Today...

[bobsimms33]

Does anyone agree that we will finish out of the play offs, and we are not basically good enough, or is it the managers lack something, either motivation or tactics.At the moment you have to say Batemans teams offered more.

[Martin]

There is no point harking back to the past. Steve Bateman's teams had four full goes at it and failed to get promoted and missed the play offs last year. We have had less than half a season with the new team and management so way too early to write them off.

 

However, today's was another largely lacklustre performance. We were the better team first twenty minutes but never worked the keeper. All it took for them to score was one good cross to the big winger who scored with ease.

 

Second half we had the better of the game without creating too many chances. Mendy had one off the line but again the keeper wasn't worked over before we snatch a late equaliser.

 

We have developed a very worrying habit of conceding immediately after scoring and it was a knife through butter for the winner. You could argue it was a consequence of going all out for an equaliser and leaving ourselves exposed with positional and formation changes but for me it is more of weakness of mind and a failure to shut up shop and keep the point that we had huffed and puffed to look like achieving.

 

We have had some poor results this season and tough luck with suspensions, injuries and absences but for me this was the first game where I have genuinely walked away worried about play off prospects.

 

Having said all of that we have some excellent players and if we can get a run where we have the first eleven consistently available we are capable of a long unbeaten run. Do that and everything remains possible.

 

It is at times of adversity were we need to show our support and try and back the boys. COYR

[C'est la vie]

Sorry not going to beat around the bush with this one, we were bloody awful! I know the conditions were bad and with the suspensions and injuries we have it does effect things but Uxbridge simply wanted it more today. Was very surprised by the lack of passion shown and the lads looked a bit disinterested. Lets hope we bounce back very quickly. COYR

[Nathan]

I could have said this last week, but I thought I'd better not as we ended up winning 4-0.

 

But it needs saying, and I'll say it now. Without Dave Woozley and Ed Smith, we look like an average, mid-table team.

 

It's 4 months into the season now, and for the past few weeks we have been essentially last season's Godalming team (as we've been without Woozley and Smith). I am honestly struggling to understand how this squad finished 3rd last season.

[Matt]

I couldn't make the game today but my initial thoughts at hearing the result and what happened in the final minute are "what is going on"? We've been poor since the Dunstable debacle. My personal opinion is I think it's disappointing we don't look like challenging for the league title, and whilst I think we will come good (and will back the managers to turn it around), I also am now worried about missing the top 5 altogether.

[Mr Rebel]

having got an equaliser we barely deserved to completely switch off after the free kick was given was absolutely pathetic. absolutely diabolical

 

have to agree with Barry. Uxbridge clearly wanted it more than us just like most the time when we struggle with lower placed sides. Nathan is right as well without Woozley and Smith we are just nowhere near the same side

 

same mistakes again and if we don't buck our ideas up against the local lower placed sides in particular we face a huge struggle to be right up there at the business end of the season

 

as a fan I find it inexcusable and unacceptable that we can only really perform against the better sides

[3spirit]

I think BobSimms33 opinion about Slough currently is way off the mark but have to agree with

Barry and Martin's views of the game.

 

I thought today we were woeful.The game wasn't worth getting wet for.

No way did we deserve 3 points and even 1 point would have been lucky.

 

We really missed Jamie McClurg's all round game today.

We had no leaders on the field or those willing to roll up their sleeves and just get

stuck in.

I'll be glad when Dave Woozley and Ryan Lake are back.

 

Of the three strikers in our team today,Tony Mendy looked about the best out of the bunch and that's saying something as he looked like a loan signing !

 

The conditions didn't help late in the game for Slough to pressurize Uxbridge but what a

sloppy goal to concede when we had just equalised.That isn't the first time we've done that.

The managers have got to sort this fiasco out asap.

 

A very poor day at the office and one we need to move on from.Let's hope for a hell of a lot

better against SYCOB.

[Chris]

I sometimes feel we lose the battle in central midfield in games and don't control that area as much as we should in games.

 

Don't get me wrong I think the players we have in central midfield are all very good players, but I'm not sure we've got that type of player who runs and controls the game from that area.

[3spirit]

I could have said this last week, but I thought I'd better not as we ended up winning 4-0.

 

But it needs saying, and I'll say it now. Without Dave Woozley and Ed Smith, we look like an average, mid-table team.

 

It's 4 months into the season now, and for the past few weeks we have been essentially last season's Godalming team (as we've been without Woozley and Smith). I am honestly struggling to understand how this squad finished 3rd last season.

I know we were crap today but that doesn't make us a bad team.We were missing Ryan Lake,Dave

Woozley,Ed Smith,Darren Wheeler and Jamie McClurg.Basically the heart of the team and most are

among our best players.

