New Signing

[michael]

I thought deadline was 3pm friday afternoon ?

[Wellsie]

I'm led to belive not but I'm no expert. I think the rules are different between leagues and the FA competitions, for example.

[michael]

If its midnight-still 6 hours left to get a central defender then !!!

No time to lose

[michael]

The more i think about this, the more bemused and frustrated i get.(passion has been killed so no point getting angry)

 

The imbalance of signings between forwards and defenders is just accentuated everytime.

Why is RT so obssessed with signing forwards.

 

I hope he is and maybe he is a star in the making,(i assume he is -otherwise whats the point of signing him-though it does seem strange that he could not get in the Tonbridge side) but is Martin so much better than Moir and Axon ,Morris (how must they feel).

Add in the fact that as pitches `get pooorer and softer in winter, all these small nippy winger types become less effective anyway.Remeber last season, when up to about October some were grumbling that Mckimm was underperforming.Then when winter sets in he became the best player.You need brutes to win you battles in winter and bully other teams out of it.Not pretty-but effective.

 

Is it that sensible to be paying wages for 4 players who can fulfill similar roles-yet alone add in Peters,JJ and Yianni.(arguably Side and Pinnock and saunders can also play wide)

10 players wages in total for one position out of a squad of 20 !!!! No imbalance there then.

Just all seems very odd to me.

 

 

Yet imo we are crying out for defenders.Instead,JJ goes back there for a couple of games,then will switch back, then we will have 3 wingers on the bench. More confusion ?

 

Probably Jay back in defence tomorrow-he must be dizzy.

 

I am sure RT knows what he is doing,but there just seems no structure to me at all.No attempt to grow a team from a solid foundation.

Never expected play offs this season anyway, but i would have like to have seen a bit of planning going into the way forward

Has RT got a plan,or is it just haphazard change as it appears to be.

We will continue to leak goals,and thus need to score 2/3 times every game to get a result which just won't keep happening.

 

The fact is that we are a very consistent side-consistently average- we get consistent results-win a few, draw a few, lose a few-and there is no disgrace in that;excepting that if more attention had been given to sorting out the defence,and less to signing wingers;we could have been consistently pretty good and riding high.

 

I think an earlier post asked why are people not making the effort to come to HDP.

Whilst living 230 miles away, if i'm honest, i could have made more effort to attend at least a couple more games;but you just sense that you are going to see kamikaze and atrocious defending,and each to our own, but that has no appeal to me whatsoever.

Losing 1-0 with an element of professionalism and sensible management i can take; drawing 4-4 i can see watching a pub side locally if i wish.

 

[MargateFan]

Which one of those is your prediction for the game tomorrow?

[P.W.]

As a defender himself, RT has his own criteria for what makes a good defender or not. Perhaps he is being too 'picky'(a good example was Chris Wilde - who he dismissed as being 'just OK'(or something like that), then proceded to promote Louis Smith who appeared less assured than Chris. Likewise got rid of Greg Oates as he was 'looking for something a bit different' in that position - to his credit Stuart Harte was a good replacement - shame he couldn't stay.

[michael]

Since you ask, i'll go with a 2-2 draw tomorrow

[MargateFan]

Someone young, nippy, who can run at defenders, I seem to recall was on the wish list of quite a few of us earlier on in the season.

Rather looking forward to seeing the young fella.

 

I'll go for a Margate win, by a couple of goals.

[michael]

Is'nt that what Moir,Axon and Bagley-before leaving-, and Peters, are all supposed to be able to do.

 

Its all very exhilarating as they scamper down the wing,mane flowing,leaving a trail of defenders,and indeed can win the odd match-but it don't win championships.(most times can't then deliver the final ball at this level anyway )

Sad to say i remember 1966 and Alf's wingless wonders-did'nt England win something that year

 

 

[MargateFan]

Well, I am not going to argue with you.

 

Here is my point of view again in case you missed it first time:

 

Someone young, nippy, who can run at defenders, I seem to recall was on the wish list of quite a few of us earlier on in the season.

Rather looking forward to seeing the young fella.

 

I'll go for a Margate win, by a couple of goals.

[Cookie]

Trotty,to his credit also mentioned in the local,something that HASN'T been mentioned so far today & that is that he is finding it very hard to get players in at the moment. A fact that has been backed up by other managers he has spoken to concerning this. He IS trying I'm Michael & as frustrating as it is we "just have to get on with it".

Yianni I have been told (by Yianni himself) is looking at January to resume playing. Roll on January. When he does gets back to full fitness we will see a different Margate be assured of that.He'll put the "bomp" back into the "bomp-shi-bompshi-bomp".

If we can hold onto a position thats within striking distance of the play-offs until then,then who knows we COULD be in the final shake up at the end of the season after all.

I know its annoying & frustrating that we cant seem to strengthen the defence at the moment & I'm sure we are ALL in accordance with what you say about that Michael,but until that time comes we CAN keep the pressure off our shaky defence by utilising our forwards & playing in our opponents half for more of the game than they do in ours. Holding out to a "nil score" alone, will not win us anything anyway. Sometimes forwards CAN become our best defence, in more ways than one.

Whilst I may have concerns with Jacko dropping back & out of the firing line I agree with June,lets give the youngster a chance to shine first.He may turn out to be "the son of Jacko",who knows! (not in literal terms obviously).

The balance isn't right I agree but we just have to play to our strengths stats all & if thats predominantly down the left then so be it.

[AncientBlue]

Remember the old saying Cookie: ''Attack is the best form of defence''. Not in all circumstances I know, but lets hope this one is, at least for the time being.

[AncientBlue]

I'm going for a 2-0 win for the GATE!

[michael]

I do agree Cookie, that RT was unlucky with Yianni;and he will make a positive difference.

As you say, if we can stumble along to his return (players are `always too optimistic so probably will be feb),you never know- a proper right sided midfield player and direct Abbott replacement as opposed to a lightweight flying/stumbling winger (Peters excepted).

 

All to no avail though if RT does not sort the defence out.

If he really can't get the players (i don't buy the other managers can't either- denial/excuse- afterall he's had since last April to sort it )then he needs with his coaaching team to organise and coach the existing players to be just that 10% better.

[michael]

I rest my case for the defence .

[MargateFan]

New lad was a cracker, tho.

[Pagey]

Michael, I was talking to a few fans and they are in total agreement with you, the defence needs sorting

 

As I have posted elsewhere I thought the new lad was brilliant

[michael]

Great,and hope he does really well.

 

Maybe RT is building for the future ,and one or two of the older stalwarts may find themselves with a bit of competition.

 

Thank goodness i was not there-i think to surrender a 3-1 lead via defensive errors would have made me suicidal !!

 

[MargateFan]

I think we have all been aware for a considerable time that the defence needs sorting.

[michael]

Agree-its been obvious since April,so all the stuff about can't find defenders is rubbish- RT has had 7 months to sort it. Do what the rest of us have to do when its not going for us-work harder and be better at what we do.

 

I think on balance RT has just about done an ok job; and i am certainly not advocating his demise; but why he has such a blind spot to the defence for so long beggars belief.