmarked and could have easily been picked out by a quick flat throw. Mannone saw him, went to throw, hesitated, changed his mind and then, to howls of anger and anguish from the crowd, allowed Sheffield Utd, plenty of time to all get back into position. By this time Kelly was out of throwing range and Mannone eventually had no option but to hoof the ball downfield towards Bod who again failed to win the ball in the air.