League Two Walsall v Rovers

[ALDO MUSSY]

I said it would be 1-0 and 90 mins I also said it would be Burton, oh well get in Nevitt glad for the lad and Morriss changes the game

 

[Sparky]

Much improved second half.

7 shots with 6 on target with zero in the first half.

 

[frenchrover]

Game turned for us when Morris came on, until then we were clueless...the few chances we had were down to him, including the goal

 

[Ian]

MOM Simeu for me.

He was very good today.

 

[ALDO MUSSY]

if Nevitt can kick on from now then good Hemmings needs a rocket up his butt

 

[ALDO MUSSY]

i do get the feeling Kane does not look interested at times and his finishing has been quite poor I think last sat was his best game this season

 

[Boz]

Games turn on fine margins. In the second minute of added time, Maddox in a great position puts his shot wide. 3 minutes later, great work and shot from Morris and Nevitt with a striker’s instinct pots the rebound with a header.

Definitely a better second half from Rovers with a few decent chances added to the goal. It didn’t look as convincing as the win against Salford last week sounded and it will need some careful picking over the bones to work out the best combination of players going forward. There were some decent performances but one or two below par.

It was interesting to see how the ex-Rovers fared. Maddox had a good first half, but faded a bit, Daniels was solid, Clarke got away with a few things and we didn’t really test him over his lack of pace. Can understand why Johnson gets some criticism, failing to get anywhere near goal with a free-header was poor. However it was the ex-Saddler Morris who played a pivotal role in our win.

MoM While Simeu impressed, there were one or two mistakes which would get punished for on another day. Good games for Morris and Merrie too. My choice would be Jordan Turnbull who barely put a foot wrong defensively but also popped up in midfield and had a header from a set-piece tipped over. Now he’s match fit and settled in can see what a valuable addition to the squad he will become.

 

[Sparky]

i do get the feeling Kane does not look interested at times and his finishing has been quite poor I think last sat was his best game this season

I think he could have confidence issues. He’s not in great goalscoring form and should have scored last week. The problem is he has no competition for his place. Plus he’s the captain so will always play

 

[Sparky]

Pleased for Merrie too as he played well today. Will be interesting if O’Connor comes back in. Mcalear wasn’t great today but perhaps needs a break from the starting eleven

 

[ALDO MUSSY]

well I would drop Kane for Burton as for Mcslear I would drop him for OConnor as for Kane just because he is the Captain does not mean he plays

 

[ALDO MUSSY]

also, 3 wins in a week and back-to-back away wins we don.t say that too often do we

 

[Ian]

Whatever we make of of today's peformance, as AM says above, we are in good form. Let's hope in continues for a while longer.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I think Burton would have been a better shout

No he would not......

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

A very tight affair, but I thought we deserved the victory for the second half performance.

I have seen a lot of comment above regarding our lack of chances in the first half, but I don't remember Doohan having to make a proper save in the entire ninety minutes. As brilliant as he is, I don't think the improvement in the second half was entirely down to Morris either, as we moved the ball better and quicker as a team after the break.

In the first half I thought the two sides cancelled each other out. Newport matched us up in a 442, and whatever other failings they have, Flynn knows how to organise a defence. They were very stubborn and we struggled to create anything. I don't think the combination of Hemmings and Lewis up front worked at all, as they both kept coming towards the ball and there was no threat in behind to trouble the Walsall centre halves. However, I am not convinced Nevitt would have made the impact he did had he played the entire ninety minutes, so credit to Micky for the substitutions which were both effective.

I felt we deserved the victory even prior to the late goal, as we had four or five decent efforts on target in the second half to Walsall's zero. I thought we showed slightly more guile and imagination in the final third.

Individually, I thought all the back four played well, with the two centre halves outstanding again. Simeu is becoming something of a cult figure. Merrie was much the better of the two central midfielders, and I would like to see him paired with O'Connor against Barrow. McAlear was hit and miss again and looks like he needs a break. Morris did what Morris does, and Nevitt was much more effective as an impact substitute than he has been when starting games.

My man of the match was Jordan Turnbull.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I think he could have confidence issues. He’s not in great goalscoring form and should have scored last week. The problem is he has no competition for his place. Plus he’s the captain so will always play

He has generally performed well, even if the goals have not been flowing, and there is no way I would drop him. We simply don't have enough quality in that position to leave him out.

 

[mellow submarine]

Excellent finish by Nevitt

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

Excellent finish by Nevitt

Yes, I thought that. It looked easy but he had to time his jump, give it power and keep it away from the keeper, who was well positioned. I’m doubly pleased he scored as a miss would have haunted him.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

Yes, I thought that. It looked easy but he had to time his jump, give it power and keep it away from the keeper, who was well positioned. I’m doubly pleased he scored as a miss would have haunted him.

The anticipation was also great. Very often you see a striker on his heels when a ball comes off the keeper. He left Daniels and Clarke completely flat footed.