That was a game that made it obvious this squad isn’t good enough. That’s not to say the season is over but we’ll need a very strong window and top two form for the rest of the season to make the playoffs. I’ve seen a lot worse, we were still better than we were under Adkins but we struggled to break down Wycombe when they defended deep and in numbers. It would have been a different game had we scored first, Wycombe would have had to push forward and we’d have been a threat with Washington running in behind and Leko running at them.
In November TS said we’ve “probably got the best squad and the most depth in the league“ - he needs to completely revaluate that view to ensure we make the right moves this month and in the summer.
Last season we had a big group of squad players and no best team. This season we’ve gone the other way, so many players are almost undroppable because of the poor alternatives. Souare, Watson and Morgan are only on the bench to make up the numbers. None of them are serious options to threaten Purrington, Dobson, Lee and Gilbey’s places. They aren’t going to come on and change the game. Same for Arter who can’t even make the 18.
Up front Davison is another in that group. He started the season well getting a few goals and showing he had improved, but he’s not kept that up and is back looking like a player who needs regular games at a lower level.
Felt Bustow and Inniss came on too late but it comes back to the above points. I expect the reason is much more to do with limited options on the bench than a manager who is unwilling to use subs.
Going to be interesting to see where we go from here - does JJ change the formation to make us less predictable? He could switch to a diamond to add another midfielder, but who would you want to pick as the fourth CM? Perhaps we’ll see a flat 4-4-2 with Gilbey or Lee as one of the wide midfielders. The team is pretty much picking itself, we need a good window to improve the overall quality of the squad and options from the bench.
We can't go to a flat back 4 until Lavelle is fit. It's a big call for Jackson changing the system but if he doesn't we are playing with a squad of about 15 as so many are either useless or of no use.
This group of players really do lack the combination of players that are both good enough and street smart. Even our experienced pros don't seem very good at game management.
if I’ve said this once, I’ve said this many times. we need a proper Striker/ Centre Forward. especially when JS is out, but even when he’s is back we still miss so many chances as we have no killer punch up front !!
I don’t think I have ever seen a game with so much shirt-pulling by one team which went totally unpunished. I don’t buy into Wycombe as the plucky underdog, every time I’ve seen them in the last five years the blocking of free-kicks, time-wasting and general shithousery has been consistently in a league of its own. Not sour grapes as in many of those games we’ve beaten them. Down to the ref to stop it and the clown we had today wasn’t interested.
Thé timewasting that goes unpunished nowadays is ruining football.
Pick up the ball for a throw-in or put the ball down for a corner then you should either take those set pieces or get booked - simple.
Stand by the ball for an opposition free kick = booking - simple.
Annoys me too. So does the hypocrisy around it. People love it when we do it, and we do it just as badly as other teams. Old Terry on commentary finds it hilarious. Also, the "it's part of the game" bullshit makes my piss boil....'game management'....fuck off.
However, it's not that simple to enforce the law as you mention. Players can take kicks from the wrong place quickly to try and get players booked. Every little free kick would be paced out and a line sprayed down. Would be tedious.
Here's a novel idea, why don't players just behave in an honest fashion and not try and bend the rules to their own advantage all the time? "Actually ref, that came off me. Should be their throw". Instead they all have to be lying, cheating pricks. Oh but wait, it's part of the game.
Think the club needs to knock any ideas of loan signings on the head now. Waste of resources and frankly a waste of time now. Save any available money until the summer and then target four quality signing. Striker at the top of any list.
no matter who is up front we need a midfield that produces chances and a few goals. At the moment we do not seem to have that. Purrington: tries hard, scores the occasional goal and worthy of his position but no other player to take his place Lee: runs around a lot, looks pretty, poor dead ball but what does he actually produce Dobson: good defender and the occasional foray forward, got it wrong today but usually good Gilbey: provides good forward runs without many end products and often his shots are blocked DJ: little end product except floated centres to their defence Leko: Unpredictable tends to be selfish but worth it
Lee and Gilbey must improve their final passes, shooting and in Lee's case dead ball provision, they get as far as the penalty area and then the attack breaks down.
