FA Trophy - Rovers v Wrexham

[Sparky]

Just seen the goals. What a total shambles. For 3 of the goals I Can't believe how quickly the ball went from being in our possession to being in the back of our net. The final goal was a joke as their lad had 3 defenders near him and none of them did their job.

I've mentioned before about our real lack of genuine pace in the side and Vose was a classic example of how good it can be especially on the counter attack, but their is no excuse for the awful defending.

At the end of the day it comes down to working on the training ground as to how to defend both with and without the ball. GB is responsible for that so the buck stops with him.

 

[frenchrover]

Well what to say? Another dreadful performance, a goal down after just 4 minutes, so much for "the hard work on the training ground" qouted by Brabin before the game in his usual meaningless blurb. How on earth he keeps selecting Jennings beggars belief, this the captain who in the local Scouse rag thought the Braintree game was a 50/50 affair, he is about as clueless as Brabin. What on earth did Brabin see in McNulty that persuaded him to bring this over weight, immobile liability to the club...originally we were told he was brought in to add stability to the defence, well I'm sorry but all that has happened is that he has totally disrupted the defence. I felt sorry for Iheikwe yesterday having to play alongside Mcnulty, recalled to the side but having to cover both central defensive positions Iheikwe was in an impossible position. Wrexham, from the off, were better than us and Norwood's 2 goals only masks the fact that the gulf between the two sides was immense.
I, like others on here, applaude the work the Palios' have done behind the scenes to stabalise the financial base of the club but unfortunately a new shop, new conference facilities, or a proposed new training ground will in themselves do little to reverse the inevitable fall in gate receipts if our on the field performances continue in the current dismal vein. We are not a Conference Centre, we are not a 4 star restuarant nor a realistic venue for wedding receptions....we are a football club, and at the moment a football club that is in grave danger in alienating ii's very lifeline, it's supporters. How on earth do the Palio' expect to encourage the youngsters of the Wirral, the very future of the club, to come down to Prenton Park to watch the dross which is currently being served up.
Carthorse's Luton link clearly identifies Brabin's failures and carries far more weight and credibility than Mrs. Palios' half-baked apologist statement of last week in support of Brabin. Talk about "Deja Vu".
So on to The Shay next Saturday. It would be a brave person who predicts a comfortable win against a resurgent Halifax, despite there lowly league position. Jim Harvey will really have them fired up for this one. But anything other than a resounding victory for Rovers must surely bring the Palio' to seeing that this seaaon can be written off as an abject failure. Never will "#CBS" seem so pitiful.

 

[Ian]

Maybe Palios' #CBS was meant for next season

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

Despite the vitriol in my earlier post, I want to emphasise that I am profoundly grateful for the work Palios is doing off the pitch. However, I think it is unarguable that performances and results have been disastrous in the last eighteen months. Just why the club has fallen off a cliff in the last year, despite new investment and leadership, is mystifying really.

 

[drwhoman]

I am probably stating the obvious but one has to put it down to poor managerial appointments. Both Adams and Brabin appeared to have good CVs but both had failed quite recently elsewhere. I am sure these things leave mental scars.

 

[Boz]

I am probably stating the obvious but one has to put it down to poor managerial appointments. Both Adams and Brabin appeared to have good CVs but both had failed quite recently elsewhere. I am sure these things leave mental scars.

I'm unsure. Adams maybe, coming off a losing streak at Port Vale, though he started ok with us. The short-term nature of his appointment may have been a factor, if MA had known he'd be here for this season too, maybe he'd have made different choices in player recruitment. Brabin's last appointment was Southport where he did well and he was given ample time to build a side after his appointment in May.

 

[bigmart]

Despite the vitriol in my earlier post, I want to emphasise that I am profoundly grateful for the work Palios is doing off the pitch. However, I think it is unarguable that performances and results have been disastrous in the last eighteen months. Just why the club has fallen off a cliff in the last year, despite new investment and leadership, is mystifying really.

totally agree with this

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

Adams maybe, coming off a losing streak at Port Vale, though he started ok with us. The short-term nature of his appointment may have been a factor, if MA had known he'd be here for this season too, maybe he'd have made different choices in player recruitment.

An interesting point that.

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

I'm unsure. Adams maybe, coming off a losing streak at Port Vale, though he started ok with us. The short-term nature of his appointment may have been a factor, if MA had known he'd be here for this season too, maybe he'd have made different choices in player recruitment.

I'm not sure I agree. If he'd had a longer contract, he'd have got the sack anyway. If he'd kept us up, he'd surely have been offered another contract. I think a real issue was the length of contract offered to his recruits. Understandably, offering long-term deals would have been costly, but loans and short-term deals were a double whammy. Firstly, we got only players who no-one else wanted and were desperate. Secondly, knowing they were not contracted for this season, they were less bothered about Rovers staying up. No obvious answer, but I think we should have signed fewer players.

 

[drwhoman]

Interesting points BBTC. He started ok and then lost the plot signing more players both on short term contracts and on loan. Are there similarities with Brabin? Started ok then signed two guys with decent CVs who appear to be past their sell by dates. Has also signed loan players who have not added much like Blissett and Tomlinson. Dawson is the exception to this of course. Because we are in the National League we do not appear to get decent loanees from the bigger clubs any more.

 

[Boz]

I'm not sure I agree. If he'd had a longer contract, he'd have got the sack anyway. If he'd kept us up, he'd surely have been offered another contract. I think a real issue was the length of contract offered to his recruits. Understandably, offering long-term deals would have been costly, but loans and short-term deals were a double whammy. Firstly, we got only players who no-one else wanted and were desperate. Secondly, knowing they were not contracted for this season, they were less bothered about Rovers staying up. No obvious answer, but I think we should have signed fewer players.

It's obviously all speculation and there is no definitive answer. My guess would be that longer contracts might have been on offer if Adams had been prepared to commit himself to Rovers, but the arrangement was more fire-fighting until the end of the season rather than trying to build a team. You can either look at short term contracts in the way BBTC suggests or for a player with the right mental attitude it might be a way of either earning themselves a longer contract with us or to put themselves in the shop window with someone else. Sadly the ones MA brought in largely didn't have the right approach. There are few I'd want back, even now we're a league below.

Drwhoman suggests there are parallels with Adams and Brabin. I agree to an extent. However, despite a good start results-wise, Brabin had the whole summer to assemble aside and yet, having hardly used a targetman pre-season, decides to stick Stockton there v Woking. his recent utterances suggest a target man will be the main recruit when the window opens. Adams' role was more papering over the cracks of what was generally accepted to be a fairly thin squad, but having got close to a solution, he didn't know when to stop.

Finally, while I think there have been one or two loans from Prem/championship sides to clubs in this league, it all depends what you define as 'decent'. For me, that's as much to do with whether the player can hack it at this level and plug a gap in the squad. I'd rather keep the use of loanees to a minimum.