Toadhall Saint Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 I think its becoming increaseingly obvious that NA is useing a rotation system for our midfield especially. If you look at last night MS Started with Hammond and with Cork on the bench. I'd like to bet that for Reading MS will start on the bench with Cork on the park and probably Hammond being replaced by Cork towards the end 15 - 20 mins to go. Personally I feel this is a great tactic as it keeps all parties happy and also helps to keep there fitness to the desired levels. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pancake Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 I'd like to bet that for Reading MS will start on the bench with Cork on the park and probably Hammond being replaced by Cork towards the end 15 - 20 mins to go. Impressive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadhall Saint Posted 19 October, 2011 Author Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Impressive. Its why I don't start topics! But I think you get my drift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benj Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 I think its becoming increaseingly obvious that NA is useing a rotation system for our midfield especially. If you look at last night MS Started with Hammond and with Cork on the bench. I'd like to bet that for Reading MS will start on the bench with Cork on the park and probably Hammond being replaced by Cork towards the end 15 - 20 mins to go. Personally I feel this is a great tactic as it keeps all parties happy and also helps to keep there fitness to the desired levels. Thoughts? Don't think so. Cork didn't start yesterday because it wasn't his sort of game and NA knew that, and as evidenced by his poor performance when he came on, was right about it. What it shows is that NA has the confidence in his judgement and tactical knowledge to drop one of our better players when he doesn't feel like it's right for them to play. An arbitrary rotation system would go completely against the way NA plays tactically, fielding the right players in the right shape to deal with what's in-front of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadhall Saint Posted 19 October, 2011 Author Share Posted 19 October, 2011 If thats the case Benji I'm fine with it but how about Hammond? He's the skipper after all - was dropped recently to the bench and not necessarily to do with tactics. This is not a go at NA in any way shape or form but when you listen to NA he always mentions a lot of games, long season etc and that all the squad will play a part. So I feel he doesn't just drop because of the opposition more a long term strategy of keeping the players at peak fitness for the whole season. Interested to know why you feel it wasn't Corks type of game tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Judging by his performance when he came on, Cork wasn't picked because he was decidedly lacking in confidence. He looked like a rabbit in the headlights, nervous and for a few minutes completely lost - which is completely at odds with his first few matches, when he was confident, strong and involved in everything. Fortunately for us, Schneiderlin and Hammond were able to cope with West Ham's utter inability to pass the ball on the floor and Cork's loss of form wasn't an issue. There's no "rotation policy", which implies change irrespective of form; Adkins is using a combination of picking players in form and picking players who suit our tactics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadhall Saint Posted 19 October, 2011 Author Share Posted 19 October, 2011 So how would Cork be lacking in confidence if prior to last night he had been playing well? Perhaps there is no offical rotation in the way you describe - I just feel that Adkins takes fitness over the long term ie the season into consideration after all he would have the stats at hand and being an ex physio he would take it into account don't you feel? When was the last time we played two consecutive games with the same central midfielders starting and finishing? There is a pattern appearing IMHO. Again not knocking NA at all in fact its praising his all round view (short & long term). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint_clark Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Cork struggled when he came on because he is a player that controls the tempo of the game, he doesn't want to have to catch up so to speak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintbob40 Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Cork's lack of confidence (!).....what nonsense. He has been one of our outstanding performers this season and possibly the calmest of the lot on the ball , and I have only missed Cardiff away in the league to date. One underhit pass doesn't make him a bad player. Its always difficult to adjust to the pace of the game and pace of the pitch for that matter when you come on as a sub in those circumstances. Give the lad a break..... As for rotation. This makes a lot of sense for the three holding mids and the other attacking mids/DC position. Our problem lies with RL who at the moment is playing every game but for the league cup. The most pleasing factor last night was that we did this without JC (but for a short period)and AL, two of our best players which bodes well for the winter when injuries and suspensions bite. The next most pleasing factor was that my old wardrobe had put a pair of football boots on and called itself Papa Buoba Diop. I seem to remember my wardrobe was quicker on the ball back in the day though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintmatt Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Don't think so. Cork didn't start yesterday because it wasn't his