eastwood match thread

[Dukes]

A missed penalty just sums it all up, I want to kick something hard. Since that prick of a ref cheated us against Yeovil nothing's gone right. :( Justin should try some kind of team bonding, get them all pissed or something, hire a giant bouncy castle and lots of chocolate cake.

10 without a win I think CD.

...or change tactics and play to our players strengths - win and then get pissed.. :!:

[Balloon Man]

What a thoroughly awful time we've had since beating Barrow 5-0.
We've got to turn this around and yet so much has changed since Saturday 30th October.
But we can't look back. We're out of the FA Cup, the Trophy, the play-offs but now we have to play for pride and get the best position in the league we can.
We need leaders on the pitch to pick the lads up and push them on - and we've just lost Jamie Stuart to the Wombles.
What do you say to the players ? How do you get the playing well again and winning ?
I think team building is the answer - especially with a few new lads, the huge loss of a team mate in tragic circumstances and a big loss of form.
Time for JE to take the lads away from it all and build understanding and a team that can work through all the problems we've had and kick on and get some results. After all R&D are a young side and it feels like the cr@p has really been kicked out of them in the last couple of months.

[Dukes]

What a thoroughly awful time we've had since beating Barrow 5-0.
We've got to turn this around and yet so much has changed since Saturday 30th October.
But we can't look back. We're out of the FA Cup, the Trophy, the play-offs but now we have to play for pride and get the best position in the league we can.
We need leaders on the pitch to pick the lads up and push them on - and we've just lost Jamie Stuart to the Wombles.
What do you say to the players ? How do you get the playing well again and winning ?
I think team building is the answer - especially with a few new lads, the huge loss of a team mate in tragic circumstances and a big loss of form.
Time for JE to take the lads away from it all and build understanding and a team that can work through all the problems we've had and kick on and get some results. After all R&D are a young side and it feels like the cr@p has really been kicked out of them in the last couple of months.

Hear what you are saying BM but the players need more than stroking. We need to change our playing strategy, appoint a captain from central defence or midfield, sign an affective forward to play alongside O'Connor (and lower our wages by transferring/loaning out Farrel and Gash).

Totally fed up with our mode of play and beginning to feel JE is like Talbot in his stubbornness not to make the obvious changes needed..!

[Pigman]

I think my biggest concern is pressure. Lose a couple more, and we seriously need to start looking over our shoulders and that will start to heap even more pressure on a very young squad. One win, thats all this will take, one win and confidence will start to ebb back into the squad.

In theory we should get that next week against Hayes, but then I honestly thought we'd beat Alty.

9 points from the relegation area and 10 points from the play-offs may seem comfortable, but I'm already feeling edgy. If we get drawn into a relegation dog-fight we haven't got what it takes to survive at the moment.

I'll keep the faith (and my fingers and toes crossed) that better times are around the corner, the only thing in our favour is that there are some seriously bad sides below us, but we haven't won for so long we're forgetting how to do it and we're slowly and steadily sliding down the table.

Time for Justin to earn his new contract, I have every confidence he will, but I'll admit to starting to get a little nervy !

[Dukes]

'Time for Justin to earn his new contract, I have every confidence he will, but I'll admit to starting to get a little nervy !'

Totally agree with you PM.

This is going to be a real test for JE and PD. Just hope they have the management skills to coach this young team through this bad period. They need to be flexible about tactics and have the strength to be able to change...an opportunity for real leadership, a time for refocusing and to give a new direction and a goal for the end of the season.

[Cotty]

o.k. - it wasn't very good but there were some encouraging signs. Charles- my M.O.M.- looked keen; Sam tore their defence apart on a couple of occasions and looked ready for a sustained run in the team; Faz took his goal well (his first since March) and looked a lot more involved than of late; Miller and Osano were clearing up most attacks at the back and Joe couldn't really be said to be at fault for the goals - it was more poor defending and failure to chase balls which looked as if they were going out of play until Eastwood intercepted them. A couple of their players ( particularly Stevenson) would not be out of place in a higher league. It was a friendly little club with an excellent fish and chip shop just up the road from the ground. Our day will come - it's just taking a long time to arrive.

[Trek]

Faz took his goal well (his first since March) and looked a lot more involved than of late;

Did he spend more time on his feet than his arse last night? I think the lad should get some new studs for his boots.

[TheIncognitoKid]

If Corcoran hadn't of been forced off due to injury, would the defensive have held firm or is that hard to say? In other words, was there a telling difference when he departed?

[Cotty]

I don't think Corcs going off made all that much difference. He'd already been booked for a rash tackle and looked in danger of getting a second yellow. Aaron King came on and played quite well in a rearranged defensive line up. I realise I've now criticised Corcs in two of my recent posts. I've nothing against the lad and voted for him for captain earlier this year. I hope he makes a quick recovery and goes back to playing as we know he can, despite his recent dip in form.

[Trek]

He'd already been booked for a rash tackle and looked in danger of getting a second yellow.

An aspect of his play that he needs to address.