When Will This End?

[Bris Vegas]

What did you think to our performance tonight?

Sounded better, I think having Bailey and Hendrick in the middle together certainly helped.. They'll make a good pairing at this level..

What do you think to our collective performnces over the season? Also what do you think about the fact after 19 games this season we still haven't scored in th last 15 minutes?

[sage]

"What did you think to our performance tonight?"

Let's go round again

What's wrong with asking this question? No-one has actually talked about it.

[jagerbob]

on the face of it, it wasnt that bad.

it just felt like it was.

such has my frustration built up.

There were many fans saying as we left that we didnt deserve to lose, that we should have got a least a point, but as much as the rub of the greren aint falling for us, id say you make your own luck by being postive, and derby just are not postiive enough!

they were a poor team, but my question is this, when we are 1 down or 2 or however many, when we dont score within our first 15 mins of going behind, the second half is always sheer dross.

Clough has never had a plan B, he never has any options to bring in off the benchm he certainly has no alternatives to start with, when players arent performing such as bryson and davies who at the moment need to be dropped.

[curb]

It sounds like we're heading back to 'did you go tonight'

[Dangerous]

I would like to hear a legitamate reason for clough to keep the job.surely anybody knows he is out of his depth.There is no improvement at all.lets get Dave Jones in.

[EastKentRam]

Sounded as if we deserved something tonight, but that's football, we didnt deserve anything at Watford but we got 3 points.

This is the lowest i've felt about the club for a long time, we're slowly dying.

[sage]

I think we've played well in some games and not in others. Sometimes in some games like West Ham we've had one good half and one poor half.

We scored none and conceded one in the last ten this season. Generally a stalemate. We kept attacking tonight.

Recently we have tired in games.

[sage]

It sounds like we're heading back to 'did you go tonight'

Not really just asking what people thought of the performance. Obviously at this minute only people who went will have seen it, but I didn't put a time limit on an answer.

[Leeds Ram]

while I don't think we will go down under clough I can't see us making any progression under him either, for that reason he has to say goodbye i think. While in the first half we were good tonight, the second half was again lacking, against a poor team on a poor run of form, they can't defend at all but we didn't score. we had 2 clear cut chances all night priskin one on one and the young lad where he blasted over from 8 yards in front of the goal. Overall i don't think either team deserved to win, but that is what happens sometimes, did we deserve to beat watford? no, birmingham? no and several others, no we didn't.

[CumbrianRam]

We need a rams legend as boss with experience of high level coaching. As I said in the matchday chat. Igor in!

I'd rather have some with no emontional attachment to Derby County.

[Bris Vegas]

I think we've played well in some games and not in others. Sometimes in some games like West Ham we've had one good half and one poor half.

We scored none and conceded one in the last ten this season. Generally a stalemate. We kept attacking tonight.

Recently we have tired in games.

We're the only team in the league not to have scored in the last 15 minutes of games this season.. A lack of ability, tiredness, mentality, unluckyness.. Who knows? But it's a fact that doesn't sit too well with me..

Tonight we sounded stronger in the last 10 mins, but you'd expect that from a home side one down...

Something needs to change drastically, either management, style, tactics, personnel.. As we're falling at an alarming rate again

[EastKentRam]

Not scoring in 3 home games is unacceptable no matter what side we put out.

[Ramshankered]

My two cents:

I don't believe for a minute that Clough is as clueless a manager as some people make him out to be - his time at Burton is a testament to that.

However *something* with the way the squad are currently being managed is clearly wrong. Each of 'Clough' season has followed a pattern where by a genuinely excellent start is undermined by an alarming collapse in form. As has already been mentioned, there is plenty of quality and youth in the current squad, so one can only determine that the problem lies with how the team are being managed once the slump begins.

Judging on the pattern of past seasons, I just don't think Clough and his staff have that magic 'x-factor' needed to lift a team when the chips are down. Having said that I also think even the best manager's struggle with a team bereft of confidence (look at Chelsea's situation atm - quality manager yet cracks are showing), so I'm not sure what the solution is for that problem. I'm certainly not an advocate of hiring / firing mentality of most Chairmen.

