Will Hughes Hair

Oh if only it was that simple.
What he actually seems to be doing is trying to turn us into Rotherham, but without having the right players to do so. 
We have no equivalent to Ladapo, Smith or Barlaser who were all essential in making their.system work. We don't have legs in the middle of the pitch to make it work without the defence being ridiculously exposed.
I don't mind us being turned into the Rotherham who got automatic promotion, I do mind us being turned into a a s*** version of Rotherham.

It isn’t just about resale value though. An ageing team gets tired and cannot all play 2 games in a few days as is the case in this league. With a small squad and lots of 30+ aged players it’s not a good mix. As Warne highlighted last season, hence the reasoning behind changing that this season.

I think that true, but I am beginning to sense that there are a much larger number of Rams fans who are beginning to doubt the abilities of Warne. Not everyone questioning our signings, potential signings, and style of play is a rabid keyboard warrior. He is getting much closer to dividing fan opinion than ever. We do need more walk and less talk from him.

Don’t be ridiculous, we’ve got this year’s Tony Springett to come in yet.

Agreed. Ward and Wilson (who will likely not play together) and maybe NML over the first few yards, but that's it. It's the slowest team I've ever seen us assemble, and I get that a lot of it is necessity, but we're gonna concede on the counter all season long if we don't get at least one body in the middle of the park capable of chasing back.
But Warne knows this. He HAS to know this, right? Right?! 😭

If that’s the case, use the money for loans and promote Dajaune Brown. 

This Is the issue I've been talking about since last season. Cue the long post: 
 
Last season a few things struck me which have not been addressed.
Collins last season papered over his flaws by nicking the odd goal here and there, and was often covered by McGoldrick being the main man. Collins inability to take players on, hold the ball up, pick out clinical passes, individual brilliance etc is everything we now lack in the final third since Mcgoldrick left.
 
Somehow, all of the above in regards to Collins abilities have been completely forgotten and we have now made him our main man.. we have signed more back up work horse standard strikers rather than doing the obvious and signing a legitimate goal scorer. Alfie May would of been a perfect addition. Someone who can get goals out of nothing, someone who can play between the lines, and something different to what we have or appear to be signing.
This doesn't mean Collins isn't useful because in the right position, he's a decent finisher, the problem is he's trying to do the job of a player we need but don't have, and unfortunately all those qualities needed to do that role, he doesn't have. 
We desperately need an Alfie May, Nombe, or something similar. More old work horses aren't the answer, we need a bit of class and if we have a good budget for this league.. I'd like to see us use it while we have the chance instead of relying on old freebies and then realising it's not working when it's too late.
Collins isn't the scape goat, but he's definitely not the answer.
 
 
 

The striker situation is seriously depressing to be honest and we just seem to keep banging the same drum of looking at veterans who have fitness issues, are past their best and will be on silly wages still and they'll just move on once the contract ends and we're back to square one with rebuilding the team. Yes it worked for a season with Didzy but he's not that long out of the PL whereas Rhodes, Waghorn etc have been lower Championship players for years now. Nigel Clough barely had a pot to pee in but still unearthed some good signings from the lower leagues and Scotland. Do we even have a scouting team? 

It's how you spend it.

3 at the back can absolutely work.  But if helps if you have two things…
A plan of how to attack and exploit the oppositions weaknesses You have pace (across the team but) particularly in your back line that get’s you out of the poop when teams sit in, invite you to push on and hit you on the break  

Well here is Johnny-Come-Lately at last. We had a friend staying over who I drove home last night, and this morning I went to my other church, so here I am now!
Reading through this thread it would seem that a number of us are suffering from "High Expectation" Syndrome. 
Because of the Dilly-Dallying in the transfer market and the subsequent lack of strikers, we have bigged up that it gives us the opportunity for goals to come from all across the team, instead of just one star striker, and so expected to give Wigan a right whupping - especially as they have been hit hard with woes themselves. Maybe also they are aggrieved at how they have been treated, and have come out fighting for a common cause, just like we did when the EFL were habitually slitting our hamstrings then asking why we couldn't run. It might explain how Wigan brought nearly as many fans to an away match as they normally get for a home game, and why their fans did themselves proud.
A came away from the game disappointed that we had lost, but saw plenty to be positive about. We moved the ball well a lot of the time and created a lot of opportunities, and spent quite a lot of the match on top. Wigan gave us a really good game, and it was a good game to watch. But what if Wigan had taken their early chance? An even bigger what if is  why the hell we didn't get a penalty in the first ten minutes. We won't see a more blatant offence in the area .................. until the next one, and the next one, and the next one ................ Having asked for greater consistency from our match officials, we are at least seeing that. They are just as crap as they were the last season, and the one before that, and the one before that. Smith got booked for walking the ball away a couple of steps from a free-kick, and the refs are clamping down on that, but not until after Wigan had kicked the ball away four or five times already, without the ref doing anything. And it took 23 minutes for the first Derby free-kick, and we didn't get a second one until well into the second half. I haven't looked what the ref's name is, but whether it is Simpson or not, he certainly wasn't a homer. He only booked a Wigan player for kicking the ball away because Smith ran alongside him bellowing in his ear "You can't not book him for that"!
So two gifted goals decided the result, with much already being said about that. I think Tyler Durden mentioned a key element, in that Hourihane had the chance to play forwards, but stopped, turned and played a safe sideway ball which led to  Bradley being put under pressure. Hourihane has a lot to offer, but far too often stops and turns and stifles the forwards flow, or simply lumps the ball upwards and slightly forwards. He can do much better, and at the moment is a weak link in our forwards play. 
Their is criticism of our crossing, but Ward put plenty of balls in, but it needs a striker to be there to get on the end of them, and far too often Collins (our striker, remember) wasn't in the area, indeed he was often out on the wing. Yes Collins can do a bit of the link-up play, but that isn't his job. He need to concentrate on what he should be doing. Maybe another reason for our high expectancy was Collins getting on the end of crosses during the pre-season matches, making us think he would do it in the real matches. Apparently not.
A real positive is with the substitutions, particularly Kane Wilson and Callum Elder - both seemed to come on and play with a passion. Wilson looks like a player who will excite the crowd every time he gets the ball. He has tremendous ball control and weaves his way around defenders like they aren't there - he could prove to be a great signing. However I was baffled why Thompson was put up front - surely midfield would be his place, and yesterday in place of Hourihane instead of NML. 
Maybe what we need up front isn't so much a striker as a goal scorer!

