Its a funny old game Saint!
Well yet another three excellent away points against, I suppose we should acknowledge, a fairly poor Cardiff side by all accounts. So thats 6 wins/2 defeats away and 4 win/4 defeats. Why?
Heres a few thoughts
1. we are a bigger scalp at home - decent premier league quality ground?
2. our players are too laid back at home - expecting to turn teams over easily and don't have enough fire in their belly?
3. Pards gets the tactics wrong at home too often - playing 4-4-2 too much when 4-5-1 would be a better bet?
4. the players can't deal with the fans expectations and are too nervous and tentative from the start, which gets worse if things go badly and fans voice their disatisfaction?
5. Team spirit is special on away days and this makes the players more focussed?
6. Its just one of those things?
What is true is that we have now played 360 minutes on our travels without conceding a goal. If we can only translate that to home games we would be sitting at the top of the table.
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And other results recently show this to be a crazy league. If we can improve 10% at home by cutting out silly errors at the back and by finishing those chances at crucial times you never know.
Perhaps the fans can play a part too.
Its down to not the fans, not the manager, but the players to take the confidence from a win into the home games and banish what is starting to look a bit of a psychological problem.
They probably don't hear many of the comments anyway (although they may sense general air of nervousness)
Exactly right, its a cheap excuse. I'm sure its not much help granted, but most players will tell you that in the big stadiums, they hear very little during games.
As fans we need to be more patient. I'm glad ZZ can't speak much English with some of the abusive comments I hear around me. The bloke has scored 4 goals from open play and midfield in league games. That's good I reckon. What more do we expect from him?
It is true what Pards says about the need to pass the ball around. Why oh why do we so often resort to the easy and mostly unproductive option of lumping it forward to Big Chris?
At Bristol recently, we played them off the park for long periods, especially in the first half. We need that kind of rhythem at home.
It is a strange league though with so many up and down results.
Lets hope we can build again from this result.
As I said on Monday, I fully expected us to win last night and I fully expect us to get turned over on Saturday.
The atmosphere is not a positive factor at the moment, but to say it is the reason is a ludicrously lame excuse.
But never fear, I'll be there on Sat and Oohaahmortimer won't -there's been a pattern in results so far when that's been the case. Put it this way. I haven't seen us lose at home yet this season...(hope that's not famous last words).
Well done to Pardew and the team last night for getting it right. AFKA makes a valid point that Cardiff are absolutely in the sh*te at the moment, but we still had to take the points on offer.
only heard one airing of "city" from the cardiff fans.
do'nt think the fans are to blame. I think in the premiership we struggled with a lack of belief, now we have too much belief we think we can walk the games. remember how nervous as fans we were to face arsenal, imagine how the players felt, now we stroll to every game expecting a win. I dont' think the players are as up for it as the oppositions seem to be sometimes, is that cos they think they are too good to try?
what is needed in the transfer window is a skilful midfield creator to play alongside holland or semedo with a new top championship striker (possibly on loan from premiership) and if pos a fast winger too. at the moment we are making do with iwelumo, reid etc
Oh no! If ever an oppo team or player has a hoodoo to break then Charlton seems to be the place to do it!
Also I don't think we play at a quick enough tempo at home some times
Saturday should be a good atmosphere with a fair few Ipswich coming down.
I think the main prob. simply is that the players we currently have are best suited to a 4-5-1 system but at home the fans expect us to attack from the off and go for the jugular.
Pards needs to earn his money by working out an answer to this conundrum.
I can see us going on a long unbeaten run !!
this is an attempt to be optimistic and it just doesn't feel right
If the latter happens, it's your duty to go to the pub instead and be nowhere near The Valley!!
We don't play a high enough tempo at home and don't support the forwards quickly enough, especially down the flanks.
If you watch the Burnley game again, you'd notice how slow the two wider men (ambrose & reid) to get up the park (Ambrose at one point laid the ball off in midfield and literally followed the play up front by walking!)
The fans not getting behind the players is cobblers, but why anyone would start booing 20 mins into a game is beyond me.
BTW, fair play to Matt Holland for working hard on his fitness to get back in the side. He looks fitter and more enthusiastic than previous.
Well thats it then - case solved. Thread over...:-)
Too slow a build up at times, especially getting the ball to Varney last Saturday.