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From the second minute we went on the front foot and the brakes were let off, controlled the game in the first half and could of easily gone in 2 ahead. Took our chances in the second half playing some really nice football and looked better defensively until we made whole sale changes and Morecambe threw caution to the wind. Special mentions to Khan, Glennon, Rose, Pyke, Green and Gav today. Pyke really impressed me out on that right hand side and was very intelligent with how he dragged the defence around leaving space for Mullarkey to get beyond him. Glennon looked back to the Glennon we had on loan and was marauding up and down. Gav and Greeny really combative and controlled the midfield most the game. A really solid display front foot display against the most inform team in the divison barring Stockport. Defensive concerns but plenty to be positive about.. UTM

Best game I've seen this season. (I missed a couple where we supposedly played well.)
A sense of purpose and determination with some exciting and skillful play that I've not seen previously.
Well done Ben and Shaun. 👏
MOM Glennon despite that frightening clearance /back pass!

Get in there!!

After 1 minute you thought oh my god as the defence parted like the red sea yet again but felt we then dominated the rest of the 1st half, missed chances, good saves

Came out second half and the brilliant Danny Rose got us level and we played like a house of fire. Green Pyke and Holohan were excellent with Rose my MOM

I think we made too many changes…. And the left hand side became weak as we invited pressure and they certainly had chances to level but we ground it out thank god.

Some wont like this, but Hunt was invisible when he came on and I dont see things working for him here, and I think we should stick with the 3 who started today going forward

But thats for another day, We won. Enjoy your weekends

Well done town for a very entertaining game, I thought after the 2nd minute it would be very much the same as previous games but the players responded and tonight must feel proud of themselves. UTM

First 10 mins we were all over the place . Then something happened and it clicked . I enjoyed a home game of football for the first time in god knows how long . We were brilliant 2nd half and the 3 goals didn’t flatter us at all . Beat Slough on Tuesday and we will have some good momentum for a change .

So Pyke has goal conversion on par with Rose and virtually the same goals per minute. I'm not saying for one minute that he's better, but we need to lay off him a bit and support him. He's still developing and doesn't have many league minutes under his belt that isn't at WB.

For a third choice striker, it ain't bad.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/teams/grimsby-town/top-scorers

Well done Town a very Happy home crowd at 90 mins as above Green and Glennon superb the rest got better as the game went on.I would like to single out young Cartwright for special praise one great save and came confidently for several dangerous crosses . Any prospective Manager watching that can be confident that if nothing else he's got players who will have a go .See you all Tuesday night UTM

Well, what can you say ,thats the best I've seen Town play for an age, the team played as if their shackles had been removed. A special mention for Cartwright,I thought he was outstanding today ,which would have given the defence more confidence.
Rose though was my MOM,he's a class above. It's good to see Green back,he makes things tick in the middle. I think Shaun and Ben can take some credit for todays result,lets hope the tide has turned. Was also great to hear the fans get behind the team.

Positives :
Some very good individual performances. Holohan, Green and Khan stood out for me.
Very good attacking play.
Plenty of men committed forward
Plenty of shots
Played the ball on the floor or into channels as much as possible
Substitutes not obvious and 'the usual'

Negatives :
Defensively awful

I really enjoyed the game and really felt town really gave it a go. Be interesting to see what happens over the next week or two regards games / manager(s)

Finally the shackles have been removed and we took the game to them, it lifted the players and the supporters, far from the finished article but much better UTM

Great to see players getting in the box trying to get on the end of things..really positive performance well done Ben and Shaun

Good performance, great effort to come from behind. Good to see a few players who the boo boys got stuck into making a difference.

First half a new manager would think that there isn’t much to work with, 2nd half they would think differently.

Entertainment ✅
Goals ✅
Positive energy ✅
Three points ✅

Mom Glennon for me

One thing I do find incredible is how Grimsby Town affect me . I’ve been struggling this week but I feel like a million dollars right now . I guess that’s why I love them so much 🥰

Great game best match in ages the handbrake has been finally taken off.
Second half superb you could see the players growing with confidence Rose, Glennon and Green superb.
Also the fans where brilliant great atmosphere.

We gave Morecambe so much to think about it nullified what talent they have.

That's how the game should be played - on the front foot giving the opposition nightmares with plenty of movement. Early days but it goes to show how a different outlook can work wonders.

Absolutely, thoroughly deserved 3 points against a good side full of confidence. We were the better team from minute one after we gifted them our usual sloppy goal. We really should have been at least level, and probably in front at half time, with the finish being the only thing missing and plenty of excellent crosses went in from Glennon and Khan, without anyone getting on the end of them, bar Holohan who skied a good chance on his weaker foot.

I wonder if Shaun and Ben had a word about gambling more and getting on the end of stuff, because right from the first minute of the second half, we were getting in great crosses and causing problems; only this time, we were getting on the end and finishing them off. 3 goals came quickly and Morecambe looked a bit shell shocked. We had a great chance to get a 4th but somehow they managed to keep it out and slowly work their way back into it. We then lost our way for a bit with a series of substitutions which made us lose the flow a bit.

We've not found ourselves in this position much this season and for a while we didn't look like we knew how to close the game out, leading to them getting back into it with a very well worked goal, which led to some very nervy moments on the pitch and in the crowd, but we saw it out and fully deserved the 3 points.

