Eyes up/Eyes down?

[Call me Dave]

Having watched that mess yesterday,this might not be an opportune time to ask the last question needing an answer this season-are we still looking to the top of the league,or the bottom with interest?I have been to Plainmoor probably every other game this season with my 12 year old son.Lately we have been so negative(Saturday against Crawley took the biscuit,1000s of extra fans get 1up front,with a broken nose!) This sends out all the wrong vibs, about where this club intends to go.It appears that the powers that be do not rate the players @ the club, and are therefore fixated with sending the team out for each match to limit damage.Indeed the whole club sadly seems to have fallen back into this mindset,you can sense it.Its a tough job for the board,treading the stick or twist line on finances we all know,but you will not get floating fans back to Plainmoor @ present,things being as they are.
With all this in mind I think we must reluctantly do what we have all become so expert @ over the years,look for where we can squeeze points ,to add to our 33 in the bag.Buckle has got form in situations like this,he might take them on a good run and prove me wrong.But my gut tells me he won't,we will end up safe 5 or 6 games out from the end the season (tough run in)on a poxy 51 points.Not much to set the pulse racing or encourage a 12 year old!

[Modgull]

I have to confess that I haven't stopped looking down all season. February will be the defining month for our season - pick up three wins and we will be pushing for the play-offs. No wins and we will be close to the relegation zone.

[ferrarilover]

Here we go then, look at yourselves guys, one terrible performance and suddenly we're relegation fodder. The opposition and referee were to blame for somewhere in the order of 20% of our terribleness yesterday. We have fallen victim to a couple of unlucky results (bought about in large part by our failure to stick it in the onion bag) and the cause of the lack of goals and odd formation will be sold tomorrow, so no more 4-5-1, because even Stevie Wonder could see that Kee up top alone will yield precisely zero goals every week.

So, in answer to the OP, don't be daft, we're very much looking up, we're not a million miles outside the playoffs abd we have some VERY winnable home matches coming up which could propel us back to 4th or 5th.

There are a vast number of much, MUCH worse teams than us in this division. Stockport, Barnet, Hereford, Lincoln, Burton, Morecambe, we are in precisely no danger of going down.

Matt.

[Call me Dave]

You say someones off tomorrow,who?

[ferrarilover]

Well, come on, you turn up at Plainmoor every week, not just for the big games (right?)
Ask yourself this, who is the cause of 4-5-1? I'll narrow it down, begins with 'B' ends in 'enyon'

Matt.

[Eastleigh_Gull]

In my own opinion I think it should be 4-4-1-1 with O'kane sat behind benyon or thats what I think we should have done against crawley because as soon as wroe went off O'kane went to pot in my opinion.

[ferrarilover]

Eeerm, no, 4-4-2, it works for Man Utd and Barcelona and Real Madrid, why does PB think he knows better than SAF et al?
Kee and Benners (or his replacement) up front with two banks of 'pick your own' behind.

Matt.

[Eastleigh_Gull]

I agree with the 4-4-2 and what youve said about the top ranking clubs but... O'kane likes to run in and around there midfield/defence... So i think either a 4-4-2 or a 4-4-1-1 would work well but against crawley as soon as kee came on he made an imediate impact... including a small scrap with the crawley players which was quite enjoyable.. But either tactic i think would work well. O'kane is good at running running and running some more which is why i think that the 4-4-1-1 would work well if he sits behind "benners" and does his thing and lets benyon do his.

[ferrarilover]

My issue with 4-4-1-1 (or whatever) is the one up top. It's no good in this division unless you happen to have Mathieu Manset (18 feet tall, 40 stone) or Theo Walcott (faster even than fibre optic broadband), we have neither, so we have to play two strikers to compensate. Until we do that, it doesn't matter what goes on further back, we could have Beckham on one wing and Giggs on the other and it wouldn't make a difference because Benners can't handle the lone striker role.

Matt.

[Eastleigh_Gull]

I understand exactly what you mean and agree with it but there is a big rold O'kane can play in 4-4-1-1.

[robc]

ferrarilover: forgive me if i'm mistaken, but since when do Barca or Madrid play 442? I'm not saying for one minute than Buckle is faultless for the performance yesterday, and believe me I've often criticised him in the past, but I think to lay all the blame with playing 451 is very naive. When the individual players are playing well, that system works well and is in fact very attacking, with Zebs-O'Kane-Stevens behind Benyon. Again, I'm not saying it's perfect, and I definitely would've given Kee a start about 2 or 3 games ago, but I don't think simply saying 442! 442! over and over again answers any of the intrinsic realities of the current poor form of Zebs, Wroe, etc...

[andygull]

February will make or break our season. Sure we ain't gonna go down and we are thankful for that but i am just annoyed by all the points dropped already this season. We started off the season on fire and now we are shit! I wasn't one who got carried away at the start but i did think we had the potential to achieve a play off spot. Now i am sure we do not have the potential, this will be compounded should we lose a player or two in the window. The fact is that the squad is lightweight with no depth and i am disappointed at Bucks for not wheeling and dealing in the window. Is it me or would you Gulls out there prefer an inexperienced, possibly arrogant loanee from a prem club or champs club or someone lower down the non league pyramid who is hungry and desperate to prove himself ? ( Charlie Austin for example Poole to Swindon ). Our bench is full of ineffectual players like hemmings and lathrope etc. Bucks, do some scouting man!! Basically february should see us win 9 points at least. If not we are mid table.

[Fletch]

Well, come on, you turn up at Plainmoor every week, not just for the big games (right?)
Ask yourself this, who is the cause of 4-5-1? I'll narrow it down, begins with 'B' ends in 'enyon'

Matt, with the service Benners got yesterday from the wings & midfield, even Rooney or Torres (the girly looking one at Liverpool) would have struggled to make any impression. Benners isnt the cause (or the problem) of the 4-5-1 or 4-4-1-1. Its the fact that we have been tailoring the formation (rightly or wrongly) to accomodate EoK as a link man/attacking midfielder. Cast your mind back to the Crewe match, 2 up front and 2 wingers (1st half at least), thats what we need, not 2 "creative midfielders" supporting a striker. Personally speaking, I would sooner EoK moved for a good fee than Benners. Yes he's an excellent player but Benners goals will be more important to the team. How much do you think a replacement is likely to cost for Benners thats going to get us as many goals? EoK was totally anonymous yesterday, along with Wroe (ok, he has a broken toe as i understand it), and Zebs also had a shocker. Manse was trying to do 2 or 3 players work in midfield and Danny was the only one that seemed to create anything with a couple of shots that went a bit wide. Its just goes to show how much the finances have bitten into squad depth when we are pretty much down to the first eleven plus the 7 subs.

[Eastleigh_Gull]

I agree with it all... Other then the 50/50's... Did you not see Mansell, Wroe, Ellis or even benyon at some points get stuck in and win the ball??? when it comes to danny stevens ok its more of a 20/80 but still there were actually alot of 50/50's that our boys got well stuck in to.

[Plymouth Gull]

At this time, down.