Simply won't be good enough

Quoted from 120797

I know we were outplayed and lucky 1st half, don't need to be there to work that one out !

MANY others games we haven't had any luck either.
What's wrong with luck balancing itself out for a change (or just 1 half) ?

Have never seen you say we were unlucky.
I know it's disappointing but objectivity over the season isn't based on 1 way traffic of all the bad bits.

I once had a tutor who used to have something to say about being lucky with exams, something like if you're prepared when the opportunity comes along, then you are making your own luck

I just googled his paraphrased words and found

Seneca, a first-century Roman philosopher, allegedly said, "Luck is where the crossroads of opportunity and preparation meet"

So it seems that for a lot longer than any of us have been watching Town, some things never change...we need to get out there tomorrow and make sure we influence things from the off and then hopefully there won't be any questions about good or bad luck

Quoted from chaos33

I agree wholeheartedly but I wouldn't even call them 'negative views'. They are observations of real events. Critical, but balanced comment if you like.

I think that LJL is a very important member of our squad and a player of considerable value in some games, but for the manager to make him the 'number one',  'auto-pick' striker and watch chance after chance squandered across dozens of games is both foolish and sickening. We would win so many more marginal points with a quality striker/more reliable finisher, and that's a stark and blindingly obvious fact.

I know that lots wouldn't have had a chance to hear an interview pre-match on Tuesday as they were already at the game but
I heard Steve Thompson (ex Lincoln manager - https://twitter.com/TommoTweets) discussing LJL. Very interesting it was too

What he had to say summed things up pretty much...seems from him joining the Imps as a young lad right up to his performances with us now, his strengths have been his enery, his persistence and his strength (if you get me) and his main weakness from the off was always his finishing

He's a bit like Marmite I guess...I do like him and if I was playing in the same team I'd value what he does more than what he fails at, but is he the forward to lead the line and get us promoted?

Time will tell - PH clearly thinks so but if we get in to the middle of the season and we're still discussing his inability to take chances that will see us take three points and not draw or lose as we did the other night, he might just be the fall guy in the transfer window in the New Year

Quoted from MuddyWaters

We've got a fantastic goal difference for a side that's won one more game than it has lost. Failure to convert chances in tight games will ultimately cost any team and that's why you need your fox-in-the-box. I'm not repeating what several including myself have said about Hurst or LJL but if we have such a great squad, we simply have to stop worrying about what other teams threats are and start to concentrate on what we can do to them.

It may surprise you but I agree entirely with all of this particularly the highlighted last bit. I only hope that if we do go for it hell for leather and slip up that some on here (not your good self actually) will recognise what we were trying to do and accept the risks in the strategy.

Quoted from chaos33

I agree wholeheartedly but I wouldn't even call them 'negative views'. They are observations of real events. Critical, but balanced comment if you like.

I think that LJL is a very important member of our squad and a player of considerable value in some games, but for the manager to make him the 'number one',  'auto-pick' striker and watch chance after chance squandered across dozens of games is both foolish and sickening. We would win so many more marginal points with a quality striker/more reliable finisher, and that's a stark and blindingly obvious fact.

Do we have a quality striker of the type you are talking about?

It's a bit of a rhetorical question actually because I think we may have in J-P. However, fundamental to his success IMHO is the relationship he builds with LJL-which is already starting to show promise...can you have one without the other? I don't know but he isn't going to get the same support/service from Ross Hannah. Of course we have yet to see what Arnold can do....

Quoted from chaos33

I agree wholeheartedly but I wouldn't even call them 'negative views'. They are observations of real events. Critical, but balanced comment if you like.

I think that LJL is a very important member of our squad and a player of considerable value in some games, but for the manager to make him the 'number one',  'auto-pick' striker and watch chance after chance squandered across dozens of games is both foolish and sickening. We would win so many more marginal points with a quality striker/more reliable finisher, and that's a stark and blindingly obvious fact.

Have you not heard that a critical view on Town is just you being 'negative' 'not supporting the boys' 'wanting us to lose' and as one person quite extraordinarily said, 'bullying'.

I agree with that whole last paragraph, I agree with most of this thread in fact. I think Hurst has brought himself a lot of time with those two wins but with those wins come pressure because he's shown we can do it, if we go backwards now due to him stupidly insisting on change yet again then I give it two weeks until we are back to the atmosphere of a few weeks ago.

Quoted from pontoonlew

Have you not heard that a critical view on Town is just you being 'negative' 'not supporting the boys' 'wanting us to lose' and as one person quite extraordinarily said, 'bullying'.