Green was immense and put paid to the view that he is just a destroyer. He is a much better footballer than people give him credit for. Glennon was superb for an hour and his crosses and dead balls were mostly quality. Going forward, he was fantastic and my joint MOM with Green.

The team as a whole played very well, mostly on the front foot, bar a couple of manic moments at the back, which we need to get a grip of, but that is being churlish on a a day we got a great win.

Finally, we win a game 3-2 after losing many by that score.

Just realised we play the bottom two next in the league

Quoted from It Bites

One thing I do find incredible is how Grimsby Town affect me . I’ve been struggling this week but I feel like a million dollars right now . I guess that’s why I love them so much 🥰

It’s amazing how a Town win can lift us up from periods of depression and stress and make us feel so much happier.

Great performance, great entertainment, fully endorse the positive comment, but it's only one game. Let's see where we are in a couple of weeks before we say we have turned the corner.

Attack the best form of defence sometimes and we made that point today, release the brakes and allow the team some freedom to attack, create problems and take the game to the opposition which is what we ha e been missing at BP for a long time.

Quoted from Hagrid

Get in there!!

After 1 minute you thought oh my god as the defence parted like the red sea yet again but felt we then dominated the rest of the 1st half, missed chances, good saves

Came out second half and the brilliant Danny Rose got us level and we played like a house of fire. Green Pyke and Holohan were excellent with Rose my MOM

I think we made too many changes…. And the left hand side became weak as we invited pressure and they certainly had chances to level but we ground it out thank god.

Some wont like this, but Hunt was invisible when he came on and I dont see things working for him here, and I think we should stick with the 3 who started today going forward

But thats for another day, We won. Enjoy your weekends

So he had 15 mins & thats the end for him wow , the other week it was glennon & returns with a mom performance today , confidence that's all it is & hunt will play many more games for town when a manager comes in & supports his game

Quoted from fishcake63

So he had 15 mins & thats the end for him wow , the other week it was glennon & returns with a mom performance today , confidence that's all it is & hunt will play many more games for town when a manager comes in & supports his game

It isnt just the 15 minutes though is it.

He’s 5th?6th choice.

Pyke is such a better player when he's facing the play

You can see why he did well in league 1 down the right

Tommy mentioned to me how clever a player he is today aswell, dragging opposition players out of position to create space for others .

Really enjoyed that. Wingers taking players on, decent deliveries, forward passes , high tempo.

More please.

Quoted from Hagrid

Get in there!!

After 1 minute you thought oh my god as the defence parted like the red sea yet again but felt we then dominated the rest of the 1st half, missed chances, good saves

Came out second half and the brilliant Danny Rose got us level and we played like a house of fire. Green Pyke and Holohan were excellent with Rose my MOM

I think we made too many changes…. And the left hand side became weak as we invited pressure and they certainly had chances to level but we ground it out thank god.

Some wont like this, but Hunt was invisible when he came on and I dont see things working for him here, and I think we should stick with the 3 who started today going forward

But thats for another day, We won. Enjoy your weekends

I don’t deny that the midfield three who started deserve the accolades but to write off a sub who came on when they were pressing is pretty pathetic. You might be right but support the whole squad rather than look for a boo boy.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

I don’t deny that the midfield three who started deserve the accolades but to write off a sub who came on when they were pressing is pretty pathetic. You might be right but support the whole squad rather than look for a boo boy.

How i knew you’d respond when Hunt’s name is mentioned. I support the whole squad. I go week in week out home and away. I never boo, and I never will, I just dont think its going to work out for him here thats all I was saying

Decent game.
Great to see more players get into dangerous positions.
Holohan has been brilliant in a few of the games at home including this one.

I'm surprised nobody has really mentioned Andrews. He looks a level above to me. Can definitely pass a ball but really gets stuck in and won the ball back numerous times.

Good stuff.

Probably the wrong game for Hunt to be brought on in, we know his strengths and his weaknesses and we probably needed a bit more bite in midfield. They were going direct and throwing men forward so automatically makes it difficult for him to get on the ball but can see why they brought him on. Probably wanted to try and gain a hold of the game which he struggled to do due to them throwing caution to the wind.

Quoted from Hagrid

How i knew you’d respond when Hunt’s name is mentioned. I support the whole squad. I go week in week out home and away. I never boo, and I never will, I just dont think its going to work out for him here thats all I was saying

I’m sure Alex would be delighted to read your expert opinion.

Today I just wanted to see players getting past their man and a bit of effort. On the sidelines I wanted to see the staff influence the game, whether that was ideas to give us enough time to get back in to it or better still, go on and win it. I don’t think it’s too much to ask but it all of the above have been lacking for a long time but today that wasn’t the case.

The players were magnificent. Every single one of them. We could have had double figures today. Balls in to dangerous areas, players gambling to get in to said areas and effort everywhere. It was a nervy last 10 minutes but the bodies being thrown in the way of every ball was fantastic.

Shaun and Ben were bang on with the team selection. I liked it before the game bar Pyke on the wing but I have to hold my hand up and say I got that one wrong because he was pretty influential there and gave everything. I liked that they tried to get players involved from the bench albeit a couple were forced through fatigue I think. Shaun’s enthusiasm as ever was wonderful to see.

I’ll leave it there; just a really enjoyable day today where every member of the playing team and staff deserve the plaudits.

A good battling performance with a higher workrate causing the opponents to make mistakes.

