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Maringer |
September 28, 2017, 10:57am |
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As I've noted in the past, my view is that because the players are now much bigger, much stronger and much fitter, there is effectively less room on the pitch and a lower division team could never play Buckleyball with any success these days as they just don't have the skill levels to do so. Watch footage of the era of Rees/Woods/Gilbert etc and you'll see that the athleticism we see from most teams these days didn't exist back then. The football was fantastic to watch at times, but the wide open spaces available made it possible. As an example, Colchester might have been distinctly average on Tuesday night but they were a team packed full of athletes and we had little space to work with even on the occasions when we managed some good play - remember Summerfield's two very good passes out wide in the first half? Our player still had a defender right on him attempting to block the cross whereas in Buckley's days it would have been a free run to the byline and picking your spot for the cross or running in for a shot.
At the top level of the game, the best players have the skill to play some breathtaking football at such high pace, but League Two players generally can't, the odd passage of play aside.
I'd say this is as much the reason for the demise of flair players as any other. You still get players who can beat a man or two, but they are then invariably surrounded by opposition defenders pretty much straight away.
What's the solution? Increase the size of the pitch, perhaps, so there is more space available? No surprise that the first thing that managers taking over struggling clubs tend to do is reduce the width of the pitch!
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Abdul19 |
September 28, 2017, 11:00am |
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I remember reading that Socrates' solution to the above was to change football to 9 a side!
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livosnose |
September 28, 2017, 11:10am |
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As I've noted in the past, my view is that because the players are now much bigger, much stronger and much fitter, there is effectively less room on the pitch and a lower division team could never play Buckleyball with any success these days as they just don't have the skill levels to do so. Watch footage of the era of Rees/Woods/Gilbert etc and you'll see that the athleticism we see from most teams these days didn't exist back then. The football was fantastic to watch at times, but the wide open spaces available made it possible. As an example, Colchester might have been distinctly average on Tuesday night but they were a team packed full of athletes and we had little space to work with even on the occasions when we managed some good play - remember Summerfield's two very good passes out wide in the first half? Our player still had a defender right on him attempting to block the cross whereas in Buckley's days it would have been a free run to the byline and picking your spot for the cross or running in for a shot.
At the top level of the game, the best players have the skill to play some breathtaking football at such high pace, but League Two players generally can't, the odd passage of play aside.
I'd say this is as much the reason for the demise of flair players as any other. You still get players who can beat a man or two, but they are then invariably surrounded by opposition defenders pretty much straight away.
What's the solution? Increase the size of the pitch, perhaps, so there is more space available? No surprise that the first thing that managers taking over struggling clubs tend to do is reduce the width of the pitch!
Has Slade done this at BP?
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Maringer |
September 28, 2017, 12:30pm |
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Pitch size at BP looks pretty normal to me, but then it's a reasonably compact ground with the stands close to the pitch so there is no leeway. Most of the modern pitches at new stadia seem to be around 5 yards longer than BP, but with the same width.
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realist |
September 28, 2017, 12:34pm |
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That was an interesting post Maringer, I had never looked at football like that. Mind you I am clueless about tactics, I just go to be entertained, which is getting harder at all levels of football.
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RichMariner |
September 28, 2017, 12:55pm |
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The first half of the 95/96 season - particularly when we had Ivano in the team - was probably some of the best all-round football I've seen played by GTFC in my time.
It had Buckley's style at the core, but it also had the ability to mix it up a little, and be more direct, but still retained the skill (and it was enhanced through our favourite Italian on the left or through the middle).
I suppose we should credit Laws for evolving the Buckley style into something that, at one point in the season, looked good enough to get us in the play-offs, but we fell away badly that season - we all know what happened at Luton - so how much of the good football was down to the manager in post, or the manager before him, with a sprinkling of new players, is hard to measure.
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Mendonca1995 |
September 28, 2017, 1:16pm |
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Super Clive mendonca how much would he cost now Table Wine Drinker
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Has Slade done this at BP?
No mate the pitch hasn't been altered in terms of width I went on a stadium tour vs Crewe as the company I work for sponsored that game and that was the first question I asked as I am usually in the stand and couldn't tell myself the tour was great to be honest I see a lot of other areas around bp I haven't before was interesting
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Mrs Doyle |
September 28, 2017, 3:31pm |
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Buckleys sides were known in football circles as a team who would get the ball down and pass and move you need fit players to do this as possession was the key to success. When not in possession you harassed the opposition to win back the ball if done right at pace you could murder teams but slow it was ineffective. Having the right players was key but even Buckers appreciated the target man hence big Keith Alexander (RIP). Not the most skillful but a great target man difficult to dislodge off the ball.
Slade as a good blend up front to play any formation but whether he can get them to gel is another thing.
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Tommy |
September 28, 2017, 5:07pm |
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The difference between a Buckley target man (eg Livvo) and pretty much every manager since is that his target men were strikers you'd play the ball into their feet (at worst their chest) and they'd hold it up and lay it off.
Not just a big lump to chuck the ball 50 feet in the air to and hope they can win a 50-50 aerial challenge.
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HertsGTFC |
September 28, 2017, 7:06pm |
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I sometimes think all this obsession about shape and systems holds players back from playing off the cuff or whats in front of them.
When we have played good football we have got both the ball and players in the box at the moment it's one or the other or for long periods neither.
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| "Crombie you would have got to that if you weren't such a fat ba%$@rd" - George Kerr, inspiration from the dug out 70s style |
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