Swindon: Match Report

I didnt go btw. I report from a pal.

We played 4-4-2

Forster

Otsemoboor Nelson Askou Wiggins

McVeigh Tudor Jones Adeyemi Dawkin

Cureton McDonald

Started well, for about twenty minutes, then Swindon got into the game and we really really suffered with not having a player who could hold the ball up, got to the point where we larupped it up the pitch and it came straight back.

Dumic came on for Otsemoboor and Hughes for McVeigh, last twenty minutes we were penned in and the two centre halves were magnificent

Forster - 7/10 Busier of the 2 goalkeepers by a stretch, everything came straight at him apart from one shot where he got down really quickly to save low to his right. Miles away from all of the penalties, apart from the one he saved.

Otsemoboor - 6/10 Not fit (obviously), but played a good game for City, was disciplined SHOCK. Bombed on a couple of times and put in decent crosses. Got no cover from McVeigh.

Nelson- 8/10 Man of the Match. He wants his place back in the team, was awesome, some great tackles and really comfortable on the ball. He was taking the ball off of the strikers, turning, chipping it up and passing pretty good balls out to the wingers. Nelson and Askou were playing the "who can head the ball the farthest game" - Nelson won he got it into the upper half of the stand on the opposite side of the pitch to where he was, and over the half way line...

Askou - 8/10 Good, strong, solid performance, would have been MOM apart from Nelsons outstanding performance

Wiggins - 6/10 Quiet game, I read that he had had a knock at Paulton? He had obviously been told to play defensively and did just that. Did not overly bomb on, had young Dawkin in front of him so played a disciplined game. He is an attacking full back, but adopted to his defensive duties well.

McVeigh - 6/10 Looks comfortable on the ball, but lazy when not on it. Left Semi exposed a couple of times with lazy tracking back

Tudor Jones - 6.5/10 Solid game, covered a lot of ground, heard him talking to the younger players trying to organise them and was always there doubling up when challenges were made. Some hooky distribution, but on the whole good game

Adeyemi - 5.5/10 Looked good to start, but was moved out to the right wing when McVeigh went off. He looked exhausted and really struggled out there. He was put there to chase the Swindon left winger who we were after when he came on. Unfit? or injured

Dawkin - 6.5/10 Looks a good prospect, what he does with his feet looks like a decent footballer, what he does with his arms looks like he should be in the Brighton Pride parade with Dicky... Talk about a mincing running style. Good performance, good to see Lambert encouraging him from the touchline. Right footed left winger..... when was the last time that we had one of them?

Cureton- 4/10 Did didly squat apart from score the last penalty, which he celebrated like a Maltese player scoring the winning goal in the world cup final. Needed someone to hold the ball up along side him.

McDonald - 4.5/10 A couple of good runs and nearly scored with a header from the corner, but as with Cureton, ineffectual

From the 85th minute we were praying for penalties, just to put us out of our misery.

The good things that came from the match were:

1) We are through to the next round
2) Players have improved their fitness
3) Dawking / Wiggins look good
4) We have learnt to play with a rigid shape, whenever we did not have the ball there were two rigid banks of four
5) Players look after each other. Under Grant and the like, players would not double up and make sure that if one player missed a tackle there was another mopping up (they would just have a pop at the one who missed the tackle)
6) Centre Halves looked solid

Posted By: Snakey, Nov 11, 09:19:03