Shaky start, but no heads dropped and with better positioning and shooting could have scored more from open chances made.

Forget the short goal kick routine, no.one looks comfortable with it, and Cartwright's kicking is getting better.

Sweeping moves at speed, with crosses made early to players running onto them - devastating !!

Shows they have it, just need freedom to play and not stutter up and down the pitch.

Some excellent personal.performances with players showing more form !

More of the same in the next 2 games, please !!

Quoted from MuddyWaters

I’m sure Alex would be delighted to read your expert opinion.

Well we’ve been subject to yours on all matters Hurst for god knows how many months so I’m sure you can deal with it

Blimey, first positive afternoon we’ve had for ages and some can’t wait to get on here and write off a players town career, what a strange bunch!

Anyway, that was so much better! Front foot, high energy football. Not always pretty but the work ethic and team spirit was there in abundance. Hopeful for 3 more positive results next.

Quoted from Hagrid

Well we’ve been subject to yours on all matters Hurst for god knows how many months so I’m sure you can deal with it

There’s players in the squad who took the chance that a start gave them (you rightly named them on Twitter) and there’s maybe more to come from others when they get a chance.

Who knows what a new manager might do when we get one?

Quoted from Hagrid

It isnt just the 15 minutes though is it.

He’s 5th?6th choice.

At this moment in time you are right 5th/6th choice but football is not as easy as that a new manager can come in get his confidence up & he has the ability to be in our midfield on a more regular basis watch this space

Sadly Hunt isn’t good enough. Bar two months in the National League, he hasn’t really done anything to show that he’s going to make it in the pro game.

It was nice to see how happy Amos was at the end aswell .

He went over to Glennon and gave him some big hugs .

I'm no affectionate person, but they do seem a good bunch of lads and seem to care at least .

Quoted from MuddyWaters

There’s players in the squad who took the chance that a start gave them (you rightly named them on Twitter) and there’s maybe more to come from others when they get a chance.

Who knows what a new manager might do when we get one?

Thats fair enough. Sorry for coming across as a male private.

That really gave me a shot in the arm which i deperately needed so god knows what it did for the team. Doesnt half make a difference to my Saturday night.
Was pleased for Green in particular. It was great to see a midfielder in the box and score a great goal. Much as I like Conteh i dont think he would have been in that position previously.
We may have just found our team!

Hunt hasn’t played for ages he needs a run on the team to prove himself.

I was out of my seat 5 or 6 times today, and that is how it should be. Spent too many games sat glumly, waiting for something exciting to happen.

Win, lose or draw, it's not much to ask is it?

Also loved it when Rose beat a couple of players and tried to do the goalie from 40 yards. That's the sort of thing you see when confidence is returning.

Got to hold my hands up. I was getting so anxious in the week, suggesting we should just get a manager sorted before we were marooned. It's what loving your club does to you at times. However, great prep from Shaun and Ben. High press, drive, move ball quickly back to forward, get it out wide, great balls in the box, shackles off. We showed intent. Hats off! UTM!

Amazing what a difference it makes when you actually pass to your own players and they also attempt to move into space to receive the ball!

Some excellent crosses today as well, of the sort I've rarely seen us put in this season.

The physical side of things in the middle certainly helped with Green, Holohan and Andrews all putting in a good shift in that regard. Notably, their big No. 5 who came on at half-time was marking Green at set pieces which shows how they thought he was a real threat in the air. Some good passing and movement from Green and Holohan as well as the hard work.

Defensively, there is still a lot to work on as we were distinctly ropey at times and, confidence is certainly a good thing, but we got away with over-playing a few times and losing possession in dangerous areas.

The disappointment was that we dropped right off after the substitutions as the players who came on weren't able to replicate what their teammates had been doing. Hopefully, Green and Glennon can get their fitness up over the next month (and stay fit, as well). At least we managed to hold on for a deserved win.

A surprise to see Clifton coming on for Andrews, instead of Conteh, but I suspect his greater pace and stamina was thought to be more important and it ultimately worked out.

Well done Ben and Shaun, they picked the best team today
The players have also shown us what they can do.
Some great football today, really enjoyed the game
UtM

It was quite telling that when we conceded after 1min no-one around me was shocked. Moving the ball quickly, switching play and then again really showed what this team is capable of. Still a few scary moments in defence but great result!

Quoted from Hagrid

Thats fair enough. Sorry for coming across as a male private.

Fair do’s. I think it’s worth mentioning Cartwright too - he made two great saves. All any player can do is take his chance when it comes.

What pleased me most about todays game, was the fact that so many players could have been man of the match for the right reason and it would have been hard to disagree.

exactly that & hunt will get his chance

Nobody has mentioned it,but I thought Andrews had an excellent game, him and Khan linked up very well.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

There’s players in the squad who took the chance that a start gave them (you rightly named them on Twitter) and there’s maybe more to come from others when they get a chance.

Who knows what a new manager might do when we get one?

We've already got them .

Well that was very enjoyable wasn’t it? Glennon stand out for me but thought they were all pretty good once we’d got past that initial disappointment. Do that again over the next few games and we’ll be laughing.

Quoted from ginnywings

I was out of my seat 5 or 6 times today, and that is how it should be. Spent too many games sat glumly, waiting for something exciting to happen.

Win, lose or draw, it's not much to ask is it?