I agree with that whole last paragraph, I agree with most of this thread in fact. I think Hurst has brought himself a lot of time with those two wins but with those wins come pressure because he's shown we can do it, if we go backwards now due to him stupidly insisting on change yet again then I give it two weeks until we are back to the atmosphere of a few weeks ago.

No need to keep going on about it really...opinions on both side of the divide are equally valid.

I have just two questions for you. Do you believe that regardless of who the opposition are Hurst should stick with the same team regardless of whether players not in that first XI may have different skill sets that would benefit the team more against certain opposition?
If not do you think that there should be changes tomorrow after the Lincoln defeat given that certain players were substantially off their game on Tuesday night?
If you do that is fine but it would appear to be out of step with those who don't think LJL should be a fixture in the side.

Quoted from barralad

No need to keep going on about it really...opinions on both side of the divide are equally valid.

I have just two questions for you. Do you believe that regardless of who the opposition are Hurst should stick with the same team regardless of whether players not in that first XI may have different skill sets that would benefit the team more against certain opposition?
If not do you think that there should be changes tomorrow after the Lincoln defeat given that certain players were substantially off their game on Tuesday night?
If you do that is fine but it would appear to be out of step with those who don't think LJL should be a fixture in the side.

For a start, FWIW I'd still start LJL to see how he gets on, but I think he's got to be fighting for his place. He has to be because lately he's undoubtedly cost us points, I don't even think the most loyal LJL fan will deny that. It wound me up no end when LJL was suspended Hurst said 'we had to try and play it on the floor because Lenny wasn't there' why on earth are we basing our game on lumping the ball up anyway? The fact is Lenny isn't even that good in the air but I think Pittman likes playing with him, Hannah & Pittman is an unknown quantity. Having mentioned Hannah, he'll suffer this season because Hurst has blasted his confidence very early on by shunning him for a player who Hannah will be watching getting in the first 11 without seemingly having to play well. The fact he never started against Welling was baffling, same happened to Cook (7 in 7 this season) anyway I digress from the question...

I do believe that Hurst should stick with the same 11 yeah, unless obviously those players are out of form. Why on earth as a team looking to win the league you'd ever set up to stop the opposition is simply beyond me. As I said about Lincoln, why would you try and play Lincoln at a tactic they are better at than us? So what if they have big players, if anything you try even harder to pass round them because if you go out to battle them, there's only going to be one winner. I'm adamant that if we went into that game and played OUR way, we would've won because we're better at our way than they are.

To the second question i'd say get back to the side that tore 2 sides to absolute pieces, that's a tried and tested method. Rotate those players out when they have a bad run of games, the best teams are the consistent ones. If you get 11 players playing together on a run, they'll undoubtedly achieve good things.

I don't think it's any coincidence that each year when Hurst has been here, we've had poor second halves of seasons which have coincided with this stupid 'rotation policy' because 'players are tired'. Yet in the meantime we get given the run around by part time sides who stick with the same side.

Quoted from barralad

It may surprise you but I agree entirely with all of this particularly the highlighted last bit. I only hope that if we do go for it hell for leather and slip up that some on here (not your good self actually) will recognise what we were trying to do and accept the risks in the strategy.

I think I need a drink.....

The thing about LJL is that he really is the only 'targetman' we have. Pittman is strong and has a good leap, but is relatively diminutive in comparison to big defenders in this division so isn't overly well suited to the holding role. At a push, we can play Pittman and Hannah together, but we'll invariably struggle to hold the ball up front when they play together. Probably better to have a front 3 with runners if LJL isn't available.

Aerially, LJL is the best we have amongst the strikers. Not surprising, really, because he's also the tallest. I don't know about the away matches this season, but he's won the majority of his headers at BP so I'm rather baffled as to why he is attracting criticism about this aspect of his game.

As for Hannah, he may not have had many chances so far this season, but the simple fact is that we've scored 17 goals in the 5 games in which LJL and JPP have played together! Unfortunately for Hannah, we're not likely to change the forward line when those two are playing well together, especially as they have linked up well with Neilson almost as a front 3 for much of the time. He'll get his opportunities in the team at some point so he just needs to ensure he scores some goals when he gets the chances.

I dont think that anyone on here,  or that supports town,  can or does call LJL for his commitmet, he is a 100% player and alwase gives his best... untill he can see the net,, from close range. that is where he will and has cost us goals and points,, not to say that others have not missed a few sitters, but no where near as often as he does , and goals win games end of