Enfield Town v Billericay Town

[The Crowing Cockerel]

Given our recent run of form my first thought was that this game had become a 'must win'. My stance has softened a little and I now see this fixture as a 'must not lose'. The chasing pack are hot on our heels vying for a play-off place and I can see us drifting off the pace just like last season if we're not careful. Somehow Gavin needs to restore confidence. The luck has been against us of late, so perhaps its time one rebounded in off someone's arse. Challenging times like these are where we find out what the team and management are made of! Come on Town!

[seemgee]

Forster, Payne, Adjei-Hersey, Thomas, Richmond, McKenzie, Youngs, Harvest, Taaffe, Wyllie, Beckles-Richards

Parcell, Onyeagwara, Okotcha, Hippolyte, Alves

[seemgee]

1-0 Wyllie 15 mins

[seemgee]

1-1 23 mins

[djwilf]

8 minute lead.

[seemgee]

1-2 down 70 mins

[seemgee]

FT 1-2

att 520

[4wembleyfinals]

I await reading comments and opinions on this game.

Having listen to Gavins views on the Hornchurch game it seems he will have to serious consider making one of the options he himself mentioned. A change of personnel either from within his current squad or from outside. 

I am going to repeat myself again. If the Board are serious about progression for the club then they will have to try to make funds available for this purpose. Otherwise, without a successful team their plans to expand the club( ie. an all weather pitch and other improvements to the ground) will become just pipe dreams.

If any one one agrees with these sentiments I hope they will accept my proxy and bring up something on these lines at the AGM. Unfortunately I am still not fit enough to attend.

 

 

Edited January 30 by 4wembleyfinals

[Steph]

We were off the pace.

Billericay had obviously been given a rocket following their defeat on Saturday and they came out raring to go. This led them exposed at the back but we could not pass from midfield to our forwards. When they went 2-1 up there was going to be only one result as they tidied up at the back and relied on one or two going forward rather than en mass.

We certainly missed Purcell at the back as he offers stability and does not lose his cool kicking hopeless ball forward to noone in particular.

Canvey will be interesting on Saturday as they are also going through a lean spell. losing 5-1 to Chatham on Saturday and 2-1 last night with, probably, a weakened team in the Essex Senior Cup.

[Barney]

I wasn't at the game, but my sources tell me that it was very scrappy and that they were the better side, especially after they took the lead, when we sounded pretty ragged. Obviously disappointing and worrying that we've dropped so many points of late, and although it's been a tough run of fixtures, it also seems to have coincided with a real blip in our form/confidence. I'm hoping that it only takes one win to to give us the shot in the arm we need to get back to playing how we were before the new year, and hopefully that win comes soon.

I think there were always going to be challenges this season with a new manager and many new playing personnel and I was pleasantly surprised at how well we had done until recently, and how consistently we'd picked up points. Clearly this is where we need to make some tough decisions, and I trust Gavin to do what's needed based on his comments and actions so far - I'm in two minds as to whether we need to change personnel, as this team has performed very well for most of the season, but perhaps we do need to change something to give us a spark.

On the positive side, we're still in a playoff place, and have everything to play for - albeit we're a lot less secure in that position with the chasing pack snapping around our heels (although everyone around us seems to be dropping points at times). Worrying times, and I really hope that we can turn this around sooner rather than later 🤞

[Benjrider10]

Positives:

1) Wyllie took his goal well. 19 in the league to-date is very impressive.

2) Don't know why Parcell was on the bench (he did take a heavy knock on Saturday) but Taaffe had a good game at right back in his place.

3) I thought Emmanuel Harvest had an excellent game in centre midfield. Hope we can extend his loan.

Negatives:

1) I think RBR needs a rest. He ran hard last night but I can only recall one shot on target. Time to let Obi have a go from the start.

2) Sam Youngs had a good chance to put us 2-1 ahead in the first half but shot narrowly wide. Those were going in until a couple of matches ago. By his high standards, he had a quiet game.

3) I'm not convinced the Richmond/MacKenzie partnership at centre-back is an improvement on the Richmond/Okotcha partnership. We miss Okotcha's pace. Hope to be proved wrong over time.

4) we didn't look like equalising when we went 1-2 down. Yes, we have just played the 2 strongest teams in the league but we gave away possession too much against both. We looked good going forward last night when we had the ball - but we didn't have the ball enough.