Also loved it when Rose beat a couple of players and tried to do the goalie from 40 yards. That's the sort of thing you see when confidence is returning.

No you are right

We need to be entertained , and today was how it should be at home - win ,lose or draw you give the team a good battering .

Let's hope it's a sign of things to come and we can get BP full again .

I'm not writing off Hunt until the new manager has settled in. Glennon was written off and missing from the squad in Hurst's final days, but has come back flying. Orsi was given 10 minutes at the end of games then released but showed with Crawley hes a handy player over 90.

New start for the team, only fair to wipe all the slates clean and see what they can do in a new environment.

If they play like that 3rd quarter they will be going places.

I thought Danny Rose was superb today. Works so hard and set the tempo from the start. Poachers goal, brilliant header to make the second. Never stopped.

Quoted from Rodley Mariner

I thought Danny Rose was superb today. Works so hard and set the tempo from the start. Poachers goal, brilliant header to make the second. Never stopped.

I’m in total agreement with the caveat that Pyke got closer to him so all his hard work didn’t get wasted.

I said just before the match that we would win.  Reasoning that all teams must win sometime and teams in good current have to lose.

Winning and being entertained with such attacking football was a very refreshing change.  It looked like the team changes were very good calls and a catalyst for the outstanding team performance.

(A day for a change in fortunes.  Just before leaving Dock’s to drive to the game, we laughed at Wolves quoted at 80-1 to beat Spurs when losing in the 88Th minute.  As we parked up Wolves scored the winner).

If we win on Tuesday our old foe Rodrigues (ex Notts County) scored 2 goals for Oxford and was the MOM.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

I’m in total agreement with the caveat that Pyke got closer to him so all his hard work didn’t get wasted.

Agree 100% Thought more physicality next to him really helped.

Really pleasing performance in a lot of ways and particularly the positive way we reacted to giving away such a dreadful goal in the first minute and then nearly repeating the error some ten minutes later. The real positive was our commitment to drive forwards at every opportunity and the leaders in this, particularly first half, were Khan and Glennon who just kept bombing forward and getting in shots and decent crosses one of which should have seen Gav equalise. Rodgers looked completely out of sorts for the first half hour but gradually the confidence seemed to return little by little and he was much better second half.

As I say really positive going forwards but a few times it was a little too easy to get through our midfield and get at the defence but thankfully we managed to ride these storms and come through with a win. Don’t see how so many rated Pyke so highly but it just demonstrates how we all see the game differently.

Not a day to consider the negatives though as if we play on the front foot as we did today at least the games are going to be much more enjoyable and hopefully we will witness many more victories.

Well played town very good and great to hear a very bubbly Ben Davies in the after match interview.

After they scored I thought here we go again, but boy was I wrong. The commitment from everyone of the players was totally unexpected when compared to previous games (seems we've got our steel back), also noticed that the running off the ball was a definite step up, got to give the interim management credit today.

Proper uplift in standards in every regard from the players. Just what was called for. Gotta maintain those standards now.

Quoted from ancientmariner54

We've already got them .

I bloody hope not.

According to their manager, it was our "cup final". Morecambe FFS.

Same said by one of their players in a post match interview, who intimated we didn't play much football.

Would we have seen a game like this of Hurst was in charge ?

no we would have lost 5 3 if hurst was here

Quoted from MuddyWaters

I don’t deny that the midfield three who started deserve the accolades but to write off a sub who came on when they were pressing is pretty pathetic. You might be right but support the whole squad rather than look for a boo boy.

I think Hunt & Eissa both looked like lambs when they came on, to be fair it sometimes happens when you’re a sub.

OK, I've had a few sherbets but wasn't it flipping BRILLIANT to see us win with a little bit of skill, style and panache for once in too flipping long of a long time! 😁
Black clouds lifting! 😁 ☀ 😎

Quoted from ginnywings

According to their manager, it was our "cup final". Morecambe FFS.

Same said by one of their players in a post match interview, who intimated we didn't play much football.

More digs than British Coal “long ball” “cup final” never mentioned “3 points last as we couldn’t be @rsed to play until the last 10 minutes” 🙄

Can I add I have enjoyed reading the fishy tonight with most posters only saying positive things.

How does Adams know every teams budget to say his is the lowest in the league ffs

Quoted from Hagrid

How i knew you’d respond when Hunt’s name is mentioned. I support the whole squad. I go week in week out home and away. I never boo, and I never will, I just dont think its going to work out for him here thats all I was saying

Really? Last weekend you were claiming "you cannot play Glennon" (receipt here - https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?m-1699190067/s-210/#num215) and today it was a toss up between him and Green for man of the match. Writing off Hunt on the basis of a brief cameo while we're defending a 2 goal lead is ridiculous (and the goal we conceded while he was on the pitch had nothing to do with him and at least two other substitutes were at fault for it, yet you've not mentioned their names, funny that).

Just back in foggy Leeds. Wow. Turns out you can still enjoy football.

I woke up up this morning with an overwhelming sense of “I don’t think I can be ársed”. A three hour round trip to witness almost certain defeat, and probably a turgid one to boot? What would be the point? Alas, like an alcoholic with a stinking hangover, the power of habit and an illogical sense of necessity got the better of me, and I made the journey. Did I mention I had a stinking hangover? It had better be good…

I was approaching the end of the A180 when the team news arrived via JT on the radio. Blimey. 6 changes!? No fúcking about there. It took some time to mentally process the changes made. No Clifton or Conteh? Bold. Pyke starts? Very fúcking bold.

