FT Hendon 0 Billericay 1

[finisterre]

Wasn't at the game so don't know who scored and when.

[Andy P]

Hunter 80 mins

[jl]

(Run tape) We started well for the first twenty minutes but unfortunately we couldnt make our possession/chances tell.

 

The game gradually disintegrated from then on and until our changes in the second half the game was quite frankly absolutely shocking.

 

On a positive note defensively we are looking tighter than a nun's

and I spose it's a good sign that we can win when playing far from our best.

 

A win on Tuesday puts us right in the mix.

 

Billy

Heffer Swaine Blewitt Kerrigan

Game Hunter Dormer Hodges (Collins)

Burbridge (Flack) Elder

 

snu: Poole, Worster, chap from reserves whose name escapes me sorry.

 

Macca was injured

Ryan was not at the game.

 

Apparantly we are likely to sign another forward soon.

[stringbok]

Jl - How did burbridge and elder play together? Does this partnership have a future?

[Simon BTFC]

JL - the sub you can't remember is Danny Lee-Finch

 

Stingbok - Nathan and Rikki may have a future, it's hard to say for certain until Rikki is fully fit, he looked tired against Hendon. For me, if he plays then he needs players from midfield to make runs off him, at pace ideally.

 

Overall I think it's been said before that when we're not playing at our best, we keep working and if we do that then the fluency and confidence in front of goal will improve. We created more chances than them, particularly in the first 20 and if one of them had gone in we might have kicked on and played better football.

[GazzaBTFC]

Again, our first half performance was better than the second. Even though Hendon didn't offer much up front, I think what people tend to forget that, when we are away from home, teams that are not performing well in the 1st period will come out after their manager has "said a few words" and will up the pace and come at us...but that doesn't wholey excuse us, as we were / are the better side.

 

The game changed when Dave Collins came on and then Joe Flack. We got to the back line more. Collins, especially, gave us more urgency down the left. No criticism of Hodges though, as after Tuesday's F A Cup epic, I was amoungst the surprised supporters to see him playing.

 

Nathan played better as well. Again, we can point out that he isn't scoring but he is getting into those positions to score, which is a plus point. I thought on Saturday he was more unlucky not to score than anything else. He also held up the ball better. I would like to see a return to the Nathan Elder of last season, chasing down balls that most would just give up on, forcing mistakes. I would imagine if you're a keeper about to collect a poor back pass, having Nathan Elder coming down on you would certainly give you something else to think about other than hoofing the ball clear. It was a part of his game last season and it isn't there anymore.

 

Another point and this one is a question more than a criticism. There was a shout from the bench when we had we had a corner "remember your runs". Kick was taken and the defender had a free header...with none of our players challenging. My question is, "are we just over complicating it"? I maybe a bit simple when it comes to football stratagy but corner cross comes over, a player attacks the ball, challenges for the header, it either goes goalwards or somewhere where a striker / other player can pick up the bits and score...or attempt to. As I said, just a question.

 

Overall, I was quite pleased with the three points and the way we battled. I would agree that the second half performance was below par but we won and you can't argue with that. I'm sure that Nathan will get amoungst the goals, Flack will continue to nick one in every two games (maybe more), Burbridge, when fit will add to the tally as well as our midfield.

 

It'll come....

[The Town Crier]

 

3 ponts away from home and a maximum payout from Skybet...that'll do for me Tommy!

 

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[nws]

TC it is all about accumulating as many points as possible at this stage. Possibility we may go above you tonight(keeping everything crossed) at least until tomorrow.well done on saturday