I think my judgment was clouded at the start of this season. Like Wellens, McCann had to build a team more or less from scratch and imagining that he could put out a team that would be top-7 quality from the start was foolish. Last time he was here he inherited a good core and strengthened it; establishing the foundations is a big job.
You could say that the team he put out at the start was bottom-2 quality. The fact is that the 3 matches have seen us well beaten, almost thrashed and most recently clinging with a degree of good fortune to a draw against perhaps the best of the 3 opponents so far. Progress possibly, but the result always colours the quality assessment.
Enlightenment and encouragement came from listening to McCann’s post match interview. I cannot believe how the journalists allowed Schofield to get away with what he used to say. The club can never be forgiven for appointing someone so obviously incapable either of explaining what had really happened or what he was doing about it… such platitudes.
There is amongst a large number of fans who make informed criticism of performances, a belief that a good few of the players we’ve got are no better than those we had last season and whilst there may be some truth in it, they seem unable to believe that McC can improve them. Surely they realise that a good manager develops players and chooses them based on potential. Of course that is long term and it will be a gradual process.
The critics want all of them replaced and go on and on about acquiring a strong midfielder who will dictate the play. Rovers and every team has been after one such for ever. Who remembers Keith Kettleborough who took on the Player-Manager job after a really successful time with Sheffield United? He really did have the qualities, but the managerial responsibility on top of it all seemed too much and he could not make a success of it.
So back to 2023 and in Notts County we face an opponent which has sustained a severe knock in their first game, a home loss against Lincoln in the Carabao Cup and a narrow home win against Grimsby but a midweek draw at Morecambe where the home side seemed to have the edge in skill. I can’t say that they looked all that good on You Tube, but then, neither do we.
So they have conceded quite a few goals and seem experienced rather than young and energetic. The question is whether a sufficient quantity of energetic effective football can be produced to get the better of them. We are at home and McC chose to praise them after Tuesday, so perhaps he detects movement in a good direction.
I’m sceptical, but if we are going to progress, we need to win; more time in the relegation zone will not be good for the morale of the younger players, so I hope we will.
I was going to predict a draw, but I can’t deny that I need to win as much as McCann does, so 2-1 (Ironside, Broadbent)
DPL v Notts Co.
posted on 19/8/23
Rovers 2-1 Notts County
Ironside to score ⚽
Let's get this season going Rovers
posted on 20/8/23
Not going terribly well is it?😐
posted on 20/8/23
Just terribly!
posted on 20/8/23
Wood and Olowu dire. The rest ineffectual and lethargic.
posted on 20/8/23
I was playing golf while the match was taking place, so have only the extended highlights and reports to go on, but what was obvious was that Lawlor could have stopped all their goals if he had come off his line. He is not nearly as competent as Mitchell with high balls and teams will have recognised that and exploit it.
As for the rest, the passing was awful and there seemed no sense of purpose or urgency, no plan and almost a reversion to Schofield-style complacency.
McSheffery had us in the play-off zone this time last season and at least there was a sense of forward momentum about the play.
The players must be very thick-skinned if they can withstand the sort of criticism that they will surely have endured from McCann. They don’t seem to challenge for the ball and don’t seem to have much mutual understanding.
posted on 20/8/23
Having now seen the match replay I think that a lot of our side don’t have the fundamental skill to play at this level. Not surprising I suppose of the ones signed from non-League clubs.
Strategically they are reactive in defence, which I suppose they might get away with, but in attack, there is no system evident and little mutual understanding.
It seemed significant that 3 of those who did seem reasonably competitive did not come from the leagues below; Nixon, Sotona and Faal were three who were not outclassed.
If players can’t control the ball or kick with both feet - e.g. Roberts - perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised. We can complain about lack of application though. Can you imagine Marquis letting their goalkeeper have the freedom of the defensive half?
It is difficult to be optimistic because the material that McC has to work with is poor which is nobody’s fault but his own.
posted on 20/8/23
I'm almost speechless - may wife, Pauline, might say "impossible"!
At 0-3, I once more switch to a Premiership game to at least get some enjoyment out of watching football.
These games really put in focus GMcC's recruitment. Getting players from non-league should not be a problem if well chosen - I seem to remember Lardy went to Leicester from non-league, and of course, Notts County were non-league last season.
I can't remember how Jones is with crosses, as Lawlor is hopeless and Mitchell was very positive. Is Mitchell playing at the moment?
Grant spent most of the early recruitment to shore up our defence, and appears to have got it wrong except for Nixon, but when he is forward, nobody seems to cover the rightback space.
After getting up for the 03:00 Kick-off, All we will say is:
Congrats to Las Rojas - a great footballing team that is a joy to watch - if they could improve their finishing, it would have been worse than 1-0. Also thanks to ex-Belles Mary Earps for helping keep the score to 1-0.
posted on 21/8/23
Mitchell is without a club as far as I can see and I would feel better if we had a back up other than Jones because he is just generally less than competent because in my opinion he is just not athletic enough.
What our opponents have realised by watching Lawlor is that he is no good with crosses and our defenders cannot work with a goal-line keeper (as was Shilton and Sullivan) and they exploit it.
As for the Lionesses, well, we as a nation don't have a lot to provide us with cheer, so the coverage in advance was utterly saturating with very little attention paid to the possibility of them not winning. So it was good that every possible angle of their achievement and anticipated success was celebrated before they were brought down to being merely "brave".
Compared with the semi final goals there was very little for the commentator to scream about! Let us hope that Kenneth Wolstenholme's famous words will not be displaced for the time being and remain in the broadcasting annals alongside that even older one - "Back to square 1".
Nevertheless it will have to be re-lived and re-lived and there can be no doubt who will be the BBC's "Team of the Year" with everyone who can claim any connection with the achievement also named in the New Year's Honours.
posted on 21/8/23
I keep forgetting to say that my Excel Sheet stands ready to receive and compute numbers for the DPL, but is currently flooded with zeros.
posted on 23/8/23
Oooooo🤔