But did it give me confidence in a result? Not really, no lineup would have. I posted in the week, in response to the idea that the crowd should arrive loud and proud to back the team, that it would ultimately come down to what the players did on the pitch. Start poorly, concede an early soft goal, as I thought we might well, and you lose any good will those in the stands arrived with.

So what did we do? Ironically, 69 seconds is all it took for our defence to part like the legs of a Lithuanian hooker, giving Morecambe a golden opportunity and receiving heavy blow at the same time. Get me. Wasn’t I prescient? Time for the crowd to turn nasty, and the players to wilt.

Except none of that happened. The crowd stayed behind the team. The players knuckled down and got on top of things. Perhaps I wasn’t so prescient after all. As it would transpire, I definitely wasn’t. But fair play to all concerned for that response.

The effort levels on the back of that early goal, quite literally the last thing we needed, were incredible. Glennon, Khan and Andrews linking down the left were superb, and all Morecambe had to offer was a series of niggly fouls that eventually began to draw yellow cards due to the quantity of them.

But there was still something important missing. For all the effort, for all the guile, for all the confidence you could see steadily building, we couldn’t score for toffee. With our best chance of the half, Holohan cleared the bar by a good 6 yards when it was surely easier to score. Would we ever score?

Just as I was suggesting that we most definitely would not, fresh from a half-time pint, their ‘keeper drops the ball on Kieran Green’s head, it falls to Danny, Danny Rose, and he sticks it into the gaping net. Of course he does.

And then before I can even take stock of that goal, there’s the second. The fúcking second!! Get the fúcking fúck in!! I didn’t see that coming. What a great ball in from Glennon, the header from Rose and the calm, casual, side-footed volley from Green. This isn’t taken from this season’s script, is it?

And then, before too long, there’s the third! The fúcking fúcking third!! What’s going on!? I’m sat at the perfect angle in the lower as Holohan picks up the ball on the edge of the Morecambe box, and I can see the opportunity on play the ball through to Glennon on the left opening up, but it’s so tight, it needs threading through two Shrimpers defenders with such precision it’s a huge ask. But thread it he does, and Glennon plays it first-time into the six-yard box for Pyke to bundle home. He almost got another shortly after, too. His selection vindicated. Completely.

Morecambe’s late goal made things a bit interesting, in a game that had everything really, but I have newfound confidence in young Harvey Cartwright in goal, who stopped everything he had a right to today. Chuffed for the lad. He made a couple of brilliant saves, and looked confident in general.

In context, the most enjoyable league game at BP since our return to the EFL. It was a win, and performance, we needed. It was a win, and performance, I needed. Way too early to be suggesting a Pearson / Davies combo as a viable option as our next management team; but today they were asked to manage a game, and boy did they manage it well - from start to finish. Everything they did was logical and absolutely spot on.

Well done, gents.

Nothing much to add, other than that I’m really pleased for Shaun and Ben who I know will be putting the hours in.

A couple of observations in that I thought Maher once again looked shaky initially but did grow into the game. Is there a confidence issue with him? More generally I do feel that defensively we miss that strong, commanding, leadership presence at the back.

Easy for me to say in hindsight but thought moving Clifton to left back and bringing Hunt on was perhaps a sub too far and made us more vulnerable (and cost us that second goal). If we were making changes to shore us up at the back, I’d have brought Waterfall on to win those headers and get the ball away from the box into row z.

Well done to Harvey Cartwright too, who has stepped up, proving people wrong who’d written him off and provided us with that solidity when it looked as if we were heading towards a real goalkeeping crisis.

Just remembered another thing from today: whoever it was who was so desperate to beat some pedestrians crossing to get into the road coming out of Sidney Park that you went straight into the car in front of you: well done 🤪

Quoted from LH

Just remembered another thing from today: whoever it was who was so desperate to beat some pedestrians crossing to get into the road coming out of Sidney Park that you went straight into the car in front of you: well done 🤪

Similarly the male private who thought it was clever to race in front of my dad who is struggling with a stick at the moment, now has a lovely dent in the back of his shitty little car. I may or may not have done that.

I
d barely parked my backside and flipped the lid off my bottle of beer and we were one down. Bloody hell!   We had a couple of scares at the back after that, but going forward you could see a difference. There was some excellent running off the ball and the link up play on the left was magnificent. I forgot we were losing because it felt we would equalise soon.  The ruddy ball just wouldn't go in.  Maybe their goal being so early was a blessing in disguise.  It gave us fight and time to do it. We just needed the run of the green , which we had had  little of the games this season. Then came that fumble.  I half expected a whistle for a foul on the keeper. The spirit was back.  The players seemed to know where they were. They moved the ball quicker. They played the ball out of the back but were less pedestrian.  And if you couldn't play it out the back, they played accurate long balls. They were playing less predictably.  They were threading ball to feet and following the pass, reminiscent of Buckley's teams. My usual Saturday night posture of slumped, turned more animated.  Well done Town.

Cartwright looked better, he started to command his area.  Khan played a blinder but was overshadowed by Glennon and Green.  Pyke's best game for sure.  Some of the players looked dead on their feet, but they kept running.

