The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard

The team were awful today and deserved to get booed, they showed no hunger or determination. Throughout the game we just seemed to hoof it to their center-backs who had no problems dealing with it at all, we couldn't even put two passes together. An awful display, staggers me who you can play so badly after playing so well the week before. It's alright saying Farrell and Osano should go, but they all looked as bad as each other yesterday.

As per "remaining fixtures" thread we have 6 games we should get 3 points from (including this one !) followed by the tough run in where we are up against Crawley, Wrexham, Luton, Kiddy, Mansfield & Wimbledon. If we don't get somewhere close to max points from these 6 then the play-offs wont happen. So we fall at the first hurdle, but we are short of several players and if you look at the bench yesterday we had very little extra firepower except for Charles who was soon injured. With the squad we have right here and now we will not reach the play-offs. With injured players returning soon we may get close. But ultimately, for a number of reasons, we are failing to finish off chances and we have had very little luck in front of goal. We have no true wingers so width is a problem whether 4-4-2 or 4-3-3. Crosses have been few and far between at times and corners and free kicks quite appalling. So if you have a solid 10 man defence who work very hard and put 2 or 3 players on each forward player, like Gateshead did, then you wont score many. But, at the end of the day, we are still in 9th and finishing 10th or above for Rushden would still be a decent result. Last year we out-performed ourselves and had a great run into the playoffs, this year we're simply performing at the level of the resources we currently have. Today we had a plan A, Gateshead snuffed that out effectively and Plan B never materialised. Dissapointing but at the same time interesting to see Gateshead had done their homework and their plan worked very effectively. They won because their defence was too solid for Diamonds to break down and grabbed 2 goals to win it. We need some new ideas, but for now the playoff's are just a pipe dream.

You've hit the nail on the head there BM. By the way, it's nice to see you back on here posting 8-)

Two of Diamonds wrote: By the way, it's nice to see you back on here posting 8-)

My thoughts exactly.

Balloon Man wrote:As per "remaining fixtures" thread we have 6 games we should get 3 points from (including this one !) followed by the tough run in where we are up against Crawley, Wrexham, Luton, Kiddy, Mansfield & Wimbledon. If we don't get somewhere close to max points from these 6 then the play-offs wont happen. So we fall at the first hurdle, but we are short of several players and if you look at the bench yesterday we had very little extra firepower except for Charles who was soon injured. With the squad we have right here and now we will not reach the play-offs. With injured players returning soon we may get close. But ultimately, for a number of reasons, we are failing to finish off chances and we have had very little luck in front of goal. We have no true wingers so width is a problem whether 4-4-2 or 4-3-3. Crosses have been few and far between at times and corners and free kicks quite appalling. So if you have a solid 10 man defence who work very hard and put 2 or 3 players on each forward player, like Gateshead did, then you wont score many. But, at the end of the day, we are still in 9th and finishing 10th or above for Rushden would still be a decent result. Last year we out-performed ourselves and had a great run into the playoffs, this year we're simply performing at the level of the resources we currently have. Today we had a plan A, Gateshead snuffed that out effectively and Plan B never materialised. Dissapointing but at the same time interesting to see Gateshead had done their homework and their plan worked very effectively. They won because their defence was too solid for Diamonds to break down and grabbed 2 goals to win it. We need some new ideas, but for now the playoff's are just a pipe dream.

Good post, but surely we have some other tactics other than hoof it down the middle. We could have started with Charles and maybe got a couple of good crosses into Farrell to work with. Why have we an on loan player that sits on the bench? Oshodi may have been able to organise the defence better than those out there.

JE Said in NLP that the players ARE in for training today . Training on Sunday in pissing rain oh well serves them right

Balloon Man - spot on !!

The reason why we only have one true wide player (in Charles) is due to the 4-3-3 system that doesn't require them. We have too many forwards and not enough wide mid-fielders because of this. This results in a lack of width and very few opportunities to get behind defences down the flanks.

I have been saying this all season and I do believe that the system we play does affect our results. It is not too late to to change, there are players out there available on loan that can play on the wings.

