FKANorwichExile

Fleetwood look decent going forward but you can see why they're struggling because the defending is abysmal. Would be good to fill our boots second half and build some momentum back up.

You could say the same for a lot of duos, but especially those when the manager had a more distinguished playing career (Rooney/Rosenior, Lampard with Morris and Given etc). Sometimes it's a good coach hitching his wagon to a bigger name so they can forge their own reputation, but more likely that modern managers are head coaches and work as part of a team. At the end of the day though, it'll still be the managers head on the block if it goes tits up.

I've done a complete 180 on Cash's pace (or lack of) this season. He's won so many recovery footraces, and made saving tackles, that I think it's unfair to say he's a bit lacking in speed, which I definitely used to spout. He's got a bit of that old school, do-or-die defender about him and at times he reminds me a bit of Paul McGrath (if he ends up half as good as McG then he'll be a superstar). I feel like we'll sell him, but I really hope we don't. We're not blowing teams away with 4 or 5 goals, we're grinding them slowly into submission with a brick wall backline and to sell the keystone doesn't get you promoted.

Poku and Mason Clarke gave us the run around today, but they are also probably the two best players we'll face all season. Otherwise I thought we looked OK. Definitely leggy and being penalised by not having the rotation options you'd want with an aging forward line (and TJJ being made of glass). Waggy coming on instead of, say, Sibs might have given us a bit more impetus up the pitch. Elder had his best performance for us and looked very solid defensively, so that's a plus as we can't rely on Fizzy forever sadly. I think a draw would have been a fair result, but I wasn't too unhappy at a loss here against a team that'll likely be picked apart over the transfer window. It's kinda what Peterborough do. My dad (a neutral because he was cursed with being a Spurs fan) watched on Sky for the first time in a couple of years and he was adamant that Cashin looked a class above and that Wildsmith commanded the area well. Then both come together for a last minute mess. Ah well.

He's a similar sort of player to Bird in that he's good technically but doesn't have as much influence on the game as you'd want from a single pivot defensive mid. If Reading are as deep in the doo as things seem to suggest and he's available for a low-ish fee then I wouldn't mind but I don't imagine him and Hourihane would make a particularly good pairing.

Warne got the changes spot on tonight, and I've got a lot of humble pie to eat. Right players at the right times and didn't they just make the difference?! Oxford looked very poor with the exception of Brannigan, but we didn't give them the chance to play out from the back and they dropped deeper and deeper as we crushed them with constant pressure. We weren't at our fluent best, but for 70 minutes we absolutely battered a top 6 team away from home and nobody can say we didn't deserve the win. Warne very much in!

I would switch sides for Eiran Cashin. What a man!

Well deserved! What a comeback, you absolute beautiful Rams!

Liam Thompson, target man! Get in!

@Owen87ITK gave us that one by dropping the knowledge bomb that Nelson "has got a big one on him". Move over NML!

Ward can't defend and Nyambe can't attack... Reckon we can squish them both into the same shirt? (The obvious answer is back 3 with Nyambe on the right with Cash and Nelson and Ward at rwb)

That's actually a really good point. He puts together good teams but doesn't quite have the tactical nous, maybe he's more of a technical director or director of football?

A complete sidestep from the thread, but how mad is it that he's playing in the National League North now? He's managed to get so lost that he's ended up in the depths of non league at what should be his prime.

A few musings now I've had chance to reflect; TJJ has got a bit of a swagger about him, and I feel like we're desperate for some of that borderline-arrogant confidence. At the same time, he seemed quite humbled by the fan reaction to the goal. After his little dance and celebration, you could see him mouth "thank you" to the crowd. Or it could have been "f*** you" and I suck at lip reading, so make of that what you will. Port Vale aren't a bad team, despite not creating much they looked more than capable of doing so. Plus their kit is gorgeous. I actually think we look better as a back 3, as long as Foz isn't on the right because you could see him panic every time the ball came to him. Nelson and Cashin have been sensational recently. Nyambe had one of his poorest games for us and didn't look comfortable going forwards at all. I think a back three of Nyambe, Nelson and Cashin could be sensational with fit wingbacks though. Wilson is a joy. It a shame he isn't left footed so we can't get him and Ward in the same side. He's not a winger, though. The away support was sensational and incredibly loud on the Rams TV coverage! Well done all, hope the hangover on a school night isn't too painful. Anyway, back in my box.

Professional performance. It's not pretty, but we're climbing the table and we're one of the form teams going in to the crunch. No poor performances tonight, either.

What's the ref playing at?! Gives them a free kick for a clash of heads then only TJJ has to leave the pitch?!

*intense Mart Poom flashbacks*

How about we don't let them have any more corners? Not sure my blood pressure can handle much more of that.

NML goes up top and magic happens again. What a touch and pass!

He's one of our very few match winners, and he seems like a genuinely nice lad too. He (and the rest of the team) looked much better when we switched to a back three, and better still when Sibs was moved into the middle. The extra movement in the final third really helps him exploit tired defences. Yes, this is also a very rare admission that Warne made a good tactical decision. I'm shooketh.