We can't rest on our laurels.  We need to put Slough to the sword.  It will build our confidence.

UTM!!

Quoted from davmariner

Nothing much to add, other than that I’m really pleased for Shaun and Ben who I know will be putting the hours in.

A couple of observations in that I thought Maher once again looked shaky initially but did grow into the game. Is there a confidence issue with him? More generally I do feel that defensively we miss that strong, commanding, leadership presence at the back.

Easy for me to say in hindsight but thought moving Clifton to left back and bringing Hunt on was perhaps a sub too far and made us more vulnerable (and cost us that second goal). If we were making changes to shore us up at the back, I’d have brought Waterfall on to win those headers and get the ball away from the box into row z.

Well done to Harvey Cartwright too, who has stepped up, proving people wrong who’d written him off and provided us with that solidity when it looked as if we were heading towards a real goalkeeping crisis.

Clifton to left back was a necessity though. Glennon was copulated.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

Clifton to left back was a necessity though. Glennon was copulated.

Ran himself into the ground.

2 unbeaten for the new managers

Will have to stop watching Town, Ive only missed watching 2 games (some live, some on tv) this season, yesterday and Gillingham our best performances this season. :'(

Quoted from Hagrid

Seens as you want to dig up old posts, Here is one from after the game.

Maybe in your world you’ve never said anything and been proven wrong subsequently, but i highly doubt it

Tweet 1723385700366557555 will appear here...

Not sure what your tweets have to do with specifically targeting players for unwarranted criticism in the immediate aftermath of a victory!

Anyway.... Rather than digging up he said, she said etc. how about we just enjoy a great win from a very entertaining game in which I thought everyone was excellent?

Started off shaky as hell and I feared the worst at 1 down when thru continued to waltz through our defence. Rodgers went from a horrible first ten minutes to something like his early season form for the other 80.

Cartwright was magnificent and his command of the area was a joy to watch. I cannot believe the difference in him from the FL Trophy games. Glennon was my MOTM, best from in over a year. Looked 2 yards quicker and with genuine fire in his belly.

Midfield was spot on. Markers laid down from Clifton and Conteh if they want to get back in. Don't think Hunt was anonymous when he came on, was a few times he broke their defensive line with his runs but wasn't picked out. Loved seeing more proactive subs but at the time he came on the balance of the side had gone a bit, left hand side was completely changed with Glennon and Khan exhausted.

Loads better seeing Rose not isolated, bet he's forgotten how it felt to win a header and not have to chase it down yourself.

It's very, very early days and I'm not advocating the decision. But Davies and Pearson have certainly made a good start, with that I'm sure added themselves to the thoughts of any decisions.

Quoted from Chrisblor

Not sure what your tweets have to do with specifically targeting players for unwarranted criticism in the immediate aftermath of a victory!

Aye 🙂

Such a well written tweet as well.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Anyway.... Rather than digging up he said, she said etc. how about we just enjoy a great win from a very entertaining game in which I thought everyone was excellent?

Started off shaky as hell and I feared the worst at 1 down when thru continued to waltz through our defence. Rodgers went from a horrible first ten minutes to something like his early season form for the other 80.

Cartwright was magnificent and his command of the area was a joy to watch. I cannot believe the difference in him from the FL Trophy games. Glennon was my MOTM, best from in over a year. Looked 2 yards quicker and with genuine fire in his belly.

Midfield was spot on. Markers laid down from Clifton and Conteh if they want to get back in. Don't think Hunt was anonymous when he came on, was a few times he broke their defensive line with his runs but wasn't picked out. Loved seeing more proactive subs but at the time he came on the balance of the side had gone a bit, left hand side was completely changed with Glennon and Khan exhausted.

Loads better seeing Rose not isolated, bet he's forgotten how it felt to win a header and not have to chase it down yourself.

It's very, very early days and I'm not advocating the decision. But Davies and Pearson have certainly made a good start, with that I'm sure added themselves to the thoughts of any decisions.

That header from Rose for the second goal is absolutely brilliant. I think Rose has been superb in everything he’s been asked to do.

Looking at the table we really needed those points yesterday , hopefully we can get a few more before Xmas and start looking at the other end of the table

Enjoyed yesterday. We were much the better side and got what we deserved. Not sure it was our strongest team but we are certainly more creative with Glennon in the team, made a few people look a twit today after some of the silly comments when he played earlier in the season.

Thought Rose, Holohan, Green and Pyke were all excellent as well.
If you're a potential manager watching that you'd be optimistic about coming into the situation. The players showed loads of character, spirit and togetherness, not qualities you usually see in struggling sides.

What a thoroughly enjoyable game. Genuinely the most if enjoyed watching a Town game for a long time. And I was thinking that at half-time too, despite us being behind.

There was plenty of comments on here after last Sunday criticising Shaun & Ben for not doing anything different (which seemed to ignore the early part of the game when we tried to play out from the back again like earlier in the season) but there were many noticeable differences with our approach yesterday.

You could sum it up as just being far more positive. The shackles were off and the attacking players didn't have leashes on when we had the ball to keep them not far from our defensive shape.

