Wes Tender

Funnily enough, I commented on this to my son before the kick-off. We were in block 41 so could see along the lines adjacent to the Kingsland and to us the margins off pitch looked wider than normal. We had thought it a mistake, as we presumed that our game plan was to use the maximum width to stretch out rival teams and make more space for attacking both up the wings and throught the middle.

I suspected that what you inferred was that a passing game was the only real style of football that we ought to be playing and I agree with that. I also agree that there are some teams who can also play a long ball game sometimes because either it suits their players strengths, but also that it overcomes the rivals midfield, which otherwise might have more strength and possession if allowed to function. I admire the managers who have the tactical ability to have studied their rivals pre-match and assess how to outmanouevre them. As far as our game against Blackpool went, it was either a case of us being tired, or them out thinking us because of a game plan devised by their manager which they implimented successfully. As I say, depending on how we are able to cope with the many similar teams in this division will determine JPs credentials. He will not have been used to it before he came here, so let's see if he can adjust to it. If he cannot, then others will suss us out by taking the examples of how we were defeated and the season will not be a good one. If JP can figure out different strategies for different situations, then we could do quite well.

So there is no game whereby the ball is hoofed up from the back, over the midfield for fast strikers to run on to? Sorry, I must have dreamt seeing that type of play used effectively by some teams who it suited.

I agree. I think that even if we taught the kids to play so-called total football so that it was second nature, rival managers would figure out a spoiling strategy to defeat it. In the same way, there are teams we play who have a particular style of play and strategy that we need to address and it is not necessarily the case that we will always prevail against those teams by playing "total" football. I will be very interested to see whether Jan figures out a strategy to beat the teams like Blackpool when we next encounter them and on that will depend where we finish up this season.

I was in the Northam, block 41 and heard very little booing at the end and it was only a token short thing what I did hear. In the second half there was some exasperation from some, as I suspect that they felt that some of the team had lost their way a bit. There was a lot of hostility towards the referee, who seemed to be a right little nitpicker and also towards Blackpool's players, who despite being big lumps, would crumple into a heap if any of our youngsters got within an inch of them. Take their goallie for example; went for a 50/50 ball, our player was uninjured, but the goallie looked as if he might have suffered a broken back, so still he lay. It turns out he wasn't hurt at all but had gone down because he was so far out of his area. He got up and didn't even have the decency to hobble a bit. Another of their players, the same thing. All of these things made it a frustrating afternoon, especially when they had won it by a penalty. In the second half, we seeme to have abandoned our total football and reverted to type, which didn't help either.

So you didn't connect the misplaced passing with our players' tiredness? When a player is tired, either physically or mentally, it can manifest itself in a lack of concentration and focus which seemed to me to be the cause of a lot of mistakes from players like Gillett who had previously been much better. It was funny going back in the car listening to JP's interview on the radio. He had mentioned the players' tiredness after playing three games in a week and I had commented to my son and an old friend that he hadn't mentioned after the Brum victory that the tiredness might be a problem on Saturday. He was very upbeat and said bring it on. And immediately after, Jimmy Case made exactly the same comment, but went on the discuss the effect of unreasonable expectations being placed on the shoulders of youngsters. From that perspective, it could be a good lesson for them to learn at an early stage of the season.

Exactly, Minty, spot on. The true realists will still be of the same mind they were before the season started. It is still early days to make any realistic forecasts. We just got a bit of a wake up call, a bit of a reality check, a reminder to keep our feet on the ground. JP should have made the connection between Stoke and Blackpool as being two similar style and make-up teams, even though they are a division apart. The youngsters are intelligent lads and capable of playing decent football. But today, Blackpool had done their homework on us and packed the midfield, denying us time a space with the ball and tactically we needed to find a solution. It seemed that they took the initiative after a while and dictated the play, which is something that we should not have allowed. I'm not sure that both Schneiderlin and Gillett should have come off together, as we lost a bit of creativity afterwards. Obviously it was thought that Wotton would add steel and that John would be a threat in the box, but it looked as if the team had not played on the training ground with Dyer, McGoldrick and John together with Lallana. It all looked disjointed to me. The team that had impressed with their youthful vitality, looked jaded today, short of a yard of pace and as a result, they weren't always first to the ball. For all that the possession statistics favoured us for parts of the game, there was little cutting edge and final product. Perhaps the new striker from Tottenham is the part of the jigsaw who would have made the difference today against a strong defensive back line. JP excused the lads by saying that they were tired after three games in a week. After the win on Tuesday, he had said that the lads couldn't wait for the next game and it couldn't come soon enough. Which was the correct position, Jan? Most of the team are youngsters and should be fit enough at that age to run around all day. The match was a valuable lesson to the players and the coach. Provided that they learn the lessons from it, it can help them to become stronger and develop. Perhaps a loss at this time is a good thing in the long term scheme of things.

That told me, didn't it? My oh my. I'm quaking in my boots. I admit that I'm very anti Lowe and have been since the morally bankrupt events of the reverse takeover. But I have also said many times that I wish that the whole lot of them would sell up and leave the running of our club to others. If what I write bothers you so much, perhaps you would do your blood pressure some good by ignoring it, or better still read up the meaning of "troll". Invariably I am responding to provocative posts by trolls rather than starting them. What is sad is that on an internet forum the stock reply to anything that is disagreeable is to say that it is b*llocks, or some other insult. But still, that is far easier than having to think of a intelligent and reasoned reply, isn't it? Pedg responded to my question in an adult and mature manner. Shame that you are not capable of the same.