I don't think we did over perform last season because we had a strong central core running through the team in Terry - Byrne - Tomlin, who we have not been able to replace. 4-3-3 did work last year, when employed, due to these players, our present group have not enough ability to make it work.
Also the losing of Stewart has been a major blow.

It really is time for a rethink on players and tactics.

Dukes wrote:The reason why we only have one true wide player (in Charles) is due to the 4-3-3 system that doesn't require them. We have too many forwards and not enough wide mid-fielders because of this. This results in a lack of width and very few opportunities to get behind defences down the flanks.

I have been saying this all season and I do believe that the system we play does affect our results. It is not too late to to change, there are players out there available on loan that can play on the wings.

I don't think we did over perform last season because we had a strong central core running through the team in Terry - Byrne - Tomlin, who we have not been able to replace. 4-3-3 did work last year, when employed, due to these players, our present group have not enough ability to make it work.
Also the losing of Stewart has been a major blow.

It really is time for a rethink on players and tactics.

So how does 4-4-2 solve the sloppy passing and defending that occurred yesterday?

The back four have been a problem for sections of the season, giving away a lot of stupid goals. As recently as Cambridge away, although against a poor side, the game showed that the players understand the system. I do not buy the argument that we do not stretch teams with 4-3-3. We have done this season, when we haven’t has been because we haven’t got the ball out wide or no one has got into the box to take advantage of a cross or chance.

A problem that we have had this season is that we’ve too static at times in games such as yesterday. The players need to be moving into space far more than they are at the moment to receive the ball. A change in formation won’t solve anything in a static side.

I believe JE has been trying to solve the defence with his signings in January. I don’t agree with Osano still being in the side, it’s his lack of effort to defend and the lazy hoofs to nowhere that are annoying me, he’s got the ability, he’s just not choosing to use it.

If the players can start taking heed of Justin and Drives by getting the basics of defending and passing right, of not being static and thus easy to defend against, I believe they will put to bed this crap that going to a formation that the rest of league plays and knows how to defend against the best is the answer to all our problems and we will begin climbing the table.

Mad Dog wrote:

Dukes wrote:The reason why we only have one true wide player (in Charles) is due to the 4-3-3 system that doesn't require them. We have too many forwards and not enough wide mid-fielders because of this. This results in a lack of width and very few opportunities to get behind defences down the flanks.

I have been saying this all season and I do believe that the system we play does affect our results. It is not too late to to change, there are players out there available on loan that can play on the wings.

I don't think we did over perform last season because we had a strong central core running through the team in Terry - Byrne - Tomlin, who we have not been able to replace. 4-3-3 did work last year, when employed, due to these players, our present group have not enough ability to make it work.
Also the losing of Stewart has been a major blow.

It really is time for a rethink on players and tactics.

So how does 4-4-2 solve the sloppy passing and defending that occured yesterday?

If players are in a formation that does not work and they are not comfortable with then frustration sets in and mistakes are made. Plus yesterday, Gateshead played 5 in midfield at times, against our 3 - meaning we were closed down and out fought, we rushed passes before their challenges came in. Our defence then resorted to long balls in the air to bypass the midfield which their CB's ate up.

As good as Mills, Power and Porter (England Captain) are, there are just 3 of them so facing 4-4-2 they were outnumbered and certainly overrun with 4-5-1. That's why we made mistakes and it took a long time to get the ball back and then the opposition closed us down, regained possession and our players come under pressure again.

Sloppy defending for the for the 2nd goal came because, yet again we were chasing the game, they had 10 players behind the ball and we got caught out on the break. The first was an own goal that was unfortunate but can happen any time whether we are in form or not.

I don't have all the answers, far from it, but I hope that that goes somewhere to answering your question MD

As we all say, football is as much about opinions as anything else and I appreciate an argument an exchange of views. No I don't think 4-4-2 or any choice of system is 'crap' because if formations weren't important, we'd play 1 - 10 like they did in the pig's bladder chasing days of the Middle Ages

Enough said, time to go. ;)