We're not getting much luck at the moment. The penalties we conceded against Hornchurch and Billericay were from standard, run of the mill crosses into the box which hit our defender while attempting a block. Swings and roundabouts I guess but it feels like we're not getting those lucky breaks.

[djwilf]

Couldn't make it last night but thoughts on our current run

 

Whatever we were doing so well at the start of the season(even if we were playing some of the so called easier teams we aren't managing to do it now

We certainly seem to struggle alot more with scoring and this has coincided with us having more difficulty looking watertight at the back.

I'd be interested to see if the on loan midfielder could play more minutes if he's having a positive impact, right now I'll take any positives we can.

What happened to the good football we played early on?  Pitch is still in good nick so that isn't an excuse.

Think next few weeks will decide our season.....if it's not already been decided.

With regard to luck, think you do make your own and you also have to get into certain positions to get the decisions given.

Is our Spanish RB still around/injured?

Edited January 31 by djwilf

[The Crowing Cockerel]

We've reached crunch time. Either we get back to winning ways immediately (Canvey, Kingstonian) or we can look forward to another 8th, 9th, 10th place finish with fixtures against Carshalton, Lewes and Horsham coming thick and fast.

We clearly need to improve our defence in time for next season. Mackenzie hasn't strengthened us and I'm not even sure Richmond has been all that solid as of late. Its beginning to look like Gavin might've used up his 'free hit' with this season. Hope I'm proved wrong!

[lovely stuff]

Didn't make the game last night and now watch half of our games through the highlights on youtube as i live a long way from Enfield now. What jumps out to me when looking at goals we have conceded this season is how many could have been prevented if the nearest players to the ball had given 100% commitment to breaking up the attack, shutting down, blocking a cross or shot. Sometimes 3 or 4 players nearest to the threat on our goal seem to be going through the motions (and just doing enough) rather than putting their bodies on the line.

[Rebel without a clue]

Maybe it’s time to bring back okotcha and go 3 at the back and use parcell and Payne as wing backs as both like getting forward, might help shore up the defence a little

[OldTowner]

Agree totally Rebel.

I have said all season Mickey is far more productive as a wing back adding to the midfield and pushing forward.

Joe has the same ability.

got to be worth a try as the current system is failing with just one win in 7, 5 points from 21 and consistent leaking of goals.

if you don’t try - you won’t know !!!

[Flobalob]

what is the point of wide men when they spend the majority of the game doubling up in the full back positions… i feel sorry for Dylan …his work rate is superb but is not allowed to show any attacking flair….  the manager needs to show less respect to the oppo and concentrate more on us… Obi needs to come in and Scott has to make way for Harvest… his passing is shocking and fails to link the midfield with the attack…,  I thought Billericay looked quite ordinary apart from their number 4 and 15…. we are not a mile behind we just need Gavin to tweak the tactical side….

[4wembleyfinals]

I appreciate what is being said in the previous posts and I await reading or hearing what was discussed at the AGM. Particularly by Gavin etc. regarding the squad situation for the rest of the season.

In the meantime I been spending some of my time looking at the highlights. Especially the games at Horsham and at home with Hornchurch. Mainly because as we know in both games we conceded what were winning positions and ending up with 1pt when it could have been 6.

I know that the videos are only a small part of all the action but in both of the above it is interesting to see who was at fault in the build up to the  2 late goals in the first game and the winning goal in the second.

In the first game you see one of our the defenders ducking under a cross leaving a clear header for a goal. Then later watch as one of our players just wafts a foot at the ball and then what follows.

In the Hornchurch game where was our defensive line leading up to their winner. Basically broken by, what appears to be the same player as above, who tries to take out a Hornchurch man but leaves a gap wide enough to drive a bus through.

I know to some this sounds a bit like after the horse has bolted but as I have said many times before ability is a natural thing. But even those with a little ability can be taught discipline and organisation. If this is lacking or cannot be learnt then others with the individual ability are wasted. I am sure this must be part of Gavin's frustration.

Perhaps as others suggest a change in personnel or to the teams line up structure may be required. We will have to wait and see.

However, I do hope something is done soon to turn the tide our way again.

 

Edited February 2 by 4wembleyfinals