Wycombe were just a real shithouse of a team that had no intention of playing football and as soon as they realised what a soft touch the ref was, the game was as good as over. Stockdale should be embarrassed to have anything other that "Cheating c**t" on his CV. If we went about our business of playing like that to win, I for one would be finding something else to do on my weekends. It's not sour grapes, as I'm well used to seeing us lose, but I pay my money to watch football, not to see them cheating, feigning injury and blatant time wasting.
As for us, Davisson doesn't look like he could do a job for the dog & duck reserves, absolutely clueless and I'll be shocked if he ever gets higher than conference level when he hits his peak (and he's certainly not at that level now). Things only started to happen once Leko replaced him. Lee looked shit, but we can just put that down to an off day, same to a lesser extent for DJ & Gilbey. All in all, not a good day.
until TS puts his Hand in his pocket and buys decent players we will remain a mid table league one side, no depth whatsoever to our lightweight squad.
In my opinion I think he put his hand in his pocket. Stockley and Kirk signed for decent fees as I understand it, maybe close to a million in total.
The free transfers and loans do suggest that economic caution was cast after those signings, but this time last year we spent money on Schwartz and DJ. I don’t think we can fault TS for the money he’s spent.
We can of course question the quality of those buys with Schwartz returning to Denmark hardly having played, DJ not really having set the world alight and Kirk looking like a poor buy so far, but I honestly think this ‘TS putting his hand in his pocket’ mantra is a bit wide of the mark.
I’m not digging you out personally, I feel the same as you re: the quality of the squad and to an extent, I’m not bowled over by the first XI. I still don’t think they (despite some good performances under Jackson), would be strong enough.
I just get a little tired of seeing the general stuff on social media every time we lose aiming stuff at him saying, ‘spend more’ etc. How much does the bloke have to spend before we’re happy.
There’s definitely creases and wrinkles in the set up of the club that I think has lead to us being an average league one outfit, recruitment being one of them. There’s definitely some odd stances TS takes in decision making such as the obstinate approach to changing the the Charlton’s women’s team name to Ladies. Is his son coming in a good thing to help on the playing side of recruitment a good thing? Big question mark. However, I think this ‘spend money’ approach is the wrong way of thinking about.
I don’t think a couple of signings in this window would be necessarily a good thing either. Garry Manilow who talks a lot of sense when he discusses the team said a few pages back we desperately need to add a quality striker in this window. I do agree with this, but who? I can’t see us finding anyone. Maybe we get lucky and get another Stockley on loan, a decent Champ striker fallen out of favour, but what is likelihood?
I just don’t want us to sign another couple of players in Jan that we realise this time next year, aren’t any better than what we’ve got. The best thing we can do, what should’ve happened summer just gone, was clear out.
Stockley playing today wouldve been a totally different game,their 2 centre halves had an easy ride until Innis came on. Got to use the january window and the rest of the season now to rebuild ready for next season. As for wycombes antics,thats been covered,what an awful side,they took the piss all game out of the non league ref and he did nothing about it. What was their number 2s problem? Loved it when the ball boy tackled him as he was timewasting over a throw in and then the warming up Innis stepped in and 'handed' the ball back,i could hear his arsehole flapping from where i was sitting😂
That game tells us one major thing ; that we definitely need another striker who is a good striker (not a has-been nor a youngster who has No record of scoring goals nor even a proven striker who is very injured and who will take forever to get fit.) Because we lost that game in the first half with just one striker (bless him Josh Davison is no replacement for any other striker we have). Leko who is not a striker changed the game completely and we probably deserved a draw from that game. I thought that most players were below par and that was probably because no one knew where the goal or two goals were going to come from and that affects how you play. I think Josh Davison needs to go out on loan in January for the rest of the season and learn how to pass his man and shoot. Although there were periods where we played well the passing was below par. I thought George Dobson was one of our best players and the irony Of their winger passing him to assist their goal was not lost on me. The second half I thought we played well and if Stockley is back for the next game (league game or better still next Sunday against Norwich) then we can expect a different outcome and performance.
Before today thought the play offs were a long shot but was hoping to see a good game that hopefully we win. In the end it was a poor game and Wycombe sneaked in front and used every trick to keep it that way. It was not pretty but it was effective. Felt sorry for Davison, he could not do anything right. Not a good start to the year and another season in the third tier beckons which in January is totally unacceptable. Still if Adkins was still running the show we would be cut adrift at the foot of the table. Silver linings....