 

Let's not over react.

[Nathan]

I didn't say we were a bad team 3spirit. I said we look like an average team.

 

The question is, is average really good enough?

Edited December 21, 2013 by Nathan

[Martin]

Give yourself some credit Nathan you said it twice on the AFC Hayes match thread!

 

You are right though too often without Smithy in the side we look devoid of goals. Wooz just oozes class and having started the season looking likely to be a bench warmer I suspect he'll be straight back in when fit. But you can't odds injuries

 

The thing is we can't use missing good players as an excuse. It is a squad game and we have to be able to step up week in week out

[3spirit]

I sometimes feel we lose the battle in central midfield in games and don't control that area as much as we should in games.

 

Don't get me wrong I think the players we have in central midfield are all very good players, but I'm not sure we've got that type of player who runs and controls the game from that area.

Uxbridge were marshalled well by experienced,wily campaigner Wayne Carter.We missed Jamie.

Thought George Short battled gamely but Ollie looked rusty and Warren seemed wasted playing

centrally.

 

We're unlucky with the players who play on the left side,as with these missing we are very

poor on that flank and limited on how we play.

[3spirit]

I didn't say we were a bad team 3spirit. I said we look like an average team.

 

The question is, is average really good enough?

When we have all the players back who were missing today,we are no way an average team in this

Central division.

[Nathan]

Martin, I commented about our performance that day, but nowhere did I say we were a "bad" team. We are not a "bad" team. You're right about using the missing players as an excuse though, and our squad looks a little shallow at the moment IMO!

 

3spirit, you've put your finger on the problem there. When we're at full strength, there's no stopping us. However, we seem to be over-reliant on 2 or 3 players. What we have to rely on in the meantime is (and I feel this has been proven by the last 2/3 weeks) average.

[Martin]

All I meant Nathan was that you mentioned desperately missing Smith and Wooz that day too. I agree entirely. But in my view they are two very good players. Take Suarez out of the Liverpool side and where would they be? Teams always miss good players.

 

I actually think the problem is between the ears at the moment.

[3spirit]

Martin, I commented about our performance that day, but nowhere did I say we were a "bad" team. We are not a "bad" team. You're right about using the missing players as an excuse though, and our squad looks a little shallow at the moment IMO!

 

3spirit, you've put your finger on the problem there. When we're at full strength, there's no stopping us. However, we seem to be over-reliant on 2 or 3 players. What we have to rely on in the meantime is (and I feel this has been proven by the last 2/3 weeks) average.

I think,Nathan,you've made a fair assessment about our best 11 and our squad.On balance,I

believe Steve Bateman's squad had more depth and could cope better with injuries.

However,I don't believe last season's first 11 is better than this season's first 11.

Nor do I think last season's manager is as good as our new joint managers.

 

Every team has bad days and today was one of them but one swallow doesn't make a summer.

[Matt]

Absolutely agree with everything there Martin. Woozley and Smith are huge losses and we just can't replace them. And we haven't been right since Dunstable, where everything seemed to go against us and we lost when it looked like we might win and go top of the league. Confidence is a huge thing and we need to put an unbeaten run together to get back into contention.

Edited December 21, 2013 by Matt

[Graham C]

I wasnt the only one who was sure the final whistle had gone just after our equaliser as lots of us were going through the gate to the car park.....thought we had salvaged an undeserved draw then just now went on the league website to see we once again concede just  after scoring.Lots of work to do in a short time(Beccy won at Egham today).....are any of the injury cases back for 26th as we frankly were just not good enough against an organised and committed team and we also got out muscled just like against Hayes.

 

Just not play off form I'm afraid

[readingrebel]

I'm finding it difficult to accept what a poor, lame excuse for a performance that was.

Normally I like to put an emphasis on all the positives in a game but today there simply was none.

Yes, we do have injuries to some key players but IMO that's no excuse for what the players dished up today, it was simply not good enough.

What I do find puzzling is this new formation that we've suddenly started playing where we seem to have dispensed with our wide players making us become very narrow. I don't think it worked against Chertsey and again today we seemed to be crying out for some width.

Also, I'll be disappointed if we announce a MOTM because IMO there wasn't one.

On a positive note, I still have every faith in the players and that they can bounce back starting on Thursday against SYCOB.

COYR!!

Edited December 21, 2013 by readingrebel

[Don Juan DeMarcus]

Agree the formation killed us and we only seemed to have any shape after the subs.... Thought the team selection was incorrect as well, a lot of players didn't have good games either. Thought short ollie and w Harris battled well and created all our chances. We seemed toothless up front and were less of a threat with 3 up top as we had no natural width. A poor game all round and hope we bounce back quickly.