Rovers v Dover

[Sparky]

You do wonder if the late draw with BW and a win at a poor Solihull side papered over the cracks. Big problems today. We really lacked any creativity in open play.

Some issues with team selection:

Buxton. Our best player at the start of the season. Has a slight hamstring strain and is then effectively dropped. Mitch has done ok but playing wing backs means you need ur fullbacks to put good delivery in. Most decent teams will know if you stop Liam's service to Cook then we create very little else so we need Buxton from the other side. Cook was the same at the start. A couple of bad games and he's dropped instead of sticking with him.

Corners. Once again Hughes was putting in his slow paced corners allowing their keeper to come and claim or punch away. Late on we had CJ, ridhelagh or Buxton who could have taken them but no, we stick with Hughes. Drives me mad.

Midfield 3. Playing 5-3-2 means one of the midfield 3 needs to be creative. As a threesome Harris, Hughes and norburn don't have enough creativity. Yes it's fine at Solihull but at home against a top half team like Dover you need to do more. Early on it was clear their defence were too strong but we couldn't get around them. Too narrow. I would have brought Dunn on and gone 4-4-2 but sadly not. CJ also hasn't started the season well but at home playing 5-3-2 the role behind the front 2 is made for him.

The manager must take responsibility. He has assembled this squad and made some signings with big question marks: Dunn, Alabi, Wallace given his record, Dawson given his history - have all disappointed. His falling out with and not playing Cook was a mistake and it seems the same with Buxton. He picked the wrong side today. I just hope he doesn't blame the ref who i thought did ok and from the kop it looked a penalty to me.

What next though? The budget is spent. Will Micky have his head in the sand and he seems pretty stubborn to me. I doubt mark will fire him yet but it wouldn't surprise me if he resigned if things carry on.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I agree with Sparky about the corners. The one thing Dunn did give us when he played were some decent, whipped in deliveries.

Regarding the wing backs, if you play that system they have to operate as wingers when you are in possession. Today, Duggan barely crossed the half way line. In his defence, their left back was a handful and he was probably afraid to venture forward, but Ridehalgh did not give us enough width on the other side either. As Sparky points out, Norburn was not in the hole behind the strikers as he needed to be and was too deep, and in any case he is not as effective in that role as Jennings.

As I argued in pre-season, we do have wingers available but Mellon does not want to use any of them: Dunn, Rokka and Dawson were nowhere to be seen, nor was his marquee signing Alabi. There have to be major questions asked about recruitment. However, I believe this group of players would be performing better than it is if it was effectively managed.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

Edit: Dunn was on the bench, but obviously has not convinced.

 

[Sparky]

I think if we lose next week he'll resign. Surely we'll have less points than we did when Brabin was sacked?

Apparently Dover only train twice a week, the manager teaches PE at a grammar school in London and the team are part time, confirmed on TV by BT Sport.

 

[Ian]

I agree with Boz, we did enough to get something out of the game.

I thought the passing and movement was good at times but our final ball was disappointing and the shooting dreadful. I'd agree that we lacked width and having such a strong bench didn't do Micky any favours looking back.

I'm not sure why we are so pathetic in front of goal and why we cannot cross a decent ball into the box. What do they practice in training? I was quite blasé about the start we had but I'm getting worried now.

 

[Ian]

I don't think Micky would walk, I think he'd have to be pushed. I remember when he left Shrewsbury and supporters were saying he took them as far as he could. Has he taken us as far as he can or does he have more to offer?

 

[Sparky]

The weak and tentative finishing comes in part from a lack of confidence. That comes from bad results which, in part, come from the manager picking the wrong team.

Were Duggan and Hughes better options than Buxton and Jennings?

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I agree Ian, but too much of our football was played in front of their defence. With giants at the back like Dover had, we needed to turn them and make them uncomfortable but this did not happen until Norwood came on. Cook was marked out of the game for the most part.

We played the better football at Eastleigh and lost, at Guiseley and did not win..... Sooner or later you have to start picking up results unfortunately.

 

[Sparky]

I don't think we can say he's taken us as far as he can, as he's not had a full year yet.

But it's a results business and MP will be aware of the financial implications of staying in this league and dwindling attendances. He may have to act at some point before things turn ugly.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

The weak and tentative finishing comes in part from a lack of confidence. That comes from bad results which, in part, come from the manager picking the wrong team.

Were Duggan and Hughes better options than Buxton and Jennings?

I thought Hughes played well today. I would have dropped Norburn to be honest, I think he has been poor recently, other than the Solihull goal.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I don't think Micky would walk, I think he'd have to be pushed. I remember when he left Shrewsbury and supporters were saying he took them as far as he could. Has he taken us as far as he can or does he have more to offer?

I think in Leagues One or Two he would be given a lot longer to turn things round. However, as we all know this division is relentless, and we are probably out of the title race already. I would not relish being in Palios's position, as I don't see many better candidates than Mellon around. However, if he sticks with him for another month and things don't improve, we can right this season off.

I agree that Mellon would not resign. He hung on for months at Shrewsbury when he was really unpopular.

 

[Ian]

Regarding Buxton, he came on and played one of the games best passes within minutes. He's too good to be on the bench.

It's crazy to think we've gone from having an excellent season, playing at Wembley, to this all in the space of half a dozen games.