We’ve only got one upfront partnership and that’s Stockley/Washington. When that not available we have no end product. That’s the single thing that needs to be fixed.
Wycombe were better than us on the day. A draw was the best we could have hoped for. Stockley`s absence proved again he is a vital member of the team both up front and in defence. We missed him badly again today.
Wycombe`s obscene time wasting ruined the game for me and begs the question should football continue to allow this tactic to gain an unfair advantage?
In my opinion the rules cry out for a change to iliminate this cancer from our game. Most referees get conned by players and are not good enough to control it.
Wycombe`s time wasting today was odious and was so much more than the 5 minutes added at the end.
The football administrators should seriously look at this problem now before it completely undermines the game.
There was something about the overall afternoon that just didn’t feel right.
General feel of malaise in the players (both sides), the fans not really seeming that up for it, and a ref who didn’t seem that bothered to knock a few heads together even when confronted with clear time wasting.
You know that feeling in the week after Xmas where you lose track and feeling of what day it is and the routine you should have? That game seemed to be tinged with a bit of that.
There was something about the overall afternoon that just didn’t feel right.
General feel of malaise in the players (both sides), the fans not really seeming that up for it, and a ref who didn’t seem that bothered to knock a few heads together even when confronted with clear time wasting.
You know that feeling in the week after Xmas where you lose track and feeling of what day it is and the routine you should have? That game seemed to be tinged with a bit of that.
The saving grace is in the normal scheme of things it was our turn to have a shit Christmas period and we were smart enough to only play one game.
As others have said already, at least one new striker has to be top of the list for January to provide cover and competition for Stockley with ideally a second one also so we have good cover for Washington.
if I’ve said this once, I’ve said this many times. we need a proper Striker/ Centre Forward. especially when JS is out, but even when he’s is back we still miss so many chances as we have no killer punch up front !!
simple answer to the continual time wasting - stop the bloody clock every time the ball goes out or a player feigns cramp on 72 minutes !!! - maybe that changes the 45 mins per half to 35 or something but it's so tedious
We have turned a corner. We look organised and are competing.
We should have had a clear penalty and hit the post in the second half. It's not as doomed as everybody is now going to make out ffs.
Where was the clear penalty? If it was the handball the lad looked to have headed it from the floor from my seat
Exactly. I don't think you're allowed to attempt a header from the floor while the ball is about to be struck on the grass.
I might be wrong though.
It takes about 30-40 minutes to read the laws of the game. Don't you think it'd be time well spent, considering the proportion of time you might spend watching the game?
That's a good point. But I still need to see a replay to see whether my emotion of wanting a penalty was justified with the rules. The ref was awful.
LOTG explains and defines dangerous play in their Guidelines and Interpretations:
“Playing in a dangerous manner is defined as any action that, while trying to play the ball, threatens injury to someone (including the player himself). It is committed with an opponent nearby and prevents the opponent from playing the ball for fear of injury. A scissors or bicycle kick is permissible provided that, in the opinion of the referee, it is not dangerous to an opponent.
Playing in a dangerous manner involves no physical contact between the players. If there is physical contact, the action becomes an offence punishable with a direct free kick or penalty kick. In the case of physical contact, the referee should carefully consider the high probability that misconduct has also been committed.
Disciplinary sanctions
• If a player plays in a dangerous manner in a “normal” challenge, the referee should not take any disciplinary action. If the action is made with obvious risk of injury, the referee should caution the player
• If a player denies an obvious goalscoring opportunity by playing in a dangerous manner, the referee should send off the player”
Not going to say too much as it's all been said already, but if anyone truly believes that we can get top 6 then they are more delusional than Norwich fans thinking they can survive relegation.
I take no pride in saying that the chickens that were our summer transfer policy are fast coming home to roost. Even with the winter transfer window now open can't save our season. We are once again closer to the relegation places than top 6 and when teams below us play their games in hand expect us to be even closer. Not saying that we will go down but when you've already played half a season & teams like Burton & Accrington are above you then you know you're having a bad season.
I'm going to be very interested in this transfer window as it will show Sandgaards intentions.
It seems like opposition teams have decided the best way to play against us is to sit back and invite pressure, and stopping the space for Gilbey, Lee and Washington to run into.