sort of game and NA knew that, and as evidenced by his poor performance when he came on, was right about it. What it shows is that NA has the confidence in his judgement and tactical knowledge to drop one of our better players when he doesn't feel like it's right for them to play. An arbitrary rotation system would go completely against the way NA plays tactically, fielding the right players in the right shape to deal with what's in-front of us. The first comment in bold MAY be true but I think the the second comment in bold is an unfair justification. Very difficult to come on late on in a game of that nature Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelkel31 Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 as said many times before with nigel its horses for courses, morgan was probably the first of the names on the midfield sheet last night simply because WHam stated they were likely to overload the midde of the park and morgan has the spacial awareness and passing range to unlock that type of side. id read no more into it than that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooney Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 It is all about tactics. Something NA can impress us with, unlike Uncle George when he was as SMS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Cork's lack of confidence (!).....what nonsense. He has been one of our outstanding performers this season and possibly the calmest of the lot on the ball , and I have only missed Cardiff away in the league to date. One underhit pass doesn't make him a bad player. Its always difficult to adjust to the pace of the game and pace of the pitch for that matter when you come on as a sub in those circumstances. Give the lad a break..... As for rotation. This makes a lot of sense for the three holding mids and the other attacking mids/DC position. Our problem lies with RL who at the moment is playing every game but for the league cup. The most pleasing factor last night was that we did this without JC (but for a short period)and AL, two of our best players which bodes well for the winter when injuries and suspensions bite. The next most pleasing factor was that my old wardrobe had put a pair of football boots on and called itself Papa Buoba Diop. I seem to remember my wardrobe was quicker on the ball back in the day though! I had heard from a couple of people that he was relatively poor at Derby, he was utterly anonymous at Cardiff and had completely stopped getting into positions to receive the ball in space OR under pressure, which he was doing excellently up at Barnsley for one, and he was all over the shop with his passing and defensive positioning until the last minute last night. At one point he was chasing out to the left midfield position only for West Ham to pick out their left back in 20 yards of space leading Cork to have to sprint half the width of the pitch to close him down in the position he was meant to be filling (he didn't get there in time and they got the cross in). He is definitely not playing to the best of his ability at the moment, it's nothing to do with "rotation" - though as it stands I'd expect him to get 90 at Palace to hopefully get himself back into the groove, as he's too good to be out of the team for long and he takes us to another level when he's doing his thing well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 Cork came on to help defend and hold a 1-0 lead, not to play his usual game which controls the midfield. We won 1-0, he did his job. If his job consisted of turning over possession cheaply in his own half, running madly out of position and creating gaps for the opposition to exploit and successfully hoofing the ball down the pitch twice in injury time, yes he did. I think he's a great player but he was awful when he came on - admittedly in a position where he's never played for Saints before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
70's Mike Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 totally agree with orginal post cannot believe we are 5 points clear playing great winning football and people are moaning about individual performances or us trying to close out game, christ NA would have got some stick if the Ammers had scored. Me i am enjoying every minute of every game as should everyone who attend betwee 2005 and 2009. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingsland Red Posted 19 October, 2011 Share Posted 19 October, 2011 totally agree with orginal post cannot believe we are 5 points clear playing great winning football and people are moaning about individual performances or us trying to close out game, christ NA would have got some stick if the Ammers had scored. Me i am enjoying every minute of every game as should everyone who attend betwee 2005 and 2009. Totally agree, during the Idiakez, Skacel,Viafara etc era it was torture to watch our inability to break through two lines of defence. Now we pass and move, slicing teams open at will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintbob40 Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 The9...do you have an agenda or are you a complete f**kwit? Cork is an outstanding player and one of the reasons we are top of the league. If you think otherwise you know the square root of f*** all about football. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avenue Saint Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 The9...do you have an agenda or are you a complete f**kwit? Cork is an outstanding player and one of the reasons we are top of the league. If you think otherwise you know the square root of f*** all about football. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Karloff Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 Is Jc not a booking away from suspension? May have had a bearing in NA's mind as he probably knew there would be bookings on Tuesday, especially given the track record of the ref. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Window Cleaner Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 Is Jc not a booking away from suspension? May have had a bearing in NA's mind as he probably knew there would be bookings on Tuesday, especially given the track record of the ref. No, Cork is on 3 yellows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ottery st mary Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 Some of the bulllsshhiiite talked about Cork in recent posts is unbelieveable... Cork and Hammond together has been superb with Spiderman/Chaplow and others coming in to make a strong midfield section. At times giving the Manager scope to rotate and use varying tactics. But first choice must be the pairing of Cork and Hammond.. I think the fact Cork had a slight knock accounted for him being used sparingly .. Cork has been brilliant .. WIFM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 The9...do you have an agenda or are you a complete f**kwit? Cork is an outstanding player and one of the reasons we are top of the league. If you think otherwise you know the square root of f*** all about football. For those with selective reading : I think he's a great player Unlike some I'm not happy to just gloss over where there have been mistakes, and I'm able to see where improvements can still be made to ensure our recent success continues. I wouldn't expect Adkins to be doing any different, and he obviously left Cork out for a reason, which I doubt was "squad rotation". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Window Cleaner Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 For those with selective reading : Unlike some I'm not happy to just gloss over where there have been mistakes, and I'm able to see where improvements can still be made to ensure our recent success continues. I wouldn't expect Adkins to be doing any different, and he obviously left Cork out for a reason, which I doubt was "squad rotation". I've watched Derby-Saints twice now and still think Cork wasn't all that good in that game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Appy Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 I agree he wasn't great when he came on against West Ham, but i think he struggled to get to grips with the tempo of the game. If i'm right it's the first time this season he has come on as a sub, so i'll give him the benefit of the doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SNSUN Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 re: Squad rotation, all I can say is I'm glad I'm not the manager. Chaplow, Morgan, Dean and Cork is four top midfielders at this level fighting for effectively two spots. For this, and so much more, I give Adkins respect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colbury Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 Lol @ the cork comments. He is a class act and one of our best performers this year. The other night was the first time I've seen him misplace a pass all season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sour Mash Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 Lol @ the cork comments. He is a class act and one of our best performers this year. The other night was the first time I've seen him misplace a pass all season. Completely agree, the lad is top class and has been all season. However, I think he was at fault for Derby's goal (?), not sure if that had anything to do with him being dropped to the bench? Probably not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Appy Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 Completely agree, the lad is top class and has been all season. However, I think he was at fault for Derby's goal (?), not sure if that had anything to do with him being dropped to the bench? Probably not. I doubt it seeing as he started against Derby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sour Mash Posted 20 October, 2011 Share Posted 20 October, 2011 I doubt it seeing as he started against Derby. ? Think you might have misread my comment. Cork's error leading to Derby's goal, then he's dropped to the bench for West Ham game. As I said, unlikely anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 I've watched Derby-Saints twice now and still think Cork wasn't all that good in that game. I didn't go, but that was certainly the impression I got from my usual crowd who did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 I will readily accept that him being the poor sod who has to come short for the Suicide Short Goal Kick can't be helping matters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Appy Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 ? Think you might have misread my comment. Cork's error leading to Derby's goal, then he's dropped to the bench for West Ham game. As I said, unlikely anyway. Apologies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitch01 Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 Great player, had a dodgy first 5 when he came on. End of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitch01 Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 Probably more to do with Fonte's error than Cork's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The9 Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 Great player, had a dodgy first 5 when he came on. End of. Probably more to do with Fonte's error than Cork's. I thought you said "End of" ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitch01 Posted 21 October, 2011 Share Posted 21 October, 2011 I thought you said "End of" ? Ah, I've been bested! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now