Team Changes For Tuesday

I think we may need nine other players rjd ;D ;D

Well I would pick the following team

Poke

Mansell Todd Woods Hodges


Carlisle Thompson Wroe Carayol

Green Sills

subs Dsane, Benyon, Stevens, Ellis, Nicholson

I think Green really needs to start and Carayol will offer more on the left. I believe we should stick with Carlisle, yes it seems he had a bad game yesterday, but give him another try.

Stevens on the bench to come on if Carlisle is having another not so good game, Stevens always looks better coming off the bench in my view.

Mornin' all!

I'm afraid last night seamlessly became this morning after it turned into a bit of a "social occasion" in Chez Merse last night - and we've not long surfaced

I read a comment on here that has go down as the most incredibley laughable enquiring why Hargreaves "as a midfielder" constantly got in the way of the defence.

Go and have a lay down matey...............that's just plain silliness and if you really were at the game I suggest you try concentrating on play and not filling your stomach, chatting singing or whatever else it was causing you to fail to realise that Chris Hargreaves was our central defender alongside Chris Todd!!!!

What of the game? Well I thought it was a bit of a "curate's egg" in that it was good in places, but not that good.

Histon are a very big and very well drilled side in that they keep their shape and concentrate hard on winning their personal battles. The playing surface was excellent, slicked by constant drizzle so that we really had no excuse not to play a quick accurate passing game and try to dissect the seemingly immovable objects of their central defence.

Let's get one thing straight, Carlisle and Stevens did not play as wingers and whether by choice orunder instruction they tucked in to ensure we were not outgunned in midfield. This does seem to be Stevens "natural" wish to play this way and I personally don't think he is that good at it - some of his "cavalier" passing deep in defence borders on the criminally negligent and could well earn him a clump round the earole from his left back in the confines of the dressing room at half time!

Benyon was Benyon, well balanced; reads Sills well but hopelessly inadequate physically to compete at all. A guy sat next to me was making notes (for whom I don't know) we discussed Benyon's "contribution" at half time to which he had noted: possessions in dangerous positions - 10/ made effective -1. Attempts on target - 3 -/difficulty to keeper- 0 Says it all about Mr Benyon in this league as I keep repeating! He wouldn't have scored in a brothel today.

Poke was as we would wish and the back four excellent with the proviso that Todd's distribution is the untidiest of them all. Hargreaves from where I was watching side on was excellent and I would go on record as saying that if he stays fit, Woods had played his last game for us. Hargreaves plays the ball out, whilst Woods hits the ball out.............. and hopes. Hargreaves anticipates so well and comes to win his headers, whilst Woods backs off, backs off; backs off.

Thompson is pure quality and Wroe beside him, tidily efficient and plays the simple ball at the right weight and time.

Bringing on Caryol meant going wide and utilising the flanks but not before their right back had panicked and hacked down Stevens with a hay maker for the penalty. A soft pen for us and a stupid panic ridden challenge from them..................thank you Mr right back!

Dsane for Benyon was the move that stretched the game because Roscoe plays upon the shoulder of the last defender who then has to stay back and thus makes space for the midfield to operate in.

I thought Hodges to be a much better and more traditional left back than Nicholson but the seventy three year old combined age of him and Hargreaves did get found out in the last minute when their right back (who should have been closed down more by Roscoe) had time and space to lob the ball over and behind the left back - Hargreaves failed to cover it, and either Mansell or Poke failed to take vocal command from their advantageous position on the far post....................two free headers and it's in our net. We switched off once with expensive (2 points) consequences................and "Mr Right Back" had redeemed himself

I was there. I watched the game. I fully realise that Hargreaves was playing central defence. The point I was making, albeit obliquely, is that I don't think he was doing a particularly good job. I suspect that he is in defence for his ball playing abilities, but I would much rather see Robertson play there giving that additional power and presence, with Hargreaves competing for a central midfield spot.

Off to lie down.