When we don’t have Stockley playing it become too easy to defend from set pieces and crosses. Leko isn’t clinical enough to play up top.
Personally, I think a goal scorer midfield is almost as important as another striker. Overall, not surprising what we witnessed today. Need to beat Crewe to turn around our poor away form
Not going to say too much as it's all been said already, but if anyone truly believes that we can get top 6 then they are more delusional than Norwich fans thinking they can survive relegation.
I take no pride in saying that the chickens that were our summer transfer policy are fast coming home to roost. Even with the winter transfer window now open can't save our season. We are once again closer to the relegation places than top 6 and when teams below us play their games in hand expect us to be even closer. Not saying that we will go down but when you've already played half a season & teams like Burton & Accrington are above you then you know you're having a bad season.
I'm going to be very interested in this transfer window as it will show Sandgaards intentions.
Innis brought some good spice to the game. Making their player hurry up with their throwin firstly. Then coming on up top and threatening at set pieces aswell as closing down was good to see!
He's be a nailed starter in the next few games. Lets hope he stays fit and commands.
Comments
if I’ve said this once, I’ve said this many times.
we need a proper Striker/ Centre Forward.
especially when JS is out, but even when he’s is back we still miss so many chances as we have no killer punch up front !!
This team will end up top 12 otherwise 👎👎
However, it's not that simple to enforce the law as you mention. Players can take kicks from the wrong place quickly to try and get players booked. Every little free kick would be paced out and a line sprayed down. Would be tedious.
Here's a novel idea, why don't players just behave in an honest fashion and not try and bend the rules to their own advantage all the time? "Actually ref, that came off me. Should be their throw". Instead they all have to be lying, cheating pricks. Oh but wait, it's part of the game.
Purrington: tries hard, scores the occasional goal and worthy of his position but no other player to take his place
Lee: runs around a lot, looks pretty, poor dead ball but what does he actually produce
Dobson: good defender and the occasional foray forward, got it wrong today but usually good
Gilbey: provides good forward runs without many end products and often his shots are blocked
DJ: little end product except floated centres to their defence
Leko: Unpredictable tends to be selfish but worth it
Lee and Gilbey must improve their final passes, shooting and in Lee's case dead ball provision, they get as far as the penalty area and then the attack breaks down.
I just get a little tired of seeing the general stuff on social media every time we lose aiming stuff at him saying, ‘spend more’ etc. How much does the bloke have to spend before we’re happy.
I just don’t want us to sign another couple of players in Jan that we realise this time next year, aren’t any better than what we’ve got. The best thing we can do, what should’ve happened summer just gone, was clear out.
2022 Day 1: Charlton 0 Wycombe 1
Kids: “Daaaaaaaaaaad…”
Felt sorry for Davison, he could not do anything right.
Not a good start to the year and another season in the third tier beckons which in January is totally unacceptable. Still if Adkins was still running the show we would be cut adrift at the foot of the table. Silver linings....
Wycombe`s obscene time wasting ruined the game for me and begs the question should football continue to allow this tactic to gain an unfair advantage?
In my opinion the rules cry out for a change to iliminate this cancer from our game. Most referees get conned by players and are not good enough to control it.
Wycombe`s time wasting today was odious and was so much more than the 5 minutes added at the end.
The football administrators should seriously look at this problem now before it completely undermines the game.
There was something about the overall afternoon that just didn’t feel right.
We looked very mid-lower table and absolutely powder-puff offensively.
Wycombe were physically strong when they needed to be and should be at least in the play-offs at the end of the season.
As others have said already, at least one new striker has to be top of the list for January to provide cover and competition for Stockley with ideally a second one also so we have good cover for Washington.
And 12th might be a push as well !!!
LOTG explains and defines dangerous play in their Guidelines and Interpretations:
I take no pride in saying that the chickens that were our summer transfer policy are fast coming home to roost. Even with the winter transfer window now open can't save our season. We are once again closer to the relegation places than top 6 and when teams below us play their games in hand expect us to be even closer. Not saying that we will go down but when you've already played half a season & teams like Burton & Accrington are above you then you know you're having a bad season.
I'm going to be very interested in this transfer window as it will show Sandgaards intentions.
He's be a nailed starter in the next few games. Lets hope he stays fit and commands.