For starters, it looked a clear 433. Green holding with Andrew and Holohan either side both playing as "no.8's". Pyke on the right of Rose and Khan to the left of him. But the way we played this 433 was different to the way we did it under Hurst by a country mile. Khan and Pyke played much higher up the pitch so it actually a 433 rather than 451. And playing the attack-minded Pyke on one side worked well because he also drifted inside and got close to Rose.
Our two no.8's took up high starting positions when we were building play up, as did both full backs (who were playing like wingers at times). We were very open/expansive in possession which allowed us to play some really good stuff and find better incisive passes and be less predictable.

Khan was so much more effective receiving the ball higher up the pitch.
Pyke was so much more effective coming from wide rather than playing as a focal point centrally.
Glennon was fantastic, defended well and was one of our most creative players going forward. That cross for the 3rd goal was absolutely excellent.
Rose remains a touch of class but is so much more effective with support around him.
Green did his job superbly with the bonus of a well-taken goal.
Cartwright was superb too, claimed everything that he could in the air.

It was noticeable first half that we put them under sustained pressure. Plenty of corners, shots and penning them in. This rarely happened under PH late in games let alone in a first half. I enjoyed the first half apart from giving away a weak goal and was pretty confident we'd get back in the game if we maintained our level of performance second half.

With our subs, I couldn't really disagree with any of them. People were flagging, particularly Glennon who had run himself into the ground.

It's only one game so not getting carried away, but I thought it was an excellent performance. Not without faults, that we can tweak, but a massive step forward in my eyes, helped hugely by the positive mentality clearly instilled in the tactics and mentality by Pearson and Davies this week.

Missed yesterday, I’ve only missed Salford & Gillingham before that so you could easily conclude that I’m a curse, especially when you consider the Barrow game felt like a loss.

3 things don’t surprise me reading this thread, Glennon playing well, Green playing well and this set of players playing with freedom resulting in a much improved performance. My frustration with Hurst was always that I felt we were being robbed of entertainment value every week, great to see that it may well not be a case of these players just being excrement.

Plenty to improve on still I’m sure but I’m convinced that the next manager ought to be excited by what he’s walking into.

I think last Tuesday at Slough we saw the end of a Hurst era. Davies and Pearson tried out the old Hurst formula and it doesn't work, never has done really this season. It was mentioned after the game that they worked on a few new things, some of which worked etc.

Yesterday we saw 6 changes and a complete change. Wow, what a difference and a good result. I think this Tuesday Slough will see a different Town and hopefully a net full of goals at the Slough end.

Just one other point from yesterday deserves a mention.

The pre-match minute of silence impeccably observed.

Well done you fans.

Made me feel very proud !

Quoted from diehardmariner

Anyway.... Rather than digging up he said, she said etc. how about we just enjoy a great win from a very entertaining game in which I thought everyone was excellent?

Started off shaky as hell and I feared the worst at 1 down when thru continued to waltz through our defence. Rodgers went from a horrible first ten minutes to something like his early season form for the other 80.

Cartwright was magnificent and his command of the area was a joy to watch. I cannot believe the difference in him from the FL Trophy games. Glennon was my MOTM, best from in over a year. Looked 2 yards quicker and with genuine fire in his belly.

Midfield was spot on. Markers laid down from Clifton and Conteh if they want to get back in. Don't think Hunt was anonymous when he came on, was a few times he broke their defensive line with his runs but wasn't picked out. Loved seeing more proactive subs but at the time he came on the balance of the side had gone a bit, left hand side was completely changed with Glennon and Khan exhausted.

Loads better seeing Rose not isolated, bet he's forgotten how it felt to win a header and not have to chase it down yourself.

It's very, very early days and I'm not advocating the decision. But Davies and Pearson have certainly made a good start, with that I'm sure added themselves to the thoughts of any decisions.

While I'm not advocating keeping the interim managers as permanent appointments, I think their input could be invaluable to a new manager.

Phew ,sigh of relief and joy at a win Saturday preoccupied with day out booked in Spring. I raised a glass of Vietnamese beer to GTFC as i turned on phone to get a sneaky look at score.
Lets see if we can build on this win / change of team sheet/ interim managers etc , bring on Tuesday for FA Cup Replay next Saturday against FGR.
UTM2023--24

Quoted from rancido

While I'm not advocating keeping the interim managers as permanent appointments, I think their input could be invaluable to a new manager.

What it does do is keep the pressure off the board while the search for a manager goes on. If we can do well in the next 3 or 4 games, it allows us to take our time without panic stations setting in.

I don't know if there were issues behind the scenes but the players seemed so much more together yesterday.
They were constantly fist pumping and reassuring each other.
As mentioned previously all of the subs and coaches were involved after the game and in some of the goal celebrations.
Look how many players are there celebrating straight away, guess that shows how many of them were in attacking positions.
The fight and determination had been what we were missing, not yesterday though.
Credit must go to Shaun and Ben.
If we carry on like that we will be fine.

Quoted from Caveman

Just one other point from yesterday deserves a mention.

The pre-match minute of silence impeccably observed.

Well done you fans.

Made me feel very proud !

Agreed enjoyed that. I really like that the club got a piper in before the silence and the three people playing the last post.
The club has always done this well in recent years though.

Quoted from CSLM

I don't know if there were issues behind the scenes but the players seemed so much more together yesterday.
They were constantly fist pumping and reassuring each other.
As mentioned previously all of the subs and coaches were involved after the game and in some of the goal celebrations.
Look how many players are there celebrating straight away, guess that shows how many of them were in attacking positions.
The fight and determination had been what we were missing, not yesterday though.
Credit must go to Shaun and Ben.
If we carry on like that we will be fine.