Watching the match yesterday felt like I was watching the same team and weaknesses as I did last season. I mentioned last season the good teams in this division will work out our very basic tactical play going forward. Funnily enough, Wigan read us like a book. They reminded me of our football and squad 12 months ago. Give them full credit, excellent performance from many young lads making their professional debuts. 
The frustration for me is nothing of significance has evolved over the summer (yet). Same standard of play going forward. Incredibly predictable. Cross cross cross. No pace on the counter attack. Collins not getting into the match. Easy to defend against. We are getting shots away however not many were clear cut chances. 
I know there's so much debate about football style and people saying it doesn't matter as long as you win. What I would say is I think most supporters will get behind a team who will try to play attractive football even when the team isn't winning. Whether that's fast flowing counter attacking or dominant possession based and wearing teams down. When you're playing a very old fashioned style and you're not winning, people will become more frustrated quicker. Biggest fear for Warne and it's a shame because I like him as a man.
He has plenty of time to turn it around. 1 game in, 45 to go. Hopefully a few more signings might turn the ship on the right direction.

Well there is a perfect example of Warnes frailties.
If Springett was even half decent we would be back in for him, not forgetting Warne knows everyone at Norwich very well (even plays bowls with my mates dad that way, or at least used too).
If Springett isn't good enough this season, why make the signing in January? Absolute desperation.

The Mears maneuver

Don’t be ridiculous, we’ve got this year’s Tony Springett to come in yet.

I fear that the mistakes in yesterday's game, Bradley's especially, are more systemic and by products of other failures on the pitch.
Look at the suicidal backpass - Hourihane has the ball facing forward with no real huge pressure on it from Wigan players a third of the way into the opposition half.
He then stops and decides to play a cowardly square pass putting his team mate under pressure which then goes back to Bradley near the halfway line and then back to the keeper.
So we've gone from a promising position in the opposition half to then making a backpass to the goalie from near the halfway line - what's that all about?
It should have never have come to that for Bradley to have to be forced to make that pass. I'm not trying to defend Bradley as if as a professional footballer you can't kick the ball more than 40 yards then serious questions need to be asked but this scenario should never have happened.
Was no one showing for Hourihane further up the field, was he too slow in picking a pass, could he have not driven forward and carried the ball further forward?
It just seems he took the chicken, easy, lazy way out. If he's the captain then I'd expect more than that. Maybe it's a confidence thing or maybe he's just not that good enough? Take some ownership though regardless. 

Hopefully Brown is on the bench and has the opportunity to get some minutes. I thought it was strange that we give him a professional contract and Warne talks highly of his role in the squad, then he doesn’t make the bench when the only other attacking option we had was Washington who isn’t fully fit.

Forgot to mention that nml in my view is a winger and not an inside forward and only really works if we are looking to change things up ,not a starter in this formation 

Were we doing something similar to option b at one stage? Under Rooney maybe? I can remember something going on where the midfielders were dropping into the fullback areas of the pitch 

Pressing as high as we did against Wigan left a massive gap and left us vulnerable to the counter attack. 

I don’t think it’s the formation that’s the problem it’s how it’s being applied. 

3 at the back can absolutely work.  But if helps if you have two things…
A plan of how to attack and exploit the oppositions weaknesses You have pace (across the team but) particularly in your back line that get’s you out of the poop when teams sit in, invite you to push on and hit you on the break  

Original Pirate Material,

You're listening to The Streets,
Lock down your aerial. 

One of the best poems i've ever read. Beautiful stuff Needlesh.

Which didn’t happen much last season either.  Still, small squads are definitely the way to combat this I hear.

Absolutely right. That was abysmal. Wigan knew what to expect . They were ready and well drilled. We had no imagination ; everything was telegraphed; the midfield was pedestrian ; most crosses -in the first half especially -were over hit or poorly delivered ;  with the notable exception of about ten minutes after the equaliser, there was no meaningful attacking threat throughout the game . The inability/ reluctance to alter tactics was infuriating. I do not want to watch a season of that . It was like watching the definition of madness play out in front of me. 
I fear that Mr Warne is a very limited tactician and I am unpersuaded by his media - friendly , platitude - spouting interviews. A season of tedious football beckons .