My Thoughts

[gazareth]

As a fan now living in Oxford and at uni in Cardiff, I don't get to go to many games these days. However it's the Easter hols and Swindon is only down the road so I made it to my first away game since we lost at Leicester in the FA cup last year.

I thought we deserved to win the game. Swindle were piss poor, all hit and hope to their front men and we coped really well, bar a couple of heart-in-mouth moments from Hill, Doherty and Carey (and even then it was from them cocking up a pass). In the first half we didn't really carve any clear openings up but the goal came at a great time and I went into half-time in confident mood.

We should have come out in the second half and been all over them. We'd just scored, and should have been on a high. With the pace of Murray and Roberts we could have really ran them ragged but we sat back and let them come at us. Too many of our players were defending corners, leaving 3 Swindon players on half-way. What kind of an approach is that? Defending 1-0 leads is one thing, but to do so with our dodgy record of defending set pieces is another.

Anyhow the thing which really struck me was the lack of confidence in the box. It smacks of a side lacking confidence in their shooting abiliity. Carey, Bell (twice) and Roberts all got into their box in the second half and had good opportunities to shoot (Roberts' was particularly odd as he had a clear run at the goalie and didn't even look at him - he only looked across at Peacock before passing it to the linesman on the far side). Murray never really got going forward, and wasted a few good positions, but made up for it with some good tracking back. Bell looks capable of causing difficulties and Tinnion made some cracking passes, but gave the ball away in silly places. The same can be said of Doherty, who at the end of the game looked either knackered or disinterested - how could he not be charging the ball down when it's 1-1 in such a key match, he just stood and watched it bounce before realising that maybe he should challenge.

I don't like to criticise, there was plenty of positives. But the whole performance smacked of a team which is being told to play in the wrong way. The fact that Roberts was subbed off when he'd been our best player was a joke - Wilson said on the official site that he thought Peacock had battled well all day. What exactly did Peacock do except foul their defenders and waste possession? (OK so the setup the goal...) It seems ridiculous that he left him on when Rougier, a player signed specifically for making an impact at this stage of the season, was on the bench. And where was Caskey, Goodfellow, Lita, players who have a track record of changing games?

It looks to me like the deadline-day signings were Wilson's final throw of the dice and that if they don't go up, Lansdown will say enough is enough and show him the door. It'll be a shame cos I like Wilson, but it's become apparent to me the few times I've been this season (8 I think now? - every game I'd seen until Oldham , which was the 7th, was a City win) that there's something not quite right.

Phillips - good cross-catching, some nice saves, unlucky for the goal - 7

Carey - solid at the back, threatened going forward occasionally - 7

Butler - coped well with the threat from Mooney and Parkin - 7

Coles - another solid performance - 7

Hill - City's best defender bar a couple of slips - 8

Murray - Not back to his best yet but showing glimpses of his old self - 6

Tinnion - Flashed hot and cold - 6

Doherty - Frustratingly inconsistent - 6

Bell - Good link play with Tinnion and Hill and looked a threat down the left - 7

Roberts - gave 100% up front, looked good on the ball and took his goal well - 8

Peacock - a lot of huff and puff, but too many fouls. nice assist for the goal - 6

[cider head]

a good report there mate i enjoyed that

and have got to agree with most of it.