 

[Cowshed Kid]

The Dunn corners have definitely been a refreshing change and productive.
But he got a shirt with Nors suspension and then had to hand it back. Rightly, cos his overall contribution hasn't been good enough.
Buxton would be one of the first pencilled in my team sheet anyday. His technical ability and brain are well above this league.
I stand to be shot down but I recall Les P being asked how he could accommodate Koumas in his team. He said that you had to play a system that got your best players on the pitch, not pick your players to a system.
Yes, simplistic, and difficult games present different challenges but was he wrong?
I'm not MM, thankfully, but for me Bucko, Cookie, Jay H and CJ surely can't be left splinter picking in any game?
It's tough for the team, supporters and club generally at moment.
Constructive criticism (!) aside, it's not the time for a mass MM lynching mob. He's not a managerial journeyman. He knows what we expect and he'll be hurting tonight as well as concerned.
Please god though that he doesn't sink to the depths of Adams and throw the dice each week and hope double six falls!

 

[drwhoman]

Very disappointing. I still cannot help feeling that there must be an element of 'we were so close and now stuck in this league for another season' in the minds of many of those involved. They have to climb the hill again in an unrelenting Division. It is clearly a confidence issue as the players are obviously good enough. They clearly need something to spark them - how far away is Tollitt?

On player recruitment, it was clear that Wallace was a gamble but you do wonder as to why we ended up with so many strikers, none of whom, other than Cook, are capable of scoring at the minute. No Waring on the bench - what was the point of signing this guy if he never plays? Has Alabi been consigned to the periphery to join Dawson and others?

 

[Cowshed Kid]

Alabi has been worse than Sunday league from what I've seen. Though in fairness to MM, non league media reckoned he was a shrewd signing.
Wallace? If he'd not been injured for Wembley we may not have this thread. Was hitting form.

 

[aldoes mustache]

The recruitment is it lee jones job or is mellon involved to . Cant remember if jones is head of recruitment or scouting. Ever way wallace. Dawson . James alabi . Rokka. waring most not good enough the rest not tryed . We have used the budget . And a lot wasted Norborn hasn't been great . You listen to ronnie moor and dave higgins . They both said the middle of the park was not working and with no wide play wye bring dun in if not gonna play an rokka to . We dont get good balls in the box cant beat the first man with corners . And we dont break play up in mmidfield an we dont press the opposition enough . We are a laughing stock . Championship favourites my f@#$kin ares

 

[Sparky]

A very prickly Micky states there is little wrong in his post match interview. Crosses into the box could be better but it's all down to finishing. He is right to a degree in that the saves their keeper made were not difficult and shots straight at him plus Nors missed an easy chance from a free kick.

But he has no issues with set pieces (did our corners look threatening?), and says he picked as much an attacking line up as he could. That's bollocks. Yes we ended the game with CJ and Buxton on but the starting 11 didn't create enough.

 

[aldoes mustache]

Mellon has lost the plot . Get rid now . I want nothing more than to have a settled team and to have a long term management . We need to get the ball on the ground an stop the long ball shit

 

[Boz]

We had decent chances from Hughes in the first half, an effort scrambled off the line early in the second, Ridehalgh shooting straight at their keeper when he should have passed to Cook in a better position in front of goal and Norwood missing from a good position. Plus we had good shouts for penalties. I didn't get a good view of the one in the first half, but Norwood was manhandled and held down in the box, shortly before they went down the end and did get a penalty award. In my view, we created more chances and played at least as well as the Boreham Wood game. Accepted it's not a very high bar to get over.

Dover had a few decent players and made the most of the talents at their disposal. They had two decent wing-backs, the no 2 in particular had pace and hence were keeping the Rovers pair picked as wing-back occupied on defensive duties. A strong central defender, who was all over Cook and the sub-striker who was a handful. The fact that Dover were able to dictate to a large extent how the game was played and with the options he'd made available to himself, Micky was unable to tactically respond to them was a concern.

Defensively, the back three were too inclined to pass back rather than move the ball forward. Sutton and McEveley were more to blame for this than McNulty. Sutton had Duggan as an out ball on many occasions but seemed reluctant to use that option. I don't feel either Duggan or Buxton work as wing-backs, though Adam's experience perhaps makes him the better option. There was one peach of a defence-splitting pass from Mitch, when he'd moved inside, suggesting that he may be more value in the middle of the park.

The midfield seemed to lose it's shape fairly readily and there were times when this enabled Dover to make significant advances. Agree that Hughes had his best game in a while though.

While I can understand Norwood's frustration at not starting today, he acted stupidly when he came on. Got booked for diving, it looked like there was some contact, but he made a meal of it. Should have been given a penalty, but the referee's decision may have been clouded by the dive and goes over and mouths off at the ref after the final whistle. Others might have sent him off.

While it is premature to talk about a change of management, the situation we are in now is partly of Micky's making in terms of how the squad has been built. Our primary aim at this point must be to pull away from the relegation zone and if that means selecting a side which isn't pretty, but hard to beat then so be it.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I disagree with Boz about the centre backs, who I thought did try to be progressive in their play, much more so than the wing backs ironically. Once aspect of the system which did work was the use of the spare man at the back to carry the ball into midfield.

I have watched the game back and while it was not a vintage performance, we had far the better chances and should not have lost it. There are real confidence issues in the final third.