I've always got the impression that both Pearson and Davies are positively mind people, full of enthusiasm and this is bound to influence the squad. This might be poo hooed by many posters but psychology and mind-set plays a huge part in how players perform.

Quoted from ginnywings

What it does do is keep the pressure off the board while the search for a manager goes on. If we can do well in the next 3 or 4 games, it allows us to take our time without panic stations setting in.

The flip of the coin is that it could present a John Cockerill in 1994 or Graham Rodger in 2004 situation, the caretaker is really getting a tune out of the side and it seems unfair to not give them longer.

In Cockerill's case we evolved even further under Laws* whereas the Rodger snub for Nicky Law was an absolute disaster.

Getting ahead of ourselves after one game, but be a nice problem to have. I certainly would like that style and tempo set to be one that we have moving forward. As Tommy says, a proper 4-3-3 with attacking intent. Not particularly bothered about a specific formation as long as it's one that makes the opposition think rather than us worrying too much about them.

*Although I'm sure there was an odd situation post-Laws in which Cockers took over as caretaker for one game, stepping up from youth manager, yet Laws' assistant Kenny Swain then got the full time job for the rest of the season.

Quoted from CSLM

I don't know if there were issues behind the scenes but the players seemed so much more together yesterday.
They were constantly fist pumping and reassuring each other.
As mentioned previously all of the subs and coaches were involved after the game and in some of the goal celebrations.
Look how many players are there celebrating straight away, guess that shows how many of them were in attacking positions.
The fight and determination had been what we were missing, not yesterday though.
Credit must go to Shaun and Ben.
If we carry on like that we will be fine.

I must add that the Morecambe team were well-drilled and very competent. The position they hold is not a fluke, so a 3-2 win over them, especially from an early goal which could have knocked the stuffing out of us but didn't is so much more meaningful and rewarding. Well done the lads. UTM

I always thought that not appointing Cockers was one of the big Town “what if” moments. Dave Booth leaving being another which I’ve mentioned elsewhere.

I wasn`t there so I`ve only seen the highlights but it was very noticeable how we carried the ball with attacking intent, got beyond their defence and delivered balls into dangerous areas. It`s what a lot of us have been crying out for.

More of the same tomorrow please.

Quoted from diehardmariner

The flip of the coin is that it could present a John Cockerill in 1994 or Graham Rodger in 2004 situation, the caretaker is really getting a tune out of the side and it seems unfair to not give them longer.

In Cockerill's case we evolved even further under Laws* whereas the Rodger snub for Nicky Law was an absolute disaster.

Getting ahead of ourselves after one game, but be a nice problem to have. I certainly would like that style and tempo set to be one that we have moving forward. As Tommy says, a proper 4-3-3 with attacking intent. Not particularly bothered about a specific formation as long as it's one that makes the opposition think rather than us worrying too much about them.

*Although I'm sure there was an odd situation post-Laws in which Cockers took over as caretaker for one game, stepping up from youth manager, yet Laws' assistant Kenny Swain then got the full time job for the rest of the season.

If I remember right Cockers won every game he was in charge or went unbeaten, they never even let him keep a job with the club

Quoted from BobbyCummingsTackle

I wasn`t there so I`ve only seen the highlights but it was very noticeable how we carried the ball with attacking intent, got beyond their defence and delivered balls into dangerous areas. It`s what a lot of us have been crying out for.

More of the same tomorrow please.

It's a shame you missed it live as it was like chalk and cheese. Like somebody said Morecambe were a good well drilled side but like a lot of us have argued if you actually take the game to the opposition and put in sustained attacks it is them that have the problems. Not always easy to do but where possible you have to be on the front foot.

The home crowd responded superbly which is another advantage that had been nullified due to being overly defensive.

We have been so static and unadventurous for so long I started to think the players couldn't do it, but they obviously can and the new manager will have more to work with than I imagined.

The thing with John Cockerill, was that he asked the board for a certain amount of money, ( could have been £250,000, I don't remember the actual figure) for new players.

Which was refused.

John declined the manager's job.

Quoted from grimps

If I remember right Cockers won every game he was in charge or went unbeaten, they never even let him keep a job with the club

Are we sure about this, my recollection was Cockers didn’t want the manager job?

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

It's a shame you missed it live as it was like chalk and cheese. Like somebody said Morecambe were a good well drilled side but like a lot of us have argued if you actually take the game to the opposition and put in sustained attacks it is them that have the problems. Not always easy to do but where possible you have to be on the front foot.

The home crowd responded superbly which is another advantage that had been nullified due to being overly defensive.

We have been so static and unadventurous for so long I started to think the players couldn't do it, but they obviously can and the new manager will have more to work with than I imagined.

I don't get to as many games I'd like to for a number of reasons (I live down south being the main one!).

You said that you started to think that the players couldn't do it. One of the things that I noticed at Slough, because we were so close to the players, was that there was a decent level of skill, a speed of thought and a willingness to attack. Our players looked better than theirs individually. That only doubled my frustration that we have been so disjointed and poor going forward.

I am an eternal optimist and I hope that the first half at Slough was rock bottom for this season. The second half at Slough was better, Saturday was good. We now have 4 games on the trot where it's not unreasonable to expect decent results (MK Dons blow hot and cold) and we can begin to have a bit more optimism.