Gerry Daly

Their players are constantly on the ground feigning injury

Hourihane needs to be taken off at half time, again. 

Very pleased Thompson starts

Very pleased Thompson starts

I mean… Hourihane has been useless for weeks. Still starting. Still captain. 

Very pleased Thompson starts

I don’t think Bolton were miles better than us. The football they play is a lot easier on the eye and is nice to watch as they move it around waiting for space to exploit but I think we were solid and had it not been for the odd poor touch here and there we’d have done a lot more on the counter attack. 
 
Anyway players need to forget it and focus straight on to the next match. Only Derby playing on Saturday out of the mini league of 5 at the top. Psychologically could be massive heading into the busy Easter period 7 points ahead of second and 2 points off top with superior goal difference. It turns the heat up on everybody around us when they’re cramming more games into a shorter time frame. We have to back yesterday up with a result at Northampton. 

I think Hourihane has qualities that we just can't seem to benefit from in this system. The amount of times he drifted out wide yesterday to literally stand and watch Bolton play their way through the huge gaps in midfield was frustrating. He definitely needs at least two bodies in there doing his work for him, but at this stage of his career it's debatable whether it's worth that investment.
He's a bit like a vintage rolls royce. Nice to have, but eventually you'll get sick of the loops you have to jump through to keep it going. 

Fozzy has to start in a 3 next game he’s simply better than Bradley by some distance.

Are you not sticking around for a bit, chap? 🥺

Sign players who are used to playing in the sytem we're trying to implements and stick to that system. We'll then have a higher success rate with signings. Signing wingers, wing-backs, or full backs, then not playing with wingers, wing-backs, or full backs, is a recipe for failure. So too is signing slower defenders to play in a high line, orleavijg them exposed by pushing the other CBs high up the pitch.
Flip flopping between formations and having a mish-mash of players who prefer different formations (including the ones signed by Warne) were probably bigger reasons. We're looking better now because this formation suits the majority of our fit squad members.
We had Mendez-Laing and Barkhuizen contracted for the season, but Warne wanted to play a system which didn't use them so didn't sign anyone to play out wide. Except, a few weeks into the season we decided we now did want to play with wingers, but only had 2 players who were comfortable playing there. On to January, we finally sign a winger, only to change to a system which doesn't use wingers the very next day. With him back from injury and getting opportunities off the bench in a more settled system, he's starting to look better.
We signed Elder to play a fairly unfamiliar LWB role and he struggled early on. He then picked up an injury which kept him out for a while. He returned when we were playing a back 4 and looked settled after a couple of games. Picked up another injury and we've gone back to wing backs. Where will he fit in long term?
Wilson and Ward were signed for the RWB role but had niggles. Nyambe came in and we shifted away from a setup which used RWBs. Upon their return, we stuck with 4 at the back, which meant Ward/Wilson had to either play at RB where they have at times struggled defensively, or further forward where Ward doesn't have to pace to beat a man, and Wilson lacks consistent end product.
Which brings us back to Nyambe. Where will he fit in? He's good 3rd choice cover at RWB (behind Ward and Wilson), but you don't want him playing there too often due to his poor end product. He doesn't get in at RCB over Nelson, so would we drop one of our highest earners (Bradley) to put him in? Or do we go back to a back 4, drop Bradley and waste Ward/Wilson?
 
We're then onto the truly bad buys...
Fornah was always a bad buy who will cost us a few hundred thousand eventually. When we already had Bird, Hourihane, Smith, Thompson, and Sibley, with DRobinson coming through, Fornah wasn't the right type of player to sign. We needed either an out and out DM (such as Adams), or an AM with end product.
Embleton and John-Jules were high risk signings we should never have taken. With a number of other injury risks in the squad (Forsyth, Elder, Wilson, Waghorn, Washington) we couldn't afford to take on more. Embleton had only just returned to training after being out since December, and John-Jules was signed injured, having been out since the previous October.

From what I’m told, Clowes absolutely loves Warne and wouldn’t sack him within the term of his contract, no matter what happens. HOWEVER… he’s about the only one at the club who feels that way. Many other senior figures lost faith in him long ago. In fact, I was told the other day that Warne is likely to resign at the end of this season irrespective of promotion, such is the strain of those other relationships.

that was incredibly impressive

that was incredibly impressive

Goal @ 16'05 of this video 
 

Winning a game now, even winning it convincingly won't prove anything to me. I have had nearly 2 seasons to form my opinion. I wonder how Warne feels about today. If I were him I would have some serious Butterflies in my tummy 

Winning a game now, even winning it convincingly won't prove anything to me. I have had nearly 2 seasons to form my opinion. I wonder how Warne feels about today. If I were him I would have some serious Butterflies in my tummy 

Winning a game now, even winning it convincingly won't prove anything to me. I have had nearly 2 seasons to form my opinion. I wonder how Warne feels about today. If I were him I would have some serious Butterflies in my tummy 

I will renew of course. Moaning and groaning about the football is still better than nothing!

Initially at least he boosted the clubs coffers through extra sales of bobble hats 

Initially at least he boosted the clubs coffers through extra sales of bobble hats 

Initially at least he boosted the clubs coffers through extra sales of bobble hats 

Bradley, plus some others.

So, you believe people have come to their opinions because we lost? I have come to mine after watching last season and this, all the home games and quite a few away. Also by listening to what a broad range of people have had to say about it. From my own assessment of our recruitment over 3 transfer windows which I think Warne is largely, if not completely responsible for. From seeing how he utilises the academy. From listening to him.  

So, you believe people have come to their opinions because we lost? I have come to mine after watching last season and this, all the home games and quite a few away. Also by listening to what a broad range of people have had to say about it. From my own assessment of our recruitment over 3 transfer windows which I think Warne is largely, if not completely responsible for. From seeing how he utilises the academy. From listening to him.