Good news. Pleased to hear that one of our rising stars has committed to us, then if there are offers for him, at least we have a strengthened bargaining hand. I expect he has clauses in the contract permitting him to leave under certain circumstances, but let's just be happy with the news at the moment.

You asked Greenridge to name names of the so called Lowe Luvvies and you say that "most" of those ramming the pro Lowe bias are trolls. The word "most" infers quite a few people, so to put things the either way around, perhaps you could suggest who you have in mind as the trolls. Scooby without doubt. Who else? And these trolls take this action to stir up discontent? To what end?

A typical rambling and irrelevant response from Sundance. You know that he has totally lost the plot when he introduces personal aspects without any foundation to support it. "Wes you are not as smart as you like to think you are, in fact you are somewhat tedious and I doubt even your wife enjoys your lay back and wait for something good to happen approach to life". I must have touched a nerve, exposing the hypocrisy of his statement that anti-Lowe = anti club. He was the most rabidly anti-Crouch poster on the board, so presumably by the same token the most anti-club poster when Crouch was chairman. Or is there one rule for the pot and another for the kettle?

No it's not. You can interpret what I said any way you like, but if you want to put that twist on it, then I'll conclude that either I haven't expressed it very clearly, or your lcak of comprehension is at fault. And all the credit goes to Lowe? None to Wilde for making it possible for him to return? None to Portvliet and Wotte and indeed Hockaday? None to the players? And as the dire financial straits were the root cause of the necessity to sell the older journeymen and introduce the youngsters, then presumably by extension the former boards after Lowe's departure are to be credited for causing those conditions that helped Lowe into this situation.

Best wishes and hope that you have a speedy recovery, Mick

Your last sentence is the biggest load of rot. As half of the fanbase is anti- Lowe, then presumably you will admit that our fanbase is only half as large as it is presumed to be, or do they pay good money and waste time going to matches when they are anti-club? The sensible posters urge us to forget the boardroom politics and support the club. But from your closing statement, they cannot do that, as they are deemed to be anti-club, so no point in supporting it, is there? And just to prove what a hypocrite you are with that stand, presumably the statement holds good for the previous chairman too. Anti-Crouch = anti club? :smt075

Well said, Daren. If anybody wishes to make a stance on a matter of principle, it is entirely up to them and I suspect that their detractors wouldn't know what a principle was if it bit them on the arse, otherwise they would have respect for that stance, even if they did not agree with it. Like you, my stance is to pay match by match, not giving Lowe the satisfaction of having my money in a lump sum, but also as an indicator through falling ST sales that he is unpopular with a large section of fans. As for the couple of posters who asked John whether he had gone to the FA Cup match at Cardiff, seeking to make some point that John might be hypocritical in his stance, that was over 5 years ago. Did it not occur that John's stance might have followed events after that? Far more pertinent to enquire whether hypothetically he would go to an FA Cup final next year if Lowe was still here and the incredible came to pass.

The people who predicted doom and gloom before the season started were being pessimistic and that seemed a reasonable point of view at the time. It now looks as if there is good reason for being a bit more optimistic. But not enough time has passed to make any realistic analysis. There. I've explained it again.

No. Wrong, wrong, wrong! A realist would say that after three league games, it was far too early to express any opinion. An optimist or a pessimist might make predictions based on an impression or a hope, but that is not realism.

Sundance has already used up two of his posts, so as I'm such a pious person, timely to quote him from the good book, paraphrasing from Genesis. "Go forth and multiply" Presumably because of the expense of living in Lymington and the cost of running your yacht, you have insufficient funds to afford the £5 fee that enables you to waffle freely.

Green Tree Frog: I quite agree. It is a thread about Poortvliet. But if there are going to be those who are going to hijack it to suit their own agenda, then it must be expected that others will respond to put their side. Blame the idiot who originally came on just to say that Pearson was crap. I can't be arsed to scroll back to check who it was. And thanks Daren. Very well put.

A terrier is small compared to an alsatian, but because of its diminutive stature is capable of getting under the bigger dog and biting its balls. I believe Gillett is one of the most influential players in the squad and is adding value to his saleability at every match. I hope that we are able to keep him for a couple of seasons at least to watch him develop into a big star for us.

How many times does it have to be repeated before the message finally gets across? The realistic situation requires the passage of time to gain credence. This is a long season of 46 games. We have so far only played three in the league. There are any number of factors that can have a great influence on how things eventually turn out like injuries and suspensions. For crissakes, the transfer window is still open until midnight next Monday and there could be changes there too. Until there have been several more games played, it won't be possible to make any reasoned judgement either way without being taken for an fool. One can be pessimistic or optimistic depending on one's demeanour, but it is not possible to call oneself a realist by making snap judgements without all the facts.

I'm entirely happy to confirm that as a matter of principle, because Lowe and now also because Wilde is back in charge, I have not renewed the STs for me or my son. I continue to go to home matches, but the implication is that the two of them do not know whether they have my money or not, so cannot take my support for granted as they do the ST holders. If anybody wants to tut tut about what a poor fan I am, then go ahead. It has nothing to do with the style of play on the field and is purely based on a matter of principle. As soon as the two charlatans are gone, I will renew both STs.

As you rightly point out, Pearson was Crouch's man, whereas JP is Lowe's man. Therefore there are some who will try and rewrite history to show him in a bad light.

They had the Milan Mandaric money last season too, but that didn't stop them being relegated. Also, they have suffered three management changes since Mandaric arrived, so Pearson is up against it if he doesn't produce results. He is off to a decent start and I suspect that he has already shown some motivational skills and given belief to a demoralised squad, much as he had started to do here before he left.