Added to that is both Clough's inability to maintain good runs combined with a lack of urgency in steadying the ship when a few bad results begin to stack up (for the record my 'lack of urgency' view is based upon some of Clough's post match comments about not being too worried).

Clough's time in charge has been defined by this vicious cycle, and the fact that not much seems to be changing points to him not learning from past mistakes, and not picking up the skills needed to avert the problem. I've been a staunch supporter of his from the start but once this season is up, *if* we are in a similar position to where we finished last season then I think it would be probably best if he moved on.

[Leeds Ram]

I hate to say this but I don't think his pub trophies at burton mean a damn thing when managing in the championship is a different ball game, I judge managers on what they have done, at what level and how they are doing now. Clough while having an excellent record at burton, managed in low divisions, semi professional, no big ego, tactics not as important, not as much scrutiny etc etc. In the championship it's a different ball game and thus far he hasn't come close to a top half finish.

[curb]

Once a couple of players start to drop their game it's like a house of cards, it quickly falls down if the manager doesn't spot it quickly and do something about, either motivating them or giving them a rest. Clough doesn't seem to have the ability to either see it happening or do anything about it. The fact that we have so many squad players who are virtually unplayable has meant that the one or two genuine injuries have also hit us hard. It sounded like tonight the players gave everything again, which is a good sign, it means they haven't completely given up - yet. I think we're on a knife-edge though.

[j.brayford]

I went tonight and by god what a joke that ref was I mean we get some bad ones but he tops the list!

When the refs not on your side you should get it down and play to feet that's my philosophy. B.Davies looked nakered time for him to have a rest and put cywka and ward on the flanks. Playing 4-5-1 at home is beyond a joke and why 2 defenders on the bench nige c'mon plz. It's obvious to me priskin although tall is not a target man he needs a Bennett/ward playing past him/behind him to run onto the ball. Nothing good out of tonight other than green Bailey and barker getting game time. Ward man of match for me like he should be most weeks.

Sad thing is I don't know where the next points are coming from as don't see a win at palace or Bristol and I'm not even gonna mention Leeds and west ham.

Roll on the new year can't come quick enough!

COYR

[Ramshankered]

I hate to say this but I don't think his pub trophies at burton mean a damn thing when managing in the championship is a different ball game, I judge managers on what they have done, at what level and how they are doing now. Clough while having an excellent record at burton, managed in low divisions, semi professional, no big ego, tactics not as important, not as much scrutiny etc etc. In the championship it's a different ball game and thus far he hasn't come close to a top half finish.

In Clough's defence, he's kept a team in decline in the Championship (just) - there are many managers out there (some with a heck of a lot more league experience) who probably would have failed in that task, and frankly I don't think Clough could've done it had he not won his 'pub trophies' (as you so charmingly put it) with Burton.

Clough's problem is the next step - pushing up the league. After a couple of years managing in the Championship, I would've hoped he would've learnt a thing or two about the league, but the same mistakes are being made year in / year out.

[Ramshankered]

Once a couple of players start to drop their game it's like a house of cards, it quickly falls down if the manager doesn't spot it quickly and do something about, either motivating them or giving them a rest. Clough doesn't seem to have the ability to either see it happening or do anything about it. The fact that we have so many squad players who are virtually unplayable has meant that the one or two genuine injuries have also hit us hard. It sounded like tonight the players gave everything again, which is a good sign, it means they haven't completely given up - yet. I think we're on a knife-edge though.

I reckon you've hit the nail on the head there - he's a little too relaxed when everyone else is getting nervy about a potential slump, and he is - sadly - too loyal to his favourite players.

[Leeds Ram]

if you look in my earlier post i put i doubt we will go down but can't see us pushing on. 'http://www.dcfcfans.co.uk/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/sad' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':(' />

[Ramshankered]

if you look in my earlier post i put i doubt we will go down but can't see us pushing on. 'http://www.dcfcfans.co.uk/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/sad' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':(' />

Fair enough - missed